“I didn’t want you to be disappointed if he didn’t release me. So, I waited. When he found my incarceration unconstitutional, I came directly here.” He cupped my face and his eyes softened. “I came back to you.”
I melted. The fucker knew exactly what he was doing.
“I love you, Pet. I’ll always find a way to be with you.”
I sucked in a deep breath, surprise like a sledgehammer to my stomach. His words echoed in my head, over and over again, until I forced myself to concentrate and be in reality with him. “I love you, too, Boss.” I poked his chest. “Don’t do that again or I’ll join you in prison. I’ll be your bunkmate. Fionn can look after the Company by himself.”
He laughed. “Noted. Come here, let me kiss you.”
He grabbed my shoulders and dragged me in, his lips meeting mine in a desperate battle of our mouths until it felt like my bones completely disappeared and I was nothing but goo.
He stroked my neck above the collar, and I leaned into his touch, hungry for more despite the heat that flushed through me from a fever I’d been struggling with all day. When would this flu or stress or whatever the fuck it was go away? Now that Sloan was out, maybe it was time to let Rory see me.
Fionn cleared his throat, and Sloan broke the kiss, stepping away. He grinned at Fionn. “Come here, nephew.”
Fionn didn’t need to be told twice. He crossed the space between them in two steps, and then, Sloan was dragging him into a strong hug, the first I’d seen them in. It was a beautiful sight to see. I didn’t miss the wince of pain from Sloan, but I would talk to him about it later. Why was he hurt?
Sloan thumped him on the back and pressed a hard kiss on Fionn’s temple. “You did me proud, son. You’re the right choice to be my apprentice. You handled business affairs, legal and illegal, with the professionalism I expected from you.”
I didn’t have to see Fionn’s face to know how much the words meant to him, and I grinned, my own pride for both Sloan and Fionn sweeping through me. Maybe after being in jail, Sloan realized how important it was to tell his nephew that. I’m glad he did.
“Fucking pussy.”
I stiffened and glanced at my dad, standing over in the corner of the room. Half of his face was covered by a shadow, but he appeared gaunt and had over the last couple of days. His eyes were sunken, his mouth thin, and his skin pale. The more he stuck around, the worse he looked.
I exhaled a shuddery breath and sent him a glare but didn’t respond. Sloan and Fionn couldn’t see him, and I wasn’t going to give them a reason to think I’d finally gone insane.
“They raised them stronger in my day. No one competed with Niall Killough. His son’s a fucking pussy.”
I gnashed my teeth. I couldn’t kill a dead man. It wasn’t possible.
Sloan and Fionn broke away, and Sloan eyed me curiously, his deep sea blue eyes inquisitive, and I forced a smile onto my face. A throb began in the middle of my forehead and I resisted the urge to massage it.
“Pet, you’re flushed.” Sloan focused on me again and pressed the back of his hand against my cheek, frowning. “Fionn, call Rory. I want him here.Now.”
“I’m f?—”
“Don’t say it,” Sloan snapped, tilting his chin to stare me down. “There’s no more ifs and buts. I’m home now, Pet, and you will listen. Come with me, we’re taking you to lie down.”
I had no choice but to let him slide his fingers into mine and guide me upstairs.
12
SLOAN
I was only a man. A man who’d spent four weeks in jail without my partner. A man who was so desperate for Conall that all sense of reason had been firmly thrown out the window. My mouth was on his as soon as we entered our room. Our kiss was all tongue and teeth, love and lust combining to create something explosive. His palms stamped themselves against the side of my face, and my fingers made claws against his hips.
He moaned, the sound coming from the depths of his chest after weeks of being untouched—conjugal visit notwithstanding. He moved against me, chest pressed firmly on mine, and I took ownership of his mouth. My tongue danced over his, probing and dominating, and his muscles relaxed under my onslaught. There was no fight here. I was in charge and he belonged to me.
“Blood,” Conall murmured against my lips.
I grunted, acknowledging him. I was painted in Young’s blood, but so was Conall since we’d been pressed up against one another. While I was more than happy to fuck him while bloody, I didn’t want to right now. No part of another man should be involved in this moment, not even their blood.
Maneuvering him toward the connected bathroom, I didn’t break our kiss, a feral possessiveness consuming me until all I felt was fire under my skin. I needed to reclaim him, remind him who he belonged to. The weeks of jail had tested me, poked at my weaknesses with the sharpness of a blade until it finally pierced my flesh. I was cut open and raw, and now that I was out from behind bars, the wound stayed open, refusing to heal. I had power, but inside Rikers, it was diminished. Conall and Fionn had taken care of the company, they’d led our businesswithoutme like I’d asked, but an underlying fear nibbled at an insecurity I didn’t want to acknowledge.
They didn’t need me.
No. Lies. The Company belonged to me. Conall belonged to me. I’d make it so he couldn’t breathe without me at his side.
