38. Summer
Chapter 38
Summer
M y suitcase makes an obnoxious click, click, click across the cobblestone driveway as I approach the front door. Home. I’m home.
All I could think about was Kieran before I fell asleep in the back seat of the car, only to wake up ten minutes out. No matter how many times I wiped at my mouth, it still feels like drool is crusted to the corner of my mouth—disgusting.
The front door gives way with the personal code Kieran gave me, and I slide in shutting it behind me. Music plays from the living room, and I leave my suitcase right at the entrance to seek it out.
Kieran, all tall and lean muscles, sways to the instrumental music with Aoife hoisted up in his arms. His back is toward me, and I admire him before I notice all the dolls spread across the coffee table and on the floor. It takes a few beats of turning and swaying before Kieran faces my direction, but he’s so focused on Aoife he doesn’t realize I’m standing here.
He looks pained as he grips Aoife tightly. I’m half wondering if she got hurt, and he’s trying to comfort her. The muscles in his biceps twitch as he hugs her, using his solid arms to shield her from all that is life.
I can’t help but smile.
A few doors close somewhere in the house, while quickened footsteps dart up and down the creaky upstairs hallway. I wonder where Allie is.
I turn back to watch Kieran and finally clear my throat, not wanting to catch him so off guard. He looks up, eyes crinkling with a hint of a smile when he sees me. That piercing gaze sweeps over me, and I clutch my sweater closer, trying to block out the toe-curling chill his attention brings.
“Summer!” Aoife’s sweet voice interrupts, and she bucks out of Kieran’s arms to scurry over to me. When she wraps me in a hug, I sigh out a breath full of contentment. Home. I’m home. I missed them both so much.
Kieran strides over, hands stuffed into the pockets of his suit pants, and I can’t help the gnawing in my belly as he approaches.
“Aoife, why don’t ye go up and help Allie pack,” Kieran says, voice low and hesitant.
She nods. “Okay!” Then she takes off behind me.
I laugh, turning back to Kieran, whose hand is outstretched for me. I furrow my brow but take his hand.
Pack? Pack for what?
He yanks me into him, slipping his warm hand around my waist, the other lifting my hand in his. “Dance with me,” he says.
The gentle pressure of his fingertips ground me as we move together. It’s slow and effortless, like we’ve done this before. My heart flutters—and when his eyes hold mine, full of something so severe and passionate, I have to avert my gaze.
His suit pants press into my not-so-elegant leggings, but here in the comfort of the living room, it doesn’t matter I’m not wearing a fancy outfit.
I rest my head against his chest, relishing the steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath my cheek. The thrum matches the sway of our bodies, slow and sure. His arms engulf me tenderly, so securely, like he can’t imagine ever letting me go.
“How was yer visit with yer sister?” he rasps, his breath caressing my face as he tucks his chin over my head.
“So nice. The boys are spitting images of Nik. Have his attitude, too.”
Kieran’s chest rumbles with low laughter that seeps into my bones and sends a shiver scuttling down my spine.
“We talked about how it might be nice to get everyone together. Aoife would have fun with them since they are around her age.”
With each step, we make tight circles around the open space in the living room, and it’s like I’m falling deeper into him. He tugs me closer, and the way he smiles down at me when I look up at him?—
“They’re six and three, right?” he asks, and I nod. “I think she’d like that.”
It feels so normal, this conversation and the promise of a future. This dance, his arms—all of it worth coming home to, and I know without a doubt I’m exactly where I’m meant to be.
But as those thoughts lull me into him, he pauses, stepping away from me and redirecting his gaze at the front windows.
“Listen, Summer … I-I need to handle some business that may or may not backfire. I’ve asked Allie to take ye and Aoife to me cottage in north Maine. Just for a wee bit while I get this shite sorted out.”
The breath leaves me, and I shake my head. “What’s going on? What could backfire?”
He sighs. “Riku has taken upon himself to show up at me office demanding who I put in fights, how I handle the fights. He’s not making any show of force, yet, but I don’t like this feelin’, Summer.” He looks at me, his expression defeated, shameful, before he continues. “Sometimes, it’s the smaller jabs that win the fight and I don’t want to lose. I need to take a stand. Like ye so wisely said a several weeks ago.”
Kieran traces my hairline from my forehead down to where he tucks my hair behind my ears. Emotion, usually so carefully concealed, shows on his face. He’s worried. And I hate that he’s feeling like the Mob is in jeopardy.
“I know we’ve just begun, but ye’re my world, Summer. I knew it from that first voicemail ye left on me phone, which is still on me phone, by the way. I listen to it whenever I need a good kick in the arse.”
A laugh spills out of me as I fight back the panic sprouting in my chest. “I can stay, Kieran. Let me help.”
He shakes his head, leaning down to kiss my nose. “I could never forgive meself if somethin’ happened to ya. The cottage is secure, and I’ll send two guards with ye.”
