Authors: Stevie MacFarlane
Trying not to draw attention to herself, Bridget, who had been peeling potatoes, grabbed the peels and headed to the trash can. With a quick nod to Colleen, she quietly moved toward the door intending to follow them. Unfortunately, Noah came through that same door first and marched the curious young lady back into the kitchen.
“I don’t think so, half-pint,” he told her with a grin. “I got the distinct impression when I passed Rory in the hall that this conversation was private. Hello, you must be Nick. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Noah continued, reaching to shake Nick’s hand.
“Nobody tells me anything,” Bridget griped. “Just because I’m away at school doesn’t mean I don’t want to know what’s going on around here.”
Bridget, being the youngest at twenty five, was still unmarried, and Maeve despaired of her ever finding a suitable young man. Despite being cute as a button, she was entirely too accustomed to getting her own way. With her golden brown hair and green eyes, she didn’t lack for male attention, and although she was five feet nothing, she managed to intimidate them all. Her temper was legendary, and she could throw a fit quicker than anyone her friends had ever seen. Lord help the man who ever really fell in love with her, Noah thought. He’d be in for a hell of a ride.
“Never mind, sweets,” Colleen informed Bridget. “I’ll go and find out—”
As she started to rise from the table where she’d been shucking corn, Noah’s large hand came down firmly on her shoulder.
“No, you won’t,” he informed he as he gently forced her to remain in her chair. “What part of
private
don’t you understand?”
“Noah,” she scolded. “It’s my sister and I think she might need my…”
Noah bent his tall frame down until they were nose to nose. His gray eyes pinned her to the seat, and a blush spread quickly across her cheeks. She held his gaze for as long as she could before giving way. Her husband was a gentle soul until he was pushed. Tall and lanky, Noah was much stronger than he looked. With his curly dark hair and laid-back personality, anyone would think he was easily managed, but Colleen knew differently. Steel framed glasses matched steel gray eyes that missed nothing. Noah was always observing. As a professor of history at the local college, Colleen had often wondered if he wasn’t a throwback to some riverboat gambler. He always seemed to know what others were thinking, and between him and Molly it was downright freaky.
Sighing softly, Colleen gave in and picked up another ear of corn.
“Just leave it, Bridge. It’s not like anyone in this family can keep a secret anyway.”
Noah kissed the top of Colleen’s head and gave her ponytail a playful tug. He loved her from the top of her golden head to the tips of her little pink toes, but sometimes she was impossibly stubborn. At thirty-four, she was the third of the O’Malley offspring and didn’t look any older that the youngest, despite being the mother of two teenage boys. Noah was an only child, so the O’Malley family had been a culture shock. It had taken a while to figure out the family dynamics and find his place in the large brood, but he’d been able to do it. Now they were as much his family as if he’d been born into it, and he loved them all dearly. But he had no problem putting his foot down if need be. Bridget always needed watching, as she was in trouble more often than not, but the other two were… let’s just say they had their moments as well. Noah had genuinely liked Jim Cassidy and was saddened greatly by the loss of him, but, truth be told, he’d always wondered why Jim had never stood up to Maggie. Now, looking at Nick as he leaned comfortably against the doorway, he had to wonder if Maggie had finally met her match. Nick didn’t seem at all out of place, just quiet and watchful. There was something about him that felt, well… familiar. Noah couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but he knew it would come to him.
Maeve had remained at the sink, washing up while Noah had been compelling the girls to leave Maggie and Rory in peace, but Noah knew she hadn’t missed a word. Watching out of the corner of his eye, he smiled as she peeked over her shoulder and made eye contact with both Colleen and Bridget.
“Come on, Nick, let’s go out back and grab a beer,” he told him, slapping him on the back as they headed out the back door onto the porch.
As soon as they entered the screened back porch, Sean O’Malley got up out of his cushioned chair and grabbed Nick’s hand.
“Nick, it’s good to see you. About time you made it over. I hear you’ve decided to set up a practice here,” he continued as he pumped Nick’s hand with a firm grip. The gray in his hair and the wrinkles around his eyes were about the only difference Nick could see in the older man. Sean O’Malley still stood tall, and although he had added a few pounds on his already large frame, he looked damn good for his age.
