“Just touching base,” Abby said, though her guilty expression suggested otherwise. “How are you?”
“Fine.”
“Connor has little Mick this weekend, right?”
“He’s in town, yes.”
“Does that mean you’re free this evening?”
Heather stilled. “Abby, what’s this really about? If you’re trying to set me up to spend time with Connor, the answer is no.”
“Not Connor,” Abby admitted, then smiled brightly. “Actually, one of my colleagues from Baltimore is in town for the weekend. I thought you might like to join us for dinner.”
If she’d suggested they spend an evening bungee jumping, Heather wouldn’t have been more shocked. “You’re trying to set me up on a blind date?”
“Sure,” Abby said as if the idea of her setting up the mother of her brother’s child on a date weren’t totally ludicrous. “Glenn’s terrific. I think you’d like him.”
“Not that I don’t appreciate the thought,” Heather responded carefully, “but what do you think Connor would say about this? Do you really want to get caught up in our drama?”
“I already ran the idea past him,” Abby said blithely, though she didn’t quite meet Heather’s gaze when she said it.
Heather couldn’t imagine how that conversation must have gone. “And?”
Abby hesitated, then grinned. “He hated it, which is why I think you have to say yes. It will drive him nuts.”
“So you’re sacrificing a colleague to make your brother jealous?” Heather asked. “Who does that?”
“Someone who cares about the two of you,” Abby said without so much as a hint of remorse. “Somebody has to kick this thing between you into gear.”
“And what about Glenn? Is he just collateral damage?”
“Oh, Glenn has an on-again, off-again girlfriend,” she said airily. “I think that’s insane, too, for the record, but the important thing is he knows this is all for show. He’s happy to help out.”
Heather shook her head. “This is a very complicated and dangerous game you’re playing, Abby. I don’t want any part of it. If nothing else, Connor and I have always been honest with one another. I don’t want to change that now.”
Abby looked disappointed. “Not even to drive my brother crazy? Focus on the goal, Heather.”
“Any means to an end? No thank you. You O’Briens really do play hardball, don’t you? I knew Connor did, but I hadn’t realized it was a family trait. I find that a little scary.”
“But we’re a great family,” Abby said, her tone cajoling. “You know you want to be a part of it. You deserve to be a part of it. Your son is an O’Brien, after all.”
“Not this way,” Heather insisted. “I’ll take my chances on Connor coming to his senses eventually. I’m fully prepared to move on if he doesn’t.” Brave words, but she wanted them to be true.
Abby sighed. “I hope you’re not counting on that, because if there’s one thing aside from playing hardball that O’Briens are known for, it’s our stubbornness.”
“Yeah, I’ve noticed,” Heather replied just as people began showing up for her beginners’ quilting class.
Abby paused to hug Connie and Laila, then turned back to Heather. “The offer’s on the table if you change your mind. Dinner’s at seven.”
“I won’t change my mind,” Heather assured her. “And for your sake, I won’t mention this conversation to your brother.”
Abby merely chuckled. “Connor and I have been at odds since he found out I could hit a baseball farther than he could. One more argument won’t destroy us. In fact, I kind of like the idea of him finding out I made good on my threat.”
Heather merely stared at her. “So, when you said you’d run the idea past him, that’s what you meant, that you’d threatened to fix me up? You deliberately tried to shake him up?”
“That’s exactly what she did,” Connie confirmed. “I was there. The look on Connor’s face was priceless.” She faced Abby. “I have to admit I didn’t really expect you to go through with it, though.”
“Somebody had to do something,” Abby said again. “I’ve been very aboveboard about my intentions. Fair warnings and all that.”
Connie chuckled. “By O’Brien standards, maybe. By most people’s, you’re being sneaky and underhanded.” She eyed Heather curiously. “Did you say yes?”
“Of course not,” Heather said indignantly.
“More’s the pity,” Abby said, then sighed. “Oh, well, this is just going to take a little longer than I’d hoped. Have fun quilting, ladies.”
She breezed out the door the same way she’d breezed in. Heather stared after her.
“What did she mean, it might take longer than she’d planned?” Heather asked warily, looking from Laila to Connie and back again. “What might take longer?”
“Getting you and Connor together, of course,” Laila said, grinning. “Abby has a bit of a determined streak, in case you haven’t noticed. It took her, what, fifteen years or more, but she got Mick and Megan back together. Her track record for persistence is solid.”
“Sweet heaven,” Heather muttered. “Do I need to warn Connor?”
“Trust me, he knows,” Connie said. “When Megan left, it was Abby as much as Nell who held that family together. Not only is she strong, she’s fiercely protective. Right now, you and her baby brother seem to be her pet project.”
Heather whirled on Laila. “You need to go over to their house right this minute and tell your brother to do something to distract his wife.”
“Such as?” Laila asked, clearly amused by Heather’s panic.
“Tell him they need to make a baby,” Heather said, seizing on the first thing that came to mind. “I don’t care. Just keep her occupied.”
“While I think Trace would get behind that idea,” Laila said, “I’m not sure even he can save you and Connor now that Abby’s on a mission.”
“I agree,” Connie said, grinning. “You’re doomed, sweetie. You might as well hang on and enjoy the ride.”
Laila’s grin was even broader. “In fact, you might want to buy some Dramamine if you’re inclined toward motion sickness.”
* * *
Even though little Mick had cooperated by going down for his morning nap right on time, Connor couldn’t seem to
