Chapter Two
DARE
“Trouble is my middle name.” Her smirk almost makes me combust on the spot.
The things I will do to her if she lets me. I’ll wreck her, break her, and build her back up over and over again.
I grin and take her hand.
Her skin is soft, and I wonder if it’s that smooth all over, if she’s hairless or trimmed, if she’s slick from our flirting.
I love women, and women love me. It’s not so bad being a playboy, is it?
I know I’m technically on a job, but my part of the job is done. There’s no tech to deal with anymore. So, I can enjoy the little enigma I have in front of me.
A very delicious, very enticing enigma that has me hard just by looking at her.
Does she like it rough? Hot and heavy? A little bit of pain on the side?
I hold my groan.
I want to ask her who she’s here with, already feeling possessive. I want her. Want to own her. Want to hurt her so good…
Just because I’m supposed to be working, supposed to be looking for this woman, Maggie Sullivan, doesn’t mean I can’t have any fun, right?
Fuck.
I formulated the guest list myself, so I know who’s invited, and Isla must be a plus one because her name is not on the list. If that is even her name.
I focus on her face.
Isla looks a lot like Maggie, with the freckles across her nose, her high cheekbones.
If I’m honest with myself, I know it probably is her, but at least I can have a little fun and a taste before Liam makes me do something I don’t want to do.
I mean, I know this life isn’t easy, that shit goes wrong all the time and people get hurt. But I hate the violence that comes with it. It’s distasteful.
If only I were lucky enough to one day find someone as adventurous as me. But my line of work, even if I just handle the tech side of things, means I’ll never find love.
Not the forever kind, not the kind I yearn for, crave. That kind of love is off-limits to me.
So, I’ll take the passionate one-night stands, as many as I can get, and keep busy the rest of the time pretending like I don’t notice the fact that my life is empty and meaningless and that I wish I had someone to come home to.
Someone like the woman standing in front of me right now. Whoever she is.
I’ve done my research on Maggie Sullivan, a gorgeous bombshell who manipulates men like it is her job.
Somehow, she’s gotten information about the Hayes clan and is threatening to leak it to the press.
But now she is in the wind. Hiding, lurking. Her life has a price tag on it, and there are a lot of people out there waiting and eager to collect.
So, why is she here? Is she trying to hide in plain sight? Does she have a death wish?
But maybe it isn’t her.
She’s slightly thinner than Maggie, her eyes brighter.
Of course, none of that is difficult to change.
I ignore the voice in the back of my head, mostly because it sounds too much like Liam.
Maggie or not, I want this. Her.
I have no idea why I’m reacting so strongly to this woman, but I’m taking my chances. If this is really Maggie, this moment is all I have before…
Shaking myself out of it, I tug her toward the balcony, which is empty since everyone’s just showing up.
The guys and I have been here for hours, scoping the place out.
It helps working with your best friends, but it does suck that because of work tonight, I can’t enjoy this little piece of temptation as fully as I want to.
I didn’t lie to her when I said this is a work gig for me, even if I did bend the truth about my work.
“So, Dare. What kind of trouble were you hoping for?” Her voice has a teasing lilt to it.
Oh, a ghrá, you have no idea the trouble I would put myself in for you. The trouble I am getting in for you.
Excitement runs through me as I back her against the balcony railing.
“How much trouble can you handle, a ghrá? Because right now, I want to bend you over this railing and ram into you. Hard. Destroy your pussy and leave you in a puddle of my cum.” I press my hard cock into her belly.
If given the chance, that is exactly what I’ll do to her.
She shudders.
Is that from the cool air or me? Does she want this as much as I do?
“In front of all these people?”
“They’re too busy mingling and drinking. They’ve got their heads too far up their asses to watch us. But how much hotter would it be if someone walked in as I’m pounding you raw?”
A whimper escapes her, but her cheeks flush an adorable shade of pink that makes me wish I could take my time and turn her ass cherry red with my hand.
“But…but we’re basically strangers.”
“I’m Dare. You’re Isla. We aren’t strangers, a ghrá.”
“I know what that means, you know? My father is Irish.”
“Good. It means you know how to have a good time.” I give her a smirk, and she grins back at me, licking her lips.
Fuck, her mouth. Her tongue, so pink.
What would she look like, on her knees, her mouth open, waiting for my cock to choke her?
My tongue swipes across my own lips without me even thinking about it, the need to taste her almost overwhelming.
“So, we have that in common.”
“Aye. I bet we have a lot more in common, too.”
“Yeah? Like what?”
My hands move down her hips, and I watch her face.
She doesn’t flinch, and I lean in closer.
Her eyes flutter closed, eyelashes fanning across her cheekbones.
Her breath mingles with mine, and I part my lips.
I will have all of her, but I’ll start by claiming her mouth.
As I’m about to devour her, someone clears their throat behind me.
Fuck. Talk about cock-blocking a guy.
Without even looking, I already know who it is.
I sigh and straighten up, pulling away from the goddess in my arms.
She pouts, opening her eyes.
At this moment, I hate Liam Hayes.
Isla is the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever seen, the woman I’ve had the strongest reaction to since I can remember.
But the fact that she might be Maggie is the reason that has him here.
It’s the what-if that makes me resent him. Because, what if she is not Maggie?
“Hello, Liam.”
“Darren.” If this wasn’t him, I would pop him in the mouth for calling me by my full name.
I turn. “Can’t this wait?”
He nods tightly, his blue eyes icy. “No.”
I nod and look down at Isla. “I’ll be back.”
“See you later, Fun.” She smiles and slips past me, throwing a glance at Liam.
