Seven

That evening, a knock sounded on Kieran's door.

"Are you decent?" Mum asked from the other side.

He added the T-shirt he'd just folded into his suitcase, then opened the door. Mum walked in as he went back to packing.

"I just stopped to tell you good night... What are you doing?" she said, alarm in her voice.

"I've got an early flight tomorrow morning." He added his black toiletry bag to the suitcase.

"You're leaving?"

He turned and looked at her, fighting the ache in his chest. More than once as he drove home from Emmy's, he'd thought about

going back to her, to try to work things out. She was giving up on them before they had a chance. But ultimately, he knew

she was right. They lived in different worlds, literally. "I've got a business deal I need to tend to," he said. "I told you

about that apartment complex in Dublin—"

"Rubbish! That's not till next week." She put her hands on her slim hips, and he noticed she was wearing a red bathrobe with

a Santa Claus embroidered on one lapel. "What happened between you and Emmy?"

"Nothing." And that was why he was leaving. "We both know what you and Sheryl were up to."

"Kieran," she said, her tone softening. She dropped her arms and went to him. "Emmy's a wonderful woman."

"I know." The words came out against his will.

"Then why won't you give her a chance?"

He sank down on the edge of the twin bed he'd slept on his entire childhood. Even his bedroom had remained the same, down

to the baseball-themed wallpaper he'd wanted when he was eight. "There's nothing between Emmy and me."

"I don't believe that." She sat next to him. "She adored you when you were in high school."

Guess I was the last to know . "That was a long time ago."

"She never married. Neither did you. You two are meant for each other."

He didn't want to hear any more of his mother's pie-in-the-sky words. "I need to finish packing."

"So you're running away, like you did before?"

Kieran's eyes snapped onto hers. "I'm not running away."

"Aren't you?" Her jaw tightened as she stood. "You ran off to Europe as soon as you could. I thought it was just a phase,

that you would get your wanderlust out of your system and come back to Mistletoe. Then you went to Ireland. Even then I thought

you'd eventually come home. But you never did." Tears began to mist in her eyes. "And now you're leaving again. Before my

birthday. Before Christmas ."

"Mum..." he said, his throat closing. "I... I have to go."

"Fine." She waved her hand. "Go close your business deal or whatever. Hide in Ireland, or France, or Egypt, or wherever you

decide to land. Just know this. You can't outrun grief. Or a broken heart. Trust me, I know." She hurried out of the room.

Kieran stared at the suitcase, then at the shelf on the opposite wall. His Little League trophies were there, along with a picture of the last team he played on... the one his dad had coached. He stared at the black-haired man standing beside the group of kids, his stomach a little paunchy and his hair more than a little thin. But he beamed with pride as his hand rested on twelve-year-old Kieran's shoulder.

Kieran shoved the suitcase aside and sat back down on the bed, his head dropping into his hands. His mother was partially

right—when he left Mistletoe, he hadn't planned to stay away very long. When his father died, the pain was so intense, he

didn't think he could survive it. But he had to be strong for Mum and Sheryl, and he was able to push down the grief and get

through it. And he could ignore it completely while he was abroad.

When he eventually went to Ireland, he fell in love with the country, especially when he found out that the O'Neill castle

was for sale. Renovating it was a way to honor his father and ancestors. And anyway, the longer he stayed away from Mistletoe,

the more disconnected he was to his hometown.

But when he came back and spent some time around his family, that feeling had somewhat changed. There was a mix of grief and

joy as memories came flooding back, more good ones than bad. He realized how much time he'd missed with his nephews, and he'd

loved being with them. He also appreciated the quaintness of his hometown.

And of course, there was Emmy.

Kieran rubbed his hand over his face. Emmy's rejection had stirred up so many emotions, the chief one being heartache. It

didn't make any sense. He'd reconnected with her only a couple of weeks ago, but she had consumed his thoughts and feelings

ever since. He could stay and try to shut out the pain, like he'd done with his grief. But he didn't know if he could do it,

not really. He could avoid Mistletoe Antiques easily enough. But Emmy would be at his mother's party. Even now his chest constricted

at the thought of seeing her again, knowing they couldn't be together.

He stood up and resumed packing. He was being a coward. And a jerk. But his mother and sister would forgive him eventually. And with enough distance between him and Emmy, he could get over her. Then he could carry on with his life, his new adventure... and leave the pain behind.

***

"I'm going to kill him," Sheryl said as she burst into the shop on Monday morning. She stomped to the counter, oblivious to

all the customers in the store.

Emmy was a few feet away helping a young woman find a gift for her grandmother. Naturally she wanted to look at the Irish

glass in the display case. Bad enough Emmy had spent last night alternating between tears and anger over Kieran. All she'd

had to do was agree to a long-distance relationship, and they would be together.