“Good to see you too, sir. Sorry it’s taken me so long to stop over. Things have been pretty hectic but seem to be settling down now,” Nick replied. If he hadn’t been watching he never would have seen Noah raise his eyebrow, and jerk his head in the direction of the kitchen.
Apparently, Sean knew exactly what he meant because he quickly excused himself and strode to the doorway. Catching his wife slowly pushing the kitchen door open, he grinned.
“Maeve. For the love of God, woman, leave those two in peace. They have business to discuss.”
Maeve jumped, and a hand flew to her heart, as guilt spread across her face.
“Sean O’Malley, don’t you bellow at me like that again. You ‘bout scared the life out o’ me. I’ll have you know I was just wipin’ some fingerprints off the door with this dishtowel,” she huffed, hands on hips.
“Take a step out that door, young lady, and I’ll be givin’ you some fingerprints you can’t wipe off,” he assured her with a grin.
Maeve snorted and then laughed.
“Out of my kitchen you over-grown so and so, before I’m takin’ a skillet to ya.”
“Oh, threats is it now?” he cried advancing on her as she squealed and backed up against the sink.
Picking her up and twirling her around, Sean set her back on her feet and held her close.
“I love you with a heart and a half,” he told her as she blushed and swatted at his arms. “But you better mind me, woman,” he growled as he smacked her butt crisply.
“Why, I never—”
“Oh, yes you have!” he crowed as he walked to the back door.
“Get on out of here and stop makin’ a damn fool of yourself in front of the children,” she scolded, trying not to laugh. “Go tend to the men and leave us to our work, or you’re never goin’ to eat.”
Colleen tried not to snicker, and Bridget was red to the roots of her hair. Maeve smoothed her hair and straightened her apron.
“Come on girls and get a move on. It’s behind we are as it is, and I promised strawberry shortcake for dessert. Where is that Patrick with the heavy cream?”
* * *
Rory lead Maggie down the hall and into the study, closing the heavy pocket doors behind him. Seating her on the leather sofa, he sat beside her instead of behind the large antique desk. Maggie took that as a good sign. At least he didn’t intend to make her feel like a naughty school girl brought before the principal.
“What did you want to talk about, Rory?” she asked settling herself sideways against the arm of the sofa.
“I wanted to bring you up to date about this Jack Harley character. Maggie, you put yourself in real danger not coming forward about what was going on. Not only that, you put the kids in danger,” he told her, his blue eyes not cutting her any slack. She could see how tight his jaw was clenched and knew he was trying not to raise his voice. As if he would need to yell to make his point.
“This low life has a rap sheet a mile long. Assaults, battery, even a couple of weapons charges that he somehow managed to get reduced. Don’t you guys ever do a background check when you hire a new employee?”
Maggie gulped. That was her fault. She’d needed a good brick layer so badly that she had bypassed the normal screening process and hired him on the spot. It had been her intention to get to it later, but she’d never gotten around to it. Confessing this to Rory did not earn her any brownie points, and she could only imagine how Mason and Nick would feel about it.
“Rory, please don’t mention this to Mason or Nick. I could lose my job,” she begged him. Not to mention other painful things too embarrassing to even think about.
“I’m not sure that would be such a bad thing at this point. I’ve never liked you working at isolated sites until well after dark with God knows who. And apparently, you are often the last to leave as you were several times in this case. Christ, Maggie, do you ever watch the news? Read a paper?” he demanded, getting up to pace as he ran his hand through his hair. “You have absolutely no concept of the kind of things that can happen to a woman. I’ve seen…well never mind what I’ve seen,” he growled so frustrated he could barely keep from yelling. “I just don’t want to find your body in a drainage ditch somewhere.”
Maggie shivered, wrapping her arms around her. She really didn’t want to hear this. And she was sorry. Sorry she hadn’t run a check on Jack. Sorry she’d kept quiet about the attack. And sorry she’d come to dinner. This wasn’t going to turn out well, she could see that now. There was no way in hell she would be able to keep this buried, not in this family. It was an absolute miracle she’d been able to keep the one secret she had been able to keep. Jason.
