“I should never have agreed to this in the first place,” he murmured. “I should have told Sean to just take this job and shove it.”
Though he’d already spent some of the retainer Sean had given him, the majority of the money was still in his bank account. If he gave it back to his brother, less the cost of a new video camera, maybe then his life could get back to normal. But first he’d start by spending the rest of the afternoon and evening doing what he did best—occupying a stool at Quinn’s Pub.
He’d forget Ellie and everything that had happened between them—no matter how many pints of Guinness it took.
“S
O
,
DO YOU LOVE HER
?”
Liam sat at the end of the bar with Brian, the two of them sharing a late-afternoon meal. Quinn’s Pub was busy for a weekday, filled with all the regular patrons, the after-work crowd and a few tourists, as well. The pub had appeared in the latest edition of Roamer’s
Travel Guide to Boston
as one of the truly authentic Irish pubs and Seamus had been pleased with the boost in business—even if the regulars weren’t.
This afternoon Dylan was behind the bar and Brian had stopped by for some dinner before he headed for the station. A half-eaten corned-beef sandwich sat on a plate in front of him. Liam had settled for a burger and fries.
“Aren’t you going to answer my question?” Brian asked.
“Are you a reporter twenty-four hours a day?” Liam countered.
His brother grinned. “I’m used to getting the truth out of people and I don’t think you’re telling me the truth.”
Liam reached out and picked up his glass of Guinness, then took a sip. “I don’t know. I guess, until now, I really haven’t thought about it.”
“Either you do or you don’t. It’s that simple.”
Liam paused. “It’s never that simple. You know me. I need people to like me, especially women. I know what they want and I give it to them. And even after it’s over, after I’ve moved on to the next woman, they still want to be friends.”
“Sounds like you’ve been seeing a shrink,” Brian teased.
Liam pointed to a dog-eared book on the bar. “Ellie left that at my apartment. She’s always got one of these books open. Self-improvement.” He held it up. “
Ten Steps to True Love.
I’ve been reading it. According to the book I’m ‘Male Type No. 4: the Consummate Charmer.”’ He flipped through the pages and read, “‘The Consummate Charmer feels an almost pathological need for feminine approval. He’ll say and do anything to complete the conquest, then will move on, finding another woman who will give him a fresh ego boost.”’
A frown furrowed Brian’s brow. “That’s not you.”
“Oh, no? Sounds pretty sick, doesn’t it?” Liam sighed. “I think it all goes back to our childhood. I’ve thought a lot about this and what happened to us when we were kids has made us into the guys we are today.”
“Now you sound like a shrink,” Brian said. “We’re Quinns. We’re not supposed to sink into self-examination.”
“Maybe so. But look at us. Conor was responsible for holding the family together. And now he spends his life trying to protect the public the same way he protected us. And Dylan, he rescues the helpless. We were helpless when we were kids.”
“And Brendan,” Brian added. “He was always trying to escape. And now he can’t stay in any one place for more than a month or two. He and Amy live like nomads.”
“I haven’t figured out you and Sean yet,” Liam said. “But then I’m new to this.”
“I suppose you’re right,” Brian said. “It’s only natural that our upbringing affected who we are. Da gone for months at a time, Ma walking out when we were so young, Conor and Dylan and Brendan raising us. And then there were all those Mighty Quinn stories.”
“But our older brothers got past that. Conor, Dylan and Brendan. They all fell in love. So it’s possible.”
“Maybe,” Brian conceded.
Liam silently contemplated the notion of love while Brian finished his dinner.
Was
he in love with Ellie Thorpe? From the moment he’d first seen her through the lens of his camera, he’d been drawn to her. And then after they’d met, it had been almost impossible to put her out of his mind.
Time and time again he’d tried to rationalize his feelings. Why was she any different than all the other women who had walked in and out of his life? How had she managed to find a place in his heart when the others hadn’t? His brothers might say that it was the Quinn family curse. That if he didn’t want to love her then he shouldn’t have saved her from the burglar.
But Liam knew better. Something had shifted inside him. Gone was his instinct to run, to avoid commitment at any cost. For the first time in his life he actually wanted a relationship to last longer than a few months.
“Maybe you should give it a chance,” Brian said.
“You think?”
He nodded. “The way I see it, we’ve got one shot at it. And if we don’t recognize it when it comes along, then we spend our lives looking. Look at Da. After all those years he’s still in love with Ma. She walks out on him and he’s thrilled to have her walk back in the door twenty-five years later.”
