by Casey Morgan
She reached up and pinched my cheek.
“Thanks,” I smiled. “Are you here by yourself or…?”
I stepped back a little, not used to being so close to a Were.
“No, I’m with my husband on vacation,” she explained. “He can afford to retire, but doesn’t, so this is his compromise. We travel half way around the world so that he can work in the business center of every hotel in Europe.”
I thought about the werewolf I saw working on the laptop downstairs in the pub. That must have been Allison’s husband. Maybe she meant that the pub was his “business center”. Or maybe she didn’t know that was where he was.
“Is that a good thing?” I asked her, unsure.
“It’s not bad,” she shrugged. “At least we’re out of the house and able to roam. You going down to dinner now?”
“Is there a dinner? I just got here about an hour ago,” I explained.
“Oh, yes,” she said, her tone becoming more excited. “This is part of the fun for me. Going to these quaint little places and trying the local food! It’s usually quite delicious.”
“Yeah, then, I guess I will,” I said.
“I’ll see you down there,” she smiled. “I have to go and see if I can get Herbert off the Wifi for a few minutes.”
Another nice creature. I couldn’t believe how many of them were here in this town. It felt like just what I needed. I began to cheer up and feel glad that I had come, after all.
I went downstairs and walked through more of the house. There were old paintings hanging on the walls, with frames and enough antiques to fill two shops. I wondered if there were old ghosts roaming these halls.
There was a real sense of history here and I was about to be in the middle of it.
Chapter 3
Shanna
In the dining room, which was a large rectangular room opposite of the pub, Ryan and Brody were sitting at a large table with the other guests of the B&B. Most had just come in from sightseeing.
“Ah, Shanna, welcome,” said Brody, with a grin on his handsome face.
He introduced me to the other guests and I sat down. There was a place waiting for Allison and Herbert.
There was another werewolf couple, Paul and Maven, young, tattooed hipster types. Then there was Sergio, a balding, middle-aged witch, with a mustache and rumpled clothes.
“Who is tending bar?” I asked Brody.
“Our brother, Quinn,” said Ryan.
He sat down in the wooden chair next to me while he continued to explain.
“We let him work the night shift. Our sister, Ciara, works the days. Brody fills in now and again. We have another brother, Aiden, but he’s off trying to be a sheepherder in the mountains. He’ll be back soon, though; none of his adventures ever work out as planned. There’s always room for him behind the bar. In the meantime, Brody fills in when Ciara or Quinn can’t, such as today.”
“Ciara wasn’t feeling well,” said Brody, with a shrug. “And it’s nice to get your hands dirty once in a while.”
The door opened from the kitchen and in walked an elf woman who looked to be in her forties, with a fat face and big arms. She was carrying a large bowl of mashed potatoes.
“Get your hands dirty?” she asked skeptically, her large pink cheeks pinched into a frown. “When was that, Brody Hennessey? Did you get them dirty combing that hair of yours? Or talking to the girls in the next town’s pub? Or maybe your pillow must be dirty, but it sure ain’t from the work!”
“We’re managers, Aunt Bridget,” smiled Brody.
He wrinkled his nose in a charming way.
The large elf woman set the pot down and put her hands on her hips. She glared at Brody.
“Ooh, are ya, now? The only thing I see these two manage is that they manage not to work much!” said Aunt Bridget, turning to address me as she said this last part. “I’ve seen sheep that could do more in a day’s work than these two!”
She took one of her meaty fingers, touched her nose, and gave me a wink.
“Ah, go on, ya old cow,” said Ryan, teasing. “If you complained as much as you worked, you could do everything in the house without our help at all.”
I shifted, slightly uncomfortable in my chair. At first, I wasn’t sure what to make of all this teasing. It seemed a bit cruel. But the other guests and the Hennesseys were laughing it up pretty good.
Apparently, it was all part of the fun here. All part of the atmosphere. The Irish equivalent of “breaking stones”.
