The Mighty Quinns: Kieran (10 page)

Kieran shook his head. “Nope.”

“‘Row, Row, Row Your Boat’?”

“That one I know.”

He strummed the D chord and Maddie showed him where to change. Though he’d never been much of a singer, she seemed to bring out the best in him. After they mastered the first song, she sang “Jimmy Crack Corn” with him and then followed it with “Pink Cadillac.”

“See, you’re good already.”

He pulled her into a kiss. “You’re the one that’s good. You’re amazing. I know people tell you that all the time, but it’s true.”

Maddie met his gaze, searching his eyes for the truth in his words. A smile spread across her face. “For the first time, I think I believe it.”

“Put your guitar away. I think the engine’s cooled down enough that we can make it into town.”

He slipped back behind the wheel and when she jumped onto the seat behind him, he started the car. They found a discount store with an automotive department on the edge of town and Kieran left the car parked outside one of the garage doors.

He locked their things in the trunk before they walked inside. As he was filling out paperwork, Maddie wandered off, looking for a couple of cold drinks for them both. He watched as she walked away, smiling to himself.

In a lot of ways, he hoped it would take a day or two to fix the car. He didn’t want their road trip to end. He wasn’t sure what awaited them at her grandparents place, but he liked having her all to himself.

“Pretty lady,” the guy behind the counter said.

“Yeah, she is.”

“You know who she looks like?”

Kieran nodded. “Yeah. Everyone says that.”

“My wife loves that Maddie West.”

“So do I,” Kieran said. “So do I.”

Kieran took a seat in the waiting area and grabbed a magazine sitting on the table next to him. It was a brand-new issue of a tabloid and he scanned the front page looking for Bigfoot stories. But instead, his gaze fell on a headline with a familiar name.

“‘Desperately Seeking Maddie West,’” he read.

“I bought us snacks, too.”

He glanced up to see Maddie approaching with a bag. She plopped down beside him and pulled out a package of red licorice. “I’ve been craving red licorice.” She pulled out a bottle of soda. “I got you root beer. And a Coke. And a fruit punch.”

He held out the tabloid to her. “I think your mother has gone to the press,” he said, pointing to the headline.

Maddie stared down at the paper, then grabbed it from him, flipping through the pages until she found the story. “‘Country star Maddie West took off for parts unknown after the final concert of her tour in Denver. She’s been missing for four days and though her manager and mother, Constance West, has been worried, she doesn’t believe that Maddie has come to any harm. West says her daughter has been suffering under the stress of touring and recording almost nonstop since the age of fourteen. But sources say the problems may run deeper and could include drugs or alcohol. Maddie West is due to begin work on her newest album in a week.’” She drew a ragged breath. “Great. Now everyone thinks I need to go to rehab. You know, my mother once said that a star isn’t a star unless they’ve gone through terrible times in their lives. She actually said people become more popular if they’ve been knocked down a few times. The ‘Comeback Effect’ she called it. I can see her mind working right now. If I want to take time off she’s going to spin it as some kind of breakdown. And then, I’m going to make a comeback, triumphing over my troubles. Oh, it’s going to sell millions of records.”

Maddie threw the tabloid on the floor. He grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. “This doesn’t change anything,” Kieran said. “You’re exactly the same person you were ten minutes ago.”

“I—I need to take a walk. How long is it going to be for the car?”

“They haven’t told me yet.”

“I’ll be back,” she said. “I just need to clear my head.”

“I’ll go with you,” Kieran said.

“No. I’ll be fine. This is kind of new for me, having time to myself. Time to think without someone following me around asking if I’m feeling all right.” She bent down and kissed him, then pointed to the bag sitting beside him. “Have some treats. And throw that magazine away before anyone sees it.”

She walked out the door and Kieran stood. He rang the bell on the counter and the manager appeared a few seconds later. “I’m just going to take a little walk. I’ll be back soon.”

“No problem,” the man said.

Kieran followed Maddie out the door, keeping a safe distance. If she needed him, he’d be there for her. And if not, then at least he wouldn’t be stuck sitting in the automotive department wondering where she was and if she was safe.

“I must be in love,” Kieran muttered. “Either that or I’m going a little crazy.”

