Page 27 of Fix You

Always a man of his word, Dare danced through several jigs with me. As much as I hated to admit it, I actually enjoyed myself. At least in the beginning. It was a way to get my mind off of my earlier conversation with Kellan and Eamon.

But with more and more people closing in around us, the familiar feelings of panic began to rise within me. I decided to feign hunger and escape from the dance floor. Thankfully, Dare didn’t make a big deal out of it. After grabbing some champagne and a plate of food, I chose one of the back tables. Although I was slightly hidden, I still had a good view of everyone.

As I dug into my braised pork, I watched Mam lead Caterina around to make introductions with all our relatives and friends. Even after I’d cleaned my plate and downed my champagne, Mam was still leading poor Caterina around. I could tell from her body language how uncomfortable she was. Thankfully, Callum appeared to put her out of her misery.

Leaning back in my chair, I watched as he took her to the dance floor. As they melted against each other, I battled with the green-eyed monster of jealousy. Maybe I needed to ask Callum to arrange a marriage for me. After what happened with Oisin, all of my brothers swore they’d never force me into a marriage.

But as I looked at the two of them dancing so effortlessly together, I wondered if maybe that was what I needed. It would certainly take away the pressure to find someone. Of course, they’d have to be told about my past.

Wrinkling my nose, I realized it would never work. I would be seen as damaged goods on the marriage market, so whatever man would agree to take me wouldn’t be the Knight in Shining Armor I envisioned.

Once Caterina and Callum finished their dance, my uncle Seamus stood before the band with a glass of champagne in his hands. To my surprise, Eamon appeared at my side with a fresh flute of champagne.

“Thanks,” I said with a smile.

With a wink, he replied, “You’re welcome, sis.”

He pulled me against him to wrap an arm around me. I then leaned my head against his shoulder.

“Good evening to all my friends and family!” Seamus said into the microphone. His words sent a roar up over the crowd. “We’re so happy that you all could make it on such short notice to celebrate the nuptials of Callum and the lovely Caterina!”

Eamon joined in with the appreciative whistles and catcalls. When I elbowed him, he asked, “What?”

“That’s your sister-in-law you’re whistling about.”

He grinned. “But she is lovely.Verylovely.”

I rolled my eyes good-naturedly. “Men.”

The attention from the crowd had caused Caterina to flush from her cheeks down her neck. Waggling his brows, Seamus continued on. “Before we all get plastered out of our fecking minds, let’s go ahead and raise our glasses in a toast to the new couple.”

As Seamus paused to reach for his glass, Eamon and I held ours up. “Comhghairdeachas agus le dea-ghuito Caterina and Callum!”

“Comhghairdeachas agus le dea-ghui!”Eamon and I echoed before downing our champagne.

When I turned to put my glass on the table, Eamon and the other men began chanting, “Phóg sé í! Phóg sé í!”

Caterina paled slightly at the remark, causing Callum to lean over to explain that they were telling him to kiss her. When she realized what they were asking, her face turned crimson. The next thing I knew Callum was jerking her against him. After sharing a few words, Callum ducked his head and brought his lips to hers.

The crowd once again went wild clapping and whistling. In the end, I couldn’t help clapping myself because it was quite a performance. When they finally pulled apart, they were both breathing heavily.

“Cal’s met his match, hasn’t he?” Eamon remarked with a grin.

“I think so,” I mused.

One of Caterina’s brothers appeared then and asked to dance with her. A laugh bubbled from my lips when Callum laid another big kiss on Caterina, which I’m sure was just to get a rise out of her brother. When Caterine and her brother started dancing, other couples returned to the dance floor.

Eamon and I sat back down at the table. He looked bored to tears, which I’m sure had something to do with the fact there were no loose women for him to hit on. Even at sixteen, he was already a terrible womanizer like my other brothers.

I, on the other hand, couldn’t help staring longingly at the couples. More than anything, I wanted to be out there dancing. But no one would dare approach me to dance. Although some would claim it was out of fear of pissing my brothers off, I knew the real truth.

They didn’t want to dance with me because I was tainted and broken because of my rape.

So I would be forced to watch from the sidelines while others experienced life and love.

I was so entrenched in my sadness that I didn’t realize Callum was standing in front of me. He held out his hand to me. "May I have this dance?”

In my sour mood, I merely rolled my eyes. “I don’t want a pity dance, Callum.”

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