Warrior Spirit (The King of Ireland Book 1)

by Jean Carroll

  “Tell her, Sean. The woman always knows instantly what’s going on,” Blackie said.

  “It’s true, Meg. As soon as she sees you, she’ll know. We’ve never been able to get away with anything. I think she’s a witch,” Sean said, laughing.

  “We have to go there to see about the horses.” Blackie said. He looked at Meg. “Do you want to get married tomorrow before we go over there?”

  “Blackie, it’s not a big rush. We could wait until the baby’s born and then have a nice wedding,” she said.

  She really didn’t know what she wanted to do about it. He was adamant about getting married right away, but she thought they should wait. She was content living with him even though it would be neat to be married.

  “Absolutely not! We’re going to be married when you have that baby.” Blackie said firmly.

  “You know, why don’t you guys calm down? I think you both should let this sink in before you rush and do anything. Let’s go to Mom and Dad’s and stay a few days, then go on to London like we planned. Like Meg said, there’s no real rush at this point. You can get married when we get back to the States. Talk it over with Jill and Keary,” Sean said.

  “I agree, Meg isn’t showing yet, so you have some time. I think it’s too new for you to decide anything,” Katie said.

  Blackie and Meg looked at each other. She smiled at him and he puffed out a big sigh and smiled back.

  “I guess it’s not a big rush. You’re right, Sean, I’m still in shock. Do we all want to go to London and Newmarket after we leave Mom and Dad’s?”

  Katie, Sean and Meg all yelled, “Yes!”

  Blackie laughed, “London it is then. Let’s wait until tomorrow afternoon or the next day to go home. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m exhausted. Actually tomorrow we could sleep in and then do a little sightseeing. The girls have never seen Ireland and it is beautiful.”

  “That sounds perfect to me. Katie, what do you say we turn in? It has been a very long day,” Sean suggested.

  “Yes, let’s all get up in time for lunch.” Katie said.

  “Good night you two,” Blackie said.

  Blackie locked the door and went over to Meg and kissed her.

  “Let’s go to bed,” he said. She could tell by the low sound of his voice what he wanted and she got a rush of desire that was overpowering. She quickly changed into a silk tank and matching panties. She was turning down the bed when he came up behind her, put his hands flat on her belly and caressed it. He had his mouth on her neck, hungrily kissing her. As he rubbed her belly, he whispered, “I love that we’re having a baby, Meg. I love you so much.”

  She moved his hands down between her legs and he moaned softly. He caressed her there until she was the one moaning. He moved his hands under her top and caressed her breasts. She could feel him behind her that he was ready. She turned around in his arms and kissed him urgently, pressing herself up against him. He moved his hands down to her butt, pulling her into him.

  “I love you,” she whispered as she kissed his mouth, his face, his neck. She felt so hungry for him, she might devour him. He moved her backward onto the bed, pulling her panties off as she lay down. She climaxed as soon as he entered her and she arched up to meet him. He groaned and pushed in harder and faster until he seemed to explode in her, gasped and was still. She kissed the side of his face, wrapped her arms and legs around him and held him close for a long time. He kissed her neck gently.

  “Meg, I’m sorry,” he whispered.

  “For what? I’m starting to love this baby already because it’s your baby. I have part of you inside me.”

  He rolled over, propping his head up on an elbow. “You’re incredible. I love you.”

  “I love you too,” she said quietly.

  He finally rolled over onto his back. “You feel like going to sleep?” he asked.

  “Yes. Good night, sweetie,” she told him and he cuddled up close to her.

  “Good night.”

  He went to sleep almost instantly. She lay there trying to go to sleep, but couldn’t. He was making little sounds that were almost child-like and feeling his body close made her hungry for him again. She couldn’t believe how her desire for him had increased lately. She knew if she waited a bit, she could get him started again, but they needed rest. She decided to let him sleep and finally drifted off herself.

