countryside. Everything looked so picturesque-the vivid green hills and the whitewashed village set against the slate-blue sea. Boats bobbed in the harbor and she watched one as it slowly moved out into the bay.
Gelsey had lived in many exotic places, but she’d never felt at home. Maybe this was where she’d belonged all along. She was destined to find Kellan all these years later and to begin where they’d left off as teenagers.
KELLAN SQUINTED against the late-morning sun as he drove out of Ballykirk toward the cottage. He’d left Gelsey naked and sound asleep in his bed. After last night, he’d figured she’d need her sleep. But it was nearly noon and he’d fetched lunch from the pub, hoping that they could spend the rest of the day in bed after a hearty meal.
It was the perfect day to spend curled up beneath the sheets, he mused. A winter chill had set in and the damp wind blowing off the sea made it feel colder than it was. Christmas was three weeks away and after that, the new year. He’d made a resolution last year on New Year’s Eve to expand his professional horizons, to take jobs outside of Ireland and see a bit more of the world. And here he was, just a month away from his deadline and he still hadn’t made a decision about the project in France.
As he rounded a bend in the road, Kellan caught sight of a figure striding toward him. As he drove closer, he recognized Gelsey, her pale hair blowing in the wind. She smiled and waved. He pulled the car to a stop and rolled down the window.
“What are you doing out here?”
“A couple of your friends brought me some clothes.” She pointed to her feet. “And boots. I was coming to find you.”
“Hop in,” he said, leaning across the seat to open the passenger-side door.
She joined him inside the car, her color high, her eyes bright. Kellan knew she was a beautiful woman, but the sight of her in broad daylight was enough to take his breath away. An unbidden surge of hunger raced through him and he fought his instinct to drag her into his arms and kiss her. “So, I guess you slept well last night. You’re clearly feeling better.”
“I feel wonderful,” Gelsey said. “Good sex always does that for me.”
Kellan couldn’t help but smile. “And what would you like to do today? I have lunch.” He pointed to the paper sack in the backseat.
“Well, we could eat.” She paused as she considered her options. “And then, I’d like…”
“What?”
“I’d like you to teach me how to drive this car.”
“You don’t know how to drive?”
“I never had a reason to.”
Kellan groaned. “Don’t start with that mermaid bollocks again. I know you’re not a mermaid.”
“I was going to say that I never had a reason to learn,” she said. A tiny smile quirked at the corners of her mouth. “We don’t have cars at the bottom of the ocean. And it’s really difficult to work the pedals with flippers.”
Kellan laughed. “I’ll teach you how to drive if you tell me the truth about where you come from.”
“Why? There’s nothing wrong with exercising your imagination every now and then. Is it so hard to believe I came from the sea?”
“Why can’t you tell me the truth? Is that so hard to do?”
She stared out the windscreen, her gaze fixed on the landscape passing by. “Have you ever wanted to change your life? Just start all over again?”
“I wish I could go back and change a few things,” Kellan said.
She looked at him, curiosity filling her eyes. “Like what?”
“I had a chance to go into business with a developer a few years ago, to buy properties and fix them up and then sell them. I thought it was too risky, but now I’m thinking that risk might not be such a bad thing.”
“Why don’t you do it now?” she asked.
“I get paid a boatload to do exactly what I do best,” he said, shaking his head. “And the economy hasn’t been too good. In the end, I was right to trust my instincts.”
“I always liked to take risks,” she said. “It makes life more exciting.”
“Or more chaotic,” Kellan countered.
“A little chaos might be good for you,” she said.
“You don’t know me very well.”
Gelsey smiled. “I’m a really good judge of people. It’s one of my most amazing qualities.”
“But you can’t drive,” he said.
“I’m not perfect,” she teased.
“Close,” Kellan replied. “All right, switch spots with me and we’ll give this a go. You have to promise to listen to everything I say.”
She crawled over him, stopping at the point where she straddled his legs. “This is nice,” she murmured, her breasts in his face.
“It’s impossible to drive this way,” he murmured, staring up at her, his gaze fixed on her lips. With a groan, Kellan shoved his fingers through the hair at her nape and dragged her into a long, deep kiss. This hunger for the taste of her was so difficult to deny, especially when she was so available and so willing.
When she finally drew back, a satisfied smile curled her lips. “Is that a gearshift in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?” she teased. Gelsey giggled as she moved over him, taunting him with the friction of her body against his. “I see I’ve got your engine running, don’t I?”
Kellan held up his hands, chuckling softly. “Stop. The metaphors are torture enough. Do you want to learn to drive?”
“Yes,” she said. “As long as we can get back to this lesson later.”
“And what lesson is that?”
“The lesson that teaches you that you can’t possibly resist me.”
Kellan groaned. “I believe I learned that lesson the first day we met.”
“And it’s my duty to keep reminding you,” she said.
There was no need to do that, Kellan mused. It was painfully evident the effect she had on his body. A single kiss was enough to set him off. But his reaction hadn’t been just physical. He was developing a real affection for Gelsey.
She was smart and witty and managed to drag him out of his serious nature with just a smile. When he was with her, he didn’t dwell on his professional worries. Hell, he’d barely thought about work at all. He liked the fact that he actually had a personal life now, a reason to relax and take time off.
But how long could that possibly last? Kellan wondered. Would there come a point where they grew bored with each other, where being together seemed more like a chore than a treat?
“Switch!” Gelsey said. When she’d finally settled herself behind the wheel, she glanced over at him. “Where are we going to go?”
“Back to the cottage.”
Gelsey shook her head. “No, I want to go into town.”
“But I have lunch right here. It’s going to get cold.”
“I’m not hungry. I need to look for a job.”
Kellan frowned, taken aback by her request. “A job? What exactly is a mermaid qualified to do?”
“I don’t know. I’m very good with people, I’m clever and I’m a fast learner. I expect I could do any number of jobs. Do you need a waitress at the pub? I could do that. And I can also cook. I’m a very good cook.”
“You cook?”
She stared out the windscreen and nodded, her attention now absorbed with learning to drive. “I am very good with fish. It’s my specialty.” She looked at him and grinned. “Really. I’ll cook you dinner sometime.” Gelsey grabbed the gearshift and put it into Drive. “Ready?”
“Buckle your safety belt,” he warned.
She did as she was told, then clutching the wheel, she slowly pressed on the accelerator. To Kellan’s surprise, the car glided smoothly forward. After only a few minutes, he had reason to suspect that she’d driven before. Though she appeared a bit tense, she knew exactly what she was doing.
