Chapter Twelve Dare
W hen I woke up to find Ava gone, pissed didn’t even begin to describe my emotions. It wasn’t because I was a bastard and wanted to be the one to tell her to go. Sure, I played that game from time to time, but last night was different.
Ava was different.
Because she was different, I fully expected her to handle the morning after differently. I thought as a mature woman she wouldn’t be pulling the cut and run bullshit that she had. Considering she’d been able to read me better than any woman I’d met, there should’ve been no question as to how I felt about pursuing more than just fucking with her.
Even though I didn’t want to admit it, her actions hurt. It wasn’t about bruising my ego. It was the fact we’d had such a strong emotional connection. I’d laughed with her. I’d opened myself up more to her than any woman in years. And that was just one night. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like when we got to know each other even better.
The truth was I wanted to see where things went with her beyond the bedroom. It had been close to a year since I’d sought out a repeat performance with a woman I slept with. None of them had caught my interest and imagination like Ava.
No. She didn’t just get to walk away without explaining why. I wanted to hear from her lips why she had taken off without a goodbye. Then I was going to plead the hell out of my case for her to date me.
Rolling over, I grabbed my phone off the nightstand. Even though it was eight in the morning on a Saturday, my assistant, Vera, answered. “What can I do for you, Mr. Kavanaugh?”
Vera was pushing sixty, and most days she felt like one of those aunts who was like a mother. Considering all my aunts were back in Belfast, I needed someone stateside to give off that vibe. She was also compensated very well for putting up with my vast array of bullshit.
“Morning, Vera. I need you to pull a credit card receipt from a customer at Bandia l ast night. Ava Carras. If you can’t find one, look for Nick Carras.”
While I had bought Ava drinks after we’d met, she’d told me about buying expensive champagne to toast her divorce.
“Will do. Anything specific you’re looking for?”
“An address.”
“And what else?”
I chuckled. “You know me too well.”
“Aye, I do. I’m assuming you’ll want everything I can find on this young woman.”
“Skip any mafia connections. I checked on that last night.”
“Okay.”
“Give me thirty minutes tops.”
“You are the queen, Vera.”
Her chuckle was deep from not only the early hour, but years of smoking. “Talk to you soon.”
“Good bye.”
After I hung up, I texted Callum and Quinn.
Gym @ 9?
K
Callum replied while Quinn said,
Already there.
When we had moved to Belfast, Da had bought a house in the historic Beacon Hill area. Shortly before Julianna’s birth, Quinn and I had bought our condos. Besides the fact the building was close to our old place, we also liked that there was another condo empty between ours. We bought it as well in the hopes that Kellan might want to jump ship with us.
But then Mam and Eamon decided to move from Belfast, and Kellan decided he wasn’t ready to fly the coop yet. Instead, we had taken the condo and remodeled part of it as a gym. We also had offices made for a base of operations for our clubs. That way we could better ensure our security by meeting there rather than in our offices in the club.
We’d also added a feature where we could have quick access to each other in case of danger. Stairs were made leading down from my penthouse to our shared condo and the same was done to Quinn’s.
Callum had insisted we use some of the space for new torture rooms. Since we’d moved to Boston, we’d had a torture room in the basement. With his daughter’s arrival, he didn’t like the idea of that taking place so close to his family. So we took one of the bedrooms and cut them in half to make two soundproof rooms.
After getting out of bed, I headed to the closet. I threw on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Once I slid on my running shoes, I went to the bathroom.
As I was brushing my teeth, my phone dinged. When I glanced over, a smile curved on my lips.
Ava Carras
171 Lincoln Terrace
Gloucester Mass
Parents own Taverna by the Sea on the wharf. Huge Greek festival this weekend, so she’ll be there.
V
Once I spit out a stream of toothpaste, I grabbed my phone.
You’re the best!
I know. I’ll make sure to buy myself something pretty for working on this on a Saturday morning.
Chuckling, I texted
Please do.
Armed with Ava’s whereabouts, I hustled out of the bedroom. I wasn’t too surprised to find Niall sitting at the table. “Good morning,” I called as I went to the fridge for bottled water.
