The Mighty Quinns: Kieran

“If you don’t go back to singing, what are you going to do?” he asked.

Maddie shrugged. “I don’t have to do anything. I have plenty to live on for years. And I can always write more songs. I like doing that.”

“You must be good. There’s a whole bin of your CDs in this store.”

“I am good,” she said with a smile.

“Do you have everything you want?”

In truth, she had everything she needed. She had a sweet and impossibly sexy man to occupy her thoughts and soothe her doubts. He kept her grounded, gave her sensible advice and watched over her. And when he touched her, her body tingled and her knees went weak.

“I need to get a few more things,” she said. “Some underwear. And shoes.”

“I can help you with the underwear,” Kieran said, grinning.

Her thoughts moved to what was going to happen later that night. Once they got a room, there wouldn’t be much to do except explore the attraction between them. Sure, she could order dinner and maybe watch a movie, but it was silly to pretend that they didn’t want to spend their time in other pursuits.

A shiver skittered down her spine as she thought about all the possibilities. Suddenly, she realized that there was a purchase she still had to make. Condoms.

But putting them in the cart might add too much pressure. She just wanted to be prepared, just in case. “Why don’t you go check out the underwear and I’ll join you there,” she suggested. “I—I’m just going to—run to the bathroom.” She pushed up on her toes and kissed his cheek.

Maddie hurried away, but as soon as she saw him head down another aisle, she returned to the health and beauty section. Only when she reached the condoms, Maddie was faced with another dilemma—too much choice. Did she want large or extra large? And what about color, ribbed or lubed?

She grabbed three boxes and hurried to the cashier. But when she got there, she realized that she’d given all her cash to Kieran. Maddie pulled out her debit card and walked up to a checker, dumping the boxes on the conveyor belt.

The checker gave her an odd look. Maddie smiled. “Big night,” she murmured. Thank God, she was still wearing her sunglasses. She could imagine the tabloid stories if anyone recognized her. Country star starved for sex? Maddie West, sex addict? Maddie the Nymphomaniac? The debit card had her real name on it, Sarah M. Westerfield, so that offered a bit of safety.

“Credit or debit?” she asked.

“What? Sure. Whatever. Debit.”

The cashier finished checking Maddie out and then put the three boxes in a small bag. Maddie stuffed them into her pocket, then smiled as she took her receipt. “I’ve got more shopping to do,” she said, then walked back into the store.

Maddie found Kieran where she’d sent him, in the underwear section. He was leaning over the shopping cart, studying the selection of bras. When he saw her approaching, he straightened and smiled.

“People were starting to wonder about me,” he said. “I think they thought I was some kind of pervert.”

“I guess that remains to be seen,” she said, grinning. “So, what have you picked out for me?”

“Well, I’ve always been partial to black. And I think lace is pretty.” He paused. “Should I really be picking out your underwear?”

“It’s nice to have a male opinion,” she said.

“Am I going to be seeing your underwear?” he asked.

“It’s a distinct possibility,” she said. “Do you want to see my underwear?”

Kieran chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind taking a peek. I bet they’re really pretty.” He drew a sharp breath. “Can we just quit talking about it and buy some?”

Maddie tossed her choices into the cart, then mentally went through her shopping list. Shampoo, hair color, scissors, mascara, hair dryer, underwear, a few cute outfits, three cotton dresses and—”Luggage,” she said. “I need a bag to put all this in. And shoes.”

But as they walked to the shoe department, Maddie caught sight of a rack of party dresses. A couple of teenage girls were going through them, giggling excitedly as they held their choices up in front of them.

“I bet they’re going to a dance,” Maddie said. “I’ve never been to high school dance.”

“Neither have I,” Kieran said.

“You didn’t go to prom?”

He shook his head. “I wasn’t actually very smooth with the girls. And I didn’t get too involved in school. My brothers and I spent most of our free time together, working on our boats or sailing. Girls just weren’t very important back then.” He paused. “Of course, that all changed in college.”

“I never went to college, either,” Maddie said. She looked back toward the girls. “You know, I think I need one of those dresses. Every girl needs a party dress.”

“Where are you going to wear it?”

“I don’t know. Maybe on the train?” She pressed her finger to his lips. “And don’t tell me I shouldn’t waste my money.”

“I wasn’t going to do that,” Kieran said. “I actually think a party dress might be exactly what you need.”

With a giggle, Maddie turned over control of the cart to him and walked over to the rack. “I’m just going to try a few on.”

As she looked through the dresses, the two teenage girls gave her an odd look. In truth, Maddie could understand their curiosity. She was still wearing the hoodie and her sunglasses. They whispered to each other, watching her from behind a nearby rack.

“It’s for my niece,” Maddie said to them, grabbing a pink taffeta strapless gown with a huge tulle skirt.

The girls approached. “Are you—”

“You’re going to say Maddie West, aren’t you,” Maddie quickly replied. “I get that all the time. Do you really think I look like her?”

“She gets that all the time,” Kieran confirmed, nodding his head.

Maddie put the pink dress in the cart, then quickly grabbed a slinky black number from the end of the rack. “All the time,” she said, pushing the cart away.

They hurried though the shoe department, the girls following them at a safe distance, their curiosity piqued. When they reached the checkout, Maddie tugged her hood down over her forehead.

“Would you mind paying for all this while I wait out in the cab,” she murmured. At his nod, she walked out of the store.

When Maddie reached the safety of the taxi, she jumped into the backseat. The cabbie was reading a magazine. He glanced up at her in the rearview mirror, then twisted in his seat. “Are we waiting for your friend?” he asked.

“Yes,” Maddie said. “Of course.”

He nodded. “No problem.”

Maddie thought he’d turn around again, but instead, he stretched his arm across the back of the front seat. “If you don’t mind me asking, what’s a famous singing star like you doing running around a big box store in Topeka, Kansas?”

Maddie moaned and covered her face. “You, too?”

He nodded. “I saw you on the CMAs last year. You were just great. You’re the most famous person I’ve ever had in my cab. I mean, you blow Willie Nelson away.”