by Aria Cole
And now I was here, naked and alone on her fucking doorstep. There had to be something I could say, something I could do to get her back.
I heard a door slam across the street, pulling me from my bubble of knife-edged pain before I ducked quietly down the stairwell and retrieved my shirt and jeans. No shoes. Fuck. I’d tucked them under her bed last night—my habit—and now I hoped she’d find them. Even if she hurled them at my head the next time she saw me, that meant she’d have to see me again.
A plan started to form in my head.
I would win Charlie back if it was the last thing I did on earth. We were too good together to let go. She just needed to see that too.
I was creeping around the corner of the bar, aiming to get to my car as quickly as possible so I could plan what to do before I saw Charlie at the bar tonight, when I ran smack into the wall of Vince Jr.
“Hey, man, where you off to so early?” He looked me up and down before his eyes widened. “Oh, shit.”
“Yeah, I’m just running home. I’ll be back in time for my shift.”
“What’d you forget your shoes this morning? Come on, I’m not a dumbass. Walk of shame, man.”
“That’s not it at all, fucker.” I pushed Vince against a wall, instantly feeling as though he’d betrayed the purity of what Charlie and I had shared, even if it had been just one night.
“Hey!” He held up his hands. “Whoa, this doesn’t have to do with…?” His head whipped toward where the stairs led up to Charlie’s apartment. “No fucking way, man!”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” I pressed a hand against my forehead.
“So my sister’s finally gettin’ some, huh?” His eyes twinkled when he stalked around me, arms crossed, looking me up and down. “And then she booted your ass.”
“That’s not what—”
“Dude, you’ve got no shoes.” He pinned me with a serious stare.
I shrugged. I didn’t have an excuse. I’d betrayed his sister's trust, and she’d kicked me out on my arse. End of.
“So how are we going to get you back in her good graces?” He tapped his chin comically.
“What? You’re going to help me?”
“Of course, man. Even I can see how you look at her from across the room. Guy code—you’re whipped, buddy. Plus my sister needs to loosen up a little. Not sure how much you know about her history with men, but—”
“She told me everything.”
His eyes widened in surprise before he continued. “Well, good. The fact that she told you anything means a helluva lot. So what’d you do to piss her off?”
I sighed and thrust a hand into my pocket, thankful I’d at least shoved my keys down deep so they weren’t lost in the trip down the stairs. “She found out my family is wealthy.”
“Oh shit,” Vince said, “that’s a problem.”
I glanced up, and a determined frown was marring his face. “How am I supposed to fix that? I can’t change what I was born into.”
“I dunno, man.” He smacked me on the back and walked with me down the sidewalk. “No sweat though. We’ll figure it out.”
We. I didn’t know what the hell I was thinking, looking for any help from her brother. But I knew he at least had her best interests at heart, and since I did too, we could come together on that. I just hoped he knew her better than I did, because from where I was standing, there was no coming back from the fire and brimstone she’d rained on me.
“Go home and get some sleep. I’ll work recon here.” Vince winked at me as I unlocked my car door and slid in. “See ya in a few hours, buddy.”
That didn’t sound good. Whatever he had up his sleeve, I could not believe that the state of my love life was in his hands. Vince Jr. didn’t look like any kind of cupid to me.
TEN
Charlie
I slipped on my sneakers, foregoing the cute wedges I normally wore at work. I was drained, completely and utterly drained. Memories of last night flashed through my mind, and a smile fought to pull up my lips as I remembered the scent of his skin, the touch of his hands, the confidence that spilled from his lips when he was turned on.
God, now I was getting turned on again.
“Toughen up, Charlie. You knew it would be like this,” I grumbled before pressing my fingertips against my closed eyelids, still burning from the tears that had tracked down my cheeks after I’d kicked him out. “They’re all like this.”
