by J Bree
“Stay the fuck away from my cousin.” It’s the first time I’ve ever heard her swear. Cousin. I forgot about that, the Beaumont’s had a mobster for a cousin. This is a fucking mess. I’m in too deep and I need to get out.
Deep breath.
There’s no way out. Only through it.
I dart across the hallway and grab Avery’s arm. She freezes and so does Ash, the tense lines of him pressed against my chest where he’s trapped between us. I make sure my grip is gentle so she can’t screech at me and he can’t attack me over touching his beloved sister. I don’t need to be rough though, I have their attention.
“Does the name Dairmuid O’Cronin mean anything to you?” I whisper and then I watch as they both turn to stone. “He’s on his way here to speak to his dear nephew.”
Ash breaks first, cursing long and hard under his breath in creative and colorful ways. I nod curtly and let Avery go.
“Fucking call him. Now.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Avery’s room is utterly ridiculous and I am jealous as all hell about it.
It is fitted out perfectly not only for her but for the three guys in case they all wanted to have a big freaking sleepover there every night. There’s roll out beds under her giant Cal King and a day bed built into the window. Everything was in tasteful shades of cream and gray, pillows and throw rugs on every surface. How had I never noticed them coming and going from her room? I glance around while we wait.
The kitchen is fully stocked, I have no idea why she bothers with the overcrowded dining hall, and her closet is the size of my entire room. I only ever see her wearing her uniform, why the hell does she need that much space? And there, in the corner, was a private bathroom. That was the thing I was most jealous of. To be able to lock the bedroom door and shower in your own bathroom. Avery is living the dream four fucking steps from the closet I sleep in. I take some deep, deep breaths and I tell myself I’ll have this someday. Better even, because I’ll have earned it myself and I’ll appreciate it.
Avery paces in the kitchen area, running her hands along the surfaces like she’s looking for dust but it doesn’t exist, and Ash sits stiffly on the couch. I perch on the edge on one of the arm chairs and roll my eyes at Avery’s dirty look.
“Is there somewhere I can sit, then? Or are you afraid I’ll sully your fucking furniture?” I snap at her and she rolls her eyes.
“That’s Harley’s seat. Blaise usually just camps on the floor like a three year old so maybe sit in his chair, the other arm chair. I don’t want Harley getting ideas.” I open my mouth to retort, what ideas, when Ash snaps at us both.
“She can sit wherever the fuck she wants, just tell us what’s going on? How the fuck do you know Dairmuid?”
Avery starts wiping down the kitchen counters. Huh, I did not expect her to know how to clean. I shake the thought out of my head and reply to Ash, “I’m not repeating myself, it’ll only piss us all off. How far away are they? We’re on a time crunch here.”
“We’re here.” Harley opens the door and he and Blaise stroll in. There’s no tenseness to him at all, just curiosity. I sigh. Avery didn't tell him what this was all about then.
Harley spots me on his chair and before I can get up he slings himself down onto the couch so he's closest to me. Avery scoffs and scrubs harder. Blaise does exactly what she said he would and just collapses on the floor with an obscene groan. His shirt rides up and I look away from his colorfully patterned skin before I get caught looking. I have to remember I'm surrounded by sharks. I need to keep my head or I’ll lose it.
Harley watches Avery’s manic scrubbing for a second then says, “Fuck, Avery’s cleaning. What’s wrong? What’s this about?”
I take a deep breath and then just blurt out, “I have a connection to an underground criminal organization. The connection is not up for discussion. But he has a package for me. He tells me he's sending one of his hired guns to bring it here. The guy offered because he has a nephew who goes to the school. I was unaware that you're an O’Cronin.”
Harley's face shuts down so fast I'm surprised he doesn't get whiplash. Avery stops cleaning to cock her hip, and says to me with a glare, “So it's your fault he's coming here then? You've called him in?”
Fuck. “I didn't call him in. He heard the name Hannaford and decided to come up. I am not at fault here. I could have just let him come and ambush Harley but I chose not to. Do not make me regret that.”
