Reagan’s smile warmed his heart in a way that he couldn’t stop his feelings from being known.
“I think that sounds awesome.”
“Totes awesome, or just awesome, awesome?” he asked.
“Oh my gosh…no…don’t say that.” She laughed. “Start with the jeans, and we’ll go from there.”
“Are we good?” he asked, his smile timid.
“We were always good. We just didn’t know it. And you totally ruined your French toast with syrup. It’s extra butter and powdered sugar that rocks.”
“Says you,” he teased. “This is the bomb.”
“Seriously.” She laughed. “Stop. You sound…”
“Cool?” he asked.
Reagan tossed her head back and laughed. “No. Like an old dude trying to sound cool.”
“Old dude? Just for that…” He reached across the table and stabbed a strawberry from her plate with his fork. “I’m taking this!”
“Hey, guys,” Felicity interrupted. “This just came.”
She held a long garment bag from a hanger and handed it to Liam. “I’ll see you guys later.”
“What’s in that bag?” Reagan said with big eyes.
“I don’t know…just something I thought you might like.” Liam hung the bag from the nearby lattice and unzipped it, revealing the party dress she had been looking at online. Her high-pitched shriek told him it was a move well played as he sat back down with a proud grin on his face.
“Da! That’s it! That’s…the dress.” She stood with her hands covering her mouth in surprise. She looked to him. “Where? How? It was online, and it said like two weeks, and I didn’t think…”
“Two weeks? You forget who I am…” He laughed. “Just kidding. City helped me find it closer to Portland. Uncle Dace went to get it.”
“On the motorcycle? I bet that looked funny.”
“Nah. He was in Seattle for a few days and brought it back this morning.”
“Looking for Ivy?” she asked between bites of breakfast, her eyes never leaving the dress.
“What do you know about Ivy? You were too little…”
“I’m not little, and I remember everything.” She shrugged. “So, the dress. Where should I uh…wear it?”
Liam’s attention stayed on the French toast. He shrugged his shoulders as if it wasn’t a big deal, but really it was, and he was a ball of nerves. “I don’t know. Thought maybe that dance at your school Friday? I mean, if you want to go, and you can wear jeans instead if you…”
“I’d love to!” she shrieked, clapping her hands. “Jeans? To the dance? You do have some catching up to do! I’ll wear the dress! I need shoes though, and I know just the ones.”
She continued on, discussing shoes, hair, whether or not she should wear make-up, if it was okay to wear make-up, and so on. His head was spinning, but he was enjoying it. He’d missed this. He’d missed her.
The brothers stood around the rooftop, surrounded by a mob of hormone raging tweens for Reagan’s big party. Liam brought the guys up to speed about the dance and what that meant from a security perspective. Though they grunted at the thought of spending a Friday night with this crowd of kids, times ten, they were pleased that they were going because he was going.
It was a beach themed party with blow up floating mats, inner tubes, and beach balls – no pool though. They built the closest thing to a bonfire in their gas fire pit, and barbequed tween friendly food like hotdogs and hamburgers. Felicity saved the day, however, with the vegan dogs and bean burgers with gluten free alternatives – it was Portland after all.
It was a typical kid party until it was time to find a spot on the grass for the movie that they were playing against the building’s large wall. Most kids used beach towels, some the inner tubes, but the two boys that flanked either side of Reagan used the floating mattresses to sit on.
“What the hell, man?” Luke pointed to the boys. “Mattresses? City bought mattresses for a boy-girl party?”
“This isn’t good. They’re both looking at Rage like, like they want to share their mattress,” Dace added.
“They are just pool floaties,” Felicity scolded. “And nobody is sharing anything. They’re all like twelve. Don’t you dare embarrass her.”
Wylie, with his container of popcorn, joined the frenzied uncle debate. “Who are these guys? Anyone checked them out? Run a background on them? The parents? Do we know what kind of grades they make?”