  TWENTY-EIGHT

  Meg woke the next morning feeling relaxed and cozy but still tired. She turned over and Blackie wasn’t in bed. Then she heard the shower going and he was whistling! She’d never heard him whistle before. He sounded happy. She let herself fall back to sleep and came to again when Blackie walked into the bedroom. He only had on his black underwear and looked delicious. He pulled on jeans and a t-shirt and noticed she was awake. He knelt down next to the bed, cradling her in his arms and kissed her.

  “Good morning, little mommy. How are you feeling this morning?”

  “I feel good, just still tired. How are you?”

  “I feel great. I needed that sleep. I’m looking forward to site-seeing today. I have to call home first.”

  “Blackie, are you really happy about the baby?” She asked.

  “I am, yes, very much. I was shocked at first, but now I’m getting used to the idea. We’ll work things out about getting married. Do you want to do it back in the States with Keary and Jill? Then later we can have a big wedding at my parents’ house. Meg, I love you so much and I love the idea of us having a child together,” he said and kissed her. “How do you feel?”

  “I’m a little scared but I love the idea too. I think I’d rather get married back home. Are your parents going to freak?”

  “Probably, but we don’t have to tell them now.”

  “Okay, let me get up and get ready,” she said and padded into the bathroom.

  * * *

  They spent the whole day driving through the Irish countryside, visiting the churches, castles, county festivals.

  She was falling in love with this country of Blackie’s. He obviously loved it here and she could see why. It was so beautiful and the people were wonderful. She thought what it would be like to live here with him and secretly tucked that dream away in her heart.

  They visited a castle that she fell in love with that was built in 1400 and had been renovated and turned into a fabulous resort. It was Dromoland Castle and it was magnificent.

  They stopped in a pub in Cork and had so much fun. Several of the men recognized Blackie from racing and they bought us a round of beer. Blackie then bought the whole pub drinks. There was a small group playing traditional music and they were so good. Everyone in the pub got into the spirit of it, turning the day into a raucous, Irish party. Meg and Katie chatted with some of the women and everyone was so friendly. The whole day was wonderful.

  They bought gifts and souvenirs in little shops they discovered. They bought a set of exquisite crystal wine glasses at the Waterford factory.

  Meg was starting to get tired so they stopped and had dinner in a little restaurant near Waterford. After dinner they headed back to their hotel to get packed up. Blackie made her lie down and watch TV while he gathered their things.

  “I can’t believe you know how to pack so efficiently,” she told him.

  “Don’t forget, I traveled all the time from the age of fifteen until the accident when I was twenty-four. That’s a lot of traveling. I used to hate it but I love traveling with you. Sean used to go racing with me sometimes but most of the time I was by myself. I was very lonely most of the time.”

  “I’m sorry you were lonely, honey. Come here,” she held her arms out to him. He slid onto the bed next to her and let her hold him. He kissed her and cuddled up against her for a while.

  “This is grand but I need to get finished so we can leave.”

  “Okay. Thanks you for getting us packed up.”

  They stowed their bags in the SUV and took off for Black’s parents’ house near Killarney.

  *
* *

  They drove up a long driveway that ended in a circle in front of the main house.

  The house was gigantic. It was a beautiful, stone country house that Meg thought looked as if Queen Elizabeth might stay there for a weekend. It was surrounded by beautiful grounds, stone cottages, small, stone outbuildings and behind it were at least six old stone stables.

  Blackie and Sean unloaded the bags. Meg stood there for a bit and stared at the house which was regal and elegant but still had a cozy, country farm house air about it. She went to pick her train case up and Blackie took it out of her hand.

  “Hey, I don’t want you lifting or carrying anything, okay,” he said as he put his arm around her.

  “Oh, come on, I’m fine. I’m not exactly fragile,” she said.

  “You have two big, strong men here to do all the lifting, so why should you. Besides you are fragile, you’re carrying a baby.”

  “Oh God, frontier women chopped wood and stuff when they were pregnant.”

  He leaned over, kissing her tenderly and said, “Just let me take care of you, please.” “Okay, you win. I’ll let you pamper me.”

  “Good, thanks.”

