No, I don’t want to fuck with them, but I crave them, crave what they have. “I’m aware.”
When their pizza is ready, I make sure to bring it out to them so Cillian knows he didn’t chase me away.
“What time do you clock in?” I ask Ollie.
“Five.”
Cillian drums his fingers on the tabletop. They’re long and elegant but also masculine. They’re a piano player’shands. I can imagine them dancing along the keys and feel the urge to play. I don’t have my keyboard anymore, so I haven’t played since we moved to Ashford.
“Cool. I’ll see you soon, Ollie.” Then to Rory, “Text me, Cherry.”
He cocks a brow. “Always looking for trouble.”
He’s right. At least I have been since moving here.
I head back to work. They eat, and when five comes around, Rory and Cillian leave, Ollie coming over to get to work.
“I’m sorry about that,” he tells me.
“It’s cool.”
“It’s really not,” Ollie counters.
I shrug. “I would do the same for someone I care about.” Which is a strange thing to realize is true about me. He frowns, forehead crinkled up. “Plus, it keeps things interesting. I think I’m gonna like it here a lot more than I thought.”
“Um…wow. I see why Rory likes you. Cillian will too, it’ll just take him a while.”
I cross my arms. “Rory likes me, huh? I’ll have to make sure to tell him I know that.”
Ollie laughs. “Oh boy. We’re going to be in trouble with the two of you, aren’t we?”
“I hope so,” I tell him, wearing a smile I actually feel.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Rory
It’s the beginningof January, and I haven’t gotten the chance to hook up with Shai again. Things have been busy since Cillian and Ollie got back. Rian called us back to Boston twice to help with shit that’s popped off there, and we just got to Boston again for the third time.
We meet up at Rian’s place. It’s just him, Conan, and Finan there now. Rian is a creature of habit, like his son. Where Sloan, Tiernan’s father, had trusted in people’s fear of him, thinking that would keep them from betraying him, Rian is more cautious. He’s a better people person than Sloan ever was, but it takes a lot for him to ever truly trust someone. The only people who have earned his trust are all here in this room right now—he’s likely still on the fence about Dean, but he believes in Tiernan, and Tiernan will take anyone down for doubting Dean, even his own uncle.
These are the similarities between Cil and his father that I’m not sure Cil sees. The way Cillian didn’t trust Dean at first and doesn’t trust Shai now is something Rian would do. And though Sloan was a piece of shit, Rian was completely devoted to him, the same way Cillian is devoted to Tiernan—Sloan could count on Rian just as Tiernan can count on Cil. Luckily for Cillian, Tiernan is a better man than his fathercould have ever been.
“They’re skimming off the top,” Conan says, interrupting my musings. “The question is, how long has this been happening?”
Rian is leaning against the cold fireplace, Conan and Finan took the armchairs, and the four of us—Cil, Tiernan, Dean, and I—stand next to them, completing the semicircle.
Finan says, “And some of the batch of coke we got last night was fucked. Definitely diluted. I opened two packages and it was fine, but the ones underneath…” He lets his words trail off.
“Let’s go fucking kill them,” I say, bouncing on my toes. “Who do they think they’re fucking with?”
Cillian pulls a fidget spinner from his pocket and hands it to me, then wraps an arm around my shoulders.
“I’m with Rory,” Dean says.
“Because that’s a surprise,” Tiernan adds. “We don’t just go in there guns fucking blazing without a plan. That’s how people get killed.”
“So let’s come up with a plan,” Cillian says.