“In Aunt Bridget’s defense,” countered Brody, “She does make a fine bangers and mash.”
“Don’t defend her,” said Ryan, thumping his brother with his hand. “The recipe is hundreds a years old. All ya have to do is follow it.”
“Oh, I suppose you could run the kitchen then?” scoffed Aunt Bridget. She started slopping bangers and mash into plates and passing them around the table. “I remember a time when you couldn’t peel a potato without cuttin’ your thumb!”
Brody laughed and slapped his thigh. Apparently, it was an inside joke within the family.
Ryan frowned and crossed his muscular arms in front of his chest.
“That was a razor-sharp potato peeler you handed me!” objected Ryan. “I should’ve called Child Services. I nearly sliced my whole arm open.”
Aunt Bridget rolled her eyes and scoffed.
“I think ye did it on purpose to get out of potato peelin’,” she joked, passing a plate of stew to Brody.
She pointed at Ryan with her dripping ladle. “Look at his pretty face. Seems to shave it all right when he wants to. Look at what a mess he is! Lass, have you ever seen anyone run a bed and breakfast lookin’ like a werewolf mid-shift?”
The guests laughed, and I did too. Ryan rubbed the stubble on his chin. He tried to act angry, offended, but there was a loving glint in his bright green eyes.
“It’s not that bad!” I added, finally starting to get used to the banter.
Ryan tapped my hand gently in appreciation. A current of electricity ran through my skin where he touched me.
“Not that bad!” Aunt Bridget stopped serving stew and put her hands on her hips. “You don’t have to defend this one because he thinks he’s the manager. He can’t even pick up a razor once in a while,” she teased.
Ryan sat back in his chair and crossed his arms again. “Maybe I don’t want to cut mi face off. Didja ever think of that?” he countered. “If you had taught me the proper use of a potato peeler, I wouldn’t be in this mess!”
He pointed to his blonde stubble.
“So, you admit your face is a mess, then?” said Aunt Bridget, pointing at him with her ladle again. “Finally. It’s no wonder you boys can’t keep a girl more than a fortnight!”
“Oh, now come on!” said Brody, feigning offense and putting a hand to his heart. “I may not keep ‘em long, but I keep ‘em happy!”
He leaned my way and winked.
I felt a blush come to my cheeks and tried to look away.
“I’ll bet ya do, lad,” laughed Aunt Bridget. “Until she has to talk to ya for more ‘an five minutes! Ya ever notice how it’s always the pretty elves that are stupid, lass?”
I tried to answer, but I was laughing too hard. I just nodded in agreement, as I squeaked.
Bridget waved a hand at me.
“Ya see? A woman knows the likes of you two!” said Aunt Bridget.
“That’s why I’ve always tried to stay ugly,” said the hipster wolf husband, pointing at his brown bearded face and out of control eyebrows.
Ryan found that particularly funny and bent over with laughter, practically leaning his head onto the table.
I took a minute to try the meal Aunt Bridget had set in from of me. The bangers and mash were amazing. This was the kind of authentic local food that I’m sure Allison would appreciate. A few minutes later, she came down with her husband and started eating.
“Aunt Bridget, are these two still not working?” asked Herbert, immediat
ely joining in the fun. “Maybe you should be manager.”
“There! There!” said Aunt Bridget, pointing. “Ya see. He knows. That’s why he’s been married to Allison so long. He knows who does the real work in the house!”
“Managing is a two-man job!” assured Brody.
“How’s that?” asked Aunt Bridget, her face looking incredulous.
“Well, there’re two men doing it, aren’t there?” said Brody.
This time it was Aunt Bridget who doubled over in laughter, but she never took her attention too far away from the guests. Sergio had used up the rest of the HP sauce. Noticing immediately, Aunt Bridget got up and headed for the kitchen.
“Hold on, love,” she assured the witch.
“I wouldn’t mind if she were in charge,” joked Ryan. “I just don’t want her to ask for a raise.”
