She pushes the front door open and frowns up at me as we walk inside. “What do you mean?”

I glance at Maggie as she walks in with a big grin on her face. “Did you do what I asked?”

“Yep.”

“What did you ask?” Izzy demands.

“She packed you a bag. I’m taking you away for a couple of days.”

Izzy’s eyes light up with excitement, and then she frowns. “But we have work.”

“All covered.”

“Okay, this is awesome. Where are we going?”

“You’ll see when we get there. Do you get car sick?”

She laughs in surprise. “Not usually.”

I nod as Maggie wheels the bag in from the kitchen where she had it hidden.

“Oh, let me just grab a few things from these bags.” Izzy rummages through the sacks, consolidates a few, and then smiles at me. “Okay. I’m ready. This is fun.”

“Have a good time, and don’t worry about a thing,” Maggie says. “We’ve all got the pub under control.”

I load Izzy’s things into the truck, and it’s not long before we’re off, headed off the island and north of Seattle.

“I love road trips. Obviously, given that’s how I ended up here to begin with.”

“I think that was the adrenaline talking.”

She nods and stares out the passenger window as the scenery passes us by. “Probably. But my adrenaline knew what it was doing, that’s for sure. What prompted you to do this?”

“I think we just need a little time alone. No meddling sisters. No busy and demanding pub.”

“You’re right. This will be so nice. When was the last time you took a vacation?”

“Last Christmas. I went to Ireland with the whole family for Kane’s exhibit debut. That’s also when Shawn and Lexi got engaged. It was a great trip. Before that, it had been two years.”

“That’s a long time without a break. But, honestly, I was the same way. I used to travel all the time when I was a teenager and into college. My mom would drag me all over the world because she didn’t like to travel alone.”

“Do you like to travel?”

“Sure, I like to see new places. But I’ve never been to Ireland.”

“Well, you might someday.”

She grins. “I wouldn’t mind that at all. Do you still have a lot of family there?”

“We do, yes. My da’s brother’s family owns an inn on the sea there. It’s a big family. A bit loud. A lot crazy.”

“Sounds wonderful.”

“They are. Sometimes, they visit the States, but we usually don’t see them unless we go there. The inn is beautiful. Fancy, really.”

“So, when are we going?”

I laugh and reach over to take her hand in mine, then kiss her knuckles. “Whenever you want, love.”

Chapter 9

~Izzy~