Carrier of the Mark

by Leigh Fallon

  “I’m just going to drop Áine off first and then I’ll get you home. You all right with that?” Adam asked.

  “That’s fine.” The more time I got to spend with him, the better. I didn’t want this night to end.

  Áine sank into the back of the car. “That was brilliant! We should try to do fun stuff like that more often,” she said. I smiled in the darkness. I couldn’t agree more. We stopped at an entrance to a house with large iron gates and Áine jumped out and waved to us.

  “You’re not going to drive her to the door?” I asked. I couldn’t see the house up the long, dark driveway.

  “Áine takes care of herself,” Adam replied, turning the car.

  We set off back in the direction of town. “You okay?” he said, looking over at me and taking my hand.

  “I’m great. Perfect,” I answered, gazing at our entwined fingers.

  We pulled up outside my house. Dad was still out. My hand felt so right in his, like it belonged there. I didn’t want to let it go.

  He bent his head down to me, breathing in my breath, before he gently kissed my lips again. Slowly and reluctantly he pulled away. “Can I see you tomorrow?”

  “I’d like that,” I said.

  “Can I pick you up in the morning?”

  “Sure,” I murmured.

  “I’ll need your number,” he said, handing me his phone.

  Feeling light-headed, I typed my cell number into his phone and gave it back to him.

  “Thanks.” He lowered his head for one last kiss.

  Finally, I got out of the car and waved him off, still reveling in the memory of his touch. As I made it to my room, tiredness overwhelmed me. I flopped down onto the bed and fell right to sleep.

  Nine

  INTRODUCTIONS

  When I woke up, my head felt fuzzy. I didn’t know what time it was, but I knew it was Sunday and I was sure it was early. I opened one eye and moved the quilt just a little to look at the clock on my bedside table.

  Ten thirteen. “Ugh,” I groaned. Not nearly as early as I had hoped.

  I rolled onto my back and looked up at the ceiling. Then, very slowly, last night started to play out in my head. I felt warmth radiate through my body, and I lay there luxuriating in the sensations that tingled at my fingers and toes.

  “Megan, are you getting up at some point today?” My dad’s muffled voice came from the other side of the door.

  I had to break the beautiful spell to answer him.

  “Yeah, Dad, I’m awake,” I said with a grunt.

  “Want some breakfast? I’m making pancakes.”

  “Sounds great.” I stifled a groan. “I’m just going to take a shower; I’ll be down in a little while, okay?”

  “Sure,” he said, and whistled his way down the stairs.

  I crawled out of bed and walked to the window. It was another gray, damp day, with the clouds hanging low in the sky. My phone vibrated on my desk. I walked over to it. Five text messages and two voice mails.

  Caitlin, I thought to myself, shaking my head. I scanned through the texts.

  Hi! Tell all, what happened?

  Stop holding out! Text me all the gossip.

  Hello! I’m still waiting.

  Good morning, beautiful, call me when you’re awake. xx Adam

  I did a double take and read the last one again. Oh, my God. I saved his number to my phone. Then I scanned to the next message.

  Friendship on the line here!

  The two voice mails were from Caitlin too. I rolled my eyes and hit the redial key. It rang once and she picked up.

  “Megan!” she exclaimed. “Where have you been? You know the rules! You should have let me know when you got home safely! Not to mention spill all the details on what all that was about last night! What happened?”

  I didn’t feel like telling her even an edited version at the moment. I needed to clear my head first. “It’s a long story,” I hedged. “Sorry I didn’t call; I literally fell asleep the second I got home. Look, I’m hanging out with Adam today. Can we get together tonight for coffee? I promise I’ll spill my guts. Deal?”

  “Oh, you dirty hussy, you’re holding out on me,” she exclaimed.

  “No, no, it’s not that! Anyway, I’m sure you also have a lot to tell me about your night with Killian,” I prompted.

  “Oh, I do,” she replied. “Okay, text me when you get back and we’ll meet up in town. I can’t wait. Just tell me one thing: Did you snog him?”

  “Yes!”

