Poppy's Fall

Chapter 3

“You’re here!” Ellie ran to Poppy, frowning slightly before throwing her arms around her best friend. 

Of course, Poppy noticed the frown and of course Ellie had seen what Poppy had hoped to hide just a little bit longer.  It shouldn’t have come as a surprise really.  The women had been friends for so long they knew each other inside and out.  Distance and absence didn’t matter.  Whenever they got together it was as though nothing had changed and they were teenagers again. 

“I’ll tell you all about it after I get settled in.” Poppy promised before Ellie could say a word.  She knew Ellie wasn’t happy about it, but the blonde wouldn’t push her.

Ellie nodded and helped Poppy load her luggage in her car. 

“I thought Aidan had a truck.” Poppy remarked.  This was not a truck.  It was a tiny faded red clunker of a car.  The vehicle was so old she didn’t even think anyone knew the make or model of it anymore.  For unknown reasons she found it suited Ellie perfectly. 

“He does.  This beauty is all mine” Ellie beamed as she spread her arms wide, presumably trying to capture the length of the car.  “I bought it a few days ago.”

“Huh,” Poppy squinted at the box on wheels in an attempt to find something nice to say about it.  “I don’t know that I’d call it a beauty.”

Ellie had anticipated Poppy’s response and rolled her eyes. “Aidan checked it over, there’s nothing wrong with it and it will get me where I need to go.”

“If you say so,” Poppy opened the passenger door and sat in her seat.  Once Ellie was behind the wheel Poppy turned to her. “It could benefit from a new coat of paint though.”

                                                                                                *** 

The trip from Shannon airport to Doolin was full of excited chatter.  Poppy had anticipated the stunning scenery but the charm of the small villages and towns they drove by surprised her.  She had never been a small town kind of girl which was why she had moved to New York City as soon as she graduated high school.  Her parents had been less than pleased with her but she had argued that it was her life and she would live it the way she wanted. 

Poppy’s eyes took in the details of Doolin as they approached; the village was just as Ellie had described it; immediately across a small stone bridge was an array of colorful buildings hosting a number of shops.  Poppy could now clearly imagine the spot where Ellie had bumped into Aidan, and there was Dunne’s where Ellie had sheltered from the rain under the pubs canopy.  She watched as people lifted their hands in greeting when their car passed by and when she looked over to Ellie, her friend was smiling from ear to ear.  It was obvious how the village had taken Ellie in as one of their own in such a short period of time. 

“I wish you would reconsider and stay with us at the cottage.” Ellie broke the silence as she turned into the Callaghan B & B drive. 

“I’d be in the way Els,” Poppy soothed.  “I won’t be far and maybe you can come for a sleepover.”

Ellie considered then nodded her head. “You’re right and I don’t know how comfortable the bed in the spare bedroom is anyway.”

Poppy narrowed her eyes as she slipped out of the passenger seat.  That had been too simple, and she wondered what Ellie had up her sleeve.  The sound of a door opening didn’t give her much time to dwell on it.  When Poppy lifted her head up an older woman was enveloping Ellie into a motherly embrace.  She became rather ashamed when she realized she was feeling just a tiny bit jealous.  There was no reason for it and Poppy knew Ellie deserved every bit of joy that came her way.  Those thoughts quickly subsided when the plump woman with fluffy white hair came around and drew Poppy into her arms.  Letting her eyes close, Poppy gladly accepted the hug.  She felt as though she had arrived in a place where no one could hurt her. 

“It’s happy that I am to finally meet you face to face.” Mrs. Callaghan drew slightly away keeping Poppy at arms length.  She looked Poppy up and down, her brows furrowing as Ellie’s had.   

Feeling uncomfortable at the obvious scrutiny, Poppy gave Mrs. Callaghan an exaggerated smile.  She was keen on getting to her room to take a good look at herself in the mirror as it seemed she was showing more emotion than she thought.  First with Ellie instantly knowing something had happened and now with Mrs. Callaghan.

“Come in, dear.” Mrs. Callaghan took Poppy by the elbow, guiding her to the B & B.  “Your room is ready for you and I’m sure you’d like to freshen up before heading to the pub.”

“The pub?” Poppy asked confused.  It had been a long day of traveling and airports, she was sure the pub could wait.

“Sure, you don’t want to miss the entertainment.” Ellie smirked as she busied herself with the luggage.  “I can’t wait to introduce you to Shaun.”

                                                                                                ***

It wasn’t long before Poppy was sitting at a table in Dunne’s dimly lit pub.  The two older men sitting on either side of her and tapping their feet in time with the music were Colm and Carrick whom Ellie had spoken of so often.  It had only been 10 minutes and Poppy liked them already.  As a smoky voice belted out Whiskey in the Jar Poppy craned her neck to try and get a good look at the singer but the girls and women standing up front made it impossible to see anything. 

“I see you’ve decided to grace us with your presence.” 

Poppy turned to the voice, recognizing it immediately.  Her mouth spread into a genuine smile as she rose from her chair and threw her arms around Aidan. 

“Watch it, he’s mine.” Ellie joked.  It warmed her heart to see the two people she loved the most in this world get along so well. 

“I know we’ve video chatted but it’s great to finally meet you in person.” Poppy stepped back to get a good look at Aidan.  No, video chatting didn’t do him justice.  Broad shoulders, dark, messy hair and cool green eyes.  Seeing him and Ellie side by side was a sight to behold, they were stunning actually. 

An arm suddenly came across Ellie’s shoulders. “Ellie, darling, when are you going to leave Aidan and run away with me?”

Poppy’s jaw dropped, or at least that’s what it felt like, when her eyes found the man who had spoken.  He was slightly taller than Aidan but not as broad.  He was tall, lean and toned and she would later learn it was mostly due-to-the-fact that during the day he was a fisherman.  His eyes were a striking color, a tad lighter than Ellie’s dark blue ones but something about them made it hard to look away.  It seemed his all his emotions showed through his eyes and at the moment he was clearly feeling flirty. 

“I would Shaun, but you know as well as I do all the women in Ireland would hunt me down with torches and pitchforks if I did.” Ellie flirted back innocently.  She knew Shaun meant nothing by it and really only did it to get a rise out of Aidan. 

At the mention of all the women in Ireland hunting down Ellie if she ran away with Shaun, Poppy noticed his eyes flicking over Ellie’s shoulder.  Turning her head she followed his gaze over to the bar where the barmaid was standing taking orders.  The woman was gorgeous to say the least with pin-straight, long black hair and deep mahogany eyes.  And as if she sensed she was being watched she looked up.  At first Poppy was embarrassed at being caught staring but soon realized the dark-haired beauty hadn’t even noticed her but was looking at Shaun.

Well now, wasn’t that interesting.