He keeps his eyes on me.
“You can bet your sexy ass, Trouble.”
I curse under my breath as she walks away, watching her ass jiggle in that tight dress as she moves. I keep watching until she gets to the bar, hoping no one else talks to her.
She's mine. At least, as far as tonight is concerned.
I turn to my best friend. “This better be important, Liam.”
“It’s a lot more important than a piece of ass. Especially that piece of ass,” he growls, and I blink at him.
“What are you talking about?”
“Didn’t you look at the picture?” He pushes his phone in front of my face, showing me a picture of Maggie Sullivan, the woman feeding information to Cormac Callahan, his father’s rival.
Isla’s face, even if a bit chubbier and with duller eyes, stares back at me...
I did look at the pictures, and I did notice the similarities, but the woman in front of me in the flesh was so much more than the pictures show. So, I let myself believe for a moment that maybe…
But there is no denying it now.
Isla is Maggie. Isla is the job.
Disappointment rushes through me.
I really want to take her home and show her why I’m called Dare.
“Look, man, I know you want me to back off, but I won’t do it.” I want this woman. And fuck me if I don’t always get what I want.
I see something I want, and I go for it, Fuck the consequences. It’s what gave me my name.
“The fuck you won’t. This isn’t me asking, this is me telling you. Stop thinking with your dick and do your damned job.”
“Why can’t I just get tonight with her and bring her in tomorrow, after we’ve got it out of our systems?”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now? You want to fuck the traitor?”
“That’s—”
Liam scoffs. “Have you read her file? She’ll have you eating out of the palm of your hand in seconds.”
“I know what I’m doing.”
“The fuck you do. Your thinking head right now is the wrong one, and trust me, I’d rather not have to kill you now. So, back the fuck off from her and let Cillian do what needs to be done.”
A shiver runs through me, thinking of Cillian’s cold gaze, his dark eyes.
I know what Cillian can do, but he wouldn’t do it to a woman or a child. We have standards, after all.
Right?
I don’t know that I can say the same of the man standing in front of me. Liam has a dark side that rivals even Cillian’s, and Cillian is our weapon. The “problem solver.”
I grit my teeth. “Where’s he taking her?”
“To a safehouse. I’ll take her to my father when things are… better.”
What will Ronan do to her?
That’s what I want to ask, but I don’t want to risk Liam pushing me off the balcony. He’s hot-headed, even though he’s always controlled. It’s more of a sharp tongue than outbursts, though.
And Liam’s tongue can cut you to ribbons.
“So, what the hell am I supposed to do?”
Liam rolls his eyes. “Get your ass to the car. You’re driving.”
He storms off, and I stand on the balcony for a moment, watching the bar where Isla is bending over it and asking for a drink. Lucky bartender, with that view.
Fuck.
I’m on car duty again. I hate waiting, but at the same time, I wouldn’t want to be in Cillian’s shoes. At least I’m driving them, so I can keep an eye on her and make sure she is okay.
I hate violence. Yes, I know it’s funny as all hell that someone in my line of work dislikes violence, but that’s me for you.
I’ve had to rely on my brains more than my brawn for a really long time. When I was a kid, I was scrawny, a hundred and twenty pounds soaking wet. It wasn’t until my early twenties that I started running, developing some lean muscle.
I’m nowhere near as wide as Liam or Cillian, but I’ve got that runner’s build, and I can handle myself if I need to stop either of them from hurting her long enough for her to find some safety.
I go back inside the gala.
There are a lot more people around.
Now that Isla, or Maggie, or whoever she is, is no longer a possibility, I look around to see if anyone else catches my eye.
The girl I was dancing with earlier is chatting up an older man wearing a navy-blue tuxedo. Her eyes meet mine, and there is a twinkle there.
Even knowing she is a done deal, I have no desire to go to her.
After seeing Isla, or Maggie I guess, I had no interest in any other woman here. My mind is stuck on those sparkling hazel eyes of hers as my gaze swipes the room and lands on her. The root of my blue balls.
I could have sealed the deal with Isla. Liam could have let me at least have my fun and be the buzzkill after that.
Would it kill him to have had my back this once?
The man himself sidles up next to Isla, and my heart drops into my stomach.
I head to the elevator, taking it down to the ground floor where the car is parked.
I make my way to Liam’s car, a slick, black SUV, and climb into the driver’s seat, slamming the door closed.
Tonight could have been so great.
And Liam ruined it.
I scroll through the guest list, trying to see if someone jumps out at me that signed up for a plus one.
I’m halfway down the list when my eyes lock onto a familiar name.
Colleen Connor.
She’s a mafia princess. Her father is not one of the major players, but he has made a name for himself.
If she was the one to bring Isla, or Maggie, here, should we question her on her reasons? Does Colleen know who her plus one really is?
But, I’m not really willing to have her beaten or killed because of who she keeps as company.
I love Liam and Cillian like brothers, but they can overreact. So, maybe I’ll keep this information to myself.
For now.
Besides, do we want to advertise the fact that we are the ones taking Isla and getting her out of circulation?
I wanted to keep Isla to myself, even if just for the night. Have some fun, stir some trouble.
I guess that trouble part is still on, because I can’t stop worrying.
Is Liam considering the permanent kind of solution to the Maggie problem? Or is this a mistake I’ll forever regret?
I shiver, and cold sweat beads my skin.
I don’t want anything to happen to her, whether she is Maggie or not.
And if Isla is not Maggie, Liam has just about destroyed any chance I had with the only woman I ever wanted to get to know better.
And I have no idea if I will ever be able to forgive him for robbing me of the hope of a love story.