THIRTY-EIGHT
THE LAWMAN’S GALA. Gia loathed holding her brother’s arm. She loathed being this close to him. Just as she’d loathed being under the Sear roof, and boot, all week. At least this was a change of scene.
They were late. Bram’s phone calls and traffic delayed them. Please let that mean the time they’d spend together would be limited. Not too limited, she needed opportunity. If her hint got through, she needed time to see it through. If it didn’t, she was ready to go home now.
Every new second brought new nerves.
Jenna was smart and Brogan shrewd. They’d get it. They would. That said, her tardiness could be a problem. What if they had given up? Maybe they’d come, schmoozed, and gone away again.
Brogan rejected his original invite to the gala. She remembered his conversation with Jenna about it weeks ago. That refusal made the opportunity perfect. Her brother’s guard would be down. He’d have heard—and probably checked—that Brogan declined and wouldn’t expect him to be there.
“It wouldn’t hurt for you to smile,” Bram said, pulling her closer to hiss down at her.
“Oh, I’m sorry, are you worried I won’t make a good impression on your tax attorney friend?”
“Dicktree is a good man,” Bram said. “You’d be lucky to have a guy like that.”
The words hit her just a second before they walked into the ballroom where there should be music or conversation. She didn’t hear any of it, every face was a blur.
For a week, she’d been stuck in her parents’ house.
Every move was monitored; she didn’t have a phone or access to the internet.
What her father feared was a mystery. Her talking to Brogan would be the obvious guess though that would be a stupid fear.
Unhappily or not, she had walked away from him voluntarily.
Her family had every reason to believe she’d be loyal to them.
Being locked up gave her time to think, plenty of it. Brogan didn’t leave her thoughts, even when she tried to chase him away. As always.
The smartest thing would be to sever all ties. The quicker he moved on, the better for everyone. If her family thought he was committed to someone else, it was possible they’d relax their rules. Maybe then she could at least see Shanna again.
Bram took her to the opposite side of the room and stationed her back against a pillar.
“Stay here,” he said. “I’ll get us drinks and track down Dicktree. Stay.”
Sarcasm threatened, but he turned to stalk away without giving her a chance to retort. Their usual sibling antagonism had been heightened all week. After his supposed victory over Brogan, Bram felt superior and that wouldn’t go away any time soon.
Watching her brother disappear into the crowd, this could be her moment to break free. But where would she go? Brogan’s? No, if she went there, she’d never leave. Wasn’t she just through deciding he had to move on? Push, pull, push, pull, she couldn’t be one of those women.
Tough. Assertive. Certain. That’s the woman she had to be.
If he was here.
This could be her only chance. If Bram got involved, there would be a scene. Her plan, her plan, did she have a plan? Beyond this…?
No, not really.
On the fly wasn’t her forte. Where should she look for—Jenna stepped in front of her. Oh, like Salvation herself. A goddess. One she struggled not to embrace and never let go.
She settled for cupping Jenna’s face, enlightened with pure gratitude. “You’re here,” she said. Even alone, Jenna still infused her with joy. “Thank you.”
“Yeah, I’m here,” Jenna said, grabbing her hand. “And I’m not alone. Come on.”
A mission she wouldn’t reject. They went down a corridor, past a couple of doors to another that Jenna pushed her through. A dark, stuffy city office, lovely, romantic, if it—
Someone snagged her hand and spun her around.
Brogan.
Brogan!
“Oh, you came!”
The blessing of his kiss was short. “Irish,” he said, planting her back on the wall, pushing her hard against it, pulling her higher.
“I’m sorry,” she breathed, running her hands up his back when he dipped to kiss her neck. “Oh, Mister, I’m so sorry.”
“Tell me you’re okay,” he said, cradling her face, tracing his lips on hers. “I’ve been worried sick.”
“I’m okay,” she said. “They took my phone, I—”
“I know,” he said and pressed something into her palm. “Take this, we need to keep in touch.”
