Page 38 of The Irish Arrangement

Twice?

Learning that Declan had been married twice before unsettled me. Was he trying to compare me to them? Did I measure up to whatever his other wives were like? Why didn’t they last?

So many questions pinged in my mind, and I didn’t want to overwhelm Riley by asking.

I didn’t plan to stick with Declan either. He shook my hand that we only had to be together for six months.

“Twice?” I asked.

She nodded, crossing her arms and resting her hip against the ledge of the counter.

“You’ve known Declan, or, uh, worked here that long?”

“Yeah. I’ve worked here since I was a kid. Anyway, first there was Erin. She cheated on him.”

Wow. “With a guard?”

She frowned. “No. She got with some Italian guy. I don’t remember his name. I get lost with all those Mafia Families over there.”

I blinked. “She—Erin was allowed to leave the house? To meet this guy?”

“Yeah.”

I let my shoulders slump. “Damn. I wish I could go outside at all.”

She laughed. “I don’t know why Declan is so nervous about your walking around outside. It’s not like the guards aren’t always out there, patrolling the whole property.”

I wonder what you’d think if I told you he took my phone, too. Riley had her loyalties. She worked here. But I appreciated that she was openminded to talk with me.

“So, first, Erin cheated on him,” I repeated.

“Yeah. She cheated on him, got knocked up by her lover, and then the lover killed her because she wouldn’t leave Declan but was carrying his baby.” She waved her hand in the air. “It was a big old drama.”

“Wow.” I wasn’t expecting that.

“Yeah, then there was Caitlin. She was terrible. I couldn’t stand her.” She rolled her eyes. “Don’t get me wrong. I don’t mind talking with you, but I’m not supposed to mix with you, or with the Family.”

“Mix with me?” I laughed once. “Like I’m some royal princess or something special.”

“You are married to one of the Sullivan brothers. Lots of women would envy the security of the Family.”

I sighed, planning to agree to disagree.

“Caitlin was whiny. And needy. And such a liar. She made up stuff to get me to talk to her, then tried to get me in trouble. She was just deceiving, to me, the staff, even the Family, and it irked me. I prefer it blunt.”

“Yeah. Honest and upfront.”

She nodded. “Yes. Anyway, she’s gone too.”

“What happened to her?” If she lied to Declan, I could just imagine how badly that ended for her.

“She killed herself.”

My jaw dropped. I stared at this assistant cook for a minute, trying to let that sink into my head. I wasn’t Declan’s first wife, nor his second take. I was the third, and the first two didn’t end well.

At this rate, I should be counting on my demise any day now.

Riley wasn’t done gossiping. “I think that’s why Donal—Dec and Ian’s dad—was so afraid Dec wouldn’t find a woman to keep around long enough to give him an heir.”

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