Chapter 34
Thirty-Four
Ciaran climbed back into his car and just sat there gripping the wheel to steady his trembling hands. He didn’t dare show any reaction on his face, not while Andy stood next to the open door, hand poised over the controls.
They locked eyes as he put the car in gear and then Ciaran looked away to back into the road. The garage door was already starting to close by the time he glanced over while shifting gears.
Jal’s ex was still watching him, and Ciaran found himself staring back until the door obscured his face. A car behind him laid on the horn and he cursed, hitting the accelerator hard enough that the car bucked and threatened to stall.
He didn’t make it far. After a few blocks, he found an empty spot to pull into and shut off the car. Crossing his arms over the steering wheel, he put his head down and took a shuddering breath. “Christ.”
From his pocket, his cell phone chimed. Ciaran dug it out and stared at the screen.
Jal: How’s your day been?
Ciaran blew out a breath, and his chest felt so much lighter. Instead of responding to the message, he called her. She answered before the first ring had even finished.
“Well, hello there.” She purred into his ear. There was a murmur of people around her.
He leaned back and closed his eyes. “It’s good to hear your voice,” he replied. “Corny as that may sound.”
Her soft laughter tickled his ear. “Not corny, at all.”
“Where are you? It doesn’t sound like you’re at home.”
“I’m at Darcy’s with the girls, but I was thinking of heading home soon.”
“Hi, Ciaran!” A chorus of female voices sounded through the phone. Jal’s amused rebuke was followed by peals of laughter.
He couldn’t help smiling. “I’m on my way home now. Why don’t I swing by and pick you up? Give me about twenty, thirty minutes.”
Her confusion was clear. “Where are you coming from?”
“I’ll tell you when I see you.”
He knew her well enough to know that she wanted to push, but wouldn’t in front of her friends. “All right,” she said, instead.
“I’ll let you know when I’m close. See you soon.” He hung up the phone and sat for a minute longer, gathering his thoughts before easing back out of the parking space and heading back to Manhattan.
Jal dashed out to the car as soon as he pulled up. It had started to sprinkle as he crossed into Manhattan, but had turned to a full-on downpour since.
Ciaran reached over and released her door so she could climb in. Over her head, he caught sight of Elena and Lexi standing under the overhang in front of the entrance having kept her company while she waited. He appreciated that they were being so careful, even though Andy was a borough away.
Jal smiled at him as she closed the door.
Ciaran couldn’t help himself and slid a hand behind her neck and drew her in for a kiss. Jal stiffened slightly in surprise, but quickly, mercifully, returned it. She tasted like tequila and salt.
Many moments later, he reluctantly eased back and merged with traffic. Jal waved to her friends and then turned back to him. “What was that for?”
“Can’t a man just kiss his girlfriend hello?” It still felt odd to use that term, but it gave him a little thrill. Besides, she’d started it. You couldn’t get more official than declaring him to be her boyfriend to the police.
“Of course you can,” she replied. “And I’m not complaining.” She placed her hand over his on the gearshift and it just felt right for it to be there.
They fell into silence while he drove and, since much of the adrenaline had worn off, the queasy feeling in his stomach was back.
Darcy’s was in the Bowery, so it didn’t take long before he was turning onto his street.
It almost took longer for them to find a parking spot than it had to drive there.
On their third circle of the block, a car pulled out a few doors down from his flat and he slid neatly into the space.
Once inside his apartment, Jal shrugged out of her jacket and hung it by the door. She watched him expectantly while he hung his coat beside hers, and then went to the kitchen to put the kettle on.
It might be a very Scottish thing of him to do, but after the day he’d had, the only thing he wanted was a hot cup of tea.
If a good dollop of whisky also found its way inside, then all the better.
He took down the fixings from the cabinet, then braced himself for her reaction as he leaned against the counter.
“I went to see Andy.” Her eyes grew wide, and he held up his hands to show they sported no new marks. “Just to talk.”
He tried to ignore her arms curling reflexively in front of her, her hands twisting together.
Somehow it made her look smaller, standing there in the middle of the room.
He pushed off the counter and wrapped her in his arms and she held on just as tightly, clutching the back of his shirt with her forehead pressed hard against his breastbone.
“What did you talk about?” She asked into the fabric of his shirt.
There was a fine tremor going through her, so for a moment, he just held her. It helped him too, easing the tension through his neck and shoulders that had been there since he’d decided to drive to Hunt’s Point.
After a while, her hands released their death grip and slid down to his lower back.
He eased her back so he could look her in the eyes while he told her everything, about their deal that would bring Ciaran out of retirement for one more job, and if successful, which it had to be, they would be free of him.
Her laugh was bitter. “I should have known that’s all it would take.” She sighed, and her eyes grew distant, but they focused again almost as quickly. “So many of our… arguments, were over money.”
He brushed a stray curl behind her ear and pressed a kiss to her temple. “Can’t say that I’m at all surprised myself.”
“Do you have any idea who the mark is?” Jal asked.
Behind him, the electric kettle began to bubble aggressively and clicked off. Ciaran reluctantly returned to the kitchen and busied himself with making tea. “I think I have an idea.”
Her back went a little straighter. “Who is it?”
He pushed a steaming mug of green tea and honey into her hands and she let him lead her to one of the living room chairs. She perched on the edge of the seat, the mug on her knee, her back still stiff.
“Let me see what I can suss out.” He set his mug aside and opened a text string on his phone he hadn’t used since the day he’d broken into Jal’s apartment and typed out a quick message. He put a hand on her forearm. “As soon as I know anything, you will.”
She nodded, though her hands kneaded the sides of the cup where it sat on her knee. “I trust you, Ciaran.” She lifted the cup and blew on the surface. “Just please be careful. He’s not someone you want to trust, or cross.”
“Aye, especially since he’s already tried to run me down with a car.”
Her jaw dropped. “I’m sorry, what?”