Always My Girl (The Shaughnessy Brothers)

by Samantha Chase

  Aidan nodded. “But you did not hear it from me,” he warned them both and then rolled his eyes. “Honestly, when did I become the town gossip?” he mumbled as he walked away.

  “That was fun,” Zoe said as she watched her husband’s retreating back. “So you really had no idea about this female partner thing?”

  Anna shook her head. “Not a clue. Bobby hasn’t said a word. At least not to me.” She sighed. “I guess I’ve been so busy having my own pity party he didn’t think he could talk to me. I hate that. I’ll have to make sure we get some time to hang out, just the two of us, before he leaves.”

  Zoe nodded and took a sip of her beer. “I saw you talking to Steve earlier. Was he begging you to go and help out in the kitchen?”

  “No.” Anna chuckled. “But he did mention wanting to move to someplace tropical and open up a bar with his navy buddies.”

  “But what about the pub?”

  Anna shrugged. “I think he’s going to sell it. He asked me to stick around after the party to talk to him about it and he was praising my real estate skills, so I’m guessing that’s what he wants.”

  “Wow…just…wow. Too many damn changes lately.”

  “You got that right.” And as true as it was, Anna knew not all of them were bad. She was surrounded by so many amazing people, and even though she contemplated jumping on the moving truck with Bobby, she knew she would miss all of this far too much if she did. The people. The places.

  Quinn.

  Dammit. She had sworn to herself she wouldn’t think about him tonight. That lasted all of thirty minutes. Good grief, when was that going to end? If she was going to stay in town—and she was—she was going to have to learn to coexist with Quinn. They’d known each other too long and knew too many of the same people to avoid each other forever.

  “So what about you, my friend? What’s next for you?” Zoe asked as she maneuvered the two of them to a quieter corner.

  “I’m not really sure. Things are finally going well with real estate. It’s not my dream job, you know, but I’m finally out from under the mountain of debt I had.”

  “I know that’s got to feel good.” Zoe smiled.

  “It does. But other than that, I don’t have any plans. Work, work, and more work. I think I may want to do some renovations and updates on the house.”

  “Why don’t you sell it? You can afford something a little bit newer and bigger now.”

  “What do I need a bigger house for? It’s just me,” Anna said sadly. “Maybe I’ll get a cat. Or two.”

  “Oh no you don’t. You’re not going to become that person. I won’t allow it. There’s no need to do anything drastic!”

  “For crying out loud, Zoe,” Anna laughed, “it’s just a cat!”

  “That’s how it starts! Then it’s two cats, then four, and the next thing you know, you’re sleeping on the couch because the cats have taken over your bed!” She grabbed Anna by the shoulders and shook her. “Don’t do it!” They broke out in fits of laughter and Zoe pulled her in for a hug. “It’s gonna get better, sweetie. I promise.”

  * * *

  It was two in the morning and Anna was exhausted. She was helping Steve clean up—all of the guests were gone and only a couple of pub employees were still there. She yawned widely and Steve chuckled. “Subtle, Anna. Come on, come sit down and talk with me.”

  She followed him over to a booth and sat. “So I’m guessing you want me to get the ball in motion for you to put the place on the market.”

  He shook his head. “No. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and this place has been in my family since I was a kid. My grandparents started it—hell, my grandfather built it. It’s not a great place, but it’s been good to me and my family.” He shrugged. “I worked hard to keep up with everything and I’m proud of all I accomplished.”

  Anna reached over and squeezed his hand. “And you should be! This place is a local legend. An institution! Everyone who grew up here has a memory of coming to the pub. You and your family created something great, Steve.”

  “That’s why I can’t sell it, Anna,” he said, smiling sadly at her. “I’d rather see it close down than have strangers in here changing everything. Or worse yet, having some big corporation buy it and turn it into one of those chain restaurants or something.”

  She didn’t think he had to worry about that but decided to keep it to herself. “I hate the thought of this place closing, but I understand.”

