I paused, wondering how much to tell her, but I knew from years of experience that I couldn’t get anything past my mammy. Lord knew I’d tried and failed countless times.
“My boss at work sexually harassed me,” I blurted out, shivering as the air in the room seemed to cool.
“Oh, love,” Mam whispered, moving toward me to take my hand. “I’ll take a frying pan to his brain, I will.”
“I’m okay, Mam,” I assured her. “Pagan already dealt with him. HR got involved, and they’re supporting me. Richard’s been benched, and another partner’s taking over his office. I haven’t got long until I’ve worked all my training hours, so they’re going to sign me off early and give me a lump sum to tide me over until I find a job.”
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner, love?” she asked gently.
“It only happened last week. I needed time to think through it myself. Callum and Maeve are having problems, so I didn’t want to put more on your shoulders.”
Mam’s mouth tightened. “Some dirty fecking pervert putting his slimy hands on my daughter takes precedence over your eejit brother’s screw-ups, Aislynn O’Shea.”
“Pagan was visiting at the time, and he dealt with everything,” I assured her. “It was over the minute it began.”
Mam’s eyes flicked in the direction of the garage, then back at me, and she sighed. “Sweet baby Jesus. You’re half in love with him already, aren’t ya?”
My eyebrows drew together at the unexpected softness in her tone.
“I’ve lived a lotta years, daughter. Over that time, I witnessed a lot, and I learned along the way. I know what it means when a man like Pagan sets his sights on a girl like you. You can’t kid a kidder, love. Mark my words, that’s the look of a man who sees what he wants and stops at nothing to get it.”
Her ominous words made my belly clench tightly. “Ma—” I began, but she waved me off.
“Don’t bullshit me, Aislynn O’Shea. I know you better than you know yourself. You’ve always had a restlessness within ya, the same way your daddy did. He was always looking for excitement and adventure, and you, my girl, are Lorcan O’Shea with boobs and better hair.”
I smiled because it was the best compliment she could give me.
“Aiden turned up at my house thirty minutes before you did, and I told myself,Maureen, go get your gun. You’ve got one’a those Keystone feckers at your door.Then he introduced himself as your man, and I almost had a damned heart attack. It took me ten seconds to work out he wasn’t what he seemed, and ten seconds more to know, without a doubt, he’d burn the world down for you if you asked. Now, don’t get me wrong, daughter, in a way, I love that for you, but men like Aiden are a lot to handle, and I’m not sure you’re ready yet.”
My throat tightened. “I’m not sure I’m ready either, Ma, but I don’t think there’s much I can do about it.”
Ma’s fingers tightened around mine. “The way he looks at you, Aislynn. It’s dangerous.”
My throat went dry.
“He’s going to test you in ways you can’t imagine.” Her eyes took on a distant look, and her gaze slid in the direction of the garage. “Every person whose job it was to care, let him down, and it started with his mammy. You’re made of the tough stuff, and that’s what intrigues him, but if you want him, you’re going to have to dig in deep and hold on tight because the cliff edge he’ll throw you over will be steep, love, and if you fall, he’ll lose all respect for you.”
“And what if I don’t fall?” I asked quietly. “What if I hold on and pull myself back up?”
Mam’s mouth slowly curved in a smile. “Then the love he’ll bestow on you will burn bright and hot, and it’ll last for eternity. If you prove yourself to be the woman he needs, he’ll soften for you.” She let out a quiet snort. “He’s halfway there now, but he’s been sliced so deeply that he’s scared his instincts about you are off. That man needs to know you’re strong enough to weather his storm before the clouds part and you get the sunshine. And you, my beautiful girl, need to decide if you want it.”
—————
I was still contemplatingMam’s words as I headed to the garage ten minutes later.
Pagan didn’t come across as a tea kind of guy, so I sneaked him a beer from the fridge along with some of my mam’s homemade shortbread.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins so fast I thought I might pass out. The last few days may have been the time for reflection, but now was the time to tell Pagan Sinclair he was a dick.
I headed slowly toward the garage, where I heard the quiet strains of a rock song coming from the radio, when suddenly the door flew open, and a tattooed arm shot out, grabbed my elbow, and hauled me inside so forcefully that the plastic container I held the biscuits in flew out of my hand and bounced off the ground.
Pagan shoved me against the wall, his nose inhaling deeply as he ran it from my jaw to my temple. “Undo your jeans,” he rasped.
“Are you crazy?” I whisper-shouted, placing his beer on the open toolbox beside the car. “My mam’s a stone’s throw away.”
“Give a fuck,” he muttered, his fingers furiously unzipping my fly. “Bet you’re already fuckin’ soaked for me. Bet your tight little virgin cunt’s throbbin’ for my attention.”
He wasn’t wrong. My tight little virgin cunt had been throbbing for his attention since he kissed my head in Mam’s kitchen and told me he missed me.
