Matt and Faith insisted on riding nearly every ride, dragging Kieran along with them. Matt was less than subtle in his attempts to pair Kieran and Faith together on the two-person cars.
Afterwards, when they’d had their fill of thrill rides, Kieran was more than happy to guide them through some of the tasty delicacies NEPA (Northeastern Pennsylvania) had to offer. On Kieran’s suggestions, they had sampled handmade pierogies, potato pancakes, kielbasa, sausage and pepper sandwiches, splurging on waffles & ice cream and funnel cakes until they couldn’t eat another bite.
“Why don’t you come back to the pavilion with me?” Kieran coaxed again when they had run out of rides and food stands. It wasn’t the first time he’d asked. Each time, Faith managed to find another excuse.
The heavy mixture of deep-fried and spicy foods rolled uncomfortably in Faith’s stomach. After hearing a couple of Lacie’s and Matt’s stories of some of the yet-unmet Callaghan clan, she was quite sure that Kieran, Shane, and Lacie were about all the family she could handle at any given time.
“It’s a family reunion, Kieran,” she reasoned. “We wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. The more the merrier. Plus everyone’s dying to meet you.”
His words only served to reinforce her belief that this was not a good idea. If they were as close-knit as Lacie made them out to be, she was sure they would have heard about her and Matt. No doubt they wanted the chance to see for themselves the woman and boy occupying so much of Kieran’s free time. She didn’t blame them, really. They were just looking out for their own. She’d probably be doing the same thing – if she still had a family.
Yet she had no desire to be a part of it. Even without meeting them, they intimidated her. The Callaghans, she’d learned soon enough, were a powerful family in the valley and surrounding areas. The thought of being subjected to their close scrutiny made her uncomfortable. She was getting used to Kieran and Lacie, but if she was truthful, even the soft-spoken Shane scared her a little. Sometimes, when he looked at her, she had the feeling he was seeing a lot more than she wanted him to.
And, really, there was no reason why she should feel obligated to meet them. Most of them already knew Matt, and it wasn’t like she was important or anything. She and Kieran were just friends, after all. There was nothing romantic between them (she immediately quashed the pesky pang of despair at that thought), and so they needn’t worry unnecessarily.
It would just be awkward and uncomfortable all around. She and Matt were still outsiders, after all, and she hated drawing the kind of curious attention a huge family gathering would bring. Pine Ridge wasn’t that big; eventually, she’d run into them, but hopefully it would be in small and infrequent doses rather than all at once.
“Please, Faith,” Kieran said, entwining his fingers with hers as he tugged her toward the pavilion. As she looked into his big blue eyes and felt the pleasant hum reverberate through her body at the simple contact, all of her perfectly reasonable and logical rationalizations flew right out the window. Faith could not come up with a single reasonable excuse not to accompany him to the pavilion, not without hurting Kieran’s feelings.
“All right. But just for a little while.” Kieran’s face split into a grin so wide she had to smile. As he tugged her excitedly toward the massive pavilion at the heart of the annual Callaghan/Connelly family reunion, her much shorter legs struggling to keep up with his and Matt’s longer-legged pace, she shored herself up with the protective shields she’d developed over the years, hoping she wouldn’t need them, dreading that she would.
*
“Who’s that with Kieran?” Lexi asked, spotting him as they neared the pavilion.
A few sets of eyes followed her gaze. “Oh, that’s Faith,” said Lacie, the smile evident in her voice. “She’s really nice. You’ll like her.”
“What is she, nineteen?” Taryn asked, narrowing her eyes to get a better look as her protective instincts flared. Kieran was such a sweetheart, she and her sisters-in-law often took it upon themselves to ensure he wasn’t taken advantage of. “A bit young for him, isn’t she?”
Lacie laughed. “No. She’s the same age as he is, but she does look young, I admit.”
“And who’s that with her?” Nicki asked, her agent’s eye immediately picking up the similar, unusual hair color. “Her brother?”
“No,” Lacie said, her voice quieter. “That’s her son, Matt.”
Several pairs of shocked eyes turned toward Lacie. “You’re joking, right?” Taryn said.
Lacie shook her head, but was unable to say anymore before they were within hearing range.
*