But she didn't want Kieran only part of the time. She wanted all of him, always. And that was an impossibility. He'd proven

as much when he left as soon as she told him to.

Sheryl slammed her insulated lunch bag on the counter. A few customers turned around and stared.

"You should probably keep it down a little," Carina said in a low voice.

Emmy's customer was engrossed in looking at every piece of glass and didn't seem to notice. But Emmy did, and she was positive

she knew who Sheryl was referring to.

"Who's on your naughty list now?" Carina smirked at her own joke. Her smile faded when she saw Sheryl's face turn crimson.

"My no-good, selfish brother." She whipped off her scarf and threw it next to the lunch bag. "He has permanently taken the

number-one spot."

"Ooh, this is pretty." The woman picked up an emerald glass paperweight rimmed in gold, with the country of Ireland etched

in the middle. "She'll love this." She turned to Emmy. "I'll take it. "

"Great choice." Emmy's hands trembled slightly as she locked up the case and carried the paperweight to the counter. What had Kieran done to make Sheryl so angry?

"I'll be in the back," Sheryl said, giving Emmy a frustrated look. She tromped toward the café area.

Carina shrugged and went to help another customer.

It wasn't until almost five when business slowed enough that Emmy could talk to Sheryl. She pulled her friend to the side

in the café. "What happened?" she asked, although she feared she already knew the answer.

"He left." Sheryl scowled. "He told Mom he got a call from his real estate agent in Dublin, and he needed to fly out ASAP

for some meeting about a property he wants to buy. I still can't believe he did that. He's so full of himself."

Emmy reached for a napkin and handed it to Sheryl, who blew her nose and continued.

"Instead of postponing it, he said yes and left at 3:00 a.m. to catch the first flight out. He said he would visit after Christmas,

but you know how that goes." She shook her head. "I should have known he'd bail on us. He doesn't care about family. He doesn't

even know what the word means." She started to cry. "He broke Mom's heart."

The color drained from Emmy's face. "This is my fault," she whispered.

Sheryl's head popped up. "Huh?"

Emmy told her friend what happened the night before and a little about the carriage ride at Jingle Fest, leaving out the kissing

and her declaration of love to Kieran. "I think he left because of me."

Sheryl shook her head, her ponytail swishing indignantly. "Don't you dare take the blame for him, Emmy. I'm sure his ego was

bruised, but he didn't want to be here in the first place. You know how eager he was to get out of Mistletoe after graduation.

I just thought when he finally agreed to come that maybe..." She collapsed in the chair and looked up at Emmy. "I'm sorry."

Frowning, Emmy sat down. "For what?"

"For pushing you two together. I knew you liked him back in school."

"Really?"

"Girl, everyone knew. Except Kieran, Mr. Obtuse." She took Emmy's hand. "I thought if he had another reason to be here, he

would stay. I didn't mean for you to get hurt."

"I'm not hurt." She stared at her lap, feeling foolish that she hadn't hidden her crush like she thought she had.

"Your eyes have been puffy all day, and you have on one black sneaker and one white sneaker."

Shocked, Emmy stared at her feet. "Why didn't anyone say anything?"

"We were busy today." Sheryl sniffed. "And I doubt anyone noticed other than me, Carina, Mrs. Weatherly, Joe Quarles—"

"Okay, got it." She was sure her friend would have named half the customers who visited the store today if Emmy hadn't stopped

her.

"Kieran's a knucklehead all on his own." Sheryl's eyes flashed with anger as she got up from the chair. "And we'll carry on

without him. Just like we always have."

Emmy watched her friend walk away, and she sighed. Kieran was being a jerk for hurting his family, but he wasn't a terrible

man. And no matter what Sheryl said, Emmy would always feel like she was partly responsible for him leaving.

***

For the next week, Emmy was so busy she could hardly catch her breath. Between running the store and helping Sheryl with Maggie's

party, she was exhausted. After the new year she would have some downtime, thank goodness.

But her exhaustion didn't keep her from thinking about Kieran, especially when she was alone. Sheryl had calmed down over him leaving, although she was still mad at him. Maggie was more restrained, although Emmy knew her well enough to sense her underlying sadness. Neither of them had said a word about him since he left.

Sheryl had insisted on a semiformal theme for Maggie's party, so Emmy dressed in the only fancy outfit she owned—a black sequined

dress with a flared skirt and off-the-shoulder long sleeves. To make the getup a little Christmassy, she added her holly berry

earrings and matching necklace, along with a silver headband. She wore black tights with low-heeled, black shoes, and something

rare for her—makeup. She was touching up her red lips when she got a text.

