Spitfire (Puffin Cove) (14 page)

"
Kane. I feel like a total jerk asking you, but would you mind very much if I moved in today, then left for a three day absence tomorrow, leaving you with Lola? Again?" Laura screwed up her face and peered out of slitted eyes at her.

"
Holy shit! What's happening? Yes, of course! Anything! But tell me!"

Laura
blew it out on a whoosh of air. "Kane wants to take me to see the big icebergs up in Twillingate, but he doesn't want to rush it, so we're going to take our time and stay two nights."

Squee
!
"Really? Oh, wow! I'm so excited for you. Are you gonna bump uglies? Or have you done that already? Come on, tell! I gotta know! You're the only excitement this girl has had since Shannon was born!"

Jill
reined herself in and drew a breath, looking at a silently laughing Laura.

"
Aw, fiddlesticks. I'm sorry, Laura. There I go, more nerve than a canal horse. Again. None of my business. Forget I said it. Of course I don't mind if you come and go. For heaven's sake, there're no strings attached here."

Laura
's smile grew to out-loud laughter. "Don't be an idiot, Jill. I have no secrets from you. Kane and I…we haven't….but I think we're going to. And oh, Jill. I'm so nervous. Here I am pushing forty and I feel like a virgin on her first date."

"
Wow. Oh,
wow
! Now I don't feel quite so bad about tricking you at the gallery the other day. But I really am sorry about that, Laura."

"
Look, sister. You only have my best interests at heart. I know that. It was just my own stupid reaction. Now lets forget it. And I've gotta get cracking. There's sixty-seven things I need to do before nine a.m. tomorrow, which reminds me…I have to call Kane and tell him I'm here now and not to pick me up at Puffin House."

Jill
's giggles bubbled up again. "I am so happy for the two of you! Oooo, and I get to see you off on your first time!"

"
Now, listen Jill. This isn't a happy-ever-after kind of thing. Kane and I…we're both grown-ups, and fairy tales are for books. We're going to have some fun and enjoy some adult company. We're not pledging undying love here."

Jill
, for the first time, got a little pissed with her friend. "Are you telling me that you're just planning to use Kane for a good time, not a long time?"

"
Ha! That's rich. No, sweetie. That's just not in me. Besides, I think I've been in love with Kane since I laid eyes on him." She smiled, then bit her bottom lip. Jill could see the pure truth of it shining from Laura's eyes.

Squee
again!
"I knew it!"

"
But he's…I'm not for him. He's an internationally renowned artist, cultured, in demand. He's gorgeous and sexy and charming. I'm sure he's got a girl in every port. I'm not even entertaining the thought that there's a future here. I'm just going to follow my heart, let it get broken when it happens, and enjoy my time with Kane while I can."

"
Lord lamplightin' Jesus. Was ya born on a feckin' raft? That man is the sweetest, most down to earth…for the love of God, Laura. Have you no idea what he's like? What his life has been like?"

"
What? What are you talking about?"

Jill
just stood with arms crossed, lips pursed, scowling.

"
We've talked some. He told me about his family in Ireland. Sounds pretty standard to me. For the life of me I can't figure out why he's never been snatched up, but it's none of my business, and I didn't ask. I figured he just likes the playboy life, doesn't want to be tied down, you know?"

Jill
's mouth dropped open. If Laura had lifted the cast iron skillet from the stove and slammed her in the head with it she could not have been more stunned. She blinked owlishly, trying to figure out what to say. What Kane had or hadn't told Laura would have to come from him. It wasn't her place.

Jill
's expression, and her voice, softened. "Well, I'm sure you'll get to know each other more in the next few days. But Laura," Jill put her hand over her friend's and looked into her eyes. "He's not at all like that. I hope you'll come to see that in time."

Laura
's voice softened, too. "I'd like to think that. I hope I will." She ran a hand down Jill's arm and gave her hand a squeeze. Then she brightened. "Hey, honey. I have to run down to St. John's to pick out some sexies. Wanna come?"

"
Oh, I'd love to, but not this time. Shannon needs her nap, and I've got butter that needs churning." And something else that needs churning, too, she thought testily.

"
Alright, another time. Is there anything you want or need?"

"
Nope, just you back for supper. I know I said no strings, but I'd like to have you here for at least one night before you go off to get your wheels greased." Jill laughed, and warmed at Laura's blush.

"
I'm so glad you said you'd stay with us."

"
Ha! Like I had a choice. You, my girl, can accomplish anything you set your mind to. You are truly amazing, Jill, and I love you and appreciate your friendship more than you know."