  Again he shook his head. “But I’m not going to close it. I’m going to give it to a family member.”

  She looked at him oddly. “But you don’t have any family left. You’ve always said that.” Then she gasped. “Did you find some long-lost cousins or a secret child you didn’t know you had?”

  The bark of laughter nearly shook the walls. “Oh, Anna! You have quite the imagination!”

  “I don’t think it’s so out of the realm of possibility,” she said primly. “You hear about things like that happening all the time. You watch daytime TV. You know I’m right.”

  “Sweetheart, believe me, there are no Steve Jr.’s running around in this world. I can guarantee it.”

  “And the long-lost cousin?” she prompted.

  “Afraid not.”

  Anna leaned back against her seat. “Well, then I’m stumped.”

  Steve seemed to blush a little as he fidgeted in his seat. “Anna,” he began, “I took a risk hiring you when you were fresh out of college. But you were a fast learner and you always knew how to make everyone around you smile. Hell, I was a grumpy old man even back then, and you came in here like a breath of fresh air and a ray of sunshine rolled into one.”

  “Steve,” she said with a soft sigh.

  He reached out and took one of her hands in his. “I watched you grow up here. You came here at a time when I was ready to call it quits. I was tired and unmotivated and pretty much resented everything and everybody.”

  “You weren’t so bad.”

  He tugged on her hand and laughed. “You don’t need to sugarcoat it. I was a pain in the ass, and you used to call me on it daily.” He paused. “You turned this place around and breathed new life into it. Now, I know you’ve been working in real estate for a while, and I know why you went into it, and if you’re happy, then we’ll just forget we ever had this conversation. But if you…you know…if you want to take on something else, something of your own, I want to sign the business over to you.”

  “What?” she gasped.

  He nodded. “You’re the only family I have, Anna. You are like the daughter I never had, and I would be honored if you’d let me do this for you.”

  “But…but…Steve, I don’t have the kind of money it would take to buy this place! I couldn’t possibly—”

  “You’re not listening to me, Anna. I’m not asking you to buy me out. I want to sign it all over to you. We can just put your name on the corporation and all the accounts, and it would be a done deal. I’m debt free,” he went on. “The business has been doing really well, and I have an account set up for business expenses that would be yours. There’s enough to cover all the monthly stuff for at least a year, plus money to do any improvements you’d like.”

  She stared at him wide-eyed, certain she must be dreaming. “I…I don’t know. I mean, it’s not a big secret that I’m not in love with selling houses, but…wow. This is huge, Steve. This is really, really huge.”

  “I know,” he said solemnly. “And I don’t want you to answer me right now. I want you to take some time to think about it. I’m not in a rush, and we can take our time transitioning, and then when you’re ready, you can throw me out.”

  “I would never do that,” she said, unable to help the smile on her face. “I don’t even know what to say.”

  He squeezed her hand one more time. “Promise me you’ll think about it.”


  As if she’d be able to think about anything else.

  * * *

  For three in the morning, Anna was pretty wide-awake. She’d left the pub after hugging Steve until her arms went numb and then sat in her car for several minutes still trying to wrap her brain around what had just happened. At one time, she had considered the possibility of buying the pub from Steve, but she knew, financially, she couldn’t do it.

  I want to sign it all over to you.

  Right then, she really wished someone would pinch her so she’d know she hadn’t had too much to drink and was only dreaming. “I need to get home,” she murmured, starting the car. Sitting still, Anna let the car warm up a bit. She was grateful to her brother, but this car wasn’t in as great condition as Anna would have hoped. There was a bit of a chill in the air, and it took a few minutes for the heat to kick in.

  Dammit, she missed her Honda.

  And not her old Honda, but the new, shiny one she had stupidly given back to Quinn. “Should have kept it,” she said in disgust. “I’d be on my way by now, and warm.”