  Just then the front door opened and some young men came out and took the bags in. An older couple appeared and she knew they were Blackie’s parents. The man was graying, muscular, about six-two and resembled Sean a bit. The woman was the spitting image of Blackie.

  Meg could never imagine him looking feminine but here was a feminine version of him right in front of her. She was beautiful! She was Meg’s height and weight with coal black hair streaked with gray. She had the same beautiful blue eyes and smile as Blackie. It was odd to see how much they were alike. She could see that Jill looked more like her Dad, Kennet who was handsome in his own right. Blackie picked up his Mom, hugging her and twirled her around in a circle.

  “Hi, gorgeous,” he said smiling down at her.

  “I’ve missed you, son,” she said hugging him back and Meg could see the beam of love for him in her eyes.

  “Now get out of the way and let me see this beautiful, young woman you’ve brought me,” she said smacking him affectionately and turning to Meg.

  “Mom, this is Meg Connors. Meg, Maeve O’Brien.”

  “Meg, I’m so pleased to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you. How did you ever meet this scoundrel?” she laughed.

  “It’s good to meet you too, Mrs. O’Brien. Thank you so much for having me at your home. I have my horses stabled at Killarney Farms, so that’s how we met. Your home is beautiful.” she said. Meg could already feel the sweat running down her back. Maeve was friendly but somehow Meg didn’t think those blue eyes missed much. She went over and hugged Sean and met Katie. Blackie’s Dad came over and shook Meg’s hand and Blackie introduced them.

  “So this is the girl, then. She’s pretty smart looking. You better take good care of her or somebody else will,” Kennet said smiling down at her.

  “I try very hard to take care of her, Dad, but she’s got a mind of her own.”

  “All the best ones do, son. She’ll keep you on the straight and narrow, I think.”

  “She does that,” Blackie said, rolling his eyes.

  “Let’s go in and have a bite to eat. Oh, Jimmy, let them tell you what bags go where. Sean and Blackie’s rooms. I’m assuming you two girls are sleeping in with them,” Maeve said with a sly smile and went inside, leaving Sean and Blackie standing there with their mouths open.

  “Well, okay then,” Sean said with a shrug and they all filed into the house.

  The house was incredible, decorated with some of the most beautiful antiques Meg had ever seen. There was a huge foyer with a stone stairs going up to the right. An archway to the left gave way to a huge library, den. Another archway led from there to a formal dining room with a table that apparently could seat thirty people. Huge glass front cabinets held exquisite china and crystal. Off of the formal dining room were the kitchen and a more informal, cozy dining room with a fireplace. This table was laid with more functional crockery and flatware.

  “Ken, do you want to fix drinks all around? I’ll have a martini, dear,” Maeve instructed her husband.

  “Yes. Sean, Blackie, beer?”

  Sean and Blackie were both drinking beer and she always had misgivings about it. He swore it didn’t bother him and everyone let him drink it. To her mind, alcohol was alcohol and it couldn’t help him quit drinking.

  “Sure, Dad,” Sean said.

  “Ladies?” Ken asked Katie and Meg.

  “I’ll have a ginger ale, if you have it,” Meg said.

  “Me too,” Katie added.

  “And I’ll have a scotch,” Ken said.

  While he fixed drinks, they went back to the library and sat on comfy sofas.

  “Well, now tell me about your trip so far.” Maeve said.

  “We had a very successful trip to Goff’s. We bought Dad two nice jumpers and we got four for us. I’ll make arrangements for all ours to be shipped. Meg and I bought a couple of mounts for dressage,” Blackie explained.

  “Dressage?” Maeve said, tilting her head. “Are you riding again?”

  “I am, yes. I’ve been working with Meg’s gelding and he’s good. I’ve won some competitions with him at Level Two. I’m having a lot of fun,” Blackie told her.

  “I’m glad you’re enjoying it, dear, but I thought riding was out,” Maeve said, concerned.

  “Racing’s out, Mother, not riding,” Blackie said with a clenched teeth

  “Mom, we saw his surgeon and he said the hip is stronger than before the accident. I saw the x-rays; they looked good,” Sean said, coming to Blackie’s defense.