“They’re twelve,” she scolded again. “And you better not look them up. Reagan has a good head on her shoulders. She’s smart. She’ll make a good choice, when the time comes. Now stop, or I’m kicking you guys out of here.”
Dace crossed his arms to match his crossed ankles while he leaned against the rooftop railing. “Geez. What’s her problem?”
“Not the mattresses, apparently…” Wylie sneered.
Liam had his eyes on Reagan and her two admirers the whole time. Knew who they were too. “Kid on the right…”
“Our right or their right?” Dace asked.
Luke gave Dace a what the hell look and interrupted. “We’re all facing the same way, numb nuts. Our right is their right.”
“Good point. I guess I’m just…worked up or something. This bothers me,” Dace admitted. “We’ve never done this before.”
Liam side-eyed his brother and continued, “Like I was saying, kid on the right is captain of the robotics team, straight A’s, smart as hell. Brought flowers and a big gift bag with all that fluffy paper shit coming out the top.”
“He put thought into it. I like it,” Luke said.
“Kid on the left is captain of the football team. Gets okay grades, stellar quarterback. Been hitting on a couple of the other girls. Brought a card with a candy bar taped to it,” Liam pointed out.
“A candy bar? Are you serious? Kid sounds like a player. A twelve-year-old player.” Dace shook his head in disgust.
“He better keep his game on the field,” Wylie warned with a snap of his fingers. “I have no idea why I just snapped my fingers. But, for real…I already don’t like him.”
“The nerd gave her his beach towel to wrap around her shoulders when she shivered and has been sharing his popcorn with her. Jock is over there scootin’ closer to Rage, but I think it’s just so he can eat the popcorn too.”
“Unbelievable,” Luke said before he disappeared into the sea of kids.
“I think we need to fix this….” Dace chimed in, only to be interrupted by Felicity.
“Don’t you dare fix anything.” Felicity had been standing next to them the whole time, listening. “It’s sweet that you want to look out for her, but don’t you dare embarrass her, especially on her birthday. She’s an O’Reilly – pretty sure she can handle this.”
“But it’s our job…”
“No, it’s not your job. Leave the kids alone,” she snapped, trying to maintain a straight face.
“You with me, Wy?” Dace whispered to Wylie.
“I got the geek,” Wylie answered, and they each grabbed snacks from the table and made their way to the lawn.
“You’re awfully quiet. What’s your take on this shit?” Liam asked of Declan.
“I don’t have a take. Lydia told me to stay away, or I’d regret it,” he replied, referring to his wife’s warning. “I don’t like how she’s looking at the boys. She’s likely to tell Ma. Why aren’t you saying anything? City already got you on a tight leash?”
“Ha! No. I’m afraid of Ma.” Liam laughed. “I set the boys up, let them take the fall with Ma and City and take care of the little shits while they’re at it.”
“Smart move, man. I’ll have to remember that one,” Declan said, high fiving his brother.
Dace and Wylie sat on either side of the boys they had their eyes on. They were each silently rooting for the robotics kid though he still needed a watchful eye and mentoring in their opinion. It was time to shake down the jock though, see how he did under pressure.
First things first, they let the air out of the floatie mattresses. That brought immediate relief. Wylie handed the robotics kid some candy, to which he said thank you and immediately offered it to Reagan. Score, robotics kid. Wylie looked back over his shoulder and nodded to Liam and Declan, approving of the kid’s gesture.
Next, Dace handed football kid the container of popcorn, which he gladly accepted and went right to eating. When Dace grunted and nodded toward Reagan, the kid just stared at him with a confused look and continued to eat the popcorn. That is until Luke made eye contact from the front of the crowd where he stood with his arms crossed, muscles flexed, and the meanest look. The kid offered some to Reagan but still kept the container for himself.
Dace shook his head and tossed a disgusted look at Liam and Declan, showing his disapproval. That’s when Liam finally jumped in. It was innocent enough. He was just offering the kids a couple of sodas, and by couple, it was two, despite there being three kids.
