by E. C. Land
Sitting in the sunroom with my highlander romance book in hand, I try to focus on the words, but my nerves are a mess. Tomorrow is the wedding and I’m not sure what to think. There’s a chance anything could happen like it did at my sister’s. I knew they’d yet to find the man who stabbed my brother-in-law after overhearing my da speaking with Dean about this issue over the phone. He’d not seen me standing near the cracked door as he spoke of the ordeal.
“Alison, they’re pulling into the drive now,” Da says, interrupting my thoughts.
Blinking, I clear my mind and nod. Here goes nothing.
I put the book down on my seat in the window and follow my father out into the foyer. We’re having an early dinner tonight so that my da, sister, and I can have a movie night like we used to. This will also give my sister and me a chance to spend time together before I’m to marry this man.
Walking the short distance to stand at my da’s side, he wraps an arm around my shoulders reassuringly to which I’m grateful for. This man is my rock and I need him at this moment, even if he’s the one who set this marriage up for me. And the reason he’s done this is because of the world we live in. Unlike Bridget, I accept I’d be with whoever my father put me with. Though I will admit to being scared of who it might be.
But, Da loves mo dheirfiúr mhór and I more than anything, so he would never give me to someone he didn’t trust.
The front door opens and first, I see Dean step inside with my sister right behind him, holding her little boy in her arms. Behind them are three other men, two I remember from the last time they were here.
“Da,” Bridget says, excitement filling her voice, handing her son to her husband as he chuckles.
“Ah, iníon mo ghaoil,” Da says, releasing me to embrace my sister. As I said, he loves us both.
“I’ve missed you something terrible,” she murmurs, meeting my gaze and reaching out to pull me in for a group hug. “I’ve also missed you as well, deirfiúr bheag.”
“I missed you too, Bridget,” I whisper, not wanting the additional people in the room to hear me.
Pulling away, I turn at the sound of my nephew babbling. “Alison, I’d like to introduce you to your nephew, Uilliam,” Bridget announces while grasping my hand to drag me over to where Dean is standing close holding his son.
Looking at my nephew, I’m in awe of how adorable he is with his bright eyes and dirty blond hair. He’s the perfect mix of both Bridget and Dean. I don’t try to hold my arms out for the little guy no matter how much I’d love to hold him in my arms. Uilliam doesn’t know me and I wouldn’t want to scare him. Giving him a smile, I wave my hands at him right before Bridget whirls me around once again to face the man I’m to marry. “Mitch, I’d like you to officially meet Alison,” she says proudly.
“Um, hi,” I whisper softly, reaching my hand out hesitantly.
“Hi,” he murmurs just as quietly while taking my hand in his to shake. My breath catches at the butterflies fluttering in my stomach when he doesn’t pull his hand away.
“Now that Bridget has done introductions, how about we move this into the dining room for dinner. I’ve been smelling the roast cooking all afternoon, and I’m starved,” Da states, gaining everyone’s attention breaking the tension filling the room.
Tension I didn’t even feel until that moment.
Everyone goes to follow my da into the dining room, but Mitch keeps us from following them as he stays planted where he stood.
“Uh, we should join them,” I suggest.
“And we will in a moment but first, I must ask you a question. One of great importance,” he mutters.
“Okay, what is it?” I ask, again hesitant in the thought of what he needs to ask me.
“Are you okay with doing this? With marrying me?” Mitch asks, still holding my hand.
“Yes, I’m okay with it. I might not have known it was you I were to marry until recently, but I know my duty to my family, and I won’t back down. I was brought into this world we live in knowing I would have to marry the man my father picked for me. Am I scared? Yes, I admit I’m frightened by the unknown. Am I going to walk away from my duties or throw a fit like a two-year-old? No, I wouldn’t do that. I may only be twenty years old but I’m not a child. I’ve gone to school and finished all of my schooling, earning a degree to be able to work with children, and if it’s not a problem, I will be doing so when we get to the States. I don’t like to sit on my thumbs.” I finally stop to take a breath, only to find Mitch staring at me with a completelely baffled expression. One I don’t know what to make of.
“You, mo stór, are nothing like I expected,” he mutters, causing my chest to constrict when he says, ‘my treasure’.
Talk about mind-blowing, the fact this man would call me something so precious.
Chapter Five
Mitch
Motherfuckin’ shit. Staring at this woman standing before me, I’m shocked at not only how much more beautiful she is now but also the fact I can see right away that she’s nothing like her sister. The way she speaks of herself in our world is something Bridget never stated with Dean. Those two lucked the fuck out that they’d been able to work shit out and my boss gets off on her antics.
Alison, though, she’s different. Unique in her own way.
Still, I never expected to call her mo stór, considering how intimate the endearment is. But I, for one, must admit just how accurate the statement is. Even if I don’t want to think of her being mine, the truth of the matter is, come tomorrow, Alison will be my wife, and I need to get to know her in every way possible.
