Chapter Two
Present day
Kathy walked through her apartment, gathering torn wrapping paper and empty cups. How the heck had a group of women made such a mess? If they were this bad for Moira’s bridal shower, she’d hate to see what would happen at the bachelorette party. Jimmy and Moira stacked presents near the door to prepare to leave.
In a moment of sweet bliss, Jimmy pulled Moira into his embrace and kissed her. Kathy almost sighed. Envy was such an ugly thing. But she wanted that. She was glad Moira found it, even if it was with Jimmy. Kathy would never quite understand the attraction to a guy who was little more than a caveman, but somehow they made it work.
She shoved another handful of paper into the industrial-sized trash bag. Moira pushed Jimmy toward the door with a stack of presents. Then to Kathy, she said, “Let me help.”
Kathy shook her head. “This was your shower. As the bride, you don’t do any work.” She eyed the pile by the door. “Plus, you’ll need your energy to unpack all of that.”
Moira laughed. “That’s Jimmy’s job. He has some kind of organization in his head for everything.”
“How are you going to get all of that back to your house?”
Moira’s gaze bounced around the room. “Don’t kill me.” She took a deep breath and then added, “If anyone deserves to be killed for this, it’s Jimmy, but since I love him and I want to spend my life with him, don’t kill him either, okay?”
Kathy ignored the bad feeling Moira’s words conjured because when Moira got into full-on rambling mode, she was hilarious. “Just spill.”
“Kevin’s coming to help bring everything to our house.” Moira closed her eyes as if to brace for impact.
Kathy froze. She’d expected this. At some point, they would have to interact. Of course, she didn’t really want him in her house. She’d wanted to keep any interaction with him impersonal. Having him in her apartment was anything but impersonal. Inhaling deeply, she said, “It’s fine. He’s doing a good thing, best man and brotherly duty all rolled into one. Besides, if Jimmy listened to Kevin, he wouldn’t think about whether this would bother me. He probably just believed what Kevin said about us.”
“What’s that?”
She let the trash bag slide to the floor and she plopped on the couch. She’d never mentioned her conversation with Kevin to Moira. Kathy always avoided any situation where he might show up, and Moira treated Kevin like Voldemort—he who must not be named. Plus, Kathy never wanted to cause a problem between Moira and Jimmy. “At your engagement party, he told me that you said he broke my heart—thanks for that, by the way—and he was confused. He thought I broke it off because I just slipped away.”
“What? God, he’s such an ass. How could he not know that you were done with him because he cheated?”
Kathy gave a half-hearted shrug. She’d asked herself that often enough, but never quite arrived at an answer. “We were young and weren’t very good at communicating. He was keeping it casual, and I’ve never done casual. So some blame was on me.” After all, she’d never even confronted him.
Moira sat next to her. “I still want to throat punch him.”
Kathy laughed. She loved having such a close friend. She’d always wanted a sister, and Moira was as close as she got. “Thanks, but that might cause a rift with your new family.”
“Ugh.” Moira performed her best eye roll.
A thump at the door caught their attention. Jimmy came back in with his brother trailing behind. Kathy was struck by their differences. Where Jimmy was broad and muscular, Kevin was lean. They both shared the same dark hair and blue eyes, so there was no mistaking them as siblings.
Making eye contact, Kevin smiled at her and said, “Hi.”
The smile still got to her. God, how she hated that it did. His smile was part wicked, part boy-next-door charm. Such a lethal mix. She nodded and pushed up from the couch to resume cleanup.
“Moira, baby, you had a party and didn’t invite me?” Kevin boomed from the doorway.
“It was a bridal shower. Women only.”
“Jimmy was here.”
“Believe me, I wish I hadn’t been.” Jimmy hefted a stack of boxes and pushed them into Kevin’s arms. For all his complaining, Jimmy had been a great sport. He played all the silly games and even posed with Moira’s ribbon bouquet.
When the guys were gone, Moira said, “I’ll stay and help.”
Kathy nudged her. “Thanks for the offer, but you go home and handle things there.”
“You sure?”
She nodded.
“You’re the best.” She threw her arms around Kathy and squeezed. “I’m glad Maggie begged off being maid of honor. I love her, but this would’ve been a mess with her in charge.”
“Speaking of which, how did she manage to scoot out of here without doing cleanup?”
