One in particular catches my eye, because I’ve met him, and also his father. You’re kidding me? The little guy who came over on the boat last week? He's a baby! Okay, not a baby , and I guess it was o...
Kiernan reaches to pull out my chair, but I beat him to it and then nudge the chair across from me out about six inches with my foot. He pulls it out the rest of the way and says, Thank you, dearest,...
The manager is busy, and our policy is absolute. No respectable establishment— The man breaks off in midsentence about the time I feel a hand on my elbow. Kiernan leans in and plants a quick kiss on m...
The Kiernan kid was there when it happened, near the back of the barn. He’d been hanging out earlier with a younger version of Simon and this electrical engineer we recruited. Kiernan helped them set...
She doesn’t say anything for a few seconds. Are you sure, Kate? A year is a long time, especially at your age. True. It would be a shame for you to miss my first step. She rolls her eyes. You know wha...
He shrugged. Yeah, but me dad said th’ only way to learn is t’ ask questions. An’ it’s hard to do that with buttoned-up lips. Anyway, I c’n tell that one you’re followin’ is a bad bloke. He has those...
Mom says I should erase it. That this present is our reality and everything on this little drive is fiction. She may be right. But there’s plenty of truth in fiction.
Kiernan leans forward. I’m guessing that’s because you make it work, Mr. Houdini. Maybe that’s how you manage . . . He pauses when my kick lands on his shin, but finishes the sentence anyway. . . . s...
I toss the formal dress from 1905 onto the chair next to him. He glances up, removing the headphones. Did you decide to do a bit of shopping in London? I give him a wry smile. Does this look like some...
He said he doesn' have it. Pick on someone your own size. You could really hear the Irish in Kiernan's voice back then. I mean, you can still hear it, but it’s more of a lilt when he’s older. Back the...
He pushes his chair back and goes to the kitchen. Are you hungry? Yes. I’m thinking Kentucky Fried Rooster. There’s another chorus of cock-a-doodle-doo just as I finish speaking, and he laughs. Henry’...
Each kid got a small allowance for helping with the harvests, and Kiernan would always head straight to the tobacco shop. Not for cigarettes. At first, he even threw the cigarettes away, but later he'...
The manager rolls his eyes. Sorry, miss, already picked my dozen— So make it a baker’s dozen, someone yells from the back. Bet she can’t hit the bloody nail anyway. Give us somethin’ to laugh at. That...
You ever heard that bit about don’t look a gift horse in the mouth?I’ve heard it. Although the Trojans would have fared better with Athens if they had ignored that advice. I had to look up that refere...
Well, I'm expecting great things from you, young man! Th-thank you, Brother Cyrus. As soon as he released my shoulders, I hurried over to the glass wall where Kiernan was sitting, frowning out at the...
Things settled into a lazy pattern. School, chores, and long hours down by the river. Kiernan talked about the books he read sometimes, even loaned me a few. But I liked it better when he read to me o...
That surprised me. Not that it wasn’t a damn good game. We saw it again, in fact, after he took up with Kate. Not that either of them paid much attention to what was going on down on the field. That w...
Kiernan and baseball—it’s like waving a carrot in front of a mule. Put tickets to a ballgame in front of Kiernan’s face and he’ll follow you pretty much wherever you want to go. After that first game...