“You should come. Or rather, you should stay now until then.” He puts the empty glass in the sink then turns to me.
“Stay for your family dinner?” I don’t know if I’m ready for that. We just made things official last night. Would that be moving too quickly? “I don’t know.”
“Delaney would love to have you stay.” He wet his bottom lip. “I’d love to have you here, but you already know that.”
“I better not,” I tell him. He raises an eyebrow but doesn’t speak. “I still have a bunch of work to do for tomorrow.”
“Yes, but work will always be there, and you have to eat.”
“True, but I have the feeling that if I stay, it’ll be for a lot longer than just to eat. And you can’t stand there and tell me I’m wrong.”
The cocky grin returns on his face again. “You’re not wrong.”
“So I’d better not tempt it.”
“Is it at least fun work?” he asks.
I laugh louder than is necessary for the room, but I can’t help it. Most of my work is pretty boring to people. It’s a lot of numbers and spreadsheets and accounting. Not everyone finds that exhilarating, but I do.
It isn’t the numbers and the figures that excite me, though. It’s seeing the charity that I run making a difference in the lives of others. It’s affecting change in the world and being responsible for some good.
That’s a feeling that I can’t replace, even if it means working with a lot of math sometimes and cursing whoever created the accounting programs.
It’s all worth it. At the end of the day, I know I’m making a difference.
CHAPTERSIXTEEN
KEENAN
Delilah ended up going back to her flat for a few hours while I prepared dinner. I could’ve had the staff make something for tonight, but they’ve done so much lately. It’s still a struggle for me sometimes, adapting to this new life. Like I told Delilah earlier today, I’ve been the primary provider for my family, so it means I did a majority of the work.
I told the kitchen staff they could have off for the weekend because of the event. They work hard, and I’m sure they need the break. While I might be in a good position now, I’m never going to forget where I came from. From time to time I’ll tell the kitchen staff to take off for a weekend, as I will to the cleaners. The only ones who will rarely ever get a break are the members of our security team. They’re constantly shadowing one of us, if not all of us.
I’ve prepared an array of food for this evening. The menu is vast and includes lamb chops, soda bread, carrots, colcannon potatoes, lemon-parsley baked cod, chocolate Guinness cake, and a salmon cheese spread. We’ll enjoy the cheese spread before dinner’s ready while the lamb chops finish up in the oven.
Delaney came down a bit ago so I could head upstairs and change into something a bit more formal. I don’t want to be stuffy, though I’ve noticed there’s a weight that comes with our name now. We’re the Gallaghers, cousins to the Mackenzies. People are starting to recognize our name, and because of it, I think my confidence is boosting up a bit. I decide to put on a deep red dress shirt and opt not to wear a tie. I’ll keep the first couple buttons open to give a bit of a casual vibe. I choose a plain pair of black trousers and my shoes are black Oxfords. After freshening up, I head back down the stairwell as the doorbell rings.
One of the members of our staff goes up to see who it is, but they come to a halt as I wave my hand in dismissal. I’m betting it’s Delilah, but as I pull the door open, I don’t recognize the blonde woman staring back at me.
I clear my throat. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?”
“No, you don’t, but he does,” she snickers and nods to my brother, Bran. The last I saw of him, he’d just stormed out of the house. Since then, he’s been AWOL. Most brothers would’ve been concerned, but not me. Bran’s always been the one who’s had the most attitude in our family, besides Keeva, of course.
“We’re having family dinner tonight, aren’t we?” he asks, acting as if there’s not a bit of tension.
“We are,” I state, looking between him and his . . . friend.
“This is Orla. Orla, this is my older brother, Keenan.”
“It’s a pleasure,” Orla comments with a smile, and I open the door wider for them. Orla proceeds to walk in, and Bran comes up beside her, wrapping an arm around her hip. Keeva’s coming in from the living area and eyes up Bran and Orla.
Keeva rushes up to my side and whispers lowly, “Do you know who she is?”
I turn my head to look at her. “I was hoping you would.”
“She looks familiar, but I can’t place her,yet,” Keeva says, making her sass as clear as ever.
“Shite, I thought she was someone from school,” I admit as we walk toward the chef’s kitchen where Delaney’s watching over everything.
