Chapter 34

Claire walked beside Trish along Shop Street, the sun shining high overhead. Galway buzzed with life, and Claire felt a rare lightness in her step as she strolled beside Trish. A busker strummed an acoustic guitar, his voice melding with the chatter of tourists and locals. Crowds bustled around them, some stopping to read restaurant menus, others carrying shopping bags.

Trish laughed softly beside her. "There's nothing like a sunny day and a bit of heat to get people out. You'd swear it was race week."

"It was a long winter," Claire said as they moved through the crowded street, and she wasn't just talking about the weather.

The first two months after Evelyn left had been hard. Claire had thrown herself into her work, taking on more horse riding lessons, filling every spare moment with activity. She'd made a rule for herself never to google Evelyn's name. She didn't want to know how the movie was going or whether Evelyn was back in the tabloids. It hurt too much to think about. But now, seven months later, and almost a year to the day that Evelyn had arrived, Claire was finally starting to feel like herself again.

"Will we stop for a drink?" Trish asked.

"Sure."

They found a table outside one of Claire's favorite pubs, and she leaned back in her chair, savoring the warmth on her skin. Trish had gone inside to order two pints of Guinness, and Claire watched the steady stream of people going by as she waited.

A few minutes later, Trish brought out their pints. She lifted her glass towards Claire's. "Cheers."

"Cheers," Claire echoed as they both took a long swig.

Trish let out a contented sigh as she sat back in her chair. "Evelyn Coleman is some woman, isn't she?"

Claire blinked, taken aback by the mention of Evelyn's name. She hadn't expected Trish to bring her up. "How do you mean?"

Trish studied her for a second. "You haven't heard?"

"No. Heard what?"

Trish chuckled. "I forget that you don't live on social media like most people your age. Evelyn Coleman came out yesterday. In the middle of an interview," she said with a laugh. "As casual as you like."

"What?" Claire felt her heartbeat quicken.

"Yeah." Trish nodded, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "I wonder how much of an effect you had on her. I heard you pulled out all the stops. Rory mentioned that you brought her to the pub, and it took some asking around to figure out who lit those fireworks," Trish said, giving her a knowing smile.

Claire's cheeks warmed under Trish's gaze. "I might have called in a few favors."

Trish grinned. "I didn't know you were such a romantic."

Claire took a long drink, letting Trish's words sink in. Evelyn had come out. Publicly. In the middle of an interview. Claire's mind raced, trying to process the information. She couldn't help but feel a surge of pride.

"I'm happy for her," Claire said softly, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "It couldn't have been easy to do."

Trish nodded in agreement. "It's a big deal, especially for someone as famous as her. I'm sure it took a lot of courage."

Claire's thoughts drifted to the time she'd spent with Evelyn. She'd asked herself more than once if she could change things, would she? Would she erase the time she had with Evelyn to spare herself those long weeks of feeling so lost and lonely after she'd left?

The question gnawed at her in the quiet moments, often when she was alone in the stables or taking one of the horses out for a ride.

They'd barely had two months together, but somehow Claire had managed to fall so hard for Evelyn in that short space of time. They had been getting to know each other for the two months before then, when Evelyn first arrived at the estate, but still, it had all happened so fast.

But Claire couldn't bring herself to wish that time away.