Marnie is also gazing at him, smiling sweetly in his direction lest he lift his eyes from the drum. The song ends and she claps and wolf whistles loudly. Michaél laughs at her. I do too, but maybe not for the same reason.

“Remember what I said,” Barry says out of the corner of his mouth like a ventriloquist.

He’s right and I know it. I pull a pint and am just about to take it over to Michaél so that we can have a chat when a huge party of bachelorettes arrive and I spend the next few hours being rushed off my feet. I barely manage to clap eyes on Michaél for the rest of the night.

It’s been a great night but a long one and I’m beat by the time I turn off the lights and head upstairs. I don’t know where Michaél is but he has his own key, so I don’t have to wait for him. A noise makes me pause half way up the stairs. I hear someone giggle and then his voice. “I’ve called a taxi; it’s on its way.” More giggling. “A cab, then. I’ve called a cab. Jaysus!” Even more giggling, followed by a high pitched scream, like the kind of one you give when someone pinches you playfully, or grabs you round the waist, or…

Enough, Erin! Bed! I climb the stairs wearily.

Falling asleep after a good night at the bar is difficult at the best of times, but tonight it’s worse. I keep imaging that I hear Michaél’s key in the lock, but it’s only my imagination. I look at the clock radio; it’s 5:12 a.m. Can I really have been awake all this time? I must have been sleeping and not even realized it. I hate that feeling. I have to get up in an hour, and I feel as though I haven’t slept at all. Right. One more hour. Get your head down, Erin.

The inevitable happens; I get it into my head that I have to go to the loo, and the feeling won’t go away. Reluctantly, I get up and without turning on any lights because then I’ll truly be awake, I pad down the hall to the bathroom. Opening the door, I’m surprised find that the light over the mirror is on. I look up to find Michaél standing there in all his glory, dripping wet. My eyes lock onto his manhood, which is standing to attention, bold and erect.

Covering my eyes, I let out a little scream. “Jaysus, Michaél, put it away!”

He grabs a towel and covers himself up. “Jaysus, Erin, ever think of knocking?”

“I didn’t think you were home,” I say backing out of the bathroom, my hand still over my eyes.

“Mick?” comes a female voice from his room.

I recognize that voice; it’s Marnie!

“Sorry,” I mumble and am back in my room with the door shut before he can say anything. I scramble into bed and pull the covers up tight to my chin. My insides are churning and there’s a tightness in my chest. I waited too long. I’ve lost him to another girl.

“Erin?” his voice is muffled through the door.

I don’t answer. I don’t trust myself to.

“Erin?”

I hold my breath and listen. Then I hear Marnie’s muffled voice and Michaél’s fading response as he goes to her.

The tears come quietly. They spill down my cheeks and onto my pillow as Barry’s warning echoes in my mind.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” I chastize myself.

My mind buzzes for the next couple of hours until I finally give in to the fact that I am not going to get any more rest tonight. At 7:30 I creep down the hall and into the kitchen to make a much needed coffee. I turn on the machine and wait for the water to warm up. The buzzing in my head has become a dull hum made up of one single refrain: I pushed him into her arms.

Taking my coffee, I cross to the sitting room in search of my laptop. My plan is to drown myself in emails and business tasks that I’ve been neglecting lately, but I almost jump out of my skin when I see a body under one of my grandmother’s old quilts on the couch. The head is obscured and so I have to circle it a few times to try to get a good visual. Orpheus is snuggled at the feet, snoring loudly. I reach my finger in and very carefully pull back the cover just a smidgen.

“Michaél!” I exclaim, not meaning to be so loud.

Groggily, he opens his eyes and sits up, the quilt like a cape over his shoulders. “Morning,” he yawns.

“Here.” I hand him my coffee and go over to pour myself another.

He takes a sip and sits as if waiting for me to come back.

I adopt a breezy, devil may care attitude. My mantra is, don’t let him see how hurt I am.

“Erin, about last night…”

I stop him, holding up my hand. “Michaél, who ye choose to shag is absolutely none of my business. I would just ask that ye keep your pecker in your pants when I’m around and that ye not bring yer little slags back here.” The last bit comes out a little sharper than I meant for it to.

“I didn’t shag her.” He’s actually smiling when he says this.

“Michaél, whether or not ye shagged little Marnie is neither here nor there, and none of my affair.” I adopt one of my mum’s lecture tones of voice. “Personally, I couldn’t care less what ye do, or who ye do it to. Just so long as ye don’t do it on my doorstep or in my spare room.” I take a sip of my coffee so that I don’t have to look at him.

“She needed somewhere to stay, Erin. I tried calling her a cab but she was too drunk. I couldn’t send her home alone in that state.”

“How convenient. It certainly didn’t look all that innocent to me when I walked in on ye in the bathroom. And, in future, please make use of the lock on the bathroom door.”

“If I shagged Marnie, why would I be sleeping out here on the couch? Answer me that.”

“I don’t know, maybe she snores?” I’m genuinely trying to understand that particular piece of the puzzle. Oh, how desperately I want to believe him, but a great big fat hard-on speaks a thousand words.

“It’s not Marnie I’m interested in, and if ye could just get your head out of yer precious business for a minute, ye might see what’s really going on here.”

“I saw enough last night in the bathroom.” I pick up the empty coffee cups and bring them into the kitchen. “I can’t talk about this any more.”

Walking down the hall toward the bathroom, I steal a glance into the spare room, where the door is ajar. Marnie is passed out on the bed, fully clothed, with a bucket beside her and a cover over her middle.

“Huh,” I say softly and tiptoe on to the bathroom. My head is wrecked. I’m too tired to figure all this shit out, so I take a shower. When I come back out Michaél is also up and dressed.

“Erin, we need to have some fun. Take me out and show me the sights.”

“I don’t think so. I’m wrecked. I haven’t slept much and I’ve loads of paperwork to catch up on.” I pick up my laptop and turn to go toward my room where I can work uninterrupted.

Michaél blocks my path and takes my hand in his. “Please, Erin. Ye work too hard. Ye need a break, and I’ve barely seen any of Boston. Come on. It’ll be fun.”

I consider his proposal. There’s no chance of me getting any more sleep and today is supposed to be my day off. My brain seems to be out to lunch. I’m literally too tired to fight today. Besides, my attorney told me to play nice. She may have even told me to give this thing a chance, whatever this thing is.

“Sure, what the hell,” I say surprising us both.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

RIDLEE