* * *

W
ITH
A
NEW
thermostat and a new lease on life, the Cadillac pulled into the long driveway of Serenity Farm around suppertime. Maddie felt her excitement grow as Kieran pulled the car to a stop.

He glanced over at her. “Are you all right?”

Maddie nodded. “My mother and I have never really settled down. We moved all the time. This is the closest thing I’ve ever had to a home.”

The sprawling white clapboard house was exactly as she remembered it with its wide porch and deep green shutters. Her grandmother’s flower gardens were lush with late-summer blooms and Maddie closed her eyes and inhaled the scent, oddly familiar.

She hadn’t seen her grandparents for almost two years. And though she spoke to them on the phone once a month, it wasn’t the same. She stepped out of the car at the same time that the front screen door opened.

“Hi, Ninny,” she cried as she ran up the steps and embraced her grandmother. “Pawpaw, you look as handsome as ever,” Maddie said as her grandfather emerged from the house. She gave him a fierce hug, then stepped back.

“You’re home,” her grandmother said.

“I’m home,” Maddie repeated. She turned and motioned to Kieran. “This is Kieran Quinn. My friend. My...boyfriend.”

Kieran took the front steps two at a time and held out his hand to her grandmother. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He shook her grandfather’s hand. “Mr. Westerfield. Mrs. Westerfield.”

“I’m Sarah,” her grandmother said. “And this is Joe.”

Kieran nodded. “Sarah. Joe. You have a beautiful place here.”

“Joe, get the bags. Come in, you two. We’re just finishing dinner. Are you hungry?”

Kieran helped Maddie’s grandfather with the bags, dropping them both along with her guitar in the front hall. Maddie wandered back to the kitchen, the smell of dinner filling her senses.

“What’s for dinner?” Maddie asked.

“Fried chicken, potato salad, green beans from my garden and sweet tea. Peach cobbler for dessert. I found the best peaches at the fruit stand yesterday. Straight from Georgia.” She slipped her arm through Maddie’s and led her to the table. “What are you doing here? I thought you were on tour.”

Maddie sat down and Kieran joined her a few minutes later as her grandmother fetched them both a plate. “The tour is finished. We did the last show in Denver a few days ago.”

“So you have some time off?” her grandfather asked. “You’ll be staying for a few days, I hope.”

Maddie paused. “More than that. Maybe. I need a break. Maybe a permanent break. I just don’t love it anymore.”

Her grandmother poured them both a glass of tea, then placed her hand on Maddie’s shoulder. “I can’t say I’m surprised. Although I never thought you’d last as long as you did. You’ve been working nonstop for ten years. No one can put up with that kind of pressure for so long.”

Maddie glanced over at Kieran and he smiled at her. “I feel much better now.”

They chatted over dinner about the tour, about her trip home, but they avoided the subject of her mother. Maddie knew that Ninny wanted to bring it up, but she’d never talk about it in front of a stranger. And to her grandparents, Kieran was a stranger.

After they finished dinner, Sarah cleared the table. “Let’s have our dessert on the porch a bit later. Joe, why don’t you give Kieran a tour of the farm. I want to have a little talk with Maddie.”

Kieran gave her hand a squeeze, then got up from the table and followed her grandfather to the front door. Maddie drew a deep breath and then sighed softly. Right now, she could use a few moments alone with Kieran, but those were going to be hard to find until her grandparents were in bed.

“He seems like a nice boy,” Sarah said. “Where did you meet him?”

“In the bus station in Denver,” Maddie said. “He helped me escape. And we’ve been together ever since.”

“So you’ve known him...”

“Four days,” she said. “I know, it seems like nothing. But we have such a strong connection.”

“And what does he do, besides drive runaway country singer home to visit her grandparents?”

“He works for his family business in Seattle. They build boats. Expensive sailing yachts.”

“And he’s on vacation?”

Maddie shrugged. “Something like that. He’s taking time away, like I am.”

“Well, I’m not going to ask the particulars, but I think it’s best if he sleeps in the stable house.”

“I think I might be falling in love with him,” Maddie said. “He’s so kind and sweet and funny. And he cares about me. Not me, the country singer, but me, just plain old Sarah Madeline Westerfield.”

“Your mother isn’t going to be happy about that,” Sarah said. “But I can see how he looks at you. I’m going to reserve judgment until I get to know him a little better.”

