Then, Gael offered me his arm without another word spoken between either of us.
9
Gael
“Thoman, what is it? I’m busy at the moment.”
My phone had been ringing off the hook all fucking morning. I couldn't get a lick of work done because of it, either. Colleen proved to be a greater distraction than I had anticipated. Seeing her walking around the brownstone in my clothes when hers were all dirty? It stirred something within me I didn’t think existed. That was one of the reasons why I hadn’t bought her any clothes, either. Because fucking her while she wore my shirts sent a spark of excitement rushing through my veins.
Excitement I hadn’t felt in years.
But her flouncing around the brownstone in them didn’t work well when I had to, well, work. It made me frustrated. It stiffened my cock while I tried crunching numbers and placing phone calls. And with the fucking week I’d already had, I needed a good day’s worth of work put in.
Especially after that stupid coffee time Colleen had with my mother.
“I’m sorry to bother you, sir, but I have recovered some information you need to know.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Please, don’t tell me something has fallen through with this fucking warehouse deal.”
“Not necessarily.”
I paused. “What does that mean?”
“Well, in the middle of our negotiations, an anonymous buyer popped up.”
“An anonymous buyer.”
“Yes, sir. I did as much background research as I could to see if I could undermine them. But it was of no use. They purchased the property, so I was in the process of searching for more properties all day yesterday.”
“There’s a ‘but’ to this, right? Because I’m already upset that you haven’t informed me of every step like you told me you would.”
I slammed out of my chair as I tried to swallow my anger.
“There is a ‘but’, sir. But this buyer has contacted me formally and asked to have a sit-down meeting. Apparently, the property wouldn’t deliver what they thought it would, so they’re wanting to see if we’re still interested in buying it.”
“Everything about this is off.”
“Hence the phone call, sir.”
“You should’ve called me sooner.”
“No disrespect, but I’ve been doing this research in the middle of the evenings. Declan has been giving me the runaround for—”
I sighed. “Never mind. Never mind. Uh…”
I shoved everything else out of my mind so I could think straight. I started pacing my kitchen as I weighed the pros and cons to this. It was almost certainly a set-up. For what? I wasn’t sure. But it had all of the makings of a set-up. Clearly, whoever was behind this didn’t think I was that stupid. I had a reputation around here, and it definitely wasn’t for being stupid.
If they knew my reputation, though…
“Did you find anything on these people? At all?” I asked.
“No, sir. But when they called, they referenced you by name. So, they’re familiar with you.”
That answers that. “Tell them I’m willing to meet and send me the details.”
“I’ve already been given them, sir. I just didn’t know if you’d be interested in them.”
I sighed. “Damn it, Thoman. Stop beating around the bush and feed it to me.”
I rushed over to the kitchen table and jotted down the details. The address. The time. Where to park the damn car. I hung up on Thoman and threw my pencil down. How the hell did my days keep getting worse around here?
“Fucking hell,” I murmured.
“Gael?”
I froze at the dulcet tones of her voice. I slowly lifted my eyes to the stairs and saw her standing there in another shirt of mine. A silken shirt. One of my more expensive ones. She had an apprehensive look on her face, with her glasses sliding down her nose. Her hair was mussed from our lunch hour together. She still smelled of my cock and our intermingled sweat. I licked my lips as I stared at her. As I drank her in. And when she started shuffling about, I snapped myself out of my trance.
“I have some things I need to take care of. Help yourself to any food there is in the fridge. Though, I need to go grocery shopping.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“I won’t be back until late. But I think you’re well aware of our routine.”
“Yes, I am.”
“Be ready for me when I get back. I won’t be any later than ten. And make sure you shower this time. I enjoy a clean slate.”
She sniffled. “I will.”
I paused. The sniffle. Was she crying? I studied her face and she didn't look to be crying. Was she getting sick?
“Take care of yourself while I’m gone,” I said.
She blinked. “I always do.”
The emptiness in her voice caught me off-guard. Did she always sound this way?
“Right. Well. See you tonight.”
Then, I gathered my things up and left.
I didn’t have much time to kill before this meeting. So, I decided to let the driver ride us around town while I fiddled around with some file folders. There was always work to be done. Always calculations to be made. Always someone who owed us something or someone who needed to be paid a visit. I decided to tick a few things off Declan’s own list of things to do. I stopped by the house of a man who dropped off the face of the planet after not coming into work for a week. I stopped by a lovely home with a very scared woman inside who kept rattling on in a language I didn’t understand. I even went by the park and found a mother playing with her son, who pointed me in the direction of where her slimeball ex still lived.
The Callaghans always got their money in the end.
After the sun set beyond the horizon, I headed for the address. The street lights of Chicago gave way to flickering lamps and rundown buildings. Definitely a part of town no one wanted to be caught alone in. I adjusted the gun on my hip. I really hated how it dug against my skin. Nonetheless, it was a requirement for my line of work. So, I made it work.
“We’re here, sir.”