Moira shrugged. “That’s Maggie for you. She drove my mom home, but as baby of the family, she’s excelled at getting out of work her whole life.”
“At least Norah and Carmen have wrangled the kitchen. They’re dishwashers extraordinaire,” Kathy said, speaking about Jimmy’s sister and Liam’s girlfriend. “I didn’t want to be rude and ask Carmen, but did Liam pop the question yet?”
“No, the big dork. We all know he wants to. I have no idea what he’s waiting for.”
“Is your mom any better with Carmen?” When Liam and Carmen had first started dating, Mrs. O’Leary was rude and distant to Carmen because she wasn’t a “nice Irish girl.”
“Yeah. I think that once she got to know her and realized how much Liam loves her, she knew she needed to get with the program. Carmen is awesome. It’s like having another sister.”
“It looks like your whole life is gonna be one wedding after another, huh? Everyone’s falling in love and getting hitched.” She cleared off another table and tied the bag. One more load and she should be done.
“At the rate all the O’Learys and O’Malleys are dropping, we could open our own wedding planning business. When are you joining the ranks?”
“Need a man first. The dating scene is dismal.” She hadn’t had a steady boyfriend since Ray, and they’d broken up not long after Moira’s engagement party.
Jimmy and Kevin came back in. Jimmy said, “Hey, sweetheart, we’re set. Are you ready?”
Moira looked over her shoulder, “One minute.” Then she turned back to Kathy. “Jimmy knows some guys. I could—”
“No. The last time you introduced me to someone . . .” She looked pointedly at Kevin.
“First, that wasn’t an introduction. You happened to be in the same place. Plus, that’s all the more reason to let me set you up. I owe you.”
“No, thanks. Now go before Jimmy gets cranky.”
Moira walked to her fiancé and said, “Jimmy’s always cranky. It’s part of his charm.”
The couple walked out the door and Kathy went to the kitchen to get another trash bag. On her way back to the living room, she almost crashed into Kevin.
“What are you still doing here?”
“I wanted to talk to you.”
She skirted around him. “So talk.” She picked up more paper plates so her hands had something to do and her eyes had a focus.
“I wanted to make plans to talk to you about the bachelor and bachelorette parties.”
She straightened. “By definition, they’re different parties. What’s there to talk about?”
“I think we should coordinate dates.”
“Why?”
He strode closer and helped clean the mess. “I love my brother, but I also know him. If we don’t plan the parties for the same night, there’s no way Moira will enjoy herself. Jimmy won’t be able to sit at home waiting, knowing Moira is running around the city getting drunk.”
“Oh.” He surprised her by caring about whether Moira had a good time. That was different. Not the usual selfish attitude she’d come to associate with Kevin O’Malley.
Kathy continued to pick up cups, but her focus waned with Kevin standing so near. She despised that he could still affect her.
He shoved more trash into the bag, completely unaffected by her. The story of her life.
“I was thinking we could meet for dinner one day this week to talk about it.”
Kathy yanked the bag and looked at him.
He held up his arms in defense. “You can bring your boyfriend. No funny business.”
“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she said and turned away to clear the coffee table.
“Oh, uh . . . the last time I saw you, you were with a guy, so I thought . . .”
“It didn’t work out.” Ray had turned out to be a bit of a dud. The spark between them, what little of it there was, had fizzled fast.
“Well, then, I don’t have to feel bad about stealing you away for dinner one night.”
She rolled her eyes. Always the player.
Carmen and Norah came into the room.
“The kitchen is back to normal,” Carmen said. “Anything else you need?”
To Kevin, Norah said, “What’re you doing here?”
Kevin turned and said, “I’m trying to convince Kathy that the bachelor and bachelorette parties need to happen simultaneously, or Moira won’t have any peace.”
Tucking her hands into her back pockets, Norah said, “As much as I hate to admit it, Kevin’s right. Jimmy will pop a vein just thinking about how reckless Moira might be.”
“Fine. I get it.” Realizing how snippy she sounded, she took a deep breath. “Sorry. Thank you, guys, for washing everything. I really appreciate it. I can handle the rest.”
“You sure?” Carmen asked as she let her long, black hair down from her ponytail.
“Yeah, I got this.”
Norah grabbed her purse and said, “Give me a call if you need help planning.”
They said their good-byes and let themselves out of her apartment, leaving her completely alone with Kevin. He took the bag from her and emptied his hands of the garbage he held.
