Sherryl Woods - An O'brien Family Christmas

Jess grinned. “Quite a change from my teenage screwups, huh? And that brings me to one of the things I wanted to discuss with you.”

“Uh-oh, here it comes,” Laila murmured, regarding her accusingly. “I knew this wasn’t just some spur-of-the-moment visit.”

“Okay, I’ll admit it. I am on a mission,” Jess confessed. “Two, as a matter of fact. One from Abby and me, and one from Susie. Neither one has a thing to do with Matthew, I promise.”

Laila wasn’t entirely placated. They were all O’Briens, after all, a family that was notoriously tight-knit. These days, she didn’t trust a single one of them, not even her sister-in-law Abby, much less the clever friend seated across from her with the cat-that-swallowed-the-canary glint in her eyes. As for Susie, she was Matthew’s sister, so her motives were suspect on more levels than Laila could possibly count.

“Okay, try me,” she said grudgingly. “What do you and Abby want? And why didn’t Abby call me herself?”

“She did. Several times, in fact. Apparently you haven’t been returning her calls, or your brother’s, or those of anyone else with the name Riley. Or O’Brien, come to think of it. Connie says she hasn’t spoken to you in ages, and even though I’m a Lincoln now, you’ve pretty much been ignoring me, as well.” She gave Laila a chiding look. “Thus the personal visit.”

“I’ve been busy,” Laila claimed defensively.

“Yeah, right,” Jess replied, clearly not buying it. She waved off the subject. “We’ll leave a discussion of the way you’ve been neglecting your friends for another time. This morning I want to talk to you about taking on the accounting duties at the inn.”

Laila regarded her with deepening suspicion. Jess had started The Inn at Eagle Point, gotten herself into financial hot water even before the doors opened, and needed her older sister to bail her out. Abby, the family’s financial whiz, had maintained a fierce oversight of the inn’s accounting procedures and expenditures ever since. She’d put her own hand-chosen man in charge of keeping tabs on things. Jess had chafed at the strict oversight, but even she knew it had been a necessity.

“What happened to the accountant Abby brought on board?” Laila asked.

“He was okay, but it was time for a change,” Jess responded blithely. “We need someone full-time, or close to full-time, anyway. Abby agrees.”

Laila stiffened. “So, this change was your idea? Jess, I don’t need your charity. I have clients.”

“How many?” Jess asked bluntly.

“Enough.”

“I doubt it. Something tells me your dispute with your father over Matthew affected more than your position at the bank. Your old clients have been slow to return, thanks to all the gossip. Am I right? “

Laila ignored the question. Jess clearly didn’t expect an answer. She thought she had the situation pegged and, sadly, she was right.

Jess shook her head, her expression indignant. “I swear some people in this town are living in the Dark Ages!”

“Exactly as my father predicted,” Laila admitted ruefully.

“For an idiot, he has way too much influence,” Jess countered.

“Well, he was right about one thing,” Laila said. “Apparently nobody trusts their money with someone who displays poor judgment in their personal life.” She waved her hand dismissively. “Look, that’s all water under the bridge. I’ve been networking like crazy the past couple of months. Everything will work out. You don’t need to worry about me or make up jobs for me.”

“But you’re not so overburdened with work that you can’t take on the inn, are you?” Jess persisted. “Tell the truth.” Laila sighed. “No.”

“Then you’re officially hired as of today. You can stay here in this charming space, if you choose to, or you can move into the nice, spacious office I have ready for you at the inn.”

Laila wasn’t quite ready to cave in. “What am I supposed to do, ditch the clients who dared to take a chance on me?”

“Of course not. You can continue handling as many private clients as you’d like to. I have no problem with them coming to the inn to meet with you.” She gave Laila an encouraging grin. “There are windows, Laila. Big windows with a view of the bay. And that huge piece of expensive modern art that hung on your office wall at the bank? The one there’s not even room for in here? There’s a perfect spot for that, too.”

“Now you’re just taunting me,” Laila said, imagining it. Currently that prized picture was gathering dust in a storage locker.

“All you have to do is say yes, and the office is yours, along with the job,” Jess confirmed.

Laila’s pride, which had taken a beating lately, kicked in. She started to refuse, just on principle, then chided herself for allowing emotion to overrule logic. She needed more work, especially if she was to keep herself sane. It had nothing to do with the income. She’d been frugal with her paychecks over the years. She could weather these lean times, at least if she limited her ice cream intake. No, it was too many empty hours weighing on her. She needed to fill them.

Lately she was spending way too much time thinking about Matthew, wondering if she’d made a mistake in cutting him out of her life once and for all. Those were the kinds of weak, mostly sex-driven thoughts that could prove dangerous.

Biting back the desire to refuse, she forced herself to nod, forced a gracious note into her voice. “Thank you.”

Jess grinned at her, clearly understanding how difficult it had been for Laila to acquiesce. “You do know that working with me is no piece of cake, right? You won’t be thanking me a few weeks from now. You’ll be earning every penny of the generous salary Abby thinks we should pay you.”

“I learned how to deal with you years ago, when you were nothing more than an annoying little brat,” Laila countered. “I’ll survive.” Her gaze narrowed. “Maybe before I give you a final answer, though, you should tell me about Susie’s mission.”

“No big deal,” Jess claimed casually. “One thing has nothing to do with the other. She just wants to be sure you’re coming to Ireland with us for Christmas.”

When Laila opened her mouth to say such a trip was impossible, Jess held up her hand. “Before you refuse, think about this. Abby, Trace and your nieces will be going. All of your friends will be there—me, Susie, Connie, Shanna, Bree and Heather. If you refuse to come, you’ll be spending the holidays back here all alone with only your parents for company. Do you really want to endure an entire holiday season of their lectures about your many recent mistakes? “

Laila could envision the dreary situation Jess was describing all too clearly. She’d thought about it a hundred times since learning of the O’Briens’ plan to take their grandmother back to Ireland for Christmas.

Laila had always dreamed of visiting Ireland. Anyone living around the O’Briens had heard enough tales about Dublin and the countryside to make it sound idyllic. She loved the O’Briens—one of them a little too much, as a matter of fact. The temptation to say yes was nearly overwhelming, which was why she’d spent the last month studying brochures for holiday cruises and Christmas tours of Savannah and Charleston—anything to avoid giving in and going on a trip that had emotional disaster written all over it.

“I can’t,” she said, proud of herself for choking out the words.

Jess actually seemed a little startled by her flat refusal. “Of course you can.”

“Have you forgotten that the reason I am in this tiny little office rather than my great big impressive one at the bank is going to be in Ireland with the rest of you?”