Always My Girl (The Shaughnessy Brothers)

by Samantha Chase

  “I have to admit, I started doing the online stuff and researching car repairs as a way to impress Quinn, but as it turns out, it’s not so bad.” She shrugged. “It’s a lot like cooking—with the right tools, you can do almost anything.”

  Zoe gave her a small smile. “You need to be doing these things for you. You should be choosing classes and hobbies based on your interests, not Quinn’s.”

  “I have another two weeks of the auto-mechanic thing, so—”

  “Anna.”

  The reality of the whole situation was finally starting to sink in. Zoe wasn’t saying anything Anna hadn’t heard before—from her parents, her brother, and, if she were honest, herself. Looking up at Zoe, tears filled her eyes. “I just don’t know how to move on. He’s been such a huge part of my life for so damn long and I’ve been in love with him almost since the beginning. How do I just stop?”

  “I wish I knew, Anna. I really do. Maybe you need to, you know, step away from the situation for a while and try dating.”

  “I guess I can still go out with Jake.”

  Zoe shook her head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s still too close. No doubt Quinn’s name will come up in conversation, and that’s just going to keep you in this place. That’s the last thing you need.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe. But I have a feeling I’m not going to quit hearing from him until I at least meet him for a drink or dinner.”

  Zoe frowned. “Okay. So go for something short, like a drink, and then tell him you’re not interested. Hopefully he’ll take you at your word and move on.”

  Now Anna sagged down on the sofa. “Why does this have to be so damn hard? Why can’t I just meet someone and fall in love and be happy?”

  Once again, Zoe squeezed her hand. “Because you keep putting yourself in Quinn’s path. You need to make a clean break—no stopping by the shop, no baking cookies or bringing him food…none of it.”

  “Damn. How am I supposed to do that?”

  “Cold turkey. Trust me. I think it’s the only way.”

  “But—”

  “Go on the date with Jake. Maybe go out with your new coworkers and see if you like anyone there. Just…no Shaughnessys.”

  “But you’re a Shaughnessy,” Anna said with a slight pout.

  “Okay, let me clarify—no Quinn Shaughnessy. Deal?”

  It pained her to do it, but she agreed. “Deal.”

  * * *

  Ten minutes into her date with Jake, Anna was already regretting it. On the surface, Jake Tanner was the complete package. After a little while, however, she began to realize he was also a complete tool.

  The man talked about nothing but himself. His career. His cars. His conquests—yes, the man even talked about all the women who threw themselves at him. Anna knew she certainly wasn’t going to be one of them. Jake had pursued her. Relentlessly. Since she’d talked to Zoe, he’d continued to call every day until she said yes.

  It wasn’t as if Anna was a stranger to dating. She had an okay dating life, even with her stupid crush on Quinn, but this date was definitely one of her worst. Looking around the bar he had suggested they meet at, Anna wondered if the bathroom window was big enough for her to climb out of.

  Jake had gone to the bar to get their drinks, and when Anna saw him heading back toward her, she thought she was going to be sick.

  Placing the drink down in front of her, Jake sat down and smiled. “So tell me, Anna, how do you like selling real estate?”

  Wow. A question about her. Color her surprised. “You know, it’s not so bad. I’ve only been doing it for about six months.”

  “And what did you do before that?”

  “I managed a pub in town,” she said and noticed the bored look on Jake’s face. “I started out waitressing and tending bar every now and again, but then took over managing it and even did most of the cooking.”

  “Great,” he said, but his eyes didn’t meet hers. He nodded toward her drink. “You should try it. See if you like it.”

  She looked at him oddly. “It’s just a Malibu and pineapple. They’re pretty hard to screw up.”

  He gave her a weak smile. “Is there a big housing market here? I mean, it’s a pretty small town. Do you have to travel a lot to get listings?”

  And we’re back to me. Impressive. “I do have several listings in surrounding towns, but there are plenty of vacation rentals here that keep me busy, and I’m branching out into the commercial sector.”

  “Really? Like what? Shopping centers?”