I hadn’t been thinking straight, that’s for sure, because unless Liam quit completely, I was bound to see him every night for the rest of the week, and the one after that…
I shoved a hand through my hair and, with butterflies in my stomach, left my apartment. I walked around the corner of the building to the back entrance to the bar and sneaked in, trying to walk quietly to my little cubby. I spotted Vince out of the corner of my eye, gave him a half smile and wave, then I caught the mischievous look in his eye. I narrowed my eyes at him, pausing to take in the way he was watching me.
“Lookin’ rough today, little sis.”
That wasn’t like Vince at all. He liked to tease, but he never blatantly insulted like that.
“What’s up your sleeve?” I cocked my head, and his grin twitched for a moment before he shrugged and walked away.
“Grr, men.”
I turned back to my cubby and spotted an envelope addressed to me. I lifted it, recognizing my dad’s handwriting instantly, before turning it over and tearing it open.
Charlie,
My girl, my everything. You know I’d go to hell and back for you. You’re the first thing I think of in the morning—Is my little girl okay? Did I do enough? Is she happy?
Those are the things that haunt a father as children grow, but you, you’re so much more than that.
After your mama left, I fear I put too much responsibility on you. My own heart was crumbling, and I couldn’t see reality through my pain, but I’ll regret how I handled that time for the rest of my life.
You aren’t your mama, Charlie. Never were, and I know as sure as I know how to pour a beer, you never could be like her.
You’re thoughtful, funny, and so kind. I don’t know who you get your generosity from because I think we both know it’s not me.
I’ve made a lot of wrong decisions in my life, and it breaks my heart to see you making one now.
Don’t let him go, Charlie.
When you find someone who fills up all the dark cracks in your heart, you hold onto them like a lifeline.
The Irishman loves you. I can see it when he watches you when you aren’t looking.
I see it in the way he listens to you.
I see it in the way he makes you laugh.
You haven’t laughed like that in a long time, baby girl.
I always want what’s best for you, and as it’s pretty widely accepted that fathers know best, I’m here to tell you, Liam is best for you.
Please don't shut him out.
Listen to him and really hear him.
He deserves it and so do you.
Love you,
Your Dad
Tears were streaming down my cheeks by the time I’d finished the note. Never in my entire twenty-four years had my father spoken like that to me. Of course I knew he loved me, but he was a man of few words. I wasn’t even sure how Daddy had found out that Liam and I were fighting. Had he heard us last night? My mind swirled with a hundred questions as I fingered the edge of the paper.
What was I supposed to do with this? Run out the door and beg Liam to talk to me? He may already be done with me at this point, and the fact remained that he’d hidden his past from me. I’d been open and forthright about the most painful parts of myself, and he’d kept secrets.
“Charlie?”
My brother’s voice pulled me from my racing thoughts.
“Yeah?” I turned, swiping at a tear.
“Someone wants to talk to you.” Vince stepped aside, heading back to the front of the bar.
Liam stepped int
o my view, and I sucked in a sharp breath, waiting for his words, unsure what I could even say at this point.
“Can we talk?” Liam stepped closer, his scent intoxicating and sucking up all the oxygen in the room. Just his presence made my knees weak.
I swallowed the lump in my throat, every nerve in my body urging me to run into the bathroom and lock the door. But then my father’s words came back to me. “Okay.”
Liam crossed the space between us and took my hand before leading me to a quiet corner of the back of the bar. Surrounded by boxes and restaurant equipment, he told me everything.
“I was so sick of that life, Charlie. I can’t even tell you how oppressive it is. My parents acted as if they were ashamed when I wanted to go to university in America, but here I am, and it’s the best decision I ever made because it brought me to you.” He cupped my cheek.
I closed my eyes and turned my chin down. I wasn’t ready for this yet. I didn’t know if I could forgive him. I wanted to, but I didn’t know if I had it in me.
“If you hurt me once, I’m done, Liam. That’s how I am. That’s how I’ve had to be to protect myself. I don’t understand why you couldn't tell me.”