“Thank you,” she mumbled. “I don’t want this to be weird, but it’s going to be, isn’t it?”
He stood silently for so long, she began to question if she actually said it aloud. The rise and fall of his chest in a sigh was the only signal she had that he was paying attention. He had that in common with Jimmy: the sigh of resignation. She’d witnessed Jimmy do it in regard to Moira on more than one occasion.
Kathy looked up into Kevin’s blue eyes and prayed her face wouldn’t reveal the effect he had on her.
“I don’t want this to be weird either. It’s up to us to not make it weird. What do you say? Let me buy you dinner. We’ll talk about party plans.” His smile was warm and friendly.
She’d forgotten he had the ability to do that. To just be friendly without flirting. “Any night except for Friday.”
“Got a big date planned for Friday?” he asked with a tilt of an eyebrow.
She wished. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no. I have a big wedding order to finish putting together and I’ll be working late.”
He looked almost relieved at her response. His intense gaze held her captive. When he spoke, his voice was low and seductive. “Thursday good for you?”
She nodded and gulped. To break the spell, she bent to grab the trash bag.
“Can I have your number? I’ll text you details. Unless you’d like me to pick you up?”
“No.” That would feel far too much like a date. For all his joking and crassness, one thing she remembered about Kevin was that he always picked her up and walked her to the door. In that respect, he was a consummate gentleman. Not like when he was sticking his dick in another woman.
Ugh. She had to keep her mind off things like that. She pulled her phone from her pocket and handed it to him. “Call yourself.”
She tied a knot in the bag and set it near the door. When she turned, Kevin was in front of her again. What was with this guy invading her space?
He handed her the phone. “I added myself as a contact. I’ll call you on Thursday to make sure we’re still on and figure out a time and place.”
“Okay.”
He slipped out the door without another word, but he’d taken the trash bags with him. She sank to the couch and propped her exhausted feet on the coffee table. Then she scrolled through her phone. Sure enough, he had programmed himself in. He was listed as “Sorry-ass Kevin.”
Kathy started laughing and couldn’t stop. If nothing else, Kevin was definitely good at making her smile.
* * *
Kevin was freakishly happy all week at work. For over a year, he’d been kicking himself thinking about Kathy. As he watched his siblings all fall in love, he’d been feeling a little bitter and seeing Kathy last year bummed him out. He’d really liked her and missed her when she’d slipped out of his life. He didn’t know why he hadn’t chased her down for answers. Ultimately, he treated her like any other girl who came and went. Knowing that it was his actions that caused her to leave made him want to kick himself harder.
Back then, he and Kathy hadn’t talked about exclusivity. And the time she’d referred to catching him cheating, he hadn’t actually had sex with the woman. He’d run into his ex, Tina, at a bar. They’d both been drinking and pretty much passed out as soon as they cleared his front door.
But the thing was, looking back, he couldn’t say that he’d been totally faithful either. He just wasn’t sure. He’d been twenty-five and enjoying life. Settling down had been the farthest thing from his mind. His time away from work consisted of being at the bar every night. The only time his head had been completely clear was while he was actually at work. Or with Kathy.
However, in one alcohol-fueled conversation with Sean about women, he’d admitted to his brother and himself that Kathy was the one that got away. Now he had a fresh opportunity. She was single and so was he. And he wanted the chance to get it right. He’d spent a lot of time over the last year thinking about their brief relationship, and he couldn’t remember a happier time.
He knew he had a lot to overcome to win her back, but nothing was impossible. They weren’t the same people they were five years ago. He could show her that he’d changed.
She’d agreed to have dinner with him. So she didn’t quite jump at the chance, but she hadn’t said no. If she truly hated him, she would’ve said they could figure out schedules via e-mail. She could’ve avoided ever laying eyes on him until the wedding. But she hadn’t.
As far as he was concerned, that meant he had a shot.
As Thursday neared, he made plans. If he remembered correctly, Kathy loved pizza. Pizza would be a nice, casual dinner, nothing that could be construed as a ploy or a romantic meal. What he really wanted to do was apologize for hurting her. It didn’t matter that she said it was old news and she was fine; he’d seen the look in her eyes that told him the hurt had been very real. His hurt at her leaving had been real too, but he could admit it probably didn’t compare.
