From Your Heart

by Shannyn Schroeder

  “You had an all-star runner and a football player on your team,” he rebutted with a nod toward Shane.

  “You guys had Jimmy.”

  “Jimmy’s getting old. I bet Shane could take him.”

  Jimmy glared. “I’m not old. The teams were evenly matched. They won.”

  For the first time ever, Kevin saw that it didn’t bother Jimmy to lose. With the exception of the dirty look at Kevin, Jimmy was smiling. Moira made him deliriously happy.

  Kevin looked at Kathy and wondered if she’d ever look at him like that.

  “Time for water balloon toss,” Moira called.

  Jimmy said, “Liam and I will start cooking. Any special requests?”

  Kevin pointed at his brother. “Don’t you mean Liam will cook and you’ll stand around barking orders?”

  Everyone snickered.

  “We all have our talents,” Jimmy responded.

  Kevin bumped Moira’s shoulder. “What the hell did you do to my big brother? He’s a big softy now. Nothing riles him up.”

  “It’s amazing what the love of a good woman can do.” She froze in her tracks. “Holy crap. That’s it. You’re such an insufferable ass because you haven’t found a woman who can put up with you.”

  “Are you going to fix that?”

  “Hell no. I couldn’t do that to some unsuspecting woman.”

  Maggie and Shane came down the steps of the house carrying buckets filled with water balloons.

  “Let’s be partners,” Kevin said before Moira walked away.

  “Yeah, sure. I’m gonna give you the opportunity to turn this into a wet T-shirt contest.” Then she added, “Again,” in reference to him soaking her a couple of years ago.

  “I’m trying to redeem myself here. I’m not going to pull anything.”

  On his side, a soft hand slipped into his. “Partners?” Kathy asked.

  He looked at her hand in his, and she promptly dropped it. Damn. Now he was caught. How could he prove to Moira that he was a good guy if she wouldn’t give him a chance? Then again, maybe he just needed to prove it to Kathy.

  “Sure,” he said.

  They lined up and Colin, the oldest O’Leary, blew a whistle. Moira and Norah partnered up next to him and Kathy, Moira warily beside him. With every blow of the whistle, the partners each took another step apart. Moira deftly tossed the balloon and Norah caught it.

  “I wasn’t playing a game by suggesting we partner up,” he said to Moira.

  “Yeah, sure.”

  “Seriously.”

  “Wish I could believe that, but after a lifetime of misery, I know better.”

  The balloon came at him and he cradled it. Moira’s words hit him hard and they rattled him as he tossed the balloon back, arching it high in the air.

  Kathy squealed and ran forward to catch it, but she grabbed it too hard, and it exploded in her hands, splashing water all over her.

  “I’m so sorry,” he said as he met her in the middle.

  But she wasn’t mad. She was laughing as water dripped down her legs. She was absolutely beautiful with her head thrown back, the springy curls in her ponytail whipping around. “I’ll get even. That was the lamest throw ever.”

  The light brown of her eyes sparked with her laughter and Kevin would’ve done anything to freeze that moment.

  “Come on. I’ll buy you a beer.”

  “Big spender today?”

  “Of course. The O’Learys provide the kegs. Free beer.”

  “That was a fun game. While it lasted anyway.”

  “We’d never beat Moira. She wins every year, no matter who her partner is. I thought this year might be my chance, but she turned me down.”

  Kathy wiped ineffectively at the water on her arms and followed him toward the keg at the O’Learys’.

  “You want me to get you a towel?”

  “Nah. I’m fine. It won’t take long to dry in the sun.” She walked at his side. “So what were you and Moira talking about?”

  “I was trying to convince her that I didn’t have ulterior motives by offering to be her partner for the toss.” He cleared his throat at the twisted half-truth. “She didn’t believe me.”

  “Not surprising. She’s not part of the Kevin O’Malley fan club.”

  “There’s a fan club? Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

  Kathy laughed again. That sound alone was enough to make him want more time with her.

