A Kiss, A Dance & A Diamond. Helen Lacey

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       Chapter Three

      Kieran awoke with a crick in his neck, an aching back and two sets of curious eyes staring at him.

      Marco and Johnny were both sitting on the opposite sofa clearly waiting for him to wake up. He grimaced when he spotted a ridiculously pink blanket draped over his legs and quickly swung his feet to the floor. He ran a weary hand through his hair and glanced at the clock on the wall. Seven fifty. He’d been asleep for over nine hours. And on Nicola’s couch, no less!

      “Did you sleep over?” Marco asked, eyes wide.

      “Looks like it,” he replied and stretched out his back.

      “To make sure I was okay?”

      “Of course,” he fibbed and rubbed a hand over his face. “How are you feeling, champ?”

      Marco nodded. “Okay, I guess. Aunt Nicola said I don’t have to go to school today. She said I could go to JoJo’s with her. But Johnny has to go to school.”

      The older boy scowled. “At least I’ve got friends at school.”

      “Didn’t I specifically tell you boys not to disturb Kieran this morning?”

      They all looked toward the door. Nicola stood at the threshold, dressed in a knee-length black skirt, tucked-in white blouse and black heels. Her hair was pulled back, and she wore gold loop earrings. She held a mug in one hand, and the other hand was perched on her hip. She looked smoking hot and, as awareness curdled in his blood, Kieran tried not to stare at her—but failed.

      “Breakfast is on the table,” she said to the boys. “Scoot. And make sure you put the dishes in the sink when you are done.”

      The kids took off as though their heels were on fire, and Nicola ruffled their hair as they passed. Then, she walked into the living room and passed Kieran the mug she carried.

      “Thanks,” he said and inhaled the heady coffee aroma and tried not to stare at her legs. “And sorry I crashed.”

      She shrugged one shoulder. “Sorry I made you come here last night after pulling a double shift. I think I was a little crazy with worry and didn’t think about anything else.”

      “Once I sat down on this cushy couch last night the fatigue hit me.” He drank some coffee and grinned slightly. “Well, at least you have a comfy couch. Better than the ones that are usually in the doctors’ lounges at hospitals.”

      Her lips curved. “Would you like breakfast? I have oatmeal on the stove.”

      Kieran grimaced. “No thanks.”

      She laughed softly. “Toast, then?”

      Kieran got to his feet and straightened his jacket, figuring he must look a mess in his crumpled clothes and with five-day whisker growth. “I’m good. I need to head home to shower and change. And the patient seems chipper this morning,” he said, drinking the rest of the coffee and then placing the mug on one of the lamp tables. “He said you’re letting him stay home today, which is probably a good idea.”

      She nodded. “He can hang out at the restaurant with me.”

      “Didn’t you say you have a large tourist group coming in today that you have to cater for? Won’t he be in the way?”

      Her jaw tightened. “It’s too late to call a sitter. There’s a lady down the street who regularly watches the boys for me, but she’s not available today.”

      Kieran nodded, thinking it wasn’t any of his business, pulled his keys from his pocket and looked at her. “Okay...well, thanks for the couch and the coffee.”

      “Thank you for coming over last night and helping me with Marco.”

      He walked past her, picking up the fragrance of her perfume, and the scent quickly hitched up his awareness a notch or two. He stopped when he reached the door and turned back to face her. Her eyes looked huge in her face, and he was overwhelmed with the sudden need to stare at her some more. She was biting her bottom lip, which she also did when she was nervous, and he wondered if she’d picked up on the weird energy that was now in the room. She was close, barely a foot away from him. Desire snaked up his spine and simmered in his blood, and he swallowed hard, thinking that he hadn’t felt anything so intense for a long time.

      He cleared his throat and spoke. “You know, Marco could hang out with me today. I have the next couple of days off, and I was planning on heading to the hotel this morning...my mom will be there with Liz’s youngest daughter,” he said, then explained how his mother looked after Tina for several hours once a week as a way to spend time with her granddaughter. “My mom loves kids. And I could drop him back at JoJo’s this afternoon, once you’ve finished with the tourists.”

      She frowned. “I couldn’t possibly impose on you.”

      “You wouldn’t be,” he assured her. “Marco is a great kid. Give me half an hour to get home and change, and then I’ll come back.”

      He had no idea why, but he wanted to help her out. But she didn’t look convinced. She looked like it was the last thing she wanted or needed. “I can look after my nephews by myself.”

      “I wasn’t implying that you—”

      “He’ll come to work with me. Goodbye, Kieran. Thanks again.”

      He was being dismissed. So he left and headed home. He checked his cell on the way out, finding a message from his brother, reminding him that he’d promised to stop by the hotel on his way home from work the night before—a fact Kieran had quickly forgotten once he’d received Nicola’s call for help. When he got back to his apartment, he showered, changed into jeans, a polo shirt and jacket and then drove into town. Ten minutes later, he was swinging into one the reserved spaces in the hotel parking lot.

      O’Sullivan’s Hotel was the best in the county. Thirty rooms, two restaurants, conference rooms and a ballroom for large functions, it had a reputation for its style, ambience and service. And his brother ran the place better than their father ever had. Liam was a hard-nosed and judgmental ass, but Kieran loved his brother dearly. As he did Sean. He was even mellowing toward Jonah the more time he spent with the man. It was hard at first, knowing his father had cheated on СКАЧАТЬ