His brother frowned at him. “And how would he know a thing like that?” Jeff asked. “Would he have stored away this knowledge just in case the entire family decided to pay a visit to Dublin one day? You’re acting crazy, Mick. Didn’t Susie just say that Ma didn’t even know if he was still running the store our great-grandparents once owned? Obviously they haven’t kept in touch.”
Mick regarded his brother accusingly. “Don’t tell me you don’t worry about Ma.”
“I worry about Ma falling and breaking her hip,” Jeff countered. “I worry about her feeling lonely in that little cottage of hers. I don’t worry about her finding a companion whose company she enjoys.”
“Then you’re naive,” Mick grumbled.
Megan rested a hand on his arm. “Nell is a wise woman, Mick. She’ll see right through anyone trying to take advantage of her.”
“Of course she will,” Susie said adamantly. “I only told you because I thought it was sweet, not so you’d get all worked up. Now I’d better walk back over there to get her. I told her I’d be back in an hour.”
“I’m coming with you,” Mick said, standing.
“No, you’re staying right here with me,” Megan countered. “You are not going over there and embarrassing Nell in front of an old friend.”
“Well, someone who doesn’t have all these stars in their eyes ought to check things out,” he argued. “Susie’s besotted by love these days.”
“I still have my brain, Uncle Mick,” Susie retorted patiently. “If something doesn’t seem right, I’ll handle it. And if you’re really worried, I’ll ask Mack to come with me. He could probably take Dillon O’Malley in a fight, though the man looked pretty fit for his age.”
“Taking Mack along is probably a good idea,” Mick said, looking relieved.
Susie rolled her eyes. “I was joking.”
“Well, I’m not. What if Ma gets some crazy idea about inviting this man to join us tonight? Are you going to put a stop to that?”
“Absolutely not,” Megan said firmly. “And if she does, you’ll welcome him and be on your best behavior.”
Mick shook his head. He should have known he’d get no help from the rest of the family. They all lived in a dream world. It was up to him to keep an eye on things. That was his role in this family, and he took it seriously.
He watched Susie leave, then said casually, “I think I’ll take a walk.”
“No!” Megan and Jeff said in chorus.
Defeated, Mick sighed.
Megan patted his hand. “Let’s go up to the room. Maybe I’ll be able to think of some way to distract you.”
Mick regarded her skeptically. “How?”
Jeff clapped his hands over his ears. “Megan, please do not answer that till I’m gone,” he pleaded.
After he’d left, Mick turned to Megan, intrigued despite himself. “You were about to say?”
“I think I’ll let my actions speak for themselves,” she taunted, standing up and beckoning to him. “You interested?”
He grinned at his wife, happy to see the lively spark of passion in her eyes. “You don’t have to ask me twice.”
She laughed. “Good. For a minute there, you had me worried.”
“Ah, Meggie, you never have to worry about a thing like that. You’ll fascinate me till the day I die.”
She linked her arm through his and led the way to the elevator. The promise in her eyes made all his cares fade away. There’d be time enough later to worry about what his mother was getting herself into with this O’Malley fellow. And whatever it was, he’d fix it.
4
Matthew was very glad he’d paid attention to everything he’d been told by his family on prior trips to Ireland. His running commentary as he took Laila on a walking tour of the bustling streets around the hotel seemed to be relaxing her. She didn’t even object when he tucked her arm through his and kept her close by his side. For a couple of days she’d managed to elude him by going shopping with his cousins, but today he’d found her alone and managed to lure her away from the hotel.
“Look at these window boxes,” she exclaimed time and again, pausing to take pictures of the colorful flowers mixed with holiday greenery. “People need to do this in Chesapeake Shores. See how cheerful it makes everything look?”
“Winters are milder here,” Matthew reminded her. “Not by a lot, but enough to make a difference. And I think everyone’s a little obsessed with flowers to counteract the dreary weather. We actually have plenty of sunshine in Chesapeake Shores.”
