Love and Blarney (10 page)
Authors: Zara Keane
Tags: #Contemporary, #Humor, #Romantic Comedy, #Fiction, #Romance, #Ireland, #Contemporary Romance, #Women's Fiction
“Okay, but I’m not backing down. You got your way over the house, the wedding, and the honeymoon. No bloody way am I agreeing to keep a pet.”
“Yes, dear.” She gave him a peck on the cheek. He smelled her face powder and her signature scent. “Whatever we end up doing with the dog, Wiggly Poo needs a walk this evening. Will you take him out while I’m with my designer?”
“What? Me?” She had to be bloody joking.
Muireann treated the curly-haired destroyer of rugs to one last pet and dumped him in Gavin’s lap. “I told you this morning. I have an appointment with my bridesmaids to practice the choreography for the wedding. My designer is bringing all the dresses to my parents’ house.”
“The choreography? Won’t you all just walk down the aisle?”
“It needs to be timed.” She slipped her powder compact into her handbag. “I want everything to be perfect.”
Wiggly Poo buried his snout in Gavin’s crotch, making him squirm. “Jaysus, Muireann. You can’t be serious about us keeping the dog. My asthma’s already kicking in.”
Actually, it wasn’t, much to his chagrin. He clutched his throat for dramatic effect and forced a feeble cough. What was the point of having an allergy if it didn’t act up when you wanted it to?
“Nonsense. You’ll be fine once you get used to him.” She snatched up her handbag and overnight case from the coffee table and carried them into the hall. “Don’t be late for dinner,” she called. “Mummy and Daddy are expecting you at six.”
Gavin struggled to his feet and followed his bride-to-be. The dog dug its claws into his tailored shirt. “What am I supposed to do with him while we’re out for dinner?”
“Oh, leave him here,” she said airily. “He’ll be fine.”
“He might be fine, but will the house?”
Muireann checked her lipstick in the hall mirror and smoothed her straight blond hair. “It’s natural for Wiggly Poo to want to explore his new terrain.”
“His new terrain is our house. Our heavily mortgaged house, complete with expensive furnishings.”
“Gavin, don’t make a fuss. My interior-design business is picking up. And once Daddy promotes you, we’ll easily afford the mortgage. Besides”—she gestured at their luxurious surroundings—“we’re getting the house for a steal. Daddy gave us a great price.”
“He gave us a good deal on a very expensive house. And you’re trying to distract me from talking about the dog.”
Her eyes widened in faux innocence.
“What are we doing with the dog tonight?” He watched her slip on her jacket and pick up her bags. “You’re staying at your parents’ house and say you can’t bring him with you, and I’m staying at my old house with Jonas. We can’t leave him here alone.”
“Can’t you take him to yours? Jonas’s kid can play with him. Kids love dogs.”
“Luca’s staying with his grandparents. It’s only me and Jonas at the cottage.”
Muireann glanced at the slim gold watch her father had given her for her last birthday. “I’m going to be late. You’ll figure something out. Bye, Wiggly Poo.”
With these not very reassuring words—and yet another air-kiss—Gavin’s future bride made her perfume-scented exit.
The Ballybeg Series
Love and Blarney
— August 2014
Love and Leprechauns
— November 2014
Love and Mistletoe
— December 2014
Zara Keane grew up in Dublin, Ireland, but spent her summers in a small town very similar to the fictitious Ballybeg.
She currently lives in Switzerland with her family. When she’s not writing or wrestling small people, she drinks far too much coffee, and tries—with occasional success—to resist the siren call of Swiss chocolate.
Zara loves chatting to people. She can be reached by
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To learn more about Zara and her books, check out her website:
http://zarakeane.com
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Once again, I’m indebted to a number of people for their assistance while I was preparing
Love and Blarney
for publication.
Many thanks are due to my wonderful critique partner, Magdalen Braden, for her insightful suggestions on how an American might perceive rural Ireland; to Rhonda Helms, editor extraordinaire, for showing me how to focus on the romantic arc and maximize the emotional impact within the confines of a smaller word count; to Trish Slattery and Michele Harvey for beta reading the novella; and to Anne and Linda at Victory Editing for the thorough proofread.
Last but definitely not least, thank you to my family for tolerating my crazy work schedule over the past year with
mostly
good grace. :D
LOVE AND BLARNEY
Copyright © 2014 by Sarah Tanner
Published 2014 by Beaverstone Press GmbH (LLC)
ISBN-13: 978-3-906245-04-1
Cover design © Kim Killion
Cover photographs:
The Killion Group Inc.
and
Matthi at Bigstock
Scene Break Image:
Ecelop at Bigstockphoto.com
Formatting by
Zara Keane
MOBI Version 1.0.
All rights reserved. Where such permission is sufficient, the author grants permission to strip any DRM which might be applied to this work. Similarly, the author grants permission to share this work with family and personal friends. In all other cases, no part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without prior written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales, or organizations is entirely coincidental.