All Roads Lead to Swatragh - Chapter 64

Late October

Grace woke up slowly. The morning had gotten cooler and darker and she just wanted to stay in bed. As she rolled over she felt the warm body next to her and smiled. Her life had changed dramatically in the last few weeks. The weddings were just perfect, and she was happy they had chosen to have two ceremonies. Business was going well for both her and Quinn and she wouldn't trade living in the cottage for anything.

She quietly slipped out of bed and into the shower. No time to dally today as she had a full cottage of guests and needed to get breakfast and tea ready. When she came out of the shower Quinn was facing her propped up on one elbow.

“Snuck out on me, did you?” he smiled and winked.

“No time for snuggling this morning, dear,” Grace winked back. “I've a full cottage to make breakfast for, and I'm sure you'll be wanting something too.”

“I'll be down in a few. I've got a ride to get organized for this weekend. We'll be busy again,” Quinn replied. “At least we'll be busy together.”

The cottage had once again become a hot spot for those in the know. Now instead of poets and writers, it was musicians and bikers. Grace felt sorry for those she had to turn away with the many weekends she was full up. Donovan beamed at the wedding as if he was the proud father, and insisted he knew the minute he saw Quinn that the couple was destined to be together. Peter and Chloe were regular dinner guests, as were Grace and Quinn at Peter and Chloe's. Rafter's was their local and they made regular evenings out to eat and listen to the great music being played there.

Aine had left Grace a legacy that would carry on for many years. Grace found where she really belonged, and while she never really missed her marketing job, she did miss Dublin at times. When she and Quinn could made weekday trips to the city, they did, but always felt it was nice to be back at the cottage.

Quinn eventually sold his company to a larger company and started a trekking club for bikers. He was also able to follow his passion. His network experience helped him expand the club beyond Swatragh with members even outside of Ireland.

Aine had left Grace not only with her cottage, but with the fulfillment of years of joy. Grace would never forget that.

All Roads Lead to Swatragh - Chapter 63

Grace and Quinn started talking about wedding possibilities on their drive back to the cottage. Suddenly Grace's life was becoming complete. She and Quinn would live at the cottage and Quinn would open a second small office in Swatragh where he didn't have to commute back and forth to Dublin all the time.

If things went well, Quinn wanted to start a biking group in the area and schedule regular group rides on several weekends a month. The cottage would be offered as a place for the bikers to book their stay. He and Grace would put together package deals that included meals, or vouchers for meals at Rafters. In between Grace would be booking musicians playing locally and any other guests who were interested.

Along the way Grace mentioned how she had been organizing Aine's and her recipes, and was considering the possibility of writing a cottage cookbook since she had been asked by guests to share so many of the recipes. Se also felt this was a way to pass on Aine's memory. So many ideas, but first they had Peter and Chloe's wedding to attend to.

When Grace and Quinn arrived back at the cottage Quinn pulled his weekend bag from the car. There was this strange uncomfortable moment between the two when Grace was faced with the fact that Quinn would be at the cottage for the weekend. Now that they were engaged, would things change?

Quinn immediately realized why Grace stood at the bottom of the porch stairs frozen like a statue.

“I assume the upstairs room is all set for me?” Quinn stated to ease Grace's tension.

“Oh, oh, yes, it's all ready,” Grace nervously replied with a nervous smile.

“Then up the stairs it is for me. I'm not going to put you in a situation that makes you uncomfortable. We've waited this long. When the time is right we'll both know it,” Quinn dropped his bag at the bottom of the stairs and walked over to Grace pulling her close. “ I don't want to mess this up. You are too important to me.”

Grace wrapped her arms around Quinn and all her fears disappeared. She smiled up at him and put her cheek in his shoulder as they stood there for a moment just enjoying each other's warmth.

Grace changed into some comfortable clothes from her skirt, and Quinn did the same. When Quinn came back downstairs it was late, but time for some more discussion and a last cup of tea for the evening.

