Chapter 22
brONX
The helicopter touches down on the roof of our building, and I don't let go of Tierney's hand until we're inside the penthouse with triple the normal security posted at every entry point.
“The bastards got away,” Manino tells me the second we walk in, his jaw tight with frustration. “They knew the building layout and had an exit strategy planned.”
“Fuck.” The threat is still out there, still hunting them.
“I have to see Connor,” Tierney says, moving toward the front door.
“He's in his apartment,” I tell her. “Safe. But he's been asking for you.”
She rushes out of the penthouse and practically flies down the stairs, not bothering to wait for the elevator. I follow close behind, running hard to keep up. The second Tierney knocks, the door flies open.
“Jesus Christ, Tier,” Connor pulls her into a tight hug, his hands shaking. “When security told me what happened...fuck, I thought they'd gotten to you.”
“I'm fine,” she says, but Connor doesn't let go.
“No, you're not fine. None of this is fine.” He pulls back, his face void of all color, his eyes wide open with terror. “They're here because of me. Because of what they think I did.”
Connor runs his hands through his hair, pacing like a caged animal.
“That murder in Dublin. The one they framed me for. I thought... I thought if I left, if I got far enough away from it...”
“You didn't kill anyone,” Tierney says firmly, her hands on his arms. “We know that.”
“Yeah, we do. But they don't. Or they don't care.” Connor's voice cracks. “They want someone to pay, and I'm the easiest target. And now you're caught in the middle because you married him to protect me.”
“I should never have let you do it,” he continues. “I should never have let Da arrange this marriage. Now you're in danger because of my problems.”
“Connor, stop—”
“No, Tier. You sacrificed everything for me. Your life in Dublin, your relationship with Damien, your freedom. And for what? So I could drag you into this mess?”
He looks at me then, eyes blazing. “I'm grateful for the protection, Bronx. More grateful than you'll ever know. But if something happens to her because of me...”
“Nothing's going to happen to her,” I say.
“How can you promise that? Those men, they're not going to stop. They think I killed one of their own, and they want blood.”
“But you didn’t.”
Connor meets my stare without flinching. “No. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. But try explaining that to men who've already made up their minds.”
The fear in his voice, the way he keeps looking at Tierney like she might disappear – the kid’s a goddamn wreck right now.
“We'll handle it,” I tell him.
“How? By hiding me forever? By putting Tierney at risk every time she leaves the building?” He goes back to pacing and peering out the windows. “All these damn windows, we’re exposed to the entire fucking world,” he mutters.
“Look, panicking isn’t gonna help you,” I say, putting a hand on his shoulder. “We’re gonna find them before they find you. That’s how we’ll handle things, okay? But you’ve gotta trust me to deliver.”
Connor nods, but he still looks shattered. “I just...I won’t be able to live with myself if she gets hurt because of me. Please promise…no, swear, you won’t let anything happen to her.”
“I will die for her,” I say, my eyes tangling with Tierney’s. “And that’s a promise.”
Her cheeks turn pink and she gives my arm a squeeze before walking over to Connor. She whispers something to him and he pulls her close for a long minute. Then he looks at me and gives me a nod.
We understand each other. And now he knows I’ll protect his sister with my life.
After we leave Connor's apartment, Tierney's quiet as we head back upstairs.
“He's really scared,” she says finally, heaving a deep sigh.
“Yeah.”
“I've never seen him like that. Even when everything went to shit in Dublin, he never looked so...”
“Broken?”
“Guilty. Like he thinks this is all his fault.” She lets out a huff. “And he didn’t even do anything. That’s what makes me so crazy. He’s always stayed away from the family business and kept his nose clean. Then this happens. It’s just not fair.”
We get back to the penthouse, and the adrenaline from earlier finally starts to fade. Tierney sinks onto the couch.
“Today was fucked up,” she says.
“Yeah, it was.” I sit beside her, and she leans into me without thinking about it. It’s comfortable and natural and easy. How fucking ironic under the circumstances.
“Thank you,” she says in a quiet voice. “For coming for me. For protecting Connor. For... all of it.”
“You don't need to thank me.” I tilt her head toward me, brushing my thumb across her lower lip.
“Yes, I do.” She places her hand over mine. “I know this isn't what you signed up for when you married me.”
If only she knew.