I back away, pulling out of his warm embrace. No, no. “I’m not leaving.”
His brow furrows, and my attention draws to the sharp tic feathering his jawline.
“I can’t protect ye. Riku has more men than we do; enough to exterminate us.”
I scoff. “Then I’m definitely not leaving.”
He grabs hold of my shoulders, gently shaking me. “Don’t ye hear me? I can’t protect ya! I need to protect ya … Please, let me send ye with Aoife.”
“I’m not running.” I push his hands down from my shoulders and step into him, challenging him. “You’re not alone, Kieran.”
Frustration explodes in his expression, but there’s a tremor in his next words. “This is dangerous, Summer. Oh, don’t look at me like that. It’s not about ye being a burden or causing problems, this is merely about keeping ye safe.”
I shake my head. “I’m in this with you, remember?” I raise my left hand, showing him the ring he placed there. “I’m in it all the way, Kieran.”
He steps forward, teeth clenched. “Damnit! Ye’re the most stubborn wee thing I’ve ever met.”
I smirk. “You love me for it.”
And just like that, the rage on his face softens like I’ve given him a good slap. “Ye’re going to be the death of me.”
“But at least you won’t die alone.”
* * *
Aoife cries down the steps while dragging her kid-sized mermaid backpack behind her an hour and a half later. The wine Kieran poured me a few minutes ago in the kitchen sours in my stomach as I listen to her.
“But Summer is supposed to go!” She sobs.
Allie stands in the front door while the two guards driving them to Maine load the trunk of the car. Dusk bleeds into the hazy sky. Shades of lavender streaked with deep gold settle over the horizon, behind the homes across the street. The faint rustle of leaves ceases to stir as though the balmy breeze holds its breath in anticipation of the night to come.
Kieran kneels before her, lifting a hand to her wet cheek. “Summer and I will come as soon as we finish a few things here first, okay?”
She sniffs and then tosses her arms around his neck, burying her scrunched face in his shoulder. When she pulls away, Kieran stands to speak with Allie, and I take Aoife’s hand to lead her out to the car.
“Why can’t you come, Summer?” Aoife looks up at me, squeezing my hand ever so slightly in emphasis with her quivering chin.
“I’m going to help your dad, okay. Then we’ll come out to the cottage, and you can show me all around. Does that sound like fun?” My stomach turns with guilt. I hate having upset her.
Aoife offers me a solemn “Okay,” before we make it to the car. I load her up in her seat making sure her bag of travel goodies is close to her, and tuck Mr. Cuddles under her arm while running my hand through her soft hair.
“Have fun with Allie, sweet girl. We’ll see you soon. I love you.” I bop her on the nose as Allie slides into the backseat with her. Allie smiles at me with a single nod, and I back away allowing space for Kieran to poke his head in one last time.
Those two words, little love, slice through my composure as he tells her he’ll see her soon, and I wipe at the sluggish tear crawling down my cheek. How must it feel to know your own flesh and blood is safer away from you at the moment? I can’t help but think it’s an entirely different level of parenting—to know when you’re not the best option but provide the best for them even if it kills you.
Eyeing the two guards in the front seats, I step back, sliding my phone down from my sweater sleeve and type out a quick message to send.
A simmering coil, something hot and twisted rages in my gut. Watching Kieran send his daughter away, seeing him genuinely concerned about standing up to Riku—no, he definitely isn’t doing this alone.
We stand there, in the driveway, long after the car disappears down the street. Both of us stare after it in silence. I glance at my phone, at the time—8:30 p.m. I’ve gathered over time most of the fights start late in the evenings, especially since Kieran rarely shows back up to the house until after midnight. Sometimes after two in the morning.
“I’m going to unpack. Then I’ll get ready,” I say, uncrossing my arms and allowing the summer night to soothe the sweaty nerves under my cardigan.
Kieran doesn’t seem to hear me as he keeps his expression neutral and focused on the road.
The front door is still wide open, and I slip back through, grabbing for my suitcase and hauling it upstairs. It’s so quiet. The music Aoife was playing in the living room earlier has been turned off. Her bedroom door is open, but her room is picked up, bed made. There isn’t the sound of her giggles or pattering of feet running down the hall. The bustle of Allie flocking from one room or another cleaning or tackling laundry that normally produces a steady hum of productivity in the house is nonexistent.
Sighing, I drag my luggage to my room and open the door. The lights are off, and the window curtains are drawn closed. Allie must’ve been in here. I prefer the windows open for natural light and watching for Kieran to come home.
With a not so lady-like grunt, the suitcase flops on the bed and I open it, seeing the plastic bag of cookies Luna made me to take home.
Goodness, my visit was good.
It’d been so long since I’d seen her, and the last time I did, she was coming to my rescue. Through a few cryptic postcards and the monthly check-ins, I apologized often, but there’s something about finally seeing her in person. I broke down in tears when I pulled into her and Nik’s driveway. They flowed harder when my older sister tucked me into her arms and cried with me.
