‘M’lady?’ Lorcan held out his arm.

I looked up at him, almost silhouetted against the sun that was now lowering behind the soft green mounds of the hills behind him. There was that hint of smile again. Was he always like that, or had whatever Calum had alluded to diluted the wider smile I’d seen him give on occasion? What exactly was the story with Lorcan O’Malley? Although perhaps the bigger question was: why did I care?

I gave myself a mental shake and took the proffered arm.

‘Thank you, kind sir.’

Beside me, Calum was vibrating with holding in whatever it was he wanted to say but a glance from me kept him silent. I gave him a wave and turned back to focus on the steps in front of me.

‘Look after yourself and we’ll talk soon,’ Lorcan said, glancing over his shoulder before concentrating on taking as much weight as he could from me as we headed to the car he’d parked at the bottom of the steps.

* * *

‘So, I have a couple of projects to check on in Dublin and a short meeting. You’re welcome to come with me but I’m sure you have plenty of your own work to do, plus we still need to be careful about that leg. I know a great dog-friendly café that we can ensconce you in, if you don’t mind dog-sitting? Would that be OK? I’ll take him with me if not. It’s not a problem.’

‘No, that sounds good. I’m happy to keep Bod with me.’

‘Great, thanks.’

I was realistic enough not to read anything into the fact that Lorcan had taken to using ‘we’ sometimes now, but inside there was a tiny part of my heart that fluttered with warmth when he did. It had been a long time since I’d felt part of a ‘we’. On occasions in the past when it had been employed I’d felt uncomfortable about it, my independence being so ingrained in me over the years, but somehow here, with Lorcan, it felt OK. More than OK, in fact. I couldn’t help liking the sound of it.

Having said an unexpectedly heartfelt goodbye to Gerry and Brighid, Lorcan, Bod and I were preparing to leave and set off across the country for his meetings and our flight back to London later this evening.

‘Can you take Bod if I take your case?’ Lorcan asked, already handing me the pooch, clearly knowing I couldn’t refuse the fluffy little face looking up at me.