Come Monday by Mari Carr Read Free Book Online Page A

notice,” her brother joked, enjoying her discomfiture.
    “This is gonna suck,” she murmured. “Maybe I’ll just wait outside for him.”
    “We won’t embarrass you, Keira. Promise.” Sean walked over and grabbed her hand. “We just want to get a look at the guy who was smart enough to ask you out.” Keira grinned and pressed a quick kiss on her baby brother’s forehead. “Thanks, squirt.”
    “Keira?”
    She took a deep breath and turned. Will was standing behind her and she tried to ignore that the room had gone suspiciously quiet. There were a lot of regulars drinking at the bar and no doubt Tris had spread the word about his sister having a date. More than a few interested faces turned in their direction.
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    “Hi, Will.”
    She saw him glance at her outfit and for a moment, she sensed his surprise. Luckily he recovered quickly. “You look beautiful.”
    He took her hand as she turned back toward the bar. “Um, I’d like you to meet my family.” During his arrival, the men had joined together to form a united front behind the counter. “This is my father, Patrick. Pop, this is William Wallace.” Pop came around the bar and took Will’s hand in a firm, quick handshake. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Collins,” Will said genially.
    “And you. Scottish?”
    Will shook his head. “Actually no. My father’s side was originally Polish, until Ellis Island Americanized them.”
    “Polish, eh?” Pop asked.
    “Of course, when you throw in my mother’s German ancestry, I think it’s safe to say I’m a mutt.”
    Pop laughed and slapped Will on the shoulder. “Well, better a mutt than a Scotsman.”
    “Pop,” Keira warned, trying to steer the conversation back to safer waters.
    “These are my brothers,” she said, hoping to get this nightmare beginning of a date over with. “You know Tristan. Standing next to him is Ewan and that handsome one on the end is my baby brother Sean.”
    Will shook all three men’s hands.
    “And these are my sisters, Teagan and Riley.”
    “I see beauty runs in the family,” he said as he smiled at her sisters. Both of them nodded appreciatively and Riley gave her a thumbs-up and mouthed he’s hot when Will turned back toward her father.
    “I see you’re a Ravens fan,” Will said, pointing to the endless array of football knickknacks gathered behind the bar.
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    “Is there any other team worth rooting for?” Pop asked.
    Will smiled devilishly and Keira rolled her eyes. “Oh crap, you like football?” she muttered, suspecting Will’s next words could easily be his last.
    “Didn’t I mention I’m originally from Pittsburgh? My parents still live there. Kind of hard to grow up in that city and not be bitten by the bug.” Pop’s eyes narrowed. “I should warn you now, William. We don’t speak the name of that other team in here.”
    “Well now, that seems mighty unsporting of you, Mr. Collins. I mean, after all, Super Bowl champions deserve some respect. You gotta admit that record—”
    “Luck. It was all dumb luck,” Pop insisted.
    “Four Super Bowl wins in the last decade is luck?” Will asked.
    “Do you hear this?” Pop asked, gesturing at the men seated at the bar, ready to jump into his favorite pastime—arguing about sports.
    “Uh, Pop,” Keira said quickly. “Will and I really need to get going. I’ll let you two bash heads about football another time.”
    Will smiled and placed an arm around her shoulder. She tried not to show how much his simple, proprietary touch affected her.
    “I’ll take good care of her, Mr. Collins.”
    “Ach, what’s with this ‘Mr. Collins’ stuff? We’re in the pub. In the pub, I’m Pat.”
    “It was nice to meet you, Pat, in spite of your misguided loyalty to the Ravens.” Will and Pop laughed and she breathed a sigh of relief. This first meeting had had all the makings of a major disaster, but Will had disarmed them all—well, her Pop and sisters—with his charm. Her