“You mean a man?” I challenge with a raised eyebrow.
“You said it, not me. Make yourself scarce, Jakob, or I’ll do it for you. Don’t want to end up in a predicament like your sister’s now do you?”
“You’ll so easily threaten my sister when I’ve wrecked people for less? Not to mention her fiancé has a nasty case of trigger finger.”
She shrugs indifferently, “Maybe. Or maybe I’m not talking about Mac’s wife at all.” She winks at me before turning and walking to her own vehicle. Her threat hanging heavy in the air.
She isn’t out of the parking lot for a full minute before it’s flooding with vehicles. It’s the guys plus the Byrne’s. Declan jumps out of Mac’s jeep and sprints straight to me. He doesn’t stop until his arms are wrapped around me and his lips are on mine. He pulls back a few seconds later and examines my face.
“Are you okay? What the hell happened, Chaos?” His hands roam over my neck, shoulders, and arms as he checks me out.
“I think so. They were here when I walked out and I just wanted to be safe. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called in the cavalry.”
“Yes you should have. What did she want?” He presses, his fingers still running over my upper body checking for injuries.
I glance behind him to see all of my friends and his brothers standing in a semicircle behind us. They’re watching on, not to be nosy but to be supportive. Even Jasper, who just stormed out of my office, is standing beside Dieter. It’s when Mac and Flynn catch my gaze that I’m reminded of the jab about Leeand Annie.
I ignore Dec and push past him to get to the men who may have put my sisters in danger. Before my mind catches up, I haul Mac up close to me with my fist wrapped up in the front of his shirt. I’m vibrating with rage and looking into Mac’s eyes. It seems like his own rage is just barely controlled right now. The Byrne’s aren’t used to being checked, period. Nevertheless, by someone who isn’t also in the mafia.
“What the fuck do you and your brothers have my sisters wrapped up in?” I ask through clenched teeth. My voice isn’t loud, but the rest of the parking lot is silent so everyone hears me.
“You’re wound up right now because of what’s transpired. So, I’ll give you this moment. But unless you want your hands removed from your wrists, you’ll take them off of me and take about four steps back.” He doesn’t look the least bit perturbed.
In fact, if you didn’t know Mac at all, you’d assume he’s unbothered and just wants me out of his personal space. However, I know Mac better than that, and I know his threats aren’t at all empty. Still, we’re talking about my sisters here. I feel a presence close behind me and know instantly it’s Dieter. The Byrne’s can puff their chests all they want, but they’ve never come across the Fischer brothers when someone’s threatening their sisters. I push him back by his shirt, but otherwise don’t move.
“Our sisters in trouble, Byrne?” Dieter asks from behind me with a deadly calm chill to his voice.
Mac glares at us for a few seconds before conceding, “No, they aren’t. At least not as far as I know.” He shakes his head in genuine confusion as he quickly pulls his phone from his jeans pocket and presses a button before bringing the phoneto his ear. “Beautiful, where are you?” He listens for a few seconds before nodding and letting out a sigh of relief. “Oka– No, nothing’s wrong… Yeah, I’ll be home soon. I love you too, baby.”
He pockets his phone and shakes his head, “Both her and Annie are at the estate with Nix and Clara. They’re fine.”
“Natasha said, ‘You don’t want to end up in a predicament like your sister’s now do you?’What ‘predicament’ are they in?” Some of the fire inside of me is dying out now that I know they’re safe at the moment.
Kieran throws his hands up in exasperation. “Who knows? She’s fucking crazy, obviously. You should know as well as everyone that we don’t put our women in danger, full stop.”
“Partners.” Declan’s deep voice rumbles from somewhere behind me.
Kieran nods in embarrassment for his slip up, “We don’t put our partners in danger, full stop.”
“Could she have meant that as a dig? Like because they’re involved with us?” Flynn questions out loud as Miles barks a loud laugh.
“And are they both, Baby Byrne? Involved with you, I mean. We know Lelonie is, but Annie? Last I checked, she’s involved with a middle class, mind numbingly boring, regular, early twenty-something year old.” I don’t have to turn around to know he’s sneering at him. My friends are almost just as protective about my sisters as Dieter and I are. Just like we are about their sisters and younger siblings.
Sully grabs Flynn’s shoulder and whispers something in his ear before they both reluctantly storm off, hop into a car and leave. Not surprised. Somehow, for some reason, my little sister is his pressure point. So fucking weird, the last thingwe need is three Byrne/Fischer relationships.
“Okay, can we take this out of this wide open, non sheltered parking lot?” Rowan asks as his and Kieran’s eyes flit around the open space.
“Yeah, let’s go in the bar.” I suggest before turning around to my friends. “Thank you guys for showing up, but I’m good. I’ll catch up with you guys later.”
“And I’ll punch you in the right ear if you suggest that stupid shit again.” Miles shrugs and walks with the Byrne men up to the front door of the bar. He opens the door for them and they all filter inside.
Jasper stops beside me and claps his hand on my shoulder. “I wasn’t trying to be a dick earlier. I’m good with whatever you want to do. I always have been. But you’re not kicking your old family to the curb for your new one.” He smiles and walks away without another word.
I knew better than that shit earlier. They’re right. I was blowing them off for Dec. It was just more than they realized. And when Declan wraps his arm around me from behind and pulls me until my back crashes into his chest, I realize I want them all to get along more than I want my next breath.
26
Chapter Twenty-Six