Normally, he’d give a woman flowers, but Kathy was a florist. Moira had bragged that Kathy owned her own shop and was doing the flowers for the wedding. Chocolate was a good backup, but he wasn’t sure. Asking Moira might cost him one of his testicles, so not a good idea.
On Wednesday night, he and Jimmy met for drinks and after listening to Jimmy’s complaints about a bachelor party and what he didn’t want—no strippers? What the hell?—Kevin asked what he thought about Kathy.
“You need to get that out of your head right now. Moira will kill me if there’s even a hint of me helping you get to Kathy. Then she’ll go after you.”
“I know I fucked up with Kathy. In all honesty, though, I didn’t know until your engagement party when Moira told me I broke Kathy’s heart. Dude, it was five years ago. I thought we were casual.”
Jimmy shook his head. “I taught you better than that. Live how you want, but make sure everyone’s on the same page.”
“I thought we were. She took off without a word and I was pissed. Who does that? No fight, no big breakup, she was just gone.” Kevin didn’t need to explain how hard it was to have someone disappear from his life. Jimmy knew. He took a swallow of beer. “I’m not looking for you to talk to her for me. I just need an idea of what to give her. The usual apology gift—flowers—is out. Chocolate seems cheap.”
Jimmy grunted. “Not if you get the good shit. Look at Godiva or Frango. Not cheap.”
“I wasn’t talking price. I meant the sentiment behind it.”
Jimmy eyed him. “Since when do you use words like ‘sentiment’?”
“I’m skilled in many things. I write at work and my whole job is to make the people around me sound smarter than they are. Just because I choose to limit my words around barbarians like you doesn’t mean I don’t have an excellent vocabulary.” He turned the bottle in his hand. “I don’t know how to explain this. I really liked Kathy. I wasn’t ready for anything serious back then, so I was probably willfully oblivious about her feelings. And that was shitty. I want to make it up to her.”
“You just want to apologize? Not get back with her?”
Kevin swallowed hard. He couldn’t lie to Jimmy; his brother would see right through him. “Yes, I want to apologize, but if doing so opens a door for me to have a second chance, I’m jumping at it.”
“She’s not a fling kind of girl. That much I’ve figured out in the time I’ve spent with her. Your casual shit won’t fly this time either.”
“I didn’t say I wanted it to be casual.”
Jimmy froze with his beer halfway to his mouth. He stared at Kevin for a long moment, probably to assess whether Kevin was spinning some bullshit. Kevin held his stare.
“Why her? You’ve dated plenty of women. No one has stood out as particularly serious.”
Kevin shook his head and searched for the words. “I’ve been thinking about her a lot since your engagement party. I see you and Sean and even Tommy falling in love. I wasn’t in any hurry for that, but your life doesn’t seem all that bad. What Kathy and I had years ago could’ve been that. I was stupid not to hold on to her.”
Jimmy drained his bottle and stood. With a pat on Kevin’s shoulder, he said, “She’ll like chocolate, but she’ll value your words more. Don’t bullshit her. Be honest. It might get you further than you think.” He stepped away and then added over his shoulder, “But you didn’t get that from me.”
* * *
Kevin took Jimmy’s advice to heart. He also spent a ton of money on the best chocolate he could find before going to the restaurant Thursday night. He and Kathy had only communicated via text, so he didn’t know how she felt about their meeting. A text didn’t reveal any nuance, and while he usually liked the efficiency of texting, he wished he could’ve spoken to her.
He waited at the hostess stand for Kathy, feeling much like a guy afraid of being stood up by a blind date. Every time the door behind him opened, he turned to look. At seven on the nose, she walked in. Her curls were piled on her head in a messy bun and her face was clear of makeup except for the gloss on her lips, making it clear that she was coming from work and didn’t put in extra effort to look special for him. However, it backfired.
She was beautiful.
“Hi,” he said, suddenly nervous. Normally, he’d greet a date or a friend with a kiss on the cheek, but he feared the act wouldn’t be welcome. “I’m glad you came.”
Her brow crinkled. “I said I would.”
He nodded, feeling more foolish. “Here.” He thrust the box of chocolates at her.
“What’s this for?”
He put his hands up. “I wanted to get you something, but flowers would be dumb. . . .”
She smiled and the nerves in his neck loosened. “Let’s get a table and talk.”
Kathy stepped in front of him and he placed a gentle hand on her lower back as they walked. She stiffened, but didn’t pull away. The hostess seated them at a quiet corner booth. Kathy set the box of chocolates on the table as if to remind him that he needed to explain.
