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“Looking at old pictures,” Sunnie explained. “Of Grandma Sunday and Pop Pop. You made his hair gray.”
Riley glanced from her daughter to him and then to the stack of albums on the foot of the bed. They were three deep, but none of the kids wanted him to stop.
“Have you been here a while?”
Patrick glanced at the clock. “About an hour and a half.”
Riley’s eyes widened. “Hypnosis?”
He gave her a wink. “I’ll never tell.”
“Aaron got off early. He’s on his way back.” She looked at the kids. “Grab all your stuff and I’ll get the baby ready.”
Finn and Landon headed toward the living room, while Riley went to her old room, where the baby was sleeping.
Sunnie stayed behind to help him put the albums back.
“Pop Pop?” she said.
“Yes, lass?”
“I like my name.”
He smiled, blinking back unexpected tears. “It suits you, love.”
She gave him a hug, repeating her promise to marry him.
He knelt in front of her. “Much as I’d like that, I’m simply too old. So how about another promise?”
She listened intently.
“Promise you’ll marry a boy who loves all those things that make you special, your sunshine and your warmth. Find yourself a boy who appreciates how wonderful you are.”
She nodded. “Okay. I promise.”
Then he gave her a wink and a grin. “And if you can’t find one of those, marry Landon. He has his heart set on being a Collins.”
Chapter One
“And the winner of February Stars…”
Sunnie could swear every person in the pub was holding their breath, waiting for the announcer to declare a winner. For one month solid, she, her family and the regulars at the pub had gathered around the big-screen TVs to root for their hometown boy, Hunter Maxwell.
“By only twelve votes…”
“Oh my God,” Finn yelled at the screen. “Just announce it already!”
Landon caught her eye, winking at her. He and Finn had placed a wager on the competition—Finn putting fifty bucks on Hunter, while Landon remained firmly in Rory Summit’s camp.
“The performer who is going to open for The Universe on their worldwide tour is…”
The announcer drew out the word “is” for dramatic effect, producing another curse from Finn. “Where did Les find this tool?”
Les was their aunt Teagan and uncle Sky’s band manager, and he’d set up the February Stars contest, looking for the “next big act.” Hunter had been a last-minute fill-in for one of the performers, and he sure as hell hadn’t been expected to last more than the first round. Prior to the competition, he’d really only played with the equivalent of a garage band in his early twenties and, lately, as a pub singer here at Pat’s.
“Rory Summit!” the announcer yelled.
Finn groaned as half the pub erupted in cheers, the other half in anger. While Hunter was much beloved at Pat’s Pub, his fellow finalist, Rory Summit, had won her way into their hearts as well.
