Love and Shenanigans (Ballybeg, Book 1) (The Ballybeg Series) by Zara Keane Page B

up and scratched under his chin. At least someone was pleased to see him. To his annoyance, it appeared Muireann’s claims of labradoodles being hypoallergenic were accurate—at least in his case. He frowned, a memory emerging through his hung-over haze. “How’d you end up with the dog? He was meant to be staying with Mary McDermott.”
    “Yeah… for the wedding that never happened.” Fiona flashed him a sideways grin. “To paraphrase Jonas, Mary evicted Wiggly Poo this morning due to crimes against vegetables.”
    “He dug up her prize-winning spuds?”
    “Yup. And destroyed a pair of designer shoes.”
    He sighed and petted the dog’s soft golden fur. “You have an appetite for expensive clothing, don’t you? I guess Mary’s another person I’ll owe money to.”
    “Add Bridie to your list. Wiggly Poo smashed a few of her ornaments during a midmorning rampage.”
    “Aw, shite. How’s she doing, anyway? You said something about an operation last night.”
    Fiona selected trousers and a shirt and hung them on the door to his en suite bathroom. “I said that on Saturday night. Today’s Monday. You’ve been on a two-day bender.”
    Two days?
Jaysus.
No wonder his head hurt. “Will she be okay?”
    “Yeah. The operation is scheduled for this morning. Once we’re done with Gant, I’ll go by the hospital.”
    “Run this by me again,” he said, returning Wiggly Poo on the floor and grabbing his clothes. “Why are we going to see Aidan Gant?”
    “Seriously, Gavin. Have you
no
memory of the past forty-eight hours?”
    “I’m hung over, but I’m not that far gone. Even if I was, the wreck of a rental suit reminds me my life has gone from promising and prosperous to a complete fucking fiasco.”
    “In that case, you’ll agree it’s in both our interests to sort out this marriage business without delay. Gant’s a creep, but he’s a good solicitor. He’ll know what to do. And if he doesn’t, he’ll know who to refer us to.”
    “You’re… different today.”
    It was true. The girl he used to know was awkward with a tendency to hunch. She’d had a quick temper but lacked the ability to stand up for herself effectively. But despite her prickly exterior, she was a sweet kid and fiercely loyal to those she loved. Also smart, funny, and—by the time they’d hit their early twenties—prettier than he cared to contemplate.
    The woman who stood before him now was anything but awkward. She’d shed the puppy fat but retained her curvaceous figure. She stood tall, proud, and sexy as hell.
    “Perhaps I remember who I’ve become,” she said in a clipped tone. “Not who I was.”
    “Huh? Sorry, Fiona. I’m not up to solving riddles this morning.”
    Her expression was inscrutable. “Never mind. Best get moving. I’ll wait with the dog in the car.”
    “You want us to bring Wiggly Poo?”
    She cocked an eyebrow. “In the half hour Jonas left me dog-sitting him, he ran riot through Bridie’s house. Would you leave him alone?”
    Within fifteen minutes, Gavin was showered, shaved, and dosed with headache tablets. Fiona and Wiggly Poo were waiting in her VW Polo.
    Gavin eased himself into the passenger seat and put on his seat belt. The meds were starting to clear his head sufficiently for memories of the last couple of days to come flooding back.
    He groaned. He should’ve buried his head under his pillow and stayed in bed. He wasn’t ready to face the world and view the wreckage of his previously orderly and peaceful existence. So much for his goal to live a drama-free life. Not even his mother’s wildest shenanigans had resulted in this much mayhem.
    Fiona parallel parked outside Aidan Gant’s offices. She removed the dog carrier from the back seat.
    Gavin eyed the puppy with suspicion. Wiggly Poo was snoozing in his cage, looking cute and deceptively innocent. “Is bringing him in wise?”
    “Probably not, but it seems cruel to leave him alone in the car.”
    Aidan Gant’s legal