Their waitress came by to set a basket of bread between them along with glasses of water.
Kevin slid his menu to the side for a minute. Might as well get this part over with. “I feel like an ass for what happened between us.”
“And you thought chocolate was going to make up for it?” Her eyes narrowed and her brows furrowed with confusion. Not quite as bad as calling him an idiot, but close.
“No. I’m not that dense. I didn’t want to come empty-handed.” He inhaled deeply and remembered what Jimmy had said. Kevin knew how to be honest, but he spent so much time spinning the truth and couching it in BS that being straightforward was a novelty. “I’ve been thinking about you ever since the engagement party. The first thing I thought of when I saw you was that we had a great time together. Followed quickly by the anger I felt when you cut out without a word.”
When she opened her mouth, he held up a quick hand. “I understand why you did what you did. More or less. Most women would’ve attacked, but that’s not your style.” He took a deep breath. “In the year since the party, I haven’t been able to come up with one thing that was bad with us.”
She nodded. “Things were good. That’s why it was such a shock to find out that you were cheating.” She snapped her jaw shut and closed her eyes for a second. “We don’t need to rehash this. Like I said, life goes on.”
“But I need to explain and give you an apology. You deserve one. First, I didn’t think I was ready for anything serious when we were dating. I think part of me recognized that what we had was getting serious and instead of backing out or talking to you, I self-sabotaged. That night you saw me with Tina, who was an ex. We’d both been drinking and I invited her back to my apartment. It was a shitty move. You didn’t deserve that.”
“No, I didn’t,” she said quietly, her head down.
“But I didn’t sleep with her.”
Kathy’s eyes shot back up. “What?”
“I’m not going to lie, she wanted to, but we didn’t have sex.”
“Oh.”
“But if I’m being totally honest, I can’t say for sure that I didn’t cheat on you some other time. I just don’t remember.” He took another deep breath. “Saying that out loud makes me feel like an even bigger asshole. The thing is, except for when I was at work or with you, I was out partying, always looking for the next good time.”
Her throat worked as she swallowed. “Why are you telling me this now?”
“Because you deserve the truth. And I want to start fresh.” Kevin reached across the table and laid a hand over hers. “I’m really sorry.”
She stared into his eyes for a long moment. He remembered spending hours getting lost in her light brown eyes.
“Okay.”
He knew that was as good as he was going to get for now, and he could live with that. He pulled his hand away and slid a menu toward her. “Did you want to take a look or just order a pizza?”
“Pizza.” She said the word with reverence.
“Pizza always was your weakness.”
“Is that why you chose this place?”
He nodded. “Of course. My apology was sincere, but I’m not above using every possible advantage to earn your forgiveness.”
The corner of her mouth tilted up. “I’m not sure what it says about me that I can be bought with chocolate and pizza.”
He laughed. “It says you have excellent taste—in food and company,” he added, pointing at himself.
“I see your ego is as big as ever.”
“In my world, I’d never survive without being confident. Even if I have no clue what I’m doing, I can’t admit it. It would be career suicide.” He waved the waitress over and ordered a large pizza with everything.
“Where are you working that’s so cutthroat?” She took a sip of water.
“The mayor’s office.”
She started to laugh and choked on her water. He handed her his napkin with a shrug. “Chicago politics will always be Chicago politics, but I like where I am.”
“What do you do for the mayor?”
“I don’t work directly for the mayor. I’m one of the staff writers in the PR department.”
She stared at him with narrowed eyes. “I don’t see it.”
“What?”
“You working in a cubicle, being an anonymous creator.”
“It’s what I do.”
“But it goes against everything I remember about you. You always liked to be the center of attention, with everyone knowing who you are.”
He drank some water and began to think a beer was in order, especially if they were going to start dissecting his life choices. “I know the value of hard work. So does the mayor. This job is a stepping-stone. The mayor has a lot of things in the works that might give me more opportunities. I have the most seniority in my department, so it’s got to be my turn soon.”
* * *
Kathy had no idea how she’d landed here. When she left the shop today, she’d convinced herself that she could meet Kevin for dinner, talk about bachelor/bachelorette party stuff, and move on. Never in her self-talk did she envision sharing a bottle of wine and laughing with him.
