Slightly Irregular (20 page)

“Huntington-St. John. A combo of two old,
old
Atlanta families. David sent you champagne?”

He pointed to the stunning pink roses on the counter and the gigantic basket of gourmet coffees and a new top-of-the-line Cuisinart coffeemaker. “Is that what they sent you?”

“Yes, but I’m family.”

“Apparently, I’m being welcomed by your family.”

I took a sip and let it tickle my mouth and nose before swallowing. “Why isn’t Tony coming?”

He frowned. At least I think he did. “Does it matter?”

“Yes.”

“One of his clients got arrested. Some big hedge-fund guy.”

I silently hoped I wouldn’t have to use my newly acquired criminal skills on that case. Ponzi schemes and math weren’t two of my favorite things to tackle.

Liam picked up the bottle and headed back to his room. “See you for dinner.”

“That’s it? You just interrupted me for nothing?”

“No. I interrupted you because I could.”

If it hadn’t been Cristal, I would have thrown it at the door. But even Liam wasn’t worth wasting a stellar glass of sparkling wine.

The next time there was a knock on my door, it was the front door. I flung it open and gave my sister a big hug. Despite the fact that my mother liked to pit us against each other, Lisa and I had never shared any animosity. We weren’t close like the Brady sisters, but each of us genuinely cared about the other.

Unlike me, Lisa favored our mother. She was dark-haired, with the same aqua-blue eyes. Lisa’s hair was pixie short, and the style
was flattering with her small frame. Though she is an inch taller that I am, she’s tiny-boned, making her appear much smaller. I’d say frail, except that her latest passion is doing triathlons with David, so she was quite buff in her simple white sheath dress.

“Thank you for this,” I said, spraying my arm in an arc around the living room. “I feel like a princess.”

With just a slightly strained gait, Lisa walked over to the sofa and placed a gift bag on the coffee table. “Mind if I get a water from the fridge?”

“Let me get it, you’re the bride. Sit down.”

I grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge, snapped up the special napkin, and then joined my sister on the sofa. I tried to remember the last time we had been in the same room and decided it was about two years earlier when I’d brought Patrick up for New Year’s. Of course, now I understood why he hadn’t been able to travel on Christmas. And that it had
nothing
to do with his job at FedEx.

“This is for you,” I said as I handed her the water and the napkin from AirTran.

“Why did you write ‘I’m sorry’ on a cocktail napkin?” she asked.

“Mom says I owe you an apology for not shipping my dress up ahead of time.”

Lisa smiled patiently. That was one of the major differences between us. She had the patience of the proverbial saint. “I’ll make sure to tell her you fulfilled your obligations.”

“Thank you.”

“And this is for you,” she said as she nudged the gift bag closer to me.

“You’ve already been overly generous. Thanks for the coffee stuff. You know me well.”

“I also know enough to tell you that your body needs more than caffeine to function.”

“I had a muffin this morning.”

“Finley, you eat like a teenager.”

I patted her knee. “You’ve got healthy covered for both of us.”

“Open it,” she said with giddish excitement.

All I had to do was pull out the tissue and my heart stopped. Inside were not one but two Jimmy Choo boxes. I dove for the shoe box first. Inside was the most stunning pair of sling-back pumps in a glittering champagne color. “Oh, Lisa, these are amazing.” I already had one out of the box and was removing the rib and paper so I could slip it on. It fit like a Jimmy Choo glove. I quickly unwrapped its mate and then took them for a test drive. They had a really cute peep toe and a two-inch platform, so the three-inch heel was deceptively comfy. I had to go into the bedroom to admire them in the mirror.

Lisa followed me much the way she had done when we were kids and I was prepping for a date. “These are beautiful, but you really shouldn’t have.”

“I wanted you to have something special, and I’m wearing the same shoes. The rest of the girls have similar shoes, just not the real thing.”

I hugged her. “Thank you so much.”

