Kate Hoffmann - Riley

“I think you need to kiss me again,” he said.

She leaned over the bed and brushed her lips over his.

“Just do that every few minutes and I promise, I’ll try to be happy.”

RILEY PARKED IN the loading zone at the airport, pulling over to the curb before turning off the ignition. Nan had insisted that they say their goodbyes outside the airport rather than dragging it out until the very last second.

She fought the lump of emotion in her throat, leaning against Riley and hugging his arm. “It seems like years since you picked me up. And why did you pick me up in that clown car when you had this car?”

Riley chuckled. “I had new tires put on it in Limerick that morning. That’s why I was late. But then, you were late, too.”

“I didn’t like you very much. I thought you were really full of yourself. But I was wrong.”

“And I thought you were the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.”

“You thought I was a flake,” she said.

“A very beautiful flake,” he said. “But I was wrong, about the flake part.”

She took a long, deep breath, trying to control the emotions that threatened to turn her into a sobbing idiot. “All right. So, we’re just going to say goodbye and then you’ll kiss me and that will be it.”

Riley nodded. “Goodbye, Nan.”

She smiled, tears filling her eyes. “Goodbye, Riley.”

He pulled her into a long, deep kiss, lingering over her mouth until a car behind them beeped their horn. He held her close, his forehead pressed against hers. “Call me as soon as you get home.”

“I will.”

“I love you, Nan.”

Her heart stopped and for a long moment, she couldn’t breathe. “I love you, Riley.” Knowing that she couldn’t take much more, she opened the door and hopped out, pasting a smile on her face. She pulled her bags from the backseat, then stepped onto the sidewalk. Riley got out of the car and joined her, wrapping his arms around her and giving her a fierce hug.

“Go,” he murmured, kissing the top of her head. “Before I lock you in my car and take you back home with me.”

Nan nodded, then stepped out of his embrace. One last look was all she could manage before she turned toward the entrance. The first step was the most difficult, but Nan put one foot in front of the other and walked through the sliding glass doors.

At the last minute, she looked back and saw him standing outside, watching her leave. He raised his hand to wave and Nan bit back a sob. She gave him a quick wave then strode through the airport.

She was grateful that the Shannon Airport had an office for U.S. Immigration and Customs. The last thing she wanted to do at the end of her trip was wait in line to declare the few things she’d purchased. Nan stood in line and when she reached the agent, she pulled out her passport.

The American woman struggled with her first name. “Tiernan,” Nan explained. “Like tears that you cry. Not tires on a car.”

“Where do you live?” the agent asked.

“Madison, Wisconsin.”

“How long have you been in Ireland?”

“Not long enough,” Nan murmured. She glanced up. “Ten days. And nine nights.”

“Has anyone asked you to bring anything into the U.S.?”

“No,” Nan said.

“Have you received any gifts while you were here in Ireland?”

She held out her hand. “This ring.” Nan stared down at the claddagh, the silver heart glinting in the light. She remembered the moment he’d given her the ring, in the fitting room at Burkes. And then again, on top of the wall at the old abbey. The ring had been a pledge, he just hadn’t said the words.

“He loves me,” Nan murmured.

“What?”

“I don’t think I can do this,” Nan said.

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t want to leave. Can I go back?”

“Why don’t you want to board your plane, ma’am?”

“I don’t want to leave him,” Nan said. “He asked me to stay and I told him I had to go home. But he was right. I don’t need to go back. I can stay here with him and be happy.”

“Ma’am, your visa is only for three months.”

“It-it doesn’t make a difference. Can I have my passport back?”

The agent slid it across the counter and Nan grabbed it. “I’m going back,” she said, stepping away from the desk.

The agent smiled. “Good luck. And make sure not to overstay your visa.”

Nan smiled. “Thanks. But I’m an Irish citizen. I can stay as long as I want.” She hurried back to the exit, digging through her purse to find a credit card. She’d have to rent a car, but this time around, she knew how to drive in Ireland. “Bring on the stick shift,” she muttered. “I can handle anything.”

There was a long line at all of the rental desks and it took nearly fifteen minutes to reach the agent. She put down her credit card. “I need to rent a car,” she said. “Something small. A Fiat if you have one.”

“Do you have a reservation?” the agent asked.

“No, do I need one?”

“I’m afraid all our cars are booked,” the agent said. “Try Enterprise.”

Grabbing her luggage, Nan got into another line, but the story wasn’t much different. She didn’t have a reservation. There might be a car available in an hour or two. If she wanted to upgrade to a luxury car for a ridiculous amount, there was a car available now.

She grabbed a wad of cash from her wallet and headed for the money changer. She had Irish money left, but not enough to get her to Ballykirk. This time, she would convince a cabbie to take her. She put three hundred euros on her credit card and then walked back to the front door.

The cabs were waiting in a long line and she hurried to the first one, leaning into the passenger side to speak to the driver. “How much to take me to Ballykirk?” she asked.

“Is that near Bantry?” he asked.

She nodded. “It’s about an hour each way. Two hours round trip.”

“Two-fifty,” he said.

“I’ll give you three hundred,” she said.

“Hop in,” the driver said.

She felt a tap on her shoulder. “Excuse me, do you have a light?”

Nan froze, the sound of his voice sending a thrill through her body. She slowly turned to find Riley standing behind her. This time, when the tears filled her eyes, she didn’t try to stop them. “You’re still here,” she said.

“I decided to wait until your plane left. Just in case you changed your mind.”

“Lass, are you getting in?”

“She has a ride,” Riley said.

“With me,” the driver said. “She agreed to pay me three hundred.”

“Listen, fella, she’s my girl. I think I’ll be taking her wherever she wants to go.”

The cabbie held up his hands. “No problem. I didn’t want to drive to Ballykirk anyway.”

Nan threw her arms around Riley’s neck and hugged him tight. “How did you know I’d come back?”

“I didn’t,” he said. “I just hoped.”

“I was stupid,” she said. “I don’t want to leave. I don’t need to leave. I want to stay with you for the rest of the summer.”

“And what about after that?”

“We’ll figure that out later,” she said.

“No,” he said. “If you love me, I want to be with you forever. Not just a few more weeks.”

She drew a deep breath. “Then I’ll stay forever,” Nan said. “This is where I belong.”

“Well, then, I think we should go home,” he said.

Nan looked up at him and smiled through her tears. “Yes, let’s go home.”

“The car is in the car park. And don’t think I’m going to be carrying your luggage this time around.” He grinned, then stepped off the curb to cross the street.

“Maybe I will take that cab,” she said.

“All right,” he said, grabbing her suitcase and dragging it along behind him. “Don’t get your knickers in a twist.”

“My knickers are none of your business,” Nan said.

“I beg to disagree, Miss Galvin. I happen to be very well acquainted with your knickers. Especially that lovely little thong you like to wear.”

“If you’re not nicer to me, you’re not going to be seeing my knickers for a very long time.” He stopped and held out his arm and Nan slipped beneath it. “That’s much better.”

“Are you hungry, then, or can we just drive home and go right to bed?”

“I could eat,” Nan said.

Riley kissed her on the top of her head, pulling her close. “God, I do love you, Nan.”

“I know,” she said. “And it’s a feckin’ miracle.”

Kate Hoffmann began writing for Harlequin Books in 1993. Since then she’s published sixty-five books, primarily in the Harlequin Temptation and Harlequin Blaze lines. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys music, theater and musical theater. She is active working with high school students in the performing arts. She lives in southeastern Wisconsin with her cat, Chloe.