  She shook her head. “Right now I’m working on a project for a large resort. The property was originally zoned for a subdivision, but it fell through—before I started working in the industry—and now we’re looking to build a luxury resort on the land.”

  “Very nice.”

  They were quiet for a minute and Anna realized she should probably ask something about his life. Again. Not that she really wanted to know, but clearly he didn’t engage in conversation unless it was about him.

  “So…what have you been doing since you retired from racing?” Clearly it was the right thing to ask because he immediately started talking. Taking a sip of her drink, Anna looked around the bar and wished someone she knew would come in and save her. It would be rude of her to just get up and say she wanted to leave and that she had no interest in seeing him again. One drink. She’d have this one drink and then tell him.

  “…I have a vacation home in Maui I love to visit…”

  Her head felt funny. She looked at Jake and could see his lips moving but couldn’t quite focus on what he was saying. The music and voices around her suddenly seemed like one long hum.

  “…my private jet can get us there in a couple of hours if you’d like…”

  “Excuse me,” Anna forced herself to say, and before Jake could say another word, she ran for the ladies’ room, certain she was going to be sick.

  Once she was safely ensconced in a stall, she fished in her purse for her phone. The screen was blurry, and she did her best to get her eyes to focus and find Bobby’s number. She hit “call,” and it went directly to voice mail. “Damn,” she muttered and scrolled again, hitting “call” and praying someone would answer.

  * * *

  “I’m telling you, Zoe, if my brother hadn’t found you first, I would have married you.”

  Zoe laughed out loud. “Good one, Quinn, but I highly doubt it.”

  “It’s true!” he said, slapping his hand on the dining room table for emphasis. “Your cooking is amazing. Can I have dinner with you guys every night?”

  “See?” Aidan said. “The way to a man’s heart truly is through his stomach.”

  “Leave my brother,” Quinn said, his blue eyes big and pleading. “We can run away together. I’ll get us a house with the world’s biggest kitchen.”

  Tears of laughter streamed down Zoe’s cheeks. “As flattering as it is that you only want me for my mastery of Irish cuisine, I’m afraid I’ll have to pass”—she walked over and kissed Aidan soundly on the lips—“because your brother here owns my heart.”

  “Well damn,” Quinn said with a pout. “All of the good ones are taken.”

  Zoe was just about to speak when her cell phone rang. “Excuse me,” she said with a smile as she picked up the phone.

  “Uh-oh, this can’t be good if you’re calling me already,” she said as a greeting. “Are you home or on your way there?”

  “Z…Zoe?” Anna’s voice was small and weak.

  “Anna? Sweetie, what’s the matter? Are you all right?” Both Aidan and Quinn stopped talking and turned toward Zoe.

  “I…I don’t feel right.”

  “Did you eat something bad? Are you sick?”

  “Drink,” she said. “Only one sip.”

&
nbsp; “Did you watch the bartender? Do you think something’s wrong with the drink?”

  “Jake…gone for a while. He got the drinks.”

  “Okay, okay. Tell me where you are, Anna. Tell me and I’ll be right there to get you.”

  “I’m in the bathroom. Don’t want to go back out there.”

  “Good. That’s good. Stay in there until I get there. But I need to know the name of the restaurant you’re at.”

  “Tavern…something tavern.”

  Zoe placed her hand over the phone and looked at Aidan frantically. “Where is the tavern? Some place around here with the word tavern in it.”

  Both brothers jumped up. Quinn demanded, “What’s going on?”

  “Something’s wrong with Anna. I need to go pick her up.”

  “No,” Anna mumbled. “Don’t send Aidan. Don’t tell anyone. Just you. You come and get me. I’m so embarrassed, Zoe. Please.”

  “Okay, don’t worry. I’m on my way. Stay on the phone with me, Anna.”

  “Can’t,” she said. “I…I think I’m going to be sick.” And then the phone went dead.

  “Damn it,” Zoe said as she ran across the room and grabbed her purse.

  “What’s going on?” Aidan asked.

