Love of the Irish, Part 3 (of 3)

By Katie Fitzgerald ...

Sean grinned as Molly stepped out of the car and revealed her step dancing costume. Her hair was curly today, something he’d never seen before, and he paused for a moment to take in her new look. He was convinced there was no way she could alter her appearance that could make him any less attracted to her.

“Get all the jokes out of your system,” she said, hands on her hips, raising her eyebrows challengingly.

Sean noted the way her outfit hugged her waist, and forced himself not to let his eyes linger. There was absolutely nothing to joke about. “You look amazing,” he said, softening his voice and stepping in closer. “I can’t make fun of you when you look like that.”

Molly rolled her eyes as her cheeks turned pink. “What are you doing out here anyway? It’s packed in there. If you’re going to ask me to pick up a shift, forget it.”

Sean couldn’t tell if she deflected his compliment because she didn’t think he was serious, or because she didn’t want him to compliment her. But he had come this far. The bar could wait. He had to know if there was any chance Molly returned these feelings.

“I just wanted to see you,” he said, still smiling, trying to reassure her. “How was your parade?”

“It was good…” Sean caught a hint of suspicion in her voice. “But I’m actually pretty tired and ready to get out of these shoes, so…what did you need?”

Suddenly, Sean felt vaguely nauseated. He wanted to tell her how he felt, but the impending agony if she rejected him was beyond anything he thought he could handle. Taking a deep breath, he considered the words he wanted to use. Before he could speak, the music on the sound system, which was piped outside to entertain people waiting for tables, changed songs, and Molly seemed to take it really personally.

“This song again!” She flailed, clearly frustrated. “Everywhere I go! Harrigan, Harrigan, Harrigan! There’s no escape!”

Sean had been serenaded with the song many times in his life, and he immediately thought, Harrigan, that’s me! but managed not to sing it out loud. Instead, he decided to go for broke. “Did you want to escape from me?” There was not a hint of teasing in his tone now. He needed her to hear that this was serious.

Molly’s cheeks were bright red when she looked up at him. “I should want that,” she said, her voice just above a whisper, her frown revealing some hurt that Sean instantly wanted to heal.

“But you don’t?” he asked cautiously, and every limb in his body loosened in relief when she shook her head.

“The last time I dated a friend…” Molly said, tears filling her eyes. “He betrayed me so badly.” Her voice cracked, and Sean laid a hand on her shoulder, closing the gap between them as he listened. “If you hurt me, it will destroy me.”

“Oh, Molly,” Sean said, wiping a tear from her cheek with his thumb. “I would never. Could never.” He shook his head. “Who is this guy? Can he fight?”

Molly managed a small laugh. “You’d take him down in three seconds,” she said. “Frankly, so would I.”

“Who needs ’em,” Sean scoffed. “He probably never even gave you a cute holiday-themed figurine.”

“I can honestly say you’re the only one who has done that,” Molly said, her tears subsiding as she spoke.

“I want to be the only one,” Sean said, eyes steady on Molly’s. “I want to be yours.” Then, overwhelmed with longing he said, “Please.”

Molly was silent for a moment. “I’m terrified,” she said, her blue eyes wide, and Sean started mentally planning the excuse he would make to leave work for the rest of the night when Molly stomped on his heart. She surprised him by taking his hands in hers. “But I want to be yours, too.”

In Sean’s fantasy version of this conversation, it ended with a big, breathtaking Hollywood kiss, but he didn’t want to force anything Molly wasn’t ready for, and it was enough for him to know he was not alone in these feelings. The rest could come later. Molly, apparently, felt differently, however, because all of a sudden, her arms were around his neck. She drew his face toward hers and then they were kissing, lips pressing warmly together, his hand cupping her cheek.

“Kiss her, she’s Irish!” called a tipsy reveler climbing into an Uber, and Sean and Molly both burst out laughing.

“People are getting rowdy,” Sean said. “I need to get back to it before Dennis disowns me.” He tucked a flyaway hair from Molly’s ponytail behind her ear. “Are you going home?”

Molly shook her head. “I’m coming inside to admire the bartender,” she said with a sly grin. “I hear he’s gorgeous and a great kisser.”

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Katie Fitzgerald is the author of Library Lovebirds, an ebook collection of bookish romances, and a novel in flash, The Bennetts Bloom. Her short stories and flash fiction appear online at Spark Flash Fiction and Micromance Magazine, as well as in various anthologies. She is a 2024 Sparkie Award recipient for Best Romantic Suspense and a nominee for the Pushcart Prize and the Cupid Prize. A graduate of Vassar College and a trained librarian, Katie resides in Maryland with her husband and five kids.