“I’m afraid I can’t make it today. I’ve got plans.”
“Oh yeah? What’s going on? Got a hot date?”
“Well… Yeah. I do.”
“On a Thursday afternoon?”
She laughed. “Yep. I’m a rebel that way. I’d just left my place when you called. I’m walking to meet the guy now.”
Padraig wasn’t sure how to respond. In all the time he’d known Emmy, she’d never gone out on a date.
“That’s great,” he said lamely, when it was obvious she was waiting for him to say something.
“It’s a first date. We’re just meeting for coffee at Layla’s shop.”
“How did you meet him? Do I know him?”
“I doubt it. We met online.”
“Online?”
“I signed up for one of those online dating apps.”
Padraig really didn’t know how to react to that. “Oh. Okay.”
“I hate to cut this short, but I’m running a little late. I’ll call you tomorrow and maybe we can do the pub tour then? I’m dying to see it, especially my spot.”
“Sure. We’ll do it tomorrow.”
They said their goodbyes and hung up.
“Who was that?”
Padraig turned at the sound of Uncle Ewan’s voice. “Emmy.”
“How’s she doing?”
“Good. She’s doing good.”
Ewan sighed. “I’ll be damn glad when we get this place up and running again. It’s hard not seeing everyone on a regular basis.”
Padraig had heard that same complaint from pretty much every single member of his family since the fire. The Collins clan was a tight-knit group, most members always managing to stop by the pub two or three times a week to catch up on all the gossip. Without the pub, they’d been separated, sequestered in their own homes, something none of his nosy relatives were happy about.
“Why don’t you invite her over?” Ewan gestured toward the bar. “Her seat is ready for her.”
“I did,” Padraig said. “She’s got plans today. A date.”
Ewan’s eyebrows rose, mirroring the same astonishment Padraig felt when she’d announced that to him. “A date? With who? Do we know the guy?”
“She met him online. One of those dating apps,” Padraig said, aware of the distinct grumble in his voice.
“Online dating?” Ewan said, not bothering to hide his disgust either. “Where’s she meeting this guy? Somewhere public, I hope.”
If there was one thing all the men in the Collins family had in common, it was their overprotectiveness when it came to the women in their lives.
“They’re meeting for coffee at Layla’s shop,” Padraig replied.
“Well, that’s good, I guess. Layla will keep an eye on her, and Finn and Fergus work right across the street. We can get them there quick if need be.” Leave it to Ewan to pre-plan in case of attack.
Padraig felt his uncle studying his face when he didn’t reply. If he hadn’t been so blindsided by Emmy announcing she had a date, he might have managed to school his features.
As it was…
“You okay with her dating?” Ewan asked.
Padraig nodded, but it took him a few seconds to get his head bobbing. Those seconds were not missed by Ewan.
“You sure?” he stressed.
“I’m sure,” Padraig said, hoping if he said the words out loud, he’d convince himself.
Ewan stared at him hard for a few moments more, then nodded. “Okay. Your dad just texted. He’s on his way here now. When he arrives, how about we all sit down and start mapping out our next steps? I’d love to do a soft opening for family and friends next Friday.”
“Sounds good.”
An hour later, Padraig leaned against the counter, still waiting for the family powwow. His dad had arrived the same time as Joe Moretti, who’d warned them the big-screen TVs were on their way. The three of them had spent the past hour discussing whether or not to hang them in the same places as before or take advantage of this opportunity to put them in better locations. Now that the Morettis were in the physical process of putting them up, he, Dad, Keira, and Ewan could sit down to plan the reopening.
Aunt Keira walked up to him. “Ewan just got a call from the vendor who’s printing the menus. He said once he’s done, we can finally have our meeting. It feels like every time we cross one thing off our to-do list, another twenty-five things pop up on it.”
“Yeah. It’s been a lot,” he agreed.
“Regardless, we’re so close now, I can taste it,” she said excitedly.
“We are.” Padraig grinned, then turned at the sound of a knock on the front window.
He hurried to unlock the door when he saw Emmy waving at him through the large plate glass. He opened the door and his arms at the same time, chuckling when she stepped into them, giving him a huge hug.
“I missed you so much! You’re not allowed to go away for that long again,” she declared. “It sucked.”
He tightened his grip when she started to let go, refusing to give her up just yet. He’d missed her as well.
And…she smelled good. Like apples and sunshine and summer.
When he finally released her, she gave him a curious look—just a brief one—before she glanced over his shoulder, her eyes widening. “Oh! Oh, Paddy. The pub…it’s back.”
She stepped around him, her gaze taking in everything that had taken his breath away when he’d first seen the place again as well.
“It’s incredible,” she gushed, spinning around slowly.
Then he watched as she walked to the mahogany bar, running her hand along it exactly as he had done earlier. She surreptitiously wiped away a tear as she looked at her nameplate.
“I can’t believe how good it all looks,” she whispered.
He walked next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder, feeling the need to touch her again. She looked up at him, that same questioning look in her eyes. Hugs were typically few and far between for them. Well, at least the ones initiated by him. Emmy was actually a big hugger and toucher, often bumping him with her shoulder or placing her hand on his arm as she told a story or laughed.
“I thought you had a date,” he said.
She sighed heavily. “I did. It’s already over.”
Padraig looked at the time on his phone. “That was kind of quick, wasn’t it?”
Emmy shrugged. “I think it was over about thirty seconds after it started. I’d messaged with the guy quite a few times, and he seemed really nice.”
“So what happened?”
“I don’t know. It sort of felt like he took one look at me and…” She swallowed heavily, clearly uncomfortable as she added the last part. “Found me lacking.”
Padraig scowled. “That’s not possible. You’re gorgeous.”
She laughed softly, rolling her eyes in a way that proved she was dismissing his compliment. “You have to say that. You’re my best friend.”
“I’m saying it because it’s true.”
He wasn’t sure he’d managed to convince her, but he couldn’t call her out for it when she said, “Thanks.”