She looked momentarily deflated, but then her expression brightened. “Do you think you could make window boxes for my apartment?”
“Me?”
“You’re an architect. Design something.”
He chuckled. “Window boxes weren’t exactly part of the curriculum in architecture school.”
“Mick probably never thought he’d be creating a flower shop work space for Bree, but he pulled it off,” she challenged. “The way I hear it, you’re as good an architect as your uncle is.”
He regarded her with amusement. “Is that a challenge?”
She laughed. “Pretty much. Maybe we could even have a design competition, get everybody in town involved. I’ll have to warn Jake and Bree, since it could be big business for his nursery and her flower shop. We could turn Chesapeake Shores into the flower showplace of the Eastern Seaboard.”
“You never think small, do you?”
“No,” she said readily. “How about you?” Her expression turned serious. “Are you happy designing houses like the one you did for Susie and Mack? Or do you want to take on a whole community someday, the way Mick has done?”
He hesitated, unsure what her reaction was likely to be, then admitted, “Actually I’m designing a community in Florida right now.”
She stopped and faced him, her eyes alight. “You are? Why didn’t I know that?”
“It’s not as if we’ve had a lot of conversations recently. A developer contacted Mick a couple of months ago. Mick had me sit in on the meetings, then told me to take charge of the project. He’s overseeing my work, but it will be my vision.”
“Matthew, that’s amazing!” Suddenly the light in her eyes dimmed. “Tell me about it. Are you designing just the houses or everything?”
“Everything, from the single-family homes and town houses to the retail area, from the town green to the pedestrian-only streets, even an elementary school,” he said, unable to contain his pride over the confidence Mick obviously had in him. With that confidence came a huge burden of responsibility. Mick’s reputation would be on the line, along with his own.
“Does that mean you’ll be spending a lot of time in Florida?” Laila asked.
He nodded. “At the time it didn’t seem like much of a drawback, but now I have to wonder….” His voice trailed off. If they were to get back on track, did he dare spend so much time away from home right now?
“You have to do it,” she said staunchly. “Matthew, it’s an incredible opportunity, and Mick is showing a tremendous amount of faith in you. You can’t let him down.”
“But you and I, we’ve barely begun to reconnect.” He searched her face. “Or don’t you see it the same way? Are we starting over or not?”
“I’m not entirely sure what we’re doing,” she responded candidly. “This is a vacation. It’s not a real test of anything. Whatever we do, we have to move forward slowly this time. We rushed into a relationship before we thought it through before. Maybe having you working out of town will be exactly what we need so we don’t get carried away and do something impulsive. The distance might give us the perspective we need to decide whether we really do belong together.”
He couldn’t help smiling. “I thought you liked the impulsive streak I bring out in you. At least that’s what you’ve always said.”
“True,” she admitted. “But it’s not really me.”
“Which was exactly the point, I thought. You said you liked stretching y
our boundaries.”
“Maybe I stretched them a little too far. I was way beyond my comfort zone when we were together. Accountants and bankers, we don’t take a lot of risks. We’re known for our caution and sensible decisions.”
“I don’t think you went too far,” he said solemnly, looking into her eyes, then brushing a curl from her cheek. “Maybe you were out of your comfort zone, but I love the impulsive, unpredictable you.”
“But not the staid, ordinary me?” she asked, sounding resigned. “See what I mean? We’re too different, Matthew.”
“Hey, there is nothing staid or ordinary about you,” he protested. “Not even on your worst day. You can be thoroughly responsible when it comes to work and still have a wild side, Laila. You’re a complicated, complex woman. Don’t put yourself into some tiny niche and be afraid to expand your horizons. Then your father wins.”
“I don’t know,” she said, though she looked hopeful.
He waved off the entire conversation. It had gotten way too serious. “Enough about the future and enough self-analysis,” he said. “I see a pub just ahead and it’s calling our names.”
She regarded him with amusement. “Really? I don’t hear anything.”
“Then you obviously haven’t been in Dublin quite long enough.”
