Page 36 of Midnight Escape

Laura waved her hand at Moira in a “hurry up” gesture. “Go ahead. It’s a necessity for our outfits.” Laura’s assertion it would be paid for had her examining the tube.

Unease gripped her at what the tube contained. Then she silently laughed at herself for being so foolish. Her friends were only having fun with her.

Opening the tube and carefully peeking in caused her friends to laugh even more. Moira twirled the base and a tube of green lipstick appeared. Green. After this festival, she’d probably remove green from her palette because she wouldn’t be able to look at it for a long while.

“Are you kidding me?” Moira twirled the lipstick down into its tube and handed it back to Laura. Saying the first thing that came to mind as to why she couldn’t wear it, she blurted, “I don’t want to take yours. It’s okay. Next year, I’ll remember to buy some.”

Laura held her hands up and shook her head. “Oh, this is yours. I have mine in my pocket.” She reached down, pulled it out and, in the small mirror, probably designed for patrons to view their silliness, Laura applied the lipstick, rubbed her lips together, then opening them with a pop. “Before you ask, yes, I paid for them.”

Seeing no way out of copying Laura, she moved to the mirror and raised the lipstick again.Come on.Who thought of that color for their lips?

She closed her eyes for moment to kickstart her into doing this little thing. She knew she’d look ridiculous and maybe that was her hang-up. Their goal was to have fun. With that, she applied the lipstick, popped her lips together to blend it, and stared at her green lips in the mirror. It was worse than she’d thought. She had to get the hideous color off her mouth.

Reaching into her purse to grab a tissue and wipe her lips clean, someone bumped her from behind, knocking her a bit off balance. Reflexively, she jerked her head up and saw an older man weaving down the aisle. She shook her head and thought of how she’d not been staying aware of her surroundings like Danny had taught her. It’d been easier in her booth, but moving around, well, she couldn’t let her guard down. Granted, Danny didn’t expect that trouble had followed her, but she had promised to listen to him on all-things security.

Such as, he’d said that he wanted someone with her all the times. He hadn’t specified who, so she’d thought Laura and Luke would do. Realizing it could be easier for someone to sneak up on her than she expected, she wished it was Danny though. Not only did she trust him, but they had a friendship that made her want them to be more.

With a sense of unease in her stomach, she scanned the room while asking, “Are we ready for pictures?” With Laura’s and Luke’s grins, Moira moaned. Something told her she wouldn’t be wiping off the lipstick anytime soon.

After Luke took what felt like a hundred pictures of her and Laura, while they posed in all kinds of silly positions, the two of them began switching items and grabbing more from the table. Moira’s laugh had been so belly deep that she’d felt freer than she’d expected to again before she’d left Ireland. No, she’d felt that free with Danny. She wanted to show him she could survive without constant watching. She understood if danger touched American soil, her security would change. Until then, she’d remain vigilant while enjoying herself.

The big plastic clover clamp earrings caught her eye. She had to wear them, just had to.

The woman running the booth laughed and walked to her.

“Let me.” One of the women came over to her with a sticker and she stiffened.

When she reached toward her face, Moira quickly stepped back, unsure of what to expect.

“Moira, it’s okay. Look, I’m getting one right now.” Laura laughed.

In the groove of it, she nodded. “Go ahead—wait, is it permanent?” A slap to her forehead was warranted, but she held it back. Of course it wasn’t permanent.

With a chuckle, the woman put it to her cheek before she answered, even though Moira had already figured it out. “No, it’s not permanent.”

After a few minutes of a wet rag on her cheek, Moira hurried to the mirror. This time, excitement lit her curiosity. Deciding she needed more green lipstick, she pulled it from her jeans pocket and reapplied, then laughed.

Luke and Laura went quiet and she wondered what they planned next. Even with her fear of this and that, she’d truly had fun. If only she could take them back to Ireland. Back to where though? She’d surely lost her small flat.

Blinking her eyes back into focus, she saw a head appear in the mirror behind her. She squeaked and jumped back, but not before she witnessed her face in the mirror pale. How did he find her?

“Am I interrupting?”

At the familiar voice, she whirled around and lost her balance. She’d never heard this level of anger coming from the man with the heavy scowl. Her chest tightened with fear and relief at seeing him. “Hi,” she said breathlessly and wished her voice had sounded stronger and less ‘damsel in distress.’

Danny’s brooding look and raised eyebrow didn’t stop Moira from wanting to throw her arms around him, but she refrained. Considering he’d tracked her down, he might not be in a welcoming mood. Concern for that mood set her system on alert.

Glancing to the side of Danny, she noticed another man and smiled. “Hi, I’m Moira.” That smile and twinkle in his eyes told her he was trouble. “Wait, don’t tell me. You’re Cowboy.” She didn’t expect too many of Danny’s friends to wear cowboy hats in Maryland.

“Yes, ma’am. I certainly am. And it’s a pleasure to finally meet you, little darlin’.”

“Oh, Christ,” Danny said in a low sigh.

When Danny’s gaze swung back to her, rapidly coiling tension in her stomach loosened, wreaking havoc on her nervous system. She’d done nothing wrong. She’d followed his instructions, even though she’d questioned her decision, but he hadn’t complained before when she spent time with her friends. Come to think of it, why was he here? Had something happened to her brother since she’d spoken with him? Why hadn’t someone called her? Then again, they could’ve, and she hadn’t heard the ringer. The bands had drowned out smaller sounds.

“Why are you here? Have you heard something from my brother? Is he okay?” She reached in her pocket to check the phone she should’ve looked at sooner.

In answer to her questions, he grunted, “Come on, we’re leaving.”

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