A new handset. “I can’t.”
He laid a hand on the wall when his face fell into her hair.
“Please, baby, don’t give me lines about buying you gifts.
This is a necessity. I can’t live like we have this past two weeks.
You were worried about the company? Fuck the company.
The company is going to shit and I don’t give a crap.
I don’t give a fuck about anything except knowing you’re okay. I’ve been going out of my mind.”
Rubbing his chest with one hand, she slipped the phone into the pocket of her dress.
“We know you won’t do anything I tell you,” she said, meaning it as a tease.
Nothing in his steely gaze suggested he took it that way.
“I’d do anything for you, Irish,” he said. “Anything in my power.”
“I told you not to mess up the Gault deal and you dropped out of the race,” she said. “Daddy said Gault hasn’t made a decision.”
“Gia, I love you, but we don’t have much time. I don’t want to waste any talking about business.”
Avoiding his kiss, she searched his gaze. “You’ve never said that before,” she said. “Why did you say it?”
“Say what?”
Maybe it was a slip.
She shook her head. “Nothing, forget it.”
He resisted when she tried to pull him down for a kiss.
“I love you,” he said, expression contorting in a frown. “Is that what you meant? I said it because it’s true. I love you.”
“You’re only saying it because I did, because you feel obligated—”
“I am obligated to you, Gia, and proud of it.”
Licking her lips, she resisted again by dipping her chin. “Bram will be looking for me.”
“We can’t go on like this,” he said, crowding her closer to the wall, if that was possible. “You want to drive this? Tell me what to do. You asked me here, I’m here—”
“It was selfish of me.”
“Then tell yourself you did it for me,” he said. “I want to be here. I’ve been in agony, Irish. Tell me how we fix this.”
“I don’t know,” she said, swiping at the tear on her cheek. “It would be easier for everyone if you moved on. If you get with someone else and—”
“Not going to happen,” he said. “Spurns take care of their women.”
“I’m not your father’s mistress.”
“All week I’ve been out of my mind with worry.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Our future. That’s what we should be talking about. Our future together.”
“We can’t—”
“Do you want to raise the kids in the city or open a satellite division of the firm close to wherever you build our home? Tell me where and I’ll be at the table for dinner every night. You have to get serious about your not for profit too.”
“My—”
“Got to build it from the ground up. Pick a cause. Alice Breckenridge will be an excellent mentor, she’ll help you bring it to life.
She’s a wealth of information; we can trust her.
We’ll trust Tripp less.” He smiled just enough to make her laugh for the first time in weeks.
“And there’s the wedding. Don’t know how I’ll hold it together when you’re walking down the aisle to me—”
Her fingertips stilled his lips. “Stop it,” she whispered, tears tumbling from her lashes. “You’re torturing me.”
He kissed her fingertips and drew her hand down. “It’s waiting for you. Our future. All you have to do is say the word.”
“It won’t stop; it’ll never stop. My family don’t like losing. I could never live with myself if they—”
“Babe,” he said, stroking her face. “We won’t get into your lack of faith in my ability to protect you and us. This is more important than money. Money has nothing to do with our future.”
“What are you saying?”
“I want to be with you, Gia. I’m not afraid of your father’s threat.
If they want a war, we’ll have one. I’ll do my damndest for you, but even if we lose every cent, who cares?
If you don’t want our future, say it and we’ll forget this whole thing.
But don’t you fucking dare let them scare you.
Irish, do you honestly think we’re not at war now? Tell me how this could get worse.”
Her family didn’t have the warm fuzzies for Brogan and wouldn’t be gracious in their triumph, he was right.
The war was on. That wasn’t going to change.
Her father would keep her locked up and still punish Brogan.
Bram and her dad would be as vicious as they always had been.
Wasn’t like there was love lost between them before this.
Something buzzed and she jumped, electrified by the anxiety zipping through her. This was wrong and risky. So risky. She dreaded to think how her life would be further constrained if she and Brogan were discovered.
