As Bad As Can Be (10 page)

“And how would you be knowing that, Mr. Arbiter Of Western Taste?” Fiona challenged him.

“I've just been hearing things.” A slow tide of red began creeping up his cheeks.

“Oh, and it's a surprise you haven't taken a look yourself.”

“Take a look at what?” Colin's sister Shana leaned against the bar. “Two pints of Murphy's while you're at it, Col.”

“The depraved dancing girls at Bad Reputation, that's who,” Fiona answered her. “He thinks they're going to ruin the morals of everyone in Newport.”

Shana laughed, tucking a strand of hair behind her triple-pierced ear. “As if. Colin, you old fuddy-duddy. He likes to think he's much more free-thinking than our stodgy Shay, but he's really no better,” she confided to Fiona.

“So I've already told him,” Fiona agreed.

“Hey, I'm here, in case you haven't noticed,” Colin said, setting the last glass on her tray. “I'm just saying that if you guys are going out tonight, you might want to skip that bar. I mean, it's too loud to talk and the only thing to look at is the dancing girls.”

“Well, maybe we like looking at dancing girls, did you ever think of that?” Fiona challenged him, eyes sparking with devilry.

“Yeah.” Shana threw Fiona a wink and slung an
arm around her waist. “How do you know what we get up to?”

Colin gave them a thoughtful look. “If you weren't my sisters, I'd ask if I could watch.”

“I'm not your sister, Colin O'Connor,” Fiona flared.

“I was joking, Fee,” he protested. “When did you get such a thin skin, anyway? A person would—” He looked beyond them and his eyes grew round.

Fiona and Shana turned to follow his stare and saw Shay walk through the door with a willowy, dark-haired woman.

“Good Lord,” Fiona began, “isn't she the one who was in here the other day?”

“Who's she?” Shana asked suspiciously, studying the woman with her big brother.

“I think she runs Bad Reputation,” Colin answered.

 

T
HREE PAIRS OF EYES WATCHED
Shay avidly as he walked up to the bar. Though part of him itched to touch Mallory, he figured he'd been right to stay hands off for now. No reason to give the happy trio anything more to talk about than they had already.

“About time you showed up,” Colin said to Shay, looking speculatively at Mallory. “Your shift starts in half an hour. You're practically late. What have you been up to?”

“Oh, this and that,” Shay said blandly, watching Mallory, who was suddenly very absorbed in her fingernails. “This is Mallory Carson. She runs Bad Reputation. Mal, this is my sister Shana and my honorary sister Fiona. And this guy here is my brother Colin.”

“Nice to meet you,” Mallory said, shaking hands
all around. “Do you ever hire anyone who's not an O'Connor?”

“We have a few imports. Fiona's from Galway.”

“Really?” Mallory asked. “I've always wanted to see Ireland. Do you miss it?”

“Now and then,” Fiona admitted. “They've more men with good sense over here, though, present company excepted,” she said with a sniff at Colin.

“I see,” Mallory said, fighting a smile. She glanced at Colin, then she turned to look at him more carefully. “You look really familiar,” she said slowly. “Weren't you in Bad Reputation the other night?”

Two feminine heads snapped around to stare at him.

“Oh was he?” asked Fiona.

“I might have dropped in to take a look,” Colin muttered, turning around to grab a glass.

“You won the tequila shot contest, didn't you?” Mallory's smile suggested she understood the lay of the land.

Colin looked uncomfortable. “I just had a drink.”

“Or three. Belinda was quite taken with you,” she said lightly.

“Consorting with immoral bar dancers, are you?” Fiona jibed, picking up her tray. “Now whose morals are in danger?” She flounced away, leaving Colin looking sheepish.

“Are napkins all you need, Mallory?” Shay asked, ducking behind the bar. “Give me a minute and I'll go get them.”

“I'll help,” Colin volunteered suddenly. “Shana, can you hold the bar for a sec?”

“Make it quick. I've got to get back to my tables.”

Shay walked through the door to the back room. With another glance at Mallory, Colin followed.

“Man oh man, now that is a woman,” Colin said reverently as they walked through the back room.

“Eyes off,” Shay said shortly.

“Hey, it's a free country.” At Shay's baleful look, Colin subsided. “So are you keeping the competition in business now?”

“They're not our competition and you know it.”

