Padraig took another sip of coffee as Mia explained how she’d managed to escape a long line of dead-end jobs by taking business courses online. He was impressed by her intelligence and drive. Unhappy and barely getting by while working several minimum-wage jobs at the same time, she’d added even more to her plate in order to get a degree.

Her hard work had paid off, and she’d landed a job as manager in an office supply store. The owner, Phyllis, had apparently been so impressed with Mia’s work ethic that she’d put her in charge of opening a new store here in Baltimore. Four months in, and she’d already managed to stock the shelves and hire the staff.

“The grand opening is next week, but now…”

Padraig was becoming accustomed to her pregnant pauses. “Now?” he prodded, wishing she would confide what was wrong.

“Now…I’m not sure what will happen.”

“Mia,” he started.

“I want to tell you, Padraig. I swear to God, I do. It’s just…I can’t find a way to say the words. They’re stuck.”

Now he understood. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to confide in him. It was that she couldn’t.

Once again, his mind whirled over what could be so bad that she couldn’t speak the words. Given her concern about work, he thought he’d figured it out.

She’d spoken as fondly of Phyllis as she had her grandmother. Had the woman passed away? Had she lost yet another person she cared about and now she was in fear of losing her job?

“So what do you think about Baltimore?” he asked, deciding he’d give her more time to sort out her emotions. Pushing her wouldn’t help.

“I love it here. I was nervous when Phyllis asked me to move halfway across the country, but then, it felt like a chance to grab a fresh start.”

“Did you need a fresh start?”

She lifted one shoulder. “Isn’t that what life is? One more fresh start, one more clean break. If you want to get super deep, you could say every single morning is the equivalent of starting over.”

“You’re right. It is.”

“I like the energy in this city. Don’t get me wrong. There was plenty to love about Chicago too, but there’s something about this place. The peacefulness of walking by the water, the Inner Harbor, the quaintness of the cobblestone streets, the unique buildings and abundance of Irish pubs.”

He laughed. “Are you saying my family’s business is a Baltimore cliché?”

He was growing quite fond of her sarcastic humor. “Not at all. Actually, Pat’s Pub has become my favorite place in the city. I can sit at the counter and not feel quite so alone.”

“I’m glad. And you’re right. It is a pretty special place.”

“Has it always belonged to your family?”

Padraig shook his head. “My Pop Pop took the business over from an old family friend back in the sixties. Immigrated to America from Ireland with his wife, my grandma Sunday.”

“Your Pop Pop is the older gentleman who sits in the center stool at the bar sometimes, right?”

“Yeah. Guy is a very spry ninety-two. He served drinks at the pub full time with my dad until he was in his mid-seventies.”

“Seems like a cool guy.”

“The coolest.” Padraig loved talking about his family, especially his grandfather. He was proud of his heritage. “Can’t imagine it was easy for him and Grandma Sunday, working the pub while raising seven kids.”

Mia’s eyes widened. “Seven? I knew it was a pretty big family, but I had no idea. To tell you the truth, I’ve sort of made it a game to figure out who’s who in the Collins tribe. I figured out who your grandfather was, but where’s your grandma?”

“She died a long time ago.” He started to add the word “cancer” but stopped himself. He recalled how she’d stumbled over the word when talking about her own grandmother. Padraig had started to compile a list of triggers when it came to her sadness. “My aunt Keira is the oldest of the seven kids.”

“So give me the abbreviated family tree. I want to see how much I’ve gotten right.”

Padraig laughed. “Even abbreviated, this could take a while. How long do you have?”

“Six months.”

He laughed at her joke even though he didn’t get it, and he noticed she didn’t crack a smile. “That should be enough time. My aunt Keira married a man named Will, and they have two kids, Caitlyn and Lochlan.”

“Caitlyn is the one who’s dating Lucas Whiting, right?”

“She hates that everyone in the world knows that.”

Mia took a quick sip of her coffee. “There’s no way the world isn’t going to know that. The guy is a billionaire and Baltimore hottie. Hard to open the newspaper and not see their picture coming and going from some ritzy fundraiser.”

“True.”

“So who came next?”

“Teagan.”

“I still can’t believe Teagan Collins and Sky Mitchell are your aunt and uncle. That must be amazing. Have you gone to a lot of their shows?”

