Then I knew I’d most definitely have been involved in more than simply the creation of fraudulent documents.
My head falls into my hands; I’ve had enough. I’ve had enough of this life I was born into for longer than I can remember. I’m not cut out for it—every time I’ve been asked to use my law degree for something ‘not quite legal’, I’ve felt as if my soul has slowly chipped away. There’s only so much more I can take before there’s nothing left.
Thinking back to when things were simpler, my mind invariably wandered to Kirsten O’Leary.
The kid I befriended before I truly understood why we couldn’t be friends. The girl I fell in love with. The woman I cannot have.
Though Kirsten and I hadn’t been ‘allowed’ to be friends, of course, we had still actually been friends. Her older brother Ian was one of my best friends, in reality, though a large part of that was the fact that we both went to college together. He was also one of the plethora of reasons why I couldn’t act on my feelings for his sister.
He had made it abundantly clear I couldn’t pursue Kirsten. It was madness to do so—our families were not on good terms. And, more personally, if I broke Kirsten’s heart or had cause to make her cry, Ian would be sure I paid for it—probably with my life.
But ever since my older brother Matt married Katya—who we only found out very recently was half O’Leary—I had to admit, I’d been thinking about contacting Kirsten. Matt and Katya were acting as a bridge between our two families; a narrow, rickety bridge, but a bridge nonetheless. So why couldn’t Kirsten and I act on our feelings?
I was running on the assumption that Kirsten still had feelings for me. We had spoken little over the past three years. I wasn’t the only one trying to avoid the other at my brothers weddings…and why would she avoid me if she had no lingering desire for me?
“For shit’s sake,” I cursed aloud, hating myself for sullying the good memories of my childhood with Kirsten by tying it back to the present. Besides, getting together with the Irish mob boss’ daughter would only drag me back into a life I did not want.
If I was going to get out, I needed to leave my feelings for Kirsten firmly in the past, where they belonged.
Ha. Easier said than done.
My thoughts were interrupted by a call.
“Yes, what is it?” I asked my assistant, who was on the other line.
“It’s Ian O’Leary on the phone for you, Mr. Wilde. Should I patch him through?”
Of course, he’d call when I’m thinking about his sister, I thought. Typical Ian.
I sighed. “Yes, let his call through. Thanks, Alexa.”
There were a few seconds of static before I heard the familiar voice of my best friend. “Wilde, what are you up to this evening?” Ian asked, foregoing a hello.
I checked the time on my watch. I had less than twenty minutes left at work before I could leave. “I was planning on getting ramen and a couple of beers for dinner, then heading home.”
It was still weird to call the Wilde family compound my home after having spent much of my adult life trying to get away from the place. But with my parents now both dead, it was mine to keep, even though I hadn’t wanted it. The damn place was like a luxury hotel. What did one man need with that much space?
Ian let out a noise of disgust. “What are you, sixty years old? Come join me for a drink.”
“I can’t be held to your beck and call for my whole life,” I told Ian, suppressing another sigh. “This isn’t college.”
“Ha! As if I had to push you to do anything in college. And besides, I’m outside your office now.”
Groaning, I spun around in my chair and walked to the window. Sure enough, there was Ian, grinning up at me and waving.
“If you’re not down here in five minutes, I’m coming up to get you.”
And with that, Ian hung up the phone. Resigned to my fate, even though I didn’t imagine I had ever felt less like socializing than I did now, I turned off my computer, grabbed my suit jacket, and left my office, murmuring a goodbye to Alexa on my way out.
“You’re a jackass, you know,” I said to Ian as we made our way down the street towards a nondescript bar. Neither of us was picky about where we drank—just so long as the place served alcohol, it was fine by us. “You can’t expect me to leave work early every time you want to drink.”
Ian laughed easily. “Then stop accepting my invitations.” He ordered us two beers, then we wandered over to a nearby table and sat down.
“So,” I said, “any particular reason we’re drinking tonight?”
