by Mari Carr
June Kisses
Wilder Irish, book 6
Mari Carr
Contents
June Kisses
Wilder Irish Family Tree
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
July Flames
About the Author
This book is dedicated to my favorite cheerleaders — the Erins.
For their patient guidance, advice, and encouragement
as I rewrote this book 7,249 times.
June Kisses
Kiss me once, shame on you. Kiss me twice, shame on me…
* * *
The first kiss with Landon, Sunnie blames on tequila. The second on adrenaline. He did save her and her Louis Vuitton from a mugger, after all.
* * *
But then the kiss goes viral and sexy cop Landon is being flooded with female attention. Now it’s Sunnie’s turn to save Landon—by pretending to be his girlfriend.
* * *
It’s all fake fun and games and a few orgasms…until Landon’s ex comes back to town.
* * *
Now Sunnie has to decide if June is just for kisses, or for love and commitment…
Wilder Irish Family Tree
Prologue
“Well, now, lass. Those cookies look just fine.” Patrick Collins smiled at his young granddaughter, amused by her impatient expression.
Sunday “Sunnie” Young was no one’s fool. She recognized his cookie-baking ploy for exactly what it was. “Can I go play with the boys now?” she pleaded for the eighteenth time in the last hour.
Patrick was hoping the lure of cookies would distract her. “They’re playing their video game, sweetheart, and there are only two controllers.”
“We can take turns.”
Riley had warned him about this. Apparently, Sunnie had become the quintessential annoying little sister in the past few months, constantly begging to play with her older brother, Finn, whenever his best friend, Landon, was around. Riley said they’d been attempting to please both Sunnie, who was desperate to be included, and Finn, who deserved some alone guy time, as much as possible.
Today fell into the “guy time” category.
Riley and Aaron typically managed their schedules so that one of them was available to babysit. And when they couldn’t, Aunt Bubbles was usually able to step in. However, this afternoon, the stars had not aligned. Which meant he was on duty, taking care of the two boys—the Landon sleepover had been planned before Aaron had been called unexpectedly to work at the precinct—as well as Sunnie and baby Darcy.
So far, Darcy had proved to be the easiest of his charges, arriving and remaining asleep throughout the past hour.
He’d been pleased when Aaron had brought Finn’s video game console from home and hooked it up before leaving. Aaron had assured Patrick that the game would ensure a relatively easy go of it. And that might have held true if Sunnie hadn’t insisted that she wanted to play as well.
They’d already tried the “taking turns” route, and it had ended in a physical struggle as Finn and Sunnie fought over the controller. In order to make peace, he’d suggested the cookie-baking venture. What he hadn’t considered was that, of course, the kids would want to eat said cookies. Finn and Landon had already polished off three each with half a gallon of milk.
As the sugar began to kick in, so did the noise level from the living room.
Even that would have been fine.
But that still left him with Sunnie, his precocious, adorable five-year-old granddaughter. Keira had mused only yesterday that perhaps too many members of the family had whammied Riley with that old “I hope you have a daughter just like you someday,” and the result had been Sunnie.
She was a whirling dervish of constant motion and chatter and questions and demands. Patrick suspected if there were a way to channel her limitless energy, she could provide enough power in Baltimore for a century.
When she wanted something, she dug in her heels. And right now, she wanted to play with the boys.
Patrick had offered to read her a book, but Sunnie responded to that as if he’d suggested they drown some newborn kitten. Neither sitting still nor listening were her strong suits.
Sunnie gazed longingly toward the boys, her eyes going wide with delight. A glance over the island to the living room proved the increased volume had nothing to do with the game and everything to do with the wrestling match that had started. One Sunnie clearly had every intention of joining.
He raised his hand and said “no” when she started to dart toward the melee.
She stopped, but pouted.
“Boys,” Patrick said loudly, in a stern voice. He’d raised four rambunctious boys of his own. Wrestling matches were nothing new to him.
He was pleased when Finn and Landon both looked alarmed, then settled down, quickly apologizing, taking one last swing at each other’s arms before starting the video game again.
He turned back to Sunnie, who had somehow snuck out of the kitchen when he’d looked away.
Walking down the hall, he discovered her in his bedroom, jumping on the bed.
“Sit down, Sunnie,” he said. “I have an idea.” He reached for a photo album he kept on his bookshelf. Opening up the book, he sat on the bed and flipped through a few pages before finding the photo he was looking for.
“That’s my mommy,” she said, pointing to Riley.
He nodded. “That it is.”
“And that’s you. You have a lot more hair here. And it’s brown, not gray.”
Patrick chuckled. “Count how many kids are in that picture, then blame them for all the gray hairs.”
“Did Mommy make your hair go gray?”
Patrick chuckled, certain at least ninety percent of his gray hairs had Riley’s name on them, but he merely shrugged. “I worry about all my kids…so, gray hair.”