Laura
hugged Jill quick and hard, then wisely headed for the door before things got sappy.

Jill
watched Laura's car 'til it was out of sight, then furiously punched numbers into the phone.

"
Mr. Downey, you have some explaining to do!"

"
I do, do I?" he chuckled.

"
Yes, you do."

She figured that
Kane was expecting the call. She had been holding her silence on the topic of him and Laura, and it had been costing her plenty to do so. Aside from her little stunt the other day at the gallery, she had pretty much stayed out of things. But the minute she found out that he was taking Laura away for a few days, Jill was on him like white on rice. He didn't, however, react kindly to her pissed-off tone of voice.

"
Look, I'm not compromisin' her bloody virginity. She's a woman full grown and can think fer herself."

"
That's not what I'm talking about and you know it! You owe it to that lady to tell her about Fiona and Claire, before things get…heavy."

"
Fer the love o' God, Jilly. They're dead and buried these five years. I'm not after pinin' away. Just what's got yer dander up?"

Jill
wasn't about to tell Kane that Laura was in love with him. That surely wasn't her place, either. But she could tell him the rest. "She thinks you're a playboy who screws whoever he wants and walks away foot loose and fancy free. She thinks you're goddamned Landon!"

"
What?
What in the great blue blazes gave her that notion?"

"
Well I'm sure I don't know, but you'd better find out. I'm thinking that that bastard she was married to did a number on her. Anyway, that's beside the point. You tell her about your life. All of it."

For a second, while his silence sizzled through the phone, she wondered if she had overstepped her bounds
. Just who the hell did she think she was, demanding that he confess his soul? One of his best friends, that's who she was. Someone who loved him and wanted him happy.

Just when she was about to apologize abjectly, she heard his soft, deep brogue
. "Aye, Jilly-girl. I will. Was plannin' to anyway. It's time."

"
Well…good." She waited a beat, then did apologize. "Kane, I'm sorry. I had no right…it's not my place…it's just that I think you two could be very, very good for each other, and I don't want you to mess it up."

He chuckled.
"I know, Jilly. And I do appreciate that ye care. It'll be okay, I promise. Just don't ye be worryin', and I'll see ye when we get back."

"
Actually, I'll see you in the morning when you pick Laura up."

"
What's that now?"

"
She's staying with me now until the house is ready. Ah, fiddlesticks! Don't you tell her I told you, or she'll know I called. She's gonna call you to let you know."

"
Alright, twit. And clean up yer act, will ya? If that wee daughter o' yers starts hearin' those words outta yer mouth you won't be blamin' her grampa."

"
Fu...er...yup, you're right. Guess I got a little heated. Okay, dear heart. I'll see you in the morning when you come to collect our girl."

Chapter Eleven

Lovely
. The day was grey and drizzly. Not a full out downpour, yet.

Laura
had been up before the crack of dawn, bathing and exfoliating and creaming. She had wanted to straighten her hair, always thought it looked more sleek and sophisticated. But this damp east coast weather would have just sprung it up tighter than a fart in three seconds flat. So she left it the way it wanted to go.

She packed and repacked her overnight bag, throwing in dresses, hauling them out, checking the weather on the news twice
like it might have changed seasons while she wasn't looking. She was acting like a ninny. But oh, how she wanted to be perfect for him.

"
Was you nervy last night, Auntie Laura?" Shannon asked around her mouthful of porridge.

"
Not even once, sweet pea. Your dollies were wonderful company and kept me from being scared all night long. Besides, I knew that you were close by if I needed you."

Shannon
nodded solemnly. "Yup, me and Tess'll take good care of you and Lola. Us girls hafta stick together like blue."

Blue
. Laura couldn't help the snicker.

"
You got it, sister! When I get back from my sightseeing maybe we should take your momma for a holiday, too. Do you think she'd like that?"

"
Can we take her for a picnic? Momma really likes picnics. With peanut bugger sammiches an' picket eggs. An' she's real good at slippin' rocks too. She can make 'em slip seven times with one frow."

"
I think that sounds like a wonderful holiday. When I come back, we'll do that, okay?" Laura pressed her teeth around her curled lips.

"
Do what?" Jill came out of the bathroom.

"
We're gonna take you for a picnic an' Auntie Laura's makin' peanut bugger sammiches an' picket eggs an' you can teach her how to slip rocks, Momma."

"
Conned! That girl's gonna have to go into law or politics, Jill. But she's right. When I'm back from Twillingate I'll have one last day of freedom after church on Sunday before I have to really put my nose to it and work this house deal. Kane and I didn't make it as far as The Dungeon when we went toward Bonavista, and I'd really like to go. I hope you and Shannon will come with me."

