Luck of the Irish: Complete Edition (3 page)

At that moment, though, Keira felt much more confident; thanks to the generous dose of liquid courage she had just taken. She stood up to return to the hotel and the restaurant swayed around her. She grabbed the back of the chair until the room stopped moving.

Taking the metal stairs to the ground floor, she had a comprehensive view of the brewery. When she was halfway down, she began to regret her choice because the steps seemed to either rise to meet her or sink away from her feet. She grabbed the railing and took a long time to finish those few last steps.

I need to go back to the hotel, leave this new bag of souvenirs there, and eat something before I pass out. I shouldn’t have drunk that pint of beer on an empty stomach.

It was past three in the afternoon when she took the elevator down to the lobby and went to the Octagon Bar. There wasn’t a hostess at the door to assign her a table so Keira sat at the nearest one. In fact, there wasn’t anybody in the pub except for the bartender. He was on the phone and signaled her that he just needed a minute. She nodded back but the room swirled around her again and she had to close her eyes, grabbing her head in both hands, to make it stop spinning.

I need to eat. Now
! she thought as a buzzing ring pierced her ears.

“Are you all right, miss?” a deep voice sounded above her.

Keira made an effort to lift her head and look up at the bartender. When she did, she found herself drowning in a pair of unbelievably green eyes. They were the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen – a dark, lush shade of green - set in a breathtakingly gorgeous face. The young man standing by her table could easily be on the cover of a fashion or entertainment magazine. When Keira wasn’t able to form a coherent sentence to answer his question, the crease between his perfect eyebrows grew deeper.

Damn Guinness
!

“I beg your pardon, miss?” the crease deepened.

She felt her face got redder and hotter.
Just my luck
, she thought and this time she really kept it inside her head. Clearing her throat, she forced herself to say something, “I’m sorry, Declan,” she read it on the tag in his black vest. “I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast. I think I’m a little dizzy. That’s all.”

He handed her a small menu and smiled. Her knees went weak and she was very happy to be sitting. She wouldn’t have remained standing otherwise. His electrifying grin lit his handsome face up and made his eyes sparkle. The effect was hypnotic and devastating to any sober woman. Keira was a very easy prey.

“Miss?” he waved the menu and she grabbed it.

She mumbled some excuse to justify her behaving like a stupid school girl, and buried her impossibly red face inside the menu.

“I’ll give you a minute to decide. Call me when you’re ready,” he winked at her and made a brief pause, before adding. “To order.”

She was appalled at his attitude. Regardless of how good-looking he was, the man was a cocky little bastard. He ought to be ashamed of himself for going around embarrassing other people like that.

You embarrassed yourself! Drooling over a cute face
, said that pesky voice inside her head that always told her to tread carefully whenever she felt a little adventurous.

Keira squared her shoulders and told her inner self to shut up because she was merely drunk, not drooling. She studied the menu and found out there weren’t many food options. Deciding to ignore the available drinks, she waived at Declan.

He couldn’t hide a shadow of a smile on his lips or disguise a mischievous glint in his eyes. He liked the American, but he would never take advantage of a drunken woman. No matter how attractive she was.

“Are you feeling better, miss?”

She nodded and cursed her voice for disappearing every time he got near her.

“Are you ready to order or would you like a suggestion?”

“I – ahm – I’ll have the fish and – ahm – the salad, please,” she stuttered and had to avoid his eyes to be able to finish the sentence.

“Very well. Anything to drink?”

“Just water, please.”

Good call
, he kept the thought to himself and nodded. Out loud, he added, “I’ll take this order to the kitchen. I’ll be right back.”

When he went out of the room, Keira took a deep breath and looked up. There was a beautiful octagonal dome in the middle of the bar and she tried to distract herself with it to calm her pulse. It didn’t work. She had bought a pocket guide of the city, so she opened it on the table and discovered there was a map filled with suggestions for sightseeing. She forced her hazy, drunken mind to concentrate on which places she’d like to visit next. The next day would be her last in Dublin. After that, she would take a rental car and drive around the countryside. Keira got distracted by her plans and didn’t hear Declan return.

He stood by the table, for a while, studying her. She had a lovely, heart-shaped face framed by golden, wavy, shoulder-length hair. The locks caressed her rosy cheeks as she moved her head to better study the map on the table. Her mouth and eyes were her strongest features. Her eyes were as blue as a cloudless, winter sky. Her lips were full and naturally red. He noticed she didn’t wear make-up but her natural coloring didn’t require any. The reading glasses gave her a serious look.
She looks too serious for such a young beauty
.

Declan had been fighting his primal instincts since she had walked into the bar. There was something about that girl that moved him in ways he hadn’t been moved in a long time. He didn’t have time to look into those feelings, he needed to work. He put the lustful thoughts aside, pushed the x-rated images of steamed eyeglasses knocked askew by knee-melting kisses to the back of this mind, and cleared his throat to call her attention. When she looked up at him, a dreamy expression in those gorgeous eyes, he almost forgot himself and did something stupid like bending down and kissing her senseless. He felt the familiar tug of desire, the heat traveling down his body, and did his best to ignore it.

“Food won’t take long, miss,” he nodded to the map. “Do you need any help getting around town? Can I give you any suggestions?”

“Please, call me Keira,” she said as she made an effort to concentrate on his words rather than the musical tones of his accent or the movement of his tempting lips. “I’ve visited some places. I’m planning my day tomorrow,” she found it increasingly difficult to speak but managed to answer him. “Last day in Dublin, so I want to make the most of it.”

“What have you seen so far?”