“You’re going to like him. I know it.”

“Does your mother know you’re here?”

Maddie shook her head. “I’m sure she’ll figure it out at some point. Kieran texted her to let her know I was all right but I know she’s going to be crazy until she talks to me. I was going to call her, but then I chickened out. You know how she likes to control every little thing.”

“Your mother has made mistakes,” Sarah said. “I’ll be the first one to point that out. But you do have a wonderful career, sweetheart. And you’re so talented. I wasn’t behind this when you were just a teenager, but now, I listen to you sing and I know you’re doing exactly what you should be doing.”

“Am I?” Maddie said. She pushed away from the table. She’d expected her grandmother to side with her, not her mother. But now it sounded as if they both thought she should go back. “I’m not sure I want to go back. I think maybe I want something else out of life. Is that so wrong, to want an ordinary life?”

“Does that ordinary life include being married to Kieran Quinn? Sometimes love can make us think in fairy tales instead of realities. If you’re counting on this young man to rescue you from all your troubles, then I think you need to reconsider your options.”

Was that what she was doing? Maddie wondered. Her grandmother had always urged her to take control of her own life and until now, she hadn’t found the courage to do that. But the courage hadn’t been all her own. Kieran had helped.

“I don’t expect that,” Maddie said. “He has a job and a life in Seattle. He’ll have to go home and I’ll have to make some decisions about what I want.”

“Well, sweetheart, I think you need to take your time. You’re a big girl now.”

Maddie stood up. “You know, I think I’m going to catch up with Kieran. Why don’t you leave the dishes and Kieran and I will do them later?”

She was anxious to get out of the kitchen, away from all of her grandmother’s questions, away from the mirror that Sarah Westerfield held up to Maddie’s face. She wanted to grab her things and throw them back in the car, to run away again. When she was with Kieran, she didn’t have to think about her future. She could just live each day without concern for the next.

She found Kieran and her grandfather standing at the gate to the stable paddock, watching a pair of horses gallop around the perimeter, their tails and manes flying. She stood next to Kieran, wrapping her arms around him.

“Have you met all the horses?” she asked.

“Some of them,” Kieran said. “I’ve never really been around horses. They’re much bigger than I thought they’d be. Close up, I mean.”

“We’ll have our first riding lesson tomorrow,” Maddie said. “You wait. You’ll be a pro before you know it.”

“I guess that means I’m going to have to take you driving.”

Her grandfather chuckled. “Our Maddie behind the wheel. Oh, dear. We tried that once and it didn’t come out well.”

“I went off the driveway and into the pasture fence,” Maddie said. “I mixed up the brake with the gas.” She smiled, remembering. “But I was only thirteen.”

“Hopefully, the last eleven years have taught you the difference between go and stop,” her grandfather said. “But your inability to tell left from right never stopped me from loving you, darlin’.” He turned away from the fence and gave her a kiss. “Take a look around. You helped build this farm, Maddie West. Look what your music has made for us.” He cleared his throat and Maddie caught sight of a tear in his eye. “Well, I’m hungry for a piece of your grandmother’s cobbler. And then, I’m going to listen to the ball game.”

“Pawpaw is a big baseball fan,” Maddie explained. “Braves all the way.”

“I’m a Mariners fan myself,” Kieran said.

“I do like my ball games,” Joe said. He gave them both a wave as he walked away, his hands shoved in his pockets.

Kieran draped his arm around Maddie’s shoulders and then pulled her into a long and lazy kiss. “I’ve missed that,” he murmured against her lips. “I feel like I have to be on my best behavior.”

“You better be. Ninny is putting you out in the stable house. I think she knows we’ve been sleeping together. She won’t have any of that premarital sex under her roof.”

“So we’ll have to find another roof?”

“The backseat of the car is made for fun,” Maddie said.

He kissed her again. “Can you sneak out after everyone is asleep?”

Maddie groaned softly. “Now I’m wishing we’d stayed on the train.”

“We’ll be fine,” Kieran said.

“I hope so,” Maddie said, burying her face in his chest. Though she’d been happy to see her grandparents again, Maddie couldn’t help but sense that the fantasy that she and Kieran had been living had come to an end.