Harley is a blank slate. I can see the deep programming from a mile away, I mean, I have it too. It lives in your brain and even when you’ve changed your life and you’re living like a civilian, all it takes is hitting that trip line and the training will fall into place. I take a deep breath and cover his hand with mine. “I will stay with you. It'll put a stop to… whatever it is you think he's going to do to you. My connection means immunity.”
He doesn't react. He doesn't move at all. I have to focus on the base of his throat to see he's still breathing. I don’t tell him that I’ll be risking my own skin to help him. If word about Harley gets back to the Jackal… I don’t think Matteo will like just how breath-taking Harley is.
I meet Ash’s eyes across the room and find he's scowling at me. Their fear sends a shiver down my spine and I tentatively ask, “What are you afraid he's going to do? I can call ahead and stop it. Believe it or not.”
There’s silence while they all look at one another. No one offers up an explanation.
“Do you fuck gangsters and mobsters, Mounty? Is that why you won't fuck any of the upstanding students here, does your pussy belong to a monster?” Blaise drawls from the floor, “Do you need the violence to get wet?” I slowly take my hand off of Harley’s and I stand. Blaise always know just what to say to eviscerate me. It’s his super-fucking-power.
I make it to the door when Avery calls out, “You can't leave, we don't have a plan. I need to make a plan.” I turn to ask her what the hell she’s going on about and I find Harley standing behind me. He can be just as silent on his feet as I can. His eyes are blank. I hate that I can’t read them, that there’s none of his usual fire and wit to be found. He’s a shell, the mindless soldier they have trained him to be. I hate it.
His voice is as empty as his eyes. “The plan is to keep you three out of my family’s hands. That's it. I'll call when it's… done.”
I take Harley into my room and I make him face the wall as I dig out the safe hidden under my floorboards and lift the tiny box out. The diamonds all shift around and make that distinctive clinking sound.
Each of the twelve had a colour assigned to them. If you were willing to pay another member in a favor you had to have the cash to buy and hand over a diamond in the color you’re assigned. I have at least three in every color except my own.
I have never given out a favor.
I can’t afford to give out favors.
My color was the deep dark blue, the same colour as my eyes, as close to black as blue can get. The Jackal had walked me into a ritzy jewelry store and pointed one out to me that was set in stunning ring just so I’d know what I needed to get if the time ever came. The last time I priced a single blue diamond out, and fuck was it hard to find, it came in just under the half a million dollar mark.
I rummage around until I find the three little red diamonds I’ve been given by the Jackal. They are the rarest diamonds and how he found and purchased three is beyond me. These are the only favors he’s ever given out and I know it’s because in his mind it’s safe to give them to me. I’ll just give them back to him the moment he orders me to when he owns me.
I slip the smallest of the three into a velvet bag and then into my bra where I can feel it against my skin. After I’ve hidden the safe once again I follow Harley back downstairs and out to the front foyer. He doesn’t ask me what I collected. I don’t know how much time he’s spent around these sorts of people but it’s enough that he doesn’t ask stupid questions. I hear the roar of the motorbike and I roll my eyes.
<
br /> Subtle wasn’t Dairmuid’s specialty.
His specialty was blood.
Harley notices my exasperation and finally speaks. “You’ve met him before?”
I nod and then hesitate before asking, “Have you?” Harley shakes his head and I frown.
“Why are you so worried then?”
He chews on his bottom lip, the first sign of anxiousness I’ve ever seen in him. “It’s a double edged sword. He might kill me because he left the family and I’m next in line to take over. A big fuck you to my grandfather if he does that and if anything I’ve heard about him is true then I think that’s how this will go. If Diarmuid doesn’t kill me it could get back to my grandfather that we’re meeting up and then the family will kill me. Either way, I’m fucked.”
Fuck.
Mobster family politics.
I’m not stupid or brash but I follow my gut always. Ultimately this guy took out three guys for beating me. He made Avery cut her shit out. He’s made his decision not to hate me and then he followed through with it. How can I not offer him the same loyalty? My gut tells me he’s worth saving and I’m quickly discovering we’re cut from the same cloth.