  “Anna…” she began and then looked at Quinn and hesitated. And then it didn’t matter. “She’s out with Jake Tanner and…I don’t know. She said she took a sip of her drink and now she doesn’t feel right. She’s in a bathroom stall at this tavern place and I need to go get her.”

  “Son of a bitch,” Quinn cursed as he kicked his chair out from behind him. “Not again.”

  “What?” Zoe asked. “What do you mean by that?” She grabbed Quinn’s arm as he walked out of the kitchen but he didn’t stop.

  “We’re going with you,” Aidan said, opening the front door.

  “She’s scared and sick and embarrassed, Aidan. She doesn’t want an audience.”

  Quinn called over his shoulder as he went right out to his car, “Well, that’s too damn bad.”

  His car was out of the driveway by the time Aidan and Zoe got into theirs.

  * * *

  Anna’s head was spinning. Someone knocked on the stall door and asked if she was okay, and she merely mumbled her response. A few minutes later, someone else came and said her date was worried about her.

  “I want to go home,” she whispered and wished Zoe would get there and help her leave.

  After a few minutes, she forced herself to do the one thing she hated more than anything—throw up. If there was something bad in her system, she wanted it gone. Once she was done, she slowly got to her feet, and when the room stopped spinning, she left the stall.

  Her reflection nearly made her scream. She rinsed out her mouth and was about to leave the ladies’ room when two women walked in.

  “Don’t go out there!” one of them cried. “There’s a fight going on.”

  “Did you see him? I mean, he just came into the bar and walked right up to that guy and punched him in the face!”

  “I think I recognized the guy in the booth. He’s a race-car driver. You know…from NASCAR.”

  Oh no. Anna quickly made her away around the two women and pulled the door open—and ran directly into Zoe.

  “Oh thank God,” Zoe cried, pulling Anna into her arms. “Are you okay?”

  “I…I don’t know. I think so,” Anna said. The sound of a loud crash had her looking over Zoe’s shoulder. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m sorry. I really tried to stop him, but—”

  “Oh my God…is that Quinn?” Anna tried to step around Zoe, but she held her firm. “Zoe?”

  “Sweetie, don’t, okay?”

  “Why is he here? And why is he beating up Jake?”

  “We’ll talk about it later. Let’s get you home.”

  Anna’s head was starting to clear. She managed to outmaneuver Zoe and headed toward where Jake and Quinn were pounding on one another.

  “You son of a bitch!” Quinn snarled. “Is this the only way you can get women to go home with you?”

  “Screw you,” Jake spat.

  “I will end you,” Quinn said and got in one more punch before Aidan pulled him off.

  “That’s enough!” Aidan said, yanking his brother back. “The last thing you want is to make this worse.”

  Quinn broke free and turned on him. “Worse? This asshole drugged Anna!”

  “You don’t know that,” Aidan said, trying to be the voice of reason.

  “He’s done it before,” Quinn said, his breathing ragged. “Granted, it was years ago, but…it’s why she’s sick right now.”

  Neither of them noticed Anna’s approach. “You knew he drugged girls?” she asked, her voice small and shaky as she came to stand in front of Quinn. “You knew and you didn’t tell me?”

  “Anna, that’s not… I didn’t think… I had no idea you would actually go out with him.”

  She slapped him hard across the face.

  The room went silent.

  She looked over to where Jake was sprawled out on the floor and felt her insides lurch again. Placing a hand on her stomach, she forced herself to breathe through it. Then she returned her focus to Quinn and almost smiled at the red handprint on his cheek. “Honestly, the one time you don’t warn me off a guy.”

  Quinn reached for her, but she stepped away. “Anna…I’m sorry. Please. Let me explain.”

  She turned and spotted Zoe, who was now standing next to Aidan. “I’d really like to go home now.”

  Without a word, Zoe took Anna’s hand and together they walked out of the bar.

  Five minutes later, Aidan and Quinn came out, their expressions grim. “You should have taken her home,” Aidan said softly to Zoe when they got close enough.