“Nothing specific.” He raised his glass to his lips and took a long, slow drink. “How are you feeling about the Matt and Katya thing?”
Leave to him to ask about that.
“I’m happy for them. It’s going well. How are you feeling about having a half-sister?” I chuckled. “A half-Russian sister.” Given the fact the Irish and Russians were always at each other’s throats, this situation had to be uncomfortable for both families.
Ian stretched his arms up above his head. “I dunno, to be honest. She’s a great girl and all that. And she’s hot which makes it creepy that she’s my sister. Kind of bummed she’s my sister.”
“Ian,” I interrupted, giving him a warning glance.
“I know, I know. No being lewd towards women. Anyway, she was the Russian mob’s little princess. Anyone would be crazy to go near her. Your brother was insane for having done so.”
“He just wanted to be with the woman he loved. What’s wrong with that?”
Ian gave me a level stare. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t even think about contacting Kirsten. Don’t even consider it.”
I held my hands up in mock surrender. “I didn’t say a thing!”
“You were thinking it, you dick! And anyway, what happened to that girl you were seeing—Claire, was it?”
“Clara,” I corrected, taking a swig of beer as I did so. “And she’s long gone. It wasn’t serious, anyway.”
“You’re never serious about anybody.”
“Neither are you.”
“Touché.”
We sat in companionable silence for a while, our minds both clearly full of something we didn’t want to discuss with each other.
Eventually, Ian said, “Please. Just forget about Kirsten. Things are frayed to shit just now as it is. And with everyone jockeying for position—”
“I don’t wanna hear it, Ian. You know that. God, if there ever was a reason I wouldn’t make a move on your sister, this is it. I’m tired of all this shit. I just…want out. And you know that.”
Ian said nothing for a moment, then he smiled at me. “I know, I know. I’m sorry, man. You’ve gotta understand where I’m coming from, even if you don’t want to know the specifics. Just—”
“Forget about her. I know. You’ve said that a few thousand times over the years.”
“That sounds like a gross exaggeration.”
“I wish it were. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were the one with an obsession for your sister.”
Ian wrinkled his nose in disgust. “Don’t even say that. I’m not used to Katya being my sister. I can at least admire her beauty.”
“Don’t be a sick bastard,” I teased.
“Dammit, you ruin everything.”
“I’d say the fact that you share chromosomes ruins everything. And that she’s my sister-in-law, too—if you get to be all super protective of Kirsten, then I get to be protective of Katya.”
“Well argued, as usual. You’d almost think you were a lawyer.”
“Very funny.” I glanced at my watch—if I didn’t get home soon, I’d likely crash out in this bar. It had been a long day. Ian noticed the movement.
“I get it, it’s been a long day.” He yawned. “I’m tired, too. Call it a night?”
“Sounds good. Are we still going to Capone’s on Friday night?”
“Ah, yeah. I forgot
. Thanks for reminding me. I’ll see you there.”
Ian ran off without another word, leaving me to gather my things and pay for the drinks before stepping out into the late-summer evening air.
He made it perfectly clear I should forget about Kirsten, Hell, even I made it perfectly clear why I should forget about Kirsten, but I couldn’t. She was unforgettable.
There were so many reasons for me to move on. The odds were stacked against us from the beginning.
So why was it that, deep down, I couldn’t let her go?
I sighed as I reached my family home.
Something told me I wasn’t likely to fall asleep tonight for a long, long time.
Chapter Three
There was something about not making it out of the vet clinic for lunch that usually made the day absolutely drag. But when we got a rare, quiet day, lazing about in the back room with Rose and Dean was actually fun.
It was Rose’s first day back since she was off with the flu—and, seeing her, I realized she most definitely hadn’t been lying about her illness. She had clearly lost a few pounds and still seemed a little fragile though Rose had at least had her boyfriend up visiting to look after her.
