by Moni Boyce
“Are you listening to me?” Les scolded.
Actually, she’d totally missed what he said. Her focus was on finding that damn passport.
“What hon? Can you repeat that?”
The buzzer sounded, alerting her that her sisters had arrived and were downstairs waiting to be buzzed up.
“Gotta go. I will call you back later and then we can finish this conversation.”
Les continued to yell and argue, but she’d already pulled the phone away from her ear. She hung up and left her bedroom so she could buzz her sisters up.
The conversation with her assistant… okay, that was wrong. Les was way more than an assistant. He was like an appendage, her right hand; he scheduled and ran her life. Without him, she would be completely disorganized. He’d been with her every step of the way when she finally launched her non-profit company, Helping Hands. After years of working for other nonprofits and start-ups, she’d finally struck out on her own and Les had come with her.
Anyways, her sisters were about to be here, and she was all wound up from her conversation with Les and the bombshell she was about to drop. Oh yeah, and Kaye was calling in from her honeymoon to take part. She was sure she was going to hear an earful from the three of them.
It wasn’t often she made brash or spontaneous decisions, so they were going to tell her she wasn’t thinking this through, but that was all she’d been doing… thinking. She couldn’t stop thinking. Which is why she had to do this.
Before she even opened the front door, she could hear her sisters’ high-heeled shoes clicking against the tiled floors in the hallway, along with their loud chatter. Jordan opened the door before they could knock.
“Elodie. Zoe.” She clapped her hands together and jumped up in down with excitement. Neither of her sisters lived in the city anymore, or in the state for that matter. So, they were always excited when they got to see each other. They threw themselves into each other’s arms and hugged.
After a moment, Elodie, her older sister, pulled away. “Okay so, what did you call us over here for? I know it wasn’t just to squeal and hug. What’s going on?”
The three of them stepped inside her apartment. Jordan shut the door.
“Elle.” Jordan couldn’t believe her sister always seemed to know when something was going on.
“What? I have a late flight to catch. Whatever tomfoolery you’ve gotten yourself into this time, I only have a few hours to help solve. Big sister to the rescue.”
Both Elodie and their baby sister, Zoe sat on the sofa and looked at her like they expected her to launch into whatever was going on immediately.
“What are we waiting for?” Zoe asked when Jordan didn’t start talking right away.
“Kaye’s joining us.” Jordan opened up her laptop and dialed Kaye on FaceTime.
“You pulled that poor child from her honeymoon?” Elodie chided her.
“This must be big news.” Zoe raised a brow.
Jordan looked away from her sisters without answering. She focused her attention on the screen while she waited for Kaye to join. A few seconds later, Kaye popped up, wearing a floppy beach hat and a bikini.
“Hey.” Kaye noticed her sisters in the background. “Elle. Zoe. I didn’t know you guys were going to be there too.”
“Hey girl. Do you know what this is about?” Elodie tried to get Kaye to talk.
Kaye lifted up her hands and shrugged. “I promise, I’m just as clueless as you. I just know that if your sister brought the squad together it must be something pretty big.”
She’d just finished speaking when her face lit up, her eyes sparkled with some hidden secret and her mouth fell open before breaking into a huge grin. “Was I right? Did Josh propose?” She flapped her hands and her smile grew even bigger. Jordan was sure she could see every tooth in her friend’s head.
“Is that why you called us all together?” Kaye was jumping up and down in her seat so hard, Jordan was afraid she was about to tip her chair over.
Her sisters popped out of their seats upon hearing that information.
“What?” Zoe shouted in excitement.
They crowded around her. Elodie nearly tackled her while reaching for her left hand. “Where’s the ring?” She turned Jordan’s hand over several times.
Kaye pressed herself closer to the screen. “Hold it up so I can see it. I want to see it too.” She whined while she moved her phone around trying to see if looking from a better angle helped.
Jordan yanked her hand away from her sister. “Josh did not propose.”
Each of them deflated when she told them there had been no proposal.
“We broke up… I broke up with him.” Jordan looked from each of their faces to gauge their reactions.
Elodie and Zoe dropped onto the sofa in shock. Their mouths were hanging open. Kaye had stopped her wild excitement and was gripping the arms of her chair in stunned amazement.
“Girl, are you crazy? Other women are out here fighting to find good men to date and you just broke up with one.” Elodie shook her head.
“If you want him so badly, you go marry him.” Jordan didn’t care that she’d just clapped back at her big sister.
“Did he cheat? Was something wrong with him?” Zoe asked the questions, trying to make sense of why Jordan had done what she did.
“There’s nothing wrong with him. I just realized I wasn’t in love with him. Maybe I was once, but I’m not anymore.” Jordan avoided eye contact.
For a moment there was silence.
“Is there someone else?” The question came from Kaye.
This was the part where she knew her next words would light the powder keg. She looked up and braced herself for the detonation. “Actually…”
Before she could get the words out. The three of them started carrying on again.
“You cheated on Josh? Mom and dad raised us better than that, Jordan.” Zoe shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. The look of disappointment on her face spoke volumes.
