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I don’t think anybody is capable of doing that. Especially because I know Tris heard my side of the conversation. Once I have sweatpants and a soft t-shirt on, I grab a pair of nondescript sneakers to take down with me. Eian is lucky we wear the same size shoes. We don't have the same build, he’s way more buff than me, so he can’t steal my clothes at least, instead, he keeps a few outfits here in the room he always uses.
I realize I’m standing there, staring at the white shoes, and wasting the precious time I have to give some sort of explanation to Tris.
I walk back to the bed and sit facing him, he’s still looking intently at me, sitting up now, but he hasn’t asked anything. I wonder why.
“I have to go downstairs,” I start and stall by combing my hair, I have no idea how to go on.
“Is there an emergency?” he asks.
“No, no emergency, everything is fine.” And I should’ve at least looked at the time or asked Matt if Iris is back home, I’ll do that when I’m in my office. “Look, I know you probably have a lot of questions, but in this instance, I promise you.” I look him in the eye. “I swear to you, it’s in your best interest to not ask any more questions and try and go back to sleep.” I stand. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
He opens and closes his mouth a few times. I shake my head at him, “I need to go, just… look, I can see you’re dying to know everything, so I’ll just say this. If you come down, you’re going to pray no judge ever releases you from the NDA you signed.”
I know I sound ominous, and like a villain probably, but nothing I said is a lie. Now, I can only hope and pray he follows my advice.
I meet Eian right outside my office and shove my brand-new shoes on his chest. He lets out an exaggerated ‘oomph’ and I roll my eyes at him.
“I know for a fact you have more than enough money to buy your own fucking shoes and bring a few pairs here, so you better return those or next time you’re walking out of here barefoot.”
He smirks at me because he knows I’m full of shit and follows me inside. I go straight to the decanters beside my desk and pour three healthy fingers of whiskey for each of us. We always need drinks whenever he comes over.
I let myself feel the sadness I do every time he visits, because we can never meet just to have lunch, or just to catch up like normal cousins do.
We can only see each other when some kind of emergency is going on. There have been so many times I’ve been tempted to just invite him over for dinner, or just say fuck it, and tell my children they have an uncle, but since Iris’ attempted kidnapping three years ago, those thoughts went out the window.
I bring him his tumbler to the couch where he’s already sitting, the shoes already on his feet have my eye twitching, but I sit next to him regardless.
“What’s up?” I ask finally.
“I’ve missed you,” he says simply while looking down at his glass then he downs all of it in one go.
I don’t doubt he’s missed me, but I know that’s not why he’s here. Still… “I’ve missed you, too,” I say and place a hand on his shoulder, squeezing tight for a long second.
It’s the absolute truth, last time he came here was when Theo’s face was splashed all over the country and people finally had a face to match the name of my ‘long-lost son’. Eian came to see me the next night and helped calm me down from the rising panic that the whole situation had me feeling.
It's perplexing how we’re probably the two most powerful men in this city, and we can only be vulnerable and our authentic selves with each other. And with Ma, of course.
I see his profile, looking unseeingly at the windows. It's so strange to me that he can look so much more like Ma than me. His almost dainty nose that used to be perfectly straight, his curved brows and big eyes. The dim light of the corner lamp makes him look even more lethal than he normally does. And he’s been a man to fear since he became a man. Which was way before I did, even with me being four years older than him. Uncle Ronan had a very different parenting style than my parents, let’s just leave it at that, but Eian and I could always play like we were the same person. He’s honestly more like a little brother than a cousin, and despite the widely different lives we’ve led and having opposite views on most moral dilemmas, I love him.
He's one of my favorite humans when he’s only my cousin, and I’ll never turn my back on him.
“It’s done,” he says, looking resolute, and I suck in a sharp breath because that means…
A creak of the floor right outside my office has me taking a deep breath. This is going to be a shitshow. And yep, that’s Eian reaching for his gun and aiming it at the angel that should’ve stayed in bed.
Instead, he’s come to meet the devil.
EIGHT
Tristan
Eian Dempsey.
The head of the Dempsey crime family, of the Irish Mob, is pointing a gun at me, and I can only stand there, deer-caught-in-headlights look, unable to move. Before I pee my pants, though, Harrison steps in front of me.
“Eian,” he growls, and I can’t even focus on how hot the growl is because now the gun is pointed at him. Fuck, am I about to be the reason Harrison Crawford is murdered by a mob king? Why the fuck is he here, though? This makes no fucking sense. “Put the gun down,” Harrison tells him.
I tried, I really, really tried to not come down here, but as always, my need to be in the know, my need to find answers won out. It sucks when the quality that makes you so great at your job fucks you over in real life.
