Ryan's Place

by Sherryl Woods

  His brother shook his head. “No, man, Mom and Dad are the ones who should have looked. Hell, they never should have left in the first place. What were they thinking?”

  “I have no idea, and to be perfectly honest, I don’t give a damn.”

  Sean blinked at the vehement response. “Really? You honestly don’t care why they did what they did?”

  “The point is, they did it. The reason hardly matters.”

  Sean let the matter drop. A grin tugged at his lips. “I still can’t believe you have your own pub and it’s only a couple of miles from here.”

  “We have great Irish music on Fridays and Saturdays. Will you come by this weekend?”

  “Will your Maggie be around to keep me company?” he asked.

  “You heard her. She’ll likely be there, but don’t be getting any ideas about her.”

  “I didn’t see a ring on her finger,” Sean teased.

  Ryan chuckled. “You always did want whatever I had, and most of the time I let you have it. Not this time. Stay away from Maggie.”

  “I imagine you have to give that warning to a lot of men.”

  “More than you can imagine,” Ryan agreed.

  “Then marry her and end the problem,” Sean encouraged. “I saw the love shining in her eyes earlier. I don’t think you’ll get any argument from her.”

  Ryan thought of his intention to find the rest of his family and reassure himself that there were no hidden health risks. “One of these days I will,” he said.

  “Don’t wait too long,” Sean warned him. “One of the things I’ve learned as a firefighter is just how short life can be. It’s not something to be wasted.”

  “Look at you,” Ryan teased, “giving advice to your big brother.”

  “I was always the smart one,” Sean retorted.

  “Yeah, right. The truth is, Michael was smarter than both of us.”

  Sean sighed. “He was, wasn’t he? Remember how he used to plan strategies for winning whenever we played war games? He was only four, and a runt at that, but he was the only kid I ever knew who could maneuver us into a trap in the blink of an eye, even when we were watching out for it.” He looked at Ryan. “Is your detective looking for him?”

  Ryan nodded. “No luck so far.” Reluctantly he glanced at the clock and realized that he needed to get back. The pub would be opening soon. Besides, he needed to get away and spend a little time absorbing the miraculous way this morning had gone. “I need to get to work. You’ll come by soon, though, right?”

  “I’m working this weekend, but next Friday for sure. I want to hear that Irish band you’ve been bragging about. I haven’t heard a really good rendition of ‘Danny Boy’ since Dad used to sing it in the shower.”

  Ryan grinned despite himself. “He did like to sing, didn’t he? And he had a voice that could make people weep, it was so beautiful.” He regarded Sean with surprise. “You know, I think that’s the first time I’ve thought of him in years without a lot of anger welling up inside me.”

  “I got tired of hating him years ago,” Sean admitted. “But I never could bring myself to look for him, or any of the rest of you. Probably stubbornness as much as anything. I’m glad you took the initiative. One of these days that detective of yours will come through.”

  “Let’s just pray we don’t regret it,” Ryan said.

  “How could we? It’s turned out pretty good so far, hasn’t it?”

  Ryan drew his brother into a hug. “Yeah, better than good, in fact.”

  Maggie kept glancing at the door of the pub, hoping that Ryan would appear. When the time came to open and he still wasn’t back, she consulted with Rory and Maureen, and they insisted on opening without him.

  “I suppose you’re right,” she said, but it didn’t feel right.

  It was dinnertime and the pub was hopping when Ryan finally walked through the door. He didn’t seem the least bit surprised to see that everything was running as smoothly as usual. He simply took his place behind the bar.

  As relieved as Maggie was, she still wanted to smack him for worrying her. The first chance she had, she swung by and announced, “I have a few choice words for you, mister.”

  To her surprise he grinned. “Are any of them ‘I love you’?”

  “That’s at the end of the list,” she said.

  He sighed dramatically. “Then, you might as well start now, so we can get to the end.”

  “I would, but in case you haven’t noticed, the place is packed. I have customers who are already wondering where I am with their drinks.”

