“So, my feisty little ninja,” I prop my feet up on the coffee table, “tell me about the knife. Where did you learn how to use one of those so smoothly?”
“My dad,” she replies after a sip, then she sets her glass on the table. “He wanted me to be able to protect myself in case the time ever came when I needed to.”
Running my palms up and down her calves, I’m unable to keep my hands still or not touch her. “Were you in dangerous situations a lot growing up?” I hope she wasn’t. Just the thought of her being raised in an unsafe environment makes my blood begin to boil.
She must sense the anger brewing inside my chest, but her hand appearing on top of mine cools me right back down.
“Dangerous? No.” Her words sooth me. “But I was alone quite a bit once my brother got old enough to be busy, and my dad used to own his own construction company, so he was gone from dawn to dusk every day.”
“And what about your mom?”
Saylor’s eyes drop and any trace of a smile she had is gone in an instant. “She died in a car accident when I was seven months old.”
“Oh, mo mhuirnín.” I can feel the heartache pouring out of her. I need her in my arms. “I’m so sorry to hear that. I can’t even imagine.”
Untangling her legs from my lap, I maneuver and reposition us both so I end up sitting the longways on the couch. My back is against the armrest, legs straight out on the cushions, and Saylor is relaxing in my lap with her back to my chest and her legs stretched out between mine. My arms are wrapped around her, enclosing her in my cocoon of warmth and support as she continues telling me about her life.
“It’s okay. From what my dad told me, it was quick and she was never in any pain.” Saylor turns sideways a bit and burrows a little deeper into my hold. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, it sucked growing up in a house with two guys and no mom, but it was all I knew. I was too young when she passed to remember any different.”
“But still, losing a parent at any age can’t be easy. Shit, both of my parents are still alive and kickin’, but I would have fallen apart without my mom growing up. She was the rock that held our ragtag of hoodlums together. She is a literal angel for dealing with all the crap my dad, brother, and I put her through.”
“She sounds like my kind of woman,” Saylor says with a little bit of the sass I know she has inside.
“She’d like you.”
“Of course she would. What’s there not to like?” And that sass makes both of us laugh, bringing a little light to the sad mood that fell when she talked about her mom.
“Growing up, my dad has always been an enforcer for the O’Carroll family,” I figure there is no real gentle way to dive into how I am involved in the life, so I decide to just dive into the deep end. “My mom was, and still is, a housewife. She is the glue that kept our house running. With a husband, and then two sons holding such high ranking positions, she had to grow a thick skin.”
“So, both you and your brother are important to the family I’m guessing?”
“You could say that.” I squeeze her a little tighter. “I am head of security for Fergus, he’s the boss and oldest of the two brothers in charge. Then there is my older brother, Cian. He’s a little over a year older than I am. He actually works for Fergus’s younger brother Tadhg.”
“It sounds like you’re all really close.”
“We are. Since the brothers are the bosses, and we both work for one of them, I see Cian just about every day. Either at the office or someone’s house, he’s never far away.”
“I wish I had that with my brother. Now that we’re older, and our lives have gone in different directions, it’s not always easy to stay close like we were when we were young kids.”
Wanting to move onto a hopefully happier subject, I ask her more about growing up. “Tell me more about where you’re from and what you did up there in the crazy cold north.” I overexaggerate a full body shiver, only imagining how cold it is up in Wisconsin this time of year. Several feet of snow . . . no thank you.
That makes her chuckle at my imagined misery. “Well, I went to school just like any other kid I guess. I didn’t play any sports because I had zero hand eye coordination until I hit puberty. We lived comfortably financially, but we weren’t crazy rich or anything. Since my dad owned the construction company, he made a pretty good living, but was always a bit of a penny pincher.”
“Pinching those pennies is probably what kept things afloat. I know I was brought up around a lot more money than you’re used to, but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand the harsh realities of life for some people. I was lucky enough to have more luxuries than most and I don’t take one day of it for granted.”
“You really are an enigma, aren’t you?”
Needing to see her hazel, color changing eyes, I lift and turn her chin with a finger. “What do you mean?”
Saylor fully turns and pulls her knees up to her chest, resting her socked feet on the top of my thigh. Now I can fully see her face.
“When I first saw you in the club, up on the balcony, you had this dark and moody aura around you. I’m guessing when youare doing your job, and in your bodyguard mode, you have to put his mask on to show everyone around you that you’re in control. I probably get that more than you realize yet, but it also in a way shows me that there are two sides to every coin. That you have a soft side hidden under that darkness that many don’t see. I like that about you, Corrin. I have a bit of that in me too and it’s kinda nice to know you have it too.”
Fuck. It’s like she took the tough outer shell I wear proudly for all the world to see, and just shattered it to smithereens with the touch of her soft, gentle hands. She sees me like no one else ever has. Not even my family or friends have dug this deep.
Framing her face with my rough and callused hands, I press my lips to hers, pouring the little bit of tenderness I have inside me into her. Saylor kisses me back and traces the seam of my lips to coax mine open for her. Our tongues twist around each other’s, not rushing toward anything, just learning one another on a deeper level. Our kisses slowly tapper off until we rest back and Saylor burrows back down into my arms.
“I’ve never had anyone describe me that way before. Seeing the light inside the dark I wear for others to see.”