Sunnie glanced back at the photo. “That’s Grandma Sunday, the one I’m named after.”
Patrick looked at his beloved wife. Sunday would have adored this spitfire—and would have had the patience to figure out how to entertain her namesake.
Riley had always been an active little thing as well. He suspected that’s why she now served as chef for their family restaurant. Every time Riley acted up, Sunday would pull her into the kitchen and put her to work, patiently answering every single one of her daughter’s seventy-two million questions as they cooked. Riley had listened to every word and remembered. Which meant all of Sunday’s recipes and baking secrets still lived on.
Sometimes he wondered if Sunday had had a sixth sense about how short her life would be. If she’d somehow known she had to make every moment count. He’d found himself adopting that idea more and more these days, as each year passed and he grew a bit older, slower, and as more grandchildren entered his world. He wanted to pass on pieces of himself—his history and his stories—to all of them.
“Do you know how Grandma Sunday got her name?” Patrick asked.
Sunnie shook her head, her curiosity piqued. “No. Mommy never told me.”
Patrick considered that. “I’m not sure your mommy even knows.”
“So it’s a secret? One only you and me will know?”
He could see she loved the intrigue of that, so he nodded. “It is. Our own secret. Because your name is important and it has a very special mea
ning.”
Her eyes widened and she didn’t move. Patrick realized this was the longest he’d even seen her sit still. Even in sleep, Sunnie was a wiggle worm, constantly shifting and shuffling and kicking her covers off.
“You see, it took your grandma a long time to be born, a whole week.”
“How long does it usually take?”
Patrick had known there would be countless questions, and he suddenly regretted where he’d started the story. “Well, that depends. It’s different for every baby. It took Teagan three days to be born, but your mommy was born in just a couple of hours. That’s not the point of this story,” he added quickly. “Let’s just say it took her a very long time to be born and it made her mother very tired.”
“Mommy was in the hospital with Darcy for two days, but Darcy wasn’t in her belly the whole time. Bubbles took me and Finn to McDonald’s and ice skating and when we went to the hospital, Darcy was there.”
Patrick nodded, grateful Sunnie had a frame of reference that helped her understanding. After all, Darcy was only a few months old, so that memory was a strong one for her big sister. “The whole time your grandma was trying to be born, it rained. Lots and lots of storms. The sky was gray and dreary and everything was wet.”
Sunnie crinkled her nose. “I don’t like storms.”
“Grandma Sunday never liked them either.”
“What happened next?”
“The very minute your grandma was born, the rain stopped and the sun came out, bright and beautiful.”
“Really?”
Patrick nodded, embellishing the story for her entertainment. “Yes. Her da said it was like magic, like she’d summoned the sun. She’d made it a Sunday, even though it was only Thursday.”
Sunnie giggled. “That’s silly.”
“So when you think about it, your name means you bring sunshine and warmth. You make people happy.”
Sunnie smiled, and he could see his words had truly sunk in. She glanced at the picture again. “She’s pretty.”
Patrick swallowed the lump in his throat her words provoked. “She is indeed.”
“When I grow up, I’m going to marry you, Pop Pop, so you won’t be alone anymore.”
Now he blinked back tears. “That’s a lovely gesture, my sweet girl. Would you like to see some more pictures of your grandma?”
Sunnie nodded eagerly, and Patrick was pleased to have found something they could enjoy together. Looking at family photos was one of his favorite things to do.
He flipped the book to the beginning and pointed to the black-and-white photo. “This is my first photo of your grandma Sunday. It’s how she looked the year I first met her.”
They’d only flipped a few more pages when Landon appeared at the door. “I hurt my elbow.”
Patrick spotted the rug burn on the boy’s arm. “Wrestling again?”
Landon shrugged, clearly not willing to confess.
“I can fix it.” Sunnie darted into the bathroom, emerging with the box of Toy Story Band-Aids he kept there. His grandchildren, Sunnie especially, were enamored of Band-Aids, always needing one for some tiny paper cut, scratch or imagined wound.
She peeled off the wrapper, placed the brightly colored bandage on his elbow, and then, adorably, kissed the boo-boo.
Landon smiled in appreciation, then looked at the album in Patrick’s hands. “What are you doing?”
“Looking at pictures of my grandma Sunday,” Sunnie said. “I’m named after her.”
“Can I see?”
Patrick patted the empty spot on the other side of him, and Landon climbed onto the bed as well. They flipped through several pages, as Patrick pointed out who everyone was.
“I’m going to be a Collins one day too,” Landon decided, clearly unaware of how families worked.
“You’d make a fine Collins, Landon.”
Patrick was even more pleased when Finn found them a few minutes later, hopping on the bed to look at the album as well.
He’d found a way to allow Sunnie to play with the boys with no one complaining.
