Read Online The Irish Lover by Lila Dubois - Free Book Online

her fingers with Michael’s. “I don’t
want to go.”
    “You don’t?”
    “No, it was more sad than scary.”
    The redhead looked skeptical for a moment,
before her face smoothed into a smile. “Well, we’d like to comp
your room last night, and this evening we’ll have staff at the
registration desk all night, if you need anything.”
    “Thank you.” Mary nodded.
    Sorcha left to check on their food and bring
fresh tea. Michael pulled Mary against his side.
    “Are you sure you’re okay in the hotel
tonight?”
    “Yes, though it would be nice if I had someone
to keep me company.” She fluttered her lashes at him.
    Michael laughed. “That I can do, pretty Mary.”
He kissed her, but pulled away quickly. “I think I know why we saw
the ghost.”
    ****
    “You do?” That wasn’t what she’d expected him
to say.
    “Did you hear a voice last night? Before the
second ghost showed up?”
    Mary thought back. “I did, but it was just one
word.”
    “I think it was the ghost talking. Talking to
you.”
    “Well I could tell—or at least I thought I
could—that she didn’t want to hurt us. She was trying to warn us
about something.”
    “No us. You.”
    “Me? Why?”
    “The ghost said iníon . The ghost called
you iníon .”
    Mary shook her head. “I don’t remember what
that means.”
    “Iníon means ‘daughter’ in Irish. The
ghost called you ‘daughter.’”
    Mary felt her mouth drop open. She met
Michael’s gaze, expecting him to laugh and tell her he was kidding,
but he was serious.
    “So that ghost was…”
    “You great, great, great, many greats later,
grandmother.”
    Mary shook her head. Somehow this information
was more alarming than the ghost had been.
    “That’s not possible.”
    “Why not? The Callahans have been in the glen
as long as anyone can remember. The Callahans, the Donnovans and a
few others are names as old or older than Glenncailty.”
    “That wasn’t random last night. The ghost was
looking for me.” Mary shook her head. It felt like Chicago and her
life there were worlds away from this pretty, haunted
place.
    “Yes.”
    “And she was trying to warn me about
something.”
    “Do you have any idea what?”
    For a moment Mary thought of the voices she’d
heard coming from behind the door to the west wing, but she shook
her head. “No, I don’t know.” Her lips twitched with a smile.
“Maybe she was trying to warn me about you, Michael.”
    “Warn you not to let such a fine man get away.”
Michael wiggled his eyebrows and Mary laughed. Then his face grew
serious. “Welcome home, Mary Callahan. It seems Glenncailty has
been waiting for you.”
    Mary absorbed that, taking a deep breath. She
was part of this place, and it was part of her—she felt that,
believed that, now more than ever. What that meant for her future
she didn’t know.
    Had she really met him only two days ago? Those
days had been full of emotional highs and lows, even before their
encounter with the ghosts. She thought he’d been giving off signals
as if he was interested in something more from her, with her, but
she didn’t trust that she’d interpreted his actions
correctly.
    They were silent for a moment before Mary asked
the question she’d been dreading.
    “What are we doing, Michael?”
    Michael put down his cup of tea. His eyes were
shadowed from lack of sleep, and she could tell he was tired—same
as she was. He took her hand, shifting on the couch to face her. In
the early morning light his hair was a gold halo around him, his
eyes a clear green. “I like you, Mary.”
    She braced herself for the brush off, prepared
herself to smile and laugh and pretend it was okay.
    “I’ve never met a woman I wanted the way I want
you. I’ve never been so drawn to someone as I am to you, and I’m
not ready to say goodbye.”
    Warmth filled her and she exhaled, closing her
eyes as relief and happiness spread through her.
    “I was hoping you’d say that,” she
admitted.
    “I didn’t