Chapter 9 Mav
NINE
MAV
I keep my tone as gentle as I’m capable of but inside, an inferno rages through my body. I want to spring into action and do something to help Mckenna.
But there’s nothing I can do but be here for her. Help her work through this. Not toss the stupid fucking dead flowers in the trash until the police are called and a report is filed.
Blowing out a breath, I sit with Mckenna, take her hand in mine, and look right at her. “What do you want to do, Mckenna? Who can I call? What’s the play here?”
She squeezes my fingers and I don’t miss the flash of understanding that crosses her face. The ball is in her court. I’m here with her, in this one-hundred percent, but I’ll be taking my cues from her decisions.
“Let’s call the police. And my dad.”
“You got it.”
“But first, I have to tell you something.”
I rock back, panic twisting my gut. “What is it?”
“Mav, my dad believes the attack from Bran was…personal.” She gauges my reaction closely.
I frown, confused. “What do you mean?”
Mckenna takes a deep breath. “Bran’s mom, Isabel, was my dad’s girlfriend. The love of his life.”
Shock rolls through me and I shake my head in disbelief. All the research I gathered on Bran rolls through my mind. “She was sent to Massachusetts to clean for a family after—”
“Bran’s father impregnated her,” Mckenna supplies, shuddering. “Let me start at the beginning.”
I nod and settle beside her on the couch. She shares Mr. Byrne’s history with Isabel and I can’t hide my disgust as Mckenna alludes to Isabel being sexually assaulted by men in the Burton men. The entire situation is fucked-up and depraved.
“That’s insane,” I murmur when Mckenna concludes the story.
“I know. But it sheds some light on Bran’s motives.”
I glare at her. “Nothing about what he did to you will ever make any goddamn sense.”
She sighs and nods. “I know. It’s just, it felt like once I knew the full story, I better understood why Bran hates me the way he does. I never understood his angle before and now…”
“Fuck, Mckenna.”
“I know.”
“I’m glad you told me.” I squeeze her hand.
“I remember the day something clicked for your dad. We were looking through so many documents. He asked me if he could take some files and I said of course. But he had this look on his face. It’s as if he couldn’t decide between relief that he found a connection or horror. I understand it now.”
“He must have seen Isabel’s name.”
“Exactly.” We sit in silence for a long moment.
“Mav?” Her voice is timid and I hate that Bran’s already done that to her. Flattened her fucking confidence when she was getting her spark back.
“Yes?”
“We’re going to be okay, right?”
My chest tightens at the fear that wraps around her words. Leaning forward, I press a kiss to her forehead. “Yes. We’re going to be more than okay. We’re going to be great, Mckenna. This is just another thing we have to work through, but we’re really good at that, beauty.”
The corners of her lips turn up. “Are we?” She bites the corner of her mouth and I know what she’s thinking: look at our track record. Look at all the pain we’ve caused each other.
“It’s different now.”
“How?”
“We’ve already made all the mistakes. We’ve already handled everything wrong.”
She snorts out a laugh and I grin at the sound.
“We’ve already lost each other,” I continue. “And we’re not willing to do that again. So, this time, we fight it together.”
She sucks in a breath and nods in agreement. “Okay. You’re right.”
“I love you, beauty.”
“I love you too, Mav.”
“Good.” I smile and shake our joined hands, releasing my hold on her. “I’m going to call the police and your dad and then, we’ll figure out what comes next.”
“Okay. But let’s continue to live this time, Mav. I don’t want to cower in fear and put my life on hold because Bran’s out there. He’s always going to be out there. I don’t want him to steal any more light from my life.”
“Then we won’t let him,” I vow.
I call the police. I call Mr. Byrne. And I avoid looking at the pile of dead fucking flowers in the kitchen.
Since Mckenna doesn’t have a formal restraining order against Bran due to Mr. Byrne’s deal with Mr. Burton, the best the police can offer is to increase patrolling in the area and kick the report over to a detective for follow-up.
While I appreciate their efforts and understand the limitations, I’m uneasy. I can tell Mr. Byrne is too, but, like me, he waits for Mckenna to weigh in.
“We’re going bowling,” my beauty announces after the police leave the brownstone.
“What?” I frown at her.
“We have practice,” she reminds me.
“Kenny, clearly this is more—” Mr. Byrne starts.
Mckenna lifts her eyebrows at me. “Still living my life.”
I sigh, knowing she’s reaching for familiarity. She doesn’t want to flip her life upside down, again, because of fucking Bran. But— “Do you think we should consider additional security?” I ask tentatively, watching her expression closely.
