“No. The last time you introduced me to someone . . .” She looked pointedly at Kevin.
“First, that wasn’t an introduction. You happened to be in the same place. Plus, that’s all the more reason to let me set you up. I owe you.”
“No, thanks. Now go before Jimmy gets cranky.”
Moira walked to her fiancé and said, “Jimmy’s always cranky. It’s part of his charm.”
The couple walked out the door and Kathy went to the kitchen to get another trash bag. On her way back to the living room, she almost crashed into Kevin.
“What are you still doing here?”
“I wanted to talk to you.”
She skirted around him. “So talk.” She picked up more paper plates so her hands had something to do and her eyes had a focus.
“I wanted to make plans to talk to you about the bachelor and bachelorette parties.”
She straightened. “By definition, they’re different parties. What’s there to talk about?”
“I think we should coordinate dates.”
“Why?”
He strode closer and helped clean the mess. “I love my brother, but I also know him. If we don’t plan the parties for the same night, there’s no way Moira will enjoy herself. Jimmy won’t be able to sit at home waiting, knowing Moira is running around the city getting drunk.”
“Oh.” He surprised her by caring about whether Moira had a good time. That was different. Not the usual selfish attitude she’d come to associate with Kevin O’Malley.
Kathy continued to pick up cups, but her focus waned with Kevin standing so near. She despised that he could still affect her.
He shoved more trash into the bag, completely unaffected by her. The story of her life.
“I was thinking we could meet for dinner one day this week to talk about it.”
Kathy yanked the bag and looked at him.
He held up his arms in defense. “You can bring your boyfriend. No funny business.”
“I don’t have a boyfriend,” she said and turned away to clear the coffee table.
“Oh, uh . . . the last time I saw you, you were with a guy, so I thought . . .”
“It didn’t work out.” Ray had turned out to be a bit of a dud. The spark between them, what little of it there was, had fizzled fast.
“Well, then, I don’t have to feel bad about stealing you away for dinner one night.”
She rolled her eyes. Always the player.
Carmen and Norah came into the room.
“The kitchen is back to normal,” Carmen said. “Anything else you need?”
To Kevin, Norah said, “What’re you doing here?”
Kevin turned and said, “I’m trying to convince Kathy that the bachelor and bachelorette parties need to happen simultaneously, or Moira won’t have any peace.”
Tucking her hands into her back pockets, Norah said, “As much as I hate to admit it, Kevin’s right. Jimmy will pop a vein just thinking about how reckless Moira might be.”
“Fine. I get it.” Realizing how snippy she sounded, she took a deep breath. “Sorry. Thank you, guys, for washing everything. I really appreciate it. I can handle the rest.”
“You sure?” Carmen asked as she let her long, black hair down from her ponytail.
“Yeah, I got this.”
Norah grabbed her purse and said, “Give me a call if you need help planning.”
They said their good-byes and let themselves out of her apartment, leaving her completely alone with Kevin. He took the bag from her and emptied his hands of the garbage he held.
“Thank you,” she mumbled. “I don’t want this to be weird, but it’s going to be, isn’t it?”
He stood silently for so long, she began to question if she actually said it aloud. The rise and fall of his chest in a sigh was the only signal she had that he was paying attention. He had that in common with Jimmy: the sigh of resignation. She’d witnessed Jimmy do it in regard to Moira on more than one occasion.
Kathy looked up into Kevin’s blue eyes and prayed her face wouldn’t reveal the effect he had on her.
“I don’t want this to be weird either. It’s up to us to not make it weird. What do you say? Let me buy you dinner. We’ll talk about party plans.” His smile was warm and friendly.
She’d forgotten he had the ability to do that. To just be friendly without flirting. “Any night except for Friday.”
“Got a big date planned for Friday?” he asked with a tilt of an eyebrow.
She wished. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no. I have a big wedding order to finish putting together and I’ll be working late.”
He looked almost relieved at her response. His intense gaze held her captive. When he spoke, his voice was low and seductive. “Thursday good for you?”
She nodded and gulped. To break the spell, she bent to grab the trash bag.
“Can I have your number? I’ll text you details. Unless you’d like me to pick you up?”
“No.” That would feel far too much like a date. For all his joking and crassness, one thing she remembered about Kevin was that he always picked her up and walked her to the door. In that respect, he was a consummate gentleman. Not like when he was sticking his dick in another woman.
Ugh. She had to keep her mind off things like that. She pulled her phone from her pocket and handed it to him. “Call yourself.”
She tied a knot in the bag and set it near the door. When she turned, Kevin was in front of her again. What was with this guy invading her space?
He handed her the phone. “I added myself as a contact. I’ll call you on Thursday to make sure we’re still on and figure out a time and place.”
“Okay.”
He slipped out the door without another word, but he’d taken the trash bags with him. She sank to the couch and propped her exhausted feet on the coffee table. Then she scrolled through her phone. Sure enough, he had programmed himself in. He was listed as