Carina: Ready to go? We're in front of the building.

Emmy grabbed her coat and scarf and went downstairs. Jeremy's SUV was parked in front of the shop, and snow covered the ground.

Carefully she walked over the inch of snowflakes and climbed into the back seat. "Thanks for the ride," she said as she shut

the door.

Carina whipped her head around. "You look amazing! Is that eyeshadow I see?"

Batting her eyes, Emmy said, "Sure is. And you're beautiful." She squeezed her daughter's hand.

"She sure is." Jeremy grinned at Carina and put the car in Drive. He and Carina talked quietly to each other while Emmy settled

into the back seat and found her thoughts drifting to Kieran again. Eventually she would get over him. For good this time.

They arrived at the party and Sheryl immediately dashed over, then turned and faced the crowd of partygoers. "Ben took Mom to get some last-minute presents," she said to everyone in the room. "He texted that they were five minutes away, so get to your hiding places."

Emmy helped Sheryl herd the group, which was a challenge considering over half were senior citizens and a quarter of them

weren't wearing their hearing aids. By the time headlights shone in the parking lot, everyone was in their spot, including

Emmy, who was crouched down next to Sheryl. She held her breath as the door opened, and Sheryl popped up and turned on the

nearby light.

"Surprise!"

Kieran stood there, a huge bouquet of roses in his hand and a gift under his arm. "What the—"

"Kieran!" Sheryl hustled over to him, not an easy feat in her high heels, and grabbed her brother. "Mom will be here any minute!"

She dragged him over to where she was hiding and pushed him toward Emmy. "Get. Down."

He complied as the room went dark again.

Emmy's skin tingled as Kieran shifted next to her. He didn't say anything, and it was too dark to see if he was looking in

her direction. But she could sense his warmth and smell his woodsy cologne.

"When did you get back?" Sheryl whispered.

"Three hours ago," he said, the scent of cinnamon on his breath. "I had to—"

"She's here!"

The room went quiet. The door opened, and a wedge of light illuminated the door. "Ben," Maggie said. "Why is it so dark in

here—"

"Surprise!"

The lights flicked on, and Maggie's face contorted in shock. For a minute Emmy thought there might be something wrong and they had scared her. But then Maggie burst into laughter as everyone started singing "Happy Birthday." She was in tears by the end of the tune, and her gaze had landed on Kieran. She walked over to him and gave him a big hug.

"You came back," she said, pulling away from him but keeping her hands on his arms.

"I told you I would, Mum." He held out the red and white roses to her. "Happy birthday."

Maggie hugged him again, and Emmy stood to the side as he was greeted by family and friends. Sheryl punched him in the arm

before hugging him fiercely.

"If you ever pull another stunt like this again, you'll be sorry," she said, her voice thick.

"I won't." He gave her a serious look. "I can promise you that."

Emmy smiled, her heart almost full. Kieran was back. She didn't know for how long, although she was certain it was just for

the party. Or maybe he would stay for Christmas. He wouldn't be here past the new year. That she was sure of.

The O'Neill family was swept away by the partygoers, and even though Emmy knew everyone, she felt a little on the outside.

She spied Carina and Jeremy sitting close to each other at a table, their heads together and whispering.

I approve , Emmy thought.

Music started playing, and the party was underway. She slipped away and found her coat, suddenly needing some air.

***

After Kieran had surprised everyone—and was a little shocked himself, even though he knew it was a surprise party—he searched for Emmy. He thought he saw her standing near the front of the party area, but she wasn't there. He'd had to fight the desire to reach for her hand when they were crouching next to each other in the dark. Even though he'd been gone only a week, he'd missed her so much. Her, his family... and Mistletoe.

He felt a whoosh of cold air and turned around in time to see Emmy slip out the door. His package still under his arm, he

followed her outside.

"Emmy!" he said, catching up to her.

She turned around, and to his delighted surprise, she smiled. He thought she was still upset with him.

"Hi," she said when he reached her.

"Hi, lass." Snow had started to fall again, and the weather had been dicey all the way from Dublin. But if he'd had to paddle

his way to Mistletoe, he would have done it.

"Did anyone know you were coming?" she asked.

"I thought about telling Ben, but I wanted to surprise everyone." Her face looked different under the parking lot lights,

and he realized she was wearing makeup. Tastefully done and pretty, but she was pretty without it too. "I'm glad to see you."

The understatement of the year. He waited for her to say the same. He was disappointed when she didn't, but he also understood why.

"You made your family very happy tonight." She huddled farther into her coat.

"Good thing, since I made them plenty mad when I left."

"Is that why you came back? To make it up to them?"