  He gave her a wry look. “Then you might be wanting to give me their order.”

  Maggie frowned and handed it over, tapping her foot impatiently while he filled it. Eventually he slid the tray toward her, then tucked his finger beneath her chin. “Thank you for worrying about me.”

  “Who said anything about worrying?” she grumbled.

  “I might not have much experience with it, but I do recognize it,” he said. “I’m sorry I was late. I needed to think.”

  “That’s all?”

  “That’s all. As you can see, I did not run my car in a ditch. There’s not a scratch on me.”

  “And your cell phone? Is the battery on that dead?”

  “I ought to say it is,” he said, his gaze locked with hers, “but I won’t lie to you, Maggie. Not ever.”

  She gave a curt nod. “That’s something, then.”

  She hurried away with the drinks, not because the customers were truly likely to be impatient, but because she didn’t want him to see just how happy his explanation had made her. He needed to sweat a little longer for making her worry herself sick. He needed to understand that what he did—or didn’t do—mattered to her.

  It was hours before they had another free minute. Maggie’s feet and back were aching from hauling the heavy trays around all evening, but it was a good kind of exhaustion, the kind that came from doing satisfying work.

  She was just about to collapse into a chair and put her feet up, when Rory emerged from the kitchen, his face ashen.

  “Um, you guys,” he said in a choked voice, “I think Rosita’s having the baby.”

  “Now? In the kitchen?” Juan asked, racing for the door.

  Maggie took one look at Rory’s panicked expression and stood up. “Sit before you faint.” She pushed him onto a chair.

  He gave her a pained look and popped right back up. “I’m not going to faint. And nobody has time to sit. She’s in labor, and I do not want that baby born in my kitchen. Is that clear?”

  Ryan patted him on the back. “Nobody’s going to have a baby here,” he said. “I’ve already called for an ambulance. Maggie, why don’t you go in there and make sure Rosita’s okay?”

  She frowned at him. “Sure, when it comes to babies, you big, strong men want to leave it all up to us,” she grumbled, but she headed for the kitchen.

  She found Rosita on the floor, clutching her stomach, her face contorted as another contraction washed over her. “How far apart are the contractions?” Maggie asked.

  “Very fast,” Juan answered, clutching Rosita’s hand and looking dazed. He slipped into Spanish, then caught himself. “This is the second one since I’ve come in here.”

  Maggie swallowed hard. That meant they had to be less than two minutes apart. Unless the paramedics arrived in record time, they were going to be delivering the baby here, after all. She knelt beside Rosita and took her other hand. Forcing a reassuring note into her voice, she said, “Don’t worry. It’s going to be okay.” She looked at Juan. “Tell Rory to get in here to boil some water. Tell Ryan to bring down all the towels he has upstairs.”

  Within a minute the kitchen was bustling with activity. The last customers had been told to send the paramedics in the instant they arrived, but by the time that happened, Rosita’s baby—a boy with a full head of dark hair—was already slipping into Maggie’s hands.

  “Oh, my. Look how beautiful he is,” she whispered, her
eyes filling with tears as she handed him to the emergency medical technician, who made quick work of getting a lusty wail from him. She felt Ryan’s arm slide around her waist.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked the EMT.

  “Looks fine to me,” he said, grinning at her. “You might want to consider a new career.”

  “I don’t think so,” she said shakily, then looked at Ryan. “The only births I want to handle from here on out will be my own kids.”

  Her words brought a surprising smile to his lips. “We’ll have to talk about that when things settle down,” he said.

  It didn’t take long for the paramedics to whisk Rosita and Juan off to the hospital.

  “I need a drink,” Rory announced, his color finally returning.

  “Buy one for everyone out there,” Ryan told him, his gaze on Maggie.

  “Where are you going?” Rory asked.

  “Upstairs. Maggie and I have things to talk about.”

  Maggie felt her heart flutter at the heat in his gaze, but she shook her head. “Not before we toast the baby,” she insisted.

