Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
KIERAN
It’s just after nine A.M.
I’m sitting at my desk, sifting through reports, when the screen of my phone lights up with a number I don’t recognize. But the Irish country code gives me an idea of who it could be.
I answer without saying a word, putting the phone on speaker and setting it down on my desk.
“Kieran Sullivan.” The voice on the other end is sharp and composed, and I’d recognize it anywhere.
“Sean O’Keefe.”
“You and yer brother must think yourselves clever. Dragging some poor girl into this charade. I’ve seen desperate power plays before, but this? This is low, even for yer family.”
“And yet, here you are. Calling me. Sounds like you’re feeling the pressure.”
He lets out a humorless laugh. “No, Kieran. I’m making it clear that if this facade continues, there will be consequences.”
“Is that so?”
His voice drops. “Riley doesn’t belong to you. You think putting a ring on her finger makes her yers?”
My hand tightens on the phone. “You don’t get to say her name.”
“She’s mine, Sullivan. And you should know I don’t like to share.”
A cold chill runs down my spine at his tone. “Listen here. If you or your men come near her again, they won’t be driving away. There won’t be a next time, you understand me?”
“End it, Kieran. Walk away. That’s the only chance ye have left.”
“Go to hell.” I hang up.
I stare at the screen for a beat, the silence of the room suddenly heavy. Then I dial Ronan, who picks up on the first ring.
“Yeah?”
“O’Keefe called me.”
“He called you directly?”
“Yeah. He says he knows the marriage is bullshit and told me to end it or he would come for us.”
Ronan exhales sharply. “Shit. I really thought he would buy it.”
I lean back in my chair and rub my jaw. “He’s not just testing the waters anymore. We need to assume he’s coming.”
“Agreed. But until we figure out our next move, don’t let Riley out of your sight.”
I bristle. “You think I need reminding?”
“I think we can’t afford to fuck this up.”
I bite down the retort on my tongue.
Now is not the time to argue with Ronan, not when Sean is out to get Riley.
“We need to regroup. I’ll head over to the house now to pick Riley up, and we can talk then.”
When I arrive at the Sullivan estate an hour later, I’m greeted at the front door by Elena, who gives me a tight smile before stepping aside to let me in.
“Riley is in the living room.” She closes the door behind me.
Just then, I catch the sound of Riley’s laughter filtering through to the foyer, and my shoulders tense.
It’s been too long since I heard that sound, and after the conversation I’m about to have with her, I have a feeling I’m not going to hear it again for a while.
I follow the sound of laughter into the living room and find Riley curled up on the couch beside Ciara, a bowl of popcorn between them and some sappy romance movie playing in the background.
Ciara looks up as I enter and grins. “Well, well. Look who decided to gatecrash.”
Riley looks up at me over the back of the couch and offers me a small smile.
It’s more than she’s given me in days, and I almost drop to my knees at the sight of it.
Even after learning about her sister, I haven’t had the guts to bring it up because I don’t want to ruin the good mood she seems to be in after hanging out with Ciara for the past few days.
“Hey,” she says quietly.
“Hey.”
For a moment, we stare at each other, the silence hanging between us like a heavy fog.
Ciara watches me closely, but for once, she doesn’t offer any sly remarks, which I appreciate.
“I didn’t think you were coming to get me until later?” Riley eventually asks.
“I need to talk to Ronan.”
“Uh-oh, what’s Brennan done now?” Ciara teases, and I huff a laugh.
“For once, he hasn’t done anything.”
“Give him time.” She laughs as she pushes herself upright and slowly tries to climb to her feet.
I quickly cross over to her and put an arm around her waist to help her to her feet. “I thought you were meant to be on bed rest.”
“I am. But these babies think my bladder is a trampoline.”
A low chuckle sounds nearby, and I look up to see Ronan leaning against the doorframe, watching Ciara as if she hung the moon.
“Do you need help?” Ronan asks.
She scoffs. “Contrary to popular belief, I am still capable of going to the bathroom on my own.”
As she passes him, Ronan bends down and presses a kiss to her cheek.
The sight of the two of them together has my chest tightening.
I glance at Riley, who’s tucking her hair behind her ear and avoiding my gaze.
“I’ll give you two some space,” she mumbles as she goes to get to her feet, but I hold out a hand to stop her.
“You can stay.”
She hesitates for a second, surprise flickering in her eyes, but she settles herself back into the couch, and I perch on the arm.
Ronan takes a seat in one of the armchairs. “So, O’Keefe is looking like he’s going to make a move.”
