Kiss Shot (Dublin Mafia: Triskelion Team, Book 2)

by Zara Keane

  “Thank you.” She swallowed past the pain in her throat. “For everything.”

  “Friends help each other out,” he said quietly. “You did me a favor this morning.”

  “Me driving you and your dog to the vet pales in comparison to you helping me rescue Kevin. Will it cause hassle between you and Reuben?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe. I can’t say I’m bothered if he avoids me at future family gatherings. It’s not like we’re close.”

  She hesitated for a moment and shifted her weight from one leg to the other. “I’d better check on Kevin.”

  Shane inclined his head in acknowledgment. “Let me know about the money, yeah?”

  “Will do.” She waved and was about to follow Kevin into the house when Shane called out to her.

  “Hey, Ruthie?”

  She pivoted on the balls of her feet. “Yeah?”

  “Before I forget, I spoke to Dan. He’s okay with you using the gym early in the morning as long as I’m there to let you in.”

  She beamed at him. This was the first good news she’d had all day. “That’s fantastic. What time is early?”

  “Four in the morning.” He grimaced. “I’m sorry it’s so extreme, but Lar and Dan usually get in a session between five and six. I figured you’d want privacy in the changing room.”

  Privacy from all but him. A shiver of anticipation coiled its way down her spine. “When suits you to meet?”

  “Does tomorrow work for you? Call me when you get to the front door and I’ll come down to let you in.” His sexy half smile tempted her to kiss him, but she hung back.

  “Sounds like a plan.” She forced a smile. “I’ll be in touch later.”

  12

  When Ruthie entered the house, her brother was in the kitchen, fidgeting and tugging at the bands around his thin wrists. She glanced through the window, but there was no sign of their father or the dogs.

  “Dad left a note,” Kevin muttered, holding up a crumpled piece of paper. “He’s taken the dogs out for a walk.”

  “Did he mention me borrowing the car without asking?” she asked and dropped onto the seat opposite her brother.

  “Nah.” Kevin resumed his restless fidgeting. “I gotta go out. I’m way late to my friend’s house.”

  Friend, my arse. Drug dealer was more like it. If her brother had wanted the world to know he was jonesing for a fix, his behavior was as effective as a flashing neon sign. “We have to talk about what happened, Kev. This crap can’t continue.”

  “I don’t want to talk about it.” He rocked back and forth in a jerky manner without appearing to be aware of his movements. “Don’t you need to get Dad’s car from wherever you dumped it?”

  The Land Rover was still parked outside St. Patrick’s Church, probably one of the few locations in Kilpatrick where it was unlikely to be robbed. “I’ll deal with the car later. Where did Kowalski pick you up? You can’t have gotten far after you left the house.”

  Her brother’s jerky movements ceased for a moment, then renewed with vigor. “At the end of our street. Two of his guys grabbed me and shoved me into a car.”

  “In broad daylight? That’s bold, even for Reuben.”

  Kevin shrugged. “The Kowalskis do what they like. They know no one around here will rat them out to the Guards.”

  Of course not. Her lip curled. Curtains might twitch, but their owners would look the other way once their curiosity had been assuaged. “You need to tell me how much money you owe. The real figure this time.”

  “I don’t know.” Her brother stared at his knuckles. “A lot, I guess.”

  You don’t say. “Can you be more specific? Like, is there another notorious Dublin thug waiting in the wings to cause trouble?”

  His eyes met hers, radiating defensiveness. “I don’t know, okay? I owe a few guys money, but the Kowalskis are the real problem.”

  “I can’t come up with any more cash. I’m bled dry until the end of the month. Paying off the first installment drained my savings account.”

  Her brother rocked back and forth. “I’m going out later. Maybe I’ll get lucky tonight.”

  “If any other man uttered those words, I’d assume he meant sex,” Ruthie said dryly. “But if it’s gambling you’re referring to, don’t do it. Apart from the risk of running up more debts, Kowalski wants two thousand by six o’clock this evening.”

  Her brother shifted his attention to his scuffed boots. “Delaney said he’d loan you the money.”

