“Did you meet Mr. Roarke?” my father asked.
I flinched.
“Rumor is that he has Parkinson’s,” my mother said.
I shook my head. “No, he wasn’t there.” Was that why Devin was back? Was his father retiring?
“I wonder who’s going to take over?” my father asked. “The son is in Europe, right? Do you think the daughter will run it?”
Why my parents cared, I had no idea. “The son is back,” I said before I couldn’t think better of it.
“Oh. Was he there?” My mother stopped mid-forkful of spaghetti. “He’s a looker.”
I rolled my eyes. “He was there.” Then I turned to Andrew. “Don’t forget to eat your green beans.”
“I will,” Andrew said, giving me an annoyed glance.
“Is he a looker?” my mother asked.
“Yes.” I focused on my dinner, twirling my noodles on my fork.
“He’s rich and single, too.”
My father laughed. “In ten minutes, she’s going to have you married to the kid.”
I swallowed. “I don’t need to be married to be happy. Andrew and I do just fine.”
“Well of course you do, honey.” My mother patted my hand. “But life is so much better when you share it with your soulmate.”
“Devin isn’t my soulmate.”
“Devin?” My father’s gaze jerked to mine. “You call him Devin?”
Ugh! “That’s his name, isn’t it? Regardless. Don’t be getting Cinderella ideas, mom.”
“You should be open to dating though, honey.”
“Leave her be,” my father said to my mother. “She’s still young and she needs to be picky. Not just any man can take over father responsibilities to young Andrew.”
“True.” My mother nodded in agreement. “You need to choose someone responsible and who would love him like a son.”
I was reminded why more often than not I didn’t stay for dinner. Inevitably, it ended up with talk about how I needed a life partner.
After dinner, Andrew and I headed up to our own place. I gave him a bath and then we read his airplane book.
“When I grow up, I want to fly airplanes,” he said as I closed the book and set it on the tiny bedside table in his little nook.
“You can grow up to do anything you want,” I said, vowing to give him the opportunities to pursue his dreams.
“You can come with me,” he said, scooting down under his covers.
“I can’t wait. Where will we go?”
His brow furrowed in thought. “Disneyland?”
I laughed. “That sounds like fun. I’ve never been there. You know there are a few of them.”
“Really?” His blue-green eyes widened.
“One in California and one in Florida. I even think there are some in other countries.”
“We can go to them all,” he said.
I laughed. “It’s a date.”
His brows furrowed again. “Am I getting a daddy?”
It took me a minute to switch gears. “What?”
“Grandma and Grandpa said you needed to find me a daddy.”
That wasn’t exactly what they said, although I suppose that’s what they meant. “There’s no one right now to be your daddy.”
His expression faltered slightly.
“Do you want a daddy?” I asked, wondering if not having a father was a problem for him.
“Other people have daddies and I don’t. I don’t think mine likes me.”
Oh God. Guilt ripped through me. “That’s not true, baby. He doesn’t know you.”
“Why not?”
I supposed I knew this conversation would happen someday; I just wasn’t planning on today. Or anytime soon.
“He had to go away before you were born. I wasn’t able to tell him about you.”
“You didn’t have a phone?”
I closed my eyes as fear and sadness and guilt wreaked havoc inside me. “It’s complicated. What you need to know is that you’re loved by so many people. Your grandpa was a great dad to me, and he’s sort of like that for you.”
“I’d still like my own daddy.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said. I leaned over and kissed him on the forehead. “For now, you need to sleep.”
Once Andrew was settled into bed, I immediately poured myself a glass of wine, and drank it as I did my evening routine, which consisted of cleaning up, preparing for the next day, and then settling down to watch Netflix or read. But all I could think about was Devin, and my son asking for a daddy. It was wrong on so many levels to keep Andrew away from Devin, but that had been his mother’s doing. And now, five years later, it was too late, wasn’t it?
I thought back to our meeting today. I was surprised that after all this time he was interested in knowing why I hadn’t run off with him. A guy like Devin, who could have any woman he wanted and probably did over the last five years, wouldn’t remember a short fling with me. But he did. And he seemed annoyed that I hadn’t run off with him. Or at least annoyed that I was putting the blame on him.
I wondered what he’d do if I told him his mother had visited me and told me not to go. If he knew she’d told me about his lady friends? What would he think if I confessed that Andrew was his but that he didn’t know because his mother kept me from telling him? She even offered me money.
It was that act that had made me more committed than ever to keep Andrew from them. What sort of woman would pay off the mother of her grandchild to keep her away? My son didn’t need to be a part of any family like that.
I finished my wine, and considered having another, but knew it wouldn’t stop the emotional torment. So I washed my glass and then headed to bed.
When Devin first left five years ago, I frequently had dreams about him. Usually, he was showing up like a knight in a fairy tale telling me his mother was wrong about the other women. He’d confess his love and whisk me away to a place where we’d live happily ever after. The dreams often had erotic elements as well.