“I ought to beat your ass. Are you some fool’s sidepiece? Who is he?” Elodie paced the floor, punching her hand into her fist like she was ready to find whoever this mystery man was and get some licks in.
“Sweetie, no. Why didn’t you tell me? You shouldn’t have cheated, but I’m your best friend. I would have been there for you.” Kaye touched the screen.
“Would everyone please stop? I wasn’t cheating.” Jordan sighed. “I wasn’t cheating on Josh.”
Once they all calmed down, Jordan continued. She addressed Kaye. “At your wedding, I saw how in love you and Harrison were…” Kaye beamed.
Jordan turned to her sisters. “Then I saw mom and dad and how in love they were after nearly thirty-five years of being married and realized I did not have that with Josh and I never would.” She swallowed.
“This whole time, my heart has been in love with someone else… Conor.”
Her sisters looked at each other trying to see if the other one knew whom she was talking about.
“Conor? The Irish guy from New Year’s Eve eight years ago?” Kaye asked incredulously.
“Yes… that Conor.” Heat crept up the back of Jordan’s neck and she once again averted her gaze.
No.
She shook her head. Nope. She wasn’t going to let them make her feel ashamed of her feelings. They were valid.
Jordan looked up at her sisters and then over at Kaye. “Yes, I’m in love with him. I have been since the day we met. I’ve never felt the way I felt with him, with anyone else.”
“Where did all of this come from?” Elodie asked.
“I never stopped thinking about him over the years and over the last few months I found myself thinking about him more and more. Kaye’s wedding confirmed what I was already feeling and just couldn’t articulate. That’s why I had to end things with Josh. He’s a good man and should have someone that loves him fully. That woman isn’t me.”
Her explanation had each of them reflecting, so she t
ook the opportunity to tell them the rest of why she’d called them together. “I’ve located Conor.”
“Are you stalking him?” Zoe looked at her with wide eyes.
“What? No.” Jordan rolled her eyes. “Let me finish… He’s not on social media so it took a minute to track him down, but I found him.”
When her Internet search finally produced results and she located him, she’d paraded around her apartment, dancing, shouting and pumping her fists in the air.
“I have to know if he still feels the same, or if...” Jordan trailed off and glanced over at her bed.
Everyone peered over to see what she was looking at and got a glimpse of the opened, half packed suitcase on her bed.
“I’m flying to Dublin. I leave tomorrow. I found out his family owns a pub. That’s where I’m going to start. I’ll have exactly one month to figure out if there is anything between us.”
All three of them started talking at once.
“Are you crazy? You’re going to fly halfway around the world for some guy you haven’t seen or heard from in eight years.” Elodie was up again out of her seat, waving her hands around while she talked at her like she was still just her kid sister.
“What are you thinking?” Zoe leaned forward and placed her hand on Jordan’s leg. She looked genuinely concerned.
“He’s never contacted you in all this time. This is foolish.” Elodie tried to get through to her once more.
“What are mom and dad going to say?”
Did Zoe really just try and threaten me with telling mom and dad? I’m a grown ass woman.
Whatever Kaye was saying was drowned out by her sisters. Jordan could see she was wildly gesturing and squawking, the same as Elodie.
Jordan sat in the oversized armchair in her living room and let them rant, while she tuned them out.
When she’d made the decision to search for him, there was never any doubt about whether she should do this. She was either going to get closure and could move on with her life or…
It was the “or” that had her heart beating madly in her chest. What if he wanted her too? She pulled the large fluffy, black stuffed animal Conor won for her at Coney Island the night they met, onto her lap. She stroked the ear and waited. There was nothing they could say that would make her change her mind.
After ten minutes, the three of them started winding down. Elodie finally returned to her seat.
“Are you all finished?” Jordan looked at each of them pointedly.
“Conor and I have unfinished business. Either I’m coming home with my Irishman or… I’m coming back here with an Irishman.” Emphasis was placed on the word ‘an.’
This sent all of them into peals of laughter. Both Zoe and Elodie fell back against the sofa cracking up at her joke. Kaye kicked her feet in the air and giggled.
Whether Conor was into her or not, Jordan had already planned to be gone a month. Maybe she would meet someone else in Dublin. Of course, her heart didn’t want just any Irishman. It wanted Conor.
She sobered. “Listen. I thought about this a lot. I didn’t bring you guys together to ask for permission. I just wanted your support.”
The whole atmosphere in the room shifted.
“This is so romantic,” Kaye blubbered. “I wish I was there to go with you.”
“Girl, you’re on your honeymoon.” Elodie scolded Kaye.
Her big sister turned to her. “I could take time off and go with you.” The offer was made in a soft, hopeful plea.
She knew her sister was trying to apologize for her behavior. Jordan reached across the coffee table and squeezed her hand.
“Thank you, but no, I have to do this on my own. I’m glad you guys have my back.” Relief washed over her that they’d all finally come around.
“What about your big funding meeting with that guy?” Zoe asked.
“It’s in a month. Les is handling things. I’ll still be working some while I’m gone, but most things are taken care of already.” Jordan reassured them.
She stood and her sisters did too. They pulled her into a tight hug.
“Aww, I wish I was there too, so I could hug you. Group hug.” Kaye hugged her screen.