They worked on a list of things that needed to be taken care of in the next couple of months. First was dealing with Peter and Chloe's wedding and all the guests who would be staying at the cottage. Grace had already made arrangements with Rafters to work together on providing all the food needed for the few days the cottage would be packed. Quinn would help with the logistics of getting the food transported, and how it could all be set up.

Next was working on a date for their own wedding. They decided to actually have two weddings. Grace and Quinn had most of their friends and families in and around Dublin, so they would have a church wedding near the Dublin area along with a reception there also. A second smaller ceremony would be held at Ardtara with special guests invited and some locals. There would be a reception there also. This would all take place over a weekend in October with the Dublin wedding on a Friday night and the Ardtara wedding on Saturday afternoon.

Grace thought this might be a little frivolous, but Quinn found it to be the most efficient way with guests coming from various places, and some not being able to travel very far. His Dublin business associates would not be traveling to Swatragh, and Donovan would certainly not travel to Dublin. It would cost a little more, but Quinn promised they would be conservative with costs, and Grace would actually get to wear her wedding gown more than once!

Quinn asked Grace to see if Chloe would be able to take care of the cottage for that weekend and a few additional days so there would be time for a short honeymoon. Otherwise she would just have to shut down the cottage for a few days. Grace had no idea what Quinn had in mind but she trusted him.

It was difficult for Grace to sleep that night. So much had happened, and knowing that Quinn was just 2 floors up was a huge distraction. As she thought about the many things they had discussed during the evening, she finally relaxed and fell asleep.

All Roads Lead to Swatragh - Chapter 58

Lunch was always a treat at Rafters, and Grace and Quinn were getting to be known as regulars, especially with the reputation of Aine's Cottage spread about by the musicians playing in the pub. Brendan, the barman, was always up for a chat about what was going on locally when the pub was not too busy, but today had only time for a few words of greeting as the weekend lunch crowd was full of sports enthusiasts and patrons wandering in after a local wedding. Grace and Quinn would comment back and forth about the variety of patrons that Rafters had, making up their own stories about those with unique personalities.

After one earlier conversation that Quinn had with Brendan, they discussed the possibility of upgrading Rafters website. And Brendan had also mentioned a few other local businesses that either needed websites, or needed some upgrading. Quinn could see the possibility of spending time working in the Swatragh area expanding his own business, and being able to stay with Grace at the cottage. Grace was pleased with this idea, but didn't want to put any pressure on Quinn to stay unless he really wanted to be there. He did give some of his business cards to Brendan and posted one next to the flier for the cottage before he left.

After lunch Grace and Quinn headed to the cottage. As they pulled into the drive, Grace noticed Donovan sitting outside his home across the way. She waved and made her way across the road as Quinn started to unload the cars.
“Good day to you Donovan,” Grace greeted Donovan cheerfully.

“What's with all the stuff?” Donovan queried back at her without even a greeting back.

“Nice to know I'm welcome here,” Grace retorted back at Donovan. “For your information, I'm moving into the cottage permanently.”

“We'll lassie, in that case, I'm happy to have you as my neighbor! I knew you could not resist. Just took you a while to realize that, eh?” Donovan was still his gruff self.

“Donovan, it was a financial decision. Too long to go into now, but I'm sure we'll have time to sit down for tea and scones sometime soon and I'll tell you all about it. For right now, I have to unload and get ready for the arrival of some guests tonight. Maybe you can make it to Sunday dinner and meet my friend Quinn,” Grace was still trying to break Donovan's gruff exterior.

“I guess I could do with a meal from Aine's recipe box,” he replied with a smile.

“See you then. I've got to get going,” Grace had guests arriving later that evening so had time earlier in the day, but it was getting time to prepare for their arrival. No dinner for them tonight, but she would be making dinner for herself and Quinn.

“Where am I going to put all this stuff?” Grace turned to Quinn as if he would know.

“I'd say in that little room you let me stay in, but I'll be there tonight, unless....” Quinn looked at Grace with a smile and a wink.

“Let's just put it all it the sitting room and office so I can go through it slowly as the week progresses. I don't want to be having to drag it down from upstairs all the time. I'm trying to be practical here,” Grace was smiling as she winked back at Quinn.