Over time, those dreams dissipated. Tonight though, Devin was back, looking sexy as the billionaire owner of a high-rise restaurant. Before the dream was over, he had me on the restaurant’s terrace, naked and writhing.
When he was done, he lifted his head, those green eyes shining down on me. “Where’s my son?”
4
Devin
I headed up to my room in my parents’ place, more eager than ever for the sale of the penthouse to come through. The sooner I was out from under them, the sooner I’d be able to exert independence. My father toasted to a partnership, but I was certain he would still expect his input to be followed, and I wasn’t going to take orders. If the idea was good, sure, I’d consider it. But I was my own man in life and business. I needed both my parents to see that.
“So, are you ready to take over the world?” my younger sister Brianna said from her bedroom door as I passed it. She was a couple years younger and still living at home.
“Yes.”
She laughed. Many times, I thought she’d been lucky to have been born second. We might have been nearly a quarter through the second millennium, but my parents still adhered to traditions set in the past millennium. As the first-born son, I was expected to take over the family business. I was also expected to continue the Roarke family line with a woman from an old-money family. I’d do the first, but not the second. I’d leave the procreation to Brianna, who was smart, capable, and had an easier time telling my parents to shove their archaic views.
“Dad isn’t going to go away that easily.”
I shrugged. “I’ll go back to Europe.”
She frowned. “Don’t go, Dev. It’s more fun when you’re here.”
“From what I hear, you don’t need my help to have fun.”
“I do my best.” She leaned against the doorjamb. “Are you planning a club for New York?”
“Yes.”
“Can I help? You'll have your hands full with total Roarke business do
mination and I’m more up on the New York club scene. I can help.”
My instinct was to say no because I was a man trying to prove himself. But I also knew my sister was ready to move on from celebutante to more serious work. She was smart and capable, and she was right in that she had more insight into the club scene here than I did.
“Yes. But you have to work, Bri. You can’t stay out all night and then stroll in at three in the afternoon whenever you want.”
“Why not? If I’m out all night, I’m doing research.”
I smirked at her, though I suppose she had a point. “We’ll talk about it later.”
“Goodnight, big brother.” She shut her door.
I shook my head as I laughed. We’d create the best club in New York, I was sure of it. It would likely be fun, but also, full of headaches to work with her.
Once in my room, I got ready for bed, and then stood at my window looking over the river, as Serena drifted back into my brain. She’d never been far from thought since I saw her that afternoon.
She never did tell me why she didn’t come with me to Europe five years ago. She suggested that I shouldn’t have cared because it was a little fling. I had cared. She’d been the one to dismiss the depth of feeling between us. Or, I suppose, I was the only one who felt that way.
Perhaps it was just as well. I had no doubt my parents wouldn’t have approved of her simply because she wasn’t from an old money family. The only reason my parents liked Evie was that her family had been part of New York aristocracy longer than mine had.
I wondered what my parents would do if Serena had come with me. I scoffed. I knew exactly what they’d do. They’d work to separate us. They’d probably try to pay her off. I didn’t think Serena could be that easily bought, and yet, I supposed everyone had a number. I’d like to think she and I would have made it. We’d have lived and loved through Europe. Maybe we’d be married. Perhaps I’d have that heir I was expected to have.
I shook my head. Fairy tales and soulmates were for pussies. A fantasy was all well and good for jerking off, but real life wasn’t as clean or happy as the books and rom-coms suggested. The truth was Serena would have probably missed her family or gotten bored with me and my life. Lots of women said they wanted to be a princess, but then they learned that living with a prince sucked.
I climbed into bed, sinking down into the soft sheets and closing my eyes. It didn’t take long for Serena to show up in my dreams. She was naked, sauntering toward me with those blue eyes blazing.
“Welcome home, Devin.”
That was the greeting I’d have preferred, I thought.
“Did you miss me?” she cooed.
“Yes.” My dick was at full mast as I took her in my arms and got reacquainted with her luscious body. Unfortunately, in my dream, I was never going to get the satisfaction my body craved. I woke the next morning with a dick as hard as granite.
I slipped out of bed and headed to the shower. Stepping under the hot spray, I conjured Serena up in my mind again, this time on her knees, those blue eyes watching me as I slipped my dick between her luscious pink lips.
“Suck me, baby,” I rasped while gripping my cock and giving it a long stroke. During our week together five years ago, I’d not only taken her virginity, but I’d showed her all the ways a man and woman could enjoy each other. She’d been an eager, active learner, and more than once had me seeing stars. The first time she sucked my cock until I came, I thought I’d blown the top of my head. She was a natural when it came to sex, and I couldn’t get enough of her. Even now, five years later, the image of her sucking me off was my go-to jerk-off fantasy.
“Yeah baby, more,” I groaned as my hand slid faster and faster, while in my mind she was licking and sucking and stroking my cock. I jerked my hips forward, shoving my cock to the back of her throat. The image tipped me over, and I sprayed my hot cum over the tile wall of my shower.