"
And Uncle Kane's gonna come too, Momma."

Laura
put up her hands, laughing. "I did not say that!"

"
Well, I think it sounds super. It's a date. And I think I hear yours coming down the lane right now."

Laura
pressed her hand to her fluttering stomach. Oh, boy.

Jill
opened the kitchen door and Kane ducked in out of the misty rain.

"
Nice day fer a duck."

Oh
. Oh, God. He looked good enough to eat. He wore his uniform of soft blue denim and well worn leather, the collar of a white button-down shirt peeping out from under the soft wool scarf wound around his neck. His hair sparkled with glints of moisture from the elements and he had a light in his eyes that had Laura going hot and cold at the same time. How could he have this affect on her with just a look? And how could she make it to the end of the day without climbing all over him? And where had this libido come from? She had never been a particularly passionate woman, but he had her vibrating with
need
every time she looked at him, or heard his voice, or thought about him. Or
looked
at him. Yeesh.

"
Quack, quack, quack!" Shannon waddled around the room with her hands tucked under her armpits, elbows flapping.

"
Better watch out, Daffy, big bad wolf's gonna gobble you up!" Kane toed off his boots and gave chase around the room as Shannon shrieked and giggled. He caught her up in his arms and rubbed his face into her belly, growling and gobbling and munching.

"
Yum, yum, yum. That's a tasty ducklin' ye got here Miss Jillian. I'm gonna eat 'er right up!"

"
No, Uncle Kane! It's just me! It's Shannon! Don't bobble me up!" she squealed. He slid her around and held her on an arm, her happy, shiny face glowing. She put her two little hands on his freshly shaven face and turned his smiling lips to hers for a wet, baby kiss.

"
Hi, Uncle Kane. I love you."

Laura
's heart had done that little flip when he had first come through the door. And now it thudded thickly in her belly. She had only ever seen him with Shannon once before, at the gallery, and he hadn't paid a great deal of attention to her. All of it had been focused on Laura herself. But here, well, it was clear that he adored the child, and she him, and lavished her with an easy love of one well known. Her heart rose back up into her chest and swelled.

This sexy, won
derful man loved children. Well, this Shannon child, at least. Impossibly, her opinion of him rose another notch.

Laura
didn't have a lot of experience with men who were at ease with children, except her dad, and some of the devoted fathers of the sick children she had cared for over the years. Her dad had played with and loved his grandsons with the same ease and depth that exuded from Kane.

Joel
had never been that easy with his boys. Oh, he did loved them dearly, but as little ones, he'd had little patience for them. After the divorce, and as they got older, they bonded, and now were very close. But there was something so good and right about a man and a child being together with such pure love between them.

"
I love you, too, twerp." He turned his smiling eyes to Laura, and then leaned over to tweak Jill's nose.

"
And how is it that me Jilly-girl has cornered the market right here in her cottage, huh? 'Tis a lucky man am I t' have all me best girls under one roof."

"
Not for long, by the sounds of it. I think Laura's going to have herself a house of her own very soon."

"
So I hear. 'Twill be a fine house when it's done. Good bones."

Laura
finally found her voice. "Your lips to God's ears."

"
Uncle Kane, we're going on a picnic to the dunjin on Sunday. All of us. An' Auntie Laura's gonna make peanut bugger sammiches an' picket eggs and Momma's gonna slip rocks an' you can carry me on your shoulders and frow me in the ocean."

His eyes sparkled and crinkled at the corners
. "Is that right, poppet? Well, that sounds a fine idea. I'm glad I thought of it."
"Nu-uh! Me! I did! An' Auntie Laura's goin' on a holiday today an' she's gonna be gone 'til Saturday an' I gots to watch Lola an' make sure she don't get in any trouble cuz she can be a pain in the ass."

"
Jaysus," Kane whispered, his chest vibrating. "Shannybanany, you do just that. Watch over that little rodent and make sure no kitty-cats eat 'er up." He ruffled the girl's silky hair and slid her to the ground.

"
Laura? Ye ready fer me?"

"
Oh, aye," she whispered.

God
.

"
Uh," she cleared her throat. "Yup. Ready to roll." She grabbed her bag and overnight case, which he plucked from her hand.

"
Uncle Kane, are you goin' on the holiday with Auntie Laura?"

Kane and
Laura locked gazes, and the air sizzled between them. "Aye, Shannon, I am."

Jill
watched, with a big, fat smile on her face.

"
Me too! An' Momma! An' Tess an' Lola an' Stanley!"