“Maybe not. But it's what we have.”
Her brows furrow. “Is it? Really?”
“What do you mean?”
She shrugs. “Sometimes I think this is real. What's happening between us. And sometimes I think I'm just fooling myself.”
The honesty in her voice makes my chest tight. “What does it feel like to you?”
“Real,” she admits. “Too real.”
I reach around the back of her head and dip my face, my lips brushing against her ear. “Then maybe stop questioning it.”
This time when I kiss her, it's not about adrenaline or danger. It's about this moment, this connection we can’t seem to fight anymore.
She melts into my arms, hugging me tight as I deepen the kiss.
“I need you,” she whispers against my mouth.
“You have me.” I stand up and lift her into my arms, never breaking the kiss, even as we move to the bedroom.
I strip off my clothes and then hers, bringing my lips to her prickled skin. She shivers at my touch, her legs falling open for me.
“You're beautiful,” I whisper.
“Don't say that,” she says, her eyes hooded with lust.
“Why?”
“Because saying things like that make me believe it’s real.”
“Maybe it is real.”
She pulls me down on top of her. “Then show me.”
And with my head filled with conflict and questions I can’t answer, I show her exactly what she means to me without saying the words that would complicate everything.
With one arm snaked around her waist, I hold the head of my cock at her entrance, rubbing it over her pussy lips before I thrust inside of her. She wraps her legs around my waist, holding me close, pulling me deep.
“Don't let go,” she rasps.
“Never.”
Our bodies move together differently today…in a way that scares the shit out of me. Like we fit. Like this is how it's supposed to be for both of us.
Her pussy clenches me tight, squeezing my cock to the point where I’m gonna lose it before we’ve even gotten started. Her walls are slick, wet heat blanketing me with every push and pull.
I speed up my movements, driving into her with long, hard strokes.
She gasps, her body trembling, nails lancing my back. “That’s it. Oh my God, oh my God. Fuck me!”
It only takes a few more pumps of my cock before I’m seeing stars and my brain short-circuits. With one final thrust, the orgasm shoots to the head of my cock and explodes into her. It’s everything. All for her.
Afterward, we lie tangled together in the sheets, silence falling over us.
“I trust you,” she finally says.
My gut wrenches, a sliver of unease slipping down the back of my neck.
“Tierney...”
“I know I shouldn't. I know this is complicated and messy and probably temporary. But I do trust you.” She turns her face to look at me. “And that scares me a hell of a lot more than those men today.”
I brush her hair back from her face, memorizing the expression on her face right now.
It’s open. Vulnerable. Trusting.
Fuck. And I never saw it coming.
“Why does it scare you?” I ask.
“Because trusting people is how you get destroyed.” She toys with the edge of the sheet.
“And I know there’s no love lost between you guys and my da.
You have no loyalty to my family beyond this arrangement.
So I have to trust you because I have no choice.
But I trust you because…” she pauses. “Because you’re different than I thought. ”
Jesus Christ. I’m exactly who you think, Tierney. I’m just a really fucking convincing actor.
The words get caught in my throat until I can choke them out. “I won't destroy you.”
“You say that now.”
“I mean it.”
She searches my face. “Really?”
And I want to tell her yes so fucking badly. I want to promise that I'll never hurt her, never betray her trust.
But I can't. Because I'm already betraying it every second I don't tell her about my actual mission to protect my family.
I brush my lips against the top of her head.
“Get some sleep,” I say because I can’t bring myself to lie to her again. Not tonight.
She curls against my side, and within minutes her breathing slows.
But I lie awake, staring at the ceiling, her words echoing in my head.
I trust you.
She trusts me to keep her safe, to protect Connor, to be the man she thinks I am.
And I'm lying to her about everything.
The mission. The real reason for our marriage. The fact that I'm supposed to be using her feelings to manipulate her family.
When she finds out…and she will find out eventually…that trust in her voice is going to turn to hatred so fast it'll give me whiplash.
She'll look at me the exact same way she did that first day. Like I'm the enemy.
Except this time, she'll be right.
But if I don't get that intelligence from Declan, if I fail Kingston...
I look down at her sleeping face, peaceful and trusting, and know I'm fucked either way.
Because I'm falling for a woman I'm supposed to betray.
And there's no way this ends without someone getting destroyed, no matter what lies I feed her.