Page 90 of Of Murder and Matrimony

He motioned toward the stairs, and I nodded. “Thanks.”

Filippo and Stefano followed, but when we reached the meeting area upstairs, Irish and Russian guards lined the walls, staring at each other warily.

“Wait here,” I instructed my men. They took positions against the walls, hands clasped in front of them, chests puffed out so they appeared bigger.

I reached for the handle, shoving down the anxiety building in my chest, and pushed the door open.

“About time ya showed up,” Seamus O’Connor boomed from across the room at the head of the table. He’d positioned himself to see everybody who walked through that door and any move made around him.

Adrik and Yuri Zolotov took the seats to his right, and Seamus’ oldest son Shane sat to his left. That left me the chair at the opposite end of the table, facing away from the door.

“Apologies.” I didn’t let my discomfort show as I unbuttoned my suit jacket and took my seat. “My wife needed my attention. I’m sure you understand.”

The Zolotov brothers tensed, and Yuri’s face turned crimson as his fingers curled into a fist. Adrik whispered something low in his ear, and he leaned back, dropping his hand to his thigh.

“That I do.” Seamus offered me a knowing grin but wisely kept his mouth shut about Olesya. “I’m glad ya have her back where she belongs.”

“Me, too.” Residual anger toward the brothers laced my words, and I shot them a warning look.

“How is she?” Adrik ventured to ask, concern creasing his brow.

“Tired but happy,” I told him. “And damned if she doesn’t keep begging me not to kill you. For some reason, she loves you fuckers.”

Yuri smirked at that, and Adrik blew out a long breath before nodding in acceptance. “Good. Keep her happy. She deserves it.”

“On that, we agree,” I acknowledged.

Seamus cleared his throat. “Now that ye’ve got that out of the way, let’s talk business. Ya wanted a meetin’ on neutral ground, and I’ve obliged.”

“I’m not sure this could be considered neutral,” Adrik groused, eyeing Seamus.

“Suppose that’s true,” Seamus agreed. “Ya seem ta be fond of using those guns of yours.”

The door flew open, and Seamus’ son Sean waltzed through like it was fashionable to be late, dressed casually in torn jeans and a black leather jacket, a cocky grin plastered on his face. He ran O’Connor’s, so there was no good reason for him to be late to a meeting at his own pub unless he intended to make a grand entrance. He was egotistical enough to do it, too.

I rolled my eyes and turned to Seamus. “Why did you invite him?”

“Figured the brothers should at least look at what they’ve done,” Seamus answered smoothly.

Adrik flicked his fingers in Sean’s direction. “He looks hale enough.”

All hint of humor dropped from Sean’s face as he lifted his black t-shirt, revealing two circular scars, hallmarks of bullet wounds, and a third scar that cut across the front side of his abdomen. He’d turned after getting hit twice but still took a graze. The man was lucky to be alive, and like Niccolò, there had been a moment where he wasn’t before medics revived him.

“I was lucky compared to the family your men gunned down.” Sean sucked air through his front teeth, his jaw tight. “Father, mother, nineteen-year-old boy.”

Adrik and Yuri blanched, their eyes cast downward with shame.

“That’s why we’re here,” Adrik said with resolve. “We didn’t start this.”

My body tensed even though I expected his objection. “You’ll forgive me if I find that difficult to believe when it was your explosives that killed my mother, your men who hunted my brother at our cabin, and your gunmen who shot all those people in the church, including my father and brother.”

“We’ve had some personnel issues,” Adrik said cryptically.

I didn’t appreciate his obfuscation. “I’ll need you to elaborate.”

Sean put his hand in the pocket of his jeans, the action revealing his sidearm.

“The orders didn’t come from me,” he explained, rubbing his jaw as if the words pained him. “Some of my men were working for your uncle, but since he’s dead, I don’t know how they were recruited. You killed my traitors.”

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