Page 276 of Mangled Memory
Liam drinks his beer as if it’s no sweat off his brow. Still waters run deep. Liam cares. He cares profoundly, but few people ever see it.
I reach out and run a hand over his shoulder. “Love you, Liam. You tend to shoulder a whole lot. Thanks for taking care of us.”
He pats my hand. “Of course, Ayla-girl.”
Cian clacks his bottle on the counter. “Now, what do we do about Ma?”
34
mystery gang
Christian
“I had a notification pop up on my calendar.” Ayla leans on the door jamb to my home office. “Is this our new thing?”
“It’s our old thing. You don’t like it?”
“Eh. Where’s the romance?”
“Romance is me asking you on a date. This is a business thing. Thus, the calendar invite.” I round my desk and come to the door to lift a hand and cup her cheek. “Good afternoon, Princess. How was your romp in the woods?”
Her face rises to meet mine, and she kisses me quickly. “Ellie and I had a great time. Not many shots, but a great hike. And before you ask, zero wildlife of the wild variety. We had only the avian kind and the squirrels to keep us company.”
It’s been five days since her brother told her of her mother’s diagnosis. Five days of tears, anger, sadness and frustration in my wife. Five days of bombs in my texts from her bulldozer of a brother. Five days of me wanting to reach out to Cian but honoring my wife’s request not to.
“Good,” I murmur against her lips. I prefer it that way. “I’m glad you have Eleanor. And Fitz.” I add the last part quietly.
“He’s growing on me. And I won’t argue having him go along if he comes with a Clint Eastwood bazooka-sized gun on his hip for the bears or the mountain lions. About this business thing on my calendar…”
“I’m meeting some investors downtown. I’d love to have you there.”
“What time do we need to leave?”
“Six.” I look at my watch. “You have plenty of time.”
“Says the man who looks like he stepped off a runway in Milan all day every day.” Her fake grumbling pulls a smile from me.
“It’s the genes.”
Something in her face goes soft. I can’t say I’ve ever seen that look before. We stand, wrapped in each other’s arms in the doorway, and I fight to figure out what her features want to reveal.
“Sir.” Ren announces himself as he enters the house from the side entrance.
“Ren,” I reply to my head of security but stare at my wife. “I have to get back to it. I’ll find you before six.” I kiss her quickly and step back, releasing her to her day.
Ren follows me into my office and waits until I gesture for him to take a seat.
“How are you?” It’s odd. I’ve never asked, and it’s not like I’m trying to get personal, but he’s not just an employee.
“Fine. Thank you. I’m here about what you tasked me with, not Barone Hospitality.”
I look to the open door but make no move to close it. I have no intention of hiding what I find from my wife, though I have every intention of cushioning the blow if I’m able.
Ren follows my gaze and hikes a brow. “Would you like me to close the door?”
“No, thank you. What have you found?”
“A few things. Some make sense. Some don’t. I’m going to keep digging, because there’s something I can’t put my finger on what troubles me and I don’t yet have that answer.”
