By Christmas, Keely was determined that her family would know she existed. They didn’t have to accept her at first. In truth, she didn’t expect a tearful reunion and declarations of love. She expected shock and confusion and maybe a bit of resentment. But sooner or later, she would have the family that she always wanted.
With a soft sigh, Keely took a final look at the front door of Quinn’s Pub. This had been enough for one day. She’d found her father’s pub and maybe even seen one of her brothers. She’d go back to her hotel and get a good night’s sleep and come back to Boston another time. But the excitement of her discovery was too much to keep to herself. She’d made a promise to her mother to call as soon as she found her father and brothers. Keely reached into her purse and grabbed her cell phone, then punched in the phone number of her mother’s apartment.
Fiona would have left the shop around six. By seven, she was usually preparing her dinner and, by eight, she had settled comfortably in her favorite chair with an Agatha Christie mystery. Keely’s mind raced as she tried to decide what she’d say. Should she sound excited or should she keep her tone indifferent? Her mother picked up the phone on the other end.
“Mama?” Keely said, her voice trembling. “Mama, I found them.”
There was a long pause on the other end of the line. “Then you talked to Seamus?” Fiona asked.
“No, not yet. But I will. Soon.”
“Come home, Keely.”
“You know I can’t. I have to go now, Ma. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
She snapped her phone closed and tossed it on the seat beside her. Then Keely reached for the ignition. But at the last minute, she changed her mind. She’d come all this way. Why not go inside now? She could walk through the door and ask to use the ladies’ room. Or maybe pretend to make a phone call. What did she have to lose? And if everything went all right, she’d just introduce herself.
The impulse was too strong to resist. “I can do this,” she said as she grabbed the keys and stepped out of the car. “I’ve come this far.”
She hurried back across the street, then smoothed her hair before starting up the front steps. But, suddenly, her doubts got the better of her. The second step was almost painful. When she reached the third step, she could see through the wide plate-glass window into the interior of the bar. Her gaze scanned the crowd and then came to rest on a white-haired man behind the bar.
The door opened and a couple stumbled outside, allowing voices to drift out into the night. She stepped aside, her gaze still fixed on the older man. Then Keely heard a patron shout the name of Seamus and the white-haired man raised his hand and waved to an unseen patron on the other side of the bar.
The reality of the situation hit her. Seamus was a flesh-and-blood man, not just a fantasy. Her stomach lurched and she grabbed the railing and hurried back down the steps. She only made it halfway down the block before her nausea overwhelmed her. “Oh, bloody hell,” she murmured as she bent over against a nearby car and tried to breath deeply.
If she ever expected to meet her father and brothers, she’d have to get control of her nerves! She wasn’t a child anymore, plagued with doubts and confusion. And she wasn’t a teeanager, riddled with guilt. This wasn’t like letting the air out of Father Julian’s bicycle tires or dropping a rotten tomato off the roof of the school at Sister Bertina or smoking cigarettes in the janitor’s closet. She deserved to be able to meet her family and know them without all this upset.
Keely turned away from the car, but her head began to swim. She closed her eyes. “Breathe,” she murmured to herself. “Breathe.”
RAFE SAW HER as he walked down the street toward his car. He stopped and glanced back over his shoulder, then slowly looked around. There was no one else on the street. Though he didn’t think twice about his own safety in Southie, a single woman on a dark street was a much more vulnerable target.
She was bent over, leaning back against the side of a car, her hands braced on her knees. He slowly approached and stood in front of her. “Are you all right?”
She glanced up at him, her wide gaze meeting his. For an instant, his breath caught in his throat. He’d expected one of the women who’d been hanging out at the bar. But this woman—or maybe “girl” was a more appropriate description—wasn’t exactly the type who hung out at Quinn’s. She wasn’t dressed in skintight jeans. She wore a black leather jacket, a tapered black skirt that showed off a fair amount of leg, and a T-shirt that clung to her curves.
The harsh light from the streetlamps revealed a flawless complexion, untainted by heavy makeup and bright lipstick. And her hair, damp from the rain, was actually a color that appeared to be quite natural. “Is there anything I can do for you?”
She held out her hand and opened her mouth as if to speak. But then she moaned softly, bent over, and immediately threw up on his Italian loafers. “Oh, hell,” she murmured. “Oh, bloody, bloody hell. I’m so sorry I—I didn’t mean to do that.”
Startled by her response, Rafe had no choice but to reach into his pocket and pull out a handkerchief. His mother had taught him from a young age that a gentleman always carried a handkerchief and it had been advice he’d never truly understood—until now. A guy never knew when a beautiful woman might throw up on his shoes.
She slowly straightened, then took the handkerchief from his fingers. She pressed it to her lips. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me,” she murmured.
“Maybe you’ve had a little too much to drink?” Rafe suggested.
She shook her head. “No. It’s just…nerves.”
He nodded. “Right.”
“No, really,” she insisted. “I’ve just been a little upset lately. And I haven’t been eating well, or sleeping at all. And between all the antacids and the coffee, I just…all my stress seems to end up in my stomach.” She paused. “But then you’re really not interested in that, are you.”
“Can I call you a cab?” Rafe asked.
She shook her head. “No. I’ll be all right. My car is just down the street.”
“I’m afraid I can’t let you do that,” Rafe said.
“Do what?”
“Drive,” he said. “Either you allow me to call you a cab or you allow me to drive you wherever you’re going.”
“I’m perfectly able to—”
Rafe held out his hand to silence her. “Come on. It’s cold out here. We can wait in my car for the cab.” He reached down, grabbed her hand, and tucked it in the crook of his arm. Then he slowly walked with her down the block. When they reached his Mercedes sedan, he turned off the alarm and opened the passenger side door. She hesitated for a moment.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said. “If you want to, we can stand out here. Or we can go back inside the bar.”
“No!” she said. “No, I don’t want to go back to the bar.” She shivered, then rubbed her arms. Suddenly, she looked like she was going to throw up again. “Put your head down,” he suggested. He gently pressed his hand against her back until she bent over at the waist. Then he took his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed the number for his security office at Kencor.
“This is Rafe. I want you to send a car around to Quinn’s Pub in Southie. Have the driver look for my Mercedes. I’m parked about a block away.” Rafe flipped the phone off, then slipped it back into his pocket. “It’ll just be a few minutes.” He leaned into the car and grabbed a bottle of water, then handed it to the woman. “Here,” he said.