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8:08pm Gave me a very nasty look when I sneezed, but did not move.
8:15pm Had an unidentified object in his mouth but swallowed it as soon as I tried to see what it was.
Breaking news—I’m pretty sure the unidentified object Sebastian ate was a piece of lint.
I toss my phone onto the couch and close my eyes. A minute later, my phone dings with a message from Jack.
Jack
I have a surprise for you. Ditch the cat and come downstairs. Better yet, bring him along.
I’m off the couch and tugging on my boots before I can type out a reply.
“There’s our Raine,” Aoife says when I enter the pub and approach the bar.
“There’s our Aoife,” I reply. I scan the room. It’s busier than usual, but I don’t see any sign of him.
“Looking for Jack?”
I try to ignore the knowing smile she gives me. “Maybe.”
She nods to the room with the fireplace and pulls me a pint. “He’s in there.”
As soon as I have my drink in hand, I spin away from Aoife, trying not to seem too eager as I cross the pub.
When I first arrived in Cobh, this room was nothing but a fireplace and a few tables. I’ve been wanting to transform it into a game room, but have spent most of my energy focused on getting our regular events up and running. When I step into the room now, I don’t take any notice of Jack. Instead, my eyes are drawn to the tables. There are at least a dozen board games spread around the room. Chess and checkers and Scrabble and Monopoly. Almost any board game I can think of, it’s here.
When I do finally spot Jack, I find him standing beside the fireplace, frowning down at something in front of him. It takes me a moment to realize what it is, but when I do, I can’t help but squeal in excitement.
The sound startles him, but when Jack sees me, his expression relaxes into a smile. I speed over, narrowly avoiding sloshing beer all over myself. When I reach him, I set my glass on the nearest table, too excited to stand still as I stare at the giant game of Jenga in front of me.
“A game room! Was this what you were up to today?”
Jack grins. “Do you like it?”
“Do I like it?” I look around the room, then walk around the giant Jenga to take it in from all sides. “I love it! Oh, everyone is going to have so much fun with this. Maybe even Ollie will join in.”
Jack laughs. “I think that’s hoping for too much.”
I look closer at the blocks of the giant Jenga set. Each one is stamped with the name of the pub. “Where in the world did you get this?”
Jack rubs at the back of his neck. “I had it made.”
“You...” I can’t even finish my sentence. I’m so excited, I’m practically jumping in place. “We have to play right now. Oh! We can make it a game!”
Jack laughs. “I don’t know how to tell you this, but it already is a game.”
“I mean we’ll add another layer to it.”
“It’s Jenga. Layers are sort of the point.”
I swat him on the shoulder. “Oh, stop.”
Jack leans against the wall beside the fireplace and crosses his arms over his chest. “What’s the layer, then?”
“For every block successfully removed, you get to ask the other person a question.”
Jack presses his lips together as if thinking it over. “What if it’s a question I don’t want to answer?”