Aunt Bridget came rushing back into the room with a new HP sauce bottle in her hand.
“I heard that, boyo. I heard that!” she said immediately. “I’m ready for that raise now. Forget being in charge.”
“And an assistant,” I added.
She grinned at me and patted me on the shoulder.
“Yes! And an assistant. Who gets a raise as well,” said Aunt Bridget. “Oooh, I like this new girl. You boys should keep her around.”
Ryan winked at me and I blushed again. All this attention was really changing my mood.
“You see what happens?” said Brody. “It all goes to her head. That’s the problem with women. Give them just a little authority.”
Aunt Bridget pretended to grimace and then ran over to Brody. She playfully gave him a noogie and then let him go. She sat back down at her seat and finally started serving herself some food.
“Couldn’t even give this one a proper bop on the head,” she said. “His head’s too big and his hair’s too thick.”
“It’s what the ladies like,” assured Brody, running a hand through his light-brown hair. He sure had that right.
Ryan touched my hand lightly to get my attention. When I looked over at him, he moved his fingers through a spell and sent it over to Brody’s head. There was a slight wavering around Body’s hair and it started to stand up on end.
It took a minute for him to notice. Then, he growled at his brother and tried to get his hair to relax.
Aunt Bridget’s face contorted as she tried to hold in her laughter.
“The ladies like a proper gentleman,” she argued, her face turning red. “Not a rogue like you. You might be able to sell that manager line at O’Grady’s Pub, but not here.”
“It worked on Nadine,” said Brody, still trying to fix his hair. “I remember Nadine.”
“Oooh, I’ll bet you do, lad,” snapped Aunt Bridget. “You both dated her, you dirty stook. You give these girls the big front, slope back — No wonder they follow you around!”
I was laughing but I shook my head.
“I didn’t follow that,” I admitted.
“Stook means idiot and big front, slope back — it’s like lying about how much money you make,” explained Allison. “Aunt Bridget always puts on a bit of a show.”
“I see,” I said, trying not to look too interested.
It was true that I understood the lingo now, but I was still stuck on the part where Aunt Bridget had said that both guys had dated the same girl. I had thought I was being silly earlier, fantasizing about being with both brothers at once, but maybe it was something they were actually into.
“C’mon, lass,” said Aunt Bridget, who must have noticed that I had been daydreaming. “Eat your food before it’s cold.”
“I’m laughing so much, I’m afraid I might choke,” I admitted. “You guys are too funny! It must be nice to be so close to family.”
“Well, there’s a lot of history between me and the boys,” said Aunt Bridget. “You know how it is, when ya got family.”
She looked at me from her seat across the table. Her eyes were more of a blue-green, different from the boys. “What’s your family like?”
“I’m not big on my family right now,” I admitted. “Let’s just say it’s complicated.”
Although I was tempted to confide in Aunt Bridget, she seemed like a worldly person, and I didn’t want the whole world to know my story. I was still stinging from my canceled wedding. Sadly, I had been having a good time not remembering it until Aunt Bridget mentioned family.
My thoughts ran rampant. Dammit, Nora! You stupid — No!
I had to focus on the here and now, and on anything else but the past. I knew that spiraling down that staircase in my mind would only lead me to becoming bitter. I had to move on.
Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one at the table, and the other guests had other family stories.
The hipster wife had a pack leader who was a race car driver and died in a fiery wreck at the race track. Sergio and his father hunted together when he was a boy, but they had become estranged over the years. The Davises, Allison and Herbert, both remembered their parents and pack fondly. They were so sweet.
We finished the meal off with one of the best Irish Coffees I had ever had. It woke me up and gave me a little bit of a buzz. I was half tempted to have another, but I was afraid it might keep me up all night. Or get me drunk. I made a mental note to ask Aunt Bridget for the recipe.
