Page 63 of Her Irish Boss

Rian stood and left to check on dinner, Cathal making an excuse to help him while sending Brogan a curious look.

Selena shifted to face him. “You were quiet.”

“Just letting you talk.”

“I think that's all my questions for now. Starting tomorrow, I can work on the advertisement for it. Start pushing things out into the world and making it a reality.”

“I want to pay you for this.”

“Really?” She picked at something on her blue jeans, her eyes downcast. “What if I royally screw this up? Waste everyone's money and time? You might have to ask for a refund.” She lifted her gaze to him.

“You won't.” He pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. “But that doesn't matter. Keep track of the time you spend doing it and send me an email every so often. I'll write you a check. You're definitely less expensive than if we hired out this job. And I know I couldn't do what you're doing. I don't have the patience for it. That's why you're the VP of Advertising.”

“The invincible Brogan just admitted he couldn't do something?” Her lips pressed together. “I'm amazed.”

He leaned down, kissing her along the side of her neck. “I'm not invincible,” he murmured. But he felt like it with her beside him.

She tilted her head, and a sigh escaped her lips. “Your brothers are over there.”

He trailed up her throat until he reached the edge of her jaw. All night. And it still wouldn't be enough time with Selena. He set his hand on her thigh as he skimmed his teeth along the edge of her ear.

“Stay. Tonight.”

“I—can't. You know that.”

He leaned back to see her eyes. “I asked Tina to stay. It was already an overnight charge. I'm paying.”

Her golden eyes didn't blink for a moment.

“Alright, you two, dinner's done,” Cathal called.

She still didn't answer but stood and walked ahead of him to the kitchen. Cathal stood at the counter, a bottle of wine open. “Would you like some?”

“Yes. Thank you. I think I'll need it.” She accepted the glass of white wine and took a sip as Brogan moved past her into the kitchen. Without an answer.

15

“Dinner was fantastic.” Selena passed Rian a warm, wet plate as she finished washing it. Someone else cooked, she was more than happy to clean what few dishes Rian left in the sink. “My grandmother would have enjoyed that.”

“You should take her some of the leftovers.” Rian smirked and hitched his thumb over his shoulder. “Don't let Cathal make off with the lot of it. He's a lazy arse in the kitchen.”

“I might have to. I appreciated the night off cooking.” She kept talking, trying to take her mind off the decision to stay with Brogan. And his questions about Jacob. He'd handled it better than she would've guessed. But the way his muscles tensed when she mentioned him didn't fool her.

She smiled brightly at Rian. Her distraction. “Did you always know you wanted to be a chef?”

“Yes. I think part of it was my ma pitying me. Brogan was always working. After Da died, he basically ran the farm and got another job to help pay the bills. So, Ma pulled me into the kitchen with her. When she died, Itook over that aspect until we needed to move to the States.”

Needed to move. She didn't miss that phrase, and she didn't think Rian had meant for her to. Selena glanced over her shoulder. “All three of you moved here at the same time?”

“We thought it for the best. Once we left, we ended up going our separate ways for a while. Cathal went to school at Georgetown. Brogan had already graduated from the University before we left, so he started random jobs here and there. Then he sent me to culinary school.” Rian set the last dish in the drying rack. “We promised our ma we'd stick together. And we have for the most part. The restaurant was actually Cathal's idea after he went to an Irish pub in college and declared it to be shit.”

Selena laughed along with Rian. It felt like a family. Her own had been so hit-and-miss her entire life. Her dad was gone. Her mom ran from boyfriend to boyfriend. The solidarity of them made her miss something she never knew existed outside television. But the O'Keeley's had accepted her readily.

“It's almost eleven,” Cathal announced as he set his empty whiskey glass in the sink. “Good thing the restaurant won't open until one o'clock tomorrow. We all get a bit of a sleep-in. I'm gonna head home before the weather turns fierce.” He put his arm around Selena's shoulders. “Come with me, darling, and I'll have Rian take you home.” He kissed her temple. “I think I will officially adopt you. It's nice to have a woman in the mix.”

She leaned into him. “It's nice to be part of a mix. I don't want you to go out of your way, though. I can call Katie.” That was a horrible lie. She planned to stay with Brogan. If she didn't chicken out.

“Don't call her to come to get you. I can take you home.” Rian picked up his keys from the counter. “If your apartment is where I think it is, you're on my way home.”

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