“I feel like we walked twenty miles today,” Jo laughed. “I plan on taking a hot shower and ordering room service. What about you?
“Your plans are my plans. I’m tired.” River slung her bag over her shoulder as they walked toward the cottage. “Plus, I’ve got a mountain of mail to get through that Rowan gave me before we left. Procrastination hasn’t shrunk the pile, unfortunately.”
“I bet you’re even more tired after having sex with Patrick last night,” Jo snorted a laugh when River rounded on her.
“Oh. My. God. I told that shit that you would hear.” River covered her red face. Dying. Dying. Dead.
“Oh Lord, why didn’t I video your reaction for your sisters. Damn it!” She yelped when River swatted her butt. “No worries!” she giggled, obviously enjoying herself immensely at River’s expense. “I put earbuds in when I realized you and Pat decided to make a porn.”
“I... no... yep, speechless.” It was good to see Jo laugh again, even if it was a mortifying subject. “I admit, Jo, I was pretty amazing in my first feature film.” River laughed and hip-bumped Jo. She laughed hysterically at that. Arm in arm, the women followed MacGregor into the cottage.
Thomas checked the perimeter of the cottage before he let them get out of the car, and as was the routine, he entered the cottage first and did a room-by-room sweep. She and Jo were looking over the menu when he quietly walked back into the living room next to the kitchen. Jo’s back was to him, so she didn’t know he’d come back in.
In a low voice, Jo asked River, “Would you get MacGregor’s order, Riv? I don’t think I can take any more of his disinterest today.” My eyes must have gone round because Jo immediately swung around to see the man in question, one who didn’t look anywhere close to disinterested.
His fists were clenched, and his jaw was clenched. His whole damn body appeared locked up. Until he moved— stalked, really.
Each step was silent. Deliberate. MacGregor didn’t stop until he was toe-to-toe with Jo, River, a forgotten barnacle at her side, along for the ride. His warrior body appeared to swell twice its size, her friend a golden doll caught in the maelstrom.
“Since you refuse to give me even ten seconds of your time toprivatelydiscuss what happened in my room, I’m forced to speakpublicly.” He placed his hands on the counter behind Jo, leaning in so that he could look directly into Jo’s eyes. “Fair warning, mo ghràdh, the days of swallowing my wants and needs... that’s over, lassie.”
“I want to be very, very clear here, Josephine O’Connor. I have wanted you naked, and in my bed since the first day I laid eyes on you.
“One of my best men was supposed to be your guard, but his flight from South Africa was delayed. I own the security company. All the men who work there answer to me. I no longer take jobs myself. But here I am, and here we are. Once you were mine, I wouldn’t allow another man to take my place.
“I go to bed hard, and I wake up hard. But lass, I am a soldier still, and temptation will not cause me to let my guard down. Delton got close to you at Wolves because I only had eyes for you. That will not happen again. Your life is worth my best. The day my face is buried between your thighs, or my shaft buried deep in your body, I won’t be your guard, I’ll just be yours.”
He straightened to his full height. “A warning, Ms. O’Connor. Once the threat to your life has been eliminated, if you don’t want me to catch you, you better fucking run. Fast.” Turning all that intensity on River, he asked her to order two cheeseburgers and two orders of chips for his dinner before walking out the front door.
Holy shit! MacGregor knew his way around a mic drop. Clearing her throat, River suggested, “Let’s go ahead and order the food and then shower while we wait.” Jo was still staring at where her guard had exited. “Okay,” River answered herself. “I’ll call dining now.”
35
River was dying. She knew she wasn’tliterallydying, but her burning, blistered hands sure felt like the Grim Reaper was lounging somewhere close. The pain thankfully distracted her from the photo album of Patrick’s greatest hits— his infidelity.
She’d finally gotten around to opening her mail from Triskelion. There was only one package, which she’d saved for last, assuming it was a sample from a vendor looking to impress her and her sisters.
It wasn’t a sample.
Inside the plain, brown box, River pulled out a bubble-wrapped parcel. She picked the box up again to look at the return label. There was no address, only a yellow happy face sticker. Weird.
Underneath the bubble wrap was an old-looking, thin wooden album. River ran her hands over the deep grooves and delicate metal inlay. It was getting dusty crap all over her skin. Carefully, she opened the front board cover— and froze. Oh God, no.
It was an eight-and-a-half by eleven-inch photo from New Year’s Eve night of Patrick holding that woman on his lap. Even though the dust was starting to really irritate her hands and forearms, River couldn’t stop turning the pages. It was like a child’s paper flip book. Each page changed the angle just enough to make them look like they were moving on the page.
The kiss. Oh God, it was like watching Patrick kissing another woman right in front of her. She must have cried out because Thomas stood before her where she was sitting on the living room couch. River was crying and rubbing at her hands and arms. Thomas yelled for Jo before getting out his phone.
“River.” She must not have responded quick enough. How could she? She felt like she was drowning. “River! Stop scratching, lass. You’ve something on your skin, and touching it may make it worse.”
Jo rushed into the room, sporting a floppy bun and oversized t-shirt. “What is going on?” She started to reach for the photo album, but Thomas grabbed her hands.
“Don’t touch it. It looks like Delton sent this to River. He put something on it to hurt her skin. Okay, Riv, you’re going to need to do exactly what I say, okay?” River could only nod. Tears from the pain of seeing the pictures and from her hands made speech impossible.
“Hold your hands up in front of you. I’m going to wrap all this up inside the blanket you have over your lap. Jo, as soon as I have it wrapped and gone, help River to the kitchen sink and have River use soap and lukewarm water to gently wash her hands and arms. Donottouch anything except her back if she needs support, Jo.”
In a daze, River did as Thomas asked. The water felt soothing. The soap, not so much. She heard Thomas barking orders into his phone. After he ended the call, Thomas informed her and Jo that he had a contact here in Scotland who would be coming by to pick up the album and the box it came in for testing.
“The box was mailed in Dublin, which means Delton is most likely in the city. Carefully dry your arms, River. Jo, go get another shirt for River to change into before we go to the hospital.”