“Not everyone has been happy to see her,” Liam said.
“What is it with Sean?”
Liam shrugged, then nodded toward the door. “Why don’t you ask him?”
They both watched as Sean strolled through the bar. He gave Dylan a wave and sat at the far end before noticing his brothers at the opposite end. He picked up his beer and started toward them. Liam fought the impulse to leave.
“What are you doing here?” Sean demanded, setting his beer down on the bar.
Liam groaned softly. He was in no mood. “Lay off, Sean.”
“You’re supposed to be watching Ellie Thorpe.”
“I’m done. I don’t need your money and I don’t want the job. If you want her watched, then you do it yourself.”
“Pettibone is still in town. We’re this close. You can’t quit.”
“I can and I do. Besides, she knows we’re watching her. If she embezzled that money, she’s probably long gone by now.”
Sean cursed softly. “She knows?”
“Yeah. After I left this morning, I went to her apartment and waited for her. I told her everything.”
“Why?”
“She thought I was some kind of stalker so I had to set her straight.”
Sean let out a tightly held breath. “She’s gone.”
“Maybe not,” Liam said. “You’re under the assumption that she’s in on this with Ronald. I don’t think she is.”
“He’s in love with her,” Brian said, his mouth full of corned beef.
Sean glanced between the two of them. “Aw, hell. I should have know this was going to happen.”
“I’m not in love with her,” Liam said. “Not at all. I’m just not interested in doing your dirty work. If you want to watch her, then go ahead. If you want to chase Ronald Pettibone around Boston, feel free. I’m just saying that I’m done with it.” Liam pushed away from the bar. “I’m going to play some pool. I’m sure there’s some beautiful young thing who needs a partner.”
He left his brothers to discuss the vagaries of love while he wandered to the back of the pub. Two girls in tight shirts and body-hugging jeans had commandeered the pool table, giggling and flirting with the men who had gathered to watch. Liam set a quarter on the corner of the table. “I’ll play the winner,” he said.
They both turned to him and graced him with dazzling smiles. He’d assumed that charming a new woman would take his mind off the previous woman. But as he watched them finish their game, Liam found himself comparing the pair to Ellie Thorpe—and they were suffering in the comparison.
He hadn’t known Ellie for long—not nearly long enough to be sure that he loved her. But he knew the important things: she was honest and kind and stubborn and determined. She was passionate and naive and spontaneous and optimistic. And she had a natural beauty that didn’t fade over time. In truth, Liam could go on and on, listing all the qualities about her that he admired.
He strolled over to the rack and picked out a cue. Maybe that was it. He didn’t just need Ellie or want her, it wasn’t just about attraction. He admired her. She’d walked away from her life in New York and come to Boston to start fresh. Though her history with men had been a series of disasters, she still believed in romance and passion. She wasn’t jaded or cynical or bitter, she was just…Ellie.
“So, are you one of the famous Quinn brothers?”
Liam turned around, startled out of his silent contemplation of pool cues. “What?”
“Which Quinn are you?”
“Liam,” he said. “Liam Quinn.”
“I’m Danielle,” she said.
“And who’s your friend?” Liam asked, nodding toward the redhead.
“She’s not my friend. And you don’t need to know her name. She’s going to lose this game.” The blonde reached out and touched his arm, initiating a flirtation that Liam knew by heart. First, she’d touch him innocently. Then he was supposed to touch her. And then gradually the touching would become more regular and more intimate. And then, after a few hours, he’d kiss her, just a casual kiss at first and then— Liam groaned inwardly. Hell, it suddenly sounded so trite and silly. How many Saturday nights had he wasted charming women just like these two? And where had it gotten him?
Danielle sauntered up to the table and took a shot, banking the cue ball off the rail and sinking the nine in a side pocket. Then she wandered back to Liam, brushing against his body. “So are all the tales true?” she asked.
“Tales?”
“About the Quinn boys. Women do talk, you know.”
“And what do they say about the Quinn boys?”
Danielle tossed her hair over her shoulder and sent him a sexy smile. “They say they’re the best.”
Liam groaned inwardly. He was just too tired to play the game tonight. Or maybe too bored. Or too preoccupied. But the best way to forget about one woman was to spend a little time with another. Liam grabbed the chalk from the edge of the table and ground it onto the end of the cue. “Well, we are pretty good pool players. As for the rest, most rumors are just that—rumors.”
