Exploding: A Mafia Romance (The O'Keefe Family Collection #1)

by Tuesday Embers

  “Machiavelli’s The Prince is my favorite book. I like my burgers medium rare. I like my pasta handmade. I have a thing for classic cars, but never had the time to rebuild one myself, like Joey does. I like the winter but hate the snow. I think rap music is boring, and I can’t stand it when people talk about opera like they know so much about it. I drink limoncello when I’m happy, and Jack when I’m not.” He kissed her lips again, moaning at the sweet flavor of her. “I’ll tell you anything you want to know, only tell me you’ll consider us. I want us to have that day together. A whole lifetime of days together.”

  Fallyn gasped and pulled back, her wanton expression mutating to a hard frown. “Don’t say things like that.”

  “Like what?”

  “‘A lifetime of days together’? You’re talking permanence when we haven’t even gone on a first date. You’re just saying things you think I want to hear, but you can’t use the lines you’ve run on other girls, because I’m not some idiot you can manipulate with vague talk about a future together we’ll never have.”

  Vince’s eyes widened at her sudden offense. “Do you think I say things like that to women? I’ve been with Maria for years, and I never let us have those conversations. We don’t even say ‘I love you’ to each other! I’ve never been in love. You’re the only woman I’ve had those permanent thoughts about.”

  Fallyn took another step back, her indignation switching to worry. “Well, you can’t have those thoughts. You can’t think about me like that at all.”

  “It’s my heart, and I decide how it breaks.” He thumped his fist to his chest. “I’m ending things with Maria when she gets home tonight. She’s been away visiting her cousin for the last week, which is the only reason I haven’t broken it off sooner.”

  “Don’t,” Fallyn warned him. “Don’t you dare break up with her for me. I can’t give you anything!”

  “You can give me a kiss when we can steal a minute together. And you’re right, you’re not cheap, and you’re not the other woman. Until you’re ready for me, there’ll be no women in my life.”

  “Stop!” Fallyn shouted, panicking.

  “I’ll wait for you to be ready for us.” With that, Vince kissed her once more. The brush of her lips to his was sweeping and grand, shushing the logic out of the conversation. “Killian invited me to play ball with your family tonight. It’s not exactly a date, but I can’t wait to see you there.”

  “What?”

  “He’s trying to smooth things over after the shooting incident, and thought this would be a good way to do it. One of me versus the whole O’Keefe clan. Let them feel safe around me.”

  “Vince, no. It’s a bad idea. James is coming too, and my brothers don’t know I’ve gone on a date with him.”

  Vince smiled lovingly at her. “Oh, honey. I’ll just stand back and wait for your brothers to do away with him. It’s almost too easy. Poor bastard.”

  “You should want me to be happy,” she scolded him.

  “I do, but you won’t be anything like happy with him.”

  “You don’t know him.”

  “I know he’s not me. I know your life, your world.” He kissed her again, stroking her plump lower lip with his thumb when he pulled away. “Tonight’s almost a date,” Vince said, squeezing her hand. “So I’ll take what I can get, even if it means walking into the lion’s den.”

  27

  Hardball with James

  As Fallyn drove to the baseball diamond toward the east end of the park, her hands were shaking. She felt cold inside and out, and blamed it on the fact that she was wearing shorts. When she stepped out of her car, she was greeted by Declan, who took the box of muffins out of her trunk, along with her bat and glove. “Did you know about this whole Vince thing? If you want to go home, you can.”

  “No, no. It’s good that Killian invited him. We have to stop fighting. If our families stop, everyone else will calm down a little. Vince is really trying to turn things around. We should support that. Support him however we can.”

  Declan nodded. “I know, but his man shot you. I understand if you want to leave.”

  Fallyn tugged on her blue baseball cap that matched her white fitted baseball shirt with blue stripes around the short sleeves. “I came here to play. And I barely got scratched by that bullet.” Her heart rose when she saw her father sitting on the bench with his breathing machine, his nurse at his side. “Hi, Daddy!” she called to him, waving. Her heart sank when he looked at her in confusion, and then turned away.

