by Fiona Starr
“She said that I should get the gold digger’s hands off my bank account and then talk to her. It doesn’t get any clearer than that. I’m up to my eyeballs trying to extricate myself from a marriage to a viper who wants only my money.” I turn to look at Allen. “Back me up here, man!”
“He’s telling the truth about his divorce, but for the rest…” He shakes his head. “You’re on your own, my friend.”
Madeline’s friend falls back against her chair, eyes wide. “Oh my goodness. I think I know what’s going on here.”
It takes Lacy and me a couple of minutes to realize that Madeline and I not only met without any intervention on Allen’s part, but that our situations are eerily similar. Granted, she managed to cut her viper away before he locked her in, whereas I’m still fighting mine.
I rub my eyes, still stinging from the beer, and try to process all that’s happened today since meeting Madeline. Allen didn’t send her. Which means… the connection we had, everything that happened in the garden today wasn’t a fiction.
“I don’t know what to do.” I look at Allen and then back at Lacy.
Allen says, “I’ve never known you to shy away from anything.”
Lacy picks up the cluster of quince and hands it to me. “She could really use something real right about now.”
And that’s all it takes.
I am on my feet and out the door of the pub and racing down the lane toward home.
MADELINE
I have no idea what just happened. The weird argument with Gerry felt so at odds with the heat I felt when he touched me. I think something must be wrong with me. Like really wrong. Like hospital wrong.
I hear footsteps running in my direction and I turn expecting Lacy but instead it’s him. His shirt and jeans are stained dark from my beer and his hair’s slicked back with the wet.
“What do you want? I don’t know how to convince you but I swear what happened today wasn’t a game. I have no appetite for games.”
He’s winded from running. “I know. I’m sorry. Lacy explained.”
The thought of Lacy telling him anything I shared with her about Gerry brings heat to my face.
He’s sees my embarrassment and reassures me. “Oh, no… she didn’t share about anything from today… with us…” He smiles and his cheeks flush with heat of their own. “No, your friend told me what you meant about the gold digger. About what you’re going through right now.”
“Oh.” Will the humiliation ever go away? I start walking again.
He walks next to me and continues talking. “Yes. And, well, you see. I am in the throes of a rather nasty divorce at the moment, and my ex… well, it was never real. She was in it for the money too. It’s been a year of fighting and all she cares about is her bank account. So I thought when you said that about the gold digger…”
I stop and look in his eyes and I think he’s telling the truth. I can’t believe this is happening. “You thought I was talking about your situation.”
“Precisely.” He lifts the little cluster of quince and offers it to me. “Forgive me?”
I smile and take the flowers. “Forgiven.”
We turn and continue walking along the lane back to the castle. I am so aware of the heat coming off him that my skin prickles when he gets close to me. There’s something about him that sings to something inside me. I can’t explain it… and I am not sure I want to.
“We haven’t properly met. I’m Madeline Blaze.” I offer my hand and he takes it and seems to pause a second before responding.
“Gerard Cosgrave. My friends call me Gerry.” He smiles.
My body responds to every movement he makes. It makes me nervous and I am afraid to accept it, to allow it. What is happening to me?
He clasps his hands together. “Since I made an absolute mess of things back at the pub, I wonder if I might buy you dinner?”
I roll my eyes and cringe in horror at the scene I made. “I think I am responsible for a lot of that mess, too.”
He smiles. “This is true. And yet, that does nothing to satisfy my hunger.”
“Then I guess we should find you some dinner… after you get changed. Are you staying at the hotel?”
He smiles and nods. “Yes, you could say that.”
GERARD
We walk around the castle, past the main entrance and I lead Madeline through the west gate toward the guest house. On this side of the castle, the gate separates my private residence from the public main house and hotel. It’s quiet and shielded for the most part, and our footsteps echo on the gravel drive.
“Wow, who do you know with Blackthorn to get put up here?” she asks.
“Blackthorn?”
“The band, you know… the reason everyone is in town this week?”
“Oh, of course. No. I am not here with the band event. I live here.”
“You live here…” She seems to think this over for a moment. “Not bad for a groundskeeper.”
“Groundskeeper?”
“You know… the guy who tends the secret north gardens and chops all the firewood… for some reason in a kilt…”
She looks so serious. Part of me doesn’t want to tell her. But after everything that’s happened I am not going to let any misunderstandings slip by. Besides, according to Lacy, she’s got no reason to be wowed by my fortune.
“Do you know the name of this castle?” I ask.
“Glenkerry, isn’t it?”
“Yes, that’s the more popular name, I guess. It has another name.”
“Oh, no. I have no idea.”
“It’s also called by its original name, which is Castle Cosgrave.”
“Cosgrave? Didn’t you say your name was Cosgrave?”
“I did.”
“So this is your castle?”
“Well, my brother Beckett and I are the heirs, but it belongs to our family.”
We arrive at my door and I invite her inside while I change out of my wet clothes. “I’ll only be a minute.” I take the stairs two at a time and leave her in the foyer. When I was a boy, this was used as a guest house and it was crawling with servants. But now it’s just me and I don’t like to leave Madeline alone.
