“Stop moving the light,” Clare grumbled.
“Let me try.” He jiggled her forearm. “What are we trying to hook?”
“A latch that lifts a metal block, so I can push this stone in.” She kicked a flat slab at the base of the wall.
“Got it.” He pulled the rod back and raised it to lower the hook against thesurface on the other side. After a few sweeps, he pushed harder and met resistance. “Get ready to push.”
He pulled back and heard the stone creaking below.
“Got it,” Clare said, withdrawing her hand.
He dropped the iron weight with a heavy clang. “Let me see it.”
She pulled open a velvet bag and poured a translucent lump into his hand. “I believe this belongs to you.”
He could barely breathe as he shined the flashlight over the stone. It was duller than he expected, but it seemed to throb with its ruddy, purplish lifeblood.
“You did it!” he exclaimed. “It’s precious and everything I dreamed of.”
He couldn’t stop staring at diamond in the rough, turning it this way and that in the light. He was barely aware of the sounds of shuffling andthe clanging of the weight raising and lowering to secure the hiding case.
“Happy now?” Clare asked, sidling up to him. “It’s gorgeous, isn’t it? Told you I’d keep my promise.”
“Thanks.” He gave her a full embrace. “You really came through, and I’ll keep my promise to you, too.”
“I’m so happy.” She tipped on her toes and pressed a kiss on his lips.
He immediately tookadvantage and deepened the kiss. She had earned his trust, and now that he had the Heart of Brigid, he could fulfill his destiny and be free of his family obligation. Frankly, he was tired of the tradition spelled out in the annals, and now that Clare had convinced him reality was much more intense and fun than fantasy, well, he might as well start experiencing it now.
“I’d like you tobe part of my reality,” he mumbled between kisses. “You’re the one my heart yearns for.”
“I’d like to go with you,” she said, releasing him from the kiss. “We do make a good team, don’t we?”
“We do. I’m so glad I met you.” On the spur of the moment, he hooked the Heart of Brigid onto the chain around Clare’s neck.
Clare gasped. “Are you sure? This is yours.”
“I know.You’re holding it for me.”
She removed the quartz replica. “I guess we won’t be needing this anymore.”
“Hold onto it for a souvenir,” he said. “Now that you have my real Heart of Brigid, will you be my Brigid?”
She smiled brightly and nodded. “Of course, my dear Griffin, but I’d rather be your Clare.”
He whipped out his camera phone and took a few pictures and a selfie.He also recorded an audio note to himself, “I, Griffin Gallagher, asked Clare Hart to be my Brigid, and she accepted, to be my Clare. I wish to keep all of these precious memories with her. Today was a very special day, and tomorrow, I’ll go back to the doctor and prepare for my treatment plan.”
“I’m so proud of you.” Clare gave him another kiss, lush and sweet at the same time.
“It’s all thanks to you, my heart. Let’s go. Time to celebrate.” Griffin pointed his flashlight at the narrow way they’d come.
A shadow blocked the way, and something heavy crashed over his head, blinding him with an exploding pain.