She sipped on the red now as the waitress stopped by to box up the remaining pizza. “I can’t believe we ate all of that. I feel like I’m going to explode.”
“Does that mean you don’t want the leftovers?” he asked with a smirk.
Damn him. He knew she wanted that pizza. “I never turn away pizza. It’s life’s perfect food. Works for any meal or snack, day or night. I’m sure by breakfast I’ll no longer feel like exploding.”
He pushed the container to her side of the table. “Enjoy.”
She sighed. Her cheeks hurt because she’d smiled so much. “We haven’t even talked about the parties—you know, the whole reason for meeting tonight? What are you thinking about for Jimmy?”
Kevin shook his head. “Jimmy gave me a litany of don’ts for the party. Then he tried to give me a similar list to pass on to you for Moira’s party.”
“Uh-uh. The groom doesn’t get to tell me what kind of party to throw. Who does he think he is?”
“Jimmy O’Malley, boss of everyone.” Kevin drained his glass. He waved at the waitress and ordered coffee. “Would you like one too?”
Kathy shook her head. “The caffeine’ll keep me up all night. I have an early morning.”
When the waitress left, Kathy asked, “Do I even want to know what Jimmy demanded?”
He shook his head. Then he leaned forward and put his elbows on the table. “Jimmy thinks the whole idea is ridiculous because the concept is outdated. The bachelor party is one last night of freedom for a guy, but Jimmy feels like he’s already had enough of running around. Moira’s it for him.”
Kathy’s heart hefted a happy sigh. Bossy Jimmy had a romantic side.
“Did Moira talk about this?”
“Nope.”
“Here’s what I’m thinking. It’s a little unorthodox, but I think they’ll enjoy it.” He leaned even closer and lowered his voice.
Kathy found herself pressing toward the table as if they were going to share a secret.
“What if we plan a lake cruise? We keep it a secret from the two of them until we’re all on board. I know a guy who can get us a good deal. We can get a private dinner cruise.”
“Are you suggesting a joint party?” Kathy’s mushy heart plunged into her stomach. Although the night had been wonderful, she wasn’t looking to spend more time with Kevin.
“Yes and no. I think we let them believe that we’re setting up the usual raunchy bachelor party. Jimmy doesn’t want that, and if the way Moira looks at him is any indication, she’s not looking for it either. The wedding and marriage thing is a formality. Their days of freedom have been over for a long time.”
Kathy sat back and thought. She hated to admit it, but he was right. They weren’t kids getting married before experiencing life. Moira had been in love with Jimmy since childhood. Having a naked dude shake his ass at her wasn’t going to do much for Moira. Kathy smiled. It might kill Jimmy, though.
“What’s that smile about?”
“I was thinking that you’ve made an excellent argument and a cruise would probably be a good time. But part of me really wants a stripper for Moira just to drive Jimmy crazy.”
Kevin chuckled. “I knew there was something about you I liked.” He tapped the table. “I got it!”
She didn’t like the look on his face and regretted voicing her opinion. “No.”
“I haven’t even told you the idea.”
The waitress deposited a cup of coffee in front of him and he immediately drank.
“Your face tells me enough.” The pizza turned to stone in her stomach as she tried to envision how Kevin would screw this up.
He suddenly raised his hands. “Whoa. I’m just talking about having fun. If we have the boat to ourselves, we can have a private room with entertainment for those people who want to enjoy a typical wild party.”
Her wariness didn’t fade, but she wanted to believe him. “That wasn’t what the evil genius look was about.”
He flashed a brilliant smile. “You think I’m a genius?”
“Did you not hear the evil part?”
His smile lessened by a fraction, but he still looked far too good. She bit her tongue before any part of that slipped past her lips. She couldn’t allow the wine to talk. Surely that was all it was.
“I had a picture in my head of taking Jimmy into a room to greet a stripper and conveniently putting him in the wrong room. He’d get to enjoy the stripper meant for Moira.”
She couldn’t help it. She giggled. It wasn’t nice, but it would be funny to see Jimmy’s reaction. And it wouldn’t be anything horribly offensive to ruin Moira’s night. In fact, she might even get a laugh from the joke.
Pointing at Kevin she said, “Do what you want, but I’ll have no part in it. I don’t want to be on the receiving end of Jimmy’s anger.”
Kevin waved a hand in dismissal. “Nah. He won’t be angry. I’ll liquor him up first.”