I hurry to change and pull a sweater over my tee shirt as I head back to Madeline. She has stepped into the small library is looking at one of the tall portraits hanging between the book shelves.
“That’s my ancestor, the one who built this castle. James Cosgrave, Duke of Artane.”
“A duke? That’s impressive.”
I shrug. “I’m so far down the line of succession it’s never been my concern. I’m more involved in the family business, myself.”
“Me too, with family business,” she says. “What is yours?”
“Cosgrave Textiles. You?”
“Blaze Resorts.”
“A hotel heiress? Why didn’t you say so?”
She shakes her head. “Excuse me, sir.” She tries to sound offended. “I earn my keep. You’re speaking to the CEO of Blaze Mountain Ski Resort. Madeline Blaze, Esquire.” She wraps her fingers over my arm and pulls me to her.
She’s close enough that I can hear her breathing.
“A lawyer and an heiress? Forgive me,” I whisper.
“And a CEO.”
“I never meant to presume.”
“And I never meant to presume you were just part of the landed gentry.” The words make her smile. “Have you ever felt like you stepped back in time?”
I think about the Historical Society and the ancient ceremonies we hold where we’re all dressed in kilts and wearing hats. “Sometimes.”
She looks up at me and her eyes are smiling. “I’m sorry. The irony of all of this is…” She tips her chin up.
I lean down and close the gap, brushing my lips against hers. “It is something.” I kiss her once, slowly.
She pulls away, her hand on my chest. “Does your brother live with you?”
I’m confused. “No. Why do you ask?”
&nbs
p; She stretches up and kisses me again. “So, what you’re saying it that we have the house to ourselves?” She smiles wickedly.
“Oh, yes we do.”
Chapter Nine
MADELINE
I press myself against Gerry and he steps backward until he’s leaning against the wall. When I kiss him I feel like I am floating, like the weight of every single worry is lifted and taken away. And then we come up for air and the heavy world returns. I can’t bear it. I want to stay in the bubble we make when we touch.
He turns us around and walks backward, pulling me, leading me to a wide window seat. He sits on the heavy cushion and pulls me to him, our lips never parting. I straddle him and place my hands on his face, feeling his stubble, learning the contours of his jaw.
He’s got his hands around my waist, holding me close, his fingers pressing into my hips. I grind down onto him, making him groan.
“Ah stoorr,” he says. “Ah rooon.” His words get lost in his kisses on my neck. I don’t understand.
“Hmm?” I ask.
He smiles up at me. “A stór,” he says. “It means my treasure.” “A rún.” He nips my bottom lip. “It translates to my secret or my mystery or my love.”
I try to roll the r the way he does. “A stór.” But it doesn’t sound as beautiful as it does coming from his mouth. I smile and look into his eyes. Something about the words add to the mystical feel of this entire experience. “Treasure.”
“A stór, a stór, a stór…” He kisses me between the words and slips his hands under my sweater. My skin burns under his touch.
“My god, I can’t stand it.”
“What? What’s wrong?” He looks concerned.
“Wrong? Gerry, nothing. Nothing at all.” I peel off my sweater, leaving only my tee shirt and bra.
He helps me out of my shirt and he kisses the tops of my breasts, cupping them in his hands as he moves to undo the clasp.
I reach for his belt and then I tug at his jeans and then I’m in the air and he’s carrying me across the library. He’s holding me high against his chest and sucking my nipples as he moves across the room. I clutch him to me, running my hands through his hair as I let myself fall into the moment.
He lays me down on a long blue velvet couch and smiles as he undoes my jeans. I slip them off and then help him out of his. He crawls over me, his body thrumming with strength and energy and heat. The shape of his hardness presses against the fabric of his shorts.
Gerry lies on top of me and I spread my legs, letting him nestle down against me. He leans up on his elbows and moves his hips against mine, this time I’m the one who groans.
I run my hands along his hips and slide them inside his shorts, tugging them down, and over his erection. I love that I can bring a man to this. There’s something primal and animal about this kind of desire, and it seeps into me and makes me feel powerful, fearless.
“I want you inside me.” The words are like a key to a secret door in my mind. The door to passion and release and unbridled, raw need.
Gerry lifts me off the couch with one arm around my back and slips my panties off with his free hand. Then he places me down on the soft couch and kneels on the floor in front of me. He spreads my knees apart and kisses the tender skin on the inside of my thighs, moving up and up, toward my pussy. My clit is throbbing as he gets ever closer to home.
He presses his mouth over me and the heat of his breath sends a thrill up my spine. I arch my back and spread my legs wider, wider, inviting him inside. His tongue darts once, twice, testing me, tasting me, and bringing a whimper to my throat.
“Yes,” I breathe. “Yes, oh god.”
Then he takes my clit in his mouth and rolls his tongue over it again and again, until I grab him by the hair and ride him, letting him suck me until I am almost at the edge. Then he pulls away and the cool air startles me as he climbs up onto the couch and pulls me on top of him.