It transpired that I hadn’t contracted Rose’s horrendous flu after all. My symptoms had resulted from plain old exhaustion. Easily fixed with the alcohol I had consumed with Katya and fourteen hours of sleep. Yes. I had slept my entire morning off away.
Now it was finally Friday, and I was in a good mood—the kind the end of the week always brought about.
Rose sighed. Her boyfriend had traveled back to Los Angeles that morning. She clearly needed cheering up.
“When does your man move over to Las Vegas, Rose?” I asked her around my mouthful of cereal—I loved nothing more than eating breakfast cereal for lunch, despite how childish it was. I loved how the little marshmallow treats floated on top of the milk.
“Joshua’s transfer has been delayed—at the rate it’s going, he may not be able to get a transfer at all.”
Oh…God. I only made things worse. “Have you considered moving to L.A. instead?”
She shook her head unhappily. “Joshua is set on moving here. And L.A. is expensive like you wouldn’t believe—well, you probably can believe it. It’s Los Angeles, after all. Sometimes I wish we could just buy a boat there and sail away, never to be bothered by soaring rent prices again.”
“Ah,” Dean interjected, waving his sandwich at Rose as he spoke, “but then you’d have to deal with the prices of marinas and ports when you needed to dock, which are pretty damn extortionate. And who would pay you to work? The dolphins? Though I don’t doubt they’d appreciate you cutting them out of a fishing net or two—”
“We get it, Dean. You’re hilarious. Way to ruin a fantasy.”
“That’s what I’m here for,” he replied, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly as he chuckled to himself. Dean was in a good mood. The clinic was closed in its entirety tomorrow for equipment maintenance checks. For once, all three of us had the day off from our jobs to look forward to.
I could confidently say that in the year since I graduated from vet school and joined the clinic, an all-inclusive day off had never happened.
I watched as Rose played with her salad unenthusiastically. I felt bad for her. She had been with Joshua for two years now and spent close to six months of their relationship in Las Vegas. I knew it was taking its toll on her, especially with long hours working and few friends in the city. When were you supposed to make friends if you were working constantly and using any free time you had with your long-distance boyfriend?
The answer was that you didn’t. That was probably why Rose and I were so close—because she had no other friend options. Well, really, neither of us had other options, since the vast majority of the people I knew were either related to the mob which I wanted nothing to do with in my free time if I could help it, or were college friends who now worked elsewhere.
I suppose it helped that we did actually get on well with each other though Rose was far more serious and high-strung than I was. Suddenly, I was very glad that Katya and I seemed to have hit it off—clearly, I needed to expand my circle of influence.
“Earth to Kirsten!” Dean suddenly called out, waving a hand in front of my face as he laughed at me. I hadn’t realized I’d zoned out and was subsequently ignoring my cell phone buzzing impatiently on the table.
It was Katya, so I happily answered the call.
“Hey, Katya, what’s up?”
“Hey, are you free tonight? I’m the new events planner for Capone’s, and my very first organized event is tonight! It’s a cabaret, but it’s chill—you interested?”
“Hell yeah, I am! And I actually have tomorrow off, which is even better.”
Katya let out an adorable noise of glee. “I’m so happy you can make it! Bring along anyone you want. Just say my name at the door, and you’ll get in with no problems. Oh, and Matt’s brothers will be there—he told me I should tell you that.”
Of course, he did. But the thought made my stomach flutter despite me telling it not to.
“Even Rafe?” I asked, hating myself for checking. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed both Rose and Dean perk up at the mention of someone I’d never told them about.
“Especially Rafe. Again, Matt’s words. Why, do you guys have a thing going on?” Katya responded, suddenly excited at the prospect.
“Oh lord, no!” I spluttered, knowing the heat on my cheeks caused them to turn red in a ruddy flush. “What time should I get to Capone’s, anyway?”
“Let’s call it nine. I can’t wait to see you.”
“You too.”
“See ya then.”
