“What time will Heather be here?” his mother asked.
“Six-thirty,” Connor told her, only to have Trace give him an amused look.
“Not wasting any time, are you?”
“Meaning?”
“Just that things should always start the way you intend them to continue. Draw Heather into the fold from the get-go.”
“Inviting her was Mom’s idea,” Connor told his brother-in-law.
Trace merely laughed. “It might have been her idea, but you obviously made no attempt to talk her out of it. In fact, you’re the one who issued the actual invitation, am I right?”
“Yes,” Connor said, then scowled. “What’s your point?”
“Everyone in this family seems to see the handwriting on the wall except you,” Trace explained patiently. “Have you even admitted that you’re making this move because you can’t live without her?”
“I’m making this move because I want a different kind of lifestyle,” Connor insisted. “I want to live in a small, friendly community again. I want to be around my family, though right at this moment, I have to wonder why.”
Trace laughed, then glanced toward the door as Heather walked in with little Mick. Connor followed the direction of his gaze and couldn’t seem to tear his own gaze away. Just a glimpse of her was enough to take his breath away. Apparently she caught him staring, because the smile on her face died.
“I rest my case,” Trace said, nudging him in the ribs to get his attention. “You’re a goner, man. Admit it and get on with your life.”
“I’ve never denied being crazy about her,” Connor said defensively as he watched her mingling with his family. And then she moved on to somewhere beyond his view.
Trace rolled his eyes. “Marriage is just a piece of paper, right? How many times have we all heard you say that? If it’s so damned insignificant, then why are you fighting so hard to avoid signing it? That piece of paper is your ticket to happiness.”
Connor wished he could believe that was all it was. Too often, though, it was a surefire path to misery. Passion turned to hatred. Children suffered. And nothing any of these happily-ever-after relatives of his said was going to convince him otherwise.
Trace gave him a knowing look, as if he could read his mind. “Unless you think Abby and I, Jake and Bree and your folks are all doomed,” he said slyly.
Connor didn’t deny it.
“Well, your sisters and your parents might take exception to that,” Trace told him. “Hell, I take exception to it. Abby and I have our moments, but most of the time we are blissfully happy. If I could get her to slow down long enough to add to our family, I think our lives would be close to perfect.”
“Look, you know I wish you all nothing but the best,” Connor told him. “I hope your marriages last forever. I just think the odds are against it.”
“So it’s better not even to try?” Trace asked.
“That’s the way I see it,” Connor insisted, though he couldn’t deny a moment of envy when Abby came over and wrapped her arms around her husband’s waist and gave him a smoldering kiss. Across the room, Jake was bending over Bree, checking on the two-week-old baby girl in her arms, his expression filled with awe, especially since they’d been half convinced they were having a son. Connor recalled feeling exactly like that when he and Heather had brought their son home from the hospital. Her pregnancy with little Mick had happened by accident. Knowing there’d never be another one filled him with unspeakable sorrow.
“I need some air,” he said suddenly to no one in particular, then walked outside.
To his dismay, he found Heather on the porch. In his current mood, it was more temptation than he could resist.
Before he could think about what he was doing or why, he tucked a finger under her chin and kissed her, just a quick graze of his lips across hers. She blinked at him in confusion.
“What was that about?” she asked, a hitch in her voice.
“I’m not entirely sure,” he admitted.
“Then maybe you shouldn’t do it again,” she said, rubbing at her lips as if to wipe away the feel of his mouth on hers.
“Probably not,” he agreed, then met her gaze. It was doubtless a bad idea to admit right now that he was lying. Wise or not, there were going to be more kisses if he had his way. And one of these days very soon, he was going to have to figure out just where he intended them to lead.
* * *
Having Connor back in town was not going to be easy, Heather concluded a few weeks after the welcome-home dinner that had turned into a major celebration. Oh, the dinner itself had been fine, no more uncomfortable than all the other O’Brien family occasions to which she’d been invited. It was the kiss that had left her shaken and confused.
She hadn’t wanted to feel the surge of hope that welled up inside because she knew better than anyone that a mere kiss meant nothing. As for the move, it might not be anything more than just that, a relocation to Connor’s hometown. Not an hour went by that she didn’t dissect the meaning of it all or stare dreamily out the window thinking about the feel of his lips on hers. She was clearly out of her mind. Nothing had really changed.
Still, in the three weeks he’d been back, Connor had been finding more and more excuses to spend time with her and little Mick. There’d even been another stolen kiss or two, not the kind that had once taken her breath away, but the kind that stirred her senses and filled her with longing just the same. Her protests had been ignored, most likely because they hadn’t been very convincing. She had