“We’re not done yet,” she said, dragging me back into the living room and pulling the smaller box out of the bag.

Inside was a shimmering fabric clutch that matched the shoes. I almost wept. It was small, maybe four inches by five
inches, but I didn’t care. It would hold lipstick, a compact, and a credit card. What else do I need?

“This is too much, seriously.”

“I know you,” Lisa countered. “My sister wears only the best.”

If she only knew. Then it dawned on me: Why didn’t she know? Lord knew I’d borrowed money from her often enough. I was suddenly awash in guilt. “Lisa, I really shouldn’t accept this,” I said as I slipped off the shoes and reluctantly began to lovingly rewrap them. “I probably still owe you more than you spent on all my fabulous gifts combined. Especially counting this room.”

“Open the clutch.”

I did. Inside I found a prescription sheet that simply read:

All debts forgiven and see me at the chapel.

My eyes welled with tears. “Now I know you’ve gone way overboard.”

Lisa hugged me. “Those are doctor’s orders. You have to follow them.”

“Does Mom know you’re doing all this for me? She must be hemorrhaging money.”

“David’s family is picking up most of the expense since this is really their show. David and I would have been happy going off to Cumberland Island with a Justice of the Peace. Between Mom and the Huntington-St. Johns, this has exploded into the stratosphere. I make a good living, Finley. Stop thanking me and just accept the gifts in the spirit in which they were given.”

I felt like a real schmuck since all I’d gotten them was a set of
candlesticks off their registry. Well, that and the gift I had made for Lisa.

“Since we’re doing this now,” I said, “hang on.” I went into the bedroom and took the small package out of my dresser. Bringing it back and handing it to my sister, I said, “I hear you need something old for this whole wedding day thing.”

Lisa opened the gift with the same precision I imagined she used when removing a tumor. Inside, she peeled back the tissue and immediately began to tear up.

“The lady said that chain should wrap around the stem of your bouquet. So don’t go throwing it out into the crowd.”

She laughed. “I hate to tell you this, Fin, but these days you buy a separate bouquet to toss. The real one gets preserved. You had this made especially for Dad. Are you sure you want to give it away? I can just borrow it and—”

“You keep it.” I didn’t have the heart to tell her the recent history of the medal, namely that it had been stolen only to turn up in the hand of a mummified skeleton. I’d had it cleaned and strung on a delicate chain. “You’re Jonathan’s daughter. You deserve to have something that was his. He was so proud of winning that polo match, it only seemed fitting for you to have it on your special day. Besides, I bought the cottage on Palm Beach.”

Lisa dabbed her eyes and laughed. “Mom said you’d, um, redone the place.”

Oh, I had no doubt my mother had conveyed her opinion of my decor. “It’s really fabulous. I’ll send you pictures. Look at the time! We’d better get downstairs.” I slipped on my pink Betsey Johnsons and grabbed my purse to hunt down my lipstick. “Mom’ll kill us if we’re late.”

“So when are we going to talk about
him
?”

We stepped out into the hallway and turned toward the elevators. “Him who?”

“Your date. Finley, he is really cute, but nothing like the guys you normally date. Tell me about him.” She nearly stumbled on the carpet. “God, I don’t know how you walk in these things.”

“Balance on the balls of your feet. Weight more toward your toes.”

“Forget my toes. Tell me about Liam.”

“Not much to tell.”

“Does he work at your firm?”

“On and off.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means he’s not a staff attorney. He’s a private investigator. Used to be a detective.”

Lisa locked arms with me. Probably to keep her balance as we walked the long hallway. “That sounds sexy. Does he carry a gun?”

“Aren’t you a healer?”

“Yes, but I grew up watching reruns of
Miami Vice
.”

“Yes, I’ve seen him with a gun.”

“What college did he go to?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where is he from?”

“Don’t know.”

“What
do
you know?”

“He makes my spine melt.”

A deep voice behind me said, “That’s good to know.”

The more I’m with men, the more I think I’ll end up alone … with a cat.

