#1-3--The O’Connells

by Lorhainne Eckhart

  Karen found herself glaring at this man who was still a stranger, trying to figure out how this marriage could possibly work. “You know what?” she said, turning to Pierce. “That sounds really condescending. Let me help you understand. I’m actually in the trenches, helping people who really need help, not those who can afford to buy their way out of trouble. Every one of the people I help is someone’s child, someone’s mother, someone’s father, a person with a real beating heart who needed someone to give a damn and speak up because there was no one else. That’s not small-time. You want to call me a bleeding heart for that? I’d say helping make a difference for those who truly are victims just makes me a decent human being.”

  She knew Pierce got the zinger.

  Jack dumped his knife and fork on his plate with a clatter. “Karen, enough,” he said. The way he looked at her, she could sense he was ready to shut her down.

  “It’s not enough,” she said. “I’m not just playing around with the law. I’m actually making a difference, being the kind of lawyer that lawyers are supposed to be, trying to right the wrongs of this ridiculous broken system.”

  “Helping lost causes?” Pierce said. “That doesn’t really mean you’re credible.”

  She didn’t need to look over to him to know he found this entertaining. She still couldn’t believe Jack had said that to her, that she was small-time, especially in front of this man. It seemed for a moment that he had been trying to beat her down.

  “You’re an asshole,” she said to Jack. “And this water…” She lifted her glass. “This isn’t working for me. Where’s the wine?” She went to stand up, but Jack reached over so quickly, gripping her wrist before she could move.

  “You drink too much,” he said.

  Time stilled. She took in the intensity of his gaze, the way he was looking at her. She felt humiliated, letting her gaze slide over to Pierce, who seemed beyond amused. She couldn’t remember ever having felt so much like someone was trying to stomp on her, putting her in her place. It was demeaning.

  “Oops,” Pierce said. “On that note, Jack, I think I’ll get going and let you have at ’er.” He stood up and dumped his napkin on his plate. His suit jacket was still unbuttoned, and his tie was loosened, and for a second, she could see the resemblance between the two men. “Thanks for dinner. Karen, a pleasure. Oh, and before I forget, Jack, you’ll be at your dad’s tomorrow. I understand the partners are coming in.”

  Jack only inclined his head. “I’ll be there,” he said.

  Karen just stared in horror, hearing Pierce’s footsteps on the floor as he left. She couldn’t pull her gaze from Jack. She said nothing as she heard the door close, then took in her plate. She had taken only a few bites of steak. She pulled her arm away as soon as Jack let go.

  “You want to explain to me what that was about?” Karen snapped. “You know, when I married you as a girl, I knew I was nothing in your shadow, and after you walked out, the way you treated me, it took a while for me to be able to hold my head up high. I’ve had to tell myself not to feel humiliated, especially with that restraining order—which, by the way, is still in force. You know, I’m a good person, decent, loving. I make a difference. I am somebody.

  “But congratulations. This evening with your cousin was quite the show. You’re purely arrogant, trying to manage me, put me in my place. Now I understand why you want me to drop everything and move here, because you see everything I do as nothing of importance. Well, I’ll have you know it’s important to me, and this?” She gestured to the ceiling, around the room. “All this doesn’t make you a good, decent person or any more important than any of the people I try to help.”

  She continued, on a roll. “You’re going to see your father tomorrow, and I take it these partners are the same men you talked about so passionately, the ones responsible for killing Bonnie and leaving you rotting in jail. These men do the kinds of things I’m not okay with. So thanks for dinner, but I’m declining your offer to stay. I’m taking my car, and I’m going home, to my home. Tonight.” She stood up, her legs shaking.

  “Karen, you can’t leave,” he said, his chair scraping as he stood.

  She turned, putting the table between them as she kept walking and gave her head a shake. “Of course I can leave. It’s called free will, and I very much still have mine. I will never hand it over. Not sure what this is, but I’m not having any part of it.”