“Fuck.” I pressed my hands on the tile as I caught my breath and my dick finished jerking the last bits of cum.
It occurred to me that now we were in the same town, perhaps we could pick up where we left off. She’d seemed resistant to that idea, but maybe it was because she really believed I hadn’t taken us as seriously as I had.
I finished cleaning up and dressed for a day at the office. I checked the calendar on my phone and saw I was planning another trip to the restaurant. Would Serena be there again? The party for Gallagher was tonight. I wasn’t planning on attending, but maybe I should. It would be goodwill for Gallagher and his celebrity friends. And maybe I’d see Serena.
I headed downstairs for breakfast. My father was at the table eating his usual egg and toast. My mother had her tea.
As I sat down, my parents’ cook brought me a plate of eggs and bacon. “Would you like anything else, Mr. Roarke?” she asked me.
“No, thank you, Mrs. Sanders.” After she returned to the kitchen, I poured myself a coffee. “I’m thinking of attending the Gallagher party tonight.”
“Good idea,” my father said. “Get seen by his acquaintances.”
“Do you think we should have our thirtieth anniversary at the Roarke?” my mother asked.
“Thirty years? Really?” I asked.
“You’re twenty-eight. We were married two years before we had you,” she said. My mother didn’t look old enough to have been married thirty years.
“That seems like the ideal spot,” my father said.
It’s true that ideas often were sparked like light bulbs. “Let me plan it,” I said.
My mother stared at me with suspicion in her eyes. “Why?”
“Because it’s crass to organize your own anniversary party,” I said, not knowing if that was true. “I’ll take care of everything.” Including hiring a certain, sexy, event planner.
I could see my mother was wary about putting her anniversary plans in my hands, but my father supported the idea with the sideways remark that it was time I appreciated my family. Finishing my breakfast, I headed to the Roarke building to start my day. I began by emailing my sister the space I was eyeing for a club. Then I questioned the administrative assistant who I inherited from my father about what my parents would like as a thirtieth anniversary party.
“I was thinking of having it at the house in the Hamptons,” I told her. “I think it would be good for them to get out of the city.”
She eyed me. “Do you plan to leave them there and take over?”
“There’s an idea,” I said jokingly. “No. But I do think my dad does need to start recognizing that he needs to look ahead. He needs to find something to occupy his time when he does retire.”
She nodded. “Good point. I like the Hampton house idea. Do you want me to call any planners?”
“No. I’ve got one in mind.”
She quirked a brow. “Back a week and you already know the event planners.”
“Her company is doing the Gallagher party tonight at the Roarke.”
“Okay, so maybe you do,” she said, with a shrug.
“Look, I know when I left here five years ago, I wasn’t the most focused person—”
“Sure, you were,” she said with a smirk. “It was just on the ladies.”
“Touché. The point is, I’m not that man anymore. I’m here ready to work.”
“I know everything you did in Europe, and while I’m sure your father is scarce on the praise, he’s proud of you, Devin.”
“I won’t let him or the company down.”
She patted my hand as she stood. It was the type of thing an older grandmotherly type would do which told me I still had a little work to do to make her see me as the head of the business. That was okay. At least she was on my side.
“By the way, I’m going to the Gallagher party tonight,” I told her before she got through my doorway.
“Do you need me to make any arrangements for you?”
“No. I just wanted to let you know. Dad knows as well.”
“Very well,” she said e
xiting my office.
I worked through most of the day, and then in the afternoon, I headed down to the Roarke to check on the final set up for the party.
At first, I didn’t see Serena and was worried she wouldn’t be there. But then she came bustling out from the kitchen with a clipboard handing out orders. She looked fierce and confident, much like she’d been when I first met her.
I watched her for a minute, once again trying to decide why I felt a pull to her. Sure, five years ago, we had fun and I’d wanted to spend more time with her, but now, all this time later, surely all those feelings were gone. That and the fact that she had zero interest in me should have put me off. Yet here I was, gawking like a dumbass as she moved through the room with her staff.
She stopped short when she saw me. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. She said something to one of the people on her team and then came to me.
“Is everything okay, Mr. Roarke?”
I rolled my eyes. “I’ve seen you naked. It seems to me we can use first names.”
“I’m working,” she said, pursing her lips like my mother did when she didn’t like my attitude.
“You can still call me Devin,” I said. I waited for her to give me permission to call her Serena, but she didn’t. I sighed. “Why are you pissed at me? I didn’t do anything.”
She sighed. “I’m not pissed. I’m working. I have a lot to do before tonight.”
“Right,” I said, now feeling bad for hassling her. I realized that this wasn’t the right moment to hire her for my parents’ anniversary party. “By the way, I plan to be here tonight.”
She stiffened. “You don’t think we can do the job?”
“I have no reason to think you can’t. I’m not doing it to check on you. I’m doing it because I’ve got to get resettled into the business here in New York, and this is one way to do it. To see how the Roarke does at holding events.”
An Irish Affair Page 4
