She stood on her toes to whisper in Carwyn’s ear before she walked over to her boss. She stood next to Murphy, watching the Coast Rescue boats in the distance.
There was a moment of silence before he finally spoke. “You’re well?”
“I am.”
“And Carwyn?”
“Fine.”
Another long pause. “I didn’t know he was back in town,” Murphy said.
“Just back. He came to see me. I mean… he came back. For me. You know, we’re… he’s… we’re married now!” she blurted. “I mean… yes. We’re married. It was sudden.”
“A bit.” Murphy snorted. “But not entirely unexpected, considering last March. So you’re content being a priest’s wife, are you? Not the most conventional of matches, but—”
“He’s not in the church anymore.”
Murphy spun toward her with a sharp look in his eye. His fangs had fallen. “He’s not?” He stepped toward her.
Brigid stepped back, blinking in surprise, until she realized why he felt threatened. “I can’t imagine he has any interest in ruling Dublin, Murphy. If Deirdre has stayed out of your way all these years, what makes you think he has any ambition for it?”
He cocked his head. “Do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Have ambition for it.” Murphy crossed his arms and eyed her cautiously. “I don’t see your man wanting the rule of my city for his own. But if you wanted it, Brigid Conner, he’d hand it to you on a silver platter, along with my head. You’re too young to be a very good liar, so I’ll just ask you. Do you have ambition or are you still my ally?”
She frowned. “Murphy—”
“Answer the question, love.” Carwyn’s voice came from behind her. “Do you want Dublin?”
She spun around, staring at Carwyn, whose eyes were locked with Murphy’s. Brigid finally threw her hands up in exasperation. “Look at you two! Why on earth would I want Dublin? I can hardly stand sitting through trade meetings with you when I have to go, Murphy. And Carwyn, you’d be miserable being a politician’s husband. Why are we even having this conversation?”
The tension in the still night air dissipated, and Murphy cautiously relaxed. After a few more minutes, she saw him nod respectfully to Carwyn, then to Brigid before he backed away. When he was a few meters down the dock, Brigid said, “I’ll be in the office tomorrow night for a debriefing, boss.”
Murphy stopped and turned. His face wore the bleak look she remembered when she first came ashore. “I’m very sorry. About Jack.”
She shrugged. “You couldn’t have known.”
“Oh yes, I could have.” She saw the raw combination of fury and pain in his eyes. “And I should have. Carwyn”— he tipped his head toward the older immortal—“would you join us tomorrow evening? Dublin would be grateful for your assistance.”
Carwyn’s voice was still tense and formal. “Depend on it.”
They both watched as Murphy melted into the black night. Finally, Carwyn tugged on her hand. “Let’s go.”
“Would you really have killed him and given me the city?”
He paused. “If you really wanted it. Murphy has become lax. This will either teach him a lesson, or Deirdre and I will put someone more dependable in his place. We’ll have to see how it goes.”
“So we’re settling in Dublin?”
He frowned. “Of course, love. This is where you work. And I’m currently… unemployed.” She laughed at the grin that broke across his face. “I’m unemployed!”
“So, you’re just going to lay about and watch wrestling now, aren’t you? Drink beer. Make a mess in the kitchen.”
“That sounds splendid! And I may even cook dinner for you now and then like a good house-husband.”
She pulled his neck down and bared her fangs to scrape along his neck as he shivered. “Or just be the dinner. That’s fine, too.”
“I knew you were a smart girl. Can we leave now?”
“Yes, please.”
He pulled her to his side, and they walked past the boats and trailers. Past the car park and through the streets of the deserted suburb north of the city. They finally crossed a road that led to an empty field where Carwyn stopped.
“Where are we going?” Brigid asked. “It’s getting close to dawn, Carwyn, and we’re miles from—”
“Remember I told you I was rather rich?” He pulled the blanket from her and tossed it into a hedge. “I have a somewhat large house on the outskirts of town where we can go. Nowhere near water.”
“How are we…?” She looked around at the empty field, then down at her feet. “Oh, no.”
“Oh yes.”
She glared as he grinned and flexed his massive arms. “No.”
“Yes.”
Carwyn grabbed her and tossed her onto his back. “I was hoping you had an alternate form of transport,” she whined. “There’s rocks and leafy bits and dirt everywhere. I’ll be even more filthy than I am now.”
He pulled her legs tighter around his waist and squeezed her right knee. “I’ll just have to clean you up later. Consider it my reward for doing all the hard work getting us home.”
“I’ll never understand why you like to travel like this.”