After breakfast in our room the following morning, Shane and I meet up with Erin in the hotel lobby. I could barely hide my disappointment when he told me that she would be joining us today too, but I suppose this is a business thing and that’s what she’s here for. Shane has hired us a town car with a driver for the week and when the huge, sleek black car pulls up outside the hotel, he opens the door for me and I climb inside and scoot along to the edge of the seat. Erin climbs in next and sits in the middle beside me and I curse under my breath. I hadn’t thought that through. Now she’ll be sitting beside Shane instead of me.
Shane pokes his head inside the car and he looks at the two of us. “Unless you want to sit on my lap, sweetheart, I’d suggest we rethink this seating situation,” he flashes an eyebrow at me.
I look to Erin beside me. “Can you scoot over, please?” I ask, forcing a smile.
She rolls her eyes so hard I think they may have fallen into her brain.
“You really want to sit next to Shane while he’s feeling me up on his lap the entire way?” I ask and that seems to do the trick as she slides along the seat with a deep sigh and I scoot into her place.
“Thank you,” Shane says as he steps inside and sits beside me.
I lean close to him and he rests his warm hand on my thigh. I fidget and pull at the hem of my dress, not used to wearing them, and Shane takes hold of my hand to stop me. This dress is one of the ones Conor chose for me. Shane packed it in his suitcase, knowing full well that all I would bring would be jeans and tank tops, which I am much more comfortable in. I’m grateful he did though. I would have felt out of place otherwise.
Erin, as usual, is effortlessly chic and stylish. I have to give her that. She is to clothes what peanut butter is to jelly.
I sit back in the seat and we drive to the venue in almost silence. The air is thick with tension and I feel the frustration seeping into Shane the closer we get to our destination. His fingers flex in my hand and his chest is rigid as we drive through the streets of Belfast. From the little he’s told me, this event today has been put on just for him. A chance for all of his father’s friends and associates to see him after all this time and pay their respects, but mostly to talk business — notably, who is going to take over operations in Ireland now that Patrick is dead.
As soon as we get inside the pub where the gathering is happening, Shane is accosted by a group of men who all offer their condolences and push glasses of whiskey into his hands. They try to usher him into a corner of the room which is full of men in suits drinking and smoking cigars. He looks at me apologetically but I smile at him. “I’ll be fine,” I mouth.
“I’ll look after her,” Erin says coolly.
Shane frowns at her as I almost pass out with shock, but I hide my surprise. “Go,” I say to him and he winks at me before disappearing into the crowd.
“Shall we get a drink?” Erin says as she turns to me.
I look behind me to see if she’s speaking to somebody else, but there is no-one else here. “Umm. Yes, okay,” I say and then I follow her to the bar where she orders us each a whiskey. “I don’t have any money with me,” I whisper as I look around the room for Shane.
She rolls her eyes. “Relax. You don’t need any when you’re with Shane. He takes care of everything,” she says and there is a sadness in her voice. As much as she annoys me, I understand how much it must hurt her to see the two of us together.
The bartender hands us each a whiskey over ice and I raise mine to Erin. “Cheers,” I offer.
“Cheers.” She actually smiles at me and clinks her glass against mine. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to a few people,” she says with a nod of her head and I follow her into the crowd wondering for a second who she is and what the hell she has done with the real Erin.
She makes a beeline for a small group of men standing at a table on the other side of the room.
“Sean?” she says as she reaches them and the man with his back to her turns and smiles.
“Erin McGrath?” he grins at her. “How long has it been?”
“Not long enough, Sean,” she smiles at him and reaches back for me before pulling me to stand beside her. “This is Jessie. Shane’s girlfriend.”
“Hi,” I say, extending my hand and feeling incredibly awkward all of a sudden.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Jessie,” Sean says as he takes my outstretched hand and kisses my knuckles.
“I have to talk to a few people. Can you look after Jessie for me?” Erin flutters her eyelashes.
Sean nods his head in agreement. “Of course. Anything for Shane.” He turns back to me and winks.
“Great. Thanks,” she says before she disappears in a waft of Chanel perfume.
“So, Jessie?” Sean says as he looks me over. “You and Shane Ryan?”
“Yes,” I stammer.
“Me and Shane go way back,” he smiles at me. “I’m glad to see he’s dumped that one.” He indicates his head toward Erin’s retreating back. “She has a stick so far up her arse, it’s a wonder she can sit down.”
I smile and stifle a laugh.
“And she’s a lawyer,” he says quietly behind his hand, pretending to hide what he’s saying. “Do you know what the difference is between a lawyer and God?”
“No,” I frown at him.
“God doesn’t think he’s a lawyer,” he winks at me and I can’t help laughing now. It’s a terrible joke, but that’s what makes it so funny.
I’m walking to the ladies’ room when a strong arm grabs me by the waist, pulling me into a dark corner and pressing me against the wall. I look up into Shane’s fierce glare. He leans down, his breath dancing over my neck and making me shiver. “If you don’t stop flirting with Sean O’Connor, I will take off my belt, along with your panties, and spank your ass in the middle of this room,” he growls.
“What?” I suck in a breath as I look into his eyes to determine whether he is being serious or not. He glares back at me, his green eyes almost black as they smolder like the embers of a fire. “I wasn’t flirting with him.” I try to pull back from his grasp but that only makes him hold me tighter.
“You weren’t?” He narrows his eyes at me. “Because the two of you looked all kinds of friendly over there.”
“Exactly. Friendly. We were just talking. He is friendly,” I start to say but he cuts me off.
“So, he was flirting with you?”
“No,” I shake my head.
“Because if that’s case, I’m more than happy to walk you back over there and fuck you over his table if that’s what it takes to show everyone in this room who you belong to.”
“You wouldn’t,” I swallow.
“Watch me, Hacker. And I will take perverse satisfaction in making them watch while you come so hard that you scream my name.”
“You’re an asshole,” I hiss.
He leans closer to me, caging me in with his arms and pressing his groin into mine. “Yeah? But I’m your asshole, sweetheart. And you belong to me. So behave your fucking self.”
Despite my annoyance, I feel a familiar fluttering in my abdomen that always comes from being this close to Shane Ryan. But I refuse to accept that I have done anything wrong. “I was just talking,” I snap.
“No,” he takes my hand and pulls me forward so that we are no longer in the shadows. “That,” he points at Erin, who stands demurely with about two feet