  At the keg, he pumped and poured drinks for both of them. Jimmy and Maggie were setting food out on the tables. Plates filled with burgers and hot dogs sat alongside bowls of salad and fruit and chips. The O’Learys might have their flaws but putting together a party wasn’t one. Years ago, Jimmy had finally given up on trying to get his siblings to do the work, and they all just chipped in and gave the O’Learys money toward the food and beer and both families ate together.

  “You want to eat, or wait awhile?”

  “I can wait,” she answered.

  “Come on then. I’ll take you on a tour of the neighborhood.” This being-honest-and-laying-your-heart-out-there shit was tough. Kevin had never approached any relationship like this. Not that he was a constant liar or anything, but there was a customary dance between a man and a woman. It allowed for some flexibility in what he wanted to reveal at any given time. But he’d taken Jimmy’s advice and played it differently.

  She hadn’t run away screaming when he asked her to hang out with him. He took that as a decent sign. And now, she was walking with him through his childhood neighborhood.

  He’d never brought a girl home before. Sure, he’d introduced a few to his family. Hard not to when he spent so much time with them, but this was different. He wanted Kathy to know where he came from.

  Pointing at the tree on the corner, he said, “That was where I fell the second time I broke my arm.”

  “Second time?” she asked.

  “I suffered a few broken bones in childhood. Broke both arms—different times.”

  “How did you fall out of the tree?”

  “I was dumb. I did something to piss Jimmy off, and he was way bigger than me. Still is. I’d climbed the tree to get away from him. I went too high and then fell.” They got to the tree, and he looked up into the branches. “It sucked because I ended up missing half of hockey season. The upside was that Jimmy felt so guilty that he did anything I wanted the whole time I wore that cast.”

  Kathy shook her head, making her curls bounce. With a smile, she said, “You started the trouble and then took advantage of his guilt. And Jimmy says Moira’s the menace.”

  “How about you? Were you trouble growing up?”

  With her lips pressed together, she shook her head again. “No one to get into trouble with.”

  He knew she was an only child. Every time he thought about it, it seemed so lonely. Bringing up her childhood took the smile from her face, so he changed the subject again. He pointed at the house they were in front of. “Danny Lynch lived here. He was my partner in crime for most of my childhood. He was the one who told me to climb the tree to get away from Jimmy.”

  “Does he still live here?”

  “No. His was one of the few families that actually left this neighborhood.”

  “Is the neighborhood that fabulous or do people stay because it’s what they know?”

  “I never thought much about it. I guess a little of both. It’s a tight-knit community in a huge city. Not too many people in Chicago can say they know all their neighbors. This is like a small town. We take care of our own here. But it’s the people who make it that way, not the location itself.”

  “I never had that. We moved around when I was a kid, so I sampled a lot of neighborhoods. Some were good, some not, but we never lived in a place like this.” She tucked her free hand into the pocket of her shorts as they crossed to walk in the middle of the street. “Do you miss it?”

  “Yeah. But I don’t regret moving out. I needed to get away, become my own person, away from Jimmy. But
one day, I want to buy a house in a neighborhood like this. I want my kids to have a childhood like I had.”

  “You want kids?”

  She said it like he’d just announced that he wanted to have an orgy in the street.

  “Yeah.” Then he thought maybe her question was less about him and more about her. “Don’t you?”

  “Maybe. I’m still working on me, so I’m not ready to try to teach someone else how to live.”

  He took a few steps in front of her and walked backward as he talked. Eyeing her up and down, he said, “Working on what? You look damn fine.”

  “I’m working on the inside stuff. Nothing you can see.”

  “Anything I can help with?”

  She shot him a glare, but couldn’t hold it and smiled.

  He moved beside her again and put an arm around her shoulders. “Just tell me this. Am I the cause of any of the things you need to work on?”

  He hated the thought that his careless attitude five years ago caused ongoing damage to her.

  “You didn’t cause anything. But being with you taught me about myself and what I need to work on.”