Watching the dynamic between the brothers and their aunt, I wondered how that kind of bond had never developed in my own family. It seemed like we were much too uptight in our own way. My parents had put my sister on this pedestal and just constantly defended her. She was prettier and the better witch, they said.
Understand that this was long before she had ever sunk her claws into Derek. I had been the dutiful daughter who got a job and created a life for herself. Nora was always the screw up that needed to be bailed out constantly, yet somehow she got the praise and I didn’t.
I couldn’t help but think that if I had had people like the Hennesseys around busting Nora’ stones, the whole ordeal never would have happened. Maybe then she would’ve taken a good look at her decisions and changed them. Maybe then my parents would’ve called her out on some of her bad behavior and decisions.
But that was all in the past now. Derek had been the real weak link when you get right down to it. He could’ve stopped Nora.
He could’ve just said, “No, it’s wrong for us to date.” He could’ve said, “I have to break up with your sister and wait a period of time before we can date.”
I mean, I wouldn’t have been happy about that, either, but at least it would have been showing me a bit more respect, rather than letting me catch them in the act like I did.
“Shanna?” asked Ryan. He reached over and brushed some of my curls away from my face. “You all right, lass? You seemed to drift away.”
His touch brought me back to myself.
“Oh, sorry,” I smiled. “I’m fried after my trip. It’s been a long night, but you guys — this has been a great finish to a really shitty day. Thank you.”
“Any time,” smiled Brody. “You got plans for tomorrow?”
“I’m not sure. I think I’m just going to get the lay of the land,” I said. Then I looked around at them, wondering if they could understand my slang any better than I could understand theirs. “Do you have that expression here?”
“We do,” said Ryan, nodding. “But I think it’s a British idiom, so I wouldn’t use it quite so much in these parts.”
“Well, thanks for a really great meal,” I said, pushing my chair back and standing up. “I’m going upstairs. Good night.”
Everyone said good night to me and I went back to my empty room. I was super tired. The Irish Coffee had woken me up for a few minutes, but already I was starting to fade.
As I changed into my nightgown, I thought about the wild dinner I had just attended. This trip was already turning out better than I expected. Sure, it had started out with a bump during the travel, but now that I was here and getting settled in, I had really high hopes for a good
time.
I spelled the bed to warm the sheets and slipped inside. The mattress sunk a little beneath my weight. I got comfortable and stared up at the wooden beams in the ceiling.
Who needs Derek? So weak, so pathetic!
I knew that part of being in any relationship was the constant compromise. But I compromised far too much with Derek. Now that I was out of the relationship, I could finally see him clearly. It was amazing how razor focused you became after a relationship ended.
Derek was totally wrong for me. He deserves Nora. I hope she drives him crazy.
Knowing Nora, it would only be a matter of time before my flighty sister changed gears. She’d come up with another one of her “home-based businesses” that she would spend hundreds of dollars setting up and then never do the work on enough to make it profitable. And it probably would be less than a year before Nora was just sick of Derek completely.
Ha! They’d get what was coming to them. I just had to try to forget about them until I could watch the whole mess unfold, which unfortunately, I’d have to be around to do, considering that she was my sister.
As much as I wished I could stay here at Hennessy House for good, I knew that my time here was short. I might as well enjoy it while it lasted and try my best not to think of the disloyal family members I’d left back in the States, since there were bound to be plenty of times in the future in which I’d have to be around them.
Chapter 4
Brody
Ryan and I helped clear the dishes after dinner. It had been a long one and had run late. Next, we went into the kitchen and helped Aunt Bridget do the dishes. She barked and complained, but it was all a show.
When the dishes were almost finished, I went into the bar to help my brother Quinn wipe it down. By ten o’clock pm, the place was empty, so I let Quinn leave.
He had a new baby and his wife needed his support right now. The poor bastard wasn’t getting any sleep. I was half-tempted to drive him home myself, but Quinn insisted that he was fine.
Ryan came out of the kitchen and started clearing out the glasses from the rest of the bar as I washed.
