Cait walked down the steps from Seamus' apartment with a lighter heart. She'd spent an enjoyable hour with the old man while he had teased her about her ability and asked her if she could give him the winning lottery numbers. It was nice to be treated normally and even to poke some fun at her gift. Fun, Cait thought. She needed more fun in her life. Lately it had been all intensity and angst.

She let herself out the front door of the Baron and stopped short to see Shane leaning on her car.

"Shane."

"Cait, I just stopped by to have a word with Seamus and saw your car here. I figured that I would wait," Shane said.

"You could have come up. We were just having a pint." Cait shrugged a shoulder awkwardly.

"Walk with me?" Shane gestured to the square.

Helpless not to go with him, Cait nodded and walked by his side silently.

Shane didn't touch her. Together, they crossed the street in silence. Cait stared at the gray cobblestones of the square and felt a sense of dread fill her. They walked quietly for a few moments.

"I just came from talking to Ellen," Shane began.

Cait felt her heartbeat pick up and a thin layer of sweat kissed her forehead.

"She had some interesting things to say about you."

"Is that so?" Cait asked.

"Is it true?"

"Is what true, Shane?" Cait asked stubbornly, forcing Shane to say it.

"Can you read minds?"

Cait let out a small breath. The time had finally come. She could no longer hide behind her own expectations or boundaries.

"Yes."

One word, said so simply, and yet it had the power to change everything, Cait thought. She couldn't bring herself to look at Shane. A sheen of tears coated her eyes and she blinked furiously against them, refusing to cry in front of Shane. Instead, Cait watched a young couple laugh and dance through the square together. She wanted to be that couple…light and carefree.

"When were you going to tell me?" Shane's words carried a hint of anger and Cait turned to face him.

"Was I supposed to tell you?" Cait asked, tilting her head to look into his gorgeous face. By God, he was angry, Cait thought in surprise.

"You didn't think that that was a valuable piece of information for me to have?"

"I didn't think that it was any of your business," Cait said and jutted her chin out.

Shane's face darkened and he struggled to breathe. Cait watched in fascination as he quelled his anger.

"That's a fairly important thing to tell the person who wants to be with you," Shane finally said.

A fissure of anger worked its way through Cait. She took a deep breath and thought…nice voice, use your nice voice.

"Oh? You want to be with me? In what way? As your sidepiece? As a fun-when-you-want-it kind of girl?

"What? No, I never said that," Shane said and grabbed her arm. Cait wrenched it away.

"Yeah, well you didn't say a lot, did you?"

"Well, apparently I didn't have to as you can just read my mind!" Shane shouted at her.

Cait stopped and stared at him and a cold rage filled her.

"I have never read your mind. Ever. I have morals, you know," Cait whispered furiously, offended to her very core.

"Oh, so you can just turn it off and on? How was I supposed to know as YOU NEVER TOLD ME!" Shane shouted, betrayal lacing his face.

"Why? So you could add it to the list of things that make me unsuitable for you?" Cait demanded, her hands at her hips. Her whole body trembled with anger. She couldn’t believe that they were doing this, in public at the square. She could see people steering clear of them and Cait could only imagine the picture they made. She was surprised to find that she was beyond caring.

"What are you talking about? Why wouldn't you suit me?" Shane said as he squinted at her in confusion.

Cait felt it build in her, all her insecurities, her mother's words, her sadness, and unable to stop herself she shrieked at Shane:

"Because I'm not good enough! You made that clear when you laughed at my dream of buying the pub. You only date people who are rich and from out of town. You buy the nicest things, have the best house in town, and only drive the fanciest cars. I'm not rich. I don't come from a stable upbringing. I'll never be on your level, Shane, so just leave me alone. Stop toying with my heart when you never meant to be with me anyway," Cait said, the steam going out of her words and trickling down into a whisper.

Shane gaped at her, his mouth struggling furiously to form words.

Cait held up her hand. "Just don't."

"You lied to me!" Shane said. "Don't try to change the subject to some stuff that isn't true and doesn't matter. Let's not forget the fact that you lied to me. You betrayed me, Cait," Shane said.

Cait's body trembled and she stared at Shane's furious face. He had completely dismissed her claims that she wasn't good enough as if they didn't matter. She didn't know if that meant that he didn't believe them or if he felt like her feelings weren't important. Confused, and not sure what to say next, Cait just stared at him helplessly.

Shane's phone rang and he raised his finger to her. Glancing at the phone, Cait could see his debate about answering. Reaching out, she scanned his mind.

"Go on, answer it, it's the Guardai."

Shane shot a shocked look at her.

"See? That's me, Shane. You'll never be able to change that," Cait said bitterly.

Shane just looked at her and shaking his head, he answered the phone. With one last look over his shoulder, he walked away from Cait, breaking her heart with every footstep.

Cait turned blindly and ran for her car, narrowly missing getting hit by cars as she raced across the street.

She'd been right all along, Cait thought, and hopping in her car, she raced from Galway, leaving her heart behind.

On the road, Cait picked up her phone and dialed Patrick.

"Hiya, Cait," Patrick answered cheerfully.

"Close the pub," Cait whispered.

"What's that?"

"I said, close the pub. Until further notice. I'll give you two weeks' pay," Cait said.

"Cait, what's wrong? You can't just close the pub!" Patrick's voice was filled with worry.

"I am. I'm sorry, Patrick. I'll let you know if anything changes," Cait said and hung up.