Mr. Byrne nods enthusiastically.
Mckenna’s quiet for a moment before she agrees. “Yes, I think that would be a good idea. I’m not going to cower and hide, Dad.” She directs this toward her father. “I’m going to keep living my life.”
He stares at her. Years of regrets and joys pass through his eyes before he clears his throat and nods. “Of course. Good for you, Kenny. I think extra security can’t hurt.”
“Can you line it up?” Mckenna asks me.
“Consider it done,” I say, already itching to pick up my cell phone and call Drew.
“Good.” She smiles. “Then, we should get ready for bowling.”
Mckenna moves toward the stairs to change and I exchange a look with Mr. Byrne.
“What do you think?” he murmurs.
“I think this thing with Bran needs to get settled once and for all.”
Mr. Byrne nods.
“But Mckenna’s right. She can’t keep living in fear and putting her life on hold.”
Mr. Byrne sighs and scrubs a hand over his face. “I know. I know that and yet…” He trails off. Then, he looks at me, his expression severe. “You’ll look after her, won’t you, son?”
“With my life,” I promise.
He nods and shakes my hand. I walk him to the door, double bolting it once he leaves.
Then, I call Drew. Aiden. I talk to Alfred. And I give my bandmates and brother a heads-up about the situation. I stress to everyone that Mckenna wants to continue with her daily life and not focus on this new development with Bran.
Then, I get ready for bowling. For the first time, I regret putting together the team. The logistics of the bowling alley, the multiple entrance and exit points, the random groups of people flowing through the space, have me on high alert.
But I promised my beauty we would do this her way. So, I don my captain shirt, pack my bowling shoes, and manage a smile for Mckenna as I take her hand and stride into the bowling alley.
“I’m on fire!” I toss an arm in the air as the ball slams into the pins and sends them crashing. “That’s another strike for me.” I grin gleefully at my brother, giddy that I’m beating him.
Sibling rivalries, even the friendly ones, never die.
But deep down, my winning performance is due to the anger and nerves coursing through my body.
“Good job, Maverick!” Allegra claps as I retake my seat.
“Nice roll.” Mckenna high-fives me.
I clasp her fingers in mine and hold on for an extra beat. So far, things have been quiet but I’m still tense. Watchful. “Thanks, beauty.”
We continue to hold hands until it’s her turn to bowl.
“How’s she doing?” Allegra whispers.
“She’s tough,” I offer. “She’ll get through this.”
Allegra nods.
From A’s other side, Derek leans forward. “You need anything, you call.”
“I will,” I promise. I learned from my past mistakes. I don’t have tunnel vision. If it takes all hands on deck to support Mckenna, then I’ll call every single one of our friends to bring them aboard.
Jameson gives me a long look. “You good?”
I smile at my brother. Even though he’s sorting through his own version of hell, he always has my back. “I’m good.”
Mckenna bowls a strike and our group erupts in hollers and cheers for our girl. She gives a little curtsey and I laugh, noting the way her eyes dance. Her hair flows around her shoulders as she tips her head back and laughs at something stupid Levi says.
This time, she’s not backing down. She hasn’t lost her sparkle.
And I haven’t lost her.
My life settles into a new rhythm over the next two weeks.
In some ways, Mckenna and I take leaps forward with our relationship.
We spend more time together, starting our days with morning coffee on the back deck of my brownstone.
Then, Drew escorts her to the library where she spends hours studying for the bar exam.
Knowing it’s Drew watching over her puts my mind at ease and I think she agrees to the concession on my behalf. How’s that for adulting and compromise?
I continue to run with my brother in the early mornings, which, if I’m honest, has been more of a benefit for me than it has been for Jameson.
I also vet every employee on my contractor’s payroll and he agrees to let me hand-pick the crew for my home.
I spend my mornings overseeing their progress and bullshitting with the crew until Mr. Byrne comes over in the afternoons.
That’s when I head to the studio to get some recording time in but, again, I do it with a clear head knowing Mckenna’s dad is keeping an eye on things.
In the evenings, I join Mckenna for dinner and we spend our nights watching old movies, talking about our days, and just being together before I kiss her good night.
Still, we’re vigilant. Even though Bran hasn’t popped up since that note on the front porch, I know it’s not over. He’s biding his time. And each day that passes without any sign of him fills me with more dread, more anxiety, that whatever he’s planning is more sinister than I can comprehend.
“We could have gone out for dinner,” Mckenna reminds me as I pull a lasagna out of the oven.
I place the tray on a trivet. “I know.”
“You’re worried.”