Chapter 31 #3
He hummed through a last lick of his lips and tossed his used napkins in the basket. “Any recent news from Sosa?”
In the last month, we intercepted six of the drug shipments Sosa had planned to sell within the Greater Boston area without O’Leary involvement.
“I told him over a week ago that if he wanted his six ‘misplaced’ shipments out for sale, our penalty fee for overstepping our hospitality and stalling negotiations has upped to fifteen percent on top of our regular margin. I haven’t heard from him since.”
“Not a big loss. We all know his word’s worth seven shades of shite.”
“Won’t matter anyhow. With the funds from Alice’s products, we’ll finally pay him off and cut ties. I’m just waiting for him to reach out. I want him resigned.”
“Well, it helps his dealers now stick out like sore thumbs.” He waggled his fingers at me, and I snorted. “Devin caught another one of the fuckers the other day. Lad already lost one finger to us last month, and now he’s missing another.”
“Good. Da never should’ve let the cartel get a foot in to begin with.”
“Better late than never.” He backhanded my arm. “Oi, we’ve got movement.”
Outside, Alice and Maeve scrunched up their paper wrappers and rose from the table to throw them into the trash and place their plastic baskets in the space above the bin.
There was an ease in their mannerisms together that spoke of years of friendship.
They moved seamlessly, each aware of where the other was at all times.
I’d seen images of Alice’s best friend in the camera roll on Alice’s phone.
In almost all of them, they made ridiculous poses together with exaggerated teethy smiles, wide-eye filters, and duck-face selfies, but this was the first time I saw Maeve with an expression close to neutral.
There was a familiarity to her I couldn’t quite put my finger on, like I’d seen her over and over, yet there wasn’t anything particularly captivating about her features other than her hairstyle.
Both of them looked completely at ease as they linked arms and stopped in front of the floor-to-ceiling window Liam and I sat behind. Alice smiled my way and took out her phone. Mine buzzed shortly after.
Síbhean
I know you’ve been watching, but thank you for the space.
“Who’s the woman with your girl?” Liam asked as Alice ducked her head down to type more.
“Maeve, her best friend. She’s off-limits to you.”
“Wasn’t going to try anything.” He raised his phone and snapped a photo of my woman and her friend.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I went to swipe the damn thing from him, but he dodged.
“I’ve seen her before.”
That stopped me short as my phone vibrated over a napkin on the table.
“Who?”
“The friend. Who else?”
I narrowed my eyes at him and pulled up Alice’s message.
Síbhean
We’re going gown shopping now for the gala, so unless you want to be bored out of your mind…
I started to type something back.
“Doesn’t she strike you as familiar?” Liam added, and my thumb froze over the screen. “But what do I know? I felt the same thing when I first met Alice.” He had? “So maybe it means nothing.”
Again my phone buzzed, and a new message popped up.
Síbhean
You can even leave Arthur and Smiles with me if it makes you feel better.
If you do, tell them sorry for me for dragging them through this.
“Maeve owns a construction company. We might have worked with her.” I waved back at Alice through the window and caught the kiss she blew my way, like a lovesick sap.
Fuck, what was she doing to me? Truth was, I didn’t even hate it.
“Send it over to Brody just in case. It’ll be something to pull his focus off his loss. ”
“Would your attention be so easily pulled away?”
My phone signaled another message and saved me from answering.
Síbhean
Kisses, HD.
I’ll be thinking of you.
“HD?” Liam asked over my shoulder.
I elbowed him out of the way. “You mind?”
My annoyance had nothing to do with the fact that Alice still hadn’t revealed what that abbreviation stood for, and everything to do with her demanding more space.
“Never.” He winked, and I barely resisted slapping the ability to wink off his face. “You’re not going to leave her be, are you?”
I glanced at him dryly, and he whistled. The pitch of it rose, then fell with a harsh drop.
“You know what this means, don’t you?”
“What?”
“You’ve caught feelings. I’d wager you might even love her.”
I shifted my jaw side to side and shoved upright, the chair scratching along the flooring. Truth was, I had already considered that over a week ago when I was planning to check off “a getaway weekend with someone who loves me” from Alice’s bucket list.
“Careful. It’ll hurt all the more if ever…”
“I know.” I rubbed at my chest.
At this point, if I lost her, I knew she would leave a hole I’d never recover from, which was why I wasn’t leaving anything to chance.
I shadowed her for the rest of the day, through every shopping expedition she made. Then when she came home, I took her in my arms and made love to her until the anxiety that buzzed under my skin melted away.