"
Not this time, sweet pea. Auntie Laura and I have some explorin' t' do."

Jill
wiggled her eyebrows at she and Kane as he helped her on with her jacket at the door. Laura shot Jill a mock angry scowl, and Kane reached a long arm over and tugged on a hank of her hair.

"
Be good!" she sing-songed.

"
Oh, I've a feelin' we'll be very, very good," he called back to her as they headed out the door.

He opened the car door for her
, saw her in, then popped her case into the trunk. He casually slid into his seat, then lunged, sliding his hand through her hair to cup the back of her head, and crushed his lips to hers in a deep, soul-searching kiss.

She reeled, then
curled her hands into the soft leather of his jacket, and returned the kiss with all the passion and love she felt for him.

"
Hi," he whispered.

"
Hi," she whispered back.

Watching out the front window with glistening eyes, Jill smiled, pressing her fingertips to her lips.

"
Wow," she breathed.

***

It took them eight hours to drive the six hour trip from Puffin Cove to Twillingate. The sky that had started drizzly grey had lifted some, but the sun refused to come out of its cloudy bed. Laura and Kane never noticed.

They stopped for lunch in a picturesque fishing village, gorging on chowder and toutons
. They chatted easily about his art, the birds he had carved, the ones he had yet to fashion.

Together they manufactured a tale of the nuthatch, how he went from Kane
's student studio in Dublin to Miss O'Connell's cottage in Cork. Her home was ransacked and pillaged by modern day pirates during Miss O'Connell's funeral, the booty sold on the black market. The nuthatch survived fire and frost, crossing the Atlantic on a stormy voyage to land in Toronto, where he was seized by Customs officials and lay in the cold dark of a government warehouse, waiting for release. It came in the form of an auction, where a beautiful russet haired lady fell in love with him and took him home to live with her and her children, cherished for the rest of his life.

"
Ooo, that's good. We really should write that down. It would make a great children's book. You could do the illustrations. Do you paint? I mean, other than your birds?"

"
Aye, I can paint. Not as good as the carvins', but I do fair to middlin'. It's a deal. It'll be our first business venture together."

She smiled at their whimsy,
turning the bizarrely possible idea over in her mind.

"
Do ye have any other business ventures in mind, Laura? I don't know that there'd be many properties t' refurbish and turn over in the Puffin Cove area, and goin' farther afield might cut into any profits ye'd make. Or are ye thinkin' t' go back into nursin'?"

"
No, I think I'm pretty much done with medicine. For me it was like a candle that burned bright and fast, but when it got to the stub it was me who got burned, so I think I'm officially retired. To be honest, I'd been thinking about another line of work when I started dreaming of moving here. Now don't laugh." He shook his head solemnly. "I want to raise sheep."

"
Sheep!" He did laugh, deep and rich and thrilling. "Are ye daft, woman? They're the stupidest animals on the planet. What in the blue bloody blazes would incite ye t' want t' raise sheep?"

"
I knew you'd think I was nuts. I think you might be right, too. But I've done a fair bit of research on the subject. I think I might have enough property to keep them at the coast house. I've asked George's lawyer to look into the zoning and legalities. I'd have to fence the perimeter, and keep them away from the gardens, and build a shelter for them, but I think I could do it."

"
Ye are daft, Spitfire. If it's lamb and mutton ye'd be wantin', 'tis likely cheaper t' just buy it from a farmer already established."

"
Oh, no! It's not the meat. I'd never slaughter them. It's their wool I want. I took spinning classes years ago and fell in love with the art. I had just started to toy with some dyeing and blending, but time constraints caught up to me, and I ended up going back to buying what someone else had spun. I never quite got over wanting to create my own. I've done piles of research on shearing and processing the wool. I'd have to build a workshop onto the shelter for that part too, I guess."

"
Laura, ye could keep them at the farm."

Her eyes widened in surprise
. "Your farm?"

"
Aye. I've plenty of pasture and only the four cows. The chickens take no room a'tall, and I'd been thinkin' on addin' to the stock, anyway. Was thinkin' maybe pigs. Me dad farmed cows and chickens and pigs, so I thought t' stay with what I knew. But we could learn the sheep together."

"
Oh, Kane. You just said that sheep were the stupidest animals ever. You don't want a bunch of sheep roaming around."

"
Flock. Tis a flock of sheep. And a flock it is. How many would ye be wantin'?"

"
Are you crazy? You can't put sheep on your farm just because I said I want some. It's a lot of extra work for you, and it'll take up a lot more space. No way. You're not getting into this for me."