Chasing River (Burying Water #3)(106)

“I have. Cheers.” He lifts his glass and takes a sip. “So . . . River tells me you’ve been doing a lot of traveling. Must be tiring. And expensive.”

“It is,” I admit. I’m basically working at the hospital to pay for flights. I think my dad’s going to have a coronary soon. “But it’s worth it.”

“Have ya given any thought to applying for a longer stay?”

“I have,” I say warily.

“And?” Duffy’s eyes twinkle as they flash to River’s. “What’s stoppin’ ya?”

My suspicious nature tells me this isn’t so much a curious bystander’s question as something the two of them have orchestrated. Peering up at River’s mock-innocent face, his jaw covered in a day’s worth of stubble, I can’t help but laugh. “First your mother, now the police. Do you have no shame?”

He grins. “I won’t give up. Never. Not until you tell me to go to hell, and even then, I’ll still be waiting.”

I stretch onto my tiptoes to kiss him.

“Would you just say yes so the bastard will start pouring beer again?” Rowen yells from his side of the bar, earning a bunch of cheers.

“Alright, already. Quit your whining,” River hollers back, kissing me once before pulling away to grab two empty glasses with skilled hands. “Maybe if you weren’t so slow . . .”

Rowen throws his arms up. “Can ya believe this? Have some respect. I’m an amputee!”

I shake my head at the two of them as they get the crowd riled up with their banter.

“Amber.” Duffy leans in. “In all seriousness, I have a few connections which should make some of the approvals easier. Of course, you’d still need to meet all the requirements if you want to work, but I can help. If you’re ready.”

I smile.

And nod.

Amber’s Travel Bucket List

1. Have a torrid affair with a foreigner. Country: TBD.

✓ 2. Stay for a night in Le Grotte della Civita. Matera, Italy.

✓ 3. Go scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef. Queensland, Australia.

✓ 4. Watch a burlesque show. Paris, France.

✓ 5. Toss a coin and make an epic wish at the Trevi Fountain. Rome, Italy.

✓ 6. Get a selfie with a guard at Buckingham Palace. London, England.

✓ 7. Go horseback riding in the mountains. Banff, Alberta, Canada.

✓ 8. Spend a day in the Grand Bazaar. Istanbul, Turkey.

✓ 9. Kiss the Blarney Stone. Cork, Ireland.

✓ 10. Tour vineyards on a bicycle. Bordeaux, France.

11. Sleep on a beach. Phuket, Thailand.

✓ 12. Take a picture of a Laundromat. Country: All.

✓ 13. Stare into Medusa’s eyes in the Basilica Cistern. Istanbul, Turkey.

✓ 14. Do NOT get eaten by a lion. The Serengeti, Tanzania.

✓ 15. Take a train through the Canadian Rockies. British Columbia, Canada.

✓ 16. Dress like a Bond Girl and play a round of poker at a casino. Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

✓ 17. Make a wish on a floating lantern. Thailand.

✓ 18. Cuddle a koala at Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. Queensland, Australia.

✓ 19. Float through the grottos. Capri, Italy.

✓ 20. Pose with a stranger in front of the Eiffel Tower. Paris, France.

✓ 21. Buy Alex a bracelet. Country: All.

✓ 22. Pick sprigs of lavender from a lavender field. Provence, France.

✓ 23. Have afternoon tea in the real Downton Abbey. Newberry, England.

✓ 24. Spend a day on a nude beach. Athens, Greece.

✓ 25. Go to the opera. Prague, Czech Republic.

✓ 26. Skinny dip in the Rhine River. Cologne, Germany.

✓ 27. Take a selfie with sheep. Cotswolds, England.

✓ 28. Take a selfie in the Bone Church. Sedlec, Czech Republic.

✓ 29. Have a pint of beer in Dublin’s oldest bar. Dublin, Ireland.

✓ 30. Take a picture from the tallest building. Country: All.

✓ 31. Climb Mount Fuji. Japan.

✓ 32. Listen to an Irish storyteller. Ireland.

✓ 33. Hike through the Bohemian Paradise. Czech Republic.

✓ 34. Take a selfie with the snow monkeys. Yamanouchi, Japan.

✓ 35. Find the penis. Pompeii, Italy.

✓ 36. Walk through the war tunnels. Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.

✓ 37. Sail around Ha long Bay on a junk boat. Vietnam.

✓ 38. Stay overnight in a trulli. Alberobello, Italy.

✓ 39. Take a Tai Chi lesson at Hoan Kiem Lake. Hanoi, Vietnam.

✓ 40. Zip line over Eagle Canyon. Thunderbay, Ontario, Canada.

✓ 41. Rent a moped. Greece.

✓ 42. Barely avoid mutilation and/or death by pipe bomb: Dublin, Ireland.

✓ 43. Make a foreigner fall madly in love with me. Ireland.