They didn’t. Bidding her and Lani goodnight, they went into their bedroom and closed the door.
She followed Lani in and pushed the door shut with a sigh of relief. “That was awful. I’m sure they all know.”
“They might, but they might not.” Lani sat on the edge of her bed. “I can’t tell for sure.Ithink you’re acting weird, but then I’m in on it. I’m probably seeing things they don’t notice.”
“Well, everyone can get an uninterrupted night’s sleep for a change, because Thunder’s in the shop so Rance and I won’t be doing the switch.”
“In the shop?” Lani sounded disappointed. Odd. “For how long?”
“Just until tomorrow.”
“That’s good.”
“Good? Why do you care?”
“Because… I hate to admit it, but you two seem to be right for each other. Which is sad because it can’t work out, but at least you’ll have this week to remember.”
“We’ll have more than this week.”
“What?” She sat up straighter.
“He has a new plan, although he didn’t bring it up tonight. He probably wants to speak to Desiree alone, first.”
“What plan?”
She outlined his strategy and included the part about weekend layovers in New Jersey.
Lani looked less than enthusiastic. “I can see why he wants to spend more time here, but trying to keep things going with you… that’s messed up.”
“I’d rather have him a few days a year than not at all.”
“Would you really? And what about the rest of the year? Will you date?”
“I’ll have to see how it goes.” The answer was no and hell no, but she wouldn’t say that to Lani. She couldn’t imagine wanting anyone else.
“Would you be okay with him dating?”
Her stomach churned. “If that’s what he wants.”
“I didn’t ask that. Would you be able to stand it?”
“He wouldn’t date. That’s not like him.”
“Oh, Sara. The whole thing’s a terrible idea. You’ll both be miserable for ninety-eight percent of the time. That’s not a life. You need to set each other free.”
“But how can I? He’ll follow through on his plan. I saw the look in his eye when he came up with the sweat equity idea. Angie will snap up that offer in a heartbeat. And he should do it. Spending short periods of time is a great compromise.”
“Except knowing he’s here will be hell on you. Not only that, but when you do visit, you’ll have to listen to the family talk about him. Even our folks will. If they build a cabin with Angie’s help, Kieran might very well work on it, too.”
Sara groaned and fell back on the bed. “This is a fecking nightmare.”
“Fecking?”
“It’s what they say over there, like we would say effing. I like it.”
“I kinda do, too. You’ve been fascinated by Ireland for a long time, even when we were kids. I always thought you took the job with Adventuring Travel mostly because it would get you to Ireland.”
“That was a big part of it. And next year I’ll get to go. I’ll see Kieran on that trip, too.”