  “Oh my God,” she shouted into the phone. “This is amazing! I can’t wait to talk later.”

  “Neither can I. Bye.”

  I read the text from Adam one more time. I had spent so long daydreaming about this moment. My finger hovered over the call button. I took a deep breath and pressed it. He picked up immediately.

  “Megan.” Just hearing him say my name sent shivers down my spine. “I’d hoped you would call. How are you?”

  “I’m fine,” I said, trying to sound relaxed.

  “You slept well. Are we still on for today?”

  “Yes, definitely.” How did he know I had slept well?

  “Great.” I could hear the smile in his voice. I imagined the way he would look, how his eyes would crease up and crinkle at the sides. It scared me a little to realize how well I knew his face and his expressions, when I knew so little about the person behind them. “I’ll pick you up at eleven thirty.”

  “Great, I’ll see you then.”

  “Oh, and…” He paused. “I meant everything I said last night.”

  I flushed. “Me too,” I breathed. “See you soon.”

  I sat down heavily on the bed. Shoot. Now I had to somehow work out how to tell my dad about Adam. And fast, since Adam was coming in less than an hour. I also had to find something to wear; my favorite jeans from last night were totally dirty.

  First things first, I said to myself, and headed for the shower. I let the hot water flow over my body and put both hands on the tiles in front of me, leaning forward and allowing the water to power down on my neck and back. It felt so good, so relaxing.

  My dad would just have to deal with this. He was lucky enough to have avoided me dating for this long. Besides, my dad already knew and liked Adam. So that was one hurdle over with, at least.

  When I was finished, I stepped out of the tub and reached over to grab a big fluffy towel. I wrapped it around me, tucking it in firmly under my arm, and brushed my teeth meticulously, followed by a round of flossing and mouthwash. This mouth would hopefully be seeing some action today. Nothing but pristine condition would do. I leaned into the mirror to get a closer look at my front teeth and caught the reflection of the window in the mirror.

  “Are you a peeping Tom now?” I said to the crow, who was peering in at me. Oh, man. I was definitely certifiable. As if talking to animals wasn’t bad enough, now I was expecting them to answer.

  “Megan! The pancakes are ready. Come on down.”

  “Coming!” I threw on a clean pair of jeans, a navy shirt, and the red Converse I had worn last night. I gave my hair a good rub with a towel, then ran my brush through it, praying to the hair gods for a good hair day.

  “There you are,” Dad declared as I walked into the kitchen.

  “What’s the big occasion?” I asked, taking in the kitchen table set with knives, forks, cups and plates, and—oh, my God, were those napkins? I sat down at my seat and helped myself to a warm pancake.

  “I need to talk to you,” he said nervously, clearing his throat.

  I looked up from my pancake into his red face.

  “I noticed you have settled in very well here, Megan. I’ve settled in myself and, well, there might be some changes in the future…”

  I looked up at him, panic-stricken. “Oh, Dad, no, please tell me we’re not leaving…”

  “No, no,” he said, putting his hand up. “It’s nothing like that. You know Petra, from the Lobster Pot.” He sat down and poured us each a cup of tea.
“She and I are sort of…” He cleared his throat. “Well, dating.”

  I looked at him in mock surprise. “Wow, Dad, I never would have guessed.”

  “You’re not mad?”

  “Mad? Why on earth would I be mad?” I asked, putting a forkful of syrupy pancake into my mouth.

  “Well, there hasn’t been anyone since your mom. I wasn’t sure how you would react,” he said, relaxing a bit.

  “Dad, I think it’s great.” I put a spoonful of sugar into my tea and stirred it.

  “Oh. I was ready for arguments. I even had a whole speech prepared.”

  “Give me some credit, would you? I’m seventeen, not nine.” I paused. “And … while we’re on the subject, I have a date myself today.” I took another bite of my pancake, then slowly sipped my tea, giving him time to digest the news. There was a range of emotions running across his face.

  “Well, I guess I should afford you the same level of maturity you gave me,” he said with a reluctant smile. “So who is he? Is he in your class?” I could tell he was making an effort to sound calm and cool.

