PROLOGUE
Dalla
Ireland smells like rain even when it isn't raining.
That's the first thing I notice when I step off the plane—the wet, green scent of it, and the way the air sits heavier here than it does in Florida.
Cooler. Softer.
Like the whole country is wrapped in mist even under a pale spring sun.
"You're doing the thing," Rev says beside me, her hand finding mine as we descend the stairs onto the tarmac.
"What thing?"
"The deep breath thing. The 'I'm about to spiral' thing."
I squeeze her fingers and release them. "I'm not spiraling."
"Yet."
Doran's hand settles on the small of Rev's back as he guides her toward the waiting SUV, and I watch my sister lean into him without thinking about it.
Automatic, like her body knows exactly where it belongs.
For years they've been married, and she still looks at him like he hung the moon.
He still looks at her like she's the only thing keeping him tethered to the earth.
It's disgusting, beautiful, and sometimes it makes my chest ache in ways I don't want to think about too much.
"Dalla." Doran's voice pulls me back.
He's holding the car door open, one eyebrow raised. "Are you planning to stand on the tarmac all day, or...?"
"Just taking in the scenery."
"It's a runway."
"It's anIrishrunway." I gesture at the gray sky, the green hills rolling in the distance beyond the airport's perimeter fence. "Look at that light. You can't get that light anywhere else. It's why all the best knitwear comes from here—they understand texture because they live in it."
"You're such a designer."
"I'myourdesigner. Who do you think picked out that sweater you're wearing?"
Rev glances down at the cream cashmere wrapped around her shoulders. "Fair point."
"It brings out your eyes."
Rev rolls hers—brown to my blue, the one thing we don't share. "Sure it does."
"Fine, it brings out your bone structure. Which ismybone structure. So really, I'm complimenting myself."
"You're impossible."
She snorts and grabs my hand, tugging me toward the car. "Get in, weirdo. You can be poetic about Irish light after we've had food and a nap."
I slide into the back seat beside her, and the driver pulls away before I've even finished buckling my seatbelt.