  Declan wrapped his arm around her. “It’s alright, kiddo. It’s not just you today. He didn’t know who Danny was earlier, either. The doctor warned us there’d be good days and bad, with more bad days as things progressed.”

  They divided up into the usual teams, with Killian, Finn and Fallyn pitted against Seamus, Carrigan, Danny and Declan. “You’re going down!” Seamus goaded Finn. “We kill when it’s baseball.”

  When Vince saddled up in gym shorts and a white t-shirt, Fallyn’s eyes widened. She hadn’t seen him in anything but his business attire since she’d been school aged. “Hi, Vince.” She made a point of sounding normal and detached, as if he hadn’t been gripping her parted thighs.

  “Little Keefer,” Vince acknowledged her with a nod.

  Seamus waved his mitt toward Killian. “You take the handicap. Vince doesn’t know how to get things done without a gun. I’d put him far in the outfield if I was you.”

  “Get it all out now,” Vince grinned, happy to be in the levity where no business decisions would have to be made, and hopefully no one would need killing. “You’ll be crying like a baby and begging for mercy when I get through with you.”

  “Yeah?” Seamus shoved Vince a little too hard.

  Vince tilted his head to the side to size up the man he knew he could take down, but shouldn’t. “Yeah. You look like the begging type.”

  It teetered on a dime. There were too many men with too much pride all on one baseball diamond. Fallyn breathed when Carrigan clapped his hands and hooted his approval of the verbal jabs. “Alright, play ball, you clowns.”

  Vince gave Carrigan a light shove to accompany his grateful smile, and Carrigan reciprocated with a nod of understanding. This wasn’t just a baseball game. This was step one of a familial merger.

  Killian claimed Vince for his team, ensuring someone friendly would be there to watch him so no one tried anything. There were a few more insults thrown around that felt awkward at first, but eventually turned them all back into the adolescents that adulthood had attempted to crush out of each of them.

  Killian cast around for James, but decided on starting without the newcomer, who Fallyn was beginning to learn was a man who was habitually late. As she was a person who was raised on five minutes early measuring out to being ten minutes late, this did not sit well with her. Though, as she didn’t want Vince anywhere near James, it worked out well for the event. Vince was on his best behavior, keeping any covert glances toward her to a minimum.

  The ease of the game lifted her spirits, and she noted the difference in her family’s territory compared to Vince’s. Papa D had let drugs into his side, and they were still paying the price. The housing market was poor there now, where two decades ago it had been thriving. The crime was high and the streets were dangerous at night. The D’Amato family was close, but they weren’t allotted luxuries like baseball games in the park. Vince had his work cut out for him, but Fallyn had seen so much improvement in the year he had been in charge, she had no doubt that given more time, he would turn things around for his people.

  When James finally showed up, it was forty-five minutes into the game. It was decided he would play against Killian’s team. “They need the help,” Killian called to James from the bench, giving Seamus the finger when he argued with his eldest brother from the pitcher’s mound. “Everyone, this is James. He works with Danny at the law office.”

  Declan stood up straight, glaring at James. “Hey, I’ve seen you before.
You’re the handsy guy who was sniffing around my sister last month.”

  Killian’s head whipped toward Fallyn. “Last month?! You know this guy?”

  James gave them all a meek smile, but Fallyn could see the deviant rising in Declan, Killian and Seamus. “Enough, guys. James is here to play baseball. Yes, we met last month. We went on a date, and that’s that. Deal with it!”

  “You’ve been on a date with James?” Killian demanded to know what he had missed. He’d been assuming his sister was happy continuing through life celibate. “No.”

  Fallyn’s shoulders hunched forward, narrowing her eyes at James for making this an issue by pushing to meet her brothers. “Look, it was one date, so don’t freak out. I thought we came here to play baseball.”

  Danny looked torn between standing up to one of the junior partners in his firm and keeping his job. “Fally, he’s like, forty!”

  James rolled his eyes. “I’m thirty-two, but thanks for that. We’re just getting to know each other, so I thought it would be good to get to know Fallyn’s family. She talks about you all so much.”

