Brian

Epilogue

Brian grabbed the coffeepot and filled his mug, then dumped a healthy measure of Rice Krispies into a bowl. A can of concentrated orange juice thawed on the counter, but he couldn't wait. He grabbed a spoon and tried unsuccessfully to pry it out of the can and into a pitcher. "Lily! We're going to be late. If you want a ride, you're going to have to be ready in five minutes." He poured milk onto his cereal and took a hasty bite.

A few seconds later, Lily rushed into the kitchen, buttoning the front of her blouse, her jacket tucked beneath her arm. "I know, I know. I have to look just right. I have a big client meeting this morning." She straightened and smoothed her hands over her skirt. "We have to work out some kind of schedule in the bathroom," she said. "There has to be a way for us to co-exist in there."

Brian looked up from his bowl of cereal, his gaze taking in her disheveled appearance. They'd lived together for nearly two months and he still enjoyed the little moments like this, when it hit him that Lily wasn't going anywhere, that she was with him for the rest of his life. "We could always get a new apartment, someplace with a bigger bathroom."

"Or two bathrooms," Lily suggested.

She tucked her blouse into her skirt, then slipped into her jacket. The suit was a taupe-colored fabric that looked like linen, a conservative style paired with a clingy silk blouse. Brian thought she looked especially beautiful that morning, but then she always looked beautiful.

"Are you almost ready?" he asked.

"You're the one who kept me in bed too long," she said, taking a bite of his cereal. "If you want me on time, then we're going to have to wake up earlier."

"So what's the meeting about?" he asked, watching her draw her hair back at her nape.

"It's my first real paying client. Do you think I should wear my hair up or down?"

"Up," Brian said.

"Really?" She frowned. "I was thinking down. I want to appear businesslike but approachable."

"Is the client male or female?" Brian asked.

"Female," she said.

"Then down. Definitely down."

"And if my client was a male?"

"Up. In one of those prissy little knots."

Lily shook her head and laughed. "I don't think I trust your advice."

Brian grabbed her around the waist and kissed her neck, leaving milk on her skin. "You'd look beautiful if you teased your hair and wore it with a big bow on top of your head. Trust me."

"We're going to be late," she warned. "You're not a big shot at the Globe, like you were at the TV station. They won't tolerate tardiness."

"How could they fire their newest feature writer?" Brian asked.

Lily gasped as she drew back. "Feature writer?"

"I've been assigned my first investigative piece. I'm no longer going to be just 'staff writer.' Pretty good for two months on the job."

He'd decided to take the job at the Globe the day after Lily decided to stay in Boston. He and Lily had enjoyed a few weeks of freedom before he started at the paper and in that time, she'd made plans to start her own public relations consulting firm. They found her office space in one of Rafe's buildings and she gradually began to make contacts in and around Boston.

Though they were living on a fraction of what they'd both previously earned, Brian didn't care. They had each other and that was enough. There would be plenty of time to make money later. For now, making love was more important.

"Congratulations, darling." Lily threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, a tempting kiss that made him think of things other than work. Brian returned her kiss, picking her up and setting her on the edge of the kitchen table, then sliding his hands along her thighs.

"Thank you, sweetheart," he murmured.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked as his hands moved up to the buttons on her blouse.

"Are you sure you don't want to dance? We have a little time before we have to leave for work. And we do have something to celebrate. Richard Patterson is going to prison for a few years. Did you see the article in the paper? It was very romantic."

"Romantic?"

"He was the man who brought us together. As I was reading it, I felt this urge to propose."

Lily groaned, then slapped his hands away. "If you keep teasing me like this, I'm not going to say yes. Come on, I have a meeting. Let's go."

Brian brushed his hand over his jacket pocket where he'd tucked the little velvet box, waiting for the right moment to present her with the ring. For now, he'd save it. "All right. Let's go. I'm pitching my first story at the editorial meeting this morning."

"What's your story about?" she asked, reaching around him to grab the bowl of cereal. She fed him a spoonful, then took one for herself.

"The Boston Fund," he said. "It's a charity that-"

"I know it's a charity," Lily said, the spoon freezing halfway to her mouth. "It's run by Dorothy Elton Fellner."

"Right. I've learned that dollar for dollar she spends more on her balls and receptions than she does on the less fortunate of Boston. She's using her charity to fund her social life. It's just a big scam and some of the most prominent people in this city have been duped."

Lily groaned. "No. Are you sure?"

"I've talked to three different sources and they all tell the same story. Amy, Brendan's wife, says it's a well-known fact among the rest of the charities in town. And Fellner uses the nonprofit status to avoid taxes." He kissed her again. "Now, who is your new client?"

A tiny smile touched her lips. "My new client is Dorothy Elton Fellner," she said. "She wants me to plan her next event and do some publicity for the charity."

Brian stared into the eyes of the woman he loved, then chuckled softly. "I can't believe this has happened to us again."

"I can't either. What are we going to do?"

"I have another idea I could pitch," Brian suggested.

"And I suppose I don't really need her business," Lily countered.

He'd never imagined that he and Lily would be faced with another professional conflict. But now that they'd made a life together, Brian didn't really care about the story. He'd found a woman to love and she was worth any compromise. "Take the job," Brian said. "I'll forget the story."

Lily shook her head. "No, it will make a great story. You do it."

"We could flip for it," Brian said.

Lily wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'll give you this one, Brian Quinn. But you're going to owe me."

Brian bent close and kissed her, lingering over her mouth for a long time before he stepped back. The Quinn family curse had struck yet again but as he looked into Lily's beautiful face, Brian realized that although a curse had brought them together, it was love that would keep them together.

With Lily in his life, he'd become a Mighty Quinn. Not the kind of Quinn who could slay a dragon or bring down an ogre. But the kind of Quinn who could love a woman every day for the rest of his life. And though his story might not be told in years to come, he knew it would the greatest adventure of his life.

Another Mighty Quinn had found love and in finding love, had discovered his heart.