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Nodding into his chest, I couldn’t stop the smile from creeping onto my face. “It’s perfect.”
I caught Dad’s eye, and he grinned and winked at me, then turned his attention back to the game.
Relaxing into Liam’s side, I fell asleep to his low, rumbling voice as he talked to Dad.
24
Liam
“Are you sure you shouldn’t connect the gas first?” I asked an irate Vlad, who was installing the stove. Once he’d pushed the huge appliance against the wall, it would be impossible to attach the hose for the gas or plug it in.
“I’m not taking orders from you. Maybe you should finish the bathroom. We still need to install the sink.”
Unperturbed by his attitude, I left him to figure it out for himself. The cleanup had gone well, and we’d finished everything on time. Once I was sure Quinn wouldn’t disappear on me again, I went back to Chicago for a few days to make sure everything was okay.
I’d been talking to my brothers multiple times a day. There hadn’t been any incidents, we were still no closer to finding out who had ordered the hit on Dad, and everyone was getting restless.
Our men were stationed all around town. We’d turned over every stone. But whoever we were up against was always one step ahead of us.
One of the guys who took Quinn had escaped, leaving us with the lowly soldiers who had no information on who ordered the kidnapping.
But that was not for now. Because I had a bathroom to finish.
The sink only needed silicone around the sides, and then everything was done. The plumber had already connected and attached it to the wall, but instead of finishing the job, he’d gotten into a heated argument with Vlad and walked out shortly after. I doubted he’d come back, which left me to add the finishing touches to the bathroom.
But I didn’t mind. There was no better feeling than experiencing the smile on Quinn’s face whenever something was finished. And working with my hands had been oddly satisfying. I’d never turn my back on the family business completely, but maybe Quinn and I could buy a house that needed a bit of renovating. I already had my eye on a few in San Francisco and Chicago.
We hadn’t yet talked about where we’d live, but I didn’t want to pressure her, content to split my time between the two for now. Gabriel was doing surprisingly well, only complaining a few times a day. He hadn’t even shot anyone since taking over.
The restaurant was almost ready, the opening scheduled for a week from today. Despite spending long days getting everything ready, I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
The time I spent with Quinn was precious. Not only did I work beside her all day, but I was also with her every night. My trip to Chicago had been the only two nights we’d spent apart in the last three weeks.
Finishing up in the bathroom, I joined Amara and Quinn behind the bar. “Need any help?”
Quinn nodded, and I pressed a kiss to her temple, then grabbed bottles out of the opened boxes on the floor, putting them on the shelves.
Looking out over the restaurant, Quinn put her hands on her hips. “I can’t believe we’re almost done.”
Amara huffed. “Don’t get too excited. There’s still plenty left to do.”
Waving her aunt off, Quinn continued putting glasses in cupboards. “As long as we have somewhere for our guests to sit and a place to cook their food, we’re all set.”
We were almost finished when the scent of lasagna wafted out of the kitchen. Amara brought our lunch with her every day. For today she’d made lasagna that we were planning on eating cold. But it seemed liked we’d get a warm meal instead.
“Does that mean the oven is ready?” Quinn squealed and skipped to the kitchen, Amara following.
I took care of the last box, breaking it down and adding it to the others on the huge pile we’d amassed.
“Liam, lunch is ready,” Quinn called, her voice vibrating with excitement.
Amara was busy putting food on plates, while Quinn hovered next to Vlad, admiring the new stove. Grinning at him, she put an arm around his shoulders. “This is amazing. I can’t believe you did this yourself.”
“He had no choice since he pissed off the plumber,” I coughed under my breath.
Vlad sent me a scathing glare, and I suppressed the grin threatening to escape. “Well done, bud,” I said, nodding at the stove.
“Be right back,” Quinn said. “I forgot my phone on the bar. We need a photo.”
