Kate Hoffmann - Brian

"Sorry," Brian murmured. "I wish I had something I could throw your way."

Sean held up his hand. "I'm going to be fine. Liam's making money now. He's paying the rent at our place-for once. He and Ellie are moving out at the end of the summer. I'll be all right until then."

"How is that, living with them both?"

Sean shrugged. "She likes to clean. She's got a thing about the toilet seat. And I really wish she wouldn't hang her… underthings all over the bathroom."

"Yeah, I suppose that is a little distracting," he murmured, his mind flashing an image of Lily Gallagher's lingerie, that strapless number made of black lace and the matching panties. He drew a sharp breath and pushed the image out of his head. He'd spent the entire day thinking about Lily and it was time he quit! Yes, she was beautiful and intriguing and the night they'd spent together had been unforgettable, but he knew better than to make it into something more than it was.

"She likes to cook," Sean continued. "There are always leftovers in the fridge." He shrugged and took another sip of his Guinness. "Between eating at the pub and eating at home, I've been saving a lot of money on food."

Brian nodded. He stared down the length of the bar and caught the glances sent their way by a pair of curvaceous blondes. One of them gave him a little wave. Under any other circumstances, Brian might have waved back. But after his experience with Lily, he'd decided to take a little break from the opposite sex.

Meeting Lily Gallagher had thrown his brain completely out of whack. He'd never once lost control the way he had with her. Sure, he'd seduced a fair number of women, even had a few one-night stands, but this had been different. Instead of feeling sated the next morning, he felt strangely uneasy, as if he'd done something… wrong.

But what was it? She'd wanted it as much as he had, maybe even more. And he certainly hadn't forced the issue. He'd given her every opportunity to call a stop to their headlong rush into intimacy.

God, she was beautiful. And that body, it seemed to be made for his touch. He glanced at the girls at the end of the bar. Funny how a few nights ago he might have found them attractive. Now they were just too… much. Their lipstick was too dark and their hair too bleached, their clothes too tight and their breasts too big to be real.

Lily had been a beauty who hadn't required any improvements. Her hair, her skin, her slender form. Each element had been nearly perfect in his eyes. An image of her flashed in his head, her dress billowing around them both, her eyes closed at the moment of her release. Brian groaned softly, then rubbed his forehead. "Lily," he murmured.

"What?" Sean asked.

Brian gave his brother a sideways glance. "What?"

"You said 'Lily,'" Sean replied. "Lily what?"

"It's not a Lily what. It's a Lily who. She's a woman I met last night. At this fund-raiser at the Copley."

"Hmm," Sean said.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing."

"Then just shut up!"

"Don't get pissed at me," Sean said. "I was just making conversation."

"Well, don't," Brian muttered. Silence descended on them again, both of them staring into their drinks. Then Brian cursed softly.

"Was she pretty?" Sean asked.

Brian nodded. "Yeah. And funny and smart and incredibly sexy. She was wearing this gold dress that made her look… wow. You know, I think she actually took my breath away. Did that ever happen to you?"

"Sounds like you have it bad."

"I spent one night with her."

"Tell me you didn't rescue her from some life-threatening situation," Sean said. "Or you're in big trouble."

Brian chuckled. "Naw, I didn't res-" He paused, his stomach sinking. "Oh, hell." He had rescued her, not from any danger, but from her boring companion! In fact, she'd even thanked him for the favor and he hadn't realized the importance of her words until now. "Yeah, I guess I did."

"Well, that's it then. Jaysus, Brian, haven't you been paying attention. Conor, Dylan, Brendan and Liam. Even Keely. It's a curse, you know. No one is immune. Not even you."

"Or you," Brian countered.

"Oh, no? I'm not crying in my club soda after a one-night stand."

"She wasn't just a one-night stand," Brian snapped.

"Did you hook up?"

"Yeah."

"Did you get her phone number? Did you make a date to see her? Are you planning to call?"

"No."

"Then it was a one-night stand."

"That makes it sound so… well, that's not what it was like. It was different. Besides, if I wanted to find her again, I could."

"Do you know where she lives?"

"No."

"You don't have her phone number. Did she tell you where she works?"

"No, but I have her name. Lily Gallagher."

"You sure that's her real name?"

"Stop talking like a P.I. If I wanted to find her, I could." In truth, Brian had been wondering about that same thing since the moment she'd dropped him off in front of the hotel. He could call the event organizers and get her address off the invitation list. He could call the limo company and find out who hired the car. Hell, he could look in the Chicago phonebook under Gallagher, if he really wanted to find her. "I don't believe in the curse," he finally said.

"Maybe you just had a close call," Sean said. "Be more careful next time. You just can't trust women."

Brian knew that Sean's feelings weren't entirely based on his own dating experiences. His distrust went back a lot further, back to their mother and her desertion of them when he and Sean were only three years old. Brian had no memories of Fiona Quinn when he was a child. They'd been told she'd left the family, then died in a car accident, a story fabricated by their bitter father. And now that Fiona Quinn was back in their lives, Brian had forgiven her past mistakes. Only Sean seemed to be carrying an old grudge.

"Ma is staying with Keely and Rafe," Brian said. "Keely called this morning and wants us all to come for a picnic on the Fourth of July. Now that she's getting her business moved up here, Fiona is thinking about moving, too. I think Keely wants to convince her that we all want her here. Are you going?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm busy. I'm going to be working on a case-out of town."

"What is your problem with her? You're an adult, not some pissed off little kid. She and Da had a tough time, they both made mistakes. If Da can forgive her, you should."

"I have my reasons," Sean said.

"What reasons?"

He shook his head, then reached for his Guinness and took a sip.

Brian cursed softly. "I swear, you are the most stubborn, selfish son of a bitch I've ever known."

"She cheated," Sean muttered.

"What?"

Sean kept his voice low. "Fiona. She was cheating on Da."

"How do you know that?"

"One night after the Mighty Quinn put into port, Conor sent me down to the pub to drag Da home. He was drunk. He was talking to some of his pals and he told them that he'd caught Fiona with another man. He said he'd kicked her out of the house and that he didn't expect her back. He didn't know I was there, that I'd heard."

"Geez, Sean, why didn't you say something?"

"What was I supposed to say? I never knew her. And the way Con and Dylan and Bren talked about her, she was like the goddamn queen of virtue and goodness and I believed that. I kept hoping she'd come home."

"What else did Da say?"

"I don't remember much of it. He was really drunk. Most of what he said didn't make sense." Sean sighed. "All those Mighty Quinn stories. Hell, I don't blame him. Turning over any control to a woman is dangerous."

"You've got to talk to Ma about this."

"Why? So she can make some excuse? She was supposed to love us. She was supposed to be faithful to Da. That's what marriage is all about. Till death do us part."