Lilac Lane (Chesapeake Shores #14)(71)
“I had a restless night,” Kiera admitted. “I figured I might as well come here and have some strong coffee and a raspberry croissant. That usually helps.”
“I know what you mean,” Megan agreed, gesturing to the same order already in front of her. “What kept you up? Or is it something you’d rather not talk about?”
“Something I can’t talk about, unfortunately. It’s an unexpected situation, and I could use some advice but can’t seek it.”
“That is a quandary,” Megan said. “You could speak to me in confidence. I’d never break it.”
“I know you can be trusted, as could Nell or my father, but it’s not something I’m at liberty to discuss.”
“Which means you’re left to wrestle with it entirely on your own. That hardly seems fair.” Megan, usually quick to offer an opinion, hesitated. After apparently weighing whatever she wanted to say, she met Kiera’s gaze. “I know this may not be right for you, but my daughter Jess is married to a psychologist, if you think he could help. That’s entirely different from spreading gossip. Will’s a professional and he’s very wise. I think all of us have bent his ear from time to time. Even if we catch him on the street, rather than in his office, he keeps what’s said to himself.”
Kiera thought of the tall, serious young man she’d met at Nell’s. His adoring gaze had never strayed from Jess. That must have been Will. “I believe I met him at Nell’s on the day I arrived,” Kiera said. “I suppose if I can’t figure this out, he would be a good person for me to seek out. Thank you.”
“Now, since I can’t offer any support or comfort about whatever’s bothering you, tell me about yesterday. Was the pub as crazy busy as my gallery was?”
“I don’t think I sat down or took a breath from the moment the doors opened,” Kiera told her. “Everyone was so patient and understanding and they were all talking about coming back again.”
“I had lines at the register all day, too,” Megan said with satisfaction. “Moira’s going to be very happy with the check I have for her. Her photographs were among the day’s top sellers. It’s a good thing we’d already shipped the photographs for the show in San Francisco or I’d have been tempted to bring those out yesterday to take advantage of the eager crowds with their open wallets. I am going to contact the gallery in San Francisco and suggest he bump up the prices because her works are in such high demand. I think mentioning that her last show was a sellout could spur buyers out there to act quickly.”
“I still find it so remarkable that my daughter had this talent all along and only discovered it by accident,” Kiera said. “You’ve been such a blessing to her, Megan.”
“That works both ways. It makes me proud to see her doing so well. And I hear you’re going to San Francisco for the show.”
“I am and I can hardly wait,” Kiera said. “It’s only for a weekend, but it will be my first real sightseeing in America.”
And, she thought, it couldn’t be coming at a more perfect time, just when her life in Chesapeake Shores had taken such a complicated turn.
*
Bryan had seen very little of Kiera since he’d told her about his questionable marital status. He couldn’t blame her for avoiding him, but he was a little surprised by it. He’d thought her more likely to confront the situation head-on, reach a decision and perhaps tell him they no longer had a chance with each other. Perhaps, he thought wryly, the silence was an improvement over that outcome.
He glanced up and saw the very woman plaguing his thoughts standing in the doorway to the kitchen. She was dressed for travel in a neat skirt and a blouse he remembered all too well from the Fourth of July when it had been plastered to her skin. Even in the prim-and-proper outfit, she managed to exude an appeal he was having trouble resisting. How many times in recent days had he wanted to reach for her, to muss her hair, to steal a kiss that would put a lovely pink in her pale cheeks?
“You’re getting ready to leave, I imagine,” he said, stating the obvious. “You’re going to love San Francisco. It’s a beautiful city. And be sure you get across the bridge to Sausalito.”
“I can’t wait to see it all,” she admitted, though her excitement seemed oddly tempered.
“But?” he said. “I sense there’s something bothering you about the trip.”
“Not about the trip. I just can’t help thinking that it’s the worst time to be going,” she said. “We’re at the height of the summer tourist season. Luke or I should be staying. Since he belongs there with Moira, I think it should fall to me to be here.”
“Nonsense. The kitchen is in my hands,” Bryan said. “It’s safe enough.” He waited, daring her to say otherwise, but she simply nodded. “Okay, then. We have plenty of trained staff to handle the bar and the tables. Nell and Dillon will be in and out, as will Luke’s uncle Mick. In fact, I think Mick is looking forward to donning an apron and serving a few pints of Guinness.”
“I imagine he is,” she conceded. “He seems to fancy his Irish genes have given him a hidden talent for running a pub.”
“He certainly has a gift for talking to the customers,” Bryan said. “There’s a crowd at the bar every night just to listen to him spin a tale. Just go and have a wonderful time, Kiera. You deserve to see someplace new and to bask in your daughter’s great success.”