by Gavin Green
*
"Cheers, Katie," Jane said excitedly, "I think those are grand ideas!"
"They won't interfere with anything you had in mind?"
With a grin and a chuckle, Jane replied, "I really haven't given it much thought yet, to be honest, so I didn't have much in mind at all. Hold on," she said as she dug into one of her pants pockets to retrieve her phone, "let me get this down so I don't forget." Jane fiddled with buttons and then looked up. "Okay, what was the name of that song mam and da always danced to on their anniversary?"
"It's called 'Irish Heartbeat'," Kate answered with a soft smile of reminiscence. "It's by Van Morrison, who was before our time. It's still a brilliant auld tune, though. Just look up the lyrics online; I wouldn't think they'd be hard to learn." While her sister typed into her phone, Kate added, "They'll adore your rendition of it, Janie."
Jane stopped typing for a moment to look up at her sister and smiled in response. She looked back to her phone, hit a few more buttons, and then said, "Now what song did you want me to sing in Irish?"
"Here," Kate said as she reached for her grocery-list pad, "I'll just write down a few options. They all make me think of Brody, so anyone of them will do. Whatever translates best, I suppose. Oh, and you should really showcase Mac's skill on mandolin... and yours on guitar, for that matter. You've got a fair hand at it, Jane. Admittedly, Macklin's talent almost rivals your voice, but you're much more proficient than just strumming rhythm chords."
"Nice of ya to say, sis, even though I'm pure shite on strings compared to him. So, like what; maybe something tired and trad, like 'Swallow Tail Jig'?"
"Sure; I don't think that dead horse would mind another few whacks."
They were both giggling when the front door opened. With Mac and the dogs a few steps behind him, Brody came in and stepped into the living room where he could see the women at the kitchen table.
"Keep it private for a bit," Kate quickly said to her sister.
Forcing a smile, Brody said to Kate and Jane, "Look who we found."
The women turned their heads to face Brody as Mac stepped up next to him. Jane's first thought was that, although she knew Mac to be strong and fit, he looked rather puny standing next to the huge Yank. Then she noticed something on her fella's shoulder, like how a pirate would carry a parrot. She was about to ask where he found a girl's doll and why he would perch it on his shoulder, when it spoke.
"Conas deas a fheiceann tú arís, Miss Kate," Liadan said from Mac's shoulder.
"It's good to see you again as well, Liadan," Kate said as she got up and went around the table to stand next to Jane, who was still seated. Kate glanced down and saw Jane's mouth hung slack while she stared at the tiny fae.
Liadan floated off of Mac's shoulder and toward the ladies. With a dimpled smile, she looked down at the wide-eyed young woman and said, "And who might this fair lassie be?"
When Jane didn't immediately reply, Kate said, "This is Jane, my younger sister." She gave her sister's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Jane, this fine fae is Liadan, whom we've told you so much about."
"Savage," Jane said softly as she continued to stare.
Liadan glanced at Kate, whose cheeks were coloring from embarrassment. "Yes, well..." she replied as she looked back to Jane with another warm smile, "Savage to you too, dear."
