Chapter 15 #2
Sloan grunted out a laugh. “No.” He reached over to the nightstand and grabbed a piece of paper and passed it to me, the same hand staying clutched tight in mine. He made sure not to let go, and even though my palm was getting sweaty, I didn’t pull away. I liked that he wanted to keep a hold on me.
I stared down at the piece of paper and a grin spread across my face at a bunch of lines, boxes, and names. “You made a family tree for me?”
He took his seat on the bed beside me and stroked a finger down my jaw.
“You wanted to know who’s related to me.
Everyone who matters is on there.” He pointed at the cousins’ names.
“That’s where Tiernan, Senan, and Kyran are.
Their mom is my aunt. She’s my dad’s sister.
I have more over in Ireland. A lot more, but they’re distant cousins, like Eddie.
They’re related through my grandfather and great-grandfather.
Killoughs, yes, but they aren’t close to us.
They share a small amount of blood and our name, which gives them a little more respect, but they aren’t family in the sense of Fionn or you, Pet. ”
I searched the names, curious, when my gaze came across Sloan’s sister and her children.
“You have three nieces and another nephew?” I touched their names.
The youngest was a man by the name of Gunnar.
According to this family tree, he was in his early twenties.
“I thought Fionn and his brothers were your only nephews.”
“They’re the only nephews I know,” Sloan said, then frowned.
“No, that’s not true. I don’t know much about Fionn’s younger brothers.
Their mother keeps them away. I guess it’s the same for Rosie, my sister.
When she was old enough, she moved to Ireland.
She didn’t want anything to do with the business.
When Eoin died, it cemented her theory that the Company would get us all killed.
” He smiled. “I still talk with her occasionally, which you know. There’s no bad blood between us.
She made her choice, and I respect it.” The corners of his eyes tightened.
“Rosie never took money from us. She built herself up, unlike Annabelle, Fionn’s mother, who takes what she can get.
Annabelle’s cruelty knows no bounds. She’s never loved Fionn the way a mother should.
The moment it was a little difficult, she shoved him at me and demanded more money, almost as though she was selling off her grieving son. ”
“What about the other two?” I whispered.
This was the first time Sloan had really opened up about his family in the eight years we’d been together.
It was partly my fault—I’d never asked. I should’ve.
I tilted my neck, wincing at the soreness there.
Sloan had said I would still feel the symptoms for weeks. “Fionn’s brothers?”
“Their names are Diarmuid and Bellamy. I can’t tell you anything about them. Annabelle kept them away and it wasn’t to keep them safe. In a way, she’s using them as hostages. They’re Eoin’s sons, and she knows how much Eoin meant to me. She gets money to take care of them. Or did.”
“Until you stopped the payments.” It happened when Fionn was in the hospital. Fionn had told me all about it. He’d admitted to Sloan that his mom was calling and demanding money from Fionn, too. When Fionn gave up hiding the problem, Sloan pulled all allowances, making Annabelle effectively broke.
My stomach swelled, nausea roiling.
“Yes.” His eyebrows furrowed. “It’s eerily quiet from her. I don’t trust it.”
An image flashed in my mind—Fionn with his phone pressed to his ear, stress creasing his forehead as he whispered into the speaker, almost like he was making sure no one heard him. Then, another came to my brain, and another.
“What about Fionn?” I swallowed around a lump in my throat, regret sweeping through me. Had he been going through something and I hadn’t noticed? “He might’ve heard from her. I’ve seen him on the phone, whispering furiously at someone. I wonder . . . .”
“If she’s been contacting him?” His eyes flashed and he yanked out his phone.
“Sloan, be gentle.” I squeezed his hand hard.
“I will,” he promised as he typed across the screen with one hand. When he was done, he laid the phone on the bed beside me. “Now you have my family tree. You can ask me anything you want.”
I chuckled. “Thank you, Boss. That was really sweet.”
“Aren’t I always sweet?” He smirked when I laughed harder.
“Only to me,” I said, which made him join in with the laughter. “And sometimes Fionn, but you’re tough on him, too.”
The nausea grew worse and I gagged. Sloan read my action immediately and reached for a vomit bag, passing it to me in time for me to puke into it. My stomach heaved and Sloan petted my arm, whispering gently.