“Are you going to take over the family business?” I say, curious.
He glares down at me. “I’d rather fucking die. I will die when my grandfather figures out I won’t change my mind. I’ve made peace with that.”
He can’t die, I won’t let him. I have a fairly reckless plan and a prayer that it will work. “Do you trust me, Arbour?” I wipe my sweaty palms down my jeans and meet his eyes. Something is inching back into his baby blues and I never want to see it leave again.
“Enough to be standing here.” He rasps back.
“Then keep your mouth shut and I’ll keep you alive. I mean it, not a single word.”
Diarmuid was O’Cronin through and through.
Dark shaggy hair falls over his green eyes as he pulls the helmet off of his head. His face splits into a grin when he spots me and he waves me over to crush my body into a hug, his legs still straddling the bike. When he speaks it’s with a delightful Irish accent, that has prevailed even though as the youngest child he’d been born in the states.
“Jesus, Mary, and fuckin’ Joseph you’re growing’ up, kid!” I tug away from his arms and give him a small smile. His fingers press down on the perfect circle scar I have on my shoulder like he always does. Even fully clothed, drunk, and blind he can find it. It is his reminder and his penance.
From the time he shot me.
The bastard.
I digress. He hands me a thick envelope and I tuck it into the waistband of my shorts, flipping the sweater over it and concealing it perfectly. He’s still grinning like an idiot when Harley takes a step forward and silently demands his attention. The grin dries up and he pushes me away from his body enough to swing his leg over and perch on the bikes seat. He digs around in his pocket and lights up a cigarette. I wrinkle my nose and step back until my arm brushes Harley’s again.
“You’re the fuckin’ image of Iris, it’s disturbing to see her standing there as a boy. There any of your Da in you at all, buachaill beag?” He takes a long drag and then blows the smoke directly up in the air, the wind catching it and letting dances away into nothing. Harley doesn’t say a word, he just folds his arms across his chest and stares at his uncle.
Diarmuid looks back at me and says, “Can you give us a minute, kid? I need to talk some business. Family business.”
I meet his eye and slowly shake my head. “I’m afraid not. It’s come to my attention just how sought after Arbour is.” He quirks an eyebrow at me and I grin, forcing the bravado I didn’t feel into it. “I’m a fickle sort of girl. It brings me great joy to be able to keep Harley from those who want him. I think I’ll keep him.”
Diarmuid blanches for a second and then tips his head back and roars with laughter. He rubs his hands together with a vicious glint to his eye. “You bring my little nephew back to Mounts Bay and our mutual friend gets an eyeful of him? Blood and pain, little girl. Blood and pain.”
I don’t need to be reminded of that at all and I certainly don’t need Harley hearing it. I reach into my bra and I pull out the little velvet bag. Diarmuid’s eyes catch on it and I hold it out to him. When he lets the little blood diamond fall onto his palm he sucks in a breath. “It’s a thing of beauty, this. You know what it is, buachaill beag?” he waits until Harley finally shakes his head. “It’s a million dollars and a priceless fuckin’ favor.”
“Tell him I’m buying Harley’s life with it too. The envelope alone isn’t worth that and he well knows it. Tell him I’ve picked my first inductee and when he has questions he can call me.”
Diarmuid sobers and looks down his nose at me. “My Da will come for you both. He’ll kill him for standing here and listening in on this conversation alone.”
I take a deep breath, I know the cliff I’m about to go over, and it’s a scary thing to do. Harley will know more than I’d ever wanted anyone outside of Mounts Bay to know. I need this conversation over. Now. “Liam O’Cronin can’t do shit to me. He knows it, I know it, you should know it too.”