  Ruthie’s chest swelled with the searing anger that had been building since she’d entered the kitchen. “You seriously want me to borrow from Shane? Where’s your pride? Shane Delaney isn’t even your friend.” Anymore. The word echoed through the kitchen, unspoken yet understood. And they both knew Kevin was at fault for the end of that friendship.

  “What’s the alternative?” her brother demanded. “We can’t ask Dad.”

  “For the two grand, maybe we can, but we’d need to spin him a line.”

  Kevin reared back and gaped at her in horror. “No way. He’d guess something was up, and then he’d start digging.”

  “Do you want me to owe money to Shane Delaney? I know we said we’d keep Dad out of this, but if your debts extend beyond the Kowalskis, I don’t see how that’s possible. I won’t be in Dublin forever. And even if I were, I can’t keep bailing you out.”

  “You don’t get it, Ruthie. Telling Dad will kill him.”

  “Only if he tries to take on Adam and Reuben. Maybe there’s a way we can reason with him. Even if we don’t say who you owe money to, or how much, Dad needs to know your gambling is out of control.”

  Kevin leaped up and grabbed her hands, squeezing them tighter than was comfortable. “Please, sis. Whatever we do, our father can’t be involved. I feel bad enough that I dragged you into this. I don’t want to be responsible for Dad dying.”

  Tears stung her eyes and she blinked them back. This was the first time he’d shown true gratitude for her help over his debts. The old Kev—the sober version who took his prescribed medication on schedule—was the sweetest brother any girl could have. The drugged-up incarnation was selfish and self-absorbed, too concerned with getting his next fix to care about the shit he’d dragged his sister into.

  “Our father has to know about the gambling,” she said. “And it would be better coming from you.”

  “Seriously?” Her brother stared at her, maintaining eye contact for the first time since she’d joined him in the kitchen. “Do you want Dad to have another heart attack?”

  Her stomach plummeted and an icy dread dripped through her veins. “What are you talking about? What heart attack?”

  “The one he had last summer.” The words tripped off Kevin’s tongue in such a matter-of-fact tone that she wanted to take him by the shoulders and shake him.

  “Dad had a fucking heart attack, and no one thought to tell me?” She felt as though the air had been sucked from her lungs, making every word an effort. How could they keep this from her?

  A flicker of guilt passed over her brother’s face. “He didn’t want to worry you.”

  She could picture the scenario with vivid clarity. Her father, stubborn as ten mules, adamant that his little girl wasn’t to be told. The last thing he’d have wanted was Ruthie coming back to Dublin to look after him and getting sucked into the very life he’d always wanted her to avoid. She put her head in her hands and groaned. “For heaven’s sake. This family has too many secrets. Okay, out with it. What happened to Dad?”

  “He collapsed in the garden last summer. I called an ambulance, and the doctors at the hospital said he’d had a mild heart attack.”

  Ruthie blinked back tears. “You should have called me.”

  “I never call you.”

  “Except when you want me to pay your debts,” she snapped. She was done pandering to Kev’s feelings, fed up with walking on eggshells in case she’d trigger an outburst or a bout of depression. Being mentally ill wasn’t an excuse to
treat others like shit.

  Her brother ran a trembling hand through his short curls. “Look, maybe I should have let you know—”

  “Maybe?” She was shouting now, but beyond caring. “Of course you should have told me. He’s my father as well as yours. I had a right to know he was in the hospital.”

  “It was Dad’s decision to make. He didn’t want people knowing he was ill.”

  In their father’s line of work, showing any sign of weakness was an invitation for his business rivals to encroach on his territory. She understood that, but she didn’t accept it as an excuse for them keeping the heart attack a secret from her. “I’m not ‘people’. I’m Dad’s daughter. I had a right to know.”

  Kevin sighed. “Dad didn’t want to worry you.”

  “I’m an adult. Worry goes with the territory. Had I known, I’d have caught the first flight home.”

