Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
Annie
My afternoon at the spa had been sheer bliss. The manager, Lisa, had organized an incredible schedule of pampering for me. I started with a hot stone massage, which I found bizarre but relaxing. Then I was treated to a facial which was finished off with a cream I would swear was made from angel’s tears. With an indecipherable scent that was pleasantly soothing, it left my skin feeling softer than it ever had.
After that, I’d been treated to a manicure and a pedicure, both of which involved an element of massage. I’d never liked people touching my feet because I’m ticklish, but Zara’s hands may have changed my mind.
I’d been plied with an endless supply of non-alcoholic drinks, including a cleansing juice that tasted way better than its lurid green color had suggested. Presented with a lavish fruit platter, I’d feasted on strawberries, dragon fruit and papaya. By the time I left the spa, I felt rejuvenated.
When I returned to the hotel with Jace, who’d waited patiently in the spa’s reception area for me, I found a note on my bed. It was from Ciaran, telling me there was a dress hanging in the closet for me to wear tonight. I had mixed feelings about that. Was it a romantic gesture for him to pick out clothes for me, or was it a sign of a controlling nature? Wanting to make the most of this evening, I chose to see it as the former.
The dress was beautiful and something I’d have picked out for myself. Though Ciaran had only seen me in a couple of outfits, he’d clearly realized I favored a feminine style with floaty skirts. In a cream floral-patterned chiffon, the dress was clearly more expensive than anything I could afford. Perhaps if I had a summer wedding to go to, I’d have splashed out on something like this.
When I put the dress on, I felt like a princess. The only trouble was, I didn’t have shoes to go with it. Sneakers would be all wrong with such a delicate fabric and my black pumps would be too stark against the cream. The moment I mentioned that to Jace, who’d plonked himself down on the sofa in my suite, he got on the phone. I don’t know who he called, but fifteen minutes later, a pair of delicate cream-colored high heels arrived. They were perfect with the dress, if a little higher than I’d usually wear.
Now sitting in the hotel bar, I sipped my drink and looked around to see Jace still standing in the doorway. He’d excused himself to take a phone call two minutes ago. As I scanned the room, playing my favorite game of guessing which couples were in a full-time relationship and which were conducting an illicit affair, my eyes landed on a short balding man in a gray suit, who was heading straight for me.
Picking up the drinks menu from the table, I studied it with exaggerated concentration, hoping he would get the message I wasn’t interested. It didn’t work. He kept coming. As he stopped next to me, I glanced over at Jace, who was still engrossed in his phone call. It looked like I’d have to get rid of this man myself. I wasn’t afraid to tell someone to get lost, but I hated to sound rude.
“Miss Calder?” he asked, before I could tell him to take a hike.
I relaxed a little. If he knew my name, he must work at the hotel. “Yes.”
“I work for a man I believe you’re interested in meeting.”
“Oh.” My eyes widened in surprise. He wasn’t a hotel employee, after all. “You work for Danny Mulhearn?”
He offered me an oily smile that made my skin crawl. “That’s right. I’m James O’Hara, Mr. Mulhearn’s driver. He sent me to pick you up.”
I couldn’t explain why, but I got a bad feeling, and my brain screamed at me not to go with him. Still, finding Danny was what I’d come here to do, and I couldn’t help but be a little bit curious. “How does he know I want to meet him?”
“A friend of his made him aware of your search. She said you believe you’re his cousin.”
She? It must have been Lisa who told him. When I was getting my manicure, we’d chatted a bit. I explained to her why I’d come to Detroit. I must also have mentioned I was staying at this hotel, because this man wouldn’t have found me otherwise.
“Distant cousin.”
“Right.” Mr. O’Hara gave me another of those intensely creepy grins. “We also heard you got mixed up with Ciaran Reilly.”
I didn’t have the chance to ask what he meant by mixed up as Jace stormed over. Though he’d put on a jacket to meet the bar’s strict dress code, he still looked intimidating.
“Fuck off, O’Hara,” Jace snarled.
The shorter man flinched, but didn’t back off. “I’m just having a word with the young lady.”
“Not anymore, you’re not,” Jace spat. “Now get out of here before I break your fucking neck.”
The threat of violence I knew he would follow through on startled me. O’Hara reached into his pocket and Jace tensed. I did too, wondering what he thought was about to happen. O’Hara pulled out a white card and dropped it on the table.
“That’s Mr. Mulhearn’s number. He’s waiting for your call.”
O’Hara cast a scathing glance at Jace and scurried off. Before I could pick up the business card, embossed with gold lettering, Jace snatched it and tore it to shreds.
“What did you to that for?” I demanded.
“Danny Mulhearn is bad news. You don’t need to be messing with him.”
I rolled my eyes. “So I keep hearing, but why? What is so awful about this man?”
Jace eased his six-foot-four frame onto the seat opposite me. “What has Ciaran told you about his business, the family?”
“Not much.” We hadn’t talked much about anything so far. I thought about it for a moment and put two and two together. “Are he and Danny rivals?”
Jace nodded. “They’re in a similar line of business, but Ciaran’s got integrity. He does things a certain way, maintains a standard. In our family, we conduct ourselves with honor. You understand?”
“Yes. So, what, Danny doesn’t follow the rules?”
“Danny Mulhearn’s a lowlife. He doesn’t care who he hurts to get what he wants. That would include you.”
“Okay, but that still doesn’t give you the right to tear up his business card.”
“Yes it does, sweetcheeks. Ciaran told me to protect you, and that’s what I did.”
“By removing my choice?”
“Your choice to do what?” a familiar voice asked from behind me.
