Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
RILEY
It’s been so long since I’ve woken up in Kieran’s arms that the feeling of the cold sheets brushing against my skin as I stretch my limbs is becoming just another part of my mundane routine.
The days are blurring together, to the point where I have no idea whether it’s a Monday or a Friday.
I almost miss the stress of finals because at least I had something to focus on other than whether or not Kieran is going to come home in one piece.
I quickly make the bed and get ready for the day before heading downstairs to make my morning coffee.
However, when I reach the foyer, I notice a thick white envelope, with my name written across it in thick block letters, on the table beside the vase of fresh pink roses that have been cut from the garden.
What the hell is this?
I’m still staring at the envelope like it’s a bomb about to detonate when Ronan appears from the kitchen carrying a tray of food to bring up to Ciara.
I hold up the envelope. “Where did this come from?”
“Kieran had all of his mail forwarded here. Why, what is it?”
I turn the envelope over in my hands. “I have no idea.”
“I better get this food up to Ciara before she gets too hangry,” Ronan grumbles, and I laugh.
“Tell her I’ll come and see her in a bit.”
He grins. “Oh, I will, don’t you worry. I’m pretty sure you’re scheduled to take the next shift.”
“Make sure she’s eaten, then, because I don’t want to deal with a hangry pregnant woman.”
Ronan chuckles under his breath as he disappears upstairs.
I take the envelope with me into the kitchen to make my morning coffee.
While it brews, I drop into a chair and stare at the unopened envelope.
Could this be something from college?
It can’t be. My family home is listed as my address there.
Oh, God. Could this be Sean’s doing? He doesn’t seem like the sort of guy to send me documentation. He’s more of a body part in a box kind of guy.
So, I swallow my nerves and open it up.
Inside is a thick stack of papers, all glossy and crisp, and when I slide them out onto the table, a huge Lever Industries logo stares back at me.
It’s the induction packet for my internship. The one I accepted before I found out I was pregnant. I’d completely forgotten that I emailed over all of my details to Human Resources after I accepted and that I put down Kieran’s penthouse as my current address.
I run my fingers through my hair, swallowing hard.
If I’m being totally honest, I haven’t thought about the internship once since the moment those two lines appeared on the test. I’ve been so caught up in how a baby would affect Kieran that I hadn’t given it much thought to how it would affect me.
I flick through the packet, feeling sick.
This internship represents my old life, the one where I had ambitions and goals. But now that I’m pregnant, with a Sullivan no less, the reality that I have to leave that life behind hits like a punch to the gut.
My hands tremble as I pull out the schedule and read through the orientation details, thinking about how much of a struggle it was going to be balancing the internship alongside senior year.
Adding a baby to the mix makes it completely impossible. There’s no way I would be able to juggle it all, even with Kieran’s help. And if he chooses to walk away?
Well, there’s the decision made.
Every page feels like a cruel reminder that my life has changed forever, and that nothing will ever be normal again.
I’m so lost in my head that when my phone vibrates in the pocket of my sweats, I startle, almost dropping the induction packet on the floor.
With my heart thundering in my chest, I pull my phone out and groan when Oscar’s name is flashing on the screen.
I haven’t spoken to my brother in weeks, not since Kieran and I got ‘married’ in Vegas. I dread to think what he would do if he found out that I not only betrayed our family by marrying a Sullivan, but that I’m now carrying a future heir to the Sullivan empire.
The phone continues to vibrate in my hand, and I fight the urge to ignore it and pretend that that side of my life no longer exists.
But curiosity is a slow burn that I can’t ignore.
What if my Uncle Rion is planning a move against the Sullivans and Oscar is calling to warn me?
Before I can talk myself out of it, I slide my thumb across the screen and hold the phone to my ear. “Hello?”
“Riley… I didn’t think you were going to answer.” There’s a softness to Oscar’s tone that immediately makes me tense.
“Well, I did.”
“I know it’s been a while, but I… I just wanted to see if we could meet, just to talk.”
“Talk?” I bite back the irritation creeping into my voice. “It’s been weeks, Oscar. What could you possibly have to say to me now?”
“I miss you.” There’s a pause before he continues. “We’re family, and that matters.”
Family.
‘You didn’t seem to think that mattered when you were trying to marry me off to Sean O’Keefe.”
“That was Rion’s decision.”
“That you agreed with.”
Oscar exhales on the other end of the phone. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“Welcome to my world.”
I get to my feet and head out of the kitchen. My body is too on edge to sit still, and I don’t want to risk Ronan overhearing my conversation, so I take the stairs two at a time and duck inside my room, closing the door softly behind me.
Oscar is still quiet on the other end of the phone, so I decide to be the one to break the silence.
“Oscar, a lot has changed.”
“I know. I’m not calling to stir trouble. I just… I miss my sister.”
