Page 63 of A Very Un-Shakespeare Romance
“I’m bunking on the couch so Tara can get some sleep,” his baby brother continued, looking at him, unblinking. “From the look of you, I imagine you’re feeling the weight of Sisyphus on your shoulders.”
“He’s the guy who carried the rock, right?” he asked dryly. “Sounds about right.”
Tim walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. “I figure the O’Connors are like tandem runners, handing off the rock to one another when it gets too heavy. Why don’t you give it over to Billie and let your mind settle for a while? He’s drinking coffee in the kitchen now and playing solitaire. Like he’s preparing to keep watch all night.”
That knotted up his throat hard. “Shit.”
“I won’t call you on the language.” Tim waggled his brows with effort. “Tara’s in the house now.”
“Yeah, she is.”Thank God.“We’re in a whole new ballpark, Tim.”
“I know.” His brother folded his hands. “Billie told me the house is still safe—”
“Which is why I don’t think he needs to stay up on guard duty.”
“He needs something to do, Robbie.” Tim clenched his hands. “This is his way of handling his anger and his worry. And his lust. Hope it’s okay to call that out.”
“Yeah, there’s a lot of that going around,” he mumbled, the feeling of Summer’s soft blond hair suddenly on his fingertips.
“I take it your date went as good as Billie’s?” Tim asked, his lean face knitted with concern.
“Might have been the best ever,” he admitted to his baby brother with a hefty sigh. “But Tara arriving—”
“Shifts everything.” Tim studied him. “I did my best to explain to Summer why you were worried about Tara. I made up a whole story—”
“You did?” Robbie sunk back and regarded his brother. “You lied for me?”
“For us,” his brother corrected. “And to preserve a relationship I think is coming to mean quite a bit to you. In a very short stretch, I might add. Not that time is the best barometer. We’re Irish. We know when we know.”
God, he didn’t need to be reminded of his Irish genes, so he said nothing in response. “Thank you, Tim. For thinking fast on your feet.”
“That’s what people who can quote Shakespeare do,” he quipped, making Robbie reluctantly smile. “Why don’t you get some rest too? You’ll know what the best course is when you know it.”
Robbie closed the laptop on his lap and set it aside. “That’s not what Mickey or Roland Thomas are saying exactly.”
“Are they instructing you to come back to Boston?” he asked, his blue eyes pinched with concern.
“No, but the officer in charge of the arson at Tara’s salon knows my absence is linked to hers. He visited Mickey today.”
“So what? That doesn’t mean you need to make a move. Besides, while I hate saying this out loud—and I never would in front of Tara—isn’t the arson a blessing in disguise? Before, it looked like she could be part of a money laundering scheme. But doesn’t she look more innocent now that the Kellys are going after her?”
He lifted his shoulder. “It doesn’t exactly clear her. Someone could say they were sending her a message about taking their money.”
“But why would she take a stand against the Kellys if she was working with them and benefitting?” Tim shot back. “I would think a junior prosecutor could make that kind of argument easily.”
“I’m impressed. All thoseLaw and Orderreruns are paying off for you.”
Tim shot him an uncharacteristic bird. “Is there anything else I can do? I know I’m not sentinel material, but I’ll hear something on the couch. I’ll have the baseball bat with me.”
His brother suddenly looked vulnerable and fierce all at once. Robbie scooted over until he could put a hand on his shoulder, suddenly feeling very much like an older brother. “Honestly, Tim, right now I’m thinking my smartest decision was bringing you. Not discounting what Billie brings to the table, but Danny, Riley, Caden, and Brennan would have brought the same things.Youtook care of Tara tonight. You helped her settle down. You fed her, and you probably even changed the sheets on your bed so she’d have fresh ones. Then you helped her see her babies in the best way possible given her current state.”
Tim’s blue eyes swam with emotion. “That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me. It means a lot.”
Robbie’s chest tightened. “I know you don’t think I have as much respect for you as our other brothers, but why don’t we stop that shit right now? Because it’s not true. You bring something really special to the table, and I respect that. Tim, I admire you.”
When Tim hugged him, he hugged him back, feeling that bond of blood and brotherhood with him in a way he never had before this trip. “Now, get out of here and let me rest this frenetic brain of mine because I do need to figure out our next steps. And soon.”
Tim was smiling when he pushed back and stood. “I have one more thing to say since you’re looking at me like I’m a cute little puppy.”