“You’re okay, pet. Let it out.” He kissed my temple and hit the call button beside me. Moments later, a nurse came in. “He’s sick. Can we get some medication to help?”
The nurse nodded and left again.
I trembled with a groan, the stiffness in my body making everything feel so much worse. I couldn’t look at Sloan, I didn’t want to see the concern on his face. When the nurse came back into my room again, she injected something into my IV.
“This will help with the nausea,” she whispered with a smile.
I nodded in gratitude but regretted it immediately when a bout of dizziness hit me. Damn it. I hated this illness so fucking much. How did I not see what it was?
Sloan and I sat in silence after the nurse left again with the used vomit bag, and it took at least twenty minutes for my stomach to settle.
Sloan helped me brush my teeth by using a bowl of water and I hated it.
Hated how weak my body felt right now. I blinked hard, pushing back tears that threatened to spill as Sloan retreated to the attached bathroom to get rid of the water and return moments later.
Exhaustion took over and my shoulders felt like they weighed five hundred pounds each.
“You’re tough on Fionn,” I repeated from the discussion before.
Sloan stared at me for a long moment, gaze assessing.
He didn’t ask me if I was okay, but I suspected he knew I wouldn’t like it.
Not right now. Finally, he nodded resolutely, his mouth pulling into a tight line.
“I’ve been too hard on him, but this world isn’t easy.
I won’t have him killed like his father. ”
I brought our hands to my chest, hugging them. “It’s been eight years, and you haven’t told me much about him. You don’t talk much about any of your family except Fionn. What was Eoin like?”
His eyebrows dipped in thought and his lips curved, a softness taking over his face. “Fun. He was always fun. He loved life and life loved him. He managed to charm everyone he met. They weren’t scared of him like they are of me. They genuinely thought he was great to be around.”
I watched the way his expression flickered, caught between love and sorrow, and my heart gave a painful throb for him.
“I looked up to him. While my father wanted me to be tough, Eoin taught me to let loose. He was the complete opposite of me and Father. That’s why he never wanted to run the Company.
He knew he’d have to change his entire personality, and he didn’t want to give that freedom away.
He never liked killing and he trusted too easily.
” Sloan’s jaw twitched, and I hugged our hands closer to my chest, wincing slightly at a twinge in my neck.
“It’s what killed Eoin, that trust. That’s how he was kidnapped and tortured.
He didn’t realize those men were there for him, to take him.
He was at a club and drank a beer that someone bought him.
It was drugged. They dragged him right out of there without anyone being the wiser.
I can’t let that happen to Fionn. I promised Eoin that if anything happened to him, I’d protect his sons.
I’ve already failed with Diarmuid and Bellamy. I can’t let anything happen to Fionn.”
“You can do that without hurting Fionn,” I whispered, closing my eyes briefly as another wave of dizziness hit me.
“I know you’re trying to make him strong, but you’re only making him feel rejected.
He’s smart, really smart. You need to trust him to make the right decisions.
You’ve done your part of being his boss, Sloan. Now be his father.”
He chuckled and pressed a kiss to my lips. I moaned, leaning into the warmth of his mouth. He tasted of fine cuisine, with hints of sage, and I wondered what he’d been fed while I wasn’t awake. I was sure the chefs took care of him. They’d be hearing from me if they hadn’t.
“You scared me, Pet.” He stroked a thumb over my temple and down my cheek, and I exhaled, leaning into his touch. His fingers were soft yet rough, a man who both enjoyed luxury while getting his hands dirty.
“I’m sorry. I honestly didn’t know I was this sick.
If I did . . . .” Hell, I didn’t know if I would’ve done anything different.
I’d been so invested in keeping the business running and missing Sloan that thinking about myself wasn’t an option.
It didn’t matter how many times I apologized, it wouldn’t change what happened. “Fuck, I probably wouldn’t have cared.”
His eyes flashed dangerously. “So, I do need to have an in-house doctor to check your health every morning?”
I laughed and dragged him down for another kiss because I was obsessed with his taste and the sensation of him against me, even when I wasn’t at one hundred percent. Sloan always made me feel better just by being around.
“No. I’ll take care of myself. I promise.” A spark of mischief glimmered inside me. “And if you get an in-house doctor, he might be hot, and then I’ll fall in love with him and leave you to be with him.”
“We can’t let that happen, can we? I think there’s bad luck about killing a doctor.”