A small pang hits my chest at the thought of having a connection with Alison when I still love Michelle. I’ll never stop loving that woman considering she’d been my world. The pang intensifies at the remembrance of the dream after I passed out the night before with a sleeping pill. That shit was fucked. Again Michelle came to me saying this same thing about me letting her go and moving on. Only this time, she’d brought Alison up and how she would be good for me. That I deserve to be happy and if she had to choose for me it would be Alison.
The dream had been so fuckin’ vivid. I thought it really happened. So I’d looked up that shit on if the dead could visit dreams. Some theories said it to be true, others say it’s your imagination fooling you. Me, I decided to believe in the truth of it being possible. I’d heard stories of others having similar things happen to them.
Clearing my throat, I stare into Alison’s eyes and reach up to cup the side of her face with my palm. Alison closes her eyes, and I don’t miss the fact she sucks in a breath. “I promise to make sure you never want for anything. I also swear here and now that I will stay faithful to you, and I also won’t push you into anything you are not wanting.”
With that said, I step back, drop my hand from the side of her face and release her hand.
“Now, how about we go join the others for dinner. Tomorrow comes soon enough,” I mutter, trying to think of anything else than what the two of us could possibly do after the ceremony tomorrow.
“Yes, that would be a good idea. I’ve missed my sister and only just met my nephew,” she whispers.
“Why is this the first time you’ve met your nephew?” I knew the answer Dean had given me, but I wanted to hear what her reasons were.
“It’s foolish really, but I’d refused to come home until the two years were up. I felt if I came home, I wouldn’t want to go back and I knew my da didn’t want me to be here. I thought I wasn’t wanted without Bridget here as well. But I’ve come to realize over the past few weeks Da did not feel this way at all,” she murmurs, her cheeks turning a blush color from feeling embarrassed.
“Alison, that’s not a foolish reason. But if you’d talked to your father about this, he might explain this to you. I’ve heard myself what he feels for you and your sister both. In fact, he’d come to the States not too long ago and he’d been proud to announce you were finishing school months before you were due to,” I say, hoping to make
her understand she doesn’t have to be embarrassed.
My gaze drops to her mouth as I notice her suck in another breath, this time pulling on her bottom lip. The sight of her doing this goes straight to my cock, and I inwardly groan at the thought of touching her mouth with my own.
This is something I hadn’t thought about since the last time I’d kissed Michelle. I’ve fucked many women, but not once have I kissed one. It’s the same as going down on a woman in my mind.
Sinking my cock into a pussy is simply that, it’s a carnal thing that two people do together to find release. Everything else that comes with it is what makes it sensual.
Needing to distract my thoughts, I guide her into the dining room and the two of us take our seats at the table.
Dinner is mostly consumed with talk of Liam and Bridget telling her father about the pregnancy. I know she doesn’t mean to do it, but by her taking over the conversation, she’s hurt her sister without meaning to. A night that’s supposed to be about Alison and myself becomes about her.
I hold my tongue for now as I wait to see what happens throughout the dinner. Progressing to dessert, Tomás did switch the focus to Alison and makes a toast to her on finishing school as well as our marriage tomorrow. I also take note of Bridget’s sadness as she realizes what she’d done to her sister.
Seems this is the way they are, and Bridget’s smart enough to know she’s screwed up where her sister’s concerned. She’s a lot of things but she’s not a bitch. She wouldn’t intentionally hurt someone. So for Bridget to realize what she’d done must have hurt her. Alison, on the other hand, gives to her big sister without hesitation not allowing the light to shine on her more than it does already.
In the past hour and a half since stepping foot into the house, meeting my soon-to-be wife, I’ve taken note of several things about her. Alison isn’t just smart and mature for her age, she’s caring and gives to those around her the kindness that surrounds her. Everything about her makes her who she is, and I can say that tomorrow at noon all her kindness becomes a part of me. And though I’m not ready to admit it to myself, I can say I’ll protect her with everything I am.
I mean, I didn’t get to where I am by simply wearing a suit and tie. No, I’ve got blood on my hands and there’s no way to get the stains of it marring my soul clean. However, when it comes to Alison, I’ll be making sure that nothing stains hers by somehow entwining mine around hers to keep her safe.
Chapter Six
Alison
Dinner had been good, and Mitch didn’t make me feel unwanted in any way, like I thought he might. I’d been nervous about this because of the difference in our age. Once everyone finished with dessert, the men left the house deciding to go to the pub in town.
While they’re gone, Da suggested we have a movie night and spend some quality time together. Of course, Da picked The Princess Bride to watch with us as a joke since they seem to claim it was my favorite movie growing up.
Why? I don’t even know. Give me a highlander book any day. Those I wouldn’t mind seeing turned into a movie or whatnot. I will admit I’ve grown fond of watching Viking since coming home. I’d been unable to find something to do one evening and wasn’t in the mood to read. I’d come across the show and ended up hooked.
I don’t know what it is about shows and books about that time period that speaks to me, but it does. I suppose this could have something to do with my love for history and why I’d minored in the subject.
Da’s phone rings, breaking through my thoughts. He’d not answered it much in the past two weeks when we were spending time together.
I glance in his direction as he pulls it out and frowns. Standing up, he excuses himself from us as he answers the phone and walks out of the family room.
