“Alannah, are you okay?”
Damien.
Once I took a few breaths, I managed to get to my feet with Damien helping me as he got to his.
“I’m fine,” I rasped then looked down at my skirt. “Shite, did I rip it?”
I turned around so Damien could see if I ruined my skirt, and when he didn’t answer, I said, “Damien, did I ruin it?”
He cleared his throat. “It’s perfect.”
I blew out a relieved breath. “Thank God, this is the only suit I have.”
His eyes raised to my face, and he paused. “What’s with all the make up?”
“What’s wrong with it?”
He squinted. “I can’t see your freckles.”
“So?”
“So, I like being able to see them. They’re pretty, you’re pretty without all … that.”
Hearing him call me pretty caused butterflies to flutter around my stomach.
“Does that mean make up makes me ugly?”
“No!” Damien balked. “You look good. I guess I’m just used to you not wearing it. You look perfect either way, but … I like being able to see your freckles.”
Those damn freckles.
“I only wore it for me interview to look put together.”
I turned toward the kitchen when I could have sworn I heard a climatic moan, and my cheeks burned with heat. At the reminder of what I was running away from and caused me to crash into Damien in the first place, I cringed.
“I need to go,” I said and tried to push by Damien, but he wouldn’t let me.
“No,” he said firmly. “Tell me what’s wrong first.”
I huffed. “What’s wrong is I just saw me best friend takin’ it like a champ, and to top it off, I saw your brother’s bare arse!”
Damien stared down at me for a moment, then he laughed. Hard.
“You walked in on Dominic and Bronagh having sex?” he asked, his shoulders shaking.
I placed my hands on my burning cheeks.
“Yeah,” I answered. “And I can never look either of them in the eye again.”
He continued to laugh, and it was only then I realised how close we were standing to one another. I took a step back, hoping I wasn’t being obvious that I wanted space, but from the clench of Damien’s jaw, he noticed my intentions.
“How did your interview go?” he asked, shoving his hands into his jean pockets.
I perked up.
“It went brilliantly. Morgan is just what I need.”
At Damien’s raised brow, I added, “He’ll help me massively with the business. It’ll really take a load off me.”
“I’m glad,” he then said. “Anything to put less weight on your shoulders is good.”
I nodded in agreement but froze when the kitchen door opened.
“Is she still here?”
I closed my eyes. “Stay where you are, tight arse.”
The twins laughed.
“I’m shoutin’ when I enter this house in the future so this never happens again,” I said, opening my eyes. “That is a visual I can never erase.”
“Alannah, c’mere.”
I moved around Damien and shielded my eyes with my hands as I walked by Nico, which the twins found hilarious. When I was inside the kitchen, I closed the door behind me, and exhaled a deep breath.
“I really should’ve rang the doorbell.”
Bronagh chuckled. “Sorry about that.”
I looked at her and grinned. “Yeah, you look real sorry.”
She looked completely relaxed and satisfied with her hair a mess. She swatted my way for grinning at her then she fixed her hair, tying it up into a bun on the top of her head. I sat at the table, making a big deal of not sitting near the spot she was recently bent over, and it cracked her up.
“You look unreal,” Bronagh commented, her eyes roaming over my outfit. “You pull that suit off perfectly.”
I smiled. “Thanks, where’s Georgie?”
“With Alec and Keela. They have ’er on and off most of the day. Keela is feelin’ very maternal lately and wants to take the kids a lot. Alec is chill about it ’cause he says they need the practice for when their baby is born.”
“That’s cute.”
Bronagh nodded in agreement.
“How was the meetin’?”
“Brilliant,” I chirped. “I’m really pleased with Morgan and so excited to start workin’ with ’im.”
Bronagh raised a brow. “Is he good lookin’?”
“Why?”
“Just askin’.”
“Well, yeah, he is.”
“How old is he?”
“Twenty-one.”
“Where is he from?”
“Finglas but moved to Tallaght when he was a kid.”
“Does he have a bird?”
I laughed.
“I didn’t ask ’im that, nosy hole, but yeah, he does. He brought it up in conversation.”
Bronagh’s lips twitched. “Okay, on to better conversation.”
“’Ere we go.”
Bronagh made us tea as she said, “Tell me everythin’ and leave nothin’ out.”
“Bronagh, nothin’—”
“Don’t even,” she cut me off then lowered her voice. “You said Damien kissed you yesterday.”
I flushed at the memory.
“He did.”
“What was it like?”
I thought about that for a minute, and then I sighed. “Toe-curlin’.”
Bronagh squealed. “Those are the best types of kisses.”
“It was so unexpected. I didn’t realise what was happenin’, then all of a sudden, his lips and hands were on me, and I was kissin’ ’im like a woman starved.”
“That’s so hot.”
I licked my lips. “If he hadn’t broken the kiss, I wouldn’t have stopped.”
“Holy shite.”
She came over to the table, carrying our cups of tea. I played with the handle of mine when she placed it in front of me, before sitting across from me. I couldn’t look at her while we talked about this because I was too embarrassed. Usually, our conversations about sex or kissing were primarily when Bronagh spoke and I listened.
“I lose all rational thought when he is close to me,” I admitted. “It’s like me mind just forgets the drama between us.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
I grunted. “Even more confused.”
“You like ’im.”
It wasn’t a question.
“Yes,” I admitted on a whisper. “But that doesn’t mean anythin’ because I can’t let go of the past.”
Bronagh said nothing.
“It gets worse,” I said.
“How?”
“He said ... he said he’d wait for me to decide whether I wanna be with ’im.”
“Oh, Lana.”
I felt my eyes well up.
“I know,” I said, rubbing my eyes to stop any silly tears from falling. “I want to believe ’im, and I want to believe things would be different than when we were kids, but I’m just too scared. And I know you all probably think it’s high time I get over it, and I agree, but it’s like me heart just ... can’t.”
I looked up at my friend when she reached over, covered my hands with hers, and gave them a squeeze. My eyes stung, and when a few droplets splashed onto my cheeks, I quickly wiped them away. I willed no more to fall because I knew if either of the twins saw that I was crying, I wouldn’t be able to leave the house without telling them why.
“I think you should try,” Bronagh said softly.
“Try what?” I snivelled.
“I think you should try to see what happens between you and Damien.”
I looked at her, my eyes wide.
“You’ll regret it forever if you don’t. I know you will.”
I knew I would, too.
“I’ve always been so against the possibility, but hearin’ ’im say he is interested changes things.”