He whispered, “Hey, anyone want a soda?”
Football kid just grabbed one and whispered, “Me,” while robotics kid accepted the soda, but handed it to Reagan. That’s when Liam took the soda from football kid and gave it to robotics kid. He deserved it.
When football kid was starting to feel the heat of the brothers’ stares, he started to sweat. The grand finale was Luke’s intimidating staredown though. The kid swallowed so hard, the gulp sound was audible. He quickly got up and moved to the edge of the grass with the other football boys. Mission accomplished.
“That was awesome,” Wylie whispered to his brothers as they each pounded fists in victory.
“You realize you just ganged up on a twelve-year-old boy, right?” Felicity criticized. “Five oversized, grown men, chased off a little kid.”
“He isn’t that small; look at him. He’s even kind of big for a quarterback,” Luke contended.
“Yeah, he doesn’t look twelve at all, and he didn’t even offer the popcorn to Rage. Do we really want that type of relationship for her?” Dace challenged.
“How about we just let her decide and only act like baboons when it’s really necessary,” Felicity argued with a grin. “I half way expected you to pee on something to mark it and beat your chests.”
Dace gasped in surprise and fired back with a look of disgust and tone of offense. “Jesus, City. We’re grown fucking men. What the hell?”
When robotics kid leaned over and kissed Reagan’s cheek, the men went silent. Standing in disbelief, each was left speechless, unsure what they just saw.
“Were we just played?” Wylie asked.
“No. I still like him better. It was her cheek, and he’s still a good foot away from her on the grass,” Luke reasoned.
“What – do – we – do?” Dace asked.
“Cass.” Liam stood straight, remembering the book of letters. “Cassidy left a letter for this. I saw it – first kiss.”
“I’ll get Carter up here,” Luke said as he sent a text to Carter Landry, who was on the ground level with Ronan and Ryker for added security.
Liam grabbed Felicity on the way to the elevator. “Party is about to wrap up. Carter will be up in a minute to help out. The boys and I have something to do.”
He kissed her cheek and disappeared with his brothers, leaving Felicity and Lydia laughing as they went.
CHAPTER 21
Dearest Liam…
Her first…kiss. There are no words for this one other than our little girl is growing up. I’ve said that a lot lately in my letters. This time, it hit me just how much I’m missing and you are taking on…alone. Then I remembered…your brothers. Something tells me they’re reading this along with you because when it comes to Reagan, you’re all a bunch of protective dads.
First, don’t hurt the boy. It may be your first instinct, but if hers was to kiss him, or let him kiss her – you can’t hurt him. Second, please don’t embarrass her. This is an awkward stage where everything is weird and awkward for you. It’s more so for her. Next, let her choose. I have no doubt that she’s going to have strong boundaries and high expectations. She’s an O’Reilly. Don’t forget that. I worry more for the boy she chooses than any of you. Last, if he breaks her heart, you boys better put the fear of the O’Reilly clan in him…but don’t tell her.
My best advice with the first kiss is just to love her, which I know you do, Liam. I think the hardest part will be for your brothers to keep you grounded…and vice versa. Oh, how you love so hard. All of you. Reagan is so lucky to have you all, and if I know anything, it’s that she will measure every boy to the five incredible men in her life. You have nothing to worry about.
Continue to be her hero – all of you. Love her until she can’t take it anymore, and love each other. Together, you’re a force that knows no match. Just don’t use it to scare off all of the boys that are likely to walk in and out of the picture until Reagan finds her one true love. And boys…remember this if you have daughters someday. And if you should have boys…Lord help the girls.
I love you bigger than the sky – even the boys.
Always and Forever…
Cass
The brothers stood in the lobby as parents’ cars started to line up to pick up their kids from Reagan’s party. Felicity had texted Liam to say they were wrapping up, and the kids would hit the elevator soon. The brothers were there to make sure the kids each got to the right parent and that there was no interference from the villain in their midst.
