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“He is,” Shayla said in a gushing tone. “Him and Micah have been friends for as long as I can remember. They practically go back to the cradle.”
Micah put his arm around Shayla. “Micah is an honorary Donahue. He’s one of our own.”
Faith loved the camaraderie between Shayla and Micah. She wasn’t sure what was happening, but she had a strong sense that Micah was comforting Shayla. Perhaps she’d had a bad day or something. Suddenly, Faith could see a look of sadness emanating from her eyes. Her bubbly demeanor had come to a crashing halt.
“I-I think I’m going to get some air,” Shayla said, fanning her face with her hand. All of a sudden she didn’t look so good.
“Is she all right?” Faith asked, tempted to go after Shayla to check on her. She’d seen the sheen of moisture in her eyes. How many times had she been in a similar situation at social events? Sometimes sadness just crept over her and it was impossible to hide.
“She’ll be fine, Faith. Thanks for asking. I think she just needs some time alone.” He grinned at her. “Even us Donahue’s need solitude sometimes.”
“I understand,” Faith murmured. She knew more than anyone what it felt like to crave solitude. She was an introvert right down to the bone. Most days she wished she wasn’t. Maybe then she wouldn’t feel so lonely. Maybe then she would feel as if she was truly alive.
“I need to head into the kitchen to check in with the caterers,” Micah said. “I’ll see you in a bit.”
Faith watched Micah as he walked through the throng of guests. He took time to chat briefly with numerous people. There was an ease about him she admired. She couldn’t help but think that he would make someone a wonderful boyfriend.
**
Micah was fairly pleased with how smoothly the event was flowing. And most importantly, Rafferty was happy. That meant the world to Micah. Even if his feelings toward Pamela were less than effusive, he cared deeply about his blood brother. Rafferty was worth all of the time and effort. If he had to deal with Pamela in order to stay close to Rafferty, Micah would suck it up. His worst fear was that he would lose his best friend. He vowed not to let that happen. It was something he’d prayed about for months now. He’d seen it happen before when one of his friends didn’t get along with another friend’s wife or girlfriend. It was like a powder keg situation where something was bound to blow up.
Micah didn’t want his friendship with Rafferty to be collateral damage.
He would do his best to fix the uncomfortable situation with Pamela. Perhaps he’d imagined her overtures. As a male model, Micah was used to being hit on by women all the time. Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him. But he knew instinctively he wasn’t imagining the strange vibe between them.
Shayla was doing a pretty good job at hiding her feelings. His heart was aching for his little sister. Faith seemed to be the only one who’d noticed Shayla’s discomfort which said a lot about his sister’s ability to mask her sorrow.
It also spoke volumes about Faith being a sensitive person.
Micah’s mind veered toward Pamela’s cousin. Faith was a beautiful woman who radiated an old-fashioned innocence and charm that was fairly rare. With her dark blond hair, stunning cheekbones and striking blue eyes, she was very attractive.
He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he suspected she wasn’t totally comfortable being here tonight. He’d watched her interaction with Pamela and it had left a lot to be desired. There didn’t seem to be a natural closeness between them. He understood not all families were as tight-knit as his own, but there had been a strange vibe between the two women.
He was curious about Faith. Pamela had never mentioned having a cousin living in Pelican Bay. Micah wouldn’t be surprised if she’d dragged her to the engagement party simply for appearances. It was one of the things he disliked about Rafferty’s fiancée. Her insincerity. It stood in direct contrast to Rafferty’s effortless charm and his down to earth personality.
Micah felt a sudden clap on his shoulder. Rafferty was standing next to him, his face lit up with joy. “Hey, Micah. I just wanted to take a moment to say thanks for hosting the party tonight. We’re super grateful.”
“You’re welcome. That’s what best friends are for,” Micah said. “When I finally find the one, you can do the same for me,” he said in a teasing voice. He and Rafferty had a long-standing joke about Micah finally settling down in his eighties.
“I met Pamela’s cousin. What’s her story? She seems really nice.” Micah tried to keep his voice casual. There was something about Faith that intrigued him. He was used to being around beautiful women on a regular basis, although for the most part he steered clear of models. It wasn’t smart to mix business with pleasure. He’d been burned in the past that way.
“Yeah, she seems to be sweet. To be honest with you, Pamela has barely mentioned her. It was my first time meeting her.” A look of confusion flittered across Rafferty’s face.
“She lives here in town, right?” Micah asked.
Rafferty scratched his chin. “Yeah, matter of fact, Pamela said something about Faith that triggered a memory.”
Micah frowned. “What do you mean? Had you met her before?”
“No, nothing like that. You know how I was obsessed with being a fireman when we were kids, right?”
Micah chuckled. “How could I forget? Every chance you got you dragged me down to the fire station to stalk the firemen. You asked a gazillion questions. I’d never seen anyone so determined to be a part of something.”
Rafferty grinned. “What can I say? It’s my calling. Well, about ten years ago there was a massive house fire over by Frontage road. One of those old Victorian houses. I remember that house because we used to bike by it when we took that shortcut to the beach.”
Micah nodded as memories of the pink and yellow house popped into his mind, along with memories of a girl with dirty blonde hair digging in the flower garden in the side yard. Sometimes the little girl had waved to them as they passed by. Micah had al
ways had a sense that she was a little bit lonely.