  I smiled into my tea. “Actually, yes. In fact, you know him.”

  “I do?” He raised his eyebrows, his fork pausing on the way to his mouth.

  “It’s Adam DeRís.” I tried to sound totally casual, but failed. Anytime I said his name, I couldn’t help a tone of reverence from sneaking in.

  My dad looked at me thoughtfully. “Really? Is it serious? He seems very mature for his age.”

  “He is mature, but isn’t that a good thing? He’s very responsible. Anyway, don’t worry; it’s early days.”

  “So where are you going on your date?” he asked, clearly trying to go back into Casual Dad mode.

  “I’m not sure. He mentioned bringing me to his house to meet his family. He’s picking me up in”—I looked at my watch—“ten minutes.” I stood up and shoved the last of my pancake into my mouth. “Thanks for breakfast, Dad. It was nice. And I am totally happy for you and Petra. I have to run upstairs and finish getting ready, though.”

  “Okay. I’ll let him in when he gets here.”

  I stopped walking. “Dad, please don’t give him the third degree.”

  “Would I?” He raised his hands, the picture of innocence.

  “I mean it,” I said, and ran up the stairs.

  My hair, unfortunately, was not behaving itself. I was tying it back into a shiny ponytail when I heard the doorbell ring downstairs.

  “Let’s do this,” I said to my reflection.

  I walked down the stairs and there he was, in all his stunning glory. My memories of his face did not do him justice. He was even more gorgeous in reality. He was dressed in jeans and a black sweater, the sleeves of which were pushed slightly up, revealing his tanned, muscular forearms. Everything about him screamed effortlessly beautiful, even his clothes and his slightly messy dark hair. He was talking to my dad like they were old friends. He smiled and they shook hands.

  “Thanks for that, Mr. Rosenberg.”

  “Call me Caleb,” my dad replied warmly.

  “Thanks, Caleb,” he repeated, then allowed his gaze to shift toward me. “Megan,” he breathed, looking delighted to see me.

  “Bye, Dad! I’ll see you later. I won’t be late.” I turned to Adam. “Will I?”

  “No, of course not, we’re staying local. I thought we might have dinner with my family at my house. I’ll get you home, safe and sound, straight after.” He looked toward me for approval, and I nodded enthusiastically. There was a small awkward moment as we stood there; then I directed Adam to the door and gave my dad a reassuring smile.

  Adam stood by the passenger door, holding it open for me. I took another deep breath as I walked toward him. I sank into the car and he closed the door firmly behind me. Adam slid into the seat beside me and smiled. My stomach fluttered in response. He pulled away from the curb slowly.

  “Sorry about my dad. He can be a little overprotective.”

  “I can understand that,” he said, looking at me. “But I thought he was quite cool about us. He just told me to be extra careful with you, as you were precious to him. I told him you’re precious to me too. Anyway, you haven’t witnessed my family in action. Wait until you see them in all their protective glory.”

  I looked over to see if he was joking, but there was no hint of a laugh on his face. “Now I’m worried.”

  “Oh, you just haven’t met Fionn yet. He can be a bit … unsettling.”

  “Your guardian?”

  “Yeah. Now, he is the epitome of overprotective.” He put his hand down and took mine. “Look, don’t worry about it. They’re going to love you.”

  Doubtful. I believed Áine liked me and that we could be friends, but I wasn’t sure about Rían. My only interactions with him thus far had been the tense stare-downs across the school. And this Fionn character sounded weird.

  Adam drove along the Bandon estuary, over the low bridge, and around the bend, following the road up the river. We turned right over a tiny humpback bridge and then up through a wooded area where the road got very narrow. I vaguely remembered it from last night. He turned in through an entrance with big, heavy iron gates that looked like they had frozen in their current position years ago, and we traveled slowly up a long gravel lane that had grass growing up the middle of it. Farmland stretched out toward the horizon on either side. We finally drove under a huge stone arch in a wall and pulled into a farm yard that was walled on all four sides. “Are you ready?” He looked a little nervous, and that scared me.

  I squeezed his hand. “If you are.” I smiled up into his face.

