LITMIR.BIZ

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      She gestured toward the shop windows. “Bree and Shanna have a real knack for creating inviting displays, don’t they?”

      “Best on the block,” he said proudly. There was nothing an O’Brien did that wasn’t the best, according to Mick—unless, of course, it was an accomplishment by one of his estranged brothers, Jeff or Thomas. “Why don’t we go to Sally’s and have some hot chocolate and one of her raspberry croissants?”

      “I was planning to start on my Christmas shopping this morning,” she protested. “It’s practically my duty to support the local economy, don’t you think?”

      “Why not warm up with the hot chocolate first?” he coaxed. “And then I’ll go with you.”

      Megan regarded him with surprise. “You hate to shop.”

      “That was the old me,” he said with the irrepressible grin she’d never been able to resist. “I’m reformed, remember? I want to do anything that allows me some extra time with you. Besides, I’m hoping you’ll give me some ideas about what you really want for Christmas.”

      Given all the years when Mick had turned his holiday shopping over to her and later to his secretary, this commitment to finding the perfect gift was yet more evidence that he was truly trying to change his neglectful ways.

      “I appreciate the thought,” she began, only to draw a scowl.

      “Don’t be telling me you don’t need anything,” he said as he guided her into Sally’s. “Christmas gifts aren’t about what you need. They’re about things that will make those beautiful eyes of yours light up.”

      Megan smiled. “You still have the gift of blarney, Mick O’Brien.” And over the past couple of years since they’d been reunited, his charm had become harder and harder to resist. In fact, she couldn’t say for sure why she’d been so reluctant to set a wedding date when he’d shown her time and again how much he’d tried to change in all the ways that had once mattered so much to her.

      When they were seated and held steaming cups of hot chocolate, topped with extra marshmallows, she studied the man across from her. Still handsome, with thick black hair, twinkling blue eyes and a body kept fit from working construction in many of his own developments as well as his recent Habitat for Humanity projects, Mick O’Brien would turn any woman’s head.

      Now when he was with her—unlike when they were married—he was attentive and thoughtful. He courted her as only a man who knew her deepest desires possibly could. There was an intimacy and understanding between them that could only come from so many years of marriage.

      And yet, she still held back. She’d found so many excuses, in fact, that Mick had stopped pressing her to set a date. She had a feeling that a perverse desire to be pursued was behind her disgruntled mood this morning.

      “You’ve that sad expression on your face again, Meggie. Is something wrong?” he asked, once more proving he was attuned to her every mood.

      She drew in a deep breath and, surprising herself, blurted, “I’m wondering why you’ve stopped pestering me to marry you.”

      At the question, Mick’s expression immediately brightened. “Are you saying you’ve finally run out of excuses?”

      “Possibly,” she said, then gave him a challenging look. “Try me.”

      A sheepish smile spread across his face. “Well, for starters, you should know that I have New Year’s Eve on hold at Jess’s inn,” he admitted. “Just in case.”

      Startled, Megan stared at him. “For our wedding?”

      “Or at least a family party, if I couldn’t coax you into finally saying yes to a wedding date,” he said hurriedly. “What do you think, Meggie? Would you like to start the new year as Mrs. Mick O’Brien? I know for me there’d be no better time to begin the next stage of our life together.”

      He reached across the table and clasped her hand. “Will you marry me so we can greet the new year together? Say yes and we’ll go straight to the jewelry store where I have the perfect ring on hold. Sapphires and diamonds that sparkle like your eyes. I knew the minute I saw it that it belonged on your hand.”

      It had taken Megan a long time to get over all the times Mick had gone running off for work, abandoning her to care for their five children alone. It had taken years for her to understand that the neglect had been born not just of ego but of a powerful drive to provide for his family. She’d forgiven him long ago. Now it was simply a question of ignoring all the lingering doubts that crept in late at night, when she was alone in her bed in New York, and taking a leap of faith into the future he was offering, to believe it wouldn’t turn out the same way as the past.

      She took a deep breath and made the leap. “I think New Year’s Eve would be a wonderful time to get married,” she said, her eyes blurred by tears.

      Mick frowned. “If it’s so wonderful, why are you crying?”

      “Because I’m happy,” she said, deliberately pushing her lingering doubts aside. She was stronger now. She’d found a career of her own in New York, one she could bring with her to Chesapeake Shores. She could be an equal partner with Mick this time. Not everything would have to be on his terms. They’d finally have the life she’d envisioned the first time they’d married.

      Obviously satisfied by her answer, Mick immediately grabbed his coat and stood, then reached for her hand. “Let’s go.”

      She regarded him with bafflement. “Where? We just got here. I’ve barely taken a sip of this hot chocolate you were so intent on having.”

      “We can get more to go. Right now, we have a ring to buy, people to tell, plans to make and not a lot of time.” Already waving for the check, he ticked off a list. “We’ll stop in to see Bree and order the flowers, then see if Kevin’s at the bookstore with Shanna and we can tell them the news.”

      There he was, barreling ahead with his plans, not two seconds after she’d envisioned a real partnership. Megan regarded him with dismay. “Slow down, Mick. Shouldn’t we tell everyone at once? Maybe invite them all over for dinner and make a big announcement? And there’s Nell. We don’t want your mother hearing this from anyone else in the family. She’s sensitive enough about the idea of me coming back and taking over after all her years of running your home. We want to settle how this will work, so she won’t feel as if I’m displacing her. After all she’s done for this family, we owe her that much consideration.”

      After a moment’s hesitation, Mick sighed and sat back down. “You were always the sensible one,” he said.

      “And you were always the passionate one with big ideas he expected everyone to go along with,” she said. “We need to keep in mind that even though things are better with our children, they may not be as overjoyed about this as we are.”

      “Abby’s been plotting exactly this for a very long time,” he reminded her.

      Megan couldn’t deny that their eldest child had played a role in bringing them back together. “She may be the only one with a longing to see us reunited,” she observed realistically.

      “They’re all adults. They’ll just have to deal with it,” he said stubbornly.

      “Now there’s the sensitive side of you I’ve missed,” she said wryly.

      “Okay, okay, I see your point. We’ll handle this your way,” Mick grumbled. “But nobody’s standing in our way. I won’t allow it.”

      Megan grinned. “Famous last words.”

      Mick managed to feign enthusiasm for Christmas shopping for an hour, but Megan could see it was killing him. He simply didn’t have the patience for it.

      “Go home,” she said eventually. “You know you hate this.”

      “I just don’t understand why it takes so long to decide between one scarf

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