Mission: Interrupted

Chapter 14 - Shot to the Heart

They walked the few blocks over to O'Dowd's Little Dublin to have some Fish-n-Chips and a couple of pints of stout beer. The atmosphere was fun and lively and the décor was imported directly from Ireland. The servers were very cool, and even though they were fans and Norman took some selfies with them when they first arrived, the rest of the time it was relatively low-key.

"I think the bartender is going to strain his neck muscles staring at you." Norman said leaned back in his chair after finishing his beer.

She grinned in response. "I see what you're doing there, Daryl." She said, using his TV name in the high squeaky voice many of the female servers and patrons had used when they had arrived. Sitting up and leaning over the table she looked up at him through her eyelashes. "I'm not greedy, I'm perfectly happy with having the complete adoration of just one man at a time."

Norman dropped his eyes and smirked, "Good luck with the one man thing with the way your breasts look in that V-neck, darlin'."

Meg laughed out loud and sat back in her seat. "Would you pay the bill so we can start walking the obscene amount of calories we just ate off?"

They stopped in a couple of stores where Meg bought some jeans and they both got a new pair of sunglasses. Then she spotted a store that she just couldn't pass up and made him sit on a bench with her one bag while she walked back to it. Inside, she grabbed a couple of items and purchased them before she could talk herself out of it.

Walking back up to him, she saw the curiosity on his face. "Come on, let's walk a few more blocks before we head back, this weather is fantastic." She said and pulled him up and they strolled at a comfortable pace, enjoying the blooming tulips and many fountains in the plaza. They were nearly back to the hotel when a lone photographer approached them and started taking pictures. In response, Norman just pulled Meg in closer and wrapped his arm around her shoulders until they entered the hotel, where the doormen stopped the photographer from entering.

When they got back to the suite there were two large boxes lying on the dining table. Meg looked from them to Norman who just shrugged and smiled. She walked over and opened one of the boxes and saw a very nice suit jacket, shirt, and tie. She grinned and passed it to him before opening the second one. She opened the box and carefully pulled the tissue aside to pull out a dress that was stunning in its simplicity. It was sleeveless, and the neckline was a classic boatneck style, the top was very form fitting with a slight flare from the waist to the knees. It reminded her of something Audrey Hepburn would wear, especially since the color was a resplendent shade of Tiffany blue, a perfect match for the tie in the other box. Under the dress was a pair of nude pumps.

"How the heck did you pull this off? The sizes are perfect."

"I checked your sizes right after we got here and called a personal shopper." He said and was relieved that she was pleased with the dress. "All I did was tell them the color I wanted, one I've seen you wear a few times, and that I thought you'd like something classic and timeless instead of trendy."

She was holding the dress up to her and looking down at it when he said that and it caused her to look up at him quickly. The war of emotions that played out on her face was remarkable and Norman found himself holding his breath. She was frozen in place as she realized that this man who had known her for such a short time had somehow, even with her steel walls up, gotten to know the true adult version of her better than anyone ever had... How had this happened, and what did it mean? Why did it feel so damn good?

"Hey, Meg... Are you okay?" he asked softly.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Meg looked up from the dress she was holding to Norman's face and suddenly became aware of a crawling sensation on her cheeks and swiped at it with her hand. Looking down at her fingers it dawned on her that it was tears. She rushed over and put the dress back in the box with the shoes.