  He reached for her again and gripped her arm. “Whoa, hang on a second.”

  She went to hit him, to get him to let her go.

  “Stop! Settle down,” he said. Both his hands gripped her arms. “You don’t get it, Karen. That was entirely for show. Pierce didn’t show up here just because. He was here to make sure I’m falling in line, that I’m doing what my father demanded. Yeah, I’m free because of him, and I was in trouble because of him. Life isn’t black and white. The fact is, Karen, they need to be sure you aren’t another Bonnie who’s trying to dig up something, cause trouble, do or say something that would embarrass the family or cause them problems.

  “I need you to just trust me. Maybe I came off as arrogant and high-handed. I’m sorry, but, dammit, I’m not sorry if it means keeping you alive! Just give me some damn room to figure out how to handle this without coming at me the way you are. I’m not stepping back into the family, but what I am doing is damage control that will keep you safe. I need to figure out a way to do this right. You want to tell them to go away, but it doesn’t work like that.”

  She could feel his passion. For a moment, she thought he was going to shake her, but he just let her go and stepped back, then jammed his hands in his hair and shut his eyes.

  “The restraining order is no longer in force,” he said. “I had it dismissed before we left Livingston. And yes, you do drink too much. Maybe I’m worrying, but I don’t want anything to happen to you.” Passion oozed from him again. He was so close to her, and he ran his hands over her shoulders and down.

  “You want me to play along while you…what, demean me?” she said. This was too much for him to ask.

  He just shook his head. “Let me figure out a way to make this work. What you don’t understand is this is just a game to be played, and the way I handled it before, I screwed up.” He settled his hands over her cheeks, then rested his forehead against hers before pressing another kiss to her lips.

  “I won’t be handled,” she said.

  He laughed. “Oh, I know that—but I somehow have a second chance not to screw this up.”

  “I’ll give you the night to figure it out, Jack, but you need to do it in a way that gets you away from them, not closer. I have a voice. What I do isn’t of less importance. So you need to figure out a way to make your family understand that. With what just happened, there’s no way I’m going to sit idly by and pretend. I’m not a woman who will stand in the shadows. And just so we’re clear, I’m not leaving Livingston. It’s my home. I work there, I live there, my family’s there. By no means will I ever let you tell me what to do.”

  He sighed and slid his arms around her, and she set her hands against the solid wall of his chest. “Fine, we’ll discuss it,” he said, then pressed another kiss to her lips. This time, he deepened it and lifted her in his arms. She was forced to wrap her arms around him to hang on as he started to the stairs.

  “Where are we going?” she said. “Jack, put me down!” She couldn’t believe how strong he was. He was climbing the stairs with her in his arms.

  “No,” he said. “I’m tired, and it’s been a long time, Karen, but I want to get to know my wife and settle everything.”

  Oh, she understood that his idea of settling things likely meant getting her on her back. What he didn’t know was that she was strong minded and strong willed, not the kind of woman to bend to any man.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The way he kissed her shoulder had her stirring from sleep. She was tucked on her side, still feeling him inside her. She’d forgotten how intense Jack was, what an
incredible man he was to sleep with. She was positive he was that much better now, as he’d taken his time touching her, kissing her, loving her. He could’ve asked her anything, and she’d likely have said yes.

  “I thought you wanted to sleep,” she said, blinking in the darkness, knowing her voice was groggy.

  “Hmm…” was all he said as he somehow maneuvered her onto her back. She could feel how much he wanted her. He kissed her again, deeply. His hands linked with hers.

  She knew this kind of talking wasn’t resolving anything. She wasn’t sure where she found the strength, but she somehow got out from under him. “Jack, this isn’t talking or settling anything,” she said. She didn’t have a clue what he expected of her. She needed answers, something.

