Page 84 of Sins of Innocence

I know his tells.

"You don't need to know my boss, only that he has Mick's sanction for his relationship with Áine." Unlike Kenneth, Torch keeps his tone low, so his words don't drift to the nearby tables.

"Only one man outranks Mick," Ellie taunts. "And you aren't him."

The way Kenneth's eyes narrow and spit fire at my friend, those words hit home. If there was any doubt in my mind before about the underboss's interpretation of Kenneth's actions, there isn't any more.

He resents the heck out of being outranked by Mick Fitzgerald.

"Áine! Is this true? Are you dating Wraith?" Kenneth demands, giving lie to his claim he doesn't know who Torch's boss is. "Allison thought he was too forward yesterday for a soldier just delivering a message."

Ellie makes a sound of disgust. "Our boss left the Army years ago. He's the Security Director at Harborline Security, but you know that," she says pointedly.

Yeah, blathering on about soldiers in a crowded restaurant isn't exactly subtle. How much of the oversharing Kenneth did with me about the mob was strategy and how much was his natural arrogance in assuming he would never get in trouble.

"I do know that," Kenneth spits at Ellie. "But does Áine?"

I'm still watching him because you don't take your eyes off a venomous snake until it slithers away, do you? So, he's able to lock gazes with me again. "Do you know what that means, Áine? You're making the same mistake with Wraith as you did with Troy."

At least he's being more circumspect and not announcing to the whole restaurant that Kieran is mobbed up like Troy was. He expects me to get the distinction though.

That's clear enough.

Too bad for him, I know a lot more than that.

"Kieran is a good man," I say firmly for the sake of my mom, who is too savvy not to have picked up on the undercurrents in this situation and my daughters, who don't need to have their sense of security undermined. "He will never bring trouble to my door."

Not like Troy. Not like Kenneth.

Kenneth shakes his head, like he's sad. "You're trusting the wrong man again, and I may not be able to save you the next time."

As if he ever tried to save me.

"I do trust Kieran." With my life, but more importantly with the lives of my family.

"Dating him doesn't give you a free pass in regard to working for me." Kenneth gives me a significant look. "I expect you back at the house tomorrow morning," he finishes expectantly.

Does he expect me to thank him for his understanding? Is he that delusional?

"Read my lips, or better yet, read the texts I sent Allison. I quit. I'm not coming back. Ever." Turning away because Kenneth is no longer my biggest worry right now, I sit back down.

The gig is up and somehow I have to convince my mom that this forced marriage is what's best for me and the rest of us.

Glancing around the table, I check to see how my girls are taking what just happened. Sadie's watching behind me as I presume Torch escorts Kenneth out of the restaurant, her expression pleased and no longer worried. Joy's bright gaze is filled with curiosity, but Neeve's expression is the biggest surprise.

She looks satisfied. "He said he'd watch out for us," she says to me like I asked a question.

I nod. He did and he kept his promise too.

My preteen sees so much more than most people would realize. She watched that interaction and interpreted it correctly. Kieran isn't with us, but he made sure we were protected regardless.

Unfortunately, there's nothing unexpected in my mom's expression when I look at her. She knows. Okay, maybe what isn't there is a little unexpected.

There's no condemnation, or anger.

Ellie stands up and claps her hands to get the girls' attention. "Change in plans. I ordered delivery from…" She names our favorite Korean restaurant. "If we hurry, we'll get to the apartment before the food does. Whoever plays the quiet game the best gets to pick out dessert."

She insists on confiscating all our phones and devices so nobody loses because their phone or tablet chimed. She puts all the devices into a black bag with a heavy duty Velcro closure, and stows them in the trunk with our shopping bags.