“Right, then, boyo,” he addressed O’Connell. “I’m stealing your girl for a dance.”

I looked at my husband in horror. As likeable as Killian seemed, O’Connell knew that I didn’t often dance. So, to have to do it with a man I didn’t know, in front of a room full of people, made me panic. Even if O’Connell sensed my distress, he didn’t get the chance to intervene before I was pulled onto the dance floor. I needn’t have worried about being able to dance because my feet barely touched the ground. As soon as one song, and my dance with Killian, had finished, I was pulled away to dance with one man after another. By the time I made it back to my husband, I was exhausted and had probably danced with every man in the room.

“Could use a drink, could you, love?” Killian grinned, as he handed me a pint of beer.

It wasn’t the most feminine of drinks to be sipping in my wedding dress, but I was

gasping. O’Connell pulled me to his side and kissed the top of my head affectionately.

“No more dancing with other men,” he whispered into my ear and nibbled the lobe making me shiver.

“That possessive streak making you twitchy?” I teased.

“Baby, you didn’t see the look on their faces when they had you in their arms. I’m the only one allowed to get that look around you.” I reached up to my enormous husband and stroked his cheek as I gently kissed his lips.

“Only yours, O’Connell,” I reassured him.

“Then how about a dance with your husband?” he asked, and I nodded with a smile

As he walked me to the dance floor, it cleared, leaving us alone. Our song rang out through the speakers, and holding my hand gently in his, O’Connell pulled me in close. We danced as though we were completely alone. He spread his other large hand across the bare skin of my back, stroking me with his thumb and triggering my automatic arousal.

“Do you know how hard it is for me not to throw you over my shoulder and carry you home right now?” he asked me.

“I can feel how hard it is,” I teased him.

“I’m going to undo those tiny little buttons one by one and kiss my way down that beautiful back as I peel off your dress...” he whispered.

“O’Connell, stop it,” I squirmed in nervous anticipation of my wedding night. I hadn’t seen him since the day before yesterday, and it felt like forever since we’d made love. I’d gone years without the slightest attraction to any man, and now I was completely addicted to sex with O’Connell. I wasn’t sure there would ever come a time when the slightest whisper of his voice in my ear wouldn’t make me want to jump him.

“There’s only an hour or two left,” I whined. “Can’t we skip out now?”

O’Connell chuckled as he replied. “You’ve never been to an Irish wedding, have you, love?”

I shook my head no, confused as to where he was going with this.

“One night,” he replied, “then I get you for the rest of my life.”

I rested my head against his chest and breathed in the smell that was uniquely his; the smell that I would go to sleep with forever.

I REALISED WHAT HE MEANT when the taxi arrived for us at six am on Christmas morning. The boys were gutted at not having been able to get a real band, but the disco went on until two am, which was when I figured the party would break up. You could imagine how shocked I was when a few of the older people whipped out their instruments and carried on playing. I’d never heard any of their songs, but the room sang out in chorus and the more drink that flowed, the louder our makeshift choir became. During a brief intermission in the early hours, Kieran decided to make his best man speech.

“Hello, hello,” he called out, tapping a knife dangerously against his pint glass. Whether it was the alcohol or being around their family, I didn’t know, but all of the boys’ accents seemed stronger tonight.

“Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Kieran Doherty, and I’m Cormac’s best friend. We’ve known each other pretty much our entire lives, so when the first two people said no, you could imagine how honoured I was to be his third choice for best man. I’d like to take a moment to mention how gorgeous Em, our lovely bride, looks. She truly deserves someone handsome, loving, and intelligent so we’re really pleased for Con that he managed to get her down the aisle before that guy came along. It’s not always been easy for Con being the smaller, less charming, and witty friend, so the fact that you’ve managed to get a real woman to pick you over me is a massive achievement, and we’re all very proud of you. If Em wises up in a few months, remind her that it’s too late. You’ve got the certificate, so she can’t back out. What that does mean for you, lucky ladies, is that I’m still on the market, and if you’d like to submit your phone number and a brief resume, I’ll be holding auditions for the next Mrs. Doherty all night.”

Kieran stopped talking as the room erupted with laughter. O’Connell was taking turns groaning at Kieran’s jokes and laughing with the crowd.

“Seriously, though,” Kieran chuckled. “I can say, hand on heart, that I never thought Con would ever settle down, but when he met Em, she absolutely knocked him for six. Even before Danny warned him, on pain of death, to stay away from her, it was too late. One look at Con and anyone could see that he was so far gone for our little sunshine; it was love for life. Em, you really have no idea how much sunshine you bring into the life of everyone you touch. You are good and gentle, caring and kind, and the fact that you don’t see any of these things in yourself makes you more beautiful. There’s a great many men here tonight who love you like a sister and a daughter and as long as you have all of us, you will never want for anything. I look at you both together and I see hope. Hope that one day, we all might be fortunate enough to fall in love with someone who doesn’t want or need to change you, but who makes you want to be a better person. I wish you both a long and happy life together, but if it doesn’t work out, Em, you know where to find me. Ladies and gentlemen, please raise your glasses. May green be the grass you walk on. May blue be the skies that love you. May pure be the joys that surround you. May true be the hearts that love you. To the bride and groom!”

“To the bride and groom!” the room toasted.

O’Connell stood up to embrace Kieran, and they said a few words to each other quietly. Kieran and O’Connell were closer than brothers, and tonight that bond couldn’t have been clearer. As Kieran sat down, Danny stood. Boots were stomped and tables were slammed as applause rang out across the room until, eventually, he waved everyone down.