“What do ye mean?” I frowned.
“I tried to call Aspen today, but I couldn’t get him. I got Cillian.” He huffed. “Apparently my new nickname isjaws.”
I grunted in irritation. Cillian didn’t know when to quit. He didn’t care when someone was emotionally or physically hurt. He kept pushing until he was satisfied. “Cillian’s a knob.”
He laughed. “I love learning new words from you guys.”
“So, did ye talk to Aspen?” I gave his temple another kiss and let him go. I brought our bags of food in front of us, then slowly took each container out, along with the chopsticks.
“No. Cillian said everything’s fine, though.” His tone said he didn’t believe Cillian.
“I could call later tonight if ye want,” I offered with a smile as I passed him his chow mein and steamed buns. He took the food with a grin and ripped at the top of the container, yanking off the paper lid before digging in.
I chuckled. He joked about Vail loving Chinese food, but Fallon wasn’t much better. This was good food for him, though. I’d finally done research today, realizing I had no idea what MMA fighters were meant to eat, and carb heavy foods was the answer during heavy training. Chicken, rice, and potatoes were good for him because his body would need the fuel. Though, the foods were a little harder for him to balance because of his diabetes. He had to both eat carbs and be careful of his sugar intake.
“It’s okay. I’m sure they’re fine.” Fallon grinned as he stuffed his mouth with chicken, beef, and noodles. His eyes rolled into the back of his head. “Mm. So good.”
I laughed and opened the kung pao chicken container. The scent of deliciousness hit me immediately and my stomach growled, reminding me I hadn’t eaten since this morning. Before our game offootball—not soccer—I’d been running more messages for Sloan. While I enjoyed my job in the Company, I hated this sitting on my hands shite. I missed the thrill of being in danger, which was something I’d never expected.
“Fallon, tell me about yer childhood.”
He froze with the chopsticks shoved halfway into his mouth and gave me a wide-eyed look. He yanked the sticks out and chewed on his food, finally swallowing. “Why do you ask?”
“I’m curious. I realized I don’t know much about ye other than yer fighting career. There’s more to Fallon Maher than an MMA championship, ain’t there?” I tapped him on the nose with my chopsticks, and he wrinkled it in response. “Yer da’s a real tool, and yer brothers ain’t much better. How did ye grow up in a place like that?”
His gaze shot to his food and he stared down at it for a long time. I expected him to make a joke or flirt, but to my happy surprise, he seemed to consider his answer with a seriousness I rarely saw in him. “Dad hasn’talwaysbeen that way. He just... got worse over time. More jaded. His relationship with Mom slowly broke down. I don’t know why they’re still together. They basically hate each other at this point. I think he resents me because I can love who I want, and he can’t.”
“Who does he love?” I raised my eyebrows.
Fallon shook his head. “No one that I know. I just mean that he doesn’t want to be with Mom anymore, and she doesn’t want to be with him. I’ve heard all about it from her, in excruciating detail. She has a checklist of all the things she would change about everyone else in the family, but mostly she seems to think I’m perfect the way I am, except that I won’t live at home. I’m sure she has a secret list for me, too, but she wants me to come home and stay there. Forever.” His nose crinkled again, but this time it was in thought. “Dad has always been tough, but Grady told me it was because of our grandfather. I never met him. He died right after I was born, but Grady remembers him. He said Grandpa Maher was a real asshole, a lot worse than Dad. No matter what Dad did, Grandpa always had something horrible to say.”
“That’s no excuse for treating his own children poorly though, is it?” I hated it when people used their upbringing as a reason for their own shortcomings. They could dobetter, not be the same.
“No, it’s not.” He shrugged. “I guess I’m used to Dad. He’s the man I grew up with. And Grady and Padraig never really had much to do with me. They’re a lot older than I am. When I was little, Grady used to get irritated because he would always be the one to get stuck babysitting. He wasn’t nice about it. Padraig used to say....” He let out a long breath.
“What?” I whispered, laying my food beside my thigh and hugging him close to me again. “What did the wee bastard say?”
“When I was younger, he used to say I didn’t belong to Dad. By the point I was born, our parents hated each other. Padraig said that I wasn’t really a Maher.” He winced and leaned against me, and I held him tighter. “Sometimes, I wonder if he was right.”
“Fallon, yer brother’s a mean SOB, we already know that.” I smoothed my hand over his head and sighed. “Ye look just like yer brothers. He was being an arsehole.”
“I asked my dad once. He was drinking, in a foul mood, but I still asked him.” Fallon shivered. “He said,I wish you weren’t part of this mess, kid.And I couldn’t decide if that was a good answer or not, because he was saying I was his son, but also that he didn’t want me to be.”
“Fecking arseholes, the lot of them.” I cupped his face and turned him toward me, using my thumb to stroke his cheek. “Ye listen to me. Ye’re perfect, rabbit. Fecking perfect. No matter what yer brothers or yer da says. They’re blind to what’s in front of them, and der loss is our gain. Ye’re ours now, and we’re goin’ to keep ye.”
He smiled and tilted his chin up, and I took it as him asking me to kiss him, so I did. I slanted my lips over his and ravished his mouth. I couldn’t get enough of him, and it only took those few seconds for my cock to react, twitching in the confines of my jeans and underwear.
I drew back regretfully and stroked his jaw. His eyes sparkled in the light that came from the lamps. His beauty left me breathless, and I realized his brothers weren’t the only ones who’d been blind to what was in front of them. I’d wasted far too long not realizing he was right here, with a hidden vulnerability I’d missed, even though it was so damned clear to see.
“Still cold?” I whispered.
“After that kiss, it got really hot all of a sudden.” He licked his lips, and I laughed.
“Ye’re a flirt.”
“How long have you known me? Of course I am.” He tilted his head, and my attention went to the gentle curve of his neck. The urge to lean down to lick and bite and mark the column of flesh stirred inside me, and my cock grew harder.
Down, boy. Romantic. No sex.
