Page 42 of Harbor Lights (Inishderry Island Romances #3)

TWENTY-NINE

Con closed the door quietly on her way out.

The first month of the youth club had seen a big increase in young people signing up for clubs and proposing new ideas for themed nights or meetings.

Tonight’s music session was full to the rafters, and she didn’t want to spoil the vibe.

The young people saw Christy and Shiv as confidantes, but Con would always be, first and foremost, the village doctor.

She didn’t mind. The club had become Shiv’s baby and she’d risen to the occasion. She’d signed up for a part time youth leader course in the next academic year, and in the meantime was soaking up all the online resources she could find.

Con had been worried that being in a relationship with a GP, with all the long hours and out of hours callouts that entailed, would annoy Shiv.

But in reality, it was often Con who had to remind Shiv to stop work and have some fun.

They’d found the time for long beach walks and DIY projects, and Con was now a committed cold-water dipper, even though she was sure at this point it couldn’t get much colder without freezing over.

Cold immersion had helped with her hot flashes, and she was finally feeling like she might see a light at the end of the tunnel with her symptoms.

She walked quickly up the lane to the Waterside, turning her collar up against the light drizzle driving horizontally into her face.

There were a few slivers of pink light in the otherwise overcast darkening sky; the remnants of a hidden sunset.

The days were already getting longer, even if only gradually.

But she didn’t long for spring as desperately as she usually would in February.

Evenings curled up on her couch with Shiv, watching the flames dance in the hearth, had given her a new appreciation for long winter nights.

She almost resented the approach of the more hectic seasons of spring and summer.

Almost. But the fair weather would bring new adventures for them.

Shiv wanted to paddle out to Inishkyle as soon as the weather permitted.

Con had dusted off her rowing machine and was back training regularly.

Her flexibility and strength had already improved. Shiv was good for her well-being.

Con shook off her thoughts as she entered the hotel foyer and little Pegeen barreled toward her. “Badadadabada!”

“Hi, Peggy.” She squatted on her haunches to get closer to the little girl. Lower than she’d gotten for years. It felt good.

Pegeen continued her babble.

“Would you mind watching her for a couple of minutes?” Kasia rushed past with laundered sheets piled high in her arms. “The sooner she can make beds, the better.”

Con hoisted Pegeen onto her hip. “Of course. I’m just hanging around waiting for Shiv, so I can get her ready for bed, if that helps?”

“I’ll accept that offer gladly, thank you. If you take her up now, Tierney will be home in an hour. There’s a bottle of milk in the refrigerator.”

“Come on, Pegeen. Shall I tell you a story?”

Peggy clapped as they mounted the stairs, then tried to take off Con’s glasses. Rescuing them, she clasped the little girl’s hands and smiled.

She was glad to be doing something useful as she opened closets in Peggy’s nursery, until she found sleep suits and diapers.

Peggy was very accommodating, and even tried to help change her own diaper. Con laughed along with the child’s giggles and successfully swerved when Peggy made another grab for her glasses.

“You’re a little monkey, aren’t you? Now, let’s find you a book to read and we’ll have you all settled before your mommy arrives home.”

“Mamamamamama,” Peggy agreed.

Three story books and a bottle of milk later, Peggy dozed on her shoulder, and Con was hoping she could take a trip to the bathroom soon.

She heard the door open and turned to warn Tierney not to wake Peggy.

“Hey, look at you being all maternal.” Shiv appeared behind the couch.

“Do you think you could take her without waking her?” Con’s need was urgent now.

“Yeah, sure. I’ll get her to bed.” Shiv expertly scooped the sleeping child onto her own shoulder with only a brief grumble from Peggy.

The moment Con was free, she sprinted to the bathroom. Shiv was waiting and pulled her into an embrace when she returned.

“Kasia sent me up. I missed you. Why’d you leave?” She ran kisses down Con’s neck, raising the hairs on her arms. She wished Shiv could kiss her all day, every day.

“The kids are more relaxed when it’s just you and Christy. You don’t need me hanging around.”

“How do you know, if you’re not there?” Shiv pulled her down onto the couch and took the kisses up a notch, unbuttoning the top button of Con’s shirt.

Con pushed her back gently. “Shouldn’t this wait till we’re home?”

Shiv sat back with a pout. “Where’s home tonight?”

Con checked her pocket watch. “Well, unless Tierney appears in the next two minutes, we’re going to miss the last ferry. How cold do you think it’ll be in the cabin?”