  He groaned out loud and ran his hand over her side, her ass, then pulled her against him so they lay side by side, heads on the same pillow. “No. I’m still working it through in my mind. Besides, I missed this body of yours, how responsive you are. The sex was always hot with you. It’s almost five, anyway. We need to get up. My father is sending his plane to pick us up, you and me.”

  It took her a second to realize what he was saying, and she sat up and took him in. She glanced at the clock as she reached over to turn on the bedside light. “Explain, please,” she said. “What are you talking about? You seem to have this thing for making plans and not talking to me. It’s as if you work it out in your own mind, and I’m an afterthought, and you don’t have to tell me. Hate to break this to you, but you do. You said we’d talk, so let’s talk. Your father is sending a plane…as in a private plane?”

  Jack ran his hand over his face. His dark scruff was really starting to add to his dark and dangerous look. He shook his head and threw back the covers to slide out of bed, then walked across the room.

  His naked ass…. Holy God, did he look amazing! There he went again, shutting her down as he walked into the bathroom. She heard the shower turn on, so she climbed from bed too, seeing her clothes tossed on the floor in a heap, one heel by the chair, the other by the dresser. She strode into the bathroom, spotting him in the impressive shower, which she swore could hold four or five easily.

  She opened the door and stepped under one of the three sprays, and he turned and looked at her, slicking back his hair as she stood in the shower with him.

  He pinned her to the back wall, lifted her, kissed her, and slid inside her.

  “Jack…” she started, but he kissed her again, she thought to shut her up, as he moved inside her, the hot spray of water running over them. He made a point of showing her how much he wanted her with each touch, the way he kissed her and moved again and again, reminding her of the Jack she’d married.

  At the same time, everything about the way he was pinning her against the wall of the shower and moving inside her made her feel he was marking her, making her his. She felt the warmth the moment he stilled, then stepped back, and she stood on shaky legs. His hands were still there, touching her breasts, her arms, her shoulders.

  He reached for the soap and lathered it, running it over her back, her arms. By the time she had rinsed off, he’d already washed his hair and scrubbed down, and he was stepping out of the shower. It wasn’t lost on her that the sex seemed to be the only thing that worked between them.

  “Finish up in there, Karen,” he said. “I’ll grab your bag from downstairs. We need to leave in half an hour.”

  She could see him through the glass door. He was already shaving, a towel looped around his waist. There was just something about Jack that made her feel he never heard one word she said. She took a second, then reached for the shampoo and started washing her hair.

  By the time she was dressed—wearing clean underwear but the same blue dress from the day before, since Jack had insisted her sweats wouldn’t cut it—there was a black Town Car waiting outside the house. They were taken to a private airfield, where a private jet was waiting. A private flight was something she’d never experienced, and in her wildest dreams, she’d never thought she would ride in one for the short flight to Spokane.

  When they arrived, Jack ushered her off into another Town Car waiting at the airport in the early morning light, and it wasn’t lost on her that the only conversation they’d had was about the weather in Spokane, the art he owned, and whether she wanted anything other than the croissant and orange juice she’d been given on the plane by the stewardess who had served her just before take-off. It was bizarre and unsettling.

  “You sure you don’t want anything else to eat?” Jack said as they sat in the back seat. He was dressed in a navy suit and tie, and he looked beyond a million bucks. She could see the driver glancing back to them in the rear-view mirror, and it felt unsettling, having some stranger listening in.

  “I’m fine,” she said. “You asked me on the plane already. So what’s happening today? It’s not lost on me that you haven’t said anything about where we’re going, who we’re seeing, and why.” She kept her voice low, hoping the driver wasn’t listening.

  Jack had his cell phone out. He sighed. “This is to meet the family, you know. It’ll be fine. They’ll love you just like I do.” He looked over to her, then gestured with his chin to the driver.

  She wasn’t an idiot, and she didn’t miss the warning that the man was listening. At the same time, she felt she was walking into something completely unprepared, and as a lawyer, she never did that.