Jordan chuckled. “Thanks, you guys.”
Now that she’d dealt with Kaye and her sisters, her mind turned to her trip. What was she going to find when she turned up in Dublin? She hadn’t seen any mention of a wife or children. That was a good sign. But, did he still remember her? Think of her? Care for her? Well it was too late for her to back out now. She’d already spent a non-refundable fortune to figure out the answer to all those questions.
4
Conor
The days when Conor got to come sit in the park and sketch were lovely. They were so few and far between and he treasured them. From a small boy, he’d fallen in love with architecture. He had notebooks full of some of his favorite buildings in the city and some notebooks were even full of architecture from New York City he’d done when he was there. There was only one notebook that contained drawings and sketches of the things he’d hoped to build. It was tucked away somewhere in a drawer. It had been ages since he’d added anything to it.
He shielded his face from the sun, as he looked up at the Gothic/Romanesque architecture of Christ Church Cathedral and studied the buttresses. Once he’d captured them in his mind he added to the sketch on his notepad.
Locals and tourists passed by comprised of families, couples and people alone. Conor wasn’t fazed by the noise. He was in his own little world when he was drawing.
It had been slightly over an hour since he left the house. The physical therapist always worked with his father for two hours. Usually, he’d have to return home to be with his father, but Cash had agreed to stay with him. Conor had practically a full day to himself. He was meeting up with his childhood friend, Eoin, for lunch.
It wasn’t often they got to meet up. Conor had obligations: his father, the pub. Sometimes, Eoin came to the pub after work and hung around.
Conor stayed at the church sketching for another half an hour before he drove over to Ranelagh. Eoin wanted to try out some new eatery. It would be nice to have something other than pub food, which was threatening to expand his midsection.
Thanks to morning runs, constant physical labor, playing rugby and the occasional sparring session with Cash, he stayed pretty fit.
When he pulled up to the restaurant Eoin was waiting outside, having some heated conversation on his mobile.
Conor got out of his car and waited patiently on his friend to finish his call.
Eion jabbed his finger on the End call button. “Bloody ex-wives. Friggin’ hell. It’s always the kid needs this or that. I give her money, but it’s never enough. Maybe I should have stayed a bachelor like you.” Eoin punched his shoulder.
Conor gave a humorless chuckle and punched him back. Being alone wasn’t by choice.
“I’m starving. I’ve heard the food here is really class.”
Eoin had a reservation so when they walked in it only took a few minutes for them to be seated.
“I’m headed to the jacks. Order me a whiskey neat.” Eoin headed off.
Conor perused the menu while he waited for his friend to return. A nice rare steak was just what he needed. When the waitress stopped by, he placed Eoin’s drink order and just ordered a pint of Guinness for himself.
“Did I miss anything?” Eoin took a seat and grabbed his menu.
Conor shook his head.
“A ribeye or sirloin sounds lovely.” Eoin shut the menu and launched into more complaints and denigrations of his ex-wife.
Sometimes Conor wondered if Eoin invited him to lunch just so he could bitch about her. When the waitress came back with their drinks and took their orders, he felt relief that for a few moments Eoin had to close his mouth. Conor was glad they were friends, but sometimes he wished Eoin knew when to shut it.
Thankfully, Eoin got a call after the waitress left and had to step away. The reprieve
from his constant chatter was a blessing. Conor checked some emails on his mobile. By the time his friend returned the waitress was bringing their food over.
“Guess who I saw out the other night?” Eoin peered at him while he sipped his whiskey.
“I dunno. Who?” Conor wished Eoin would stop being cryptic and just tell him.
“C’mere to me and I’ll tell ya.”
Conor leaned forward slightly, to give the impression he wanted to know the information.
“Aoife… She was asking about you. Wanting me to help her get the two of you back together.”
Now Aoife was trying to get to him through his friends? Why couldn’t she just accept that things were over between them?
“What’s the deal between the two of you?”
“That’s just it. There is nothing between us. She broke it off nearly two years go. For a time, I kept riding her, but a short while later I ended it.” Conor shrugged. “No mystery. I don’t want to get back together.”
He cut into his steak and hoped that was the end of the matter, but in true Eoin fashion he had to offer his opinion.
“Well, we’re not getting any younger, are we? Here you have this gorgeous girl begging you to give her the business every time she steps foot in the pub. She’d probably even polish your nob in the kitchen if you asked.” One of the waitresses walked by at that moment and glared at them.
“Keep your voice down.” Conor hissed.
“I’m just saying, that’s how badly she wants you, and you keep shoving it away. I don’t understand. You should at least consider it.” He finally shut up for a bit and shoveled some food into his mouth.
“I will yeah.” Sarcasm dripped from every syllable.
Eoin smirked at his response.
Conor grinned broadly and took a bite of his food.
“Rugby club is starting back up soon. Not sure if we should stay on Emerald Warriors or join Lansdowne. That wanker, Kieran, is joining the team again and I don’t know if I want to put up with his shite.”
Eoin droned on, but Conor had already tuned him out. He was always amazed by his friend’s ability to transition from one topic of conversation to another with no problem.