“Trinity College, Dublin Castle, Christ Church and St. Patrick’s Cathedrals, and Guinness Storehouse,” was her slurred answer. His smile didn’t help clear her fuzzy mind.

Declan seemed amused and his bright smile did funny things to the butterflies in Keira’s stomach. She looked down at the map because it was easier talking to him that way than having to fight with herself to concentrate on anything, while looking into his mesmerizing eyes.

Keira hadn’t had much experience with men in her young life, and almost zero interaction with gorgeous men like Declan. She didn’t know what to do with herself and her shyness got worse when she was embarrassed. Add a dizzy, drunken head to the equation and the result was that pile of raw nerves sitting on the cushioned seat and trying to act as a normal person.

Get a grip on yourself, girl
, that little voice made her comeback inside her head. Only, this time, Keira agreed with it.

She took a deep breath and looked up at him. Big mistake. Her ears started ringing and her mouth got dry. She ran the tip of her tongue over her parched lips to soothe them but the movement drew his eyes to her mouth and she felt faint at the intensity she saw in his stare. She heard a soft moan but wasn’t sure whose it was – hers or his. Time stood still as their eyes locked.

Declan forced himself to move and break the spell. That wasn’t the place or the time to get silly over a pretty face. He stretched his hand towards the map, “Do you mind if I take it?”

She handed him the paper instead of answering him.

“I can suggest some places tourists don’t know about,” he said as he grabbed his pen and scribbled the names of some restaurants, pubs, museums and even some stores.

“I’ll have a busy day tomorrow,” she laughed when he gave the map back to her.

“But you’ll have fun,” his voice was thick because her laughter had made his body react in a very uncomfortable way. “I’ll check if the food is ready. I’ll be right back.”

He almost ran out of the bar because he needed a breather. Instead of going to the kitchen, Declan went to the employees’ restroom and splashed some cold water in his burning face. There was another part of his anatomy that was also burning like hell, but there was nothing he could do about it. He studied his reflection in the mirror, unable to understand what was wrong with him. He wasn’t a simpleton, a naïve country boy. He had met beautiful women before Keira. Jesus! He had
had
gorgeous women. Running his fingers through his short dark hair and taking deep breaths, Declan regained control over his treacherous body. Then, he went to the kitchen, got her food and returned to the bar.

“Here you go, miss. Enjoy,” he said in the most professional tone he managed to muster.

“Thank you,” Keira was bewildered by the sudden radical change in his attitude.

Declan read the confusion, and even a little hurt, in her blue eyes but ignored them. There was no point in doing anything other than that. It was just his luck to finally meet a girl who made him feel alive again, only to find out she was leaving town the following day.

Keira finished her meal in a confused state of mind, made worse by the alcohol she had drunk earlier. The food was excellent but she paid little attention to it, as she tried to understand what she had done wrong. Replaying the conversation in her mind, she concluded she hadn’t done anything wrong.

You must have read the signs wrong. He was just being nice and friendly, like most Irish people are
, her annoying inner self pointed out to her.
Did you seriously think a guy like Declan was interested in a girl like you? Get over yourself, Keira!

She forced the last mouthful down her throat with a sip of water. The drunken fog had lifted, allowing her to think straight. As depressing as it sounded, her inner self was right. What could he possibly see in her? She wasn’t stunning like Megan. She was the smart one, not the pretty one in the family. At least, that was how she had felt her entire life.

Declan remained safely behind the counter, where he felt more in control of his own reactions, watching Keira closely. He noticed she had leaned forward, hunching her shoulders. He also saw she ate slowly and had some difficulty swallowing the last couple of mouthfuls. His conscience scolded him as he observed her posture. Knowing he was responsible for her withdrawal, made him feel like a big asshole. He shouldn’t have gone bi-polar on her. He should have managed his emotions better, in the first place. It wasn’t her fault if he had had a shitty love life. She hadn’t ripped his heart to pieces, had she? And it was absolutely not her fault if he couldn’t keep his damn lustful body in check, right?

That train of thought didn’t help Declan calm down because it caused a new rush of graphic scenes to invade his mind. For a while, he let himself indulge in the possibilities. If Keira were to stay, he would find a way to know her better.

I’d love to spend hours getting to know her - every little inch of her.

He closed his eyes imagining her small, perfect body under his, feeling her silken skin under his fingertips. He wanted to kiss her until they were both breathless and try all his moves to discover her secret spots, what made her tick, and moan, and shout his name.

“Hey, Declan!” her clear voice yanked him from the daydream. He looked at her, still in a daze, and she smiled. “Can you bring me the check, please?”

He was mortified to notice there was a huge bulge in his pants, which prevented him from going to the table without making a bigger fool of himself than he had already made. So, he pretended to study some papers on the counter.

“What is your room number, miss?”

“It’s 305.”

“I’ll add the check to your room bill.”

“Don’t I have to sign it?”

“That’s not necessary,” he said to her, then, added to himself.
I’ll have to sign it myself because there’s no way in hell I can stand up right now, you little bewitching thing.

Keira felt a pang in her chest at the cold treatment she thought he was giving her. So, she gathered up the shreds of her pride and stood up to leave. At the doorway, she stopped and looked over her shoulder. He was staring at her with an expression she didn’t understand. He looked in pain. That couldn’t be right, right?

“Goodbye, Declan,” she managed to say in a thin voice.

“Goodbye, Keira,” he replied, using her name for the first time. It sounded so different in his accent she felt like throwing caution to the wind and asking him out. She turned around and went to her room instead.

* * * *