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I put a T-shirt on but nothing else and walk downstairs in search of my man—and the promised java.
“Thank goodness you got the coffee started. I’m going to need extra caffeine after all that—”
I stop cold, mortified to see both Shawn and Keegan standing in Kane’s kitchen with him, each with a mug of coffee in hand.
Kane’s mug is halfway to his mouth, but it stops there as his eyes roam up and down my body and widen.
I glance down.
I’m only in a thin, white T-shirt that barely covers my crotch and leaves nothing to the imagination with the way you can see my dark nipples through the fabric.
“Well,” I say and clear my throat. “Here we are.”
Kane rushes into the mudroom and returns with a big flannel shirt and wraps it around me, covering me from the others.
“If you both don’t stop looking at her, I’ll burn your bloody eyes out of your head.”
Both Keegan and Shawn are laughing now, and my face feels like it’s hotter than the furnaces out in the barn.
“I thought you were down here making coffee,” I say lamely.
“I was,” he replies. “And when I left you, you were sound asleep.”
“I woke up.”
“So I see. We have company.”
I laugh now, unable to keep the giggles under control. “So I see. Why don’t I go upstairs and get dressed, and then I’ll come down and have coffee with you all in a civilized manner?”
“I would prefer that, yes,” Kane says. He kisses me on the forehead before I turn around, and he slaps me smartly on the ass. “Cover that gorgeous body up, please.”
“Yes, sir.”
I can hear the guys laughing as I climb the stairs, and then I hear another car door slam.
I had no idea that we would be grand central station this morning. Someone could have warned me.
I hurry into jeans and a loose top, brush my hair, and wash my face, feeling more like myself when I walk downstairs and see that Maeve has joined her brothers in the kitchen.
“I hear you just put on quite the show,” she says with a smile.
“In my defense, I thought we were alone,” I reply. “They weren’t even talking or anything.”
“We were enjoying the first sips of caffeine,” Keegan says and winks. “But no need to worry. We didn’t see anything.”
“What’s the party for?” I ask as Kane passes me my mug full of wonderful coffee. “And where’s Maggie?”
“She’s not going to be here for this meeting,” Maeve says. “And, yes, it’ll piss her right off, but it’s the way it needs to be.”
“We’re hiring a private detective to do some research into Joey. After what Maggie told me the other day, we need answers. More than she’ll be able to find by poking through his internet search history,” Shawn says.
“I don’t even know what an internet search history is,” Kane says, shaking his head.
“Well, clearly, you can’t be the one to investigate,” I say, sidling up next to him. “And if you’d like me to leave so you can conduct your family business, I’m happy to do that.”
“You’ll stay,” Kane says, his voice firm. The others nod. “I’d like your point of view on this. You’re an unbiased third party.”
“Well, third party is close enough,” I say. “Where do we start?”
“With the most important piece,” Keegan says. “We start at the money.”
“You won’t start anywhere.”Chapter Fourteen~Kane~We turn collectively at Maggie’s voice, surprised that she’s standing in the doorway of the kitchen.
“Are you psychic, then?” Shawn asks her with a half-smile.
“Something told me to come over,” she says and shrugs. “And I know you’re all trying to help, but it’s not needed.”
“You said yourself the other day that you need to know everything so you can let it go,” I remind her. “This is the easiest way to do that.”
“I was wrong.” It’s a whisper. She snatches Maeve’s coffee and takes a long sip, then scowls at our sister. “It’s not sweet enough.”
“It’s my coffee,” Maeve reminds her. “And don’t change the subject.”
“I was able to finally get some answers yesterday from one of the banks that’s holding a lot of money,” she says. “The beneficiary on the account is a Constance Lemon.”
I frown, wracking my brain for family members of Joey’s with that name, but I can’t come up with any.
“Who’s that?” Anastasia asks.
“Well, I didn’t recognize the name,” Maggie says, “and I know all of Joey’s family. So I did a search. It turns out Constance is five years old.”
“Minors can’t be beneficiaries,” Keegan says.
“Constance is the second name, the first is a Heather Fisher. Heather is Constance’s mother. I’ll give you one guess who her father is.”
“Fucking hell,” Shawn growls. “He had a child?”
“He did,” Maggie confirms. “And as far as I’m concerned, they can have all of his money. I don’t fucking care. I need to be done with this now, not after I’ve learned everything. Because each new thing is a fresh cut, and I don’t deserve that.”