  “With you here, I’m ready for anything,” he said quietly, and kissed me softly on my mouth.

  I reeled from the sensuous touch. Closing my eyes, I leaned into him.

  He pulled away, looking a little flushed. “Best to keep a clear head. Come on. Let’s get this over with.”

  I felt a new confidence building. I could take on the world with him by my side. Taking care on the cobblestones, we made our way to the back of the house, which had a stable door with the top half open. Adam reached inside and unlatched the bottom section.

  “Ladies first,” he said, swinging the door out and stepping to the side.

  I stepped into the gloom of a back porch with low beamed ceilings and a dark flagstone floor.

  “This is just the scullery,” Adam said, following me in. He pushed another door, which opened into a huge kitchen. All the stone walls had been painted white, and the kitchen was filled with various freestanding counters and tables. In the middle of the room was the biggest kitchen table I’d ever seen. It had massive carved legs that looked like they’d remained on the same patch of flagstone for centuries. There, sitting on one of the benches that ran along each side of the table, was Áine.

  “You came!” she exclaimed, and pushed her cereal bowl to the side.

  At that moment something flew over my shoulder. Startled, I ducked and watched incredulously as a crow—my crow—landed on the table by Áine. He tottered over to the discarded cereal bowl and started helping himself.

  “Hey, what are you doing here?” I blurted out, addressing the bird. Then I caught the mood in the room. Adam had turned a little pink, and Áine didn’t quite meet my eyes. “Hang on a second,” I said, catching on. “Is he your bird?”

  “Well, technically he’s Fionn’s, but he loves me the best. Don’t you, baby?” Áine replied, turning to the big black bird. She started making cooing noises at him as she rubbed his head and neck. I swear he smiled as he leaned into her.

  I looked at Adam suspiciously. “That bird has been following me around since I got here. He’s always peering in at me.”

  “I didn’t think you’d notice,” Adam said, his voice heavy with guilt.

  “What do you mean, ‘notice’? What’s going on?”

  Adam looked at Áine, but she stood up and edged backward. “Don’t you dare pin this one on me!” She turned to me with a smile
. “I’ll see you later, Megan,” she said, and the crow flew after her and perched on her shoulder as she stepped out into the yard.

  “What’s up with the bird?” I asked, turning back to Adam.

  “I don’t know if I’m ready to tell that story yet,” he said, not meeting my eye.

  “Well, I’m ready for you to,” I continued, a little bit irritated. “That bird has been spying on me in the shower!”

  “The dirty dog! He never told us that.”

  “What do you mean the bird never told you that?”

  “Look, can I give you the details about the bird later? I promise I will tell you everything. Let me show you around first. Please?” He looked at me with pleading eyes.

  “Okay, fine. But don’t think for one second I’m letting this go. You have a lot of explaining to do,” I said, thinking suddenly of last night’s mini-tornado.

  “I know.” His face turned serious. “More than you can possibly imagine.”

  The floorboards creaked underfoot as we made our way into the beautiful front hall.

  “This house is amazing,” I said, looking up at the high ceilings and dusty chandelier. There was a withered decadence to the faded wallpaper and chipped moldings.

  “It once was, but it’s fairly moth-eaten now,” Adam said, picking up a bit of the heavy drapes that hung over a window and pointing out a big hole. “It’s such a shame.”

  I didn’t know what to say.

  “Someday I’ll fix this place up and return it to its former glory,” he said, smiling at the wall and giving it a gentle pat. “Come on; I’ll show you my room.”

  He took my hand and led me up a creaky staircase. Halfway up, on a landing where the stairs changed direction, there was an arched blue stained-glass window. The beautiful leaded pattern cast shimmering reflections on the walls and across Adam’s face as he turned to smile at me.

  “Pretty, isn’t it?” he said, taking in my enraptured expression.

  I watched the magical reflections flicker on Adam’s face. “Yes, very pretty,” I murmured, feeling my heart flutter.

  At the top of the stairs, Adam led me into his room. After the elegant hall downstairs, his room was a bit of a shock.