Page 446 of Manhattan Bossholes

Love your voice! I’m so glad @DeclanByrneOfficial included you in his top ten freshest voices. He hasn’t done one of those in forever.

Three clicks later, I was scrolling through the most recent post from Declan’s official Snug account. He’d done a post a few hours ago shouting out ten blogs on Snug.

I came in at #2.

The competitive part of me was indignant until I saw that #1 was a UN ambassador literally saving the world from climate change.

Which, you know, fair enough.

As I clicked back to my blog, the magnitude of what he’d done for me sank in. My follower count had already risen by 92%. My engagement rate was through the roof.

If my numbers kept going up like this… It would change the kind of sponsors I could attract. It gave me more power.

It gave me options.

I’d broken his heart in an airport. But he was going out of his way to make my life easier.

I was still scrolling through Snug, barely believing what I was seeing, when my phone rang. Molly’s picture flashed on the screen for half a second and I jabbed my thumb at the green icon.

“Finally!” Molly practically screamed. “I’ve been trying to call you for ages.”

“Sorry, there was a problem with the wi-fi on the plane and⁠—”

“Never mind that,” she cut me a short. “You’re here now, right?”

“I am. I’m on my way to⁠—”

“Oh, dear lord, good. You really need to get here fast, Olivia. You’re not gonna believe this, but Declan has just⁠—”

And that was it. The phone beeped once and, when I pulled it back from my ear to see why Molly had gone silent, I was met by a dark screen. The battery had just died on me.

“Technology, it's always lettin' ya down, isn't it?" the cab driver offered, and I couldn’t help but agree. What did Molly want to tell me? What exactly was happening in Ballybeith? My heart tightened. Had something happened to Declan? To Catie?

I leaned forward and reached for the cab driver. I touched his shoulder gently, but I didn’t need to say a word.

“I can spot a damsel in distress when I see one,” he said, reassuringly. “Ye need to get to Ballybeith in a hurry, don't ye? Ye can count on me, lass. I ain't one to let me customers down."

That seemed to be Irish for ‘I’m going to floor it,’ because next thing I know we were flying down narrow countryside roads, taking speed limits as no more than mere suggestions. Declan wouldn’t be happy if he knew about it, that was for sure, but I didn’t care—all I knew what that I needed to get to him as fast as possible.

By the time we finally got to Ballybeith, my stomach was in knots. We sped down the main road, the one that led into the heart of the town, but we didn’t get far. Police had cordoned off the road, and there were people everywhere. For a moment I thought some kind of freak accident had happened, but then I heard the loud music.

“I'll be damned. When me wife mentioned a party, I never pictured it like this. I reckon this here's as far as I can take ye, lass.” The driver looked down at the road wistfully, as if wishing he could ditch his cab and come with me. He must’ve decided against it, because he tipped his imaginary cap at me again. “Whatever it is ye be searchin' for, I wish ye the best in findin' it.”

“Thank you,” I said, grateful for his kind words. He helped me unload my bags and waited patiently as I dug out my wallet. I winced only slightly at the final total, making sure to leave him a generous tip, waving at him as he turned the cab around and drove away. Dragging my luggage after me. I made a beeline towards the first police officer I could find. He was talking with a man in a charcoal suit, who had his back turned to me.

“I’m sorry to interrupt but⁠—”

“Olivia?” The man in the charcoal suit turned. It was Seamus. “What are you doing here? I thought you’d left.”

“I did, but I…” I drew a deep breath. “Do you know where Declan is? Is he all right?”

“Declan?” Seamus seemed taken aback. “He’s good. I was just talking with him a few minutes ago. You might have missed him, though. He seemed hellbent on leaving for the airport soon. Kind of a shame, you know? Everyone’s gathered here because of him, but it seems like he has some pressing business in the States, so…” He shrugged, seeming to say ‘you know how it goes.’

Except I didn’t.

“I don’t understand.” I looked down the road at the raucous crowd, then at the large stage someone had erected in the town square. Even from a distance, I could recognize the same band I’d heard play at the festival. God, that felt like it had happened a lifetime ago. “What is going on here?

“Oh, you mean you don’t know?” Seamus said, sounding surprised.