  “You want to tell me about it?”

  “Not today. Today is about having fun.”

  She didn’t shut him down completely. In fact, she left the door open for the conversation to happen at some point in the future.

  “Tell me about the rest of the people here,” she said.

  Leaving his arm around her, he pointed with the hand holding his beer. “That’s the Doyles’ house. They were the only family that could give the O’Malleys a run for our money. Half of them got kicked out of school at one point or another. If the gossip is true, one even did some jail time.”

  “Sounds like a rough bunch.”

  “Rough, yeah, but not bad. Their mom was raising them alone. Seven kids. Six boys and one girl. One day, the dad just up and left. Rumors ran wild then. Some say he had a girlfriend who lured him away from his family. Others say he was into the mob for gambling and they made him disappear.”

  “So much intrigue. Do you have a theory?” She kept her voice low, as if she was afraid someone might overhear.

  “For as gossipy as this neighborhood is, and make no mistake—Moira is always in the thick of it—that’s one thing that isn’t talked about much. The boys never mention their dad. Personally, I don’t buy the girlfriend thing. Michael Doyle loved his boys.” Kevin couldn’t imagine ever abandoning family, especially your kids. He’d hung out with Ronan Doyle growing up, even though Ronan was a few years older. They had never become really close, but they’d been friendly—friendly enough to get into trouble together. Kids with only one parent in a neighborhood like this shared that bond. Kids like the O’Learys didn’t understand what it was like.

  Kevin stopped two doors down. “This is where the McCarthys live. They are everything the Doyles aren’t. Two girls, two boys, all of them straight A’s through school, captain of whatever sports they joined, leaders of everything. I bet they never needed to go to confession. The priests probably just blessed them for being so perfect.”

  Kathy burst out laughing. “No one is perfect, even if they look like it from the outside.”

  To prove his point, he walked closer to where the McCarthys had tables set up and a white canopy to block the sun. Spread across the table was every variety of cookie imaginable. Off to the side sat a box of random toys that kids would come by and help themselves to.

  “Kevin O’Malley as I live and breathe. It’s not like you to travel to this end of the block.”

  Kevin turned to see Chloe McCarthy standing with her hands on her hips. Chloe had been a year behind him in school, but the McCarthys befriended everyone.

  “Hi, Chloe. This is Kathy. I was just giving her a tour of the neighborhood.”

  Chloe stepped forward and shook Kathy’s hand. Leaning closer, she said, “Don’t let him take you on a tour of the alleys.”

  Releasing Chloe’s hand, Kathy shot him a questioning look.

  “I’m not fourteen anymore. I have better places to make out with a girl.” He winked at Chloe and led Kathy away before Chloe gave Kathy more ammunition to use against him.

  “So did you ever take Chloe to the alley?” Kathy asked.

  “Hell, no. Everyone knew the McCarthy sisters gripped tight to their V-cards. We half expected them to join a convent.”

  “You are awful.”

  “I was awful. Turned over a new leaf. I didn’t even steal any of their cookies. As a kid, I would’ve taken a whole tray and then sold them for a quarter each on the next block.”

  Kathy laughed until she had tears filling her eyes. As far as non-dates went, Kevin considered this one a win.

  Chapter Five

  Kevin led Kathy to the table. They piled food on their plates and sat at the curb, leaving the folding chairs for older people and pregnant women, of which there seemed to be a growing number. Looked like the O’Learys were breeding the next generation of football players.

  “Eat up. Relay races are starting soon. This time, I don’t care what Moira says, you’re on my team. I deserve to win at least once today.”

  “The adults run relay races?”

  “Some. I’ll beat a bunch of kids. I don’t care.”

  Kathy laughed because she knew he was joking. “That’s just wrong.”

  He bumped her shoulder with his and tilted his chin across the street. “See that kid? I bet I could take him.”

  He was looking at the toddler who was obviously still mastering the ability to walk.