“Even so, what are you doing hanging around there?”

“Not entering tequila drinking contests, if that's what you mean,” Shay said pointedly.

Colin flushed. “That was one time, and it got me a kiss from that bodacious blonde. But how did you hook up with this one? I mean, she's a babe, but she doesn't seem like your type.”

“She's the sister of a good friend of mine. He asked me to look in on her and help her out.” Shay walked into the supplies room.

“Your buddy's sister?”

Shay grunted as he reached for a bale of napkins encased in shrink wrap. “Yeah, why?” He handed the package to Colin and reached for another.

“Your shirt's missing a button that you had earlier this afternoon, big brother.” Colin gave him a cheeky look. “So, does your buddy know you're playing hide the shillelagh with his sister?”

The twist of anger was sudden and surprising. Shay turned around slowly. “Has it really been that long since I've given you a pounding?”

Colin's grin widened. “You're ready to defend her honor? Man, this is better than I thought.”

“Don't push your luck, Col.” Shay's words were icy.

Colin gave him a closer look. “I don't believe it,”
he said slowly. “Mr. Upright has a thing for the bad girl.”

“Just for that, you can carry both of them,” Shay said, pushing the second bale of napkins in Colin's hands. “If you value your life and that ugly mug of yours, you'll keep your mouth shut.”

“You can't hurt me. Mom'll get after you.”

“That stopped working when you were twelve.” Shay stopped and turned back to Colin, taking one of the bales from him. “Look, she matters, plus she's my good friend's sister. And if you say something stupid to her,” he said conversationally, “I will hurt you in ways you never imagined. Mom or no Mom.” He turned toward the door.

Only to hear a chorus of female laughter.

 

“S
O THE INSPECTOR STAYED
around and asked your bartender out?”

“Belinda has more than a few guys dangling from her hook.”

“Good for her,” Fiona said from behind the bar where she'd filled in for Shana. “I think it's great what you're doing. Everyone should get a little outrageous once in a while. It's good for the soul.”

Mallory looked at her in curiosity. “I thought conservative was the name of the game here.”

“Ach, here?” Fiona glanced around. “It's cozy, I'll grant you, but it's so boring here I feel like an old maid. I've more than half a mind to come work for you, if you're hiring. If I have one more man tell me I'm like his sister I'm going to scream.”

“Don't let them decide who you are,” Mallory returned. “You decide. No matter what you do, it's a pretty safe bet that there's someone out there who's
not going to like it, so you might as well please yourself.”

“I like that,” Fiona said thoughtfully. “I think I'd like working for you.”

Mallory took a sip of the club soda Fiona had set on the bar for her. “Stop by sometime if you want, but not if it's going to get Shay hacked off. I've got enough problems there.”

“What kind of problems?” Shana asked, coming back up to the bar with a fresh order. “How'd you and Shay meet, anyway?”

“My brother just decided I needed someone watching over me to see that I behave, so he asked Shay for help.”

“Well, that's big brothers for you. Shay's good at keeping things straight and narrow,” Shana said.

“Oh, Colin's no better,” Fiona returned. “He likes to think he walks on the wild side, but he's just as straitlaced.”

“Can't be too conservative or he wouldn't have been hanging around Mallory's bar,” Shana returned.

“Maybe he thought it fit with his rock star image,” Fiona said.

“Rock star?” Mallory asked. “Is he in a band?”

Shana snorted. “Not just any band. They're destined to be the next great thing, or so he says,” she added.

“Really?” Mallory asked, her voice thoughtful. “I'm looking for some live music for Bad Reputation.”

“Well why didn't you say so?” Fiona asked. “Colin's group is actually quite good, though I'll swear on a stack of bibles I never said that if you tell him.”

“Tell who what?” Colin followed Shay out of the back room, carrying the bale of napkins.

“Mallory's looking for a band for Bad Reputation,” Shana said. “You should audition. It could be your big break.”

His head snapped toward Mallory. “Seriously?”

Mallory hesitated. “Maybe. I mean, I'd have to audition you. Understand, no guarantees. I've got to find the right band.” She gave him a speculative glance. “I'd like to hear you, though.”

