Page 59 of Puck of the Irish

“Sláinte!” we all echo, and hearing the word first in Hattie’s southern twang and then in Jules’ thick Bostonian accent, has us all dying laughing.

“Murphy MacManus said it best: It’s St. Paddy’s Day—everyone’s Irish tonight! Drink up, assholes!”

We all cheers again, chugging the rest of our drinks.

“So, where’s this other party?”

“At The Bowery,” AJ says, wrapping his arms around me from behind. “But it’s up to you if you want to go, or if you’d rather celebrate…privately.” He leans in and whispers the last word directly into my ear and I shiver violently.

Just when I’m about to tell him that the answer is definitely Option B, I notice someone else standing just inside the roomfrom the foyer and I freeze. The surprises just keep on coming tonight apparently.

“Dad?”

Twenty-Five

RIZZO

This isthe best night of my fucking life. I hadn’t been worried exactly, but I’d been nervous as hell. It’s batshit crazy but, well, what about Nat and me hasn’t been? It may be insane, but I know it’s completely and totallyright. I spent most of my adult life loving the freedom of not being tied down. But now, all I want is to be tied to Nat in every possible way for the rest of my life. When you know you want forever, why wouldn’t you want forever to start as soon as fucking possible? So, yeah, I don’t give a shit if anyone else thinks it’s too fast or too crazy or too whatever else.

Knowing I was going to do this is the reason I hadn’t asked Nat to move in the second that she had the fight with her dad that day. I figured it would be way smoother to ask myfiancéto move in. I have a flare for the dramatic, what can I say?

Everything had gone perfectly to plan—even this newest development was a contingency I’d planned on, just in case.

Charles Harrington stands on the other side of the room, looking only the tiniest bit flustered. Nat stiffens in my armswhen she sees him and I straighten. He meets my gaze and gives me a nod of understanding and a bit of respect, and I return it.

Nat turns to me, confusion in her eyes.

“What’s going on? Did you call him?”

“I…just laid out some facts and let him do with that information what he would. But I think you two should go talk now that he’s here. He doesn’t completely deserve it, but…olive branches and all that.” I shrug. “Use the office.” I give her what I hope is an encouraging look and kiss on the forehead. She looks a little skeptical, but there’s a bit of hope there too. Despite everything, I know she doesn’t want to cut her dad out of her life. They may not have the easiest relationship, but he’s still her dad and I know she loves him. She nods and walks towards her father. He tenses but follows when she gestures down the hall.

I let out a long breath. I hope to God this doesn’t turn out to ruin this entire fucking night. If it does, at least maybe I’ll have a good excuse to punch the guy.

I think back to my meeting with him yesterday.

I’d gone to his office and to his credit, he hadn’t just had security toss me out immediately. His office is on the top floor of one of the tallest buildings in Seattle and the room itself and the view very much giveMaster of the Universe. He’d been seated behind his massive mahogany desk and looked stoic as hell when I’d walked in. He probably intimidates most people, but my hands had clenched into fists as I’d stalked inside, remembering the shit he’d said to Nat that day at her place, and he didn’t look intimidating to me. He looked small and pathetic, but I forced myself to keep my cool. I had things to say and decking the guy probably wouldn’t help matters.

“And to what do I owe this pleasure?” he’d asked, the sarcasm so sharp it could cut through steel.

I held up a hand.

“That’ll be the last bit of talking you do for the next few minutes or I swear to God I’ll put you through a wall for the way you spoke to Natalie last time I saw you.” He’d narrowed his eyes, his jaw clenching, but I’d given him a look that told him I was dead fucking serious and he apparently believed me, so I continued on when he remained quiet.

“I’m here to talk, not to have a conversation. I’m asking Natalie to marry me tomorrow night.” His eyes widened a fraction in surprise, but he didn’t try to comment. Smart man. “I’m not here to ask you for permission—you don’t have any right to have a say in her life after how you’ve treated her, and I’m pretty sure Nat would kick my ass if I actually asked you anyway—I’m just here to tell you to your face that I’m going to marry your daughter. I love her more than anything else on this earth and I’m going to give her the best possible life that I can. I will use every single breath that I have making sure she knows how fucking amazing and beautiful and smart and talented and special she is, making sure she knows how loved she is. You don’t deserve to know, but I’m telling you anyway, because if I’m ever lucky enough to have a daughter of my own, I sure as shit would want to hear this from the man who wanted to marry her.”

His jaw worked beneath his short beard as he clenched and unclenched his teeth, but there was more than just anger in those gray eyes then, the eyes that are so much like Nat’s that it’s startling. There was…regret. Hurt. Maybe even a little shame.

I’d leaned forward and thrown a piece of paper on his desk—my address and a time.

“If you decide to get over your bullshit, there you go. If not, well, it’s your loss, honestly, not hers. But I know what it’s like to have a parentchooseto walk out of your life and she deserves better than that. Make the better choice. Just because her life may not be the one you pictured for her doesn’t mean it’s not a damn good one.”

With that, I’d turned and walked out of his office without a backwards glance.

“Damn, I still can’t believe Nat is really a Harrington,” Bobby says taking a sip of his champagne and wrinkling his nose, pulling me out of the memory. I laugh.

“Want a beer instead? I’ve got plenty.”

“Oh God yes, please. I’ve never liked this stuff. Probably stems from projectile vomiting after drinking too much of it at my cousin’s wedding when I was like fourteen.”

---