Page 12 of Hot Set

Jay’s smile is as warm as Bobby’s is sly when he picks up where Bobby left off. “And spills a traipse of moonlight across the crests of a blackened sea.” He threads his fingers through mine and squeezes. “Grand stuff, your words.”

My eyes lock on our joined hands while I soak in the compliments. It’s been so long since anyone has praised my writing. Any confidence I had in the quality of my original work is long buried under the pyramid of rejections after my agent, Jen, tried to sell my story. The kindness of these two sweet souls spills a few drops of moonlight across my own personal blackened sea. “I’m barely off the plane. A girl needs to acclimate.”

“You’ve got your golf clubs,” says Jay with a wink. He catches Bobby staring at our joined hands and pulls his free from mine. “What more acclimating do you need?”

My fingers are immediately lonely for his. I shake off the feeling. He’s one of three people I know in Ireland. I don’t want my drunken attraction to mess with these new friendships. “A place to live, for one. I don’t even know where to begin looking.”

Bobby waves me off. “Stay as long as you need in the company housing in Waterville near The Clan. On our dime. Problem solved.”

“The Clan?” I imagine myself camping in the woods with a hoard of wild, Celtic men.

“It’s what we call the studio complex.” Jay gives me a sneaky, sideways look. “Keeps things private.”

Bobby scoots his chair closer and dons a business persona. “I promised to ease you into the job, but that doesn’t mean I’ll ease up on tapping into your talent.”

It’s a whole new reality, this confidence Bobby has in me. My mind flicks back to my cubicle at Lawson Graham. I took a leave. I still have a backup plan if I can’t cut this new step in my life. The beautiful thing about a backup is that it allows you to take a risk. My lingering doubts about diving into this world begin to flatten like the thin layer of foam left on my Guinness.

Bobby snatches my nearly empty glass and holds it up to the light. “I’ve got you locked in for this season, and I’m betting you’ll be in for the series.”

“Let me guess. You never lose a bet.”

Bobby finishes my drink and bangs the glass down. “Exactly.”

I grab the edge of the table to keep from swaying in time with the room spinning around my head. Bobby said the show had a five-year pickup to cash in on the blockbuster status of the book series. That would mean staying in Ireland for the better part of the next five years.Wow.I will basically be moving to Ireland.

I’ve always wanted to see Europe. This is a great jumping off point to see Versailles, the Hebrides, and to visit my dad’s family in the Azores. The thread holding me to life back home stretches like a loose strand of spider silk in the wind.

Bobby lays a hand on the side of my face. “Gillian, are you still with us?” He doesn’t radiate heat the way Jay does.

I pat his hand and lean back. “Just trying to wrap my head around all of this.”

“Get wrapping. We have a table read tomorrow morning.” Bobby makes a clicking sound and nods his head. “You’re on the clock, Gillian Bettencourt.” He’s up and away so abruptly his chair rocks back on its legs.

I watch him cross the room. “Did I say something wrong? Is he pissed?”

The corner of Jay’s mouth rises. “As in drunk or angry?”

“Either.”

Jay crosses his arms. “You’ll get used to it. Our chieftain can click from pub guy to business in the twitch of a whisker. Bit of a Doberman, that one.”

I pull my hair out of the ponytail and twist it into a loose braid to keep busy. The pros and cons I’ve been weighing since I accepted Bobby’s offer flit through my head.

Jay grasps my hand again when I finish my braid. “Will you do mine?” He flaps a hand under the hair flowing across his shoulders.

Thanks to the perks of still being slightly fantasy drunk, running my fingers through that golden hair is an invitation not to be passed up. I walk behind his chair. “One or two?”

“A manly one.”

His hair is as silky as it looks. Any tangles relax intro straight strands at my touch. I purposefully drag the task out as long as possible.

Jay lets out a soft purr. “Golf isn’t all you’ve got a fine touch with.”

I pull one of the elastic bands from my pocket and secure the tail of his braid. “Very manly.” My arms ache to wrap around his broad shoulders to feel the power I witnessed on the golf course. I force myself back around the table to my seat.

“Thank you, Gilly.” When he stares into my eyes, I see thoughts streaming behind his. “As far as wrapping your head around joining the team for the short or the long of it, I see your subconscious saying ‘I’m in,’ even if your words haven’t caught up.”

“I didn’t realize the volume of my subconscious was up to full.”

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