“Do their impromptu concerts at the pub count?”

She considered that, and then nodded. “Yeah. I think those might count twice. It’s like getting your own private show.”

“Never thought of it that way, but I guess you’re right.”

“Ailis is their daughter, right? The lucky girl who’s dating Hunter.”

Padraig rolled his eyes. “I knew it. You’ve got the hots for Hunter.”

“Every woman has the hots for Hunter Maxwell, now that he’s won February Stars and is destined for stardom.”

“Good point. Ailis has a sister named Fiona. She’s writes for television and lives in L.A.”

“That sounds like an awesome job. Who’s next?”

“My dad. He and my mom had me and Colm.”

“The twin brother who looks just like you. I have to admit, it freaked me out the first time I saw you two together. I didn’t know he existed and then boom, suddenly there are two of you.”

Padraig laughed. “We get that a lot. Used to switch places to try to fool friends and teachers at school.”

“Did it work?”

“More times than it didn’t. Of course, we’d always get in trouble for it later at home. Our parents were never fooled.”

Mia pushed her almost-empty cup away.

“Want another one?” he asked.

“No. I’m afraid the caffeine from that one will keep me up all night as it is. Must be cool having a twin. Or even just a sibling. I would have loved to have a brother or sister.”

“Colm is awesome. My best friend.”

She smiled. “You’re so lucky.”

“I know.”

“And after your dad came…?” she prompted.

“His twin brother, Killian.”

“Are they identical too?”

Padraig nodded. “Yep. Killian is married to Justin and Lily.” He paused, studying her face as she absorbed that information.

“Both of them? Is that legal?”

“Lily is married to Killian, according to the state of Maryland, but in their hearts and minds, it’s the three of them. Always has been, apparently. They all went to high school together.”

Padraig didn’t go on with his family history, waiting instead to see if Mia would make a disparaging comment about the threesome. He’d certainly heard enough nasty things muttered under the breaths of others. In his mind, the easiest way to learn someone’s true nature was to see how they responded. He had no respect for people who passed judgment on three people who had fallen in love with each other.

“I think that’s sweet. Do they have any kids?”

He released the breath he’d been holding. “Just one. Fergus.”

She counted on her fingers, doing the math. “Okay, so that’s four kids. Three more to go.”

“Next is Ewan, who runs Sunday’s Side with Aunt Keira. He’s married to Natalie and they have one daughter, Yvonne.” One of the two cousins he’d considered calling earlier when Mia fell apart. “She lives upstairs in the Collins Dorm, along with…well…a bunch of us.”

Mia laughed. “Now that part I had figured out. I heard your aunt Riley, the cook, call it that, and given all the cousins I’ve seen going in and out of the door that leads upstairs, I figured there must be a big-ass apartment up there.”

“Touché. Extra credit for figuring out the living arrangements. Speaking of Aunt Riley, she and my uncle Aaron have three kids, Sunnie, Darcy and Finn.”

“Finn is the cousin who’s covering your shift tonight?”

“Yeah.”

“That was nice of him.”

“He’s a good guy.”

“So is there a last, but not least?” she asked.

“The youngest is Sean. He’s married to Lauren and Chad, and they have one son, Oliver.”

“You might have the most interesting family in the history of the world.”

He could tell from her expression she meant that sincerely and kindly. “They’re the best. How much of that had you figured out?”

“Less than fifty percent. Terrible, huh?”

Padraig drained his own coffee, feeling the effects of the caffeine himself. While it was getting late, he was pumped up, energized. He liked talking to Mia, liked getting to know her. The more time he spent with her, the more he realized his first impression was right. She was a very nice person.

And pretty. He’d never really noticed her appearance prior to tonight. Never let himself dwell on her bright green eyes or strawberry-blonde hair. Even with the red-rimmed eyes left behind after her crying, she was attractive in a wholesome, clean-cut, freckle-cheeked way.

“I need to say thank you, Padraig. For tonight.”

“It’s nothing.”

“No,” she disagreed. “That’s just it. It’s not nothing. I…”

She’d been on the verge of revealing her pain to him. He knew it. And once again, the words got jammed up.

“Say it,” he urged with a whisper. “Just say it, Mia, and I promise you, I’ll help you deal with it. No matter what. Okay?”

“I’m dying.”