Full and lush, with a cupid’s bow that begged to be touched.
Only if that was what she wanted.
“Sorry I don’t remember you.” Bree picked up her drink and took a hearty sip.
“Wouldn’t worry too much about that.” I clinked my mug against hers. “What have you been up to since you wandered off into the wilds of America?”
“Oh, you know. Little this. Little that.” She lifted one shoulder in an adorable shrug.
“That so? Any chance you’d let me in on your most favorite thing to do over there?” I ignored everything around us.
The boys turned on the TV in the back corner, flicking through the channels till they found a game.
The noise level rose, which I didn’t mind too much since it gave me an excuse to lean in closer to Bree.
She tapped cute green nails on the rim of her mug. “Not sure I have a favorite thing. All I really do is work.”
“Well then, what kind of work do you do?” Course I’d heard a good bit about her work through Maeve, but I’d rather hear it from Bree.
A light brightened in her eyes.
It took a few minutes to get her warmed up, but with the right questions, once she started in about her job, she blossomed.
Instead of sitting bunched up over the bar, she leaned one elbow on it and crossed her legs with her heel on the bottom rung of the stool.
I moved around by degrees until her knees nestled between my open thighs. If she noticed, she didn’t care.
She glanced down once, gaze landing exactly where I planned with my open-legged stance, and her throat dipped in a hard swallow. All right then. Definitely noticed.
And interested.
Declan refilled out Guinness, that warning still cold in his eyes.
I ignored that too. Been doing it all my life and didn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. “Not to bring down the mood, but I suppose you’re here for the pub?” I’d waited until she relaxed a bit to ease into trickier conversations.
Bree did that shoulder shrug thing again. Something about it twisted my stomach in a good sort of way.
I wanted to lean over and nip at the soft skin on the side of her neck, then rain kisses down her shoulder until she sighed and let go of all her worries.
Her voice came out soft, the scent of hops and lemon sweetening the air between us. “Nana put a condition on her will. I have three months to give this place a facelift. Whatever that means. If I’m unsuccessful, I get nothing.” She flapped a hand toward the door. “The last time we did any kind of improvement on this place, I was barely old enough to hold a paintbrush steady.”
“That’s one hell of a stipulation.” I rested a hand on her knee. “I’d need another shot if I was you.” I’d seen her toss back the lemon drop as I passed the window. “You’re not driving tonight, are you?”
“Nope.” She popped her lips around the p sound and pointed at the ceiling. “Perks of owning the place. I’ll be living upstairs.”
Excellent. “In that case, I’m getting you properly smashed. You can worry about next steps tomorrow. Tonight, we celebrate.”
A wide smile dimpled her cheeks. “Hell yes. Let’s do it.”
I motioned Declan over and told him what I wanted. He started to shake his head but stopped when I gave him a look. “Come on, Declan. We’ll do it all right and proper. She needs to have one night to let loose.”
He grunted but fixed the shots, passing one to each of us.
“Together.” I lifted my drink and waited for her to do the same. A dozen or so people walked in as we gulped our shots and slammed our glasses on the bar.
Bree giggled, covering her mouth with the back of her hand.
I hooked my finger around hers and pulled her hand to her lap. “Don’t hide it. You’ve a beautiful smile.”