Quinn knew this was not a relationship to be rushed. He had a lot of respect for Grace and understood the ground rules she was setting down. Besides they had only known each other for a short time. As they finished stacking the boxes in the office area they stood shoulder to shoulder looking at everything that made up Grace's life from Dublin. Quinn easily understood what Grace was thinking and put his arm around Grace's shoulder and pulled her close.

“It will be just fine, Grace,” he said reassuringly as he gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Grace couldn't help but feel a little lost in all of this and wrapped her arms around Quinn feeling the reassurance of his hold.

Their momentary embrace was cut short by the sound of a car in the drive. Grace's guests had arrived for the night. As Grace greeted them and showed them to their room, Quinn moved their two cars to the side of the cottage so there would be plenty of space, and headed into the kitchen to make a pot of tea, both for the two of them and for the guests. When Grace brought the guests into the large sitting room for tea, she was surprised that it was already prepared and set out on the table. All Grace could do was turn and smile at Quinn. He had read her mind.

Both Grace and Quinn spent some time chatting with the guests to welcome them and answer any questions they had. They made sure to make recommendations for places to see and eat in the area and check about breakfast preferences for the morning. Quinn reviewed the breakfasts menu highlighting his favorites with suggestions for the guests. He made several comments about how fabulous a cook Grace was with her original recipes and also with those that her grandmother had passed down. Grace blushed and thought she might have to think about having Quinn help her with marketing.

The guests headed off to the pub for the evening and Grace and Quinn settled in the sitting room with some of their favorite music playing in the background. Grace loved that they had this time to relax and talk about things in general. As the evening wore on they both found it difficult to say goodnight. For a long while Grace just sat on the sofa cuddled up next to Quinn, his arms wrapped around her making her feel safe and secure. As the music on her iPod stopped she realized that the morning would arrive early and they both needed to get some sleep. Grace turned her head to Quinn and their lips met gently in a single kiss that turned several more passionate kisses. Both Grace and Quinn knew there had to be a stopping point, or there would be no turning back. Grace was not ready for that yet, so slowly pulled away.

“We need to get some sleep. I've got to get up early to start breakfasts,” she explained, as if Quinn didn't know.

“Okay, if I have to...Time to head up to my lonely little room upstairs. You had better lock your door, little lady,” Quinn teased looking at Grace as if he had hurt feelings.

“You're a big boy, Quinn. I'm sure you'll manage on your own,” Grace teased back.

As they walked to the bottom of the stairs, Quinn held Grace firmly for one last longing kiss before he headed upstairs. Grace was floating as she headed to her room, and floated off to sleep with some wonderful dreams.

All Roads Lead to Swatragh - Chapter 55

Grace stretched as she woke up and realized that she was still in her clothes from the night before and not in her bed either. She remembered going out to dinner with Quinn, but somewhere along the way things seemed to get a little fuzzy. She ached all over from sleeping in the over-sized chair in the front room. Barely able to open her eyes to the sun streaming in, she realized that she was being watched. Quinn was standing in the doorway with a tray of tea.

“Oh, I'm sorry, I must have overslept, I should be getting that for you,” Grace started to get up from the chair but her head was reeling.

“Stop right there, Grace,” ordered Quinn. “It's my turn to do a little taking care of you.” And he put the tray with the pot of tea down on the table next to Grace. “First off, let's get you some ibuprofen to start working on that headache.”

“What happened to me last night?” asked Grace as she downed the ibuprofen.

“I don't think you have much of a tolerance for more than one pint. By the time we headed back here, you were pretty much as relaxed as anyone could be. And quite friendly too,” Quinn winked at Grace.

Grace blushed, “Oh my, did I... I mean...I hope I didn't embarrass myself too much.”

Quinn decided to leave out the torrid embrace and kiss, “You were fine. Just really relaxed. I couldn't carry you upstairs, so I left you here. I hope that was okay?”

Grace sipped her hot tea and closed her eyes as she swallowed, “How could I let that happen? Not professional at all of me.”