I run my hand over the head of his cock and down the silky length of his shaft. Then I get up on my knees and guide him to me, touching him to my wetness before I press down and take him inside me.
Whatever sense I had of being in a bubble when we kissed is amplified a hundred times, a thousand—as we move together. I feel as though I’ve found a part of me that I never knew was missing. He is the only man that has ever reached this part of me, body and soul.
“A stór, my treasure, please tell me you feel it, this magic, this incredible feeling of… lord, I can’t even… a chroí… my heart.”
“Yes,” I whisper and moan. “Yes. Yes.”
We reach the top together, and something inside me is changed. I can’t explain what’s just happened between us, but I will never be the same. Never.
First Epilogue
MADELINE
ONE YEAR LATER
Everyone thought we were crazy to get so excited about the prenups. They would never understand how letting go of that part of things made us both free to just love each other. And when we talk about it that’s how we describe it: We’ve never felt so free.
It seems stupid to be giddy over a wedding contract, and nobody gets it. They look at the prenup as a sign of mistrust, but for us it’s the opposite. It’s a sign that we love each other for who we are, not what we have. It’s amazing to know that there is nothing else but me for him and him for me. No distractions. No drama. Nothing but us and our life ahead of us.
Allen beams as we cap the pens and he stacks all the papers into a pile on his desk. “You two give a solicitor hope for the world.”
Gerry laughs. “Well, I don’t know about the world… but I am sure about my little corner.” He smiles at me and takes my hand and we head for home.
Outside his house behind Castle Glenkerry, Gerry parks his car and we head to the door. When we get there, he drops to one knee.
“Gerry, what’s this? I’ve already said yes.” I flash my engagement ring at him.
He pulls a red velvet box from his pocket and opens it, revealing a pair of simple gold bands; one for him and one for me. “I wanted to commemorate the day. It seems silly but I think you know what I mean when I say that I’ve found everything in you, Maddie. There is nothing else. You are all there is. A stór, a rún, a chroí.”
I know the words by now for my treasure, my mystery, my heart.
He takes the rings from the box and shows me the inside of the bands. I tilt the gold until I can make out the letters. The words are Irish, and I can’t read them, though they’re the same on both rings.
He stands next to me and slips the ring on my finger, nestling it next to my diamond engagement ring. “It says mo shíorghrá.” The words come out like muh Heer-graw.
I take his ring and slip it onto his finger. “What does it mean?”
“It means, forever my love.” He bends to kiss me.
I wrap my arms around his neck and breathe him in. “I like wearing your forever.”
He smiles a devilish smile. “I’d like to see you wearing nothing but…”
I giggle as he lifts me off my feet and carries me through the doorway.
“I’m so glad you’re mine,” I say into his ear.
“I am so glad to be yours, forever… my love.”
Second Epilogue
GERARD
ANOTHER YEAR LATER
Madeline is a vision as she walks through the sand toward me. Her tan skin glistens in the sunlight and her hair whips wild in the breeze coming off the ocean. Watching her raises a tightness in my chest and in the back of my throat.
I don’t know how I ever got so lucky to find her, but not a day goes by that I don’t thank God and all the angels for smiling on me that day in the garden. Every night, before I close my eyes to sleep, I whisper thanks to my guardian angels.
Before Maddie, my future didn’t seem dark, it was completely obscured. It didn’t exist. I was so caught up in my ex and the fighting that I no longer had the ability to look forward to anything. In the moment, it felt good to fight. But now
I see how heavy it all was. How hateful, and draining.
But now, that all seems like a distant memory; a shadow on the past that grows smaller with each passing moment I get to spend with Madeline, this woman who has brought all the light into my world.
She smiles and slips her hand into mine. I bring it to my lips and press a kiss onto her warm skin.
“You ready?” I ask.
Her dark blue eyes smolder with the reflection of the ocean and I feel the familiar sense that I could get lost in that sea forever, and happily.
“I’ve never been more ready for anything.” She turns and smiles at the crowd of people gathered behind us.
Both Maddie and I wanted a simple ceremony. The feeling of freedom that started our relationship has spilled over into everything we’ve done since.
There’s no need to complicate anything by being fussy or demanding. We planned for just the two of us at the altar, and invited our family and friends, without worrying about guest lists or seating arrangements.
She has more family than I can count, and between her family and mine, and all of our friends, there must be five hundred people, all barefoot and smiling, standing here to witness our little wedding in the sand.
I catch Allen’s gaze and nod as I turn to face my love. He raises his glass in salute.
Maddie laces her fingers through mine as we wait for the minister to begin the ceremony. “I know we said we only wanted the two of us here,” she says, her voice soft on the breeze.
I laugh and tip my head back toward all of our people. “I think word got out about our secret plans,” I whisper.
She bites her lip. “Yeah. You could say that.”
“But it’s still just us. You and me, love.”
She pulls my hand down and presses it to her abdomen, the thin silk of her dress slides under my skin. “What if I told you there was someone else coming to crash the party?”
