Celtic Knot

by Shannon MacLeod

  “Who wants coffee?” Mrs. Evans chirped, rising to put a pot on. Lily could almost feel the relief wash over Ian at the change of subject.

  “I would love some,” Ian replied with a huge grin. “And was there really a mention of homemade pie or did I dream it?”

  A few minutes later, Lily’s stomach began to churn and a sense of dread crept over her. Putting a hand on her shoulder, Ian asked, “What’s wrong, sweetheart? You’re pale as a ghost.”

  “Maybe I ate too much. I’ll be okay, I’m sure,” she said with a tremulous smile. Taking the brewing coffee aroma as their cue, Dr. Evans and Ian began clearing the table, insisting the ladies remain seated. As he reached to pick up the dirty plates, Ian froze. He closed his eyes and almost instantly they flew open again. His wide gaze darted to Lily in silent communication as if he knew at once what was wrong.

  The front doorbell rang.

  Mrs. Evans rose. “I’ll get it,” she called back over her shoulder. When Lily heard Lucas’s voice in the hallway, the blood drained from her face. As if fired from a cannon, she leapt from her seat and to Ian’s side. He slid an arm protectively around her, pulled her close.

  Grinning from ear to ear, Lucas strolled into the dining room carrying a small white envelope. “Hi, Dr. Evans, Mrs. Evans. Sorry to be dropping in like this, but I had this for Lily, thought she might be here.”

  He stopped short when he saw Ian. “I’ll just leave it here for you, my sweeth…I’m sorry, Lily,” he corrected, tossing the envelope on the table. Lily refused to look at Lucas and clutched the back of Ian’s shirt in a death grip. Ian shifted subtly to put himself between her and the unwelcome guest.

  Lucas’s upper lip curled in displeasure. “Oh, hey–the new boyfriend’s here. I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Lucas Bell,” he said, extending his hand.

  Ian stared pointedly at it but made no move to accept the handshake. “I know who you are,” he said, his brogue thickening.

  Lucas withdrew his hand and cleared his throat. “You must be…Aaron.”

  Ignoring the snub, Ian’s eyes narrowed to slits. “I believe we have met. Where do I know you from?” he wondered aloud.

  Lucas gave a bark of sarcastic laughter then met Ian’s eyes with open contempt. “I doubt we move in the same circles. I don’t hang out with the low rent, you understand.” He glanced around the dining room. “Well, much as I’d love to I can’t stay. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Lily,” he added, raking her with an obscene look.

  Ian coiled in response and Lily gripped his shirt even tighter. “Ian, don’t,” she said.

  “Ian, don’t,” Lucas mimicked, widening into a fighter’s stance. “Unless you want these nice folks to see what a pussy you are.”

  “That’s enough.” Dr. Evans stepped in and took charge. “You need to leave, Lucas,” he said coolly, “I’ll see you out.”

  A ghost of a smile flickered across Ian’s lips. He coughed politely and tugged at the neck of his pullover, drawing the other man’s eyes to his chest. As if frozen to the spot, Lucas stared at the small silver ring hanging from the chain. “Nice little trophy you got there, mick.”

  Ian lifted the ring to his lips. “To the victor belong the spoils,” he quoted, kissing it lightly before dropping it inside his shirt. The two men glared at each other, locked in silent confrontation until Lucas spun on his heel and stormed out.

  As soon as the SUV screeched out of the driveway, Lily swayed with relief. Ian caught and held her in his arms, smoothing her hair to calm her. She stole a glance up at him. The only hint something was wrong was the muscle twitching in his cheek. “Are you well, mo chroí?” he asked evenly.

  “I’m fine now.” Forcing a smile, she walked over to the table and picked up the envelope.

  Dr. Evans patted Ian on the back and whispered, “Your self control is admirable. I don’t know if I could have done as well.”

  Ian spoke slowly, choosing his words with obvious care. “I have the greatest respect for you and your family, sir. His lack of manners needs to be addressed, but this isn’t the time or place for it.”