Brogan smoothed his fingers down her cheek. “It’s Julius,” he said, retrieving his phone.
Her head bumped against the wall. “Answer it,” she said, closing her eyes.
When his mouth took hers by surprise, she yelped but didn’t get a chance to relax. He startled her again by bending down to run both hands up her thighs under her skirt.
“What about Julius?”
“He can wait,” he said, licking her neck, running his fingertips over the crotch of her panties. “Have you thought about me this week?”
“Constantly,” she whispered, her body awakening to his.
Over her panties, he trailed a finger around her clit. “Have you thought about me here?”
“Oh, God, Mister, all this mess and I cry at night knowing I’ll never be naked with you again,” she said, pressing herself into his hand. “Yes. Yes… Every time I touch myself, I think of you.”
He placed short damp kisses along her jaw. “You will never think of any other man.”
“I couldn’t, Brogan. There is only you,” she said, moving her hips, moaning at his torment. “I want you so bad, you have no idea.”
His warm laugh rumbled against her throat. “I have exactly an idea, Irish.”
She grabbed his hips, desperate to give back. “Let me blow you, baby.”
“Not a chance,” he said, seizing her upper arms to force her back against the wall when she tried to kneel.
“I want you to fuck me,” she said, a frustrated fist swinging down to hit the wall by her side.
Lifting her skirt, she wriggled out of her panties, dropping them to the floor.
“I fuck you here, I’m taking you home.”
Her jaw clenched. “I don’t feel very in control,” she said, giving in to the exhaustion now that she was in a presence of an ally. “But you’re right. I should get back to Bram.”
“Didn’t say that.”
“Could you get a message to Shanna for me? I don’t know how, but I—”
“She’s worried about you,” he said, surprising her again.
“How do you know that? I thought she’d be too intimidated to call the office.”
“I figured, that’s why I called her. I had to update her on Jarrod. We’ve been keeping in touch.” Her mouth fell open and he laughed at her surprise. “I promised you I’d take care of it, didn’t I?”
“I’m speechless,” she stuttered.
“I see that,” he said, smirking as he swooped in to kiss her again.
This one didn’t stop. They finally got to just feel each other. They could pretend this was forever. Never leave that room, that wall, that—the buzzing interrupted them again.
“Goddamn,” Brogan snapped, retreating a step to snatch out the phone again. This time he did answer it. “I’m with Irish, leave me the fuck alone.”
His expression changed from anger to surprise and he put his back to her. “What do you mean?” he asked. “Are you sure? They have him or they’ve located him… yeah? Get everyone together. Call Shanna and…”
Jarrod. The call had to be about him.
Everyone else was acting, taking control, and she was tied to concrete sinking into the ocean. Brogan kept on talking, issuing commands. Gia sidestepped, opening the door and slipping out. She’d just closed it when Jenna poked her head around the edge of the corridor.
“Gia,” she whispered. “Are you okay? Your brother is looking for you.”
“You saw him? Did you speak to him?”
“No, I’ve been keeping lookout, I just watched from the door. He’s talking to people, looking around. He wouldn’t know me from a hole in the wall.”
Bram had been around Jenna before, but the woman wasn’t wrong.
“I better go speak to him.”
“Where’s Brogan? What’s next?”
She took the phone from her pocket and gave it to Jenna.
“It’s too risky for me to have that,” she said and passed by. “Tell Brogan thank you.”
The party. Her brother. She needed to pull it together. Leaving a confused Jenna with that thought, she went back out into the party to seek her brother.
Didn’t take him long to find her.
“Where the hell have you been?” he demanded, storming up to her full of thunder. “I told you to stay put!”
“I don’t feel well,” she said. “I want to go home.”
“We just got here. What about Dicktree?”
“I want to go home.”
Following their example, Gia didn’t give him a choice and headed for the door. He could stay or follow, either way, she had to get out there and decide what the future would be.