“Will I be seeing leprechauns soon, too?”
“After enough Guinness, it’s entirely possible,” he told her, leading the way into the pub, which had a fire burning in the hearth and a jovial lunch crowd of local workers and holiday shoppers crammed into every corner.
He spotted a pair of empty seats, squeezed through the throng to order two pints of ale, then wove his way back to find Laila laughing with a couple of young Irishmen at the next table. His heart stumbled at the sight, but he managed to keep his own smile in place as he joined her.
“These handsome brothers claim to be O’Briens, as well,” Laila told him. “Should I believe them?”
Matthew regarded them skeptically. “Sounds a bit convenient to me, though few men would make such a claim without proof.”
“And we have it right here,” one said, drawing out a photo ID, which, sure enough, was for Sean O’Brien.
The other did the same, and his name was Liam O’Brien. “Could it be we’re distantly related?” he asked Matthew. “I’ve been wanting to go to the States. Having a few relatives to take me in would prove handy.”
“You’ve been wanting to go to California to be in films, Liam,” his brother reminded him. “These folks are from the other side of the country. Obviously those geography classes we took in school were wasted, if you don’t know the difference. Not that it matters, because you’ll not be going and you’ll not be in films. Your skill’s with numbers and keeping books, not acting.”
Laila regarded the unfortunate Liam with sympathy. “I’d like to do something wildly creative myself, but my skill, too, is with numbers. I’m an accountant, as well.”
“Now, what are the odds of such a thing?” Liam asked, obviously delighted by the coincidence. “It’s bloody boring, isn’t it?”
“Bloody boring,” Laila confirmed.
“Laila, however, is anything but boring,” Matthew felt compelled to state.
“Goes without saying,” Liam said sagely. His brother, Sean, nodded agreement.
“Thank you,” Laila said.
“Will we see you again, beautiful Laila?” Sean inquired.
“Not bloody likely,” Matthew murmured under his breath, not sure why he was so annoyed by their harmless flirting. Maybe it was because Laila seemed so pleased with it. Maybe it hadn’t been wise to encourage her reckless side, if this was how she intended to behave.
“You should come by the hotel and meet Nell,” she said. “That’s Matthew’s grandmother. She’d know if your families are linked. We’ll introduce you, won’t we, Matthew?”
He bit back a groan. “I’m sure Gram would be happy to meet you both,” he said with undisguised reluctance.
They made arrangements to stop by at the end of the day, then left. When they were gone, Matthew turned to Laila. “What was that about? I leave the table for five minutes and you pick up two men?”
“I didn’t pick up anyone,” she said, frowning. “They were just being friendly. Then we discovered the coincidence of their being O’Briens.”
“For all we know they have a dozen different photo IDs to suit the name of any American tourist anxious to explore their Irish roots. They could be practiced con men.”
Laila gave him a chiding look. “You sound as cynical as Mick. You heard him go on and on at dinner the other night about Nell’s old friend, as if Dillon O’Malley were out to steal her blind.”
“Well, Uncle Mick has a point. You can’t be too careful these days,” Matthew grumbled, knowing he was starting to sound ridiculously paranoid. Better that, though, than have her see his behavior for what it was, pure jealousy.
Laila studied him intently. “You’re not worried those two charming rogues are going to take advantage of the O’Briens,” she accused. “You’re jealous.”
He winced at the direct hit. “I was hoping you wouldn’t pick up on that,” he admitted.
She grinned. “How about that? Another first in my life. I’ve actually made a man jealous.”
“You don’t have to sound so darn proud of yourself.”
Laila chuckled. “Actually, I do. I’m beginning to think if I stick with you, I could discover all sorts of fascinating new sides of myself. Perhaps I was too hasty in cutting you entirely out of my life.”
“And will you delight in driving me a little crazy in the process of all this self-discovery?”
She patted his cheek. “Just a bonus, I assure you.”