  Seamus smacked the ball into his glove with a menace that made James take a step back. Fallyn was grateful Seamus wouldn’t be pitching to James. Vince was leaning back on the bench, his arms crossed over his chest as he chuckled under his breath at the scene.

  “Something funny, new guy?” Fallyn demanded.

  Vince’s chortle gave birth to a full laugh. “Oh, Little Keefer. So many things are funny right now. I mean, look at this poor bastard. Just walking straight into the lion’s den with a confident smile on his face. I do enjoy a good massacre. Better than Animal Planet.” He raised his hand. “Anyone feel like switching to football instead of baseball?”

  The prospect of breaking one of James’ bones lit each of her brothers’ faces, and they nodded with too much glee at the suggestion. Fallyn stood, arms akimbo. “Knock it off, guys. You should respect James for coming here and trying to get to know the people in my life. Not many would have the guts to do that. And we’re playing baseball, not football. No matter who’s playing the game, baseball is not a contact sport, understood?” She walked over and grabbed the wooden baseball bat from the ground, smacking the middle to her hand with a sneer. “You’re all going to be cool, and nothing bad’s going to happen to James. In fact, he won’t so much as get a hangnail, or you’re all looking at replacing your windshields tomorrow.”

  James gaped at Fallyn, as if seeing her in a new, less attractive light, but Fallyn refused to shrink.

  “Come on, Fally. We’re just feeling him out.” Carrigan recalled Fallyn’s rage when they’d done away with Jeremy. She’d bashed in each of their cars’ windshields in retaliation back then, so they all knew she could make good on her threat. “Put the bat down. We won’t hurt him.”

  Declan snarled, “Speak for yourself. My windshield’s already got a crack in it.” He pointed at James in accusation, who was growing more confused by the second. “I saw him grab her ass!”

  James held up his hands and took a step back. “Whoa! That definitely did not happen.” He turned to Fallyn, whom he was beginning to understand was raised around more violence than he was used to. He’d been taken in by her demure smile and her admirable work ethic. The woman on a mission with a bat in hand on the field was not the one he’d been trying to cozy up to. She was a complete stranger to him. “Maybe this was a bad idea. I should go.”

  “No! You’re in it now. You leave, and they win.” Fallyn was enraged at Declan. “He didn’t grab anything, you drama queen!”

  “He came close enough.” Declan’s chin was raised in defiance while Vince held his hand over his mouth to stem his laughter.

  When Declan took a step toward James, Fallyn turned and stomped toward the parking lot, bat in hand. “Have it your way!” she shouted, not caring that both James and Vince were seeing her act like the hooligan she’d been raised to be in situations where she felt cornered.

  Carrigan reached her first, but Declan was close behind. Carrigan’s arms went around Fallyn while Declan jerked the bat from her hands. “I won’t do anything,” Declan sighed. “I hate him though. Like, actual hate. Physical hate. I saw him in the bakery and knew in a second he was no good.”

  “Wow, that’s an excellent barometer you’ve got there. Do you also read minds, oh wise one?” Fallyn shook Carrigan off and stomped back to the bench, arms crossed over her breasts and a scowl etched on her face.

  28

  Gaping Wounds

  It took an entire inning of lighthearted play before she began to soften to her brothers again, noting that they did not make good on their earlier threats that hinted at James’ demise. Carrigan had just finished rebuilding his classic Mustang with the help of his siblings, and she wagered they didn’t want to see their hard work shattered. James was mute, his mouth in a tight line, but that was the worst of it. As the game went on, moods lightened, and Fallyn began to loosen up again.

  Killian turned to Finn, Vince and Fallyn on the bench. “Are we gonna let some bigshot lawyer walk away with his pride?” The slight ribbing at James lightened the tension and made it about the game, which Fallyn appreciated.

  “Never!” shouted Finn, fist raised. Vince laughed – a thing he didn’t do often. The levity looked good on him, and Fallyn felt sad at the loss of so many smiles he could’ve had throughout the years if things had been different.

  “What?” Vince asked when he noticed her staring at him.

