Page 24 of Calling on the Matchmaker
As soon as the door closed and cut him off, she released a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. She pressed a hand against her chest to ward off the strange desire to chase after him.... Not to see him again. Most certainly not. Only to warn him, because the truth was, she liked him enough that she didn’t want to hurt him.
And if he persisted in pursuing her, she would end up hurting him one way or another.
All the more reason to put an end to this match as rapidly aspossible. Tomorrow she’d send Madigan to gather information on Riley, especially regarding all the things he despised, loathed, and abhorred. Once she had an arsenal of ammunition, she’d be able to prepare for strategically ruining his feelings for her until he ran away and never looked back.
8
At the sound of Madigan Shanahan’s voice in the hallway outside his family’s tenement, Riley paused, and his pulse hammered a sudden and unsteady pace.
Had something happened to Finola?
Riley’s mind jumped straight back to seeing her in the mud struggling to escape as the oncoming hackney hurtled her way. What if she’d fallen into harm’s way again and this time had gotten hurt?
Or maybe Madigan had come to relay a change of plans regarding tonight’s pluck-the-gander meeting with his father at the pub. Surely Madigan would have delivered such news to the wagon shop and not his parents’ home.
With only an hour until the meeting, Riley had left work early, gone to his room above the shop, and changed out of his dusty work clothes into a suit. He’d left enough time to stop by to see how his dad was faring.
Good thing he had.
“You’ll tell me tomorrow?” Madigan’s voice dropped low.
“I don’t know” came a shy reply ... from Lorette.
“You’ll be doing me a really big favor,” Madigan said.
“Then maybe I will.”
Riley held himself motionless so he wouldn’t miss a word of the conversation between his sister and Finola’s brother.
What was this about? It didn’t sound like Finola was hurt or that there was a change of plans for tonight’s meeting.
“Thank you, Lorette.” Madigan’s tone turned almost breathy. “I always have taken a shine to you with how sweet and pretty you are.”
Riley’s muscles tensed. Did Madigan harbor feelings for Lorette? Was that why he was here? Riley guessed the lad was about the same age as Lorette. But they were both way too young to start liking each other. Way, way too young.
He started up the stairs, surprised the two hadn’t heard the door open, but apparently they’d been too wrapped up in each other to pay attention to anything going on around them.
As he rounded the landing and made his way up the last set of steps, they came into view. Lorette was standing just outside the closed door of the apartment. And Madigan was leaning against the wall next to her much too closely.
At Riley’s appearance, Madigan straightened, and his eyes rounded with surprise. From the way Lorette was gazing at Madigan and with the flush in her cheeks, it was obvious she was enamored. It was likely inevitable since Madigan was every bit as handsome as Finola was pretty.
Even so, Lorette was too young to have her head turned.
Riley crossed his arms and widened his stance. “Madigan.”
“Hello, Riley.”
“Nip along. Lorette’s not allowed to have fellows come calling.”
“Riley, he’s not calling on me.” Lorette wound her hands tightly in front of her, her flush deepening.
“Then why is he here?”
Lorette darted a glance at Madigan.
He winked at her, then sidled past Riley and began to trot down the stairs.
“Don’t call on Lorette again, Madigan,” Riley called after the lad.