  Pulling out of the parking lot, Anna drove the deserted streets with a smile. This was her town. Her home. What Steve was offering her was an amazing opportunity and, if she was honest, a dream come true. She wasn’t happy selling houses, but it had helped her achieve financial stability. Anna knew if she did take over the pub, she’d not only have the financial backing from Steve and his business accounts, but she’d also have breathing room because of her own smart decisions from her commissions.

  Maybe she’d hold on to her real estate license and do it as an on-the-side thing if need be but put her primary focus on the pub. “Okay, pros and cons,” she said out loud. “Pros, no more dresses and high heels. Cons, go back to everyone looking at me as Anna the tomboy.”

  Hmm…not off to a solid start.

  Racking her brain, she tried to think of more pros. “I can cook as much as I like—pro! I’ll never have to be the low man on the totem pole—pro!” She giggled, feeling a little bit giddy. “I’ll be spending every day surrounded by friends! Pro!” She laughed again. “This is kind of fun! I could redecorate a little bit with Zoe’s help and then—”

  POP!

  Anna let out a small scream as the car immediately began to swerve. She tried to regain control but wasn’t sure what exactly had happened. She hit the brakes and carefully pulled over to the side of the road. Cursing under her breath, she shut off the car and took a few seconds to let her heart rate slow back down.

  “Holy crap.” Climbing from the car, she walked around it and found she had blown a tire. “Well, this just sucks.” Stamping her foot, she popped open the trunk and was grateful she had taken the course that taught her how to change a tire.

  The only problem? It was pitch-black outside and she was on a side road with nothing around, and she was majorly freaked out. Jumping back into the car, she slammed the door, locked it, reached for her cell phone, and immediately called Bobby. She hated to do it at such a late hour, but it was an emergency.

  “Hey, you’ve reached Bobby. I can’t take your call right now—”

  “Dammit!” she yelled and disconnected the call. She thought about calling her dad, but she knew he’d never even hear the phone at this hour. With no other choice, she dialed Zoe’s number and prayed their friendship could withstand a middle-of-the-night tire change.

  “H’lo.”

  “Hey, Zoe, it’s me,” Anna said softly.

  “Anna? You okay?”

  “Yeah…kind of. I blew a tire and I’m over on Elm and it’s pitch-black, and I was wondering if you could send Aidan to help me.”

  No response.

  “Zoe? Zoe, you there?” she asked a little louder.

  “What? Oh, shoot… Sorry, Anna. I sort of dozed for a minute.”

  “Crap, I’m sorry. I know it’s late but I don’t know what else to do. I think I can change the tire myself, but it’s so dark out and it’s freaking me out.”

  “Okay, okay…o…kay…”

  Anna heard a very distinct snore and then the connection was lost. “Well…shit!” Unwilling to give up just yet, she tried her parents and got no answer and even went so far as to call the pub, but Steve was already gone and she knew he’d had enough to drink that she wouldn’t feel good about having him driving around any more than he had to tonight.

  She wanted to cry. How was it possible that she knew so many people and there wasn’t anyone to help her? The clock on her phone now read three forty-five and all she wanted was to be home in bed.

  Her last resort was to call AAA. She waited through all the recorded messages, and when she finally got a live person on the line, she told them her issue, her location, and her member ID number and was finally feeling optimistic.

  “We’ll have a tow truck to you in three hours,” the operator said.

  “What! How is that even possible?”

  “There was a multicar accident on Route 74 and all the local trucks responded to it. There’s a chance one can get to you sooner, but I can’t guarantee it.”

  Anna groaned. Her first thought was how she hoped no one was injured. And while she desperately needed help right now, her only problem was a flat tire. A multicar accident usually meant much more extensive damage. There was no way she could begrudge them for getting the help they needed. The reality was that she could change the tire. She just didn’t want to.

  “Ma’am? Are you still there?”

  “I am.”

  “Someone will call you when they are thirty minutes out. Will that be all right?”

