hours?’
No need to ask, then, whether Kerry had seen the news.
‘We got in about two,’ Ren confirmed. ‘Kiva said not to wake her until Jon gets here.’
Neil grinned at him, shaking his head. ‘Man, I cannot believe you said that in front of your mother.’
‘And on national television,’ Hayley added through a mouthful of toast.
‘She’ll never let you attend another premiere,’ Kerry warned, placing a plate of freshly buttered toast in front of an empty stool for Ren.
He pulled out the seat and sat down with relief. ‘Then my work here is done,’ he said, reaching for the marmalade.
Neil was appalled. ‘You said that on purpose ?’ He shook his red curls, pretending to be horrified, probably to mask the burning hero worship he’d developed for his older cousin in the last few months, which Ren studiously ignored to save embarrassing them both. ‘You are so bad , Ren.’
Kerry put her hand on Ren’s shoulder, a gesture that was both comforting and sympathetic. ‘Foolish, rather than bad, I think,Neil. But it wasn’t a wise thing to do, Ren. In fact, after this, I’ll be surprised if your poor mother doesn’t finally act on her threat to send you to that camp in Utah she’s always going on about.’
Ren shrugged. ‘I told her I didn’t want to be paraded down the red carpet like her newest handbag.’
‘And you don’t think you could have found a more subtle way of making your point?’ Kerry asked, turning to lift the kettle off the range as it began to sing. His mother’s cousin was the complete opposite of Kiva — plump and dark-haired, calm and comforting where Kiva was blonde, angular and nervy. If Ren had grown up in any way normal, it wasn’t thanks to Kiva’s well-meaning but erratic parenting, it was because of the stability and down-to-earth practicality of Kerry Boyle.
But it was time to get off the topic of last night’s premiere. He glanced at Neil and Hayley. ‘How come you two are here?’
It wasn’t unusual for Kerry to bring her kids to work but, as a rule, she didn’t let them hang around all day during school vacations — particularly not on a day like today when Kiva had just returned from her latest travels and likely to be a little fractious.
‘Neil needs new shoes before school goes back,’ Hayley explained, as her brother devoured his toast as if he’d not been fed for a month. ‘Mum figured we could go across to the Blackrock Shopping Centre while she’s working today, or find something over the road at the Frascati mall.’
‘Cool,’ Ren said, spying a perfect opportunity to be gone for the day. ‘Can I come?’
‘ You want to help Hayley shop for shoes?’ Kerry asked, making no attempt to hide the scepticism in her tone.
‘Actually, I want to be far, far away from here when my mother wakes up,’ Ren told her honestly. ‘Neil’s endlessly expanding feet seem as good an excuse as any for being elsewhere.’
‘Hey!’ Neil exclaimed, looking wounded.
Hayley grinned at him. Kerry studied Ren for a moment, her eyes filled with a mixture of sympathy and concern. ‘All right, then,’ she said. ‘But if she asks me, I’ll tell Kiva where you are, Ren. I won’t lie to her.’
‘You don’t need to lie for me, Kerry,’ he said, relieved beyond words he had managed to delay the inevitable confrontation over his behaviour. ‘I just need to give her time to calm down.’
‘I’m not sure there is such a time,’ Kerry said. ‘But at least with you there, Neil won’t be able to bully his sister into buying him anything with Lord of the Rings characters on them.’ She turned to open the cupboard where the coffee mugs were stored. ‘Now who wants a cup of tea with their toast, and who wants hot chocolate?’
CHAPTER 7
‘There are things you need to know, Brydie,’ the queen said, straightening the folds of her white cloak as the wagon trundled through the ring of earthworks surrounding Ráith Righ , ‘before we get to Sí an
No need to ask, then, whether Kerry had seen the news.
‘We got in about two,’ Ren confirmed. ‘Kiva said not to wake her until Jon gets here.’
Neil grinned at him, shaking his head. ‘Man, I cannot believe you said that in front of your mother.’
‘And on national television,’ Hayley added through a mouthful of toast.
‘She’ll never let you attend another premiere,’ Kerry warned, placing a plate of freshly buttered toast in front of an empty stool for Ren.
He pulled out the seat and sat down with relief. ‘Then my work here is done,’ he said, reaching for the marmalade.
Neil was appalled. ‘You said that on purpose ?’ He shook his red curls, pretending to be horrified, probably to mask the burning hero worship he’d developed for his older cousin in the last few months, which Ren studiously ignored to save embarrassing them both. ‘You are so bad , Ren.’
Kerry put her hand on Ren’s shoulder, a gesture that was both comforting and sympathetic. ‘Foolish, rather than bad, I think,Neil. But it wasn’t a wise thing to do, Ren. In fact, after this, I’ll be surprised if your poor mother doesn’t finally act on her threat to send you to that camp in Utah she’s always going on about.’
Ren shrugged. ‘I told her I didn’t want to be paraded down the red carpet like her newest handbag.’
‘And you don’t think you could have found a more subtle way of making your point?’ Kerry asked, turning to lift the kettle off the range as it began to sing. His mother’s cousin was the complete opposite of Kiva — plump and dark-haired, calm and comforting where Kiva was blonde, angular and nervy. If Ren had grown up in any way normal, it wasn’t thanks to Kiva’s well-meaning but erratic parenting, it was because of the stability and down-to-earth practicality of Kerry Boyle.
But it was time to get off the topic of last night’s premiere. He glanced at Neil and Hayley. ‘How come you two are here?’
It wasn’t unusual for Kerry to bring her kids to work but, as a rule, she didn’t let them hang around all day during school vacations — particularly not on a day like today when Kiva had just returned from her latest travels and likely to be a little fractious.
‘Neil needs new shoes before school goes back,’ Hayley explained, as her brother devoured his toast as if he’d not been fed for a month. ‘Mum figured we could go across to the Blackrock Shopping Centre while she’s working today, or find something over the road at the Frascati mall.’
‘Cool,’ Ren said, spying a perfect opportunity to be gone for the day. ‘Can I come?’
‘ You want to help Hayley shop for shoes?’ Kerry asked, making no attempt to hide the scepticism in her tone.
‘Actually, I want to be far, far away from here when my mother wakes up,’ Ren told her honestly. ‘Neil’s endlessly expanding feet seem as good an excuse as any for being elsewhere.’
‘Hey!’ Neil exclaimed, looking wounded.
Hayley grinned at him. Kerry studied Ren for a moment, her eyes filled with a mixture of sympathy and concern. ‘All right, then,’ she said. ‘But if she asks me, I’ll tell Kiva where you are, Ren. I won’t lie to her.’
‘You don’t need to lie for me, Kerry,’ he said, relieved beyond words he had managed to delay the inevitable confrontation over his behaviour. ‘I just need to give her time to calm down.’
‘I’m not sure there is such a time,’ Kerry said. ‘But at least with you there, Neil won’t be able to bully his sister into buying him anything with Lord of the Rings characters on them.’ She turned to open the cupboard where the coffee mugs were stored. ‘Now who wants a cup of tea with their toast, and who wants hot chocolate?’
CHAPTER 7
‘There are things you need to know, Brydie,’ the queen said, straightening the folds of her white cloak as the wagon trundled through the ring of earthworks surrounding Ráith Righ , ‘before we get to Sí an
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