Cillian lost it then, laughing so hard he fell off the chair onto the floor. He dropped face-first against the cement, arm curled around his gut as he continued to roar with laughter. I swore he did it on purpose to upset Fallon and it was working.
Fallon’s cheeks blazed red, and I couldn’t tell if it was from shame or anger, but I felt bad for him. He bent his head forward and his hair partially hid his face.
“It’s okay, baby,” I whispered gently, all the amusement leaving me at the sight of the hurt that flashed across his expression. Nothing was funny when he was embarrassed like that. “These things happen. It’ll be a story you can look back on and laugh.”
“It’s not funny right now,” Fallon said, popping his bottom lip out. Tears glistened on his eyelashes and he wiped at them. “It’s humiliating.”
“Cillian,” I said sharply when he’d finally calmed down enough to hear me. “Stop it.”
The fierceness in my tone was enough to make Cillian realize I was serious, and the smile swept from his face as he cleared his throat, getting to his feet. He went to sit back beside me, but I shook my head. No, he would only get a chance to talk to Fallon if he was going to apologize.
Cillian frowned but went over to his chair, dropping into it with a shrug.
Ignoring him, I turned my attention back to Fallon. “I know, baby, but it’ll be all over soon. I bet you look beautiful with that ring on your dick.”
He smiled faintly. “It was fun until I couldn’t get it off. Then it was fucking scary.”
“Is Rowen taking care of you?” I touched the screen with my finger, tracing his face. I wished I could caress his soft skin and be there to reassure him it was going to be okay. My gut clenched and my chest ached. They were too far away from us, and I couldn’t protect them from Miami. We needed to be home with them. Cillian would’ve known the ring was a bad idea and put an end to the trouble before it ever started.
“Yeah. He’s doing a good job.” Fallon’s smile turned sad. “But I miss you. I might miss Cillian, too, even if he’s an asshole.”
I chuckled. “Heisan asshole.”
“Feck ye,” Cillian muttered. He grabbed the forgotten binoculars, which had fallen to the floor at some point, and pressed them to his eyes.
Silence fell across the line and Fallon angrily wiped at unshed tears with the heel of his palm, then sighed. Behind him voices grew closer, and I recognized one as Rowen’s.
“How will ye do this?” Rowen asked.
Fallon gave me a sad look. “I should probably go. They’re going to remove it now.”
I nodded and gripped the phone tighter, battling a deep desire to rip the hands off the firefighters who were about to have Fallon’s safety in their palms. If I could reasonably threaten them to take care of him without severe consequences, I would, but all I could do was say, “I love you.”
I didn’t say the words often because there were too many emotions behind them—a need I couldn’t admit to myself. Fallon made me happy, like Vail did, and I didn’t want to lose that. His gaze brightened and he gave me a smile that took my breath away. “I love you, too. Talk tonight?”
“Always, but I want to hear from you before that, am I clear? Call me as soon as that thing is off... and keep it.”
His eyes went wide and he shook his head. “I am not putting that thing on again. I won’t even be able if I wanted to unless we soldered it. It’s one solid band.”
I laughed. “I won’t make you. I was thinking more of putting it in a frame and immortalizing it. The day a titanium ringalmostcaught Fallon Maher’s dick.”
“You’re watching too many movies with Vail.” He groaned out a chuckle and his cheeks turned a deep red. “Bye, Aspen.”
“Bye, love.” I disconnected the call, gut clenching. Staring at my phone, I let my mind sort out my emotions. For the last few weeks, I’d pushed aside my need to be home with my boys. This was my job and Rowen was there to protect them. I’d buried my doubts deep below everything else. Now that I’d seen Fallon in the emergency roomagain, I was ready to say fuck it and go home. Sloan would kill me for abandoning the job, though, because, in the end, this was what I was paid to do. I’d offered the Company my loyalty above all else.
However, I’d never expected to fall in love with not one, but two beautiful men.
Maybe three.
I glanced at Cillian with a frown. “You shouldn’t have laughed. He was upset.”
Cillian snorted. “He shouldn’t be a pussy. He wore a cock ring and it got stuck because his cock was too massive for it. He should be proud of that, not fecking whimpering like a baby. I’m trying to train a fighter, not a child who’s afraid.”
“Fallon is not afraid,” I hissed, done with his bullshit.
Cillian shot me a surprised glance and straightened, plopping his feet down on either side of the chair. He looked ready to scuffle if it came to it.
I tightened my grip on the phone. “Fuck, Cillian, I told you before, he’s not like us.”
