Page 141 of Dirty Eoin

And now I’ve met her.

A successful lawyer and also a serial killer. And she knows I know. She did nothing to mask their countless souls from me.

My eldest boy loves her.

It’s not an infatuation or a case of wanting what his baby brother had, which is what I suspected it might be. He worships the ground she walks on.

She insists she doesn’t love him. Who is she trying to kid? She stormed off the shooting range because she couldn’t bear to watch him with Ava. A girl who, on the surface, is a perfect match for him having been born and raised in the mafia life. Also, a girl that Jaine wiped the floor with on the shooting range.

Accuracy like that takes years of practice.

I’m going to make it my business to find out all there is to know about Jaine Jones. The girl who will step into my very own shoes in due course. The girl who’s loved by two of my sons and who loves both in return, even though she can’t or won’t admit to the second.

Paddy’s lost to her now, and Eoin will be too if she’s not careful.

For an intelligent woman she’s not seeing what everyone else can. Or at least what I can.

I’m standing outside the downstairs cloakroom having just listened to their exchange.

The door swings open and I take them both in.

“Interrupting something, am I?” I smile politely.

“Nothing at all,” Jaine replies, her expression deadpan.

I’ll have my work cut out for me with this girl, even if all I’m doing is forcing her to look past the end of her nose.

The physical attraction is there between her and Eoin. Her jealousy. Their push and pull. Everyone witnessed it outside. It’s more than just sex. She’s lying to herself, and there’s a reason for that, but I’m not sure what it is.

I’m not sure she knows herself, and that’s the problem.

“Is now a good time, Jaine?”

She nods reluctantly. I’m sure she’d much rather repeat her experience with Fergal than have anything to do with me, but I’m her mother-in-law whether she likes it or not. Whereas that may or may not change in the future, I’m also her son’s grandma. That will never change. She has no choice but to let me into her life whether I’m welcome or not.

* * *

Liam’s having a day off,and Dec’s currently driving Ava, so I’ve asked Jaine to take me to Hell’s Kitchen. There’s a deli there that my Fergal likes to use. We try to purchase what we can from our little community. These people pay us for protection, so the very least we can do is give a little back where we can.

I didn’t bother to tell the others where we’d gone, I just left a note on the kitchen table. If I had, they would only have insisted that one of them come along for the ride, and I need Jaine to open up to me.

We’re ten minutes into the journey and still not a word has been said. It’s time to break the ongoing silence.

“Did you enjoy the party, Jaine? The boys seemed to enjoy themselves.”

She’d rather pull her nails out one by one that partake in idle chit chat with me, I’m sure, so it’s best to keep it to safe topics.

For now.

“It was quite the unforgettable experience.”

The corners of my mouth twitch up. She’s trying to be polite by not speaking her mind and saying it was over the top. Which it was.

“And what did you think of the live entertainment?”

She half-smiles. “The clown was more frightening than all of the O’Connell men put together. I’m sure Finian and JJ will have plenty of sleepless nights and will most likely need therapy.”

I chuckle. She’s right. Clowns aren’t for everyone. Little JJ looked terrified and hid his face in the crook of Eoin’s neck for the entire show.

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