  He looked disappointed. “One drink, then.”

  She grinned. “I think a sip will do.”

  He laughed. “That’s much better. By all means, let’s have a toast to the baby.”

  Maggie looked into his eyes. “And to all the babies to come around here.”

  Rory frowned at that. “Watch your tongue, woman. There are confirmed bachelors in the room.”

  Ryan grinned at him. “Only one I can see.”

  A huge grin spread across Rory’s face. “Well, isn’t that lovely, then? Congratulations, Ryan, me lad.”

  “Hold it,” Maggie interrupted. “Has anyone heard me say yes yet?”

  “Now that you mention it, I haven’t even heard a proper question,” Rory said.

  “Some things are meant to be done in private,” Ryan retorted. “And in their own good time.”

  Maggie promptly lifted her glass. “Here’s to the baby,” she said, taking a quick swallow of her drink before setting it on the bar and heading for the stairs.

  “Seems a bit anxious,” Rory noted as she left.

  She turned and winked at him. “This night’s been a long time coming.”

  “It’s been a long day. You must be exhausted,” Ryan said when he joined Maggie upstairs.

  “Ryan Devaney, don’t think you’re getting out of making good on your promise downstairs by turning all sweet and concerned. I’m not so tired that I can’t listen to what you have on your mind.”

  From the moment he’d seen Sean that morning, Ryan had felt as if he’d discovered a piece of himself. He’d also realized that the only way to make himself completely whole and give Maggie the kind of man she deserved was to go all the way and find the rest of the family. He hadn’t planned on officially proposing to her until he’d taken care of all that. But the way events had unfolded tonight had pretty much turned that plan on its ear. That didn’t mean they had to rush into marriage, though.

  “Shall I make a pretty speech, then?” he teased her. “Or do you know what’s on my mind?”

  “I think I know,” she said, sitting there with her hands folded primly in her lap. “But I want all the pretty words.”

  “You know I love you,” he began.

  “I’ve had an inkling about that for some time,” she agreed.

  He regarded her sternly. “Do you intend to keep interrupting? If so, I may never get through this.”

  “Sorry,” she said without much evidence of remorse.

  “You’re the most amazing, exasperating woman I’ve ever met. You’re beautiful and strong and intelligent…and before you say it, I know I put that backward. It’s because I get all tongue-tied just looking at you.”

  “Ryan Devaney, you’ve never been tongue-tied a day in your life,” she said.

  “I am now,” he insisted. “I’m terrified I won’t find the right words to convince you to spend the rest of your life with me.”

  She rested her hand against his cheek. “Any words will do,” she told him quietly.

  “Okay, then,” he said, feeling an irresistible urge to make her laugh before things got too serious. “Will you marry me and keep the books for the pub for the rest of our days?”

  As he’d anticipated, she began to chuckle. “So it’s a bookkeeper you’re really after, not a wife?”

  He cupped her face in his hands and looked deep into her eyes. “I’m not sure I know what to do to keep a wife happy,” he said with total honesty.

  “I don’t know about any other wife,” Maggie said, regarding him seriously. “But all you need to do with me is love me for the rest of our lives.”

  “That I can promise you,” he said.

  She held out her hand. “It’s a deal, then.”

  This time Ryan was the one laughing. “No, you don’t, Maggie O’Brien. This is the sort of deal that can only be sealed with a kiss.” He grinned at her. “And perhaps a bit more.”

  Hours later, when the deal was well and truly sealed, and Maggie’s warm body was curved against his, he sighed with a feeling of pure contentment.

  “Now all that’s left is finding the rest of my family, and then we can plan our wedding,” he murmured against her hair.

  She shot up and stared at him, looking as if he’d announced a delay in the arrival of Christmas or any other cherished holiday. “You want to find them first?”

  “Well, of course. Don’t you want that, too?”

  “Absolutely not,” she said fiercely. “Don’t get me wrong. I want you to locate each and every one of them for your sake, but that could take a long time, and I’m not waiting.”

