Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
S ara had captured it all. She’d decided to leave her Stetson at home today but she loved that Kieran had made sure to wear his. No one would doubt those two guys were related.
She had their laughing fit on video and stills of all the other precious moments. The emotions they couldn’t find when they’d first arrived at this gravesite had finally spilled out of them, the sorrow, the laughter, the love.
No telling how they’d react to her paparazzi behavior. They’d had no idea the cameras were rolling. She’d keep the extra pictures and video to herself for now. If they didn’t want them, she did.
She’d grabbed those images without hesitation, desperate to save something of Kieran. Losing him completely at the end of the week was unthinkable. No point in denying it. She loved him.
When they moved away from the headstone and walked toward her, she quickly scrolled to the three shots most likely to work for the project. They approved her choices. Then Lucky gave her his number and she transferred the pictures to his phone.
Their exit from the graveyard was much faster and more cheerful than their entrance. They paused in the parking lot while Lucky sent the images to Molly along with an explanation.
The trip to L’Amour and More took all of three minutes. Sara offered to be the official photographer inside the bookshop, too. She had a ready excuse — Kieran was free to interact with Lucky and Oksana while they proudly showed off their beloved shop.
Whenever a candid shot turned out especially well, she texted it to his phone. He’d have plenty of images to choose from the next time he sent Granny pictures.
When Oksana suggested getting some shots of Sara with Kieran, she nixed the idea. Better not to have any evidence that his granny might see. She’d have questions and they had no answers.
After Kieran had explored the bookshop and chosen two hardback copies of Desiree’s first book to take home, he was ready to tackle the drive to the ranch. They walked the short distance to Hannigan’s, where his small white sedan sat right where he’d left it.
He glanced at the entrance to Hannigan’s. “Should I see if Justine’s there and tell her the news?”
“Do you want to?”
“I do, but not now.” He pulled the keys out of his pocket. “I’d rather get this drive over with.”
“Let’s do it.”
“Then in you go.” He opened the driver’s side door.
She glanced at him in confusion. Was he hoping she’d take the wheel? “Sorry, but I can’t. It would be against your rental agreement for me to drive.”
“I wasn’t asking you—” He looked inside the car. “Oh.”
“Ah. You thought that was the passenger side.”
He gave her a sheepish grin. “I did, yeah. Let’s try this again. Come with me.” Leaving the door open, he walked around the back of the car and opened the front passenger door with a flourish. “In you go.”
“Thanks.” She slid onto the warm seat. The interior had been spritzed with something to make it smell better. She didn’t agree with the choice.
Climbing behind the wheel, he laid his hat on the dash. “Scundered again.” He shut the door, which made the smell more pronounced.
“Which means?”
“I embarrassed myself.”
“Hey, I promise you I’d do the same thing in Ireland.”
He looked at her and grinned. “Thanks for saying that. And you would. One of my mates works at a car rental and the stories he tells are gas.” He latched his seatbelt. “I was just trying to impress you with my cowboy manners. These McLintock fellas could teach me a thing or two. ”
“I happen to think you’re fine the way you are.”
He looked at her, a question lurking in his eyes. “Is that so?”
“Last night you asked whether I’d consider you if the problems magically disappeared.”
His gaze sharpened. “I did ask that, yeah.”
“I would.”
His face relaxed into a beautiful smile. “I knew it!”
“You did not!"
“You gave yourself away, lass, taking all those extra pictures at the cemetery. Even a video.”
Caught. She flushed. “How’d you?—”
“Lethal sharp hearing.” He leaned closer and cupped her cheek. “I’m honored that you feel the same about me as I feel about you.”
His tender gaze created a sweet ache, a longing to be held, to be loved. “It’s hopeless, you know.”
“Let’s not tell ourselves that.” He brushed his thumb over her cheek.
“But realistically?—”
“Let’s be unrealistic.”
“That will only?—”
“Make it worse at the end? Then don’t think about the end. If I could kiss you right now, you’d stop thinking and start feeling, but it’s not the place. And this car stinks.”
That made her smile. “It does.”
“Fancy putting down the windows on the way back?”
“I do.”
“Then let’s get out of here.” Facing forward, he switched on the engine, studied the buttons on the armrest and put down the windows. “Ahhh, better. I was afraid to do that yesterday, when I was up to ninety with massive vehicles on all sides.”
“You were going ninety?”
“Not really. It’s just what we say. I kept the needle around seventy-five.” Checking his mirrors, he put the car in reverse and backed out. “Also I didn’t know which button. I could hit the wrong one while I was tearing down the motorway and make my seat tilt backwards.”
“Sounds like you’ve seen Planes, Trains and Automobiles .”
“That I have.” He chuckled. “Took off my jacket before I got in because of that film.” He headed down Main Street.
“Do you know the route? Or do you need me to?—”
“I’m fine. I paid attention when we drove to the ranch yesterday and came back to town today. I still have the urge to go on the left, though.”
“I wouldn’t advise it.”
“What’s the limit in town?”
“Twenty-five.” She stayed quiet as he navigated his way to the two-lane that would take them out to Rowdy Ranch. “The limit on this road is seventy in the daytime and sixty-five at night.”
He increased his speed to forty-five. “If I do seventy, you’ll be blown to bits.”
“But if we put up the windows we’ll be stuck with the smell.”
“I’ll keep it at forty-five for now and let this fella go ahead of us.” Thrusting his arm out the window, he waved the truck around. As it roared past, he glanced in the rearview mirror. “That’s it for now. Not much traffic on this road.”
“The McLintocks hope it’ll stay that way. As word gets out about M.R. Morrison, they want to keep the ranch’s location a secret.”
“Think they will?”
“It could be a challenge. Stephen King fans are wild to see his house and the iconic locations in Bangor, Maine. Those tours are always fully booked. I think Desiree’s a little worried about maintaining the family’s privacy.”
“Speaking of privacy….” He glanced over at her. “Have you copped to the opportunity we’ve been given?”
“You mean being alone in this car?”
“It’s more than that.”
“Hang on, mister. I like you a lot, but not enough to have back-seat sex in the boonies in the middle of the day.”
“We don’t need a back seat. Rance is at work.”
It took a second, but then she sucked in a breath and glanced at him. “I totally missed that.”
“Not only is he at work, so is everybody else.”
Her body began to tingle. “And my family’s in Missoula. We’re left to our own devices.”
“So we are.”
“Is that the real reason you didn’t want to go talk to Justine?”
He laughed. “It was, yeah.”
“Then why are you poking along at forty-five?”
“Didn’t want to blow you to bits.”
“Can I borrow your hat?”
“Sure.”
Scooping her hair into a high ponytail, she flipped it on top of her head and crammed on his hat. “Pedal to the metal, cowboy!”
With a whoop, he stomped on the gas and the little sedan shot forward.
She kept her hand on his precious hat so it wouldn’t fly out the window as they raced down the highway. Although she avoided looking at the speedometer, she kept an eye out for Smoky. “You’ll need to go way slower on the ranch road!” she called out over the rush of air through the open windows.
“Understood!” He flashed her a grin.
Oh, yeah, she loved this Irishman. She could hardly wait for him to take her in his arms. He’d promised to help her escape reality. And he was a man of his word.