“Oh, sorry. It’s you.”
Then followed Bonnie’s gaze back to the man stepping into the house. He smiled warmly, looking from Bonnie to Penny and back again.
“I see yer as bad as I feared.”
Bonnie lifted a hand to her hair, feeling the mess it was. A pout passed over her features before she took control, lifted her chin, and stiffly descended the stairs. “I’ve seen you look worse,” she responded.
He chuckled at that. “I’m sure you have.”
Penny watched the interaction as her brain struggled to put something together. She’d been astute enough to figure out this must be the cousin Bonnie had mentioned. While he was quite a bit taller, there was something about their faces that was the same. They both had high cheekbones, thin noses, and green eyes. Although his had a bit more blue, or was it gray, more the color of the sea. They were not the feature that captured Penny’s attention, though. No, what she was staring at were his lips. Thin on top, the bottom more rounded, highly kissable lips.
“Oh.” It popped out before she could stop herself. “It’s you.”
Rather than answering, he lifted his hand, showing the paper bags he was carrying. Penny finally placed the aroma she’d smelled as he entered. “I wasn’t sure how ye’d be getting on after last night, but I figured this couldn’t hurt.”
Penny couldn’t say exactly what was in the bag, but it was definitely fried. Her stomach rumbled with recognition.
Bonnie took the last few stairs in a rush, practically falling as she flung her arms around him. His free arm came up to encircle her as he kissed the top of her head gently.
“Ha! You do love me,” she squealed, snatching one of the bags from him as she stepped back again.
“Of course I do, ya Yank. It was Diarmuid who was always playing pranks on you. I just wasn’t the best at stopping him.” He turned his face down guiltily, his wavy brown hair falling over his forehead.
Penelope felt her fingers twitch with the urge to brush it back.
“Hmmm. I will forgive you only because you brought these. In my current condition, this is the most perfect gift in the world.” Bonnie lifted the bag. Holding it between them, their eyes locked.
“Chip butties,” they spoke in unison.
Without further explanation, they brushed past Penny and headed for the kitchen, leaving her wondering how noticeable it would be if she ran upstairs, changed her outfit, brushed her hair, and possibly put on some make-up.
“Penny! Come on,” Bonnie called over her shoulder.
She sighed and let it go. He’d already seen her like this anyway. And she really was hungry.
Bonnie was digging into the bag when she joined them. Her unintroduced cousin was digging through the pantry.
“Uh, Bonnie?”
“Hmmm,” Bonnie asked distractedly, popping a large salty chip into her mouth, then savoring it, eyes closed.
“Bonnie, I have a few questions,” Penny said, trying to gain her friend’s full attention. “One, what is a chip butty? Two, how soon can I have one? And three, who is this person?”
“Hold on now,” the tall, attractive man interrupted. “But did she just call you Bonnie?”
“Uh, yeah,” Penny answered, as Bonnie’s mouth was still full. “That’s her name.” Even as she said it, she noticed her friend’s cheeks flushing.
“I thought you said that last night,” he said with obvious mirth. “But I figured I must have misheard, accent and all.Seriously? Bonnie? Like the dog we had when we were kids?” He was openly laughing now. “What the hell, Siobhán?”
“It’s not MY fault,” Bonnie countered. She moved towards him threateningly, undaunted by his over half-foot advantage on her. “I moved to the States when I was six. Nobody there understands that b and h together make a v sound in Ireland. Everyone pronounced my name like ‘See-o-bon,’ not ‘Shivon.’ Somewhere along the way, it turned into Bon, which turned into Bonnie, and it was just easier to go with it. Okay, Finn?!” her words came out in a flurry of annoyance.
“Not really,” he said with a skeptical look, even as he maneuvered away from her not-so-well-aimed punch.
“Ugh,” she groaned.
“Now, I’m really confused,” Penny complained. “So, your name isn’t Bonnie? I’ve been calling you the wrong name all these years?”
“Of course, it is. If that’s what you call me, then that’s my name,” Bonnie said through gritted teeth, still looking at Finn. “But my family here knows me as Siobhán.”
