Page 68 of An Angel's Share
His beautiful brown eyes move from Mammy to me. He sighs, before he states, “Mae, she is right on that one. I will not let it go under, Aoife won’t either. Is this about the café, by any chance? Christy working and being in charge?” Mammy snorts at him. He’s hit the bullseye.
“Christy in charge. She’s not in charge of her own life. I would not put that café in her hands. She?—”
“Stop right there.” Evie has followed Jonno into the lounge. “Christy is absolutely the best person. She sources all the food for the house. Local foods. She controls all the budgets. We need her expertise in driving those base costs down to maximise the profit in the café. Or are you volunteering, Mae?” She looks expectantly at the woman who is red in the face and feeling very ganged up on. “I’msure she would be happy to share the load, if you want to research all the items I’ve put together.” She wafts two pages of A4 covered in writing at Mammy. The lists are long on them.
Mammy huffs, “I’m too busy with Seamus. I wouldn’t have the time.”
“I know,” she says gently to her. “You look after him amazingly. Look how well he looks now.” She points at Daddy’s grinning face. “He talks about it all the time. How attentive you are. He worries that you’re stressing yourself out.” Her calm voice is pouring oil like honey.
Daddy and I are gobsmacked as we watch a masterclass of manipulation. Watching the table being turned. Using Mammy against herself. I see Jonno smirk a little as Evie takes Mammy’s elbow, praising her nursing skills and how well she’s doing with the food menus and how she’s single-handedly brought poor Daddy back to full health in record time. Mammy is led away for congratulatory drinks, with Maggie, who was standing sentry at the door, trailing along in their wake. I look over at Jonno as he grins when they’ve gone.
“Wow, what an operator. I am in awe,” I tell him.
“Yep, that is my sister. Total skill. She needs it with her husbands, they’re barking. Wild and out there. That list she had was her food shopping list for LA. She was collating it for Kell.”
I start to laugh. And continue to smile at him. His brown eyes spark in the light. I can see the gold in them.
I need to talk to him. For us to speak. I can’t stand it, this procrastination on both our parts. It’s too much. “Jonno, can we talk? I need to sort things out.”
So focused on each other, we’ve utterly forgotten aboutDaddy being in the room, as we gravitate towards one another.
“We will, Rua. I miss you. It wasn’t what you thought. I need to explain. Please let me explain, baby.” He’s pulled me to him, wrapping his warm arms around me. His scent calms me and I snuggle into him.
Daddy makes a strangled noise in his throat and we both glance sharply at him, but he’s staring fearfully at the door.
“What the fuck have I told you? Stay away from my fiancé.” Liam and Patrick are standing in the doorway. Liam raging. Patrick in shock.
“Did I hear Mae shouting?” Patrick asks, trying to deflect the shit storm that is about to explode.
Jonno has not let me go, and I pull strength from his presence. “Yes, it was me at Mammy. She was protesting about Christy running the café.” I don’t move from Jonno as I answer Patrick. As if it's a totally normal place for me to be.
“Do you think she can do it?” Patrick looks so proud of his wife, he’s so easily distracted.
Liam snorts, his glare intensifying. He states nastily, “No. She’ll be useless, as usual. And take your hands off my fiancé. I won’t tell you again.” He’s taken a step towards me. “You Greystones think everything is your property. Well newsflash, it isn’t.”
“And you think you are in control in this house. Newsflash—you aren’t,” Jonno fires back instantly. He then turns to Patrick. “And for your information, Patrick, I think your wife will be amazing at running that café, for starters. The resort idea we’ve put together for the future as well. Everything. She is an amazing organiser.” He looks at me with love in his face. Oh my God, Jonno. What are you doing? “She’ll be a great addition to our family workforce.The building work Evie has designed is unique, striking and superb. And?—“
“I thought you said there was no money fromO’Clerys, we were going under. But yet you're still spending on that crappy café.” Liam has stepped up and I can see intends to grab my elbow to manoeuvre me away from Jonno.
“Marshall and I are funding it.” Evie comes back into the room after depositing Mammy somewhere safe. “So no worries on the cost for now. We will just take it back gradually from any profits. And if there aren’t any, then…“ she shrugs.
“Profits, you lot are obsessed with money,” Liam sneers. All our eyebrows go up at that. “And again, get away from my fiancé.”
He doesn’t. If anything, he pulls me closer to him. I see Evie’s eyes widen.
“Are you deaf as well as stupid. I want you away from my fiancé, my baby, and my family.” Liam is super aggressive, his whole stance combative.
There's a pause as I draw in a breath. I see Jonno’s face change and I know he’s going to do it. He’s going to claim me and his baby. So does Evie, as she beams a beautiful smile at him.
32
Jonno
I can’t standit anymore. I know Seamus is ill, but this guy is history. Not only a fucking thief, but a nasty, negative man to go with it. Fuck this. She’ll have to decide if she wants me or not. Out in the open. I’m done hiding in the shadows.
“Well, I suppose that’s the thing, isn’t it. It’s not actuallyyourbaby at all, Liam. It’s mine.”
He comes at me swinging. The roar is from the souls of his feet. I see Evie drag Aoife out of the way, just in time. What a twat, no thought for her, just to make himself feel better. Seamus grabs both the girls and pushes them behind the settee as I wrestle the enraged bull to the floor.