  “That’s precisely what Dad didn’t want you to do. He’s glad you got out of Dublin and made a life for yourself. He’s proud of you.” Kevin’s lips twisted into a bitter smile. “He’d change his tune if he knew what you do for a living.”

  She was on her feet in an instant, snarling. “Fuck you. You have no idea what it is I’ve done to get the money to pay off your debt.”

  Her brother snorted. “Whatever it is, I’m betting Dad wouldn’t approve. Where did you get the money to pay the first installment, anyway? I doubt it was by legal means.”

  Breathing heavily, she glared at him. “You ungrateful little shit. You can assume what you like, but know this—I’m not doing this for you. If you weren’t my brother, I’d let you rot, but I don’t want Dad to get himself killed going after the Kowalskis.”

  The mocking expression vanished from Kevin’s face, replaced with a look of contrition. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t know what came over me. I need—”

  “Don’t you dare use your addiction or other issues as an excuse to speak to me like that. You were willing enough to ask no questions when the Kowalskis were threatening to break every bone in your body.”

  Despite her best efforts to block her guilt, her brother’s words had struck a chord. Nothing in Kevin’s not-very-fertile imagination could come close to the truth of what she’d done to get the money, nor what she was about to do. Ruthie had sold out. She was willing to betray people she’d known all her life in return for cold, hard cash. An image of Shane’s face flashed before her eyes. He was a decent guy. He didn’t deserve to be used like this. And then she thought of her father—big and burly and gruff, but with a heart of gold. She had to push through for his sake.

  Ruthie dropped back into her chair and glowered at her brother. “What’s the situation with Dad? Is he still having treatment?”

  Kevin stared out the kitchen window, unblinking. “He sees a specialist every couple of months and he’s on medication.”

  The lump in her throat grew larger. The thought of losing her father was unbearable. “One of you should have told me,” she insisted. “I had a right to know.”

  “Not if Dad didn’t want you to. Look, you know what he’s like. He wants to protect us. With you so far away, he probably figured there was no point in upsetting you.”

  “I should have been told,” she repeated. “He’s my father, too.”

  “If it had been my choice to make, I’d have told you. Dad asked me not to, and I respected his decision.”

  She eyed him with skepticism. Kevin thought only of Kevin. Having her home cramped his style. When he’d contacted her about his debt, he’d had no inkling she’d show up in Dublin a couple of months later. Ruthie took a deep breath and forced all uncharitable thoughts about her brother out of her mind. Kevin was family. She didn’t need to like the man to love him.

  As if reading her thoughts, her brother got to his feet and put his arm around her shoulders, awkwardly at first, then with a firmer grip. “I’m sorry for what I said. I am grateful for your help, sis. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  Ruthie turned into his embrace and hugged her brother for the first time in a decade. It was like hugging a stranger, or the ghost of someone she’d once known. “What happened to us?” she whispered. “We used to be a close family.”

  “We know what happened,” Kevin said in a voice roughed by emotion. “Mum died, and we all fell apart.”

  “If she were alive, she’d kick our arses for screwing up so badly.”

  “If she were alive, everything would be different,” he said with touching simplicity.

  “Do you really believe that?” She searched his face for clues as to his state of mind but drew a blank. “I don’t know that I do.”

  Her brother patted her on the back and took a step back, the restless energy back in force. He ran a hand over the back of his neck. “I need to head out. Thank you for helping me today.”

  Heading out to buy drugs… But bar locking him in the house, what could she do to stop him? She forced a smile, determined to maintain their tentative truce. “It’s Shane you should be thanking. I don’t think Reuben would have listened to me if he hadn’t been there.”

  “You should stay away from Delaney,” Kevin murmured. “He’s going to have a major bust-up with Rueben Kowalski soon.”

  “How do you know that?”

  Her brother averted his gaze. “I just do.”

  The wheels rotated in her mind. “Over Kaylee?”

  Kevin’s spun on his heels. “How did you know?”

  “Shane’s main link to Reuben Kowalski is his sister. Why the falling out? What’s Reuben done to her?”

  “He doesn’t treat her right.” Her brother’s expression hardened. “She deserves better than that son of a bitch.”

