him again.
After my initial shock, my chest felt tight, like an invisible fist had squeezed my throat and I felt as if I couldn’t take in any air. I fought hard against that unwelcomed feeling, because it was the same as the one I had felt when I’d first found out he’d left.
It infuriated me how wired my body became the second I saw him, but every second longer I stared at him, I felt that initial rage within me melt like butter, despite my steaming temper. Jamie was the kind of handsome that had women transfixed, and he looked better than the last time I’d seen him.
“Barney, I’m not sure that you’re welcome in this pub. I think you’re barred.” Seamus, one of my locals said, looking to me for confirmation. Still stunned by his sudden reappearance, I didn’t reply.
“Barred, what does that mean?” Jamie asked, his eyes shifting from my customer to me. He appeared less sure of himself.
Ronan, another of the locals, immediately replied. “It means, you’ll not be getting a drink in here any time soon.”
Jamie snickered and looked toward me, his cocky smile melting the ice around my heart. Fortunately, there was still enough rage within me not to allow my heart to totally mess with my head.
“You can serve him, Terry, his money is the same as everyone else’s … providing he has euros, of course,” I snapped in a cool tone, reminding him he’d had no foreign cash the last time he’d been in Dublin.
“You know I didn’t come here for a drink, Daisy, I came to talk to you.”
“Oh, is that right?” I challenged, staring him down and tapping my pen against the ledger I’d been writing in. “After all this time you want to talk? As far as I know, we have nothing to talk about.”
“Not true, we have a lot to talk about. I’ve flown all the way here so that you can hear me out.”
“Hear you out?” I shrieked. “Why the hell should I? And why did you fly here? Is it because your executive assistant thought we might need a DNA test, so you shit your pants and dragged your ass here to find out for yourself?” I finished, my breath heaving. I’d used sarcastic quote marks at my use of executive assistant.
“No, actually, she was calling on behalf of someone else. But I came here to apologize, to explain where I’ve been and to make amends, but it would be nicer to do that with some privacy instead of having a geriatric audience.”
I glanced around at the two single customers over by the door and the three old regulars sat at the bar. I noted everyone stared and had been hanging on our every word. Not much of an audience considering what Mr. Rockstar was used to.
“Listen, Barney, just because Daisy wears racy T-shirts doesn’t mean she’s easy,” Seamus explained. My eyes darted in his direction wondering what the hell that meant.
“Yeah, you can’t pick her up and put her down at your convenience,” Archie, informed him in my defense, from the other end of the bar. Relieved they were just having my back, I relaxed, surprised Archie had remembered anything at all from the day before.
“I thought we weren’t to mention we’d seen that pyjama top,” their drinking buddy, Ronan chipped in, elbowing drunk Seamus in the ribs.
My jaw dropped for a second and I glared at Terry, who had obviously lied to me. From the conversation that must have taken place, it appeared as if they had all not only seen the top I’d accidently pulled on, but they’d discussed it at some point as well.
Men, I can’t trust any of them.
“I think you should go to your hotel and I’ll consider whether we have anything to discuss when I’ve had time to think. Seeing you hasn’t made me feel the most rational person right now,” I said, lowering my gaze from those big pleading eyes that told me how exhausted he was from the flight.
He sighed. “Come on, Daisy. You know I don’t have a hotel. I was hoping I could stay here with you tonight.”
“Wow. How presumptuous of you. Is that how it works in your world? You’re sadly mistaken if you think you can come back here and slide right in.”
My jaw clenched tight when I saw his lips quirk in a half-smile, like he’d thought what I’d said was funny, until I realized what I’d implied. I scowled that my remark