  Ryan’s heart sank. “You won’t wait for me?”

  “I won’t wait to get married,” she corrected. “Then we’ll find the rest of your family together.”

  He stared at her. “You’re asking me to marry you now?”

  “Actually, I’m insisting on it. The sooner the better.”

  He grinned, but she noticed he wasn’t arguing.

  “Pushy woman, aren’t you?” he teased.

  “When I have to be,” she confirmed with evident pride.

  He pulled her back into his arms. “You’re really sure you’re willing to take me on without knowing everything there is to know about me?”

  “I already know all the important stuff,” she insisted. “For instance, you’re a great kisser.”

  He regarded her with amusement. “Am I really?”

  “Really great,” she confirmed. “And a fantastic lover.”

  “You think so?”

  She hesitated. “Come to think of it, I do have a couple of nagging little doubts. They could probably be wiped right out if you were to take me downstairs and make love to me there.”

  He laughed. “You’re really not going to be happy till I make love to you on top of the bar, are you?”

  “Try it and let’s see,” she dared him. “I’m pretty sure I’ll be ecstatic.”

  He called downstairs to make absolutely certain that everyone had cleared out, then carried Maggie downstairs and did his absolute best to see that she was every bit as ecstatic as she’d been anticipating all these months.

  When he held her afterward, he promised to keep right on making her happy for the rest of their lives.

  “If you don’t, my brothers will beat you up,” she warned.

  Ryan thought of the way Sean had taken an instant liking to Maggie. “If I don’t, my brother will beat me up.”

  “Then I guess you’re highly motivated,” she teased, deliberately wiggling her hips beneath him.

  “Highly motivated,” he agreed, right before he set out to show her just how motivated it was possible for a man to be.

  Epilogue

  Despite Maggie’s initial insistence on marrying before Ryan found the rest of his family, she was finally persuaded by her mother to at least wait until fall to give them time to plan a proper, lavish ceremony befi
tting the oldest O’Brien daughter.

  “In fact,” Nell had said with a sly gleam in her eye, “if you want to teach Ryan a bit more about romance, a wedding on the anniversary of your first meeting would certainly be a good way to start.”

  Maggie had been convinced, especially since it meant that the Thanks giving season would mean something special to Ryan and possibly even chip away at his general hatred of holidays.

  Besides, a fall color palette for the bridesmaids’ dresses had made her sisters happy. With the trademark O’Brien auburn hair, they all looked fabulous in shades of bronze and gold velvet.

  Maggie’s dress, a heavy white satin sheath with simple pearl trim at the low neckline and a dip in back, was far more elegant and sophisticated than she’d originally envisioned, but she’d fallen in love with it the instant she’d seen it. She made a slow turn in front of the dressing room mirror, still not quite believing that her wedding day was finally here after a wait that had seemed to last an eternity. In less than an hour she would be Mrs. Ryan Devaney.

  When she made one last turn, she met her mother’s gaze and saw that Nell O’Brien was trying valiantly to smile through her tears.

  “Mom, are you okay?”

  “You’re just so beautiful. They say every bride is radiant, but I swear I don’t think I’ve ever seen one who glowed with happiness as you do right this minute.”

  “That’s because Ryan makes me very happy.”

  Her mother smoothed an errant curl back into Maggie’s upswept hairstyle. “He’s a complicated man, your Ryan. That won’t change just because he’s been convinced to make a commitment to you.”

  “I know that. I don’t think he’ll ever truly be at peace until he finds the rest of his family.”

  “How’s that search going? Anything new?”

  Maggie shook her head, sharing in Ryan’s frustration. Jack was concentrating on finding Michael at the moment, and he’d run into one brick wall after another.

  “Ryan and Sean are ready to give up looking for their brother, Michael, but I’ve been pushing them to continue. I keep imagining that little boy they’ve described sobbing his heart out as they were separated. I know he’d be happy to see them again, that he’s been waiting for them all these years.”