“Good morning, boss. What do you have planned for today?”
“I’m going downstairs to workout with Callum and Quinn, so you’re off the hook.”
Niall nodded. “And after that?”
I took a swig of water. “I’m heading to Gloucester.”
He quirked his brows at me. “What business do you have there?”
Flashing him a grin, I replied, “Ava lives there.”
“I imagined as much.”
“I want to see her again.”
A satisfied smirk curved on his lips. “I told her you would.”
I froze with my water midair. “Excuse me?”
“I saw her sneaking out this morning, and I tried to get her to stay.”
“Jaysus, you’re worse than Mam when it comes to matchmaking.”
He chuckled. “Is it a crime to want to see you happy?”
“Not entirely.”
“What time should I have the car ready?”
As I gulped down the water, I shook my head. “I’ll be driving myself.”
Niall’s eyes bulged. “You’re not serious.”
“I absolutely am.”
“You know I can’t allow you to go alone into a town we haven’t done a security sweep on.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You need to remember your place.”
“I am. I’m your bodyguard. It’s my place to protect you at all times.”
“As your boss, it’s up to my discretion, and I say no.”
“I think your cock is clouding your judgment.”
Slamming my water bottle on the marble counter, I growled, “You’ve got a lot of fucking cheek.”
Niall held his hands out in front of him. “I apologize.”
“You damn right you better.”
“While I shouldn’t have said what I did, I would highly advise against you going alone.”
Snorting, I countered, “Do you honestly think there’s a threat hanging out in Gloucester on the off chance I just might show up?”
Niall shook his head. “I’m more concerned about a threat following you there and taking advantage of you being in a vulnerable state.”
With a frustrated grunt, I swept my hands to my hips. “For fuck’s sake. I just want to be free.”
“I’m sure you do, sir. But you have to remember who you are.”
“For Ava’s sake, I don’t want to be a Kavanaugh. I want to show up like a normal guy would. I want to drive up to her house, not have my driver escort me like some pretentious prick.”
Although she hadn’t voiced it openly, I knew from her demeanor that my wealth and position intimidated the hell out of Ava. With her divorce, she was already in a precarious state emotionally.
“Perhaps we can find a compromise,” Niall suggested.
“Such as?”
“You could drive yourself, and one of the guys could follow you.”
I blinked at Niall. “You can’t be serious.”
“It’s a compromise.”
“I”m not letting one of my men tail me like I’m a teenager.”
“Just until you get out of Boston to make sure you aren’t being threatened?”
Snatching up my water, I replied, “I’m done talking about this.”
When I entered the gym, Quinn was running on the treadmill. He threw up a hand before continuing running. Callum was at the weight bench loading plates onto the barbell. He glanced up at me and grinned. “You’re just in time to spot me.”
Instead of helping him, I desperately needed to burn off my frustration on a treadmill or the stair climber. “As long as you have my back next.”
“Of course.”
“Good. I need it.”
Callum eyed me curiously. “Did you have one of your nightmares last night?”
Rolling my eyes to the ceiling, I groaned. “No. As a matter of fact, I had quite a pleasant evening.” He didn’t need to know about the one I’d had at Bandia .
“I just know that it’s that time of year when–”
“Enough.” Jerking my chin at the bench, I said, “Get to it.”
After lying back, Callum hefted up the barbell. As I spotted him, he asked, “Where did you end up disappearing to last night?”
“You mean how far did I run away when you and Caterina started practically fucking in front of me?”
“I hadn’t even gotten to second base,” Callum protested.
“Your head was pillowed in second base when I left.”
With a chuckle, Callum said, “Just tell me where you got off to.”
“For your information, I spent the rest of my evening with a lovely lady.”
Callum puffed out a breath of air as he lifted the bar. “A l ady ?”
“That’s what I said.”
After another huff, Callum grunted, “Since when do you fuck ladies?”
“Since Ava is thirty and established with her own home and career, I consider her a lady in my eyes.”
“One might argue that by fucking you on the first date, she isn’t a lady.”
