Soircha poured them all tea. “You should wear a fancy dress and go to him,” she said excitedly. “That’s how they do it in the movies.”

Antonia and Clare both looked at Soircha, who pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. “That’s not a bad idea,” the older woman mused. She picked up her cup of tea and stared at it thoughtfully. “That’s not a bad idea at all.”

“I don’t even know where he is,” Antonia said.

“He’s getting ready for the conference,” Soircha said, wrinkling her nose.

“That’s right, he is,” Clare said.

Antonia’s breathing was unsteady. “I don’t know if I can do that.”

“You’re already here in Galway,” Clara said. “You don’t know what you can do until you try. You have to have a little confidence, dear.”

“Do you think he’ll want to see me?”

“Definitely,” they said in unison.

Antonia thought about it for a moment. It was a crazy plan, much like this whole trip. But she was finally free of the restraints from back home. Derek was firmly stuck in the past and her job now was to work on her novel. And to find love. “Can I tell you guys something?” she said to the both of them. She paused. “I think I might love Aiden.”

They both clapped in delight. “That’s what I said,” Clare cried.

Soircha swooned from the excitement. “This is just like a movie!”

Sure, Antonia thought. Just like the movies.

Chapter Thirty-Five

“I trust you found what you needed in the country?” Robert asked, taking his seat next to Aiden. The large conference table they sat at was on a raised stage facing an audience that was still streaming in. Robert and Aiden were only half of the panel that was to present; they were waiting on Lisa and Donald Maguire from the philosophy department.

Aiden shuffled his papers before answering. “I may have, but I did a poor job of holding on to it.” Robert may have been referring to his father, but Aiden had Antonia on his mind. He hadn’t counted on missing her so intensely. For the last few days, he had grown used to opening his cottage door to find her. The hole in his heart came from a twelve-hour absence. “I finished the paper in a day like you said I would,” he added.

Robert chuckled as he clapped Aiden on the back. “Of course you did. I finished my paper this morning.”

“I’m winging my introduction though,” Aiden said. “I was struck with inspiration during my Tully Cross visit.”

“In the form of a woman?” Robert asked.

He nodded and looked down at his papers. Antonia was a large part of his inspiration. Talking to her about her own writing kicked him into gear and energized his scholarship. While he was able to plow through the main points of his paper, the introduction had evaded him until he made it to the university. On his drive over, Aiden thought about his father and asked himself why he wanted to be a professor. Why would he devote his time to this path if he couldn’t give it his full attention and passion? The answer could no longer be: I just don’t want to end up like him. Whether he was ready to reconcile with the fact or not, his parents were right. They could see what he’d been blind to all these years. Aiden Donagh Byrnes was his father’s son and he was his own man. Antonia had been able to see it as well.