Page 151 of Where We Bloom

“I wanted to touch base, boss,” he says with a sigh that has my eyebrows climbing.

“What’s going on?”

“Miss Blackwell is safe.” He rubs his hand over his eyes. “But she’s been … obstinate.”

“Obstinate?”

“Stubborn,” he adds.

“Just tell me what in the hell is going on.”

“She leaves without telling me,” he says, and I feel every muscle in my body tighten in agitation. “Nothing crazy, but she’ll go to the grocery store, or run over to one of her brothers’ houses, or pick Birdie up from school without letting me know she’s leaving the house.”

“We have cameras,” I remind him.

“Yes, sir, we do. Doesn’t stop her from evading me. I don’t think she’s doing it on purpose. She’s simply independent and thinks having a detail with her every time she leaves the house is excessive.”

I rub my hand over my mouth.She’s going to be the bloody death of me.

“I’ll talk to her.”

“The sooner, the better. I like this job.”

I hang up and find Ronan standing in my doorway. “Bad time?”

“Come on in.” I gesture to a chair. “Have a seat and tell me why I’m here.”

“The board wants a meeting in person.” He shrugs a shoulder when I glare at him. “That look doesn’t work with me.”

“I was here less than a month ago.”

“I think they want to talk about Sweden.”

“I swear, that property is going to send me out of my fecking mind.”

He grunts in agreement. “How are things with your lass, then?”

“Good. She’s brilliant. I want to go home to her. How are things with Fiona? Ronan?—”

He puts a hand up, stopping me, and then sighs. “We had a long talk. She’s not confused about us, and she’s not pining after you. I think she really thought she was trying to protect you, or Billie, or hell, I don’t know. I think her ego was bruised.”

I scowl at my best friend. “What the hell?”

“You didn’t love her. She didn’t think you were capable of it. Now you love someone else, and it threw her for a loop because she thought she knew you better than that.”

“I’m going to be brutally honest here, and I hope itdoesn’t make you punch me in the face because she’s your wife.”

“Go ahead.”

“Fiona only knows what I’ve allowed her to know. She’s my best friend’s wife, and that’s all. I wouldn’t expect you to know all of the ins and outs about Billie, even twenty years from now.” I stare at him, and Ronan nods in agreement.

“That’s pretty much what I told her. She needs to let her shite go. She will probably apologize to you, but I don’t think she meant to try to scare Billie off.” He shrugs and then grins at me. “Not that it would have worked anyway. That lass is in love with you, mate.”

“I know.” And the reminder of it never fails to knock me off balance. “And it’s returned to her in kind. When are we meeting with the others?”

Checking his watch, Ronan says, “Thirty minutes.”

“I’ll see you in there, then.”

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