Page 66 of Sins of Innocence

"Army?" Maureen asks me.

"Yes."

There are already two chairs on the side of the table opposite the wall where Joy is sitting, which leaves creating a spot beside Neeve or Sadie.

Sadie starts to scoot, but I shake my head infinitesimally and nod toward Neeve with a wink. Stifling a smile, Sadie stops moving as I put the stool down and then squat behind Neeve's chair. I grasp the legs and lift, while standing.

Neeve squeals and throws her hands out, like she's trying to stop from falling, but there's no chance I'll let that happen. Keeping her suspended with a hand on one chair leg, I put my other arm around her like a seatbelt.

"I'll keep you safe," I promise her.

This quiet little girl needs to know that I see her and won't forget what we were talking about before Joy came tearing into the kitchen.

Neeve nods, accepting my promise and then starts flapping her arms. "I'm flying," she cries through her giggles.

I take Neeve on a circuit of the kitchen, steering clear of the stove where Maureen is heating a cast iron skillet for the eggs.

Joy jumps up. "I want to fly!"

"I'm sure you'll get your turn." Áine puts her arms around her youngest daughter, pulling her into a back-to-front hug.

"But my chair doesn't need to move." Joy says with disappointed logic.

"Here?" I ask with Neeve's chair suspended a few inches to the right of where it was to make room for the stool.

"Looks good to me." Áine's smiling, none of the stress that's been riding her since we met riding her shoulders right now. She squeezes Joy. "What do you think?"

"Yes!" Joy screeches while Sadie laughs, shaking her head.

"You good here, petal?" I ask Neeve.

She nods.

I lower her chair to the floor, brush my hand over her smooth hair and then swoop Joy up, tossing her over my shoulder.

Áine's looking at me like I'm something, her lips curved in a soft smile. I need to taste that smile, so I lean down and kiss her, drawing her lips to mine. Keeping it G rated is harder than trying to take Mick down to the mat during training.

But I manage it. Just.

Straightening, I flip Joy around on my shoulder. "Fly, sunshine."

She sticks her legs out straight behind me and her left arm lands against my face as she throws her arms wide.

Áine shouts, "Watch out, Joy!" But she's laughing.

I "fly" Joy to Maureen's room, ask her if she thinks the wooden ladderback chair in front of the vanity dresser that looks old enough to have been brought from the Old Country when her folks immigrated, is the one her gran meant.

"Yes! Can I ride it back to the kitchen?" Joy asks pleadingly.

In answer, I flip her over so she lands backside down on the seat.

When we get back in the kitchen, the table has been moved out from the wall and the two chairs that faced it are on that side now. Áine is sitting in one. Neeve is in the other.

"Joy, you take the stool," Maureen orders. "Kieran, put that chair up to the open side. You'll sit there."

"Obliged," but I'll wait to sit down until Maureen does and take up the leaning position against the wall I had earlier.

I appreciate her not trying to put me in one of the chairs against the wall. I've spent too many years instinctively taking the most strategic place for easy action when I sit down to be hemmed in like that.