  “We needed to make sure the cops weren’t coming and that you were okay,” Zoe replied. “Everything okay in there?”

  “We just wanted to talk to the manager and apologize for what happened. Sort of.” Aidan turned and took Anna in his arms. “You okay, kiddo?”

  She nodded and let out a shaky breath. “Yeah. I’m going to be okay. The fresh air is really helping.”

  “Come on, we’ll take you home,” Aidan said and turned them toward his car. “We’ll pick up your car in the morning.”

  “No,” Quinn said. “I’ll take her home.”

  “Quinn,” Aidan warned. “This isn’t the time. Let it go for tonight.”

  “No,” he repeated, more firmly this time. “Please.”

  Aidan looked at Zoe and then Anna. When she nodded silently, Aidan kissed her on the top of the head and stepped away. “Call us if you need anything,” he said as he put his arm around Zoe, watching as Quinn stepped forward and put his own arm around Anna. She immediately moved away and Aidan and Zoe couldn’t help but smile.

  “I think she’s going to be okay,” Zoe said quietly.

  “Are you kidding me? She’s going to be great. I just wish we could be flies on the wall to watch her do to him what he just did to Jake.”

  * * *

  The entire ride was spent in silence.

  Anna couldn’t wait to just get home, take a shower, and put the whole night behind her. It probably wasn’t the smartest idea, letting Quinn be the one to take her home, but she knew him well enough to know that if she hadn’t let him, he would have shown up eventually to check on her. Maybe now she could just get it out of the way and be done with him for tonight.

  “Thanks for the ride,” she said as soon as the car came to a stop in her driveway and reached to open the door. When Quinn shut the car off and she heard the jingle of keys, Anna turned and faced him with disbelief. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m coming in with you,” he said gruffly, his expression tinged with anger.

  “Um…no, yo
u’re not. It’s been a bad night and I didn’t invite you in.” Quickly, she climbed from the car and walked up to her front door. Quinn was beside her in an instant.

  “Seriously?” she said over her shoulder. He didn’t budge or even react, so she opened the door and stepped inside.

  Quinn shut the door behind him and watched her move around the house. “What’s going on, Anna?”

  Without looking at him, she nervously fluttered around, hoping he’d take the hint and just leave. “It’s been a long night. I’ve got a headache and I just want to go to bed.”

  “Do you feel all right? I mean…do you still feel sick from—?”

  “From the drug your friend slipped me?” she asked sarcastically.

  Quinn cursed. “Damn it, Anna, I swear it never occurred to me he’d do something like that again. It was years ago and it was never proven, but he’d been accused of it.”

  “You should have told me,” she said defensively. “You heard him ask me out in your shop that day and you didn’t think to warn me? I mean, what the hell, Quinn? You warn me off guys all the damn time! You once told me not to go out with a guy because he liked to listen to jazz music, and you didn’t think telling me Jake had a history of drugging women was important enough to mention?”

  “Okay, I’ll admit it, I screwed up! You can’t possibly know how sorry I am, but…come on. I’ve apologized. What more do you want from me?”

  She stared at him hard. “I want you to leave.”

  “No.”

  Her brown eyes widened with disbelief. “Excuse me?”

  “I’m not leaving. I think it’s time you and I sat down and talked.”

  “I don’t want to sit and talk, Quinn. I’m fine. I just want to go to bed.”

  He stepped farther into the room. “Quit shoveling, Anna.”

  “Shoveling? What the heck does that even mean?” she asked, looking up at him from across the room.

  “I know when you’re lying and when you’re just shoveling bullshit around. So spill it. I know you’re dying to light into me about tonight. And normally you wouldn’t have held back this long. You haven’t been acting like yourself lately and you’ve been blowing me off and I want to know why.”

  Anna rolled her eyes. “Okay, for starters, yes, I would like to light into you, but in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not quite feeling like myself. I had to stick my finger down my throat to get whatever was in that drink out of me. Excuse me if my feeling like hammered shit hasn’t allowed me to put all my attention on you.”