Kellan thought about the night Gelsey had sent him out in the rain. She’d stood in the door and watched him, her eyes alight with amusement. Would she remember that moment in the same way?
“Will Gelsey be coming for Christmas Eve tonight?” Jordan asked.
“I haven’t talked to her since yesterday. I decided I ought to give her a chance to cool off. But I’m going to drop her Christmas present at Winterhill later this afternoon. Hopefully, she won’t slam the door in my face.”
“Why would she do that?”
“Because, in addition to being a romantic, I can sometimes be a Bombay shitehawk.”
“And what exactly is that?”
“An arse of the first order,” Kellan replied. “I didn’t really handle the situation very well yesterday. She didn’t take kindly to my suggestions. And I guess I don’t blame her. She has plenty of money, so she doesn’t have to keep a job for the wages.”
“You better take more than a gift over there,” Jordan warned. “You better have a full-blown apology ready.” She glanced around once more, then nodded. “Have you taken measurements?”
“I have,” Kellan said. “I’ll text them to your mobile.”
“And I’ll get to work on the boards. I can probably have them done in three or four days, unless it gets too crazy before the wedding.” She pushed up on her toes and kissed Kellan’s cheek. “Dinner is at seven, gifts at nine and Midnight Mass after that. Don’t be late. Your mother has been working all week on this.”
“I won’t. I’m going to head over to Winterhill right now. I’ll be back in plenty of time.”
Kellan wandered through the shop once more, making mental calculations of the cost for renovation. Though Maeve had an existing business, it might appeal to Gelsey to build something from the ground up. He walked to the rear of the shop and looked through the window in the door. An old stone building that used to serve as a carriage house stood close enough to connect the two. If Gelsey wanted to make a product, he’d design a beautiful workroom for her, too.
But as Kellan walked back through the shop to the front door, he realized that before he could sell Gelsey on staying in Ballykirk, he’d have to convince her of his feelings for her. There was one gift that could do the trick, one thing that he had in his possession that would prove they were meant to be together.
Winter had arrived in southwest Ireland. Rain was coming down in sheets and it was almost cold enough for snow. A white Christmas was a rarity in county Cork, but Kellan never stopped hoping.
He jumped in the car and headed for the pub. His mother would have wrapping paper and ribbon, something he couldn’t find at the cottage. She also made the best fruitcake. It probably wouldn’t hurt to take a loaf along for Gelsey’s housekeeper, Caroline.
The wind blew in behind him and Kellan shook the water out of his hair as he stood at the door. Christmas Eve was always celebrated in the large room at the pub. The door was closed to the regular patrons at three in the afternoon and Maggie Quinn took over, arranging gifts under the tree, setting the long string of tables for dinner and finishing the last of the meal preparations in the kitchen behind the bar.
“Hey, Ma.”
“Oh, you’re here. Come help me with these tables. Every one of them wobbles. I swear, I’m tempted to toss them all out on the curb and have your father order new.”
“You could just buy a few long tables to use for the holidays,” Kellan suggested. “I’ve got a few in my office in Dublin that we use for blueprints.”
“I’ll put that on my list for next year.”
Kellan helped her shove folded cardboard beneath the wobbly legs and when they’d made a table long enough for eighteen, he watched as she laid the table linens over them all, turning the scarred pub furniture into an elegant dining table.
“Look what Jordan found,” Maggie said, holding up a length of red fabric. “Chair covers. They’ll make the table even more beautiful. And a table runner. She has such good taste, that girl. Not that Nan doesn’t. She’s picked out music for us tonight.” Maggie glanced over at Kellan. “And what about Gelsey? Will she be joining us?”
Kellan shook his head. “No. I don’t think so.”
“There’s plenty of room at the table.”
“I know. But we’re taking a bit of a holiday from each other. I’m going to drive over to Winterhill and drop off her gift. I’ll invite her, but I wouldn’t plan on her coming.”
Maggie paused. “Is everything well with you, then?” she asked.
Kellan nodded. “Yeah. I love her, Ma. She’s really something. And you’ll love her, too.”
Maggie reached out and placed her palm on his cheek. “If you love her, Kellan, I know I will. Just follow your heart and you’ll never go wrong.”
“Thanks, Ma,” he murmured. “Now I have to steal some paper and ribbon. I have to wrap her gift.”
“Upstairs on the kitchen table. Take the silver foil and the gold ribbon. And one of those little gold glitter bells to make it pretty. What are you going to give her?”
“Something that I’ve been holding on to for a very long time.”
9
GELSEY SAT IN THE DARKENED ROOM, staring into the flickering fire. Nearby, an elaborately decorated Christmas tree twinkled with tiny white lights. Everything was exactly as she remembered it, the house smelling of freshly baked gingerbread and pine boughs.
She’d driven to Cork to shop that morning, picking up presents for Caroline, Nan and Jordan. They lay wrapped beneath the tree. She’d struggled with a present for Kellan, unable to decide on anything suitable. She’d looked at expensive watches and interesting books, designer clothes and antique fountain pens, but nothing seemed right.
It might have helped if she knew where she stood with him. But since their argument the day before, Gelsey had been too embarrassed to call him. And he’d obviously been too angry to call her. Things had been so perfect between them and now everything had fallen apart.
She pressed her palm to her heart, aware of the ache that had settled there. Over and over, she’d questioned her feelings for him, but now, faced with a life all alone, she’d come to realize that she was in love with Kellan.
Her days and nights meant something when she was with him. She wasn’t just racing through life, she was actually living it, breathing it all in and savoring each moment. She’d tried to think about her time with Antonio and not one second could be marked as memorable. But every moment with Kellan had been etched into her mind, a vivid picture of perfect happiness.
Last Christmas had been spent on a beach in Thailand, drunk on champagne after Antonio had presented her with a diamond engagement ring, the same ring she’d thrown into the sea. Everything in her life had changed and yet, she didn’t regret a single decision she’d made.
She took a sip of her wine, then stretched her stocking feet out to the warmth of the fire. She picked up her magazine and flipped through the article on Irish linens. Since yesterday, she’d been racking her mind trying to come up with an alternate plan for a shop, but everything she thought of just didn’t seem to excite her. Irish linens, rare books, designer fashions, Gaelic art, hand-crafted jewelry… She had lots of ideas, but no passion for any of them.
Her mind wandered to thoughts of Kellan. That’s where her passion focused. She could imagine the Quinn- family Christmas, laughing and teasing, everyone in a boisterous mood. Gifts spilling out from under a tree, endless plates of food. She’d never had a Christmas like that, with boundless happiness. The holidays had always brought tension between her parents, before and after the divorce.
But this Christmas would be a fresh start. From here, she’d begin to build a life for herself. And if it couldn’t be in Ballykirk, then she’d find another spot, maybe Bantry or Glengarriff. This next year was going to be even more exciting than the past month had been.
“I’ll get that,” Caroline called, poking her head in the room.
Gelsey looked away from the fire. “What?”
“The door,” Caroline said. “There’s someone at the door.”
“Oh,” Gelsey said. “Fine.” A pair of photographers had camped out on the road in front of the gate, waiting for