“Well.” Colin paused and watched Shay carry out the first bale and set it by the door. Then the corners of his mouth curved slowly up. “I'll tell you what.” He locked eyes with Shana and winked. “We're having a party for my parents' thirty-fifth wedding anniversary next Sunday. My band's going to play. You can come hear us then. I mean, we'll be doing a lot of sixties covers, but you'll be able to hear some of our stuff, too.”

“Thanks, but it's a family gig. You're not going to want outsiders there,” Mallory said uneasily.

Colin laughed. “Trust me, half the town will be there. Shay can bring you.”

“Shay can bring her where?” Shay asked from behind them.

“To Mom and Dad's party.”

Mallory was already shaking her head. “I don't think so. Thanks, though.”

Shana watched Shay intently, and her expression morphed rapidly from reservation to enthusiasm. “Oh, come to the reception,” she urged Mallory. “It'll be a lot more interesting with you there.”

Somehow, Mallory had the distinct feeling there
was much more going on than she could see. When in doubt, she thought, stay away. “I need to work.”

Shana laughed. “So what? Take the night off. You own the place.”

“Yeah,” Colin added. “Besides, if you're auditioning a band, you're working anyway, right?”

Time for strategic retreat, Mallory told herself. “I'll think about it,” she muttered, and glanced up to find Shay nodding, an odd look on his face.

M
ALLORY STOOD AT THE BAR
in Bad Reputation, slicing limes. She knew people who hated bar prep, but she actually found it sort of relaxing. Filling the olive and onion bins, pouring salt, setting out the glassware, it all helped her get in the mood for opening time. Which was all too soon, she thought, glancing at her watch.

“Hiya, Mal.” Belinda waltzed in, dressed in skin-tight white hip huggers and a black crop top. Mallory had seen her wear a shirt that was lower cut at some point in time, she figured, but she couldn't remember when.

Belinda disappeared in the back to drop her purse and came back out. “What do you want me to do?”

“Take over the limes. I need to get some popcorn popping for the snack bowls. It's Sunday, which means it'll be football again, and if that gang of guys from last week shows up, we'll need it.”

“Oh, the tequila shot crowd?”

Mallory nodded. “The Patriots won and the Jets lost, so someone's going to be buying drinks.”

Belinda shook back her blond hair and picked up the knife. “I thought the tall guy was cute. He asked me out, you know.”

“And you know the rules,” Mallory reminded her, mentally tallying the bottles that needed refilling.

“I know.” Belinda pouted. “You have no idea how many dates I've turned down since I started here. I'm going to be an old maid.”

Mallory eyed Belinda's fresh, unlined face. “Oh, yeah, I can see you turning into a crone in front of my eyes.”

“Hey, it would be nice for a change to have a guy that wasn't always flirting with other women and forgetting his wallet.”

“You and Dominic have a fight again?” Belinda's on-again-off-again romance sent the woman through cycles of joy and anguish that often spilled over into work.

“Dominic doesn't deserve me,” Belinda snapped bad temperedly. “I'm going to find someone who does.”

Mallory stepped through to the door to the back bar and began setting up the popcorn machine. The desperate need people had for steady involvement baffled her—she felt best when she was on her own. It was safer that way. Sure, affairs were nice, sex was great, but getting close to someone was dangerous. You got too close, you stopped being careful. You stopped being careful, you got blindsided.

Or you got pulled into someone else's life, she thought, trying to avoid thinking too much about the O'Connor anniversary party. Though she'd done her best to say no that day in O'Connor's, she had a pretty good idea that no one had listened. The fact that Shay hadn't mentioned it since made her more uneasy than not—knowing him, he was probably assuming that she'd just fall into line.

She didn't belong at a family occasion, especially not one with his family. The fruit didn't fall far from
the tree. Shay's staidness likely meant that his family was even more so. An evening celebrating with a group of quiet types? Not her cup of tea, thanks very much.

Mallory walked back in front and rose on her tiptoes to add a bottle of tequila to the liquor wall. A flicker of motion in the mirror had her turning to see Shay.

Mallory put her hands on her hips and gave him a leisurely survey, a smile playing over her lips. “Well, you just keep popping up, don't you?”

“Apparently.” His eyes flicked to Belinda, then back to Mallory. “Do you always have your front door open with no bouncer around? If your cash drawer is out, you're taking chances.”

“One of my 250-pound bouncers is downstairs filling in the keg room. He'll be up any minute.” Mallory heard a little sniff next to her and suppressed a smile. “Excuse me. Shay O'Connor, this is Belinda Nichols.”