Diarmuid grins at me again and tucks the diamond into his jeans. “Oh, I know it. I’m just making sure my little nephew knows it too. He looks a little green around the gills, is all.” He steps forward and slaps Harley’s shoulder. “I came here to have a little heart-to-heart with you about decisions you need to make but I see you’ve already made them. It all comes down to this, if you don’t kill the old man someday for what he did to your Ma and Da then I will. And if I don’t succeed then your little Wolf here will do it for us both. She’s got one hell of a steady hand.”
He swoops down and smacks a kiss onto my cheek. As he climbs on his bike and starts the engine he calls out to us one last time, “Call me when your tits fill in kid and I’ll show you how real men fuck.”
I roll my eyes and watch his taillights until they disappear completely. Then I turn and start to make my way back up to the dorms without looking to see if he’s following. He’s going to rat me out to his friends. He’s going to hate me for interfering with his family’s business. There’s a hundred different things he’s going to do.
I didn’t bet on him pushing me through my bedroom door and then kissing me.
It’s raw and dark and it’s fucking perfect. He’s not gentle about it at all, he pushes and sucks at my lips, but it’s nothing like the one Joey had forced on me. I moan when his tongue touches mine and to take fistfuls of his shirt to pull his body into mine. His hands tangle in my hair and pulls until he’s got the perfect angle to deepen our kiss and steal my breath away. I feel it all the way down to my toes.
This is how my first kiss should have been.
I break away from him as my mind spins and I try to catch up with where he’s at. He shuts his eyes and rests his forehead against mine. It’s a tender moment, more intimate then even his kiss.
“Are you a member of a gang?” He croaks and I shake my head. “Did you just tell him you recruited me to your friends gang?” I shake my head again. I pull away so I can catch my breath because I can’t breathe in his arms. When he touches me I don’t want oxygen, I just want to consume him.
“I just bought your freedom until our graduation. I’m out the second the diploma touches my hand so you need to get a plan in place for then. I can help but I’m letting you know this favor has an expiry date. Until then you’re… mine.” It feels strange to say that to him and I can’t look at him as the words slip from my lips.
“This is seriously fucking insane, Lips. You’ve got to give me something. Where did you get the diamond and how many more do you have? Why are they favors? Why is your protection greater than the O’Cronin family business? Fuck, give me anything Lips!”
As his voice raises to a shout I press my hands into his lips and try and calm him down. He said my name. I can’t answer any of his questions without knowing he’s all in. And why would he be
all in for a scrawny little Mounty? Tears prick at my eyes but I don’t regret my hasty actions. My gut had gotten me to where I was today. It would get me through this too.
I slip the envelope out of my shorts and I drop it on the bed. Then I tug down the collar of the sweater until Harley can see the perfectly healed circle.
“I got that diamond by taking a bullet for the man whose favor it represented. I saved his life and I also won him the trust of his favorite gun for hire.”
Harley’s fingers rubbed at the raised skin, pressing the same way his uncle had. My skin tingles deliciously. “Diarmuid did this?” I nod and then shrug. “I think… I think I have Diarmuid’s trust over… the other person. I just can’t afford his fees.” I whisper, never having allowed myself to even think that before.
It was something else to file away for later.
Harley swallows and then pulls away from me. His hands are shaking. I have to face the facts that the kiss was just his adrenaline needing an out.
“I won’t tell the others. I don’t know how the fuck I’d explain it anyway.”
And then he walks out.
Once again, I’m gutted as I close the door behind him.
I’ve got to stop letting him in my room.
Chapter Twenty-Six
I almost forget about the envelope that Diarmuid had delivered while I am wallowing over my kiss with Harley. His protection over Avery stays in tact but he no longer speaks to me. None of them speak to me. At first I’m worried because I think he’s told the rest of them what I did but I can feel Avery’s eyes bore holes into my back whenever she’s in my proximity. It’s like I’m a bomb about to go off and she doesn’t know the range of potential casualties. I make it through a few weeks of being ignored by them all and tutoring Blaise like crazy. It’s only after I bump into Joey in the library punching one of his friends for not laughing at his jokes that I decide to get back to work to take him out. I’m not sure what I was expecting to get from the envelope but the information is brutal and sobering.
