Sherryl Woods - The Summer Garden

Tonight he managed to keep his eyes open long enough to add a line pleading with her for understanding. “I want to tell you about all of this one of these days, but right now I hardly have two minutes to myself all day long. Hopefully, this will be enough to let you know that I’m thinking about you. Be patient with me. Luke.”

He’d barely hit the send button and signed off when his cell phone rang. Without even looking at the caller ID, he knew it was Kristen. She’d grown even more impatient with him lately than Moira had. He debated letting the call go to voice mail, but knew it would only buy him one evening of peace. She’d call again tomorrow and the day after that. She might not be the love of his life, but she didn’t deserve to be ignored any more than Moira did.

“Hey, Kristen,” he said, injecting a note of forced cheer into his voice. “How are you?”

“Lonely,” she said at once. “What are you doing?”

“I just got home and I’m about to fall into bed,” he told her.

“Why not come to my place and fall into my bed?”

A few months ago, he would have eagerly taken her up on the offer. Right after he’d finished college and was at loose ends, their casual, no-strings understanding was exactly what he’d wanted in his life. Kristen had seemingly been content with it as well. He’d only grown dissatisfied after the trip to Ireland when their few days together after the family had left had felt awkward and vaguely unsatisfying, as if he were doing something wrong, rather than something mutually agreed to. That reaction had been magnified because he’d already sensed that he could have real feelings for someone else, for Moira.

Once Kristen had left Dublin and he’d stayed on, spending more and more time with Moira, he’d known that he’d have to end things with Kristen as soon as he returned to Chesapeake Shores. So far, though, he’d done nothing about the situation beyond avoiding her when he could. Yet another bit of cowardly behavior that wasn’t fair to anyone.

“Luke, have you fallen asleep with me on the line?” she asked, a mix of amusement and impatience in her voice.

“Just about, I’m afraid,” he said. “Not tonight, Kristen. I’m wiped out.”

“You’ve been wiped out a lot lately.”

“You know I’ve been totally consumed with turning this pub into a reality. It’s going to be a real crunch to pull it off on time. I’m not going to have a lot of free time for a while.”

“And then?” she asked pointedly.

He sighed. “And then we’ll see, I guess. Look, Kristen, we’ve never been exclusive. I can’t ask you to sit around and wait for my schedule to lighten up. That’s not fair to you.”

“Why do I get the feeling that this brush-off has less to do with your demanding schedule than it does with that woman you met in Ireland, the one everyone but you has mentioned. Moira, is it?”

He closed his eyes. He should have guessed someone in the family would have filled her in. Because of Kristen’s past history with Mack and her blatant attempt to win him back despite his marriage to Susie, none of the O’Briens approved of Luke’s relationship with her. They’d be all too eager to let her know he’d found someone else and dent what they considered to be her massively self-absorbed ego.

“It’s not really about Moira or anyone else,” he insisted, trying to cushion this with a half truth. “It’s about my priorities right now. Opening this pub is my first chance to prove myself. I have to stay focused and get this right. There’s no time for distractions.”

“I suppose I should be flattered that a few hours in my bed would be too great a distraction for you,” she commented wryly. “Okay, I get it, but I’ll keep in touch, Luke. Eventually, you’ll realize what you’re sacrificing and want me back.”

He realized that she had the confidence to believe every word she was saying. “Take care of yourself,” he said, rather than arguing with her.

“See you soon,” she replied, clearly undaunted.

Yes, he thought wearily, she probably would. Kristen was not the sort of woman to take rejection seriously, much less accept that it was irreversible. More’s the pity.

3

“Have I made a mistake in inviting Moira to come along?” Dillon asked Nell when he called to let her know about his change of plans.

Nell laughed. “Absolutely not. I think it’s delightfully devious. I think I’ll keep it to myself so Luke is caught completely by surprise.”

Dillon hesitated, then asked worriedly, “You don’t think he’s put her out of his head, do you? I don’t want her to get there and be humiliated.”

“I doubt that’s likely,” Nell reassured him, totally understanding his concern for his granddaughter’s feelings. “I brought up her name just the other day and, though he said he had no time for a serious relationship right now, my impression is that he’s still quite taken with her. He seems to regret the timing, but not his feelings for her. She made quite an impression from the moment he set eyes on her. We both saw that. I’m sure we can trust what we observed.”

“And that other woman—the one who visited him here in Dublin right after the rest of the family left?”

“Kristen Lewis,” she said, unable to keep the disdain out of her voice. That was one who’d cause nothing but trouble. Nell believed that her grandson was far smarter than that. “Let’s just say that Moira is far better suited for Luke than Kristen could ever be. There’s something undeniably special between them. Your granddaughter presents a challenge, just the kind Luke needs, whether he knows it or not. She won’t be easy.”

Dillon chuckled. “No, our Moira definitely won’t be easy. Her mother and I could give written testimonials to that.” He fell silent for a moment, then said, “You mentioned timing, Nell. Do you think the timing is right for this visit, for us to be pushing them together? Luke was a bit unsettled about his future when he was here. I know he has plans for a pub now, but is it only a pipe dream?”

“Oh, no, as I’ve told you in my letters, he’s perfectly serious about it,” Nell replied. “All of that wandering that he and Moira did—it had a purpose, after all. He’s even been coming over here every morning to learn how to cook some of the traditional Irish dishes.”

She laughed, thinking about how hard Luke had struggled to pay attention to careful measurements. He didn’t have the temperament or patience for it, but, God bless him, he was trying. “It’s taken more than one attempt,” she admitted, “but he mastered Irish stew yesterday.”

Dillon chuckled. “Does he have an aptitude for cooking?”

Nell sighed. “Let’s just say I expect to spend more than a few of my days over there supervising unless he breaks down and hires an experienced cook, which would be my recommendation.”

“Perhaps Moira can pitch in and help. I’ve discovered that she’s not bad in the kitchen when she takes the time to cook a meal.”

“That would definitely be a blessing,” Nell agreed. “Do you think she’d be willing?”

“I think she’ll do anything to spend time with Luke.” He hesitated. “Nell, I truly hope I’m not setting her up to have her heart broken.”

“That’s not up to either of us,” Nell responded decisively. “We’re just getting them to the playing field. They’ll decide how the game goes. Luke’s a good man, Dillon.”

“I know that. Even when the two of them were wandering about the countryside, I knew she was in safe hands.”

Nell laughed delightedly. “Oh, I can’t wait for you both to get here and to see how this plays out. For too many years, Mick’s gotten all the credit in the family for matchmaking. I want to prove that I’m just as clever at it.”