“I was afraid you wouldn’t hear me, that you’d never listen. Most people where I come from, they hear my last name and centuries of history is immediately heaped on my shoulders. It’s a fucking weight I hate carrying. It was so nice to be anonymous here. I wanted a real job, I wanted to work with real people. I wanted something different. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I wish to fuck I had the first damn day I met you. I made a bad decision, the worst decision I could have made with you. I know that now, but I swear to god it won’t happen again. I’ll never hold anything back. No more secrets between us, I swear.” He snagged my chin and tipped my face up.
“What about your parents?” I asked as if to prove that he and I could never work.
“What about them?”
“Won’t they hate that you’re seeing someone like me?”
“Someone smart and funny and so generous it puts all of them to shame? I think they’ll be perfectly fine with it. And if they’re not, they can piss off.” The pads of his thumbs caressed my cheekbones.
“So does that mean after the summer, you’re going home? Going back to Ireland? I’m not one of those clingy girls, but I know what I want, what I need, and if you pick up and leave, it will destroy me.”
“I’m not leaving you, love. Not ever. As long as you'll have me, I'm yours, and we'll stay right here. I’ll work this bar with you every night for the rest of our lives and be the happiest man alive.” Liam’s hands dropped from my face, one shoving deep into his pocket while the other cradled my palm. When he pulled his hand out of his pocket, a small, intricate ring with a vibrant emerald gleamed in his palm. “You ready for us, baby?” His eyes twinkled as he eased the ring onto my finger, the little crown facing inward.
“That’s beautiful.”
“It was my grandmother’s Claddagh ring.” Liam stroked the metal band once it was seated on my finger. “It’s an Irish tradition. When it’s placed inward on your finger, it means your heart is closed. It means your heart is mine. I’ve carried it with me like a good luck charm, saving it for the right girl. You’re my girl, Charlie.”
A fresh wave of hot tears sprang to my eyes. How had I gotten so lucky? How had I done everything to push away this beautiful man and still he’d come back, still he’d proven that he loved me?
Could I forgive him? Wholeheartedly. There wasn’t even a question in my mind anymore.
“This is so beautiful. Thank you for coming back, thank you for telling me.” I threw my arms around his neck in a rush, plastering kisses across his neck as immense relief flooded my system.
“You don’t ever have to thank me for being there for you. It’s just what I do. You’ll never have to spend a single day wondering where I am because I’ll be right behind you, watching you, keeping you safe, loving you with every beat of my heart.”
I kissed him then, our lips hovering together, our breaths burned into one. Our tongues danced an erotic tango that set my heart and my mind on fire.
I pulled away a few breathless moments later, my heart feeling as though it had sprouted wings in the space of just minutes.
“What happened to your shoes?” I giggled, swiping at a happy tear pulsing down my cheek.
“Under your bed. I was going to call, but Vince said that was our backup plan.” Liam shrugged. “He said if I was barefoot it’d pull on your heartstrings. I wasn’t allowed to put on another pair of shoes.”
“Vince? You had a backup plan with Vince? I thought you were smarter than that!” I teased, marveling at the lengths they’d gone to get my attention. “So I suppose Vince is the one who had a talk with Dad?”
“I don’t know anything about that. I figured if he found out I’d hurt his little girl, I wouldn't have a job tonight. But the backup plan was to beg and plead for my shoes back. We figured you couldn’t deny a barefoot guy.”
I laughed. “That sounds like a pretty bad plan.”
Liam smiled that cocky half grin that sent a shiver rocketing through my body. “Well, it’s a good thing I didn’t need a backup then.”
I shook my head before threading my fingers through his. “I came in to find a letter from my dad. It was amazing, so touching.” A smile curved my lips as I remembered the most precious gesture my father had ever offered me. “And he mentioned you.”
“Me?” Liam’s face fell with worry.
“It was all good, somehow… he actually likes you.”