  She smiled and shook her head. “Setting the bar kind of low.” She glanced down the block. “How about them?”

  They turned to see a group of gangly teens squirting one another with giant water guns.

  “I’ll wait until they exhaust each other, then I’ll be able to win.”

  “You always have a scheme, huh?”

  “Scheme sounds evil.”

  “You’re the one who relished being called an evil genius.”

  “I plan the best way to have fun while winning. That part is just genius. Nothing evil about it.” He quieted again for a few seconds as he ate. “What do you do for fun?”

  She shrugged. It was one of those questions she always hated on a date because she knew she sounded like a little old lady.

  “Come on. Tell me.”

  “I like to run. I go at least three or four times a week. The shop takes a lot of my time. Being a business owner is no simple task. I love it, but I’m not in a place where I have a lot of breathing room, you know? By the time I get home at night, I flop on the couch and watch TV.” As they talked through easy conversation, her appetite had returned and she continued to eat.

  “I can relate. I’m trying to get in on a new project at work, so there are a lot of long hours. I’m lucky if I manage to get my tie off before I collapse.”

  “I never have that problem. The first thing I do when I walk in the door is strip.”

  Kevin coughed and choked on his beer.

  “You okay?”

  “You could warn a guy if you’re gonna fill his head with images like that.” He took another drink of beer.

  It took a second for her brain to catch up. “Jeez, you have a dirty mind. I don’t walk around naked. I change into comfy clothes.”

  “Too late. I already have a picture of you sprawled all over your couch totally nude. Wild hair fanning out, eyes half-closed, the beginning of a smile on your lips. Can’t undo that.”

  How he managed to spin a totally innocent conversation into a sexual one, she didn’t know, but she pushed past it. “Did you say tie? You actually wear a suit every day?”

  “Yep. Kind of a requirement.”

  “I can’t picture it.” In her head, he was always relaxed Kevin, like he was today. Casual.

  “I’ll send you a selfie on Monday.” He set his plate on the ground. “Unless suits are a turnoff. Then we can pretend they don’t exist.”

  S
he smiled again. “Even women who don’t like suits can appreciate a man who looks good in one.”

  “Better watch out. That sounded almost like a compliment.”

  “I didn’t say you’d look good in a suit, just that I like a man who does.”

  “I don’t remember you being so quick with the barbs.”

  He was right. That kind of joking was something reserved for people who were close to her, like Moira. People who she knew wouldn’t be offended, where no fight would be stirred or feelings hurt.

  “Can I get something out in the open?” Kathy asked him with her plate carefully balanced on her knees.

  “Shoot,” he answered before putting his plate on his lap and digging into his burger.

  “I have an ulterior motive for being here.”

  He said nothing, so she set her plate on the curb and twisted to fully face him. “I planned on playing this close to the vest, but I’m no good at being duplicitous.”

  “That’s one of the many things I like about you.”

  As much as she wanted to bask in his words, she focused on her goal. “I’m here to keep you away from Moira.”

  Confusion filled his face. “Why?”

  Kathy inhaled deeply and Kevin’s gaze dropped to the rise and fall of her chest.

  “She’s worried about you. No—not about you. About what you might do. She’s afraid you’ll do something to ruin the wedding.”

  “I would never do that.”

  She smiled as she looked into his blue eyes. “I’m starting to see that. I’ve watched you all day and I don’t see what she does.”

  “What do you see?”

  “A man trying to make amends.”

  His face brightened with her admission.

  “What was your duplicitous plan?”

  “To distract you and keep you with me and away from her. To spend enough time with you between now and the wedding that I could make sure you had no nefarious schemes.”

  “Hmmm. I like that plan. Let’s go with it.”

  “What?” she asked, leaning back.

  He cocked an eyebrow. “You never know. Maybe I have an evil genius plot already in motion. You, Kathy Hendricks, might be her only hope.”

  She relaxed and picked up her food again. “That’s part of the problem. You don’t take anything seriously. That’s what scares Moira.”