I gazed out the window. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, sir.”
“But there’s nothing here.”
I opened my car door and stepped out. The alleyway we had parked in contained nothing. No door. No lights. No access point. Nothing. Just a long stretch of abandoned properties that smelled like rust, dust, and mold. I wrinkled my nose as I looked around. The hairs on the nape of my neck stood on end. I closed the car door and slipped my hand against the handle of my gun, ready to pull it at a moment’s notice.
“No need for that.”
I whipped around at the sound of his voice. The Irish lilt. The gravely notes. There was no voice more distinct in my mind than that of Patrick Maguire’s. That man had chased me off his property so many times as a kid I practically memorized the way he said my name.
“Gael, there’s no need for the gun.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What are you doing here?”
He held his arms out. “I’m here to negotiate, of course.”
“What?”
He chuckled. “Not as quick to put the pieces together like Declan, are you?”
I licked my lips. “Why don’t you do it for me so I don’t get anything wrong?”
“Take your hand off your gun and I will.”
“While you're packing? Not a chance.”
He unbuttoned his suit coat and folded it up. He slowly turned around in the moonlight, showcasing the fact that he wasn’t packing a gun. At least, on his hip. Or underneath his arms. Which meant he wasn’t packing a gun anywhere that was quickly accessible for his aging body.
Enough for me.
“Why am I here, Patrick?”
“I’m here to negotiate the purchase of a property you’re apparently drawn to.”
I paused. “You’re the anonymous buyer.”
He nodded. “I admit, I almost didn’t get those idiots
to sell it to me. They were wary of the corporation I bought it with. I mean, I kind of threw it together at the last minute. But I’ve got LLCs to spare for that reason. However, after finally offering them thirty percent over what they were wanting the damn place for, it was easy to overshoot your, well, undershot.”
“Give me your terms. I’m assuming you already have them in mind.”
“How much is it worth to you?”
I shrugged. “Not enough to align myself with you.”
He chuckled. “I’m not an idiot, Gael. I know you’d never betray your family. They preach of loyalty, but you’re really the only one who understands what that means, don’t you?”
I winced. “What. Do you want?”
“I want my daughter back, Gael.”
“You what?”
“Colleen. My daughter. I know you bought her a couple of weeks ago. I want her back.”
“In exchange for what?”
He snickered. “The warehouse property, of course. An even trade. You get your warehouse space, I get my daughter back, and I’ll even throw in the money to close off that God-forsaken roof.”
“You’re not telling me everything there is.”
“Do I have to? I just presented my terms. Make your choice.”
“Why sell your daughter off only to want her back? That makes no sense. And if I’m entering into any kind of deal, I want the full scope of things. Which includes why you’re making the decision you are.”
“Don’t you hear me? I’m legally letting you out of the contract you signed in exchange for the warehouse property you want. Just give me my damn daughter back.”
“A Callaghan always keeps their word. Contracts. Handshakes. Doesn’t matter. You’re going to need an argument more convincing than that to get me to break that oath.”
He snickered. “I suppose a little money talk never hurt anyone.”
I paused. “Money talk?”
“Oh, come on, Gael. Everyone knows your reputation. You’re a penny-pincher that stockpiles money when he can. You’re loyal to a fault. You carry that gun on your hip, but we both know it’s your words and the strings you can pull that really slay people to the ground.”
That’s my reputation? “I’m well aware of that. What I don’t know is your motivation for all of this.”
“It’s simple, Gael. My daughter could make me a great deal more money than any old rotting warehouse could. It’s more than an even trade, I’d say. Especially with the money it’ll take to close that roof and make the attic a usable space.”
I blinked. “You’re wanting Colleen back so you can put her back on that stage.”
“What?”
I took a step toward him. “You want to put her back up on that stage to be sold, night after night. Don’t you?”
“Why the hell do you care? You get what you want out of this.”
“Answer me. Yes or no. Have you gotten offers for her since I took control of her?”
“I mean, it’s a bit more complicated than—”
I drew my gun quicker than I could blink. Quicker than anyone could blink. I pointed it right at Patrick’s nose as I lunged at him. As I gripped his suit coat. As I pinned him to the fucking car that had gotten me here and hovered over his pathetic, aging body.
“Don’t you play coy with me. I don’t have the time for it,” I glowered.
“Okay, okay. Holy fuck, okay, Gael. Jesus.”
I shoved my hand against his chest before I backed up. Enough to let him stand. But I sure as hell didn’t let my gun waver.
“Can you put that thing away?” he asked.
“No,” I said flatly.
He ran his hands down his suit. “I’ve had many offers for her. Some as high as a million, just for a night. They’ll have rules, of course. No harming her. No permanent marks or scars. No damaging her at all, no hospitals. But right now? She could be my biggest money maker. I want her back. Take your damn warehouse property and give me my daughter back.”