“That letter, man,” Declan said, breaking the silence. “It’s so, Cass.”
“It’s like she was here, right? I could just feel her,” Wylie added.
Luke cleared his throat. Emotion was something he didn’t do. He just didn’t feel, ever, but that letter got to him. “She is here. I think we’ll always feel her, letters or no letters.”
“Did she call it, or what? She knows us so well it’s creepy.” Dace laughed. “She wrote that years ago. Rage was so small, and she still knew what we’d do. We didn’t even know what we’d do.”
“Yeah,” Liam said. “She really did think of everything. I think it’s because she loved so much. It was easy for her to anticipate…everything.”
“You good with all of this?” Luke asked.
Liam stood there for a moment, arms crossed as he leaned against the back of a couch. Was he good with it all, he wondered?
“I am. I really think I am,” he finally answered, feeling more convinced himself with every word. “I miss her, ya know? God, I miss her. But, for the first time since she left us, I’m okay. Better than okay.”
“Because of City?” Declan asked.
“In part,” he admitted. “I guess it took the perfect storm to break me, and it took the perfect storm to finally get it all together again. I’m finally dancing in the rain.”
He laughed at the reference he used as it was straight from his late wife, though the brothers gave him an odd look, not entirely sure what rain he was talking about. It was a beautiful spring evening, clear skies as each confirmed when they looked through the floor to ceiling glass entry. That was okay though. It wasn’t meant for them to understand. It was his to cling to and share if ever his brothers experience a storm of their own.
“Here they come,” Dace said when the elevators started moving simultaneously.
“Ready for chaos in ten, nine, eight, seven…” Wylie stopped counting when the elevators each came to a sudden stop, each with a screeching metallic whine.
“Son of a bitch.” Liam hit the elevator button several times, to which neither responded.
He ran around the lobby desk and started pecking away at the keyboard. Each of the brothers took different points around the lobby in a tactical-like motion, weapons at the ready. Their night had almost cleared without a hitch, but now they had a few dozen kids stuck in their elevators and the reason, or person rather, behind it seemed obvious.
“Is it him? Did he get in again?” Luke asked over Liam’s shoulder before returning his stare to th
e grounds around Watermark.
“If it is, I don’t know how. I made it pretty near impossible – even jammed frequencies surrounding the building,” Liam hollered, his eyes never leaving the screen. “I don’t see him. I don’t see…anything.”
Ronan and Ryker entered the lobby, having received an alert from inside. “Are we locking it down?” Ronan asked.
“No, not yet. We can’t see what we’re fighting just yet,” Liam said over the screen.
“Got a line of parents out there. What do you want me to do?” Ryker chimed in. “They’re perfect targets, just sitting there like that.”
Liam was angry. He was blind to his enemy, and that meant his enemy had the upper hand. “I got it. They’re safe as long as they stay in their cars. He can’t mess with anything within a two-block radius.”
Suddenly the elevators engaged and began to move, to which Liam started laughing as he fell into the chair behind him.
“What the hell, man?” Luke chided, finding nothing about the situation funny.
Liam continued to laugh. They were far too high strung. “False alarm! They were just load heavy! Too many kids in the elevators; they must have been jumping around or something – triggered the alarms.”
The elevator doors opened, and kids yelling best party ever poured into the lobby, among them, a smiling Felicity from one elevator and horrified Carter Landry from the other.
“Don’t forget your swag bags from the table on your way out,” Felicity shouted over the crowd, earning her a cheer.
“What was that all about?” Ryker asked Carter.
“Those kids, they’re…crazy,” he said in a monotone timbre. “They all started jumping and dancing, trying to get their elevator down the shaft faster. They were racing the other group. Racing. How do they not know it doesn’t work that way? We stopped, and they cheered. I didn’t cheer.”
Brother's Keeper II_Liam Page 18
