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Everything in my body turned to ice, and the bitter taste of hate filled my mouth. I was once again the young teenager he used to beat the shite out of. “You must be mistaken. My father is dead.”
He reached out and touched my arm. “Son, please,” he said.
I looked into his watery gray eyes and the tiny broken blood vessels that covered his large red nose. Evidence of a life of hard drinking.
“Like I said, my father is dead.”
ChapterTwenty-Two
EVIE
The thought of being worried never entered my mind as Mac helped me into the car while the frenzy of paparazzi snapped photos of us. I was still in shock by the judge’s decision and what I would do now with Cormac and his father, to think of them.
“Are you all right?” Keir asked, getting in beside me. His voice was clipped, and he looked angry.
“Yes, I think so,” I answered, looking outside at the crowd that had gathered. “Do they always come out to take pictures of you?”
“Not typically. Leonard must have tipped them off.” He leaned forward to speak to Alan. “Get us the hell out of this bloody city.”
“Who was the man that stopped you?” Alan asked as he pulled the car out into the traffic that had formed. “He looked like he knew you.”
“No,” Keir snapped. “He was just some deranged man rambling on about nothing.” He turned back to me. “Are you sure you’re all right? You look pale.”
I tried to bite back the tears that threatened to come. “I’m fine.”
“Mac will do his best to stop the tabloids from printing anything,” he said. “I don’t think they got a clear shot of you.”
That got my attention. “Clear shot?”
“Aye, of your face.”
“You mean this could be in the papers?” I suddenly realized the significance. I couldn’t risk anyone back home seeing my picture plastered on the front of a tabloid.
“It most likely will.”
“Not American papers?”
“Mac will do his best to prevent it. I’m so sorry, Evie.”
I felt the bile in my already nauseous stomach rise up the back of my throat. If Cormac or Donovan found out I was married, they would hurt or, even worse, kill my brothers. “I think I might be sick.”
“Take a deep breath,” Keir said, rubbing my back. “You haven’t eaten anything all day. You’re hungry.”
“Shall I pull over?” Alan asked.
“No, I’m fine. I’ll be okay.”
“Find a place where we can eat. Something with some privacy,” Keir added.
“Honestly, don’t make a fuss. I’m feeling better. It was just the shock of the news.”
“Only if you’re sure,” Keir said.
“I’m sure.”
He moved closer to me, putting his arm around me. “Close your eyes, darling.”
I wasn’t sure if he meant to call me the term of endearment or if it just slipped out, but I had never heard him use the word before. Either way, I leaned my head against his shoulder and welcomed whatever strength he offered, blocking out the rest of the world and my problems.
