The Forest of Aisling: Dream of the Shapeshifter (The Willow Series Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

“Dad?”
    “Wils?”
    “How come you barely have any accent? I mean, you
did live here until you were eighteen, right?”
    “Yes.”
    “Well, shouldn’t you still have an accent?”
    “I’ve lived in the US for over 30 years; people
tend to pick up the dialect of where they live after that amount of time,” he
answered, yawning.
    “Too bad, I love the Irish accent,” I noted
rubbing my fingers across the plaid pattern of his comforter.
    “It’s not the Irish who have the accent, it’s the
yanks.” And with that he pulled back the blankets and climbed out of bed. 
“You hungry?” he asked, stretching out his arms.
    “Starving!” I answered simultaneous to my stomach
rumbling.
    “Well, let’s get a move on, lots to do today.”
     
    After stuffing ourselves with a huge breakfast
consisting of Irish sausage, potato bread, scrambled eggs, pudding, and tea, we
jumped into the car and headed a few miles outside of Killarney.  The plan
was to visit Dad’s uncle Eagan and his family.  Still no word on when or
if we were going to visit Grandpa.
    “Here we are,” he smiled, pulling up to the old
farmhouse.  “The place hasn’t changed in thirty years.”  He climbed
out of the car and stepped up to the gate, staring at the house, lost in his
memories.
    It was cottage-like, white with red trim and a
dark roof.  Ivy grew along the house and well-manicured evergreens stood
on either side of the gate leading to the front door.  It was starting to
rain which gave the house a sparkly and misty appearance, like something out of
a Charlotte Bronte novel.  The front door opened and a tall man with gray
hair appeared, wearing a driving cap and smoking a pipe.  He held his hand
over his head to block the rain and rushed to the gate.
    “Get yerself in here, Jack, m’boy, you’ll be
soaked to the bone,” he chuckled as he reached out, motioning for us to come
in.  “And who might this lovely lady be?”  He put his arm out for me to
take hold of.
    “This is Willow, Uncle E,” Dad replied as he
patted Uncle Eagan on the back.
    “Pleasure to meet you miss,” Eagan said with a bow. 
The sweet smell of tobacco circled out of his pipe and wafted straight into my
nose.  Usually I can’t stand tobacco smell but this was different – sweet,
fruity smelling.
    I bowed. “Pleasure to meet you sir,” I giggled,
then wondered what the heck I was doing.  So not like me to be all cute
and giggly, but something about Uncle Eagan made me feel like I was in a
different time, and I sure was in a different place.
    “After you, m’lady,” Eagan motioned for me to go
ahead.
    I giggled again. For Pete’s sake, I
thought, get a hold of yourself Willow, and stepped up the stairs and
through the front door.  The first thing I noticed was a delicious smell
that filled the air.  I couldn’t tell you what it was; all I knew was that
something was cooking and it smelled heavenly. 
    “Meriel must be doing some baking.” Dad observed
it as well taking in a deep breath.
    “You know Meri, once she learns of guests coming,
she’s in the kitchen.  Best go see her, Jacky, I’ll bring Willow in
momentarily,” said Eagan as he put his arm around my shoulder. “Come this way,
darlin’, I’d like to introduce you to my grandchildren.”
    Eagan led me past some stairs into a hallway where
I could hear the sounds of music and laughter.  “Young people need other
young people. I think you may enjoy the company of these two,” smiled Eagan as
he opened the door to a music room.  Sitting at the piano were two kids
about my age.  They were playing a song, singing and laughing
hysterically. 
    “Hey, you two hooligans, meet your second cousin
Willow, from the US of A,” Eagan boomed, shouting over their laughter.
    Both kids spun around in their seats.  The
boy had red hair, bright blue eyes, and a very friendly face.  He immediately
stood up and came over. “Hello there, Willow, I’m Quinn, ‘tis a pleasure,