Page 17 of Shattered Union

“What happened, why did you end?” The arsehole is obviously a fucking bastard. Who the hell let her slip through their fingers?

Her body tenses against mine. “It’s a long story. It happened a while ago, and I really don’t want to talk about it.”

Fuck. What the hell did that prick do to her?

“Mo ghrá, don’t hide shit from me.” God, I’m a fucking hypocrite.

She releases a deep breath, the warm air hitting my chest. “He was a bastard, Denis. He was a bully who liked to use his hands when he didn’t get his way.”

My arms tighten around her. “I’ll kill him,” I growl.

Some bastard put their hands on her, hurt her. I want to find him and make him feel what he did to her.

“Denny,” she whispers, her hands on my chest, patting me, trying to calm me down. “It happened almost four years ago, he’s no longer in my life, and I have no intentions of ever seeing him again. I’m okay, I promise.”

Rage is coursing through me. Not once in my life have I been this angry before. I feel out of my depth. There’s never been a situation I haven’t been able to control. I’ve killed, maimed, and tortured bastards for less. I’m going to find this prick and when I do, I’m going to make sure he pays for what he did to her.

“I’m okay,” she reassures me, her lips pressing softly against mine.

“That’s good,mo ghrá, but it doesn’t stop the fact he’s a dead man.”

She sighs, lifting her head to look at me. “Please don’t, he’s not worth it. Trust me.”

“I do, baby, but he hurt you and that’s not something I can forget.” I didn’t think I’d ever trust a woman, especially after Zoe, but with Callie, I can’t help but trust her.

She’s pure and innocent. So fucking precious. She deserves better than me, but I’m not giving her up. No fucking way. She’s mine, and I’m going to protect her.

I rise to my feet, holding her in my arms. “Time for a shower,” I tell her as her body slides down mine, her arms curling around my neck and her legs wrapping around my waist. Her pussy resting against my stirring dick. Her eyes bright and shining with lust and love.

Fuck, I’m a lucky bastard.

5

Callie

Grinning at my reflection in the mirror, I smooth my dress down over my hips. It’s been a while since I’ve dressed up and gone out drinking with Ava. We both were wild teenagers. We tried weed and neither of us liked it, but we drank anything we could get our hands on as did most kids our age. It’s a rite of passage. Since the drinking age here in Ireland is eighteen, most teens underage drink from the age of sixteen.

Ava and I took things to a whole new level, and we used to joyride, drag race, and just flat out be speed demons. Mam and Dad had many calls from the Gardaí. A few times I’d had to spend the night in the drunk tank, but nothing too serious. Ava and I settled down a bit since we hit twenty. Dad says he misses the late night drunken calls asking him to collect us. I may have to do that tonight, just for nostalgia’s sake.

My eyes are smokier than usual, the winged eyeliner makes my blue eyes pop, and I painted my lips bright red making them pouty and luscious. My hair is straightened and hangs down my back; it’s sleek and shiny, something that took a while to achieve. I’ve been a serial hair-dyer since I was thirteen. I’ve been every colour under the sun, but I finally settled on silver, something I’ve been complimented a lot on since I’ve had it done.

My dress is a deep purple, it looks black under certain lighting. It hugs my curves like a glove and stops just above my knees. I have silver strappy heels on, and I painted my nails in a deep purple to match my dress.

Once I’m satisfied with my appearance, I reach for my clutch purse and make my way out of my bedroom and toward the kitchen. Ava’s playlist is pumping through my sound system. God, I have actually missed this. The thrill of getting ready with my girl, getting drunk, and just letting loose. Since Denis and I have gotten together, things have been chaotic. A new relationship is always fun and we’re still in the honeymoon stage. It’s great, but I’ve been a shitty friend and have been so consumed by Denis that Ava’s been pushed to the wayside.

The past two weeks have been weird. Denis and I haven’t seen much of each other. He’s had his daughter's wedding that was in New York, and I’ve been busy with getting my pub ready for the grand opening in three months. I hate hiring new people, it’s tedious, but it has to be done. That’s on the agenda for next week when I return to London, where I’ll be staying for at least three weeks.

“Callie!” I spin at Ava’s high-pitched squeal. She’s in the kitchen, a pitcher of God knows what in her hand and a bright blinding smile on her face. “You look hot!”

I grin at her as my gaze travels down the length of her. She has her blonde hair straightened, just as I do, in a stylish long bob that stops just above her shoulder. She’s wearing a leopard print catsuit with matching heels. She looks fecking amazing, but mostly, she looks happy and that’s all I want for my best friend.

“So do you. I love the jumpsuit. Where did you get it?”

She grins at me. “Boohoo, and get this, it was forty percent off.”

I shake my head. Ava is a shopaholic, especially when there’s a discount. She’s crazy when the Christmas sales are on. I went once with her and vowed never to do it again. She had us queuing outside Next at three in the morning on St. Stephen’s Day. I was hungover and tired. It was lunacy, people pushing and shoving to get clothes.

“Thank God, you found online shopping,” I quip with a smile as I reach for the pitcher that’s in her hands.

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