Call Home the Heart Read Online Free PDF

mean, I hope you won't
    start looking for another employer straight away if you wish to
    leave Barnakilla now that Augustine is dead," she said with a sniff.
     
     
"No, I hadn't thought of leaving Barnakilla at all," he said
    candidly. "I grew up there, you see. I've been away for three and
    half years. I've only just arrived back from Australia. Truth to
    tell, I would sooner cut off my right arm that ever leave Ireland
    again."
     
     
"Do you have a large family at Barnakilla?" Muireann asked in
    surprise. "Or a wife?" she added with a blush.
     
     
"No, no wife or sweetheart," he said, his handsome face darkening.
    "But Barnakilla has always been my home, and I for one think it's
    the most beautiful place in the world."
     
     
Muireann raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I suppose it's only
    natural to feel that way about the place you grew up. I'm sure I
    could give you glowing descriptions of my home at Fintry."
     
     
Lochlainn poured her more coffee, wondering how to answer.
     
     
She wrapped her shawl tightly around her as she waited for him to
    speak.
     
     
But he remained silent, brooding, avoiding her gaze as he continued
    his meal.
     
     
Muireann picked at her food for a few minutes longer. "Well, aren't
    you going to tell me about it?" she asked as the silence lengthened.
     
     
"About what?" he asked sharply, his gray eyes glittering.
     
     
She wondered at his quicksilver mood. "About Barnakilla,
    Enniskillen. You know, anything you think I ought to be apprised of
    if I'm to go there."
     
     
He relaxed then, and smiled. "Anything I told you would be biased by
    my fondness for the place. I can tell you it was once the most
    prosperous estate in the northwest. The house is splendid, the
    grounds, the setting. The hunting and fishing are second to none."
     
     
"Are there mountains, trees?" she asked enthusiastically.
     
     
"Yes of course, and the lough."
     
     
She frowned slightly. "The lock?"
     
     
"Lough Erne. We spell it with a gee aitch on the end, instead of a
    cee aitch as you do in Scotland. The eastern side of the property
    borders it, and the western side has the mountains and trees."
     
     
Muireann slowly digested this information. It sounded even more
    lovely than Fintry.
     
     
"And what do the people do for a living? I mean, where did my
    husband's wealth come from?" she asked innocently.
     
     
Lochlainn set his cup down so abruptly that the saucer almost
    cracked.
     
     
She jumped, startled at his violent response.  "What's wrong?"
     
     
"I'm sorry, I just noticed the time. I want to see Father Brennan
    before he goes off on his parish rounds. You will excuse me,"
    Lochlainn said, tugging on his great coat with evident
    agitation.  He headed for the door, leaving her staring after
    him in amazement.
     
     
"Don't you want me to come with you?"
     
     
He shook his head. "I would say yes, but I think you've had a trying
    enough time already. The mountains of snow out in the streets that I
    can see from the window would be too hard for you to negotiate."
     
     
"We can go in the carriage."
     
     
"No, really, it would be faster for me on foot given the conditions.
    You stay here, read or something. I'll have a good long chat with
    you when I get back," he promised, all the while accusing himself of
    being a bold-faced liar.
     
     
"How soon can we manage the funeral if the weather is so bad?"
     
     
"I don't know, Muireann. I'll see what the doctor says on my way to
    see Father Brennan."
     
     
"Thank you for being so considerate. Well, for everything, really."
     
     
"No need to thank me," he said with a small tight smile, avoiding
    her eyes as he wrapped his muffler around his neck.
     
     
Lochlainn headed out into the swirling storm to collect his
    thoughts. Coward, he berated himself soundly as he trudged through
    the crunching drifts. You're going to have to tell her sooner or
    later, aren't you?
     
     
But at the same time, he knew he was right. He had to