Chapter Thirty
T wo weeks after Christmas, I finally found a temporary job in the kitchen of an Italian restaurant as a dishwasher and general maid.
It was hard work and I was poorly paid, but I wanted to contribute to our rent.
And I badly needed to be busy. Since the attack, I hadn’t stopped watching my back.
At least now the guards who watched me on Lorcan’s orders always showed themselves so I knew they were close by. It helped with my anxiety.
I had to admit I was disappointed that Lorcan didn’t keep his promise to tell me about his questioning of my attacker.
Instead, he sent one of his brother Balor’s men.
When the alarm had woken me the morning after the attack, I jerked up in fear, disoriented and out of breath.
It took me a while to realize where I was: in Lorcan’s temporary apartment so he could watch me.
I’d been on autopilot that day, because I had to function for Finn’s sake.
I’d longed for Lorcan’s presence. With him by my side, I would have felt safe.
The other guards were only a small consolation.
Our night together had reminded me of the longing I’d tried to suppress.
I missed Lorcan, and his actions made me hope that he missed me too.
But he’d returned to New York without another word. Maybe that really meant it was over .
Life had to go on. I’d have to figure out a way to return to Dublin in body and mind .
My arms were buried in hot water when my phone vibrated in my back pocket, interrupting my wandering thoughts. I ignored it, but when the person tried three more times, I knew it was important. I wiped my hands on the apron.
The moment I picked up, someone said, “Your sister is in a hospital in New York.”
“What?” I barely understood what the person was saying. The voice was muffled, so I couldn’t say who it was. I thought it might be a man but it could have been a woman imitating a male voice too. After a moment, the words sank in. “My sister? Where? Why? I don’t understand.”
The person gave me an address then hung up. I blinked, completely stunned. My sister was in a hospital in New York? Since when? And why hadn’t Lorcan called me? I knew why. What if this was a trick?
Too much had happened in the past for me to believe a strange voice.
It could be the people who attacked me, or the police trying to lure me to their side again.
Since I married Lorcan, seeing police on the streets didn’t evoke the same sense of protection I’d felt in the past. I’d been dragged into his shady world.
After I’d tossed my apron aside and grabbed my purse, I left the restaurant without a word and ran home. Even if I mistrusted the voice, I needed to find out more as soon as possible. I would have lost the job in a couple of weeks, when they’d realized who I was.
Mum wasn’t home and Finn was with our neighbor.
What was I supposed to do now? I needed to find out if it was true. But whom could I call? The police were out of the question. The hospital probably wouldn’t give me information over the phone either. And word might spread to Lorcan if I called the hospital.
Maeve. Or Gulliver. Those were my only options.
I chose Maeve. Gulliver was loyal to Five-Leaf-Clover, and he’d tell Lorcan.
Maeve picked up after the fifth ring.
“Maeve, it’s me, Aislinn.” I hadn’t called her since Lorcan sent me away.
She was married to Seamus, so I assumed she wasn’t allowed to stay in contact with me.
Now, I wondered if I should have given it a try sooner.
I’d loved spending time with her and I knew if given time, we’d have become best friends.
I quickly told her about the call I just received.
She was quiet, then she murmured. “It wasn’t me, if that’s what you think.”
I had thought it might be her. “Do you know if it’s true? Seamus talks to you about business.”
She released a small breath. I knew I was asking for a lot. Seamus trusted her and Maeve loved him. “She is.”
I released a shuddering breath. “Thank you. Thank you so much. I’m sorry I didn’t call.” I hung up and paused.
I was still furious at Imogen. I had promised myself I wouldn’t help her again, but could I really do it? Maybe she was a horrible person, but that didn’t mean I had to be too.
I needed money to fly to New York. I needed money really quickly. I rushed downstairs into the Merchant’s Arch, where Mum was doing the afternoon shift.
After some back and forth, Sean refused to give me the money. I wasn’t sure what had happened between Mum and him but it seemed he finally realized he didn’t have a chance with her.
I was desperate and so I called Gulliver. I didn’t have much hope, but I couldn’t call Lorcan. Not after everything that had happened.
Gulliver answered almost right away and again the words just bubbled out of me. “I need money for a flight.”
“If you agree to talk to me about your marriage again,” he said.
I swallowed. “Lorcan sent me away. You said it yourself, I’m lucky he didn’t kill me.”