I wanted to shoot him dead. I didn’t even know why. But as my finger tightened on the trigger, I watched the man sweat. It made me sick, really. Her father wanted to pimp her out. Sell her off to the highest bidder and form his own little sex trafficking operation in exchange for some fucking money.
This is the monster Colleen thinks I’m turning into.
Her sniffle rang out across the corners of my mind and I quickly holstered my gun. I ripped the car door open and dipped down against the seat, buckling myself in.
“I need an answer, Gael!” Patrick exclaimed.
“Get us out of here. Now,” I said.
“Yes, sir,” my driver said.
“Gael. Gael! Get the fuck out of that car!”
“Run him over if you have to. I don’t care,” I said.
My mind spun as my driver sped down the alleyway. He quickly navigated us back to the main roads, getting us on a path home. And as I sat there, watching the dark world pass us all by, I realized something.
I’ve been an absolute asshole to her.
“Do you think there are any florists still open at this time of the night?” I asked.
“No, sir.”
“What about jewelry shops?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Clothing stores?”
He paused. “Men’s or women’s?”
Then, it hit me. “No, no, no. A bookstore. Find me a bookstore that’s still open. Now.”
And sometime this week, I’d take her shopping for a wardrobe befitting of the woman she had blossomed into.
Despite being raised by one of the Devil’s right-hand men.
10
Colleen
I drummed my fingers against the table as I sat there, waiting for Gael to come home. Every single time I got him alone long enough to speak with him about this dinner, his pants were off. Or my tits were out. Or his lips were against my own. It was insane how insatiable the man was. And while I wasn’t complaining about it, I couldn't get the man to lay there with me long enough to bring up this thing in the first place after all was said and done.
So, the second the front door downstairs crashed open, I leapt to my feet.
“Gael?”
I called out his name as I rushed to the top of the steps.
“Gael, is that you?”
“Give me a second,” he called back.
I furrowed my brow. “Gael, where did you—”
I heard a door open from out of nowhere and I grew more confused. Where was there to go but up once someone came through the front door? I took a step down the stairs and gazed at the door hanging open. Since when did Gael just leave the door open behind him?
“You want me to close the door?” I asked.
He didn’t answer, though.
I scrambled down the steps and quickly closed it. I locked it, just for good measure, then drew in a deep breath. I could do this. I could ask him this simple question. I just didn’t know how to phrase it. Or what reason I’d give for wanting to go to this dinner. Or even how to begin explaining to him that I knew about it and he didn’t.
“Everything all—”
“Jesus!”
I jumped at the sound of Gael’s voice as his eyebrows rose.
“Everything all right, Colleen?”
I blinked. “No Miss?”
He blinked. “If you’d prefer me to call you that, than—”
“No, no, no!”
Why did I feel so flustered whenever I was around him?
“I’m sorry. I just meant… I, uh, when you—”
He nodded. “Colleen it is, then.”
Is he grinning at me?
Wow, it was so nice to see him do something other than frown.
Pay attention. Ask him. You have his attention.
“Gael, do we have any plans for this evening?” I asked.
He sniffed the air. “What is that you're wearing?”
I paused. “Uh, what?”
He sniffed again. “That
smell. It’s—it’s nice. What is it?”
“I’m honestly not sure. I’ve been using your toiletries, so…”
He frowned. “Oh.”
“Do we have any plans tonight because if not I’d really like to go to this dinner your mother told me she’s having tonight.”
I spat it out so quickly I almost didn’t catch the question myself. But once it left my lips, I held my breath. Gael’s gorgeous eyes danced along my face. I stood my ground, trying not to show him how absolutely terrified I was of asking him this one simple thing.
I had to try, though. Because Fiona might just be the only way to seal my place in this family in a positive way.
“Was this one of the things talked about over coffee?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes.”
“And I’m just now hearing about it?”
“Well, in my defense, you haven’t asked anything about that coffee. So, I don’t know how you’d know about this otherwise.”
“Uh huh.”
I felt as if I were on trial. “I don't know. I got the feeling at coffee that everyone in the family isn’t getting along right now?”
“And if we aren’t?”
I sighed. “I think it’s hurting your mother. And I think all she wants is for all of us to sit down to a family dinner. If anything, I think it would be good for me to go. If I’m going to be, whatever it is I am to you now, I might as well no longer be your secret.”
“What makes you think you’re a secret?”
I paused. “Aren’t I always?”
His eyes held my own for such a long time that I had to look away or risk falling into his orbit again. And I couldn't let that happen. I couldn’t allow myself to believe the boy inside him still existed. The boy I once loved. We were both shells of our former selves. Nothing we did would ever bring those times back. Those people. Those memories.
“What time is dinner?” Gael asked.
My eyes whipped up to his. “Uh, seven. Six thirty? Or was it six?”
He snickered. “We’ll arrive at six, just to be sure.”
I blinked. “You’re… not angry?”
Something flashed behind his eyes that made my stomach ache. I wasn’t sure why, though.
Gael: The Callaghan Mafia Book 3 Page 7