  “That Reuben is a crap husband doesn’t surprise me, but I’m more concerned with our problems than the state of his marriage.”

  Kevin shuffled to the kitchen door. “Just think about what I said. I don’t want you having anything more to do with the Kowalskis than necessary.”

  After her brother had left, Ruthie sat at the kitchen table and poured herself a whiskey. The alcohol did little to calm her nerves, but she relished the burning sensation as it snaked down her throat. She blew out a breath. Every bone in her body ached with weariness. She’d thought—no, she’d hoped—that the debt was the only issue she needed to sort out. Now that she was back under the same roof as her brother, the strain their father was living with was palpable. No wonder he had heart problems. Whatever happened, he couldn’t know how serious the situation with Kevin had grown. She hadn’t come so far, hadn’t made a deal with the devil, just to drag her father down with her.

  Ruthie squared her shoulders and blew out an invisible smoke ring, the one aspect she missed from her short-lived days as a smoker. She was on her own, but she’d make good. One way or the other, she always did. At least she could take her frustration out on the bags tomorrow morning.

  Shane’s face swam before her eyes, and guilt burned through her. She reached for her phone and wrote him a text accepting his offer of a loan. Her finger hovered over the display. He trusted her, and she was about to betray him and all the people he held dear in return for cold, hard cash. She hit Send.

  13

  At a quarter to four the next morning, Shane let himself and Flash into Dan’s gym. Barking with a ferocity surprising for one so small, Flash scampered across the floor and headed straight for the back of the gym. The puppy’s bushy tail and wild fur appeared fluffier after yesterday’s bath at the vet’s. Shane stifled a laugh. The dog bounded along on his stumpy legs, resembling a hairy footrest.

  “Hey, wait up,” he called, his pace hampered by the dog’s travel cage.

  The puppy ignored him.

  Yeah…he had to sign them up for a local obedience class. If Flash was to be a permanent fixture in his life, the dog needed to learn discipline—or, at the very least, stop chewing up Shane’s apartment.

  Flash skidded to a halt in front of the changing room. He bar
ked twice, unsure of himself, and sat, panting, waiting for Shane to catch up.

  “What are you barking at?” Shane bent down to pet the dog and Flash responded with a plaintive whine. “Or should I ask, whom?”

  Dan and Lar were lounging by the changing room lockers—Lar sported a grin, and Dan wore his early morning grumpy look. Gen, Lar’s girlfriend, sat on a bench lacing up her shoes. She shot Shane a look of bemusement. “So this is the infamous rescue puppy.”

  “Yeah.” Shane swung the travel cage onto the bench beside Gen, followed by his sports bag. “What are you all doing here so early? I thought you’d arranged to meet at five.”

  “We had,” Lar said cheerfully, “but we didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see your new girlfriend in action. I hear she’s talented.”

  Girlfriend…he made a lousy prospective boyfriend. Ruthie deserved a guy without a fucked-up family and with a steady job. Shane unzipped his sports bag and removed his boxing gear before responding. “Ruthie is not my girlfriend,” he said finally. “She’s an old pal.”

  “Bollocks,” Dan said. “You hate early mornings. No way would you get your arse out of bed for an ‘old pal.’”

  “The dog needed to go out,” Shane offered lamely, “and I figured I might as well stay up and get in a session.”

  Lar’s gaze dropped to the puppy. His grin grew wider. “Is it my imagination, or is he bushier than yesterday? Are you seriously keeping that hairball?”

  “‘That hairball’ has a name,” Shane said with dignity. “And yes, I’m keeping him.”

  Gen kneeled down to let the puppy sniff her hand. “He’s kind of cute, in a weird sort of way. What did you decide to call him?”

  “Flash. As in flash drive.” The dog responded to his new name instantly and bounded up to Shane as fast as his stumpy legs could carry him, then rolled onto his back, revealing his privates to the world.

  Lar gave a hoot of laughter. “More like Flash as in flasher.”

  Flash responded with a woof, rolled over again, and gave everyone an excellent view of his arse.