Rory’s wife, Maryella, nodded along politely. She was a quiet woman, content to stay in the background, and speak up only when she felt it necessary. As for their children, they were as handsome as their father, and Sophie maintained the quiet beauty of her mother, except for the eyes of course. No one could ever mistake those Kelly eyes.
Caitlin observed them carefully, briefly locking eyes with Daniel and scowling at him before redirecting her gaze to Sophie, and crossing to her.
“Hey, can we talk for a sec?” Caitlin whispered in her ear. She looked up at her father, who had glanced at them quizzically. “Um, Sophie is going to help me finish setting the table, okay? Be right back!” The two girls quickly ducked into the kitchen as the rest of the Kellys filed out into the dining room.
Once Sophie and Caitlin were alone in the kitchen, the anxious redhead finally spoke up but kept her volume low as she spoke to avoid any extra attention.
“Uh, what’s going on, Cait? You seem weird. Oh, shit, is this about Daniel?” she asked, lowering her voice to a barely audible whisper upon mentioning her brother’s name.
Caitlin nodded, her eyes wide and angry. “What the hell is he doing in town for so long?” she asked, anxiously tapping her foot on the wooden floor. “He randomly showed up at the pub last night after closing time in the middle of a thunderstorm, tracked a bunch of mud and water from outside into the building on the floor, and was so- just soDaniel.” She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself after remembering that night in painful, vivid detail.
Sophie’s warm laughter filled the room as heat crept into Caitlin’s cheeks. “The two of you never could get along. I’m sorry he took you by surprise though.”
“Well, it’s not just that, he’s apparently going to be living here now. Like, in this town, permanently.” She gulped nervously, cringing inwardly at the thought of Daniel living in the same area as her.
“Really?” Sophie responded, puzzled. “I wonder what that’s about. Why did he say that?”
“That’s what I was going to ask you!” Caitlin hissed in irritation. “Nope, he didn’t even explain why. Just proudly said he’s going to be sticking around for a long time.” She groaned, peeking out into the dining room and scowling at the sight of Daniel chatting with her father.
“That’s so weird. He doesn’t even really like this area that much,” Sophie explained confusedly. “Maybe he’s just messing with you to get a reaction?”
“I don’t know. He seemed really serious about it. But you could be right. He’s hard to read sometimes, and he says a lot of shit just to rile people up...especially me.” Caitlin sighed. “So you have no idea why he’d want to move here or anything? He’s never said anything about it?”
Shaking her head, Sophie shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine, honestly. I really don’t know why he’d say that. I’m sorry I don’t have a better answer for you. I love him, and we talk, but he hasn’t said much about staying. He and my dad have been talking a lot in his office though.” She glanced out at the dining room as her family and Noah began to take their seats at the table.
“Come on, Ladies,” her father called, his soft green eyes twinkling, “Dinner time.”
Caitlin nodded, following her friend out into the dining area. “Sorry, Dad, just had to catch up with Sophie really quick...” She glanced at Daniel disapprovingly, who had already begun eating, “...in private about some things.”
Rory and Noah sat down beside each other, apparently having a lively conversation about different types of Irish whiskey offered at Noah’s pub, “Speaking of the pub, Noah, how is business lately?”
“Ah, it’s so-so,” Noah shrugged in response. “Lots of tourists are starting to come in for the upcoming festival, though, so that ought to give us a small boost in traffic. A lot of Americans visit this time of year.” He grabbed the soda bread and cut himself a slice, buttering it carefully and taking a large bite. “You’ve done a wonderful job with the bread this time, Caitlin.”
“It seems she’ll be taking over the family business soon, eh, Noah?” Rory asked, only half-joking. He grabbed the plate of bread from Noah and cut himself a slice, looking delighted upon popping a piece into his mouth. “Oh, Caitlin, that’s delicious.”
Noah smiled proudly at his daughter. “Well, actually, I have a bit of a serious announcement regarding her taking my place at the pub,” he proclaimed, as her eyes widened. “My daughter has worked long and hard, she’s all but mastered the business, and as soon as she gets married to a nice man, I will gladly pass on ownership of the business to her.”
The room fell silent as all eyes turned to Caitlin.
“What?” Caitlin choked, and stared at her father, mortified, as Daniel’s laughter echoed from the other end of the table. “You expect me to marry for what is rightfully mine?”
3
Daniel
“Quiet, Daniel,”his mother ordered, and the table fell silent.
Daniel turned towards the other head of the table—towards Noah Murphy—as a comment directed towards Caitlin died on his tongue. The topic of conversation disappeared from Daniel’s mind completely in the next second when he caught sight of Mr. Murphy.
The old man’s round features and cheerfulness had always given Noah a friendly air, but with his face scrunched up and tight now, all Daniel could focus on was the spreading anxiety in his torso. It was a light, fluttery feeling that Daniel had rarely experienced before watching Noah’s eyebrows pull together into a long, bushy line of red. The man’s nose looked even shorter with his mouth set in a dark grimace.
Noah’s expression was mirrored on his daughter’s face, and he tried his best to hide his satisfied smile. Caitlin slammed her utensils down on the wood and stood.
“You’ll all have to excuse me,” Caitlin spoke through her teeth. Her mouth was a firmer line than her father’s—a silent challenge that was spoken between the two Murphys. Despite her palpable anger, she refused to make eye contact with anyone as she strode away from the table.
One of Sophie’s slender wrists reached for Caitlin’s hand as she moved, but she was too quick, and Sophie watched her friend retreat from the cottage’s dining room with wide eyes. She turned to look at Daniel, her eyebrows pulled up towards the center of her forehead—a helpless look that seemed to plead for him to say something.
He could only shake his head in confusion. Although he had gotten good at feigning concern for Caitlin for his sister’s sake, he took a devilish delight in watching her struggle with her traditionalist father. If there was ever a grand test of Noah’s principles, it was having a daughter like Caitlin—a woman who wasn’t afraid to show her disapproval of something, even in the company of guests like the Kellys. Daniel himself didn’t care much for tradition, and found much of social etiquette to be trivial and dull, but even he raised an eyebrow when someone voiced their frustration so readily.
