Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 98000 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98000 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Shit. That’s a lot to take in. It makes my brain spin.
“I’m so sorry for being upset with you. I know who you are, and you wouldn’t hurt us…wouldn’t hurt Tiernan. He told us what you did for him…that you put yourself in danger for him. I…”
“I lied to you.”
“You were defending your family…first with your parents, and then my brother. That’s all that matters to me.”
“Cillian and Rory?” I ask, afraid of the answer.
“You sacrificed yourself for Tiernan. He explained it to us, so we understand. You’re not losing us.”
My eyes tear up. Jesus, I’ve never cried as much in my fucking life as I have recently, and I don’t fucking like it. “Thank you. I won’t lie to you again. You’re the only family I have.” The family I was meant to have. I know it to the marrow of my bones.
“I know.” She rubs a hand over my head. “Now I’m going to wake my brother up. Since you got here, he’s only left this room when he was forced to.”
I nod and watch her, afraid to take my eyes off her, afraid this is all a dream. If it is, I don’t want to wake up.
Aislin gently shakes Tiernan’s shoulder. His eyes pop open but don’t linger on Aislin. They almost immediately find me.
He scrambles to his feet, still half asleep, stumbling as he rushes over to me, bending over the side of the bed. “I will fucking kill you if you ever do that to me again.”
I hear the door open, then close, and know Aislin slipped out.
“Won’t that defeat the purpose? I’ll still be dead.”
“No one is allowed to kill you but me.” He gives me a sad smile before taking my hand in his, dipping lower to kiss it. “I was so fucking scared. Don’t do that to me again. If you have a gun, you fucking shoot. I don’t care what they say about me.”
“Would you have?”
“That’s not the point.”
I roll my eyes, but I can’t deny it feels good to be loved this much by him, to be wanted this much by Tiernan. “We take care of each other. That’s how it’s gotta be. Who’s the one who left in the middle of the night? Or is that not the point either?”
He grins, his hair hanging down in his face like it always does. “We take care of each other.”
I smile, my eyes feeling heavy again. I’m still so fucking tired. I feel like I could sleep for a week. “Your father?”
“Dead the way he deserves. I’ll explain everything later. Get some more rest. Your body needs to heal.”
“Don’t. Wanna. Be. Away. From. You,” I admit, without opening my eyes. The bed shifts, and Tiernan climbs in with me before I drift off to sleep.
*
I feel more normal the next time I wake up. I can tell they’ve been giving me medication because I have that groggy feeling pain meds can give. I’m sure I’m on some hefty doses of antibiotics too.
Of course they would have their own…dirty doctors? I don’t know what else to call them. People who are willing to take care of those they know are doing illegal shit.
The other side of the small bed is empty, but one look tells me Tiernan is still in the room with me. He’s reading a book in the armchair, but as if feeling my gaze on him, he looks up and smiles.
“You don’t look half dead anymore.” He walks over.
“I guess that’s a good thing.” I scoot over as far as I can, silently telling him I want him in bed with me again. I need to be able to touch him, to feel him. I might not ever let him out of my sight.
Tiernan doesn’t need me to use words. He simply lies beside me, careful not to jostle me.
“You look tired,” I tell him.
“It’s been busy. I’ve been doing as much as I can from here. I’m surprised you didn’t hear us. There were times Mom, Conan, and I were all in here, figuring shit out.”
Because he wouldn’t leave my side. This man who can be so cruel to others, who has pulled the trigger more times than I know, also has a huge fucking capacity to love, and somehow, I’m one of the people he’s chosen to give it to.
“What happened?”
“My mom…she fucking turned into John Wick or some shit. She got concerned when Ash called looking for me. She figured out where my father was and fucking went out there by herself, Dean. She slit Oscar’s throat, came inside, shot my father, kept me from losing my shit about you, and just…handled business. It was wild seeing her that way. I’ve heard stories, of course, and I’ve always known she’s a badass, but I never saw it. He’s sucked so much life out of her over the years… I hate to say it, but I thought she’d lost it.”