“Not exactly. But I don’t expect to be here much longer. I know you find my presence irksome and disruptive, Clodagh. All the same, I didn’t want to go without saying goodbye.”

His tone chilled me. I hated the lost look in those dark eyes, which held none of their usual mischief today. “What is this?” I asked him. “You sound like you’re going away forever. Isn’t Johnny staying here over the summer? Is Aidan leaving too?”

He attempted a smile; it was a sad wraith of a thing. “Not him, just me. I suppose you will be glad to see the back of me.”

I did not dismiss this as a bid for sympathy as I might once have done. “I have mixed views on the matter,” I said, wondering why I couldn’t put together the pieces of this and make sense of it. “Besides, you’ll come back, won’t you? Johnny’s here almost every year. I will see you again some time.”

The forlorn smile appeared once more. Willow’s Wolf-child story came sharply back to me and my heart twisted. What was this? I didn’t even like the man. Why did I feel the urge to give him a reassuring hug and tell him everything would be all right?

“Doubtful,” Cathal said. “Now you’d best get back to that baby. Good practice for when you have one or two of your own. Goodbye, Clodagh,” and he leaned across and kissed me. For a moment I was too taken aback to move, and for another I allowed myself to enjoy the pressure of his lips on mine, a sweet, intense feeling that made my whole body spring to life in an utterly surprising way. When his hand came up to touch my neck I had to force myself not to nestle closer and slip my arms around him. Instead I pushed him away, shocked at my response and appalled that I had allowed such familiarity here in the family quarters of the house. I shouldn’t even have let Cathal linger outside the door.

“Stop it!” I hissed. “This is madness! Just go, will you?”