“Well, fancy meeting you here.”
“Hey!” Anastasia stands and hugs Meg, then Will, who’s eyeing Anastasia’s fries. “Don’t touch.”
“I’ve got my own fries coming,” Will says with a laugh. “Small world.”
“Kane’s never been here,” Anastasia says.
“It’s the best,” Meg says. “And it’s where I met Will for the first time.”
“Really?” I’m intrigued. “Of all of the places to meet, this was it?”
“Well, he loves food,” Meg reminds me. “And he was here with Jules, who was a college friend of mine. I came to say hello and met him in the process.”
“She hated me.” Will smiles widely, enjoying the story. “Like, hated me.”
“She doesn’t now,” Anastasia says. “Do you guys want to join us?”
“Thanks, but no. We have to get back to the girls. We just came to get dinner to go.”
“The girls don’t eat burgers?” I ask.
“Well, Erin’s two, so all she wants is chicken strips, and she has a fondness for chips and salsa,” Will replies. “And Zoey’s only one, so her palate hasn’t expanded to burgers yet.”
“Enjoy your dinner,” Meg says with a wave when her name is called, and they hurry out, carrying a massive brown bag full of hot food.
“I like them.” I take a bite of my burger and chew thoughtfully. “I like all of your family.”
“I’m glad. I like yours, too.”
“It’s helpful, don’t you think?”
“To like each other’s families?” She nods and takes a sip of her milkshake. “Absolutely. When you’re with someone, you’re sort of with their loved ones, too. So, if you couldn’t stand my family, this probably would be a no-go for me. And vice versa.”
I nod in agreement. “Come home with me tonight.”
“I can’t.”
I raise a brow. “Why not?”
“Because I’m going over to Maggie’s.”
I blink at her, making her laugh.
“We’re having a girls’ night out tonight. I invited Joy and Amelia, and Maggie and Maeve are coming. Maggie needs to let off some steam.”
“You’re going out partying?”
“At the pub,” she says with a shrug as if it’s nothing. “And, no, you’re not invited. No boys allowed.”
“It’s my family’s bloody pub. Who’s to stop me from coming to have a beer with Shawn?”
“Me.” She pops another fry into her mouth. “I’m stopping you. Let your sister have some fun tonight. We’ll keep an eye on her. And then we’ll probably crash at her house.”
“You can come to my house when you’re done.”
I’ve come to think of it as our house, but I don’t know that either of us is ready for me to admit that yet.
“I’ll come over in the morning,” she promises.
“I have to be at the museum in the morning.”
“Oh, that’s unusual.”
“We’re putting the new exhibit together, and I don’t trust the clumsy idiots Debbie’s hired to move pieces around.”
“Is Debbie the woman I saw the day I met you?”
I nod. “She’s the curator for the museum. And I trust her, but I want to have more of a hands-on approach with this one. I’ll probably leave home around eight.”
“I’ll make sure I see you before you leave,” she promises. “Don’t pout.”
“I do not pout.”
“You’re totally pouting.” She laughs and offers me the last of her fries. “It’s only one night, Kane.”
“It’s one night too many.” But I resign myself to being alone this evening. “I’d like to take you away this weekend.”
“I’ve only just been able to get back to work, and I have some things to—” She stops talking and looks at me, then takes a deep breath. “This is important to you.”
“It is, aye.”
“When should I be ready?”
I reach over for her hand. “Friday morning.”
“Where are we going?”
“That’s a surprise, mo ghrá.”Chapter Fifteen~Anastasia~“She sings like an angel.”
We’re sitting in a corner booth, sipping lemon drop martinis. Maggie’s singing with the small band as Lia, Joy, Maeve, and I look on.
The music isn’t sad this time. It’s fast and lively, and several of the regulars are dancing a jig on the floor.
I never thought I’d see the day that I’d see someone dance a jig, but…here we are.
“I can’t move like that,” Lia says, gesturing to the woman dancing beautifully with her arms straight at her side. “It’s amazing.”
“Maggie and I took lessons when we were young,” Maeve says with a smile. “Music was always important in our family, and truth be told, our culture. So, we sing and dance, and Kane even learned to play the fiddle when he was a lad in Ireland.”
“Really?” I stare at Maeve in shock. “He never told me he can play.”
“I’d say there’s probably a lot of things about each other you’re still learning,” Joy says. “How’s your shoulder feeling?”
“Tons better. And no, I’m not overdoing it.”
“Good.”
Maggie finishes her song and hurries over to us, then drinks what’s left of her martini. “I’ve never had this drink before. I usually just drink beer. This is fancy.”
“It’s vodka and lemonade,” Lia says and laughs. “But the lemon peel makes it look fancy.”