routine of keeping to myself, then realize I haven’t bothered to socialize when I really should have taken the time to.”
“Well, I’m happy to introduce you around. Even if you’re here for work, it’s always good to have a few lads to have a pint with on occasion. Come meet us at the pub sometime this week? You can meet the lads.”
“I’m game. I’ll need to make a few contacts here anyway.” Brogan didn’t elaborate and Liam didn’t ask. Brogan immediately liked that about him – a man who kept his own counsel and wasn’t too nosy. Not that he was doing anything that warranted hiding, but it was nice to know whom he could trust if he needed it down the road.
“Here’s my card. Give me a call when you’re ready for a pint. You’ll find me at the pub many a night – they have good company and good food. I’m not always in a mood to cook and my fiancée, Fi, isn’t particularly focused on whipping up a meal these days.”
Brogan surprised himself by asking, “Is she pregnant?” Now who was being the nosy one?
“I hope not!” Liam threw his head back and laughed. “She’s started a new job translating novels. I can barely make a noise in the house these days. I’m finishing up the conversion of a bedroom to her office and moving her into it this week. Right now, she’s working at the dining table.”
“Ah, yes. A dedicated workspace will make a difference.”
“I just need to figure out a way to make her think it was her idea first.”
“You’re a smart man.”
“I like to think so.” Liam finished his coffee and stood. “Nice to meet you, Brogan. Hope to see you around.”
“Same to you.” Brogan was surprised to realize he meant it. That was two people in one day who’d left an impression on him. Maybe Grace’s Cove would be exactly what he needed to pull himself out of his funk after all. Time would tell.
Chapter 4
“This one’s in a mood,” Gracie said, nodding at Kira, while Fi helped her cut lavender for one of her tinctures. The three of them were having a cozy girls’ night at Grace’s cottage on the cliffs, with Liam on tap to drive Fi and Kira home later that night. Kira had brought a pizza, and they’d already worked their way through one bottle of red wine.
“She is, isn’t she? I was going to wait her out and let her tell us what’s going on,” Fi said.
“We’d be here all night. You know how she is.”
“I guess,” Fi agreed. “She’s always been stubborn with her thoughts.”
“Not like we can’t see her mood hovering around her.”
“I’m right here.” Kira glared at the both of them and reached for another slice of pizza. “You do realize that you could include me in this conversation?”
“And why should we? It’s not like you’d be bothering to tell your best friends in the world what you’re stewing about.” Grace leveled Kira a look that had her rolling her eyes.
“I’m not withholding anything. I don’t know why I’m in a mood. I can’t be really telling you what’s going on if I can’t pinpoint it myself, can I?” Kira took a bite of cheesy gloriousness and thanked the goddess that Grace’s Cove had finally opened one minuscule pizza parlor.
“We could help,” Fi suggested. “If you talk instead of brood, we could get to the bottom of it.”
“Are you missing that rock star? What’s his name – Baz? Racks?”
“Jax,” Kira sighed. “And, no. I don’t miss him.”
“He hurt you.” Gracie zeroed in on Kira’s face.
“He did. But you know what the truth of it is? I think I really hurt myself.”
“How so?” Fi asked, leaning across the table to pour more wine into Kira’s glass.
Kira leaned back and closed her eyes, bringing Jax’s face to mind while she tried to think of the best way to explain her complicated feelings about having dated him. It had been a relationship at high speed, full of dramatic swings and unrealistic moments, but she supposed that was the nature of dating someone famous.
“Honestly, I’m disappointed in myself. I thought I was smarter than the others. That I wouldn’t fall under his spell. But… I did. Even when I could see the truth of him. Even when I knew he was only capable of caring about himself. For a moment, I thought – what if I was the one who could make him see or feel differently? I suppose