Page 24 of My Irish Mafia King

“The groundskeeper has done an excellent job maintaining the property,” Mom says on video chat, sitting in the backyard with a view of the Irish mountains behind her, the stars still visible as the sun rises. “The flight went great. Ellie slept like a rock. I got a few winks, too.”

“That’s good, Mom,” I say. “One less thing to worry about. And you’ve checked in with the security. They’ve given you the trackers. They’re patrolling the grounds.”

“Yes, dear,” Mom says. “Everything’s fine. You don’t need to worry about us.”

“Make sure you don’t go on any unannounced trips.”

I don’t think Uncle Frank would send goons after his sister-in-law and niece in another country, but after finding that bloody ring and learning about the trafficking, I can’t take any chances. My head spins with the events of the past day.

It might be nuts, but the event that has the most impact is the kiss. Holding Lucy, feeling her body, tasting her lips, wrapping my arms around her… it was better than I ever dreamed.

But I didn’t miss the fact she removed her necklace. Or the fact she called me a violent psycho.

The kiss didn’t lie. I felt how badly she wanted me just as badly as I need her.

“Killian?”

“Sorry, Mom?”

“Is there something you want to talk to me about?”

“It’s…” Nothing, I was going to say, but that’d be a damn lie. “It’s Lucy. She knows who I am. We kissed.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful news! Finally.”

Despite everything, Mom’s upbeat take on it gets a smile out of me. “Maybe it would be. In different circumstances, I’d be able to celebrate it. I’d be able to savor us taking this step. God knows there’s been enough… tension. But I can’t let it go any further. It’s not as if I can ask her on a date. I’m in the mob world now, the thing I’ve always wanted to avoid. If I follow my heart, I’ll put her in danger.”

“Is it just your choice to make?” she asks. “I’m sure Lucy would like a say in the matter.”

“She had her say,” I grunt. “She basically told me she wants nothing to do with me.”

“Did she say that with her lips or her eyes?”

“Come again?”

“She might’ve said one thing… but meant another. As confusing as the male species finds it, that’s not uncommon for us. Your father became quite skilled at learning how to decipher me.”

I chuckle. “Dad was a man of many talents.”

“So…”

I think back to the kitchen after the kiss. Her cheeks were red, her eyes wide and gorgeous, her hands folded across her front. “She looked at me like she wanted me to stay. She looked at me like she’d been waiting a long time for us to stop tiptoeing around each other.”

“Then you owe it to her, and yourself, to try again.”

“No,” I growl. “The right thing to do would be to take her rejection at face value. I can’t risk caring about anybody, especially not now. I can’t risk the wrong people finding out I care, either. The Family is on a knife edge. I need to focus.”

“Perhaps she will help you. She’ll give you the motivation?—”

“You just want me to find someone, Mom. To settle down.”

“Is it so wrong I want my son to be happy?” she demands.

“No,” I concede. “But maybe you need to accept what you and Dad had is rare.”

“Are you saying you will not try to find somebody?” She demands. “You’re going to spend your entire life alone. Grow old alone,diealone… Is that what you’re saying?”

“Mom, jeez, relax?—”

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