Patrick wasn’t sure how long he and the children sat there, flipping through the pages as he told them story after story, delighted by their curiosity about his past and their laughter when he told an amusing tale. He was lost in the memories when Riley’s voice at the doorway startled him.
“Pop?”
They all looked up together. “Oh, Riley. I didn’t hear you come in.”
Patrick was amused by Riley’s expression—one of confusion and shock.
“What are you doing in here?”
“Looking at old pictures,” Sunnie explained. “Of Grandma Sunday and Pop Pop. You made his hair gray.”
Riley glanced from her daughter to him and then to the stack of albums on the foot of the bed. They were three deep, but none of the kids wanted him to stop.
“Have you been here a while?”
Patrick glanced at the clock. “About an hour and a half.”
Riley’s eyes widened. “Hypnosis?”
He gave her a wink. “I’ll never tell.”
“Aaron got off early. He’s on his way back.” She looked at the kids. “Grab all your stuff and I’ll get the baby ready.”
Finn and Landon headed toward the living room, while Riley went to her old room, where the baby was sleeping.
Sunnie stayed behind to help him put the albums back.
“Pop Pop?” she said.
“Yes, lass?”
“I like my name.”
He smiled, blinking back unexpected tears. “It suits you, love.”
She gave him a hug, repeating her promise to marry him.
He knelt in front of her. “Much as I’d like that, I’m simply too old. So how about another promise?”
She listened intently.
“Promise you’ll marry a boy who loves all those things that make you special, your sunshine and your warmth. Find yourself a boy who appreciates how wonderful you are.”
She nodded. “Okay. I promise.”
Then he gave her a wink and a grin. “And if you can’t find one of those, marry Landon. He has his heart set on being a Collins.”
Chapter One
“And the winner of February Stars…”
Sunnie could swear every person in the pub was holding their breath, waiting for the announcer to declare a winner. For one month solid, she, her family and the regulars at the pub had gathered around the big-screen TVs to root for their hometown boy, Hunter Maxwell.
“By only twelve votes…”
“Oh my God,” Finn yelled at the screen. “Just announce it already!”
Landon caught her eye, winking at her. He and Finn had placed a wager on the competition—Finn putting fifty bucks on Hunter, while Landon remained firmly in Rory Summit’s camp.
“The performer who is going to open for The Universe on their worldwide tour is…”
The announcer drew out the word “is” for dramatic effect, producing another curse from Finn. “Where did Les find this tool?”
Les was their aunt Teagan and uncle Sky’s band manager, and he’d set up the February Stars contest, looking for the “next big act.” Hunter had been a last-minute fill-in for one of the performers, and he sure as hell hadn’t been expected to last more than the first round. Prior to the competition, he’d really only played with the equivalent of a garage band in his early twenties and, lately, as a pub singer here at Pat’s.
“Rory Summit!” the announcer yelled.
Finn groaned as half the pub erupted in cheers, the other half in anger. While Hunter was much beloved at Pat’s Pub, his fellow finalist, Rory Summit, had won her way into their hearts as well.
Landon held his hand out, palm up. “Sorry ’bout your bad luck, bro,” he teased. “Guess you don’t know true musical talent like I do.”
Sunnie snorted. “You weren’t betting on Rory’s talent. You have the hots for her, same as every other guy in here who put money down on her to win.”
<
br /> Landon didn’t even bother to deny it. “Maybe. But the fact still remains I now have fifty bucks to woo her with when she shows up later for the after-show celebration.”
Finn slapped the cash in his best friend’s hand, losing it with zero good grace. “It would take a hell of a lot more than fifty dollars to get her to look at you…especially with me here.”
Landon and Finn had been friends since preschool, and their constant games of one-upmanship and practical jokes had become the standard operating procedure. Sunnie and Finn’s dad, Aaron, had refereed more than his fair share of fights between the two when they were young, when the competitiveness got too heated. Dad claimed the two of them were more like brothers than best friends, and no one had ever disagreed with that assessment.
“Tell your brother he’s delusional, Sunshine.”
She raised her hands. “Nope. Personally, I think you’re both out of your minds if you think someone as talented and cool as Rory would give either of you a second glance. Besides, Landon, you’ve got a girlfriend.”
Landon glanced around the bar, caught Allison’s eye, and waved in a terribly lovestruck, smitten way that had Sunnie rolling her eyes. She pretended she was going to be sick as Finn laughed and picked up on the joke. “I keep trying to figure out what a hot ticket like Allison sees in Landon.”
Typically, Landon would have enjoyed the teasing, would have started giving it right back, but instead, he sobered up. “Allison’s planning to move to New York.”
“What?” Sunnie asked. “Since when?”
“She’s an actress, you know that. I think it’s always been in the back of her mind that she would take the leap, would try to make it on Broadway. I slowed that process down.”