“Grace, you have to let your hair down once in a while. You have been under so much stress lately. Last night was good for you. We had a great time,” Quinn was being honest as he had not had such a relaxed time out like this in ages.

Grace wanted to get up and make some breakfast for Quinn, but he declined. He needed to get back to Dublin today, and Grace needed to get over her headache and make last minute preparations for her musical guests arriving later that afternoon. She hoped to fit a short nap in before all the arrivals. At least she could head to bed early that night and be back in her own room.

Quinn made sure Grace was feeling a bit better before he headed back to Dublin with a promise to be in touch through email or phone calls once Grace was back there the following week. He was not sure he could wait that long, but he had been gone from work and not only needed to catch up there, but needed to deal with his brother Tommy also.

Once Quinn was gone Grace busied herself with the chores of the day taking short breaks just to help clear her head. She was happy not to be making dinner for the next two evenings as it would give her a break. Her weekend guests had asked for dinner on Friday and Saturday, so she worked on a plan for then.

The days flew by. With musicians in the cottage during the afternoons warming up and practicing for the evening, the cottage was full of music. Grace sang along as she worked in the kitchen, or set tables for the morning. By evening, it was quiet and Grace worked on reservations and plans for the coming months. Each day she received a short note from Quinn asking how she was doing, and telling her how anxious he was to see her again. She responded in kind and found herself looking forward to these daily notes. When she opened up her email during the day, seeing a message from Quinn brought a smile to her.

Sunday came and it was time to shut down the cottage for the next week. Grace had left the following week days unbooked so she could return to Dublin and take care of those things that needed to be done and meet with her boss. During the time she was gone, she was also receiving emails from friends as to the fact that the business was not going well, and that they expected another round of redundancy notes coming around. Grace knew this was the time to make the toughest decision she had to make.

Travels in Eire #74

The ride to the Connemara Coast Hotel was in Darren's parent's car, but it was just Darren and Cailin. They wanted to have just a few moments together to savor the ceremony and would not have the time as the day wore on. Cailin noticed that Darren seemed a little distracted. She had become more adept at reading him over time. Most emotions she could easily read, but there was something else here.

“Darren, is everything okay? What is it?” Cailin gently tried to pry Darren's closed demeanor open.

“I just thought....No I was sure......It was supposed to be......,” is all Darren would say.
“Darren, you are making no sense. What was supposed to be?” Cailin was totally confused.

“I trusted him to make it happen. He told me he could handle it just fine.” and now Darren was getting angry.

“Darren, stop! Pull over here!” Cailin demanded and Darren responded by pulling to the side of the road just a short way from the hotel.

Darren turned to Cailin and responded, “My brother.”

“What about your brother?” Cailin realized there was something she did not know about that was not happening the way Darren had planned.

“He was supposed to fly over with his wife and baby and be here for the wedding. He promised he would make this visit. I thought I would see him at the church, but I didn't. I haven't heard from him for the last 3 days when they were supposed to leave America,” Darren's voice was shaking from both concern and disappointment.

“Darren, there is nothing you can do about it at this point. We have a few hundred guests waiting for us at a reception. What about your parents? Do they know?” Cailin was still trying to get some information from Darren.

“It was to be a huge surprise for them with my brother coming to visit with his wife and the baby. I was so worried about you arriving at the church late that I totally forgot that I should have seen him also. Then there was the rush to the ceremony and now,” Darren was almost shaking. “I have no way to contact him.”

“Darren, I don't know how to help you through this. I'm really surprised about this whole thing. You never told me either. I wish I knew what to do for you,” Cailin was on the verge of tears with worry for Darren's brother. “We can't sit here like this. We need to get to the reception and have someone help. I'm sure your da would know what to do.”

“Cailin, I need to get over this. It's OUR wedding day and I'm ruining it with this problem that has upset me so much. I'll share the information with my parents when we have a minute at the reception and then we'll all work it out together.” Darren was putting on his work face as a problem solver and determined not to let this spoil the reception.

As they turned into the parking lot Declan was pacing back and forth in front of the door. He had a worried look on his face that lit up when he saw Cailin and Darren pull in.