  Lily tore open the envelope to find her last check, along with a handwritten note that read Looking forward to having you back with us, signed Lucas, Janice, and Irena. Ian swore under his breath, but Lily put a steadying hand on his chest and beamed up at him. “You know I’m not going back,” she said. “I’ve already got another job.”

  All three heads turned to face her. “When did you get another job?” Ian asked.

  “Meg offered me a job in the Castle office,” she said, grinning from ear to ear. “Isn’t that awesome?”

  Ian’s smile froze. “That’s grand,” he agreed.

  26

  “Your parents are lovely people,” Ian commented on the way home, “but I’m not at all surprised, given the daughter they raised.”

  Lily laughed, patting the large bag of leftovers Mrs. Evans had wrapped up for them to take home. “You made quite an impression on my mom, that’s for sure.”

  “I like your dad. He reminds me of the old man,” he said, his voice wistful.

  “How long ago did you lose him?” she asked.

  “Two years ago last summer. Some days it feels like he’s been gone forever, and some days it feels like yesterday,” he said quietly. “He would have liked you.”

  “I’m sure I would have liked him too. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet him.” She gave his arm an affectionate squeeze then seeing his brows draw together asked, “What are you thinking about?”

  “Lucas,” he answered. “I know I’ve seen him before. It’ll come to me, I’m sure.” He went silent.

  After a time Lily spoke again. “Mom asked me a bunch of questions about you I couldn’t answer.”

  “Ask away,” he said.

  “Okay. First, have you ever been married?”

  “No,” Ian answered swiftly.

  “Two–do you have any kids?”

  He shook his head no.

  “Three–do you like kids?”

  His face brightened. “I love ’em,” he said, “My older brother and his wife have three, two boys and a girl.”

  Lily smiled in the darkened car. “How many children would you like to have someday?”

  He appeared to think about it for a moment then said softly, “As many as my wife would be gracious enough to give me.”

  “Your turn,” he interjected before she could ask another question. “I don’t think you’ve been married before, and I’m fair certain you don’t have any children…” She smacked his arm. “…easy there, you, do you like kids?”

  She smiled sweetly. “Yes, I do, very much.”

  “And how many would you like, Miss Evans?” he asked in a teasing tone.

  “I always thought it would be pretty cool to be part of a big family. It’s kind of lonely being an only child. How many?” She thought about it. “As many as my husband would be kind enough to give me.”

  ****

  They arrived at the apartment just in time to save Bella from the certain starvation her desperate meows indicated. “I need to take something before my head gets worse,” Ian said, scraping the contents of a small can of cat food into her dish while she wove back and forth between his feet. He stepped back and narrowly missed stepping on her. “Move, cat,” he scolded.

  “You overdid it today.” Lily sighed as she refilled the water bowl. “Too much too soon.”

  “I’m fine, just tragically out of shape,” he protested, his face the picture of comic sorrow.

  “That’s hardly the case, and you know it.” Lily gave his waistline a playful pinch. “Your mother has it on good authority you’ve gotten too skinny.”

  He flushed. “Thanks for reminding me. I’ll be needing to have a chat with Miss Meghan about what tales she tells our mother. Of course if I continue to eat like I did today, the whole point will be moot.”

  The rest of the evening was spent lying in each other’s arms, wrapped in a blanket and watc
hing old movies in the great room. Around midnight, Lily sat up to stretch and suggested they call it an evening. Ian laid a hand on her arm.

  “Sleep with me?” he asked. “Just…sleep. Please?” Even as he said it, he felt her resistance crumble and knew she would say yes. Before she could answer, however, a stray thought came careening out of nowhere and blindsided him.

  “She has slept on the couch the whole time, and I can assure you there has been no untoward behavior.”

  Damn, he thought. No, wait…I said she has been. I didn’t say anything about the future and he didn’t ask! “I’m good,” he said aloud without thinking.

  “Huh?” Lily asked, puzzled.

  Ian sighed. “I mean…I promise to be good…really.”

  They shed their clothes and climbed into the big bed, gravitating toward the middle and each other. Bella joined them, curling up at their feet. Ian pulled Lily close, anchoring her to his side. She blew out a sigh of contenment and it wasn’t long before she was asleep, her breathing slow and even.