I slowly lower myself onto the bed as a familiar hollow ache builds in my chest.
“Have one drink with me, Riley, and then I’ll leave you alone. I promise.”
I hesitate, staring at the floor.
Would having one drink with my brother really be so bad? Despite the hell he’s put me through recently, it doesn’t erase the fact that he was there for me when I was riddled with grief when our mother and sister died. I was an empty shell, but I got through it because of him.
“Fine. One drink.”
He exhales. “Thank you. I just… I want to see you. That’s all.”
“I’ll text you a time and place.” I hang up the phone and toss it onto the bed.
I feel like I’ve just agreed to walk across a tightrope in a hurricane.
What the hell am I doing, going to meet with my brother who is known to be associated with the very man who is trying to take down Kieran’s family?
The last thing my relationship with Kieran needs is more secrets, but I also know that if he knew I was meeting with Oscar, he would either insist on chaperoning me himself, or he would spend hours briefing a security detail and scouting the perfect venue to make sure I would be safe.
Failing that, he could forbid me to go altogether, and that’s not something I’m willing to risk.
Sighing, I get to my feet and head back downstairs to retrieve my coffee.
My head is so full that I’m tempted to go back to bed because sleep feels like the only solution to my problems.
However, when I walk back into the kitchen, I find one of those problems staring back at me in the form of Kieran.
He’s leaning over the kitchen island, skimming through the induction packet that I stupidly left on the table.
“I-I didn’t know you were home.”
Kieran glances up and offers me a smile. “I just got back. Didn’t you hear my car?”
“Uh, no… I was on the phone to Lucy.”
Kieran nods before returning his attention to the booklet.
I get to work, pouring my coffee, but the sound of the paper rustling has my pulse quickening.
How am I going to explain to Kieran that I’m going to turn down the internship without giving away that I’m pregnant?
His voice comes from behind me. “You must be excited.”
I turn around and lean against the counter, clutching my coffee cup in my hands.
I shrug. “I mean, I was excited before, I guess. But now… I don’t know.”
His brow furrows as he closes the induction booklet. “Riley, what’s going on? You were so ready for this.”
“I’ve been thinking,” I look down at the lukewarm coffee in my cup. “I… I don’t think I can do it alongside school. It’s too much of a commitment.”
“But you were so excited about it.”
“I was, but now I’m not. It’s not a big deal, I’m sure there will be other opportunities.”
Kieran opens his mouth to press me, but I cut in.
“I promised Ciara I would help her with something, so can we talk about this later?”
He studies me for a moment, and I force my expression to remain neutral until he eventually dips his chin.
“Fine, we’ll talk more later.”
I can tell from the look on his face that he has every intention of keeping that promise.
I quickly dart back upstairs and slip into Ciara’s room before Kieran changes his mind and decides that later is now. I find her curled up on her bed, scrolling on her laptop.
“Just in time!” She pats the space beside her as I close the door behind me. “I need your help deciding which onesies to buy for the twins’ coming home outfits.”
I’m about to crumble under the weight of all the lies and secrets I’ve been spinning. I know Ciara would be happy to sit and listen to it all without complaint, but I don’t want to ruin her good mood.
So, I plaster a smile on my face, even though I feel anything but happy, and climb onto the bed beside her. “From the way Ronan was acting, I’m surprised to see you in such a good mood.”
Ciara shrugs. “Low blood sugar.”
“Ah, so that’s the excuse you’re using.”
Ciara grins. “It’s my way of getting him to bring me snacks at all hours of the day and night.”
“You know, at some point you’re going to give birth, and you’re not going to have the excuse of being pregnant anymore.”
“No, but I will always remind him that I grew and birthed his children for the rest of eternity.” She laughs.
“Poor, poor man.” I smile, settling back against the pillows. “So, what have you chosen?”
“Oh, my God, I’ve chosen so many. You really need to help me pick because I just can’t decide.”
I wish choosing what color onesies to buy was the only problem I had to worry about, but for right now, I pretend that is it.
We spend the next hour immersed in the world of tiny socks, hats, and onesies of every design.
Ciara is relentless in her commentary as she scrolls through website after website, muttering about clashing colors and patterns, and I listen as she tries to rationalize buying designs in every color just to be safe.
Ciara adds yet more clothes to her basket.
I smirk. “You do realize they’re going to grow out of these after a week.”
“I know, but I just can’t help myself. Besides, I’ll be passing all of them down to you so they’ll get some more use, so really, I’m saving money.”
The idea makes my heart ache and flutter all at once.
For a little while, I had forgotten about the uncertainty of my future, but the thought sneaks in and takes root.
What if Oscar or my uncle, or even Sean O’Keefe, discovers my secret and tries to use this baby as a way to blackmail Kieran?
Bile burns my throat at the thought.
The stakes are life and death, and one wrong move could send my world crumbling to the ground.