“Nice to meet you.” Belinda shook his hand. “Hey, haven't I seen you in here before?”

“Shay owns O'Connor's, a few blocks over. He comes here every now and again to see how a real bar is run.”

Shay shot her a look. “Cute.”

Mallory gave him an unrepentant grin. “You're spruced up tonight, Shay. Going somewhere special?”

“Yeah, as a matter of fact. With you.”

Mallory blinked. “What's that supposed to mean?”

Behind them, Benny walked in the front door. “Got a group of rowdies coming this way. Are we open?”

“Of course we are, as long as they have ID and money to spend,” Mallory said and ducked under the walkthrough to go program the jukebox.

Shay followed her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked testily. “I'm working.”

“In case you've forgotten, we have plans tonight.”

Just then, a group of loud frat-boy types banged through the door and headed for the bar. “I've got this place to run,” Mallory said, nodding toward the bar as the jukebox started playing Kid Rock.

“Don't you have anyone coming in besides Belinda?”

“Liane just walked in and Kayla's due any minute.”

“Let's get going, then.”

“Shay, I'm not going to your party. When I told Shana I'd think about it, I was just trying to be polite.” She punched more buttons on the jukebox, trying to ignore him.

He took her hand, and suddenly ignoring him was no longer an option. “Colin's expecting you to be there to listen to his band. Besides—” his eyes flicked over her “—my parents want to meet you.”

Mallory snatched her hand back as though it were burned. “No way.”

“Why?” he asked, watching her with interest.

“Look,” she said, backing away. “I don't do the family thing. It was sweet of your brother and sister to invite me—”

Shay snorted. “It wasn't sweet. They were trying to yank my chain.”

“Then I doubly don't need to be there,” she said emphatically.

“Look, all Colin's been talking about for two days straight is having you there to audition the band. He's told the band members, he's told the family, he's told
everyone. As far as he's concerned, getting looked at by a real promoter puts them one step from the big time.” He paused, and she saw the big brother in him then. “Look, he's young and maybe he got carried away, but in a way, you let him. If you weren't going to come, you should have told him way before now.”

“I want to hear his band,” she protested, trying to ignore the little wave of guilt. “I just don't want to do it tonight. Not at a family event, anyway.”

“Why are you so spooked about it? They're just people.”

“Stop trying to push my buttons, Shay,” she bridled. “I'm sure it will be a perfectly nice party, but I'm going to pass. Families make me nervous.”

“Why? You have one, don't you? I mean, Dev's normal. Do the rest of yours shoot fire out of their eyes or something?”

“Let's just leave my family out of this, Shay,” she said, her voice edgy. “Other people's families bother me, okay? I don't do all the brotherhood and bonding thing.”

“Well, you need to do it tonight. My mother knows I'm seeing you and that you're coming to hear Colin's band.”

“You and I are not seeing each other,” Mallory hissed, with a quick glance at Benny walking past. “We're having an affair, that's all.”

“Look, Colin opened his big mouth and she's been all over it for the last two days. I am not going to get any peace until she meets you.”

Horrified, Mallory stared at him. “Are you out of your mind? Not in a million years! Families are bad enough, but going to a party to be trotted out for your
whole clan and dissected as not good enough for your mother's precious boy? Not no, but hell no.”

“How do you know she's going to think you're not good enough? She might love you.”

Mallory gave a humorless laugh. “Trust me, I've been there before.”

“Am I going to have to pick you up and carry you?” he asked impatiently. “Look, all I'm asking you to do is show up, listen to Colin's band and make nice for an hour.”

She put her hands on her hips. “And I should do this why?”

His gaze flicked toward the ceiling. “Because I'm asking you as a favor,” he said simply.

Finding out she had a soft side where he was concerned came as a surprise. And although “no” was on the tip of her tongue, she found she couldn't quite say it, no matter how much she dreaded the alternative.

“I can't leave the place without supervision,” she said, trying for an honorable out.

“Who ran the place last Tuesday?”

She hesitated while he watched. “Belinda,” she said finally, with reluctance.

“Well, there you go. She's obviously capable. Take a night off, why don't you? Who knows, you might even have fun. Besides, like Colin said, it's still work as long as you're auditioning the band.”