“I wonder what that’s about,” Bridget utters, playing with the baby monitor in her hand. She’d laid Uilliam or, as I found out at dinner, Liam down for the night. I hadn’t realized they called him by Liam rather than his full name even though she’d introduced him to me as Uilliam.
“I don’t know,” I say, shrugging. If it doesn’t involve me in some way, I don’t want to know. It’s Da’s business, and besides, if I wanted to know I could easily eavesdrop. I’m good at not getting caught. I’ve been doing it for years when I wanted to know something.
“So, Alison, what do you think of Mitch?” Bridget asks, not wasting a moment to get her answers.
“I don’t know. I’ve barely spoken to him,” I mutter, somewhat telling the truth. Right now, I don’t want to tell my sister a thing about my thoughts on Mitch.
Bridget being my big-hearted yet dramatic and talkative mo dheirfiúr mhór goes on and on about how Mitch would be perfect for me. How when we get back to the States she and I could spend more time together.
This is great and all, but I do want to be able to spend some time by myself in order to adjust to being in a new place. However, I don’t have the heart to say this to Bridget. She’ll be upset and I’m not one for hurting other’s feelings.
I stay quiet, allowing my sister to talk about the States and how much fun we’ll have as well as about Mitch and the type of guy she seems to think he is.
Finally having had enough, I sigh. “Not to change the subject but could we get back to simply watching the movie?” I murmur, changing the subject.
“Yes, of course. I’m sure you’re nervous about tomorrow, and I promise you that everything will be okay,” Bridget says with a nod.
Giving her a small smile, I turn my attention back to the TV and attempt to get into the movie. Once it’s finished, Da had yet to come back into the room, I give Bridget my excuse of being tired and head to my room. Inside, I lock the door and go shower before getting into bed. I’m weird like this. I don’t like to climb into bed until I’ve showered and braided my hair, whether it’s dry or not. This way it keeps my hair from becoming a knotty mess.
Soon as I finish with my shower and prepping for bed, I crawl in between my soft sheets and pull the comforter up to my chest. I roll to my side and stare out into the night sky. I’ve never been one for closing curtains at the end of the day, preferring to be able to see out into the world even if it’s pitch dark. It’s soothing to see it, in my opinion, because if you think about it, there’s always someone else that is doing the same thing. Whether it be their looking up from the ground or up near the heavens. The sky is always the same, only rotating the light and dark. Same as our life, light rotates around the darkness which causes it all to even out.
I’m not stupid by any means. I know what my father does and what he’s done in the past. This is the very same world Mitch and Dean are from. Dean being head of the Alliance on the East Coast, I’m sure it’s no different than Da and Mitch being his right-hand man, he’s most definitely ruthless at his job and carries blood on his hands.
No man in this life is clean, it’s only a matter of how they react to those around them that are not meaning to cause them any harm.
Sighing, I roll to my back deciding to face the fact that I won’t be able to get any sort of sleep tonight, if any at all. My mind is reeling with all thoughts of Mitch and what tomorrow brings. Not only do I become his wife tomorrow, but there’s the very good chance I’ll end up having sex and someone will finally learn a secret I’ve held on to for a very long time. One that I’m afraid might cause Mitch to look at me differently. Especially if he were to find out the full truth about the reasons. I’m not a virgin and haven’t been for years.
I didn’t give it away as I’ve always intended to give it to the man I married as virtue has been drilled into our heads.
Unfortunately, that horrifying night my da had been out dealing with business when it happened. The man who caused me pain did it that night when he was supposed to be protecting Bridget and me at our vacation home. Instead, while Bridget slept, he’d taken me into one of the bathrooms and taken what should have been my husband’s. He’d threatened to kill me if I ever spoke a word of what he did.
/> After that night, I never went back to the vacation home and became even more of a recluse than I already had been at the time. I feared he would come after me again if I were visible to him or that he’d find out if I told my da about what happened to me. However, it doesn’t matter now if I said anything or not. The man who hurt me is no longer breathing.
And come tomorrow night, Mitch will possibly find out I’m not the virgin he thinks I am. That is if he makes me have sex with him at that time. I suppose there’s nothing I can do about it. They say the truth always comes out, and this is one thing I can no longer hide.
Not from Mitch.
Chapter Seven
Mitch
The girls had needed time with their dad after dinner, and we’d decided to meet up with Marc in town at the pub. He’d come with us, but he’d preferred not coming to dinner with us. Instead, he’d stayed in town for the time being, checking the layout of the church and reception hall. Unlike last time with Dean and Bridget, this one is going to be a much smaller gathering.
One because this was my request. Two safety is the number one thing right now. And last, I’m not going to have something happen like it did with Dean when he’d been stabbed by Kean. Security in a hotel isn’t the best it can be, and I’ve decided that since we’re to be here a few extra days after the wedding that it would be at an undisclosed location that only a few of us know about. Dean and Bridget were staying at Tomás’ home since there was plenty of room.
I’m taking Alison somewhere else for at least the evening. My cock thickens at the thought of being alone with my soon-to-be wife. She’s a beauty I never thought I’d want, but I guess Michelle is right. It’s time for me to move on.