  Ian laid there for a long time not thinking at all, just listening to her breathe and enjoying the feel of her next to him, in his arms. When he finally fell asleep, he dreamt of being awakened on a bright Christmas morning by a host of blond, green-eyed cherubs.

  * * * *

  Lily awoke the next morning, and was surprised to see Ian was already up. Tugging on one of his large t-shirts, she headed for the kitchen and overheard him offer someone delighted congratulations. When he turned and saw her at the kitchen doorway, he smiled brightly and ended the phone call, dropping everything to engulf her in a big hug.

  “Who was that?” Lily asked.

  Panic flitted briefly across his face. “That was…my brother Sean. He got some…ah…good news about…his job, and it’s going to mean…more money…for his company. Here, I made breakfast.” Not elaborating further, he poured her coffee and dished her up a plate of his own version of bubble and squeak, a pan-fried concoction of eggs, bacon, potatoes and leftover vegetables from Thanksgiving.

  “This is amazing,” she exclaimed after the first bite, “you are so getting breakfast duty from this moment forward.” Bella padded into the kitchen, and after giving both occupants a meaningful look, headed straight for the pantry and sat down.

  The house phone rang again. He checked the caller ID and snatched up the phone. “And what the hell is it you’re wantin’?” he growled. Lily tensed immediately but relaxed when Ian started laughing, and she realized it was an oft played game. “It’s Seamus,” he explained. He caught sight of Bella sitting by the pantry door and called to her softly, “Here, Puss, bacon,” as he held out a meaty crumble for her to nibble.

  “You’re ruining my cat,” Lily mouthed.

  Cradling the cordless between his neck and shoulder, Ian washed the grease from his fingers. He blew her a kiss then spoke into the phone. “No, not you, amadan. Talking to the cat. So where are you?” He listened for a moment and said, “Where in New Zealand?” He listened again. “I know, Sean just called. He doesn’t know what they’re going to do with it yet, but he’s calling a board…Jaysus.” He stopped talking abruptly.

  “Do with what? What kind of board?” Lily whispered.

  “Surfboard.” Ian waved in dismissal. Another pause, and he glanced over at Lily. “Yes, she’s here. No, you can’t talk to her.” Pause. “Yes, she’s very pretty.”

  Lily’s laughter started at “Nosy bugger, I’m not answering that.” Pause. “Damn right, I’m a selfish bastard. You haven’t seen her, or else you’d know why.” He chuckled, listened for a few more minutes, and laughed again before the call ended.

  Ian sat down with her and took a sip of his cooling coffee. Lily opened her mouth to speak, but the phone rang yet again. They both laughed at the timing and Ian bounced up and answered it. “Bonjour, sweetling ca va?”

  Lily’s ears perked up at the endearment. “Heather?” she mouthed.

  Ian smiled and nodded. “Yeah, Sean and Seamus just called…no, I won’t call him that, it’s not his name. How is school?” They talked for a few minutes more before Ian ended the call with a cheery a plus. “This has been a broadcast of the Kelly International Network,” he intoned in his best newscaster voice.

  “Your family is very close,” Lily said.

  “Sometimes too close.” He snorted. “But they mean well most of the time. Notice I said most of the time.”

  * * * *

  The remainder of the weekend was enjoyable, but Ian had a gnawing concern that he finally got around to addressing Sunday evening.

  “Sweetheart, we need to talk.” The image of Dan’s crash-and-burn gesture sprang to mind, but he willed it away. Seated beside him on the couch, Lily waited for him to speak. He captured her hands, took a deep breath and plunged in.

  “I don’t even know where to begin. First, I love you very much.” Ian raised her hands to his lips and kissed them. “You know, with the exception of the almost dying part, I’m happy I fell.”

  Lily giggled. “Do you think you need to go lie down?”

  “I’m serious,” he said. “It means a lot to me that you were willing to stay with me while I got better. I know I’ve been a bloody awful patient,” he said. “I have enjoyed being with you, getting to know you, having you near me more than I would have thought possible, and the idea of you moving back to your apartment is…” His voice broke off as he searched for the perfect words to convince her of his sincerity. “I love falling asleep with you, waking up with you. I do not, however, love you sleeping on this godforsaken couch, which I am having fond visions of burning. I want you in my bed, with me.”