Riley tenses, and I silently curse Ronan for jumping straight in without any warning.
“Sean called me,” I explain to Riley.
Her eyes go wide, and the color in her cheeks fades as she looks at me, but I offer her an easy smile.
“He was just waving his dick around, don’t worry.”
“What are you going to do?” She glances anxiously over at Ronan.
“Nothing as of right now.” Then his eyes turn to me. “We don’t want to make any rash moves. But I suggest you don’t let Riley out of your sight. Sean will be waiting for an opening, and you can’t afford to give him one.”
He is talking as if I need reminding of the fact that there’s a huge red target on Riley’s back.
I turn to Riley. “I think it’s best that you stay locked down at the penthouse. Just until the threat is contained.”
“But you said—”
“I know what I said, but right now, I don’t even want to risk having you in a car that could easily get intercepted. It’s safer for you to stay put.”
Ronan nods. “Kieran’s right. I understand it’s frustrating, but we need to put your safety first.”
Riley chews on her lower lip as she fiddles with the hem of her shirt, looking like she’s seconds away from bursting into tears.
I hate that I’m going back on our deal, but knowing that Sean is on our tail raises the stakes to a height I don’t dare fuck with.
“Sean isn’t going to back down,” I remind her.
“I know.”
Ronan leans forward. “I think we should pull Brennan from surveillance and have him start digging into O’Keefe. Hopefully, he can find something we can use against him.”
“I agree.”
“Doyle can cover him on surveillance until then, as well as Cormac.”
“Can we trust Cormac to pull his weight and actually do what he’s asked? Because if he continues to flake out, I’d rather put another guy with Brennan.”
Ronan leans back and folds his arms. “I’ll speak to him, make it clear that this is his priority.”
The fact that he even needs reminding makes my blood boil.
I wonder what will happen with Cormac after Sean is taken care of. Does he go back to doing whatever the hell he wants without any repercussions? Because that’s exactly what he has been doing for the past two years.
There’s one set of rules for me and a completely other set for Cormac, and I’m getting a little tired of picking up the slack.
I don’t bother voicing my thoughts to Ronan. The last thing I need right now is to get into another argument with him. I’ll just have to deal with Cormac’s lack of work ethic after I’ve taken care of Sean.
“You’ll be sticking close to Kieran,” Ronan tells Riley. “If Sean’s watching, we need this marriage to look airtight.”
Riley doesn’t flinch. She simply nods.
There’s a strength in her gaze that reminds me of the therapy reports I read.
Highly resilient.
Empathetic.
Mature.
She’s not just surviving right now. She’s learning and adapting to the threats, and it makes me proud to see her refuse to cower. She’s stronger than I’ve given her credit for.
“I expect you to play your part as well, Kieran,” Ronan warns.
I ball my hands into fists but keep my mouth shut, only because Ciara has reappeared, and I don’t want to lose my cool in front of her.
“Did I miss anything?” she asks.
Ronan is on his feet in an instant and helps her back over to the couch, settling the blanket around her legs and reaching for her water.
“Not at all,” he murmurs before kissing her forehead.
“Liar.”
I remove myself from the arm of the couch and take Ronan’s vacant seat so he can sit beside his wife.
“Come on, tell me all the drama. I need something to think about other than the fact I already need to pee again.”
Riley laughs, but it doesn’t meet her eyes. I can see the disappointment written all over her face, and from the looks of it, so can Ciara.
“Riley, what’s going on?”
“I’m not going to be able to visit for a few days.”
“What? Are you serious?”
“It’s a safety issue.” Ronan rubs her back soothingly, but Ciara bats his hand away.
“Kieran, I swear I’m going to slice off your balls if you did something to ruin this.” Ciara glares at me, and I hold my hands up.
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Yeah, right.”
Ronan’s shoulders shake with silent laughter, and I scowl.
“Why do you always assume it’s my fault?”
“Because it normally is,” Ciara retorts.
“I miss the days when you used to be scared of me,” I mutter, and Ronan barks a laugh.
“Ciara has never been afraid of anyone in her life.” He chuckles. “Trust me, I tried.”
“We should probably get going. I’ll let you know when we make it back.” I get to my feet and wait patiently for Riley to say goodbye to Ciara, who shoots me one last glare before we head out.
As we walk to the car, Riley glances back at the house with something like longing in her eyes. “It’s nice here. It feels like a real family.”
Something tightens in my chest as I look at her, seeing the shadows behind her smile.
“Come on. Let’s go home.”
Before Sean decides to show up and try to take what’s mine.