“Thank you, Callum. I love you, son.”
“I love you too, Mam. Do you want to know what I find out?”
“Yes. I would. I’ve always wanted to know why he left. Let me know if you need any information. I’ll do my best to tell you everything I remember.”
“Okay, Mam, we’ll talk soon.”
After I hang up, I head straight back to where everyone is.
“Looks like my mam is okay with us looking for the loser. I’ll tell you everything I know and if you need more, Mam said I can ask her. I know this can’t be easy for her, but I hope we can find out why he left.”
“We should at least be able to find where he is. Whether he wants to talk to us is another story,” Francesco says to me.
“I agree. I feel like if he disregards us, he’s a worse man than I originally thought.”
“I agree.” Sebastiano nods.
I’m a little worried about how this will turn out. But at the same time, both my mam and I need answers.
Moira
It’s taken Callum over a month to get back to Chicago. But he’s finally here with me and I’m so happy. It’s been a while since I’ve even dated anyone. The last guy was Zachary, he was a dancer with Magic Nights. The Bastianinis own it. We call them dancers, but really, they’re strippers. A lot of the men in the family do it. Callum has hinted that he might join them. I’m not thrilled about it. But I’d be a selfish girlfriend if I asked him not to. He really wants to do it and I need to find a way to be supportive.
Zachary was a guy I met in high school. We went out a few times, but I wanted to focus on school so we broke up and stayed friends. We lost touch when we graduated. But one night when we were at the club, there he was. We started dating, I told the girls about it, but I asked them not to say anything to anyone. I didn’t want to make a big deal about it in case it didn’t work out. Then one night I walked into his dressing room and he was fucking the girl he had just taken on stage with him. Luciana was right behind me when we found them and she fired him on the spot. We had to tell her brothers that I was seeing him and they decided to back her up on firing him. He was really angry and he tried to call and text me, but after a few weeks, I blocked him. I’ve seen him around Lake Renegade a few times. But for the most part, he keeps his distance.
“Did you hear that Callum’s been talking to Celestino about joining Magic Nights?” Isabella laughs.
“Shush,” I say as I roll my eyes.
“Are you okay with that?”
“It’s not like I can ask him not to. And I trust him. I mean, Rónán and Finn dance and you’re all okay.”
“You and Callum will be okay too. He loves you, and that’s the main thing. I hate when women put their hands on Finn. But I also know that it’s an act on his part. And that he’s mine. One hundred percent mine.”
Isabella hugs me.
“Thank you. I know all of that logically, but there’s still the part of me that worries. I get it now—why you, Luciana and Maeve want to be at the shows. At first I was like, why would you want to watch them?”
“Yeah, I rather see it than be at home wondering,” Maeve says as she walks in. Maeve is Francesco’s wife and she’s been through a lot with him. But they found their way through it all.
“I’m just excited that Callum’s back with me. Being apart was the worst.”
“I think that was the worst part for me too. Being apart from each other,” Maeve nods.
I just hope that Callum and I don’t have to spend anymore time apart.
CHAPTER FOUR
Callum
I’ve decided to join Magic Nights Chicago. I know Moira’s not thrilled about it. All the guys call it a dance company, which makes me laugh. Because okay, sure, we dance…we just dance with minimal clothes on.
“So you’re sure you’re okay with starting tonight?” Celestino asks me.
“I should be okay. I ran through a couple of pieces with your choreographer. And she said they were good. I just hope that I remember them when I’m up there.” I laugh.
“Yeah, the first few shows were the hardest for me too. Not so much remembering the dances, but trying not to drop or step on the women.” Rónán chuckles.