  “What are you saying, sweetheart?” she asked.

  Taking a deep, steadying breath Ian forged ahead. “I don’t want you to go back to that apartment. I want you to stay here with me. Permanently.” He could hear Dan’s voice echoing in his mind–you’re setting yourself up for disappointment– but he ignored it.

  Lily stared at him, her eyes wide. “Move in with you? Here?”

  Relieved that she understood, he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “Yes. Here with me.”

  Lily was quiet for several moments longer than he would have liked. “Ian, I have been so happy here with you,” she finally said. “I love falling asleep in your arms and waking up snuggled next to you. You make me feel so beautiful and cherished, and you make me laugh.” She stroked his check and sighed. “I do love you so very much.”

  His smile was one of unexpected triumphant. “So then you’ll stay?”

  Lily hesitated only for a moment before she answered. “No.”

  27

  “Erm…what?”

  His expression did not change, so Lily knew he either hadn’t heard her or her answer hadn’t sunk in yet. A moment later he blinked. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”

  Her smile never wavered. “I said no.”

  From his expression of shocked disbelief, Ian’s entire world had just ground to a screeching halt. “But…you said you loved me.”

  “And I do, very much,” she assured him.

  “B…but, sweetheart…why not?”

  She straddled his knees and sat on his lap facing him. “Ian, I love you with all my heart and I believe you love me, but I’m not going to live with you unless we are…” She took a deep breath. “…married.” She straightened and met his gaze. “When I was a little girl, I dreamed about falling in love, having a romantic and memorable proposal and getting married. I want more of a commitment from you than ‘I love you.’ I want to know you’ll be there for me just like I’ll be there for you. Besides,” she added with an admonishing frown, “after the wonderful impression you made on my parents, do you want to be the one to call and tell my father you’re shacking up with his baby girl? I want all of you, Ian and I’ll settle for nothing less.” She laid her head on his shoulder to give him a moment to think. Bella jumped up on the couch to join them and kneaded Ian’s leg, purring loudly.

  T
hey sat motionless for several minutes until Ian finally said in a tiny voice, “I think we should stay together for the sake of the cat, don’t you?” She raised her head to look at him and saw the amusement flicker in the dark green eyes. They both dissolved into fits of laughter and the tension was broken.

  “I won’t stop asking,” he said, snuffling under her ear. “God, you smell good.”

  Her shoulders shook with laughter. “Quit changing the subject, and I won’t stop saying no until my conditions are met.”

  “You drive a hard bargain, my lady.” He brightened. “How about if Raven moves in? Now there’s an entertaining wench,” he said, scratching Bella under her chin.

  “Out of the question,” Lily answered primly, “but it you’re a good boy, we’ll both come visit.” She snuggled against him and made a soft noise of contentment.

  After a few minutes, Ian began to rock her back and forth like a small child, crooning what to her uncomprehending ears sounded like a lullaby. She relaxed, listening to his rich, lyrical voice and when the song was over, she sat back. “That was beautiful. What’s it called?” she asked.

  “Buachaill on Eirne. It’s an old song.”

  “You have a wonderful voice, but you sound very familiar to me for some reason,” she said. “Have I heard you sing before?”

  He chuckled and shook his head. “I’m just Irish, darlin’. We dance, we sing. It’s part of who we are.”

  “Didn’t you tell me your brother sings?” she asked.

  “In the loosest sense of the word, yes,” he replied vaguely, guiding her head back to his shoulder. He sang to her again, a haunting song about the highwayman and the innkeeper’s black-eyed daughter. He smiled into her hair. “If I promise to sing you to sleep every night, would you promise to stay?” She shot him a reproving look in answer and he gave her a can’t-blame-a-guy-for-trying shrug. “Erm…how much longer do we have before…”

  “You mentioned going back to work on Tuesday, so probably then. I need to talk to Meg about starting in the office,” she said.