16. Adeline #2
Cormac strides through the gym, almost regal in the way he refuses to talk to people. Seamus, meanwhile, keeps stopping to shake hands with people, clapping them on the shoulder, still riding the high of his cousin’s win.
We find him in a backroom, the lights much brighter. He’s sitting on an exam table, but his laugh rattles the room when he spots his family.
Cormac pats his cheek, the first sign of warmth exuding from the man. He leans in low, whispering something to his nephew. Ciaran laughs again, and then Seamus is there.
But as he talks, his head whips around, stilling when he spots me.
I smile, staying where I am to give them space. Except Seamus claps his shoulder, peeling off. Then Cormac steps away.
“Hi,” I say softly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. His eyes roam my skintight dress. At least the one eye he can open.
I step closer, my heels giving me an advantage, but only because he’s still seated.
“You came,” he says.
“You watched me place it on my calendar.” I delicately cup his cheek, my heart fluttering at the way his smile grows in response. “They beat your face.”
A laugh bursts from him.
“Ciaran,” I admonish.
He pulls my hand to his lips. “That’s how these things work.”
“I don’t like it.”
When he laughs, I try to tug my hand away.
“I won today, Adeline.” He whispers the words, but the pride is unmistakable.
“What did you win?” I mean for it to sound flirty, but I’m afraid it’s failed.
“Well, for starters, I’ll be able to pay rent.”
I tear my hand back. Of course it makes sense there’s a cash prize. This was hardly about bragging rights. But I didn’t realize there’d been such tangible goals regarding this venture.
“You have a job.” I keep my voice low, aware the room is crowded.
“Careful, princess, or I’ll start to think you actually care if I get hurt.”
I glance at my shoes. “Have you always done this? Fight.”
“You think Leon would let an untrained fighter in his ring?”
Someone answers before I can. “No, he would not.”
An older, shorter man with the air of a high school gym teacher stares at us.
“Leon.” Ciaran smiles.
Leon doesn’t smile back. He’s too busy inspecting me. “Adeline Akatov, as I live and breathe.”
“Hello. . .”
“Did he pay you to be here or something?” he asks.
“Or something.”
His laugh is a mere huff under his breath. “You did well tonight,” he tells Ciaran.
“Well enough you’ll invite me back?”
Leon lifts a brow, silently asking me. I shake my head.
“The Akatovs don’t own the city,” Ciaran replies.
“Son, you are one stupid motherfucker. This woman will snap her fingers and replace you before your body hits the ground if you so much as piss her off one time.”
I lift my chin, agreeing.
Ciaran grimaces, one hand lightly touching his ribcage. Leon chuckles, his lips finally twitching into something that resembles a smile before he walks away.
“What do we do?” I ask, hovering close but not touching him.
“I’ll be fine,” he says, his attention snagging on something behind me.
I turn to find Nat. She’s got on a black dress, her eyeshadow smoked out. Yet, the air about her resembles a professor, studious and confident.
“What are you doing here?”
She rolls her eyes. She hates boxing. “Lia loves this place. She told me who was on for tonight.”
Nat nods at Ciaran in greeting. “You did good.”
“Thanks.”
I point. “Look at how badly they bruised his face.”
He stiffly stands up, grunting. “You never were with me because of my looks.”
Ciaran brushes past me, his fingers skimming my arm as he heads toward his uncle.
Nat rocks back and forth on her heels. “So. . .”
“No one warned me when I went away to college my roommate might film herself masturbating so she could send it to her boyfriend.”
Nat’s mouth forms a perfect little ‘O’.
“Yeah, and apparently Trish is, like, really into watching it.” My new fantasy novel had not deserved to be corrupted in such a manner. “So I’ve been spending time at Ciaran’s a lot.”
Nat nods slowly. “Are you. . . being safe?”
My shoulders soften. “Mom put us on the pill when we were, like, fifteen.”
Nat’s heels click as she patters over to me, grabbing my hands. “It’s a big deal.”
One look and she’s seen into my soul. She knows I’ve slept with Ciaran and that I’m stepping toward something bigger than any high school romance I’ve ever had.
My lips part, words gathering. “I really like him.”
“Why?” she asks in that typical Nat way. She’s not arguing. She’s trying to understand.
“Because I don’t have to hide our way of life with him.” We’re both well aware of the world we live in. Wariness crosses Nat’s face, though. “He never asks about Dad’s business.”
I get a classic are you sure about that facial expression. I nod firmly.
“Family is important to him too,” I say. “He gets it.”
She should hear how he speaks about Nora and Ian.
“He’s even taken up your side in all of this.”
“Don’t try to butter me up,” Nat says.
“It’s true.” He knows Nat gives me a hard time because she’s looking out for me.
“You’re totally falling for this guy, aren’t you?”
I catch Ciaran’s profile in my periphery. “Yes and no.”
Nat narrows her eyes, frowning.
“It’s new. I’m young, and as previously established, I have a lot of goals.” And what she doesn’t know is I’m still very aware that my boyfriend is here because of an arrangement involving one dead guy. “So, yes, I like him. But no, don’t worry, I’m aware he’s not my soulmate.”
This is just a chapter in my life. Part of growing up. I’m not just having sex for the first time. Ciaran thinks I’m introducing people to him, but it works both ways. It’s time I start walking among our world, every bit the Akatov daughter that I am.
I will no longer be a little girl. A child shielded by her parents. I can play this game, just like the best of them.
“Best laid plans,” Nat tries to remind.
“My plans don’t go askew.”
“I’m sorry, didn’t you think you’d end up being besties with your roommates?”
“Extenuating circumstances.”
She hums. “Uh huh.”
“I am sorry about the Lia comment.”
She shakes her head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“But you can. To me.” I’m here if she needs to vent.
“Same,” she says. “I know I sound bitchy over the phone, but I swear it’s okay if you want to call about your classes or internship.”
We squeeze each other’s hands.
“Did you see my boyfriend knock that guy out?”
She rolls her eyes, untangling her hands. “I have to find Lia before she gets kicked out again. I love you, bye.”
She marches past Ciaran. “You know she doesn’t actually like the crust on her sandwiches.”
Ciaran’s brown eyes find mine, humor brightening them.
“You okay?” he asks when he comes back over.
“Yeah.”
He kisses my forehead. “You sure?”
“Oh, Nat still doesn’t think you’re a great boyfriend,” I clarify. “But she’s at least talking to me again.”
“You know her disliking your boyfriend has nothing to do with you. She doesn’t think you’re stupid. She’s just protective.”
“It’s okay, you don’t have to give me a pep talk.”
It’s sweet, but here’s the thing: this world is full of people like Jack and Wallen. Men and women will tear you down without a second thought. Ciaran won’t always be here to protect me, and neither will my guard.
At the end of the day, as much as I like Ciaran and love my family, I can only truly rely on myself.