He watched as Danielle’s friend knocked the eight ball into the wrong pocket. Then he grabbed his quarter from the end of the table and shoved it in the slot. The balls tumbled down and Liam reached for the rack.
One game of pool. And if he didn’t find it…interesting, then he’d leave. Liam stepped back from the table and hung the rack on a hook on the wall. And if he managed to go fifteen minutes without thinking about Ellie, then he’d have to consider that a victory.
E
LLIE STOOD OUTSIDE
Quinn’s Pub, staring at the neon beer signs that glowed from the windows. A damp breeze blew off the ocean, tingeing the air with the smell of the sea. She pulled her jacket more tightly around her body and took a deep breath.
She wasn’t sure what she was doing here, but she knew she had to speak to Liam. She’d watched the attic across the street from her apartment and noticed no movement at the windows. Then she’d stopped at his apartment in Southie and he’d been out. Quinn’s Pub was the next place to look.
Why was she really here? Was it for explanations? Or apologies? Or did she just need to reassure herself that things were completely over with Liam Quinn?
After their confrontation in the attic she’d been so hurt and angry that she hadn’t had a chance to think. Her only impulse had been to lash out at him. But after she’d returned to her apartment and begun to clean up the mess, she realized that whatever Liam believed or did not believe didn’t really make a difference. The management at Intertel Bank was under the impression that she’d stolen a quarter-million dollars.
Before she moved on to a new life, she’d have to clean up the mess from the old. And that meant proving her innocence…and finding a way to rationalize her very passionate but short relationship with Liam Quinn. Ellie looked both ways before crossing the street, then she jogged up the steps of the pub. Loud Irish music and the clamor of voices could be heard from outside and she gathered her resolve, determined to remain unemotional when speaking with Liam.
Satisfied that she was ready, she pulled open the door and stepped inside. The first person she recognized was Liam’s father, Seamus Quinn. Then she saw Dylan, the firefighter, behind the bar with his father. She caught his eye and gave him a little wave. He looked at her for a long moment and then smiled and motioned her over.
“Hey there, Ellie!”
She returned his smile. “Hi, Dylan,” she said, raising her voice to be heard over the music.
“So you’ve decided to venture inside Quinn’s. What can I get you? Have you ever had a Guinness? Or maybe you’d like something more suited to a lady’s tastes.”
“Actually, I don’t need anything to drink. I was just looking for Liam. Do you know where he is?”
Dylan glanced over his shoulder. “He was down at the end of the bar with Sean and Brian. But maybe he’s left. I’ll just go—”
“No,” Ellie said. “I’ll go ask. Thanks.”
She wandered toward the end of the bar and found Brian and Sean. When they saw her, Sean turned to look toward a small alcove in the back. A crowd was gathered around the pool table and she saw Liam there, standing next to a curvaceous blonde in skin-tight jeans. The blonde leaned into him, wrapping her arm around his, and Ellie felt a surge of jealousy mixed with a healthy dose of anger. How quickly he’d forgotten her.
She watched him for a long moment as he leaned over the table and made a shot. He had an athletic grace that made even the act of wielding a pool cue seem sexy and provocative. Ellie’s gaze followed that of Liam’s companion, her eyes fixing on his backside. Whether he and the blonde were together or not didn’t change what she’d come to say.
She walked back to the table and waited for Liam to see her. After he took another shot, he glanced up, his gaze meeting hers. She felt the breath leave her lungs and had to force herself to take another. At first he registered surprise, and then he smiled. Without taking his eyes from hers, Liam tossed his pool cue on the table, knocking the balls in all directions, and circled around to stand in front of her.
“You’re here,” he murmured, his gaze scanning her features as if he hadn’t seen her in years. “I thought maybe you’d left town.”
She shook her head. “Can I talk to you?”
“Sure.”
“Somewhere a bit more private?”
“Liam, aren’t you going to finish our game?”
Liam glanced back at the girl he’d been with, her lips now pursed in a pretty pout. “I can’t. Find yourself another Quinn brother. This place is crawling with them.”
“I think I need to talk to Sean, too,” Ellie said.
Liam called out to his brother and motioned him over. They all found a booth in a dark corner of the pub and sat, Sean and Liam on one side and Ellie across the table.