Father Flanagan’s eyes drifted from mine to the bag hanging over the chair, and then back to mine again. They were bright blue to go with what was probably once a head full of red hair. “Have a seat.” He nodded to the chair I’d been sitting in. “Let’s hear your plans.”
The grin he gave me matched Raff’s, and the smile that came from me this time was true.
* * *
The emerald surroundedby diamonds on my left finger reacted to the soft lights in the office. Even though it had sat on my finger since Kelly had put it there, I never took the time to admire how beautiful it was.
Maybe because admitting that to myself felt like giving in a bit.
I was having a hard time doing that on principal.
What I was about to do, though? Felt liberating.
An ounce of control made my life feel a little less chaotic, and so I gave myself permission to admire the ring for what it was. Just a ring that looked exceptionally beautiful in this light and on my finger. It was a piece of jewelry that made me feel feminine. I really hated to admit that anything Kelly did had worth, but the ring was stunning and proved that if he had actually picked it out, he had good taste.
“Of course,” I whispered to myself. “He chose you, didn’t he?”
Then I laughed at myself, because I wasn’t his choice at all. Fate. Fate riding on the wings of vengeance had chosen me to be his bride. I should’ve ended up with a man who was the opposite of Cashel Fallon Kelly. A man who worked hard to earn an honest dime. A man who was predictable and reliable. A man whose touch didn’t burn me to my core and put me at ease at the same time. A man who brought me peace, not chaos.
Even the role on Broadway shouldn’t have been mine.
Those things—the man who seemed larger than life and the role on stage—should’ve belonged to my sister. She was destined for big things. Things that Mam had said come with being a star.
So the life I was living? It felt like a big lie.
Before I could get too carried away with the poor-me line of thinking, voices met me from outside of Father Flanagan’s office. I didn’t bother getting up from my seat this time because I was already standing. I refused to wrinkle anything.
The door opened and Raff walked in first, but he stopped on a dime. Kelly, who had his head turned back toward Father Flanagan, shoved him further into the office, not realizing that I stood there.
Maybe it was the silence from the other two men, but whatever it was, Kelly finally found me in the room.
“We need to talk,” I said, not giving him a chance to recover. This was my moment. I’d be damned if he stole that, too.
He said nothing, but his eyes were steady on mine. They were, until light laughter came from Father Flanagan, who was stepping out of the room, Raff following. Kelly narrowed his eyes at me, but a second later, they found the priest and his cousin. His ire was aimed at them, not me.
“Ah, but what a tangled web we weave, Cashel Fallon Kelly,” Father Flanagan said before he shut the door behind him and left us alone. Laughter echoed down the hall until it was completely quiet, leaving the two of us to face each other.
When his attention was mine again, his eyes took in the veil on my head and the wedding dress on my body.
I’d gone with Mari to one of her fittings—she was getting married in Italy in June—and while she did whatever she had to do, I had started looking around the shop. Mari was working with a well-known designer, but I decided to scan the shelves. A salesgirl popped up out of nowhere and told me she had the perfect dress for me. It was meant for someone with my statuesque build.
Mari came out as the girl argued with me about trying it on. Together they persuaded me to do it. But I only did it because the dress wasn’t frilly, and I knew at some point, I was going to have to meet that fate—be it by myself, or with my Mam and aunts.
I’d decided to share the moment with Mari since I hadn’t shared with her what was going on. In a secret way, I was able to enjoy the experience with her, even if my circumstances and hers were beyond comparison. Mari was marrying for love. My brother, who happened to be in love with her, had a bullet hovering over his chest if I didn’t marry out of revenge.
The dress turned out to be a winner. It was sensual, what the bridal attendant called a sheath, and hugged me in all of the right places. It had a crew neckline, long-sleeves, and the intricate details on the side were made from crepe, lace appliqués, and thread-embroidered tulle with beading. The patterns reminded me of the swirls inside of peacock feathers. The patterns were strictly on the sides, and the back dipped into a V. It didn’t have much of a train, but the veil made up for it.
The day after Mari’s appointment, I went back and put a deposit down on the dress, veil, and a pair of heels the bridal attendant talked me into. I demanded secrecy from the bubbly girl who had helped me, telling her I was inviting family to a party, but I was going to surprise them with our secret wedding.
If she only knew…
Turned out, it was the partial truth. Instead of inviting family to our secret wedding, I was inviting the groom. He stood across the room from me. Staring. I had no doubt that he would be in a suit—he always wore one when he “worked”— such a gentleman gangster—and he didn’t disappoint.
One thing had stayed consistent with Kelly since the first day we met: He was as handsome as he was ruthless. I knew he’d always be.
Finally, after I realized he wasn’t going to respond until I continued, I cleared my throat. “You marry me here and now.” I lifted a finger. “I’m saving my parents from this sham of a wedding. I’m their only living daughter, so it’s important to me that what they witness is true. I’ll tell them that we’re so crazy in love I couldn’t wait another day.” I rolled my eyes. “And Mari. I don’t want to tell her yet. I want to keep her out of this, for now.”
Kelly said nothing as he stood there, still staring at me. It was making me uncomfortable. I set my cool hand against my neck, to ease some of the burn. A minute or two went by before he moved toward me. I went to take a step back, because he always seemed to cramp my space, but I hit the desk. Even though I demanded this be mine, he was still backing me into a corner.
