Page 17 of Tee’d Up For Trouble

Paddy told me that O’Farrell, though born and raised in Ballybeg, moved to Cork with his family when his father and uncle started their real estate development company.

Cillian’s smirk froze for half a second, then he laughed again, though this time it sounded forced. “Touchy, aren’t we? You sound like Dee.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” I quipped and rose. “Now, I do believe you’ve worn out your welcome.”

“There never was one,” Dee retorted.

The bar fell silent for a moment, the regulars staring at me like I’d just punched someone, but then Ronan let out a low whistle. “Feckin’ hell. I think I like you, Yank.”

Seamus, one of the older men sitting nearby, raised his pint in a toast. “Here’s to lads who say what needs saying.”

“Aye! Amen to that,” agreed Liam.

Cillian’s smile was tight now. “Well,” he said, his voice smooth but laced with tension. “It’s good to know where you stand.”

“Yeah. It is.”

As Cillian and his fiancée flounced out of the pub, I worried that they’d try to use my presence in Ballybeg to advance their resort nonsense—which would bring the wrong kind of people to the village. I didn’t know much about this development bullshit, but I’d ask Brian to do some research so I could find out who Cillian was in business with. I knew most of the players in the industry—maybe I could help in some way.

After a few minutes, the pub settled. Ronan returned to the kitchen, and the other patrons went to their drinks and conversations.

Dee pulled out a bottle from below the bar counter, poured me a glass of whiskey, and slid it in front of me.

“Is that from your stash?” I asked.

“Maybe,” she mused. “Since you’re making yourself useful, I thought you deserved some of the good stuff.”

“I’m honored that you’re letting me intoyourstash.”

She flushed. “Oh, don’t make a whole thing about it, now.”

Now that she’d let me have her good whiskey, I wondered what else I could convince her to let me have. Yeah, I was regressing into a horny teenager.

CHAPTER6

Dee

The bench outside the pub had seen its fair share of conversations—some sober, most not. It was a little wobbly, the wood warped from years of rain and use, but it was where Maggie and I used to sit after we closed the pub, and now Ronan and I did. He with his cigarette and me with my nightcap, sharing a moment before we each went our separate ways.

Tonight was no different, except it felt like the whole village was still buzzing from the scene Jax had caused when he kicked Cillian and Aoife out.

I couldn’t lie—it had been satisfying, watching him tell them to take their entitled arses out of The Banshee’s Rest. He’d done it without breaking a sweat. And for more than a fleeting moment there, as everyone in the pub clapped and cheered, I felt my heart flutter like it never had before, not even with Cillian. See,thatwas different. We’d known each other forever. Jax, I barely knew, and yet there was this attraction. Oh, he flirted alright, but that could just be who he was.

Ireallyneeded to order that new vibrator.

“He’s not so bad, you know.” Ronan took a puff of his cigarette.

“Who?” I swirled the whiskey in my glass.I knew who!

“The Yank.” Ronan blew out a plume of smoke. “Cillian was beggin’ to be thrown out. Someone needed to do it. Jax just beat us to it.”

“Are we becoming a Jax fan?” I teased.

“Aye…he’s growin’ on me.”

“Like mold?”

Ronan laughed. “Jesus, Dee.”

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