“What in God's earth has taken the two of you so long? The hotel rooms are here! Everyone is waitin' on ya,” he shouted breathlessly. “And Darren I need you first. There's some trouble a brewin', and we need to take care of it. Cailin can you just wait here for a few?” Declan ordered. He seemed so much more in charge than earlier today.

It was only a few moments when Darren returned and seemed a lot more relaxed.

“Darren, what was that all about?” Cailin knew something was up.

“All in due time, honey, all in due time,” and he smiled the smile that caught Cailn's eye from the beginning.

Travels in Eire #48

Cailin dropped her bag as she opened the envelope, began to read, and froze in her spot. Evidently while she had been wandering around her neighborhood, Darren's parents had stopped by. Maura wrote a little note inviting Cailin to dinner that night saying she and Phillip would not take no for an answer. They had come to Derry for a few days to visit with some friends and Darren, and wanted to introduce Cailin to their friends. After her first experience with Maura, Cailin had been feeling Maura's hesitation about Darren's new girlfriend. But they did end on a good note and Cailn felt sure that things would now turn around since she had moved from New York and was living in Derry.

As Cailin was absorbed with all these thoughts, she realized that she had not made any contact with work or her parents. It was time to get her computer set up, figure out time differences, and make a couple of Skype calls. She had told her parents to log on in the morning and stay logged on all day, for when she called. Darren had taken care of getting her set up with Internet before she arrived, so the set up was very quick. Her timing was good, but no one was answering. It was very possible that her parents were out for the afternoon. She left a message saying she would call back later.

Calling work was easier as Cailin just used Skype to make a direct call to the office phone. Shannon, her assistant answered the phone with her cherry voice.

“Hi Shannon, it's Cailin, hope you didn't forget who I am already!” Cailin was teasing Shannon.

“Cailin!!!,” Shannon screamed so that most of the office could hear. “I'm so glad you called. We've been waiting to hear that you are all settled and ready to work!” a little teasing back from Shannon. Cailin loved that they got along so well.

“In a few days, Shannon, I'll be up and running. I still need to get some equipment in place. After that it's full speed ahead. You should see my place! You'd love it. I'll have to send some pictures along. It everything okay over there?” Cailin was trying not to spend too much time on the phone.

“Cailin, you worry too much. Take your time, I've got it all handled for the moment. I'll bring you up to speed when you are ready.” Shannon made Cailin feel much better.

They chatted a bit more about Cailin's new experience and then said their good-byes. Cailin tried calling home again, but no one answered. She wrote an email telling her parents that all was fine and she would call back tomorrow. As she finished the email there was a knock at her door.

Cailin looked at the clock and realized that it was after five and was hoping it was Darren. She was not disappointed. She grabbed Darren in a huge hug as he came in the doorway. Followed, of course, by a very long, loving kiss from Darren.

“You do know you take my breath away,” Cailin whispered to Darren as they parted lips.

“Just what I intend to do,” and Darren flashed that wonder smile. “Have you seen my parents?”

“Guess I was out wandering the neighborhood when the stopped by. I did get a note with an invitation for dinner. Do you know about that?” Cailin was sure that Darren was already informed.

“I do know, and we had better get going if we are going to be on time. You might want to change into something a little dressier than casual clothes. This is a special occasion,” Darren was being mysterious again.

“What do you mean “special occasion”?” Cailin was trying to figure out how dressy and what she was in for.

“Now that you and I are an 'item', my parents want to introduce you to some of their friends. This couple has been family friends for ages. There has always been a little friendly competition between them over which of the couples marries off all their children first! My parents are really excited that I have someone now and their son is still searching!” Darren finished with a chuckle.

Cailin decided on a very feminine skirt and top that showed off her figure, but not too much. She didn't have that many clothes with her, since many were being shipped, but this would fit this summer evening just right. She wore her long curly black hair down and finished her look off with just a touch of make-up. As she entered the front room, Darren smiled approvingly. She took his arm and they headed out for this interesting dinner.