Free It's in His Kiss Holiday Romance Collection by Mary Leo Page B

imagined it to be.
    “And to think none of this could have ever been possible without your magic coin. I owe you a mountain of gratitude, Ronan. Been trying to contact you for years. Could never quite pin you down. Ever since you moved out of the neighborhood, you and your cousins have been impossible to find. So, was that your cousin Tommy on the news last night? I wasn’t sure.”
    “Yes.”
    “So the leprechaun really got him?”
    “The dirty beast,” Cathy said before Ronan had a chance to answer. She didn’t want to hear his logic, just as she was sure Paul didn’t want to either.
    “I heard the witness said something about a bag of gold Tommy was trying to exchange at the Chicago Gold Exchange. My mom told me once that one leprechaun’s coin will bring you luck as long as the leprechaun doesn’t find you first, but more than one and you risk his wrath. I would think Tommy would have known this,” Paul said.
    “He was probably hoping he could sell the gold before the leprechaun knew what he was doing,” Cathy said. “We think that’s why he came to Chicago, to an Irish neighborhood to do the exchange. Poor Tommy. He never was very bright.”
    “Law enforcement is checking into the details of his death, but I’m sure that’s what happened,” Ronan said, but Cathy detected a wee bit of snark to his voice.
    Fortunately, Paul didn’t seem to notice. “Yeah, we think so too. Not everybody believes me when I tell them about the leprechaun’s pot of gold, and all that it can do. I knew you would, Ronan.”
    Ronan nodded, smiling. “That’s why we’re here. I’d like that coin back if you’re willing to let it go. We want to return it to the leprechaun.”
    Paul took a sip of his tea. He’d served not only tea with all the trimmings on a tray, he’d also brought in several different kinds of homemade cookies as well. Cookies that he’d made himself. Apparently, Ronan’s friend had turned into quite the househusband which seemed to make Ronan a bit uneasy. Cathy could see it in his face, and by the way he couldn’t sit still. She didn’t think Ronan could ever hang around the house all day, baking, cleaning, and raising three kids. She knew he’d much rather be out on the streets of Chicago rounding up bad guys. Another reason why they could never be a couple. He simply couldn’t relax.
    “I don’t have it. Once the coin granted my wish, I needed to pass on the good luck before the leprechaun came looking for it. That’s how I was told the coin works.”
    “Where’d you hear that?”
    “C’mon, Ronan, don’t play stupid. I don’t have to tell you how this Irish magic works. You were born in Ireland. Irish lore should be part of your DNA. I was born here. Had to learn everything from my parents.”
    “Irish lore has different connotations for different families. Tell me what your parents told you about the coin.”
    “They said it can be dangerous, and I needed to get rid of it once our wish was completely fulfilled, meaning the babies were born and were healthy. For the longest time, I didn’t want to let it go, but then my mom convinced me. She thought she saw the leprechaun lurking around our house. Either I had to return it to his pot, and there was no chance of that happening, or I had to give it away. Much easier to give it away.”
    Cathy felt she needed to explain some things to Paul, a True Believer. “Ronan has a bit of doubt in Irish lore. Plus, the poor fella’s lacking some information about the coin’s powers.”
    Paul looked surprised. “Huh, and I always thought you gave me the coin because it had already worked for you, and you were passing on the good luck. I never would’ve thought in a million years that you, Ronan Kelly, the good Irishman that you are, would ever doubt its magic.”
    Ronan shook his head as she thought his eyes finally sparked with belief. At least she hoped so.
    “Never thought to use it,” Ronan said. “Besides, I was a kid. What did I