“I'm responsible for this place. What if something happens while I'm gone?”

“Do you have insurance?”

“Of course.”

“Then come on.”

She hesitated and looked to where Kayla was dancing on the bar for the frat boys. “I can't go over there
like this, Shay. I'm dressed for work, not a family party,” she protested, with the sense of a losing battle.

He glanced at his watch. “We've got time for you to change, if you're quick,” he said, looking down at her red miniskirt and tight white top.

She started to turn toward the door, then stopped and raised her chin. “No,” she bluffed, “I'd rather go like this.” Given a choice between taking her to meet the parents all tarted up or making her excuses, she was sure he'd choose the latter.

He didn't. “If that's what it takes to get you there, then come on.” He stood back and looked at her. “You'll wake people up,” he decided, and took her hand.

 

“H
OW DID I LET YOU TALK ME
into this?” Mallory muttered as they neared O'Connor's. “I hate family things.”

“So you keep saying. You'll like these folks.”

“Easy for you to say. You're probably related to them all.” Her stomach roiled. If she'd just changed when she'd had a chance, at least she wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb.

Shay opened the door for her and she paused for a deep breath. Then she felt the heat of his palm in the small of her back.
No apologies,
she reminded herself.
Be who you are and forget 'em if they can't take a joke.
She lifted her chin, smiled, and walked through the door.

The warm, crowded space buzzed with noise and energy. Linen tablecloths and flowers dressed up the tables. Garland swooped from the dark wooden beams of the ceiling. O'Connor's had always been a place of
cozy comfort. Now, it was filled with noise, laughter and what looked like half of the people in Newport.

She leaned toward Shay. “Don't you need to work?”

He shook his head, hanging her leather jacket on a hook. “We hired caterers. My only job is to relax and show you around.”

“I thought I was here to audition Colin's band and split,” she said uneasily. As far as she was concerned, the sooner that happened, the better.

“In good time, all in good time.” Shay pulled a couple of fluted glasses of champagne off the tray of a passing waiter and handed her one.

Mallory took a sip and felt the bubbles break against her teeth. “Who are all these people, anyway?”

“Family, friends, neighbors. My family's been in business in this town for a lot of years. After a while the contacts start becoming friends.”

“Scary thought,” she said.

He tipped his head and studied her. “Why would you say that?”

The more relationships you had with people, the more people you had who wanted things from you, she thought, but it seemed churlish to say in the face of all this bonhomie. “Just think of their Christmas list.”

“I suppose,” he said, but his face said he didn't believe her.

“So you've got about half the population of Newport here,” Mallory said, feeling the glow of the champagne start to spread through her.

“Maybe a quarter.”

“Better hope the fire marshal doesn't stop in.”

Shay fought a smile. “Oh, he's over there in the corner talking to my uncle Sean.”

The fire marshal glanced up to see Shay pointing to him and waved.

“Guess it pays to be well connected,” Mallory said sardonically.

“Family and friends matter, I think. Don't you?”

She chose not to answer. “So let's get this over with. Who's who?”

“Well, the guests of honor are at the table with all the flowers. My mom's the one in the blue and my dad's the one whispering in her ear.”

Mallory looked across the room to see a woman in a flowing periwinkle dress laugh and throw her arms around the rakish-looking man at her side. It was easy to see where Shay and his siblings had gotten their looks, she mused. “How long did you say they'd been married?” she asked, watching Shay's father plant a frankly salacious kiss on his wife.

“Thirty-five years today.” His voice held equal parts fondness and pride. How strange, she thought, to look across a room and see parents who were a unit, who always had been. What would it have been like to grow up with that? Was it any wonder he could think of family without flinching?

Was it any wonder she couldn't?

She felt a tap on her shoulder. “Where have you gone off to?” She turned to see Shay watching her intently.

“Nowhere.” She waved her hand vaguely. “Just thinking. So who are the rest of the people?”

“Well, you've seen my uncle. The spry old guy in the corner is my Grandda Padraic. He inherited O'Connor's from his father.”

“
The
O'Connor?”

“Indeed. He worked at an ale house and scraped up enough money to buy it from the owner when he retired. And the rest, as they say, is history.”

Mallory studied the diminutive old gentleman in the bow tie and hunter plaid jacket. “Did it cause bad blood that your father chose to do something else?”