Page 59 of Skin Deep

Chapter20

Harrison

The plane touched down in New York what seemed like centuries later. How had it only been a week since the first time I laid eyes on her? It felt like she’d become a vital piece of my life, and she was gone.

She tells me she loves me and then she leaves me? She runs into a married man’s arms? What kind of fucked-up shit was going on behind those gates? And why would Mari ever be a part of it? Was it the same situation Georgina was in before? I was fucking tired of thinking about it. It’s all I did.

A sleek black car pulled up on the tarmac and stopped. The window rolled down a second later. “Get in the car, Harry Boy,” Cash said, and then it rolled up.

I took my bag from a man who carried it from the plane, then got in with my brother-in-law. He was looking out of the window as the car started to move, shimmying as it started to pick up speed.

“You took care of business in Italy? Settling old feelings and moving on?”

“Something like that,” I said. “I guess this couldn’t wait?”

“We needed to talk. I don’t do business over the phone.” He fixed his suit. “You have somethin’ you need to tell me?”

“The Craigs,” I said. “Oran and Dermot. Lachlan made a deal with them.”

“You neglected to tell me,” he said. “You required honesty from me. I don’t deal with hypocrites, Harry Boy. You should count yourself lucky that we’re family. You’ll keep your tongue for now.”

“I neglected to tell you that Lachlan had been working for them at the time. He made the deal after for the pub. Besides, Lachlan is Lachlan. His deals are separate.”

“Not in this business. You are my family now. Lines have been crossed.”

He didn’t even have to go into detail about it. I understood what he meant. The deal Lachlan made with Oran Craig and his son came with spikes. I had no idea what Lachlan had been thinking going to him with a proposition like that. And involving our brothers.

Lachlan had started to get more desperate as time passed. For whatever reason, he’d sunk his claws into the idea of owning a pub. No one could change his mind. He was willing to make a deal with the devil to get it.

In that way, my brother and I were both alike. I’d been willing to do whatever it took to have Mari, and in a way, I’d done the same thing. Everything I made was tied up in Cash Kelly. I’d traded it all for what I thought was love.

This time, I didn’t have to trade a fucking thing, and somehow, it all still went to hell. One minute we couldn’t pry our bodies apart. The next minute she was gone. It was unbelievable how that worked. I’d only known her for a short period of time, but it was enough to screw my life up—again.

“Get your fuckin’ mind on straight,” my brother-in-law said to me. “This is war. And I don’t need another one with Macchiavello.”

“What’s the deal with the Craigs anyway? With you?”

“Your sister would say that it’s my charming personality that those fellas are jealous of,” he said, using heavy sarcasm. “But I don’t think they would agree.”

“I need coffee,” I said. “And something to eat.”

Cash told the driver to stop at the next Dunkin’ drive through. I told him I wanted it black. He ordered me a bagel and cream cheese to go with it. After he handed me the cup, he slapped me on the chest with the bag. He watched as I prepared my bagel.

“I can hear your arteries hardening from here,” he said, watching as I took a bite.

This guy was un-fuckin’-believable. He killed people, and he was worried about my arteries?

I waved a hand, taking a drink of coffee. Jet lag was starting to set in. And so was the distance between me and her. I didn’t fucking like it. I also didn’t like to keep replaying the last image I saw of her—falling into that asshole’s arms. “The Craigs,” I said. “I assume this has nothing to do with going to court with them.”

“That’s the brightest thing you’ve said since you entered this car,” he said. “Lachlan has dug four graves, if he can’t keep up with the payments.”

“He’ll threaten Keely, too,” I said.

His green eyes turned hard, and the vein in his neck thickened, but he didn’t respond to that. “Lachlan won’t be able to keep up with the payments. The interest is too high. And the more the pub makes, the more he owes.”

“Is that partially because of you?” I said, even though I knew it wasn’t only about that. I had no idea how the pub was doing. If it wasn’t doing well, and every day Lachlan was falling behind, he was getting eaten up by the interest. “Is this personal?”

“It’s going to be,” he said. “I’m going to make it personal. Since the four of you are close to my wife, you’re close to me.”

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