Matthew sighed. He’d actually caught a few glimpses of hope this afternoon that they were inching back onto the right track. He just hoped he survived long enough to make it to the finish line.
“Matthew was actually jealous because I was having a perfectly innocent conversation with a couple of men in a pub,” Laila exulted over tea with Connie and Jess later that afternoon. Connie and Thomas had arrived earlier in the day, and the women had immediately gone off on an outing. “Can you imagine? I’ve never made a man jealous before in my life.”
Connie chuckled, but Jess didn’t look nearly as pleased. “Do you really want to test Matthew’s patience? Isn’t your relationship complicated enough without throwing strangers into the mix?”
“Oh, for goodness sakes, he knows I’m not interested in those men. Talk about the ultimate in geographically undesirable. They live in Dublin, remember.”
“People have been known to relocate for love,” Connie pointed out. “Just look at Thomas. He’s actually commuting to Annapolis from Chesapeake Shores these days. I offered to move, but he says our real roots are in Chesapeake Shores and that my job with Jake requires me to be out too early to be driving any distance. Wasn’t that considerate of him?”
Both Jess and Laila chuckled at her thoroughly besotted expression.
“We all know he’d do whatever it takes to keep you very, very happy,” Jess teased. “He’s so grateful that a much younger woman would take him on.”
“As if he’s the lucky one!” Connie scoffed. “He gets a rebellious teenager in the bargain. Jenny’s not adapting all that well to having a stepfather. Those two dance around each other like a couple of sparring partners, and I hold my breath waiting to see who’s going to land the first blow. Poor Thomas. He had no idea what he was letting himself in for. He’s so unsure what role he should be playing that I think he’s just about bitten through his tongue to keep from saying the wrong thing.”
Laila frowned. “It’s not causing problems for you two, is it?”
“Absolutely not,” Connie said. “I won’t allow my daughter to ruin this. We’re going to work it out like the mature, rational adults at least some of us are.”
Laila regarded her intently. “How’s Sam reacted to having Thomas in the mix
? Is he suddenly feeling territorial about his daughter?”
“Jenny has barely been a blip on Sam’s radar since her birth,” Connie said bitterly. “He’s probably relieved that he doesn’t even have to pretend to care anymore. I think that’s part of the problem. Thomas does care, but Jenny doesn’t trust it at all. She’s so used to being ignored, she figures Thomas is only attentive to her to try to score points with me.”
“Uncle Thomas will get through to her eventually,” Jess said. “He’s so good with all the nieces and nephews. I always thought it was a shame he didn’t have kids of his own.”
Laila grinned. “So, how about it, Connie? Any talk of that?”
Connie looked nonplussed by the question. “A baby? Me and Thomas? Do you two recall how old I am?”
“You’re not too old,” Laila insisted.
“You don’t think so?” Connie asked, sounding intrigued. “We haven’t really talked about it, at least not much. Thomas mentioned it, but I’m not sure he was serious. I told him the same thing, that I’m too old to even consider such a thing.”
“Maybe you should reconsider,” Jess suggested. “Laila’s absolutely right. You’re not too old now, but there’s not a lot of wiggle room here. Another couple of years and that ship will have sailed. Think about it while it’s still feasible.”
“A baby,” Connie repeated. “You really think it’s not too late?” Suddenly she sounded a little awed by the possibility.
Laila and Jess exchanged a look. The seed was duly planted, Laila thought, congratulating herself.
Jess glanced around the table. “Isn’t it pathetic that we had to come all the way to Ireland to find enough time to have the kind of gabfest we used to have all the time back home?”
“I’ve missed these,” Laila said. “Now that you two are settled, it’s much harder to find girl time.”
“Well, we’re going to do it,” Jess declared. “A few minutes at Sunday dinners in the middle of that mob scene just aren’t enough.”
“Agreed,” Connie declared. “Laila?”
“Count me in. Something tells me I’m going to need a lot of advice in the coming months, especially if Matthew is spending most of his time in Florida.”
An O’Brien Family Christmas Page 5