I looked over my shoulder to find Ciaran standing there. He was wearing a different suit than the one he’d had on at lunch. It, too, was immaculately tailored. A pale gray, he’d paired it with a white shirt and a black tie. I swallowed hard as I let my gaze trail over him. Damn, that man could fill out a suit.
“I’ll let Annie fill you in.” Jace got to his feet.
“Go help Max,” Ciaran said. “He’s upstairs.”
“Sure thing, boss.”
“Upstairs?” I queried as Jace walked off.
“Max is doing me a small favor. It will go faster if Jace helps him.” Sitting in the seat Jace had just vacated, he offered no further explanation. He pointed to my almost empty glass. “What are you drinking?”
“French martini.”
He raised a hand and a young woman in a black shift dress hurried over. When I’d wanted to order, I waited for over five minutes. With one gesture, Ciaran had her rushing to do his bidding.
“What can I get for you, sir?”
Her eager tone pissed me off. I knew it was her job to schmooze with the customers, but she looked as if she wanted to lick whipped cream off Ciaran’s bare chest. I supposed I couldn’t blame her. Now that the thought had occurred to me I wanted to do the same.
“Another French martini for the lady and I’ll take a Balvenie Portwood.”
“Ha, I knew it.” I jabbed a finger at Ciaran as the server hurried off to fill out the order. “I knew you were a whiskey drinker.”
“Yeah, I know I should honor my heritage and go for Jamesons, or something, but I’ve always liked Scotch.”
“Don’t worry.” I leaned across the table to whisper conspiratorially. “I won’t alert the Irish embassy.”
“I’m in your debt.” Ciaran laughed. “So, how was the spa?”
“It was amazing, thank you. I feel so revitalized.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Did Jace behave?”
“He was a perfect gentleman.”
“Hmm.” The face Ciaran made suggested he hadn’t expected his cousin to be on his best behavior. Jace had the air of someone who could be a bit of a rogue. “Then what were you arguing about when I came in?”
“Oh, it was nothing.” It hardly seemed worthwhile to get into it, but Ciaran raised his eyebrows, waiting for an explanation. “A man approached me. Said he was Danny Mulhearn’s driver. He gave me a business card and said Danny was waiting for my call. Jace ripped it to pieces.”
Ciaran hummed approvingly. “How did Mulhearn’s driver know you were here?”
“I think Lisa must have told him. We talked a fair bit when I was at the spa. I must have told her where I was staying and that I was meeting you in the bar.”
“Hmm,” Ciaran mused, annoyance flickering across his otherwise perfect face. “I’ll have to have a word with her.”
I didn’t like the thought of the woman getting a dressing-down from someone who could be as stern as Ciaran. At the same time, I wasn’t happy with her for sharing information about me. Surely, clients at a spa could expect some level of confidentiality. If she knew Danny, she could have told me how to get in touch with him rather than going to him behind my back. That seemed odd.
“Is it really such a big deal if I speak to the man?” I asked.
“I’m afraid it is.” Ciaran nodded his thanks to the server as she set our drinks down on the table. “Now, can we drop the subject and just enjoy our evening?”
“Of course.” Chastened by the scolding tone of Ciaran’s voice, my mood darkened. I smiled to cover my hurt. “So, what do you have in mind?”
“Well, I was hoping you’d agree to join me for a family dinner.”
“Family dinner? You’re not about to spring your wife and three kids on me, are you?”
“Fuck, no!” Ciaran snorted dismissively. “I mean with my brothers and my sister, Emily. It’s her birthday and I….”
“Say no more,” I cut in. “I’d love to have dinner with them.”
“You’re sure?”
“Of course.” I wanted to spend the evening with Ciaran, but I didn’t like the thought of him missing his sister’s birthday. “Where is this family dinner?”
“At our house up on Orchard Lake.”
I gnawed my bottom lip. “Is it far? I have to be at the airport by eight a.m.”
I could stretch it to nine o’clock, but I liked to be checked in as early as possible. The thought of missing a flight and then having to rebook it made me anxious. I didn’t have savings left to play with.
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” Something in Ciaran’s expression gave me pause. A look I couldn’t decipher flickered in his eye and then disappeared. “The house is only a thirty-minute drive from here, forty if traffic’s heavy.”
That didn’t sound too bad. “Okay, but I haven’t packed yet. Perhaps I should do that before we leave.”
It wouldn’t take me long if I didn’t worry about folding everything properly. Ciaran shook his head, though. “I’ll get that taken care of. Why don’t you just relax and enjoy the evening?”
“Oh, okay.” I guessed it wouldn’t hurt to let the hotel staff take care of my packing. It wasn’t my favorite thing in the world to do.
Ciaran raised his glass. “To us, and whatever the future might bring.”
“To us,” I echoed, clinking my glass against his.
As Ciaran drained his whiskey in a single gulp, I couldn’t help wondering what he meant about the future. It wasn’t as if we had one, since I was leaving tomorrow. A strange sense of unease coiled in my stomach. Mr. O’Hara’s words bothered me. What had he meant by mixed up with Ciaran? Was he suggesting that Ciaran was the bad guy? Perhaps I was making a mistake.
“You know, I’m not sure I should come to your family dinner. I mean, it’s your sister’s birthday. She won’t want a stranger there.”
“Nonsense, she’ll love you. They all will.” Ciaran got up and held out a hand to me. “Now, come on. We don’t want to be late.”
Setting my drink down on the table, I took his hand and allowed him to pull me to my feet. As he led me from the bar, I shook off my concerns. That horrible little man had put ridiculous doubts in my mind, but Cieran had been nothing but wonderful to me. Tonight was going to be great. I’d meet Ciaran’s siblings, have a nice meal, and if I was lucky, after dinner, I’d score another couple of orgasms. Then, tomorrow, I’d get on my plane and head home with amazing memories and no regrets.