  “You know what? It’s okay, just cancel the request.”

  “Ma’am, are you sure?”

  “Yeah. I’m sure. I’ll…I’ll just find another option. But thank you.”

  “Okay. Have a good night!”

  Anna wanted to reach through the phone and slap the operator upside the head. “Have a good night”? For real? This was a nightmare and she had clearly exhausted all of her options.

  With a huff, she climbed from the car again with her phone in her hand for light and began to search in the trunk for everything she’d need to change the tire. On a good day—as in full daylight—it took her almost thirty minutes to change a tire. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind she was going to double that.

  Ninety minutes later, she was done.

  She was exhausted, sweaty, and filthy, and was practically seeing double from lack of sleep. Slamming the trunk closed, Anna stumbled to the driver’s side door and pulled—and almost fell back on her ass. On her second attempt, she managed to get it open and then just stood there as if trying to remember what she was doing.

  Off in the distance, the sun wasn’t even close to being up but she did see a light. “This is it,” she sighed wearily. “This is how it ends. I’m seeing the light. Changing a tire killed me.” She yawned and rested her head on the roof of the car. “I hope they don’t put that on my headstone.”

  Somewhere nearby, she heard a car door slam and her head shot up as she looked around. Was she in the car? Did she close the door?

  “Anna? What the…?”

  Quinn? Now she knew she was dreaming.

  Or dead.

  Quinn didn’t talk to her anymore and that was just fine with her. She looked over her shoulder and saw him sprinting toward her just as her knees gave out and everything went black.

  * * *

  Quinn drove with one eye on the road, the other on Anna. She had taken twenty years off his life when he watched her eyes roll back in her head and she started to fall to the ground. All night, he had cursed how he couldn’t sleep but now he was thankful for it. It was why he was driving around at this hour—he was going to the shop because he couldn’t stay in bed staring at the ceiling any longer.

  He wished he knew what had happened to her but she was out col
d. Pulling up in his driveway—his house was closer than hers—he quickly jumped out and ran around to the passenger side and picked her up. Once he had her inside, he strode through to his bedroom and placed her down on the bed.

  “Anna? Anna, baby? Come on, wake up for me, sweetheart.” He stroked her cheek and looked for any signs of injury. Other than being dirty—like she’d been working on a car—she appeared unhurt.

  Running from the room, Quinn went to the kitchen and poured her some water and then was immediately back at her side. “Anna, please, honey. Open those eyes. Let me see those beautiful brown eyes. Please.”

  She didn’t stir. Not sure of what else to do, he was about to call 9-1-1 when she moved. He whispered her name and watched as she tried to open her eyes and focus on him. He said her name again.

  “Dream Quinn…you need to stop talking,” she mumbled and rolled over.

  Dream Quinn? “Wait…Anna…what happened? Why were you on the side of the road?”

  She sighed loudly and rolled over. “Jeez, even in my dreams you can’t just be quiet and let me have my way, can you?”

  She was so adorable and obviously not really awake and yet Quinn couldn’t stop looking at her, talking to her in hopes of figuring out what had happened. “Baby, I need to make sure you’re all right. Are you hurt?”

  A loud yawn was her only response.

  Quinn repeated the question.

  “Just my heart,” she said as her eyes started to close. “You broke my heart.”

  “I know,” he said quietly, and leaned in and placed a kiss on her temple and then watched in mild amusement as she kicked her shoes off. She was dressed in a pair of jeans and a plain blue T-shirt and looked every inch the girl he’d always known.

  “Sleep,” she slurred. “Flat tire. Too hard to change…even with the classes, but I did it.” Another yawn. “I don’t need you anymore, dream Quinn.”

  And with that one statement, he felt his own heart break again. Unable to help himself, he ran his fingers through her hair and caressed her cheek. She hummed for a minute—just like she always had in her sleep when he’d touched her. With a sigh, he rested his forehead against hers and whispered her name.