“Pretty cold, after you’ve kept me prisoner in your big, fancy house for over a week.”

Con laughed. “It’s getting a lot fancier, now you’re working your way around all the jobs.”

“That’s why you keep me around. For the free labor,” Shiv wailed, and draped dramatically over the couch.

“Shh, the baby.” Con put her finger to Shiv’s lips. “I also keep you for your delicious breakfast omelets.”

When Shiv sucked her finger into her warm mouth, Con melted. She leaned over Shiv and replaced her finger with her tongue, quickly getting lost in the thrill of exploring her mouth and enjoying the feel of Shiv’s hands roving over her body.

Con shot upright at the sound of the door and quickly buttoned her shirt. Shiv giggled, making no attempt to get up.

“Hey, look at you kids. Can’t even keep yourselves decent while babysitting.” Tierney was grinning from ear to ear as she entered.

Con’s face heated. “Sorry.”

Tierney snickered. Shiv sat up and draped an arm around Con reassuringly.

“I’m teasing you,” Tierney said. “It’s really cool to see you two together and enjoying life.” She ducked into the baby’s bedroom.

Tierney had been their biggest, loudest cheerleader since they told their friends they were together.

Con couldn’t remember now why she’d thought making their relationship public was a bad idea.

She trusted Shiv with her heart and her life.

And now Shiv had registered with the health center in town, there was no conflict of interest for the locals to gossip about.

She got up from the couch. The lights of the ferry were moving out toward the lighthouse. “Let’s get up the hill.”

“Hey, take the car.” Tierney stuck her head around the door. “It’s the least I can do after you got sleeping beauty settled.”

“No, the exercise will do us good.” Con wanted to be wide awake when they got back to the cabin. She pulled a grinning Shiv up from the couch.

“You should see Con jogging up that track lately. I can’t keep up.”

Con nudged her. “I’ve got a long way to go to be anywhere near as fit as you, but I’m enjoying it. I feel stronger.”

“Lookin’ good, too.” Shiv winked before she went to fetch their coats.

“Thanks for taking care of Peggy. See you on—soon.” Tierney grinned sheepishly when Con shot her a fierce look. Of all their friends, Tierney was most likely to forget and ruin the surprise she had in store for Shiv.

Shiv seemed none the wiser, though, when she returned with Con’s coat and slid it over her shoulders.

“See you soon, cuz.” Shiv led the way back down the stairs while Con thought how nice it was to hear her use that endearment back at Tierney.

Shiv had never had siblings, and hadn’t known her cousins until recently, but she’d really slipped into the Walsh family network, almost as if she’d never been missing.

Kasia wasn’t around, so they slipped out into the night unnoticed. Con placed an arm around Shiv’s shoulders and set the pace as they reached the path.

“What are you in such a rush about?” Shiv pulled her to a stop.

Turning, she took Shiv’s face in her hands and touched her lips. She couldn’t help herself these days. There seemed like no good reason to ever keep her hands off Shiv.

On tiptoes, Shiv kissed her back. Her lips were soft and warm, and utterly irresistible. They twisted into a smile before Shiv pulled back.

“You’d better get me home, then.”

“If you keep delaying us, I’ll carry you there over my shoulder.”

“Hey, I’m not that small!” Shiv pushed past her and jogged up the hill. Con followed with renewed determination, until they reached the cottage.

Shiv pushed open the door and pulled her inside, kicking the switch to a floor lamp that softly lit the cabin.

The way she treated Con, with such gentleness, almost reverence, was such a turn on.

Con got the feeling Shiv would happily take her there in the doorway, but from the beginning, she’d understood Con took a little longer to get physically aroused, even if she was already there emotionally.

The kisses Shiv was placing along her collarbone were definitely helping. She tipped her head and captured Shiv’s roaming lips. Shiv’s tongue slipped into her mouth in a move she felt firmly between her legs.

She pulled back. “Jesus, Shiv, what you do to me.”

Shiv grinned up at her while pulling off her coat and throwing it, along with her own, onto the couch. Then she drew Con gently into the small bedroom with the brightly painted iron bed. Shiv unbuttoned her shirt and gently pushed her back.

Con conceded, relaxing back onto the soft surface without taking her eyes from Shiv’s wide pupils, showing black in the dim light.

“You’re so fucking sexy, Con.” Shiv’s voice was pure lust. “You don’t want to know what I do in this bed when I have to stay here alone.”

“I do want to know.” Con swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. “You could show me?”