"Mostly. Emmy, I messed things up. When I got the call to go to Dublin, I should have put off the trip. Mum begged me to,

but all I wanted was to leave."

"To get back to Ireland," she said.

"Nay. No." He took a step toward her, relieved when she didn't move away. "I wanted to leave the pain. Not just the memories.

I would have dealt with those. But I couldn't stand the fact that I'd hurt you. I couldn't face it either. But I know."

Emmy shook her head. "You sound human to me. I'm sorry I hurt you, Kieran—"

He put his finger on her lips, then removed his hand and held out the gift. "Merry Christmas."

She took it from him. "You didn't have to get me anything."

"I wanted to." He put his hands behind his back and grinned. "Open it."

She carefully removed the wrapping and lifted the lid from the box. "Mittens," she said, pulling out an almost duplicate pair

of the ones she'd spilled coffee on.

He'd searched for over a week in the Dublin stores to try to find them. "They're not exactly the same—"

"They're perfect." She slipped them on. "And better. Mine were on clearance." She held her hands close to her face. "Do they

go with my outfit?"

He laughed. "That they do. There's something else in the box."

She gave him a questioning look as she peered inside. "A list?" When she struggled to pick up the paper with her mittened

hand, he took over and handed it to her, and she began to read it aloud. "Number one—find a house." She looked at him. "I

don't understand."

"I don't mind livin' with Mum for the short term." He tried to keep his tone light, but the emotion was getting to him. "But

eventually I'll need my own place here in Mistletoe."

Her eyes widened. "You're moving here?" At his nod she said, "But what about Ireland? You love it there."

"And it isn't goin' anywhere. But my home is here. I realized that as soon as I landed in Dublin, because I kept seeing things."

"Things?" she asked, confused.

"Candles." He smiled. "Single candles were everywhere. Store windows, house windows, apartment windows. Every time I saw one,

all I wanted was to come back to Mistletoe."

She half smiled. "To be with your family."

"And with you, lass." He leaned toward her. "Don't tell Sheryl and Mum, but you edged them out by several kilometers."

Her smile brightened, then immediately disappeared as questions filled her eyes. "Are you sure?"

Kieran closed the space between them. "I don't know what the future holds for us, Emmy Banks. I just know I want to discover

it with you. Tá mo chroí istigh ionat . "

"What does that mean?"

He took her hand and put it on his chest, over his beating heart. "My heart is within you."

Her eyes sparkled. "That's the most romantic thing I ever heard." She put her arms around his neck and kissed him, then whispered

in his ear, "And mine is within yours."

***

Christmas Eve

Emmy stood in front of her mirror in her bedroom, wondering if she should change her ugly Christmas sweater and put on her

other ugly Christmas sweater. She glanced at her watch. Nope, there was no time—

The doorbell rang. She hurried out of her bedroom and opened the door. Kieran stood there, looking as fine as he did every

day, whether he was dressed up like he had been at Maggie's party or wearing his wool coat, jeans, and a pullover. They had

spent a lot of time together the last few days, mostly at Carina and Sheryl's insistence, confident they could handle the

rest of the Christmas shoppers without her. Emmy had discovered Kieran's keen business sense, and together they came up with

a financial plan that would help her reach her goal of opening a café—if not next door to the antique shop, then somewhere

else in Mistletoe.

"Hi," she said, grinning. "I'll just grab my purse and the presents, and we'll go." They were expected at Sheryl's tonight for her annual ugly sweater Christmas Eve party.

Kieran opened his coat, revealing a hideous sweater that rivaled her own renowned collection. The Christmas tree in the center

was fine, along with the tiny gifts at the bottom. But it was the green pompoms around the collar, the dancing Santas on the

shoulders, and the red and green tinsel wrapped around each sleeve that got her laughing.

"What?" He flashed her a grin and turned around for full effect.

"You look like a flamenco dancer," she said, still giggling.

"Too much?"

"You're a shoo-in to win the coveted annual prize."

"Which is?"

"A twenty-year-old loaf of fruitcake that's been passed around Mistletoe at least fifty times."

"One of Mom's?"

Emmy grinned and nodded. "She's a good sport about it, though. I don't think anyone has the courage to open it, much less

taste it."

Kieran laughed. "You won't find me volunteerin', that's for sure. Are you ready to go?"

"Aye," she said, imitating his accent.

He pulled her into his arms. "I'll have you speakin' like an Irish lassie in no time."

"And it won't be long before you'll be talking like a Missouri country boy again."

"Fine by me." He glanced up at the mistletoe. "Last time I was here, I really wanted to take advantage of that sprig o' green

above us."

She gazed into his eyes. "What's stopping you?"

His eyes danced as he leaned in to kiss her. "Merry Christmas, lass."

And it was.