My head whipped around
, and I could feel the heat of total mortification spreading up my neck. Only then did I get the scent of Liam’s cologne.
Ohgod ohgod ohgod!

The transformation was amazing. Gone was the funky, faded beach look, replaced by a tempered elegance I would never have expected from Liam. He was wearing a dark gray suit, white shirt, and—the only homage to his real self—a Jerry Garcia tie. He was clean-shaven, but his hair was still quintessentially Liam tussled. Liam looked just like James Bond. Post sex.

“You might want to push the Down button,” he suggested.

I closed my gaping mouth as if it was the first time I’d ever attempted to cure a dropping jaw. Affianced Lisa was on the verge of drooling too, which should have made me feel better, only it didn’t. Nothing seemed to stem the waves of embarrassment crashing inside me. I willed it away, which as it turns out
was a bad idea. Once we were inside the elevator and I’d banished my mortification, a serious case of the oh-man-do-you-have-the-best-eyes-ever bore through me like a precision drill, a direct hit on my overtaxed and underused libido.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt you ladies,” he said casually, shifting his weight to one foot.

He had on actual shoes. Not flip-flops or deck shoes, but honest-to-God Italian leather loafers. I knew quality, and Lord knew I also knew seconds, and his ensemble was definitely quality. Where and why would Liam McGarrity have such incredible clothing? I couldn’t see him sitting in a pew on Sunday mornings, so what was the deal? I knew he didn’t dress for success at work, so either he was a professional wedding crasher or some sort of closet funeral junkie. The more I got to know Liam I realized how little I actually knew about him.

“… doesn’t he, Finley?”

“Sorry,” I said to Lisa as my hot-guy brain freeze melted. “Doesn’t he what?”

“Look handsome tonight?”

I couldn’t meet his eyes. “Yes.”

Lisa exited first, and as I went to leave the elevator, Liam’s lips brushed against my ear as he asked, “Spine-meltingly handsome?”

“Asshole,” I whispered back.

“What?” Lisa asked.

“A-atlanta Grille,” I lied. “Do you know where it is?”

“At this point, I think I know every inch of this hotel.”

She was walking way too fast for her shoes. Even the best shoes aren’t meant to be jogged in. “Slow down,” I urged.

“Sorry. I’m not used to taking leisurely strolls.”

“Are you nervous?” Liam asked as he stepped forward so that he was walking between the two of us.

“Not really. I’m just not accustomed to so much pageantry.”

Speaking of pageantry, and, by association, pageant jewelry, I reached into my purse and pulled out my phone. Lisa instantly slapped my phone. “Mom and David are straight ahead. Want to greet them with a phone in your hand?”

I glanced ahead and saw my mother, coiffed head to beautifully clad toe in an aqua raw silk suit with a pale coral shell beneath the fitted jacket. Her recent plastic surgery touch-up had settled, since her lips no longer looked like suction cups.

I could feel my cells starting to cement from tension as soon as I saw her eyes lock on Liam. However, no one from the outside would notice the subtle slip in her smile. I did. She was not happy. There was no way I was coming out of this dinner smelling like a rose, not when my mother already had steam building in her ears.

Conversely, David was one tall, lanky smile. He had a runner’s shape, so his navy suit coat hung loosely from his shoulders, making his neck appear unnaturally long. Like my sister, he was dark-haired, and, like her, he was an oncologist. But tonight, at least for a short while, he was just the perfect guy about to marry my perfect little sister.

“My baby,” Mom said to Lisa, grabbing her and giving her a double-cheek kiss, then dabbing away the impression of her coral lipstick from Lisa’s face. She handed her off to David and leaned forward to send some air kisses in my general direction. “Finley.”

“Mom. You remember Liam.”

She extended her arm, locking it at the elbow to make sure she kept as much distance as possible. “Yes. Mr., um.”

“Liam is fine,” he said amiably as he took her hand for a mere second.