“So many ways that could end badly for you.”
“Never underestimate me,” he said with a wink.
Man, did this guy ever let up? She folded her napkin and set it on the table before reaching in her purse for her wallet. “How much do I owe you for dinner?”
“It’s on me.”
“This wasn’t a date. It was more like a business meeting. I should pay at least half. I am taking all the leftovers.”
“Correction. This was old friends getting together for a meal. My treat.” He finished his coffee and pulled bills from his pocket. “I’ll walk you to your car.”
She stood and gathered the pizza and box of chocolates. “When you get actual numbers on the cost of the cruise, let me know and we’ll talk. I imagine that renting out the ship for the night will be expensive.”
“We’ll figure it out. You like my plan though?”
She did. An intimate party with all of Jimmy and Moira’s closest friends would be perfect. Even if it meant Kathy would have to spend more time with Kevin. This night hadn’t been anywhere near the torture she’d imagined. “It’s a good idea. It’ll work for them.”
As they headed out of the restaurant and toward her car, Kevin said, “Do you have any business cards on you?”
“Why?” She pressed the key fob to unlock the door. Night had fallen and it was near her bedtime, but the cool breeze made her want to stand and enjoy it for a while. She inhaled, filling her lungs with fragrant air. Summer in Chicago was her favorite time of year.
“I know a lot of people who organize functions in and around the mayor.”
“I don’t need some pity business because you’re trying to clear your conscience. The chocolates and apology were enough.”
“As a businessperson, you shouldn’t care about the reason behind the work. Just be glad when some comes your way.”
She set the boxes on the floor behind the driver’s seat and rummaged around in her purse. Finally, in the side pocket, she found her business card holder. She handed him a few cards. “I am grateful for every customer who walks through my door. But if you start pimping my business, I’m afraid it’ll come with strings attached. I don’t want to owe you anything.”
Standing straight, she gave herself a mental pat on the back. There was a time she’d never have had the guts to say that aloud.
He studied the card for a moment. “Love in Bloom. You really did it.”
“Did what?”
“I remember lying in bed with you, talking about how much you wanted your own flower shop. I’m impressed. You did everything you set out to do.”
His words shouldn’t have had any effect on her, but they did. A gentle warmth spread through her belly at his praise.
He slid the cards into the pocket of his jeans and looked at her in silence for a minute. She tried not to fidget, but the intensity of all that attention on her made her want to hide.
Or curl up in his arms.
Oh, hell no. She needed to get to bed. Thoughts like that about Kevin O’Malley would only lead to heartbreak.
He finally moved, slowly stretching an arm out to brace on the car beside her. “I’ll never expect anything more from you than you’re willing to give.”
It took her a second to figure out what he was talking about. Then she realized that he was referring to her accusing him of attaching strings. Her breathing went shallow and her heart sped up. A big part of her had expected him to try to kiss her, but a bigger part was glad he hadn’t.
He spoke the truth. In a nutshell, he’d managed to express her single biggest problem. She was always willing to give a relationship everything without knowing she’d get anything in return. Kevin had been one of many men to teach her that. In recent years, she’d done everything possible to protect herself as she attempted to learn to be more assertive. Next time she fell for a guy, she planned to be able to demand what she wanted. It was a work in progress.
Kevin waited, but she had nothing to say to him. He pushed off the car. “Good night, Kathy. I had a great time tonight.”
“Me too,” she admitted, which probably wasn’t the smartest move.
As he stepped away, he reached and opened the door for her. When she turned and sat, he closed it. He waited until she started the engine and shifted into gear to leave.
She offered a small wave as she pulled away. In her rearview mirror, she saw Kevin standing in the near-empty parking lot, hands tucked into his pockets, staring at her.
She should’ve left sooner. If she’d really been thinking, she would’ve started the party planning conversation first thing instead of letting him lead. As she made her way home, she realized that she had, in fact, underestimated Kevin. He’d been polite and kind and funny, so she played right into his hand. She’d had dinner with him and enjoyed it.
No matter what he’d said about them being friends, she knew better. She’d gotten good at being honest with herself, even if she was still working on being blunt with those around her. In being true to herself, she had to admit that she was still attracted to Kevin. And he was attracted to her.
Which meant that she had to double her defenses when she was with him. If he wanted to pretend as if they were friends, she’d show him that she could be a friend. And nothing more.