Page 61 of Dublin Debacle

“If that’s the case, have a pint of Guinness on me at the Temple Bar.”

“Will do,” Jack said.

“Have you got anything else, Lucie?” Ace asked.

“Not yet.” Lucie’s face replaced Ace’s on Jack’s screen. “I’ll keep looking for the identity of the Flamethrower. Not that it will help at this point, since he’s achieved his purpose of stirring up the opposing factions. The rally seems to be the culmination. Good luck.”

“Out here.” Ace ended the call.

Emily slipped her hand through the crook of Jack’s elbow. “Getting reinforcements from your team?”

Jack nodded, pocketed his phone and covered Emily’s hand with his. He liked the feel of Emily standing next to him.

She sighed and leaned her cheek against his arm. “Seems like a drop in the bucket. How can so few stop so many from starting a war?”

“It seems insurmountable, yet we can’t stand by and let one individual manipulate these people into something no one wants.”

“Exactly.” Emily smiled at her father and brother, deep in conversation. “Do you think they’ll get Rory to go along with the plan to confront Cormac Faherty?”

Jack’s lips quirked. “If your father and brother are anything like you, they will convince him to do the right thing. You care about your community, and you want them to live in peace.”

“I hope that caring is enough to stop the insanity.” Emily looked up at him. “And when the rally is behind us, I hope we can see each other again.”

His hand tightened over hers. “I hope so, too. As much as we promised no expectations past the one night, no strings and no promises, I’m not sure I can agree to all that.”

Emily looked up and met his gaze, her lips lifting on the corners. “I’m glad you said that, because I was thinking the same. I’d like you to call me, to share a meal and...” she glanced at her father and brother, “well... you know.”

Jack slipped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. “To be clear,” he said. “If I ask you out, you might say yes?”

She shook her head.

Jack frowned down at her.

Emily’s eyes danced with mischief. “There’s no ‘might’ about it. I absolutely would say yes.”

“Emily O’Brien, will you go out with me?”

She stared up into his eyes. “Yes. I’d like that very much.”

Jack’s heart swelled in such a way that he hadn’t felt since Laura’s death. It scared him, but not as much as it made him feel more alive than ever.

He pressed a kiss to the top of her hair. “What do you say we stop a war and get on with life?”

CHAPTER14

Emily scrubbedthe bar at the Tap & Tankard in an attempt to work through the anxiety building in anticipation of the rally. If they could get in front of the hostilities and stop them from happening, everything would turn out fine. They’d expose the instigator, tempers would chill, they could share a pint and life would go on.

Ifthey could convince people that fighting wasn’t the answer.

Ifthey could convince them that each side had nothing to do with the attacks.

The “ifs” were fogging her brain and making her crazy. Thus, the need to clean and organize. To do anything to keep busy until they left for the rally.

Finn and her father had left soon after their family reunion to find Rory Gallagher and convince him to hold off hostilities until he confronted Cormac Faherty at the rally.

Emily and Jack waited for the Brotherhood team to arrive at the Tap & Tankard since it wasn’t too far from the Customs House. They could walk there within minutes, once they briefed the others.

The pub was eerily empty, too early for the regulars to drop in for their usual pints and whiskeys. Moira was already at work in the kitchen, cooking all the pub favorites. Daphne would run the pub while Emily went with Jack and the others to the rally.

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