“Jesus, really?” Liam pushed a hand through his dark hair. “Didn’t expect that.”
“Believe me, I'm as surprised as you are.” I grinned before tucking my head against Liam’s shoulder, sucking in a full breath of his spicy scent. I felt it pass over my strung-out nerves and calm me.
“Let’s never fight again,” Liam mumbled into my hair.
“Promise,” I said, feeling more content than I had since my mother left. Liam had that special something that soothed all my hard edges and filled the dark cracks in my heart, just as Daddy had said. I knew now there was no way I could let him go, not ever again.
Liam was all mine. We belonged to each other. I’d finally met someone I could trust just as wholeheartedly as I trusted my dad and brother. I never thought it would be possible, yet here he was in all his sexy Irish glory.
I’d found my own four leaf clover. It looked nothing like I’d expected, and yet it was everything I wanted.
EPILOGUE
Liam
“You covering that shift tonight, babe?” I called through the large, empty space of our new home.
We’d just moved in yesterday. I’d bought an empty plot of land on the outskirts of North Cambridge, far enough away from her family for some privacy, but close enough that we could still help out at the bar whenever her dad needed it. Vince Sr. was even talking about us taking over the bar someday, but Charlie thought I should put my business degree to work and open up a few more locations around New England. She wanted to keep de Rossi’s a local family brand.
“Babe!” she called.
I pounded up the sweeping staircase and down the long hallway into our master suite.
“I made other plans. I hope you’re not upset?” Charlie stepped out of our walk-in closet, a tightly bound black bustier and lacy boy shorts the only things covering her gorgeous curves.
“I think I approve of this change of plans.” I stalked toward her. “Where’s the baby?”
“Daddy took him for the night. Said we needed the break since it’s our anniversary and all.” She clutched my shirt at the collar and pulled me down to her lips. Her slow, deep kisses always made me lose my mind.
“Really thankful for Grandpa tonight,” I mumbled against her lips before running my hands up her lace-clad body.
“He made me promise that you’d make Irish stew this weekend.”
“Ah, of course he
did.” I caught her bottom lip with my teeth, my cock flexing in my pants. I wanted her right fucking now.
“You know, we were just leaving for our honeymoon this time a year ago.” Her tone grew wistful.
“I remember. Going around Ireland in a golf cart,” I teased, remembering our road-trip-style honeymoon.
She pressed up on her tiptoes and murmured against my ear, her palms trailing up and down my rigid form, “Dad loved that you flew him all the way to Ireland for the wedding.”
“Why are we talking about this right now?” I mumbled against her neck between sweet little kisses.
“Because I was just thinking that I love what a family man you are. It’s the reason I married you.”
I groaned, my hips rocking against her, desperate to relieve some of the ache she caused.
“For instance, I don’t have to worry at all that you’ll be upset when I tell you I’m pregnant and we’re going to have two kids under the age of two.”
My mind froze to a dead halt. “Was that a hypothetical?” My gaze trained on hers, my hands stalled on her hips.
She shook her head once before a mega-watt smile tipped her lips. “You’re going to be a daddy, Daddy.”
“Charlie!” I pulled her into my arms and swung her around the large room. “Are you kidding? Don’t play with my heart.”
“Never.” She smiled then took my face in both hands and kissed me again.
I hitched her legs around my waist and walked her carefully back to our bed.
“God, I’m the luckiest man on earth. First you, then our beautiful little boy, and now another?” I circled my palms over her flat abdomen. “You know I love you pregnant. Something about seeing my baby growing inside you does things to me.”
Charlie’s hands pushed through my hair, her smile lighting up the entire room and brightening my life every minute of every day. “Show me.”
I groaned, fumbling to push the pants off my legs and get between hers. “You’re a vision. You steal my heart every day, but seeing your belly grow, watching that special glow light your cheeks… you steal everyone’s heart, but you’ve got mine chained.”