  “I don’t know. You’re not doing any jumping are you?” she said, frowning.

  “No, I’m not jumping and dressage is all flat work. You know that. I’ll be fine. I can judge for myself if I’m able to do it or not.” Blackie said.

  “Alright, dear, you don’t have to get upset,” she said.

  “I’m not upset.” Black said with a stubborn set to his jaw.

  Terrific! What a great start to this visit.

  Meg could tell that Blackie did a lot of “head-butting” with his parents; his Mom anyway.

  “Dressage, did I hear that you’re doing dressage? That’s wonderful. Does Meg do it too?” Ken asked, walking in with the drinks.

  “Yes, I’m teaching her as much as I know. Dad, I have all the paper work for your horses. I hope you like the ones we bought for you.”

  Blackie looked at Meg and gently pushed a strand of hair back behind her ear. He let his fingertips trail from her ear down along her jaw. He had this intense look in his eyes that she had never seen before. It was love, concern, wonder, tenderness and protectiveness all at once. She smiled at him and lowered her eyes. When she glanced up, Maeve was studying them intently.

  “Are you hungry? Maybe you should eat something.” Blackie said softly.

  “I’m a little hungry. I’m fine, honey,” she said.

  Maeve got up, “Then we better go out and eat. I believe the meal is ready, anyway.”

  A plump woman in an apron started bringing platters and bowls out. She set a plate down and said to Sean, “How-ye, m’lord?”

  “I’m good, Martha. It’s good to see you.”

  She put a big casserole dish near Blackie.

  “How-ye, Your Highness?” Blackie immediately stiffened.

  “Please don’t call me that, Martha. You know I don’t like it,” he said with an edge to his voice.

  “Oh, uh, I forgot. Sorry, Your, uh, Blackie,” she said looking flustered at Maeve.

  “Blackie, don’t pick on Martha, you know she loves you and hasn’t seen you for some time. She’s always called you that,” Maeve said.

  He sighed big and snapped at his mother, “Everyone knows I hate being called that; why can’t they remember.”

  “Because they respect you and your title.”

  “For chrissake, Mom, why
can’t they respect how I feel about it?” Blackie complained.

  “Blackie, don’t talk to your mother with that tone,” Ken said firmly.

  “Yes, sir.” Blackie said, his eyes snapping with anger.

  He got up and stomped to the kitchen and said something to Martha. Meg heard her giggling. He came back in and sat down again.

  “I apologized to Martha,” he said.

  “Thank you, dear,” Maeve said with a tight set to her mouth.

  “Not here an hour and you two are arguing already,” Ken said shaking his head.

  “I’m sorry, Mom.”

  “You know, son, I’ve been looking at you and you look better than I’ve ever seen you. You seem very healthy and happy. I’m sure that’s thanks to Meg,” Maeve said smiling at her.

  “You’ve got that right, Mom. If it weren’t for her, I’d be a total mess,” he said beaming proudly at Meg.

  “That’s not true, honey. You’ve done a lot of hard work to be healthy,” she told him.

  “Whatever it is, I’m happy to see it. You too, Sean. I think these young women are just the ticket,” she said smiling over at Katie.

  Katie blushed big time and said, “Thank you, Ma’am.”

  “Please, call me Maeve.”

  Meg liked her. She liked them both. She thought his mom had the same fire in her that Blackie did. She’s the first person Meg had ever seen win an argument with him. She figured he got his strong will along with his looks from her.

  Blackie was absently staring at her as if she was the Mona Lisa.

  “Stop staring at me,” she whispered.

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was,” he said and smiled. “I guess I was thinking how incredible everything is,” he said and leaned over and kissed her tenderly on the cheek. Maeve wasn’t missing any of this.

  Great, we’re trying to hide the fact that I’m pregnant and he’s mooning at me like a lovesick calf.

  “Tomorrow night we’re having a dinner for a few friends, some of them already know you boys but some are here to meet you and Sean.”

  “Oh great! Who are these people? I don’t want to meet anyone. We’re here to visit you two and relax.” Blackie whined.