My soul feels lighter. Free.
Of course, I told her all about Kieran and Aoife. Well, as much as I could. Including the story of how I fell for my student’s father only to be part of the very life I’d escaped.
“Feels like fate,” she’d said. That of all places I’d run away to, it’d be Boston. That of all private schools and all the teachers in the city, I’d have the opportunity to teach his daughter. That we’d hit it off, even though we annoyed each other. That after learning the truth about who I was, he still helped me. Or after learning his true identity, I still felt I could trust him. And finally, after all that—that he was the one who stepped in to help save my sister all those years ago.
It’s like he righted my wrong. All before knowing me.
It does feel like fate.
I set the cookies aside on the bed, pulling out my folded clothes. When I move to the dresser to open the drawer. It’s empty.
I frown. What?
The second drawer squeaks as I open the next one.
Then the next.
All empty.
What’s going on?
Closing each drawer from the bottom up, I toss the clothes back in my suitcase and wander out of my room. I’m on my way to the steps, looking down and unaware, when Kieran’s voice startles me.
“In here.”
I jump, throwing a hand over my chest. Oh jeez.
He’s leaning against the doorframe of his room, ankles crossed with amusement dancing on his face. With the stairs just off to my left, I glance down. He sure got up here fast.
“What?”
“Yer stuff. I had Allie move it in here.” He pushes off the doorway, unblocking the way in, and I move toward him and into his room.
Sure enough, after a quick walk-through, my clothes are hanging in his closet, all my bathroom items are with his, and my books and new phone charger are tucked on one of his nightstands. The gesture sends a thrill skirting through my body.
I turn around to smirk at him, but he’s not smiling. In fact, he looks pissed. Internally wincing, I wonder if he’s having second thoughts about this. I mean, it hasn’t been that long. But then I remember his words downstairs, and even now, with the scowl on his handsome face, his features gradually soften, the harshness easing into tenderness.
“I want ye with me.”
I look up at him, smiling. “Okay.”
Something akin to relief relaxes his expression.
“I’m going to get cleaned up and changed. What time do we leave?”
The peaceful look on his face screws up into confusion. “What? I’d feel better if ye’d stay here.”
I step up to him, placing a hand over his chest. “Not a chance,” I whisper. I’ve come this far with him. I’m not turning away now.
The tension leaks back into the tightness of his jaw, and his nostrils flare before he slams his mouth on mine, bundling me in his arms. His kiss is fierce and needy, and he angles my chin almost instantly to deepen the kiss. The palm of his hand is firm as he cradles the back of my head, pulling it down to cup my face, then farther to squeeze my throat gently. I let myself gasp into his mouth as he sweeps his tongue into my mouth, and I moan as he nips and sucks my lower lip.
Being in Kieran’s arms feels like sipping on hot apple cider in the stormy weather of fall. It’s hot at first, nearly scalding on the tongue, but as it spreads, warmth seeps deeper, hugging the very marrow in my bones.
My eyelids flutter closed as he presses long languid kiss down my neck, swirling his tongue in different directions to keep me guessing. When he pulls away for a breath, I whimper in protest.
“I thought ye didn’t want this life?” he asks, diving back to lick a long line up the aching column of my exposed neck. Zings and zaps pulse loud in my core, and I can barely pant out an answer.
“I want you. And everything that comes with it. I’m coming with you.”
Kieran lets out a growl and rips away, grabbing me by the wrist and dragging me out of the room and downstairs. Panic throbs through me, wrestling with my desire. Is he going to lock me in a basement to keep me from coming with him?
We hit the bottom of the steps, and he glides down the hall.
“Where are we?—”
“Me office. Now.”
Another thrill hums through my blood at his strained tone, and I struggle to contain my excitement when he pushes me into the office, and the lock clicks behind him.
He captures my mouth again, hands roaming beneath my T-shirt and snapping the band of my leggings against my skin.
I shuck off my cardigan, looking around the room at the office. Here? Does he want to do this here?
“Don’t we have to leave?”
Though I say those words, my tongue slides over his upper lip and he shudders, but when my hands reach for his belt buckle, he snatches my wrist, tsking me.
“In the chair.” His demand liquefies my insides, and I nearly wobble there instead of the sultry walk I try to achieve. Jeez, I’m a goner for this man.
Once behind the desk, I sit in the chair, spinning around a few times while he stares at me. The predatory gleam in his expression is feral.
“We’re a bit far apart, don’t you think?” I ask, confused.
His unrelenting scrutiny drips down my body, slowly, ever so slowly; taking the time to undress me with his gaze until I’m practically writhing from his look alone.
“That night. When I caught ye in me office …”
I swallow. “Yeah?” Heat blooms in my cheeks as he stalks forward, both hands fanning out over the mahogany-colored desk, unconcerned with the papers he’s shoved out of the way.
My breath falters while my pulse intensifies on his next command.
“Show me. Show me what ye’d’ve done had I not walked in.”