I let out a breath. Katya was clearly not convinced of my lie. Although…it wasn’t a lie, not really. There was nothing going on between Rafe and me, and there never technically had been, which made me feel worse. Suddenly, my good mood slipped away from me.
“Who’s Rafe, Kirsten?” Rose asked as she slowly stirred sugar into her coffee. The smirk on her face told me she wouldn’t let it go. Her mood had markedly improved as fast as mine had soured.
“A…childhood friend,” I replied, which wasn’t a lie. “I haven’t spoken to him in ages.” Again, not an untruth.
“But you’re totally crushing on him, right? You might have fooled your sister, but we got to witness the full-on face blush and everything. Right, Dean?”
“Uh huh,” Dean said noncommittally. It seemed as if his mood had soured too. Maybe he didn’t enjoy typical ‘female gossiping’ about men.
“Rose, honestly, I’m not crushing on him. Maybe I did when we were younger, but we’ve grown up since then.”
Rose pouted. “And here I was thinking you finally showed interest in someone. You can be so boring sometimes, Kirst.”
“I just haven’t found the right guy yet. If that makes me uninteresting, then I’m okay with that.”
“Ugh, God, that’s so cliché. You need to get laid.”
I stared at Rose, baffled, and then burst out laughing. Were we really talking sex in front of our boss?
“The two aren’t mutually exclusive, funnily enough. I’m not above a hook-up now and then.”
“You haven’t had one since you worked here,” Dean added.
I almost spat out my cereal in shock.
“How could you possibly know?”
He laughed. “Your reaction now confirms it. But I could just…tell. It’s not as if you’ve had much free time, anyway. Given that I’m your boss, I’m well aware of how much time you spend in the clinic.”
Damn Dean for being so perceptive. I hung my head in feigned shame. “I guess you got me there.”
“Well, if all goes well, you can hook up with your childhood sweetheart tonight,” Rose said, grinning. “You’re going to Capone’s, right? I wish I could get in there, but it’s so difficult.”
Suddenly, I had an idea—a way to prevent me from pining after Rafe all night—a w
ay to keep me busy.
“Why don’t you come with me? You, too, Dean,” I suggested to the delight of Rose and the surprise of my boss. “We did always say we would have a staff night out at some point. I’d say it’s long overdue.”
“As if you had to ask me,” Rose squealed, the color she had lost from her face after her flu rapidly returning. “What’s the dress code? What’s the theme of the night? When should we get there?”
Oh yeah. Rose hadn’t gotten out in a while. Few friends and all.
I smiled at her. “Katya said to get there for the nine o’clock entertainment. We could meet for drinks beforehand. Say eight? She said it was a cabaret but it would be pretty chill. Take from that what you will.”
Rose got up and hugged me. “You do not understand how much I need a night out. This is gonna be great. And with me losing weight from puking my guts up, I have just the right dress.”
“Too much info, you idiot. And stop calling me Kirst.” I glanced at Dean. “She’s picking up all your bad habits.”
Dean chuckled. “I’m not taking responsibility for the impressionable Rose West.”
“Are you going to join us? The clinic is closed tomorrow, and you have no one waiting for you at home, so you have no excuse.”
“That was cold, O’Leary. Count me in. Hope you can hold your liquor.”
“Oh please. I’m Irish. Isn’t that all you need to know?”
“I’ll believe that when I see you drink.”
“Okay, okay, guys, stop with the competitiveness. You’re making me lonely,” Rose said, interrupting the typical path mine and Dean’s conversations ended up taking.
“Sorry, Rose.” I checked the time. “I have a cat in to see me in five minutes, so I’d best prep for that.”
Dean glanced at the clock. “Is that Mrs. Daniels’ tomcat? The ancient one?”
“That’s the one. I don’t know how he hasn’t died yet—she’s so old herself that she barely knows what she’s feeding him half the time.”
“Did you know he was a regular at this clinic before I took it over from my uncle? He was just as mean-spirited back then as he is now.”
Betting On Us (Wilde Love Book 3) Page 2