Page 109 of Holiday Romance
“Exactly.” I laugh. “Sixteen. Not six. She’s allowed to have a boyfriend.”
“Girlfriend,” Andrew corrects.
“Girlfriend.” I nudge him with my elbow as we start to walk after her. “She’s still a baby to you, isn’t she?”
“Maybe,” he admits. “It’s weird, you know. She was only six when I left. And now she’s—”
“Practically a woman,” I say dramatically. His lips twitch as our eyes meet and when he doesn’t look away I find it’s my turn to ask, “What?”
“Nothing,” he says. “Just glad you’re here.”
* * *
It takes twenty minutes to walk to the local village, which is just one stretch of road with a church, a pub, two mom-and-pop stores, and a garage. They are all predictably closed (besides the church), but there are plenty of people out, all getting their walk in before they spend the rest of the day eating. Or maybe that’s just what I’m hoping will happen.
Hannah disappears off with a group of friends as soon as we arrive while Andrew is stopped by every second person we meet. It feels like everyone knows both him and the difficulty he had getting home, and a few even know me, or at least my name when Andrew goes to introduce me. Colleen has obviously been telling our adventures to anyone who would listen.
“You’re so famous,” I tease. “The prodigal son returned.”
“Don’t tell that to Christian,” he mutters, but he seems pleased that I’m impressed, glancing at me every so often as I take in the village even though I pretend not to notice.
Outside one of the houses is a small stall selling hot spiced apple juice and pastries and I immediately drag Andrew over to get my hard-earned breakfast. I’m tearing into a Danish when a girl of no more than five or six comes barreling toward us, a fairy wand in her hand.
Andrew scoops her up like a pro, planting messy kisses on her cheeks until she’s squealing delightedly in protest.
“Yeah, that’s what she needs,” a man says from behind us. “To get even more hyper.”
Liam. I meet my last Fitzpatrick child, the eldest brother, and finally, get some real family resemblance. Whereas Christian and Hannah take after their mother, Liam definitely comes from the same side of the family as Andrew, with the same messy brown hair and hazel eyes. His are smaller though and gaze kindly at me from behind a pair of thin-rimmed glasses.
“You must be Molly,” he says, reaching out to shake my hand. “Heard you were crashing the party today.”
“Ah, don’t worry,” Andrew says. “She’s staying in the barn. Another one!”
I turn at his call to see an older boy shuffle our way. Far too cool for the exuberant welcome his sister just gave, he gives his uncle a halfhearted hug, a shy but pleased grin on his face.
“Christ, Padraig, how big are you now?” Andrew asks.
“Don’t,” Liam sighs, buying his own cup of spiced apple. “I’m having to buy a new pair of trousers for him every week at this stage.”
“Going to be as big as your dad, are you?”
Padraig shakes his head, though I notice he straightens his shoulders a little at the attention. Andrew introduces me to the children, who both greet me solemnly before turning immediately back to their uncle.
“Your dad said you were in the nativity play,” Andrew says to Padraig as he hoists his niece, Elsie, into a more comfortable position. “One of the wise men. You sang a song?”
Padraig nods.
“A solo?”
He shrugs.
“What? Are you all shy now?” Andrew teases, ruffling his hair. “Are you too shy for presents too? What did Santa bring you?”
We stay chatting for another few minutes as Padraig finally starts opening up about the new LEGO set he got. Liam asks me questions about my sister and the baby while keeping an eye on his children and, specifically, what treats his brother buys them from the stall. When Andrew presents Elsie with an exceptionally large chocolate chip cookie that’s about the size of her face, he excuses himself, taking them off to find Hannah and the dogs.
Andrew shows no inclination to join them, finishing the last of my juice as he leads me toward the opposite side of the village, where only a few houses are dotted about. “Want to see the castle?”
“You have a castle?”