If Rory was this upset with her, she could just imagine how her Da was going to react, not to mention Patrick and Noah and of course the bossy Kord brothers. Good grief, she’d forgotten about Molly; she probably knew everything already, had probably seen it. She had to get to her and beg her not to tell anyone.
“Rory, please, I promise. I’ll be much more careful. I’ll make sure I do a check on every new hire. I’ll even make sure my cell phone is charged… if I can find it.”
“What! Cupcake, for God’s sake, tell me your kidding,” he pleaded, grabbing her arms and pulling her up off the sofa.
“Sure, sure, I’m kidding. I know right where it is, and I’m going to go home and charge the hell out of it.”
Rory sighed. He knew what he should do, but he didn’t know if he could do it. Maggie had three kids to support, and as much as he hated the whole situation, he knew she had to work. There weren’t many places where she could make the kind of money she did, and he got that. But if he couldn’t impress on her how serious he was, it wouldn’t leave him much choice.
“All right, I’ll try to keep this between us,” he told her pointing his finger right at her and pinning her with his icy blue eyes. “But you better hear me. You’re going to have to testify in court, and I can’t help you there. It will be open to the public, so you need to be prepared if it gets out. Keep that fucking phone charged and on you at all times. If I call you, and I will, and it goes right to voicemail, I’ll know it’s dead or off, and I will come looking for you and drag your ass right into Mason’s office. If he’s not available, I’m pretty sure I can hunt down Nick. Either way, I can almost guarantee you won’t like the consequences. And, get yourself a can of mace, like every other damn woman in America!”
“I will, Rory. I’ll do all those things. Just don’t tell Nick about the background check… or the phone… or well, anything that we discussed. Thanks,” she continued, backing to the door as Rory slumped onto the sofa.
“And Cupcake, why the hell don’t you get married again? It would sure save me a lot of worry, not to mention ulcer medication.”
“Um… about that… probably not going to happen,” she told him as she got to the door. “For some reason, I can’t seem to find anyone as easy going as Jim.”
“No, I’m sure you can’t,” he replied somewhat sarcastically. “Just remember, sometimes what we think we want isn’t necessarily what’s best for us. I know you think Jim was a good husband, and in some ways I agree with you. But he wasn’t what you needed, and from the looks of things, what you still need.”
“What do you mean?” she asked, her head cocked to one side as she waited for his reply.
“Never mind. Just don’t forget what you promised and know I’m going to hold you to it. Now go see if Ma needs any help. I’ll be out in a few minutes after I try to get rid of this headache.”
Chapter Eleven
Molly was waiting for her when she slid the study door closed behind her.
“Come with me, Maggie,” she softly ordered as she twirled in the direction of the front porch. Maggie followed without question as Molly knew she would. The girls had apparently given up their tea party, and not a soul was around. Seating herself on the swing at the far end of the porch, Molly patted the seat beside her. Maggie sat, and Molly started the swing in motion. Effortlessly they swayed together as a gentle breeze floated around them. The sweet scent of the lilac tree soothed them, and Maggie finally let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding. Resting her head back on the thick cushion, she finally began to relax as she closed her eyes.
“Better?” asked Molly.
Her musical voice seemed to tinkle like the wind chimes, and Maggie smiled at her fanciful imagination.
“Yes, much,” she replied. “I don’t know how or why I get myself into these situations.”
Molly smiled. “I do, but that’s neither here nor there. I brought you out here because I wanted to tell you a couple of things.”
“Oh?” Maggie questioned as she lifted her head and looked at Molly. She wasn’t concerned. Molly had always been an ally, a voice of reason in this sometimes unreasonable family. Everyone had an opinion and had no problem loudly expressing it. As children it had always been a great accomplishment if you could sway the others to your way of thinking, especially if it was likely to get them all in trouble.
“First of all, I want to tell you
I know
,” she stated quietly and matter-of-factly.
“Know what?” Maggie felt a tingle of fear slip up her spine.
“Know everything,” Molly replied.
“Everything?” Maggie asked, her face blushing fiercely.
Molly laughed.