Pressing down on the barbell, I growled, “Keep talking about her like that, and I’ll let you choke on this.”
Callum eyes bulged as the muscles in his biceps trembled. “Fuck, boyo. I’m sorry.”
Easing away from the bar, I replied, “Thank you.”
Quinn finished his sprint on the treadmill and came over to us. “Did you and Kellan make up yet?”
“No.”
Wheezing, Callum said, “You and Kellan had words?”
I opened my mouth to answer him, but Quinn beat me to it. “They were literally throwing hands last night.”
Callum pushed the bar up to ease it back on the stand. As he sat up on the bench, he cocked his brows at me. “Why did you start shit with him?”
“Why do you automatically assume it was me?”
“Because unlike the rest of us, Kellan is the heart and soul of this family. Starting shit with him is basically like kicking a puppy. Especially since he and Mabry are having issues.”
I grimaced. “They are?”
“He wants to marry her, and she’s not ready.”
“Of course it would be him wanting to get ready. Jaysus, the boy is only twenty-two.”
“You know as well as I do that Kellan’s an old soul,” Callum replied.
“Even if she wanted to, would you let him marry Mabry?”
Growing up, we knew that our marriages would be arranged for alliances. It wasn’t the fact Mabry was a stripper that didn’t make her a good candidate for Kellan’s hand. Instead it was the fact she had no ties to the Irish clans or any mafia family.
Callum jerked a hand through dark hair. “We’re strong enough now that I could let him marry for love.” He gave me a pointed look. “But that’s only if you and Eamon are still given in alliances.”
In the past, I didn’t give two shits about a marriage contract. It was just an inevitable part of life. But for reasons that didn’t make any sense, Ava’s face popped in my mind.
Placing a hand on my shoulder, Callum gave me a cheeky grin. “Is this sudden avoidance of arranged marriages because of your new lady?”
Quinn’s brows shot up. “What new lady?”
Callum winked at me. “Our brother has fallen fast and hard.”
With a grunt, I started for the treadmill. Quinn grabbed my arm. “You’re not going to tell me about her?”
“I need to run off some steam.”
“Is there already trouble in paradise?” Callum teased.
I gave him the middle finger before climbing on the treadmill. Quinn came to stand in front of the machine. “You really found someone you like?”
“Yeah, I have.”
A genuine smile lit up his face. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Well, don’t get too excited. She ran out on me this morning.”
Quinn grimaced. “Really?”
“Smart woman,” Callum teased.
“Fuck you,” I muttered.
“I’m just slagging you.”
Wiping my hand over my face, I countered, “You should know I’m not in the mood for your bullshit this morning.”
“What did you do to make her run?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Why is it automatically my fault?”
Callum snorted. “Because you’re a handsome, rich man who is an above average fuck. What woman would willingly leave?”
“Don’t flatter me. It makes me feel cheap.”
“I’m serious,” Callum replied. Jerking his chin at me, he said, “So, what did you do?”
“Besides giving her multiple orgasms, not a damn thing.”
Appearing thoughtful, Quinn said, “Did you love bomb her?”
“What the fuck is that?”
A sheepish look came over Quinn’s face. “Something I heard Isla talking to Caterina about.”
“Jaysus, you’re fanny whipped.”
“I couldn’t help overhearing.”
“So what does it mean?”
“Well, at its worst it’s doing a lot of attention and affection to gain control of someone. But at its basic, it’s like you come on too strong.”
“You think I scared her away?”
He shrugged. “Maybe you should try to reach out to her and find out what happened?”
“Great minds think alike. Vera found her address for me.”
While Callum chuckled, Quinn bobbed his head. “Good for you. If you really like her, fight for her.”
Winking, I said, “Trust me, boyo. I’m taking out all the stops.”
“Just don’t lovebomb her,” Callum teased.
“Hey, all my attention, affection, and possible gifts won’t be manipulation. They’ll be because I mean it.”
“Just be careful.”
“You know I will.”
For reasons I didn’t understand, Callum and Quinn didn’t look convinced.