  “Nothing. I just like it when you’re happy. You’ve got a nice smile. Who knew?” Fallyn caught herself too late and hid under her blue baseball cap, hoping her transgression would go unnoticed.

  Finn swaggered up to the plate, readying himself like a professional baseball player. “Throw me a decent pitch this time, Seamus. Might not want to look like the coward you are and punk out by walking the star player.”

  Seamus threw the ball hard and fast, his anger the easiest to provoke. Finn grinned at the challenge and cracked the ball for all it was worth, making it all the way to second base before the ball was retrieved.

  When Fallyn took the bat, Seamus relaxed his stance. “Move it in, guys.”

  Fallyn steamed when her brothers and James stepped closer, anticipating her barely-there hit if it ever came. “You guys are jerks!” she called.

  Seamus grinned and called to his father on the bench. “Dad, can you believe your baseball skills aren’t genetic with this one? You think your precious baby girl’s going to strike out this time, or should I let her get in a bunt to save face in front of the new guy?” He slapped the ball into his mitt a few times to assess the best pitch to throw.

  Patrick shook his head, suddenly angry at his children. “That’s not my daughter!” he yelled, pointing a shaking finger at Fallyn, who went white. “She’s not my daughter!” He stood from the bench, his towering height demanding to be reckoned with. Killian and Nurse O’Malley subdued Patrick, sitting him back down on the bench using dulcet tones and firm hands. They took a time out so Killian and Finn could help Nurse O’Malley get Patrick to the car so he could go home for the night.

  “Sorry, Vince,” Killian murmured when he sat back down on the bench. “Told you he wasn’t quite himself anymore.”

  Vince was horrified. He’d not seen much of Patrick in the last couple years since Killian had taken over for him. He’d known Patrick was getting old and forgetful, but he’d assumed it was the “where’d I leave my keys” kind of forgetful. He had no idea he was to the point where the patriarch he’d always respected couldn’t recognize his own daughter. His gaze shifted toward Fallyn, and he began to see why she was such a private person who kept the deeper cuts and bullet wounds to herself.

  Tears welled in Fallyn’s eyes, and she hated herself for the weakness. Carrigan started jogging toward her, but Fallyn would not be pitied. “It’s fine.” Her tone was laced with the frustration of all the things she wished could be that she knew could not. She wished she could da
te Vince, but it was impossible. She wished she had the same fiery passion with James, but she did not. She wished her father knew her, but he did not. When Finn’s hand rubbed her back, she shrugged away from it. “I said I’m fine! Go back to your base,” she barked, angry at her brothers for making certain they were the only men in her life. When Seamus stood on the pitcher’s mound looking on her with sadness and pity instead of his usual brassy ego, she shouted at him, “Pitch the damn ball already!”

  Seamus threw a light underhanded pitch to her right down the center, cursing loudly when Fallyn’s bat cracked on the ball, sending it flying with all of her fury past James and her brothers. She ran to first base, crashing into Carrigan, who lifted her off her feet in a giant hug she would never admit to needing. “I know you,” he assured her as he held her suspended in the air. “I know who you are. Daddy knows too, it’s just buried.”

  “I know,” she whispered, squeezing her tall brother around the neck. He leaned over so her toes touched on the ground. “It’s fine,” she lied. “I’m fine.” She turned to the others, who were staring at her with pity. “Play ball, guys.”

  Seamus pitched to Vince, and to his credit did not hit him with the ball once throughout the entire game. Everyone had been under strict instructions that Vince was not to be harmed, and they fell in line with varying degrees of unhappiness. Seamus’ team won in the end, and he danced with only mild obnoxiousness, the levity muted by the family drama.

  James shook Killian’s hand. “Thanks for the game, guys. It was good to meet you all. I’ve got an early day tomorrow, so I’m taking off.” James bowed his head to Fallyn and cast her a weak grin, but she was too upset about her father to pay attention.

  A few of her brothers broke out into lighthearted games of catch, but Fallyn remained on the bench with Killian and Vince. “Sorry you had to see that,” Killian said to Vince.