Was she for real? This conversation might be the best one Sean ever had. ‘Not tonight, no. Kilt equals no underwear. It’s the rules. You should know that, being Scottish.’
‘Just checking for my records. You should put a bucket list in your underwear – when you’re wearing some. It will remind you never to let go of your dreams.’
‘Hmm, okay. Thanks for the advice.’
‘You’re welcome.’
For a moment, they danced without talking. Sean loved the way this rocket of a woman felt in his arms. The way her smaller frame fit into his, her head flush with his upper chest.
He would admit, at least to himself, that he needed something like this. A woman to dance with. To hold. Over the past few years, he’d watched three of his brothers find the love of their life: Cal with Bea, Jamie with his fiancée, Alicia, and Niall reunited with his childhood sweetheart, Carli. Sean believed it would happen for him, although living and working in the small Scottish village of Kinshore, he had to wonder how. There was nobody there he could see being ‘the one’. He’d considered and re-considered them all. The love of his life was not in Kinshore.
But could it be that she was right here, on this dance floorin New York City?
Had he met his match?
Steady on there, Seany. You might be getting ahead of yourself.
But that was what Sean did. That was his MO. He got ahead of himself, always had done. He was not a man for measure. Sure, he was good at providing it for other people’s problems. Giving a good listening ear to serious issues and offering subjectivity. But with his own decisions, Sean went ahead and made them. And something told him this woman did the same.
‘You’re thinking about my bucket list, aren’t you?’ Her voice drifted up to him like syrup spun round a spoon, the soft contours of her face glowing.
‘It’s one of the things I’m thinking about,’ he admitted.
‘I can tell you about it, if you like.’
Ordinarily, if someone offered to share the contents of their bucket list with Sean, he’d suddenly realise he’d left the oven on, or the surf was too good to miss, but this was different. Hell yeah, he wanted to see what was on her list.
‘Is swimming with dolphins on it? Visiting the Taj Mahal?’
She laughed. ‘Nope. But sleeping with a man in a kilt is. All my non-Scottish friends think it’s outrageous that I’ve never done that.’
This got Sean’s attention. ‘Right.’ He lowered her arm but not her hand. ‘Let’s get a drink and sit down.’
It was strange to think that, less than two hours ago, he was innocently sitting at this table listening to his brother Jamie give a best man speech. It was brilliant, full of laughs – wry observations and funny anecdotes about family life. When there were seven siblings, there would always be stories, and the Butler family had plenty of those.
And now here was a new chapter. Was it daft to thinklike that? He’d known this woman less than ten minutes, but in that time, he’d been more stimulated – physically and mentally – than in any previous relationship. The plates of the planet were shifting.
Sean’s planet at least.
‘Drink?’ He grabbed a champagne flute from a server and placed it in front of Cherry.
‘Thank you. So this is your family?’ She surveyed the large ballroom, apparently awestruck.
‘Aye, not all of them.’ There were at least one hundred people in the room. ‘Bea is American, so most of these folk are her friends and family. And there’s a fair few oldies back in Kinshore who couldn’t make the journey. We’ll have a wee Scottish shindig for them.’
‘Kinshore? Where’s that?’
‘Kintyre. Wee village, about 2000 folk. Near Campbeltown.’
‘Ah, the home of Butler’s Whisky.’
‘Aye, that’s us. My dad ran the company until he passed away recently.’
‘Oh, wow. I’m sorry to hear about his passing. Butler’s is great stuff, and I’d have loved to tell him.’
‘Thank you. He’d have loved to hear that. Now, tell me about your hopes and dreams.’ Sean nodded to the piece of paper still wedged between Cherry’s cleavage and her dress.
‘Ah yes, those.’ She retrieved and unfolded it. ‘Here we go. Oh, and if you can help me achieve any of these, let me know.’
