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More than pleased with Ginny’s news, Sophie slapped her hands on her thighs. “I’ll take you for as long as you’ll stay. When do you want to start?”
Before this went any further Keefe wanted to know more about whatever life Ginny had run away from. Clearly, Sophie wasn’t thinking straight or she too would have asked before offering her the job. “Ginny, you, you ran away from your life? What’s back home that you’re running away from? Are you in trouble?”
“Oh, no, nothing like that.” Ginny waved her hand in the air dismissing his suspicion. “But you know… the typical things you’d expect. Disappointed friends and family.” Ginny’s head dropped, and she looked away in shame. “The truth is, I was jilted at the altar.” When neither Keefe nor Sophie reacted with judgment, she raised her eyes, but her voice stayed low and forlorn. “Maxwell—that was my fiancé’s name—he ran off with my maid of honor. They didn’t even tell me themselves. Somebody saw them at the airport. They were leaving to go on what was supposed to be my honeymoon. And anyway, now everybody looks at me like I must have done something wrong. Even my own parents… Truth is, I’ve never felt so stupid and lonely in my whole life.” The twins couldn’t believe their ears. And with the way Ginny could talk, they expected more of the story, but then, just like that she was happy and bright again. She shook out her hair and smiled. “Look at me going on about my troubles. If I say any more, you won’t give me that job anymore.”
Keefe and Sophie shared a look and nodded. They liked this Southern chatterbox. “Ginny, do you like quiche?” asked Sophie.
“Yes…” Were they offering it to her to eat or were they going to slap a quiche in her face?
“Why don’t you stay for some lunch?” asked Keefe.
“Really? That would be so nice, thank you,” replied Ginny brightly.
Keefe opened the fridge and gestured for Ginny to take her pick. She didn’t hesitate. “You wouldn’t happen to have any sweet tea, would you?”
Of course, she asked for that. It wasn’t something she could find in Ireland. Unfortunately, Keefe didn’t have any either—but he wasn’t about to admit defeat. “I can make some,” he offered, already filling the kettle to boil. “You have a seat and I’ll have it ready in a jiffy.”
As he set to work, he remembered the batch of fluffy buttermilk biscuits tucked away in the freezer. Perfect. He could have them warmed up in no time.
While he busied himself with tea and buttermilk biscuits, Sophie did something unexpected—she offered her sympathy and opened up in a way Keefe hadn’t heard her do before—at least not to anyone but him. He kept his hands busy, but his ears perked up.
“Try not to be so hard on yourself, Ginny. I know what it’s like feeling stupid and lonely.”
“You do?”
Sophie took a sip of Coke and nodded as she lowered her glass. “My husband and I wanted children—well, him more than me if I’m honest but anyway, we tried and waited and when he’d waited long enough we went to the doctor. It turned out that I’m barren.” Sophie shrugged her shoulders. “Which, to my husband was the worst thing I could have done to him.”
“Oh, my God. I am so sorry.”
“Thanks. He had all sorts of ways to punish me. The bastard made my life a living hell.” Sophie exhaled a long sigh. “Anyways, he cheated with I don’t know how many women but he ended up getting his latest twenty-year-old secretary pregnant.” Ginny gasped, and Sophie nodded. “They had their first child before our divorce was even finalized. And now, they’re having another baby and getting married.” Sophie had said it all without any real feeling. No anger, no sadness, no nothing, really. That was all in the past now.
It was time to move on.
Ginny wiped her eyes and sniffled, asking Keefe for a tissue. He didn’t have one, so he offered her a kitchen towel. “And here’s me going on about my life and all that time you probably wanted to slap me silly and tell me to stop whining and pull up my big girl panties.”
Sophie chuckled. Ginny sure had a way of phrasing things. “I wasn’t thinking that, really, I promise you. Listen, Ginny, you’re just lucky he left you now before he stole your youth and ruined your life.”
“You really think so?”
“No nice guy would do something like that. He wasn’t ever going to love you. Good riddance to him.” Sophie pointed her thumb over her shoulder.
Ginny bucked up right away and with a very determined tone of voice declared, “That’s right! He really was slicker than a boiled onion and twice as useless—and his feet smelled all the time too—good riddance!”
No longer the least bit irritated, Sophie found herself laughing again. Ginny was a ray of sunshine. “Are you sure we’re from the same country?”
“Sure, we are! Only you talk faster.”
Keefe checked on the quiche, decided it needed another minute, then strolled over to Sophie. “You’re in for it with my sister, here.” He slung an arm around her shoulders, yanking her in for a dramatic forehead kiss. “She’s all fairy princess—right up until she’s not. Then you’ve got the devil herself barking orders. Trust me, I’ve got the battle scars to prove it.”
“Keefe?”
“Yeah, sis?”
“Shut your face.”
An idea then sparked in Keefe’s head. “Hey Soph, are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
Sophie looked up into her brother’s eyes and knew. “About the B&B?”