  He slid his hand over her thigh and linked hers with it. There was something about sitting here beside him, her legs bare. She felt so much out of her league. He leaned in closer, and she was positive he was going to kiss her, but his lips brushed her ear instead.

  “Just follow my lead,” he whispered.

  After a half-mile drive down a private driveway, they arrived at a gated property. The house was bigger than anything she’d ever seen. There was a fountain out front, surrounded by parked cars, the kind she’d never be able to afford.

  When the driver got out, Jack looked at her and paused before he opened the door. “I love you, in case you didn’t know. You’re beautiful, you’re brilliant, and I do respect you.” Then he stepped out before she could get her tongue to move.

  He helped her out, and she held his hand as he walked her up to the impressive front door. She didn’t know why she was suddenly feeling so out of sorts. Maybe he knew, as he stood there with her, holding her close.

  “I grew up here,” he said. “I know these people, but, Karen, I love you. I won’t let anything happen to you, and I won’t railroad you or corner you into something you don’t want. However, I want you to promise me one thing.”

  She didn’t know what to say as she looked up into his icy blue eyes. There was something new in the way he was looking at her. “You want me to promise you something when I don’t have a clue what’s going on, what’s happening today, or who I’m meeting?”

  Jack hadn’t knocked or even reached for the door, but she could hear footsteps, as if someone knew they were there.

  “Yes,” he said. “I want you to promise me that whatever happens in there, you’ll hold your tongue and trust me.”

  She wondered if the glare she was leveling on him was why he was smiling. “That’s a lot to ask, considering what I sat through last night.”

  He nodded. “It is. I know I’m asking a lot.”

  The door opened to reveal a man in a dark suit, who ushered them in.

  “Fine, but you’ll owe me,” she said in a low voice, and he kissed her cheek as they stepped inside. As Karen heard voices coming from the back, she felt for the first time in her life that she was way out of her element.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “One ice-cold Chablis,” said Suzanne as she handed Karen a glass of wine where she sat on Ryan and Jenny’s front porch. “The bottle’s inside, and Ryan said if you want more, he’s going to have to send Luke out to the store.”

  “Thank you,” Karen said. “You have no idea how much I was looking forward to this.” She took a sip
and nearly groaned, kicking off her pumps, which felt as if they had been glued to her feet.

  “You haven’t said two words since you got back,” Suzanne said. “We’ve all been wondering what was going on. You didn’t text, just left with Jack. With everything that went down, I don’t remember seeing Luke, Marcus, and Ryan so on edge. Apparently, they know way more than I do. Then there’s Owen.”

  Suzanne was holding a beer, one of the dark stouts she loved, sitting in a deck chair on the front porch. Beside her, Karen felt the kind of peace and balance she knew she’d once taken for granted. She loved hearing the voices of the kids and her family inside.

  Suzanne reached out with her sneakered foot and tapped Karen’s bare toes. “Come on, earth to Karen! What’s going on with you? I need details. Where’d you go with that man I still haven’t met, and where is he now, anyway?”

  Karen swirled her glass of wine and took in her practical Honda parked out front. “Have you ever made a promise and then wished you could take it back? Well, today I was in a situation where I realized I had completely misread everything, and I was really glad I made that kind of promise, because it saved me from shoving my foot in my mouth.” She knew she was talking in riddles by the confused look on her sister’s face.

  “No, I haven’t,” Suzanne said. She lifted her beer and took a swallow, then belched.

  For a moment, Karen pictured her doing that in front of Jack’s family. They had power, clout, and tastefully dressed, well-mannered, and civilized spouses. How inappropriate it would have been—and entertaining. She couldn’t stifle her smile.

  “What does that have to do with Jack?” Suzanne said. “By the way, everyone’s wondering where he is. Come to think of it, you didn’t say anything about him when you pulled up.”

  Karen took another swallow of her wine and took in her sister, who was waiting for her to fill her in and answer all the questions she hadn’t even asked. “Oh, it’s got everything to do with Jack. I met his family today.”