Lilac Lane (Chesapeake Shores #14)(66)

“Wait!” Milos said, stopping suddenly.

“What?”

“It’s a pub, just like in Ireland,” he said excitedly. “I went to Trinity College in Dublin for a special program and went to many of the pubs there. Have you been to this one?”

“No,” she said carefully, panic starting to rise as she sensed what was coming next.

“Then we must go,” he said eagerly. “It looks busy, but the line is not too long.”

Deanna balked. “I thought you wanted hot dogs and ice cream.”

“We have all day. We’ll be hungry again. I want you to try something from my life in Europe.”

There was no way around it, not without revealing why she didn’t want to walk inside that pub. She told herself she was being ridiculous. Sure, she would be putting herself right in her father’s path, but even if he came out of the kitchen and looked directly into her eyes, what would he see? A college girl enjoying a meal with a friend. A stranger. Nothing more.

And if she caught a glimpse of him, one she’d been longing for, what was the harm in that? It would be an icebreaker of sorts, a way to make it easier when she faced him with all of her questions. She would have the advantage of familiarity, albeit no more than a glimpse.

“If it means so much to you,” she said, though she didn’t quite manage to keep her reluctance from her voice.

Milos studied her. “Do you really not want to go?”

Feeling guilty for stealing some of the fun from the moment for him, she shook her head. “Of course I want to go. Let’s do it.”

Inside, they left Milos’s name with a hostess, then ordered soft drinks at the bar and studied the crowded restaurant.

“Is it like the pubs in Ireland?” she asked him.

He smiled. “Exactly.” He grabbed a menu from the stack beside them and glanced through it. “The special is bangers and mash with onion gravy, one of my favorites,” he said happily. “Thank you for agreeing to come to Chesapeake Shores today. I was looking forward to an American tradition, but now I have a taste of something familiar to look forward to, as well.”

He seemed so pleased by all of it that Deanna couldn’t help being glad she’d relented. Just then a young woman came to lead them to a table in the corner. “Kiera will be your waitress,” she said with an authentic Irish lilt in her voice. “She’ll be right with you.”

Moments later an older woman rushed over, looking frazzled. “I’m sorry for the delay. It’s been a bit of a madhouse today,” she said, her apologetic gaze going from Deanna to Milos and then, suddenly, back again. Her expression turned puzzled. “Have you been in before?”

Deanna felt her breath quicken. “No. This is my first time here.”

“You look so familiar,” Kiera said. “But then we’re all supposed to have look-alikes, aren’t we?”

Deanna forced a smile. “So I hear.”

They placed their orders for the day’s special and Kiera hurried off.

“That was strange,” Milos said when she’d gone. “She sounded so certain that she’d seen you before.”

“It’s not possible,” Deanna said emphatically.

But she couldn’t help being shaken by the whole exchange. Was it possible that the waitress had seen some similarity between her and her father? Was that what had struck her without her even realizing it?

She realized that her friend was studying her worriedly. “Are you okay?”

“I think I just need some air,” she told him. “It’s very crowded in here and I think it’s getting to me. I’m sorry.”

“Go outside and try to find a place on one of those benches across the street,” he suggested. “I will ask for our meals to go and join you as soon as I can.”

“I’m sorry,” she said again.

Outside, the fresh air, hot though it was, helped, as did just being away from the pub. She found an available bench down the block and sank onto it, closing her eyes against the wave of panic that had sent her fleeing the restaurant.

“Deanna?” Milos said quietly, sitting down beside her. “Are you feeling better?”

She forced a smile. “Much,” she told him. “And I’m starving.”

They ate their meals, disposed of the trash and then walked back to the green to visit the booths at the art festival. Milos was such an easy companion, commenting on everything and clearly enjoying the entire experience that Deanna finally put the uncomfortable moment at the pub behind her and allowed herself to enjoy the day.

After spending the day shopping, walking along the waterfront and throwing a Frisbee in a nearby park, Milos insisted on treating her to hot dogs and ice cream.

“They’re going to shoot off the fireworks from the end of the pier,” he said between bites. “If we look now, perhaps we can find a place along the shore to watch.”

“Let’s do that,” Deanna agreed.

They’d just found another bench that had been vacated, when the first of the fireworks lit the night sky in a shower of red, white and blue. All around them, there were murmurs of delight and applause from the children nearby.

“Oh my! Look at that,” someone with a hint of Irish in her voice murmured from behind them as the next display exploded over the water.