“I’ve had time to reconsider.”
Had Lorcan said something to him in confession? Maybe about our reunion in Dublin? How he’d saved me and still made sure I was safe? My thoughts whirred in my head like a tornado. I tried not to think about Lorcan’s motives too much because it just rekindled my own longing.
“I’ll talk to you, all right?”
“I’ll give you my credit card details. No business class.”
I laughed. I wouldn’t have dreamed of it. I was just so happy he was helping me. An idea struck me. Was it Gulliver who had called? It seemed unlikely, but my life had become a string of unlikely events .
An hour later, my flight was booked and it was scheduled to leave tomorrow morning. I dreaded my goodbye with Finn, especially because I couldn’t tell him why I was leaving.
He was more understanding than I anticipated. “Will you make up with Lorcan?”
I blew out a breath. He hadn’t stopped mentioning my husband. The kid missed him, and I did too. Lorcan was brutal and cocky, but our interactions made me feel a spark that I’d missed in my life before him, and he’d been good with Finn.
“I’ll talk to him, okay?”
“Okay,” he whispered and snuggled up to me for the night. “Will you take me to New York soon?”
I could hear his wistfulness. I hadn’t realized just how much he liked it there. “I’m doing my best.”
And now I had to because I promised him.
I wasn’t sure if it was clever to talk to Lorcan, especially because I was pissed at him for keeping Imogen from me and because he’d left me alone in that bed after our reunion.
Now wasn’t the time to fret about it. I needed to go to New York and see my sister.
I drove straight to the hospital from the airport. I managed to sneak past reception. I didn’t want to explain why I was there. I knew the room number from my secret caller.
When I rounded the corner to the corridor where the room was, I froze.
One of Lorcan’s men, easily recognized by the five-leaf clover tattoo peeking out from under his shirt sleeve, sat on a chair beside the door.
He was reading something on his phone and hadn’t noticed me yet.
My heart began racing and I sped up, clutching my purse against my chest. He finally looked up and recognition followed by uncertainty crossed his face.
He got up and stepped in front of the door.
Dread settled in the pit of my stomach. “Mrs. Devaney,” the guard said. “What are you doing here?”
I narrowed my eyes. “Who is behind this door?”
“No one of interest. ”
“If she weren’t of interest, Lorcan wouldn’t position a guard in front of her door,” I growled. “Let me through.”
“I can’t.”
“What’s your name?”
“Corbin.”
“Let me through, Corbin, right this moment, or call my husband, because I won’t leave until I’ve seen who’s behind this door.”
He called Lorcan. I didn’t expect any less. Lorcan’s men would never go against his direct orders, and he obviously ordered good old Corbin to keep me out of my sister’s hospital room.
“Would you like to sit down?” Corbin motioned at the chair he previously occupied.
A new wave of anger washed over me but I squashed it.
He followed orders because the harsh rules of the Five-Leaf-Clover clan dictated it.
He wasn’t the person I wanted to lash out at.
That person would arrive soon enough, and then he’d see how much of a fury I had inside of me.
I knew I should restrain myself. Lorcan held a grudge against me, and his temper was more dangerous than mine.
Ten unbearable minutes later, Lorcan rounded the corner, broad shouldered and suit-clad, as if I’d ripped him away from a business meeting. His expression was impossible to read. I balled my hands into fists, stifling the urge to rush toward him and pummel them against his chest.
Lorcan gave a dismissing nod at Corbin who took his cue and left. “Aislinn, what are you doing here? Didn’t I make myself clear when I sent you away?”
I scowled at him. “We both know why I’m here. And your signals aren’t as clear as you might think. Our night together in Dublin might lead to some misunderstandings. Will you let me go in or will you try to stop me like Corbin did?”
He ignored my comment about our night, not even batting an eyelid.
Either it didn’t matter to him, or he tried very hard to make it seem that way.
I didn’t have the emotional capacity to analyze him.
“It wouldn’t be trying. I would stop you,” he rumbled in that deep voice that always sent a shiver down my back, especially when it talked dirty.
“Imogen is behind this door, isn’t she?”
Lorcan peered down at me with furrowed brows. “Some doors should remain closed. ”
I jabbed a finger against his chest, overwhelmed by anger and worry. Restraint seemed impossible. “Not if my sister is behind it.”
“You should forget her.”
“Maybe,” I agreed. “But I can’t.”