“I was thinking that I was planning for our future.” He sat up and kicked off the sheets. For a moment, her gaze dropped to his lap, but any hopes of derailing her anger with a bit of flashing were quickly dashed.
“By what, buying a bar?” She practically spat the word as if it left a bad taste in her mouth.
“Not just a bar. A hotel. An historical landmark. With a bit of work, we can - ”
“A bit of work? Are you insane? Have you looked at this place?”
He stood up and set his shoulders. This time her gaze never wavered from his face. Not a good sign. “Aye, I have. And you didn’t seem to mind it so much last night.”
“Last night was wonderful,” she admitted. “But it was wonderful because I was with you, Jack, not because it was here.” Kathleen exhaled heavily and waved her hand around the room. “What you did with the candles and the flowers, it was really romantic. And I don’t mean to sound unappreciative, but we are married now. Do you understand what that means?”
His eyes raked up and down her body. She was a beautiful woman, but when she was riled, she was magnificent. A flush colored her pale skin, her eyes shone, and the way she squared her shoulders back like that showcased her lovely breasts. “Aye,” he said huskily.
That only seemed to rile her further. She crossed her arms over her chest and covered those tempting nipples, the ones reaching for him through the fabric of his shirt. The move forced his focus back to her face. Or, more accurately, her I’m-not-happy-with-you face. It tempered his lust, but only a little.
“It means, Jack, that we are partners. That we discuss huge, life-altering decisions like selling a house or throwing money away on a failing business. Where are we supposed to live?”
“Here.”
“You are insane.”
“Clearly you are not seeing the potential.”
“Clearly you need to get your head out of your arse.”
“Enough!” he bellowed. “What’s done is done. Like it or not, I did what I thought was best for us and for our future. This is our home, and we will make it work.”
Jack mimicked her angry stance, crossing his arms over his chest and pinning her with a no-nonsense glare. At least until he saw the moisture pooling in her eyes and her bottom lip begin to tremble. Immediately the swell of anger receded. Her next words replaced it with an icy chill.
“Then perhaps we have both made a grave error in judgment.”
Stunned, he said nothing as she stormed into the bathroom. She didn’t mean that. She couldn’t mean that. The slamming door, followed by the heavy snick of the lock engaging, was loud in the near silence. As were her muffled sobs.
His heart grew heavy; his stomach twisted in knots. Physical pain was preferable to the sound of Kathleen crying; it clawed at him, taking the air from his lungs as well. He crossed the room in two long strides and struck the door with the side of his fist. “Kathleen, open the door.”
“No. Go away, Jack.”
“Please. Come out here and talk to me, Kathleen.”
No amount of coaxing changed her mind; she refused to even answer him after a while. Jack sank back down onto the bed and placed his head in his hands. How had things gone from so good to so bad so quickly?
One of the perks of buying the Pub was the inventory the old man had included as part of the deal. Jack poured himself another shot of whiskey and stared at his reflection in the dirty mirrored wall tiles behind the bar.
He’d been married for less than twenty-four hours and he’d already managed to make a mess of things. Now that he’d calmed down a bit, he could understand why she was upset. In retrospect, he should have discussed the idea with her first.
He could continue to rationalize, saying he hadn’t brought it up because she had enough to worry about with the wedding. Or claim that he’d envisioned it as a wedding present of sorts -—a home and a business that would be solely theirs. Both would be true.
If he was completely honest with himself, he would also have to admit that he knew it might have been a bit of a sell, at least at first. And that had factored in to his decision to keep it under wraps.
So yeah, he’d cocked up. He’d sprung something big on her, and she was pissed. He got that.
But locking herself in the bathroom and refusing to talk to him? That was taking things a bit far.
This irrational behavior was a side of Kathleen he hadn’t seen before. Yes, he’d known she was a passionate, stubborn woman. Her fire and inner strength had drawn him to her in the first place. The long, rambling letters she’d written him all those years, had painted a thorough picture of the woman. Revealed all the things he would have discovered in person had he not been shipped out so soon after they’d met. With each one, he’d fallen more in love with her. His croie had a loving heart, an intelligent mind and a giving spirit, perfect complements to her core of steel. And, until this morning, she’d always been reasonable.
He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. Kathleen was an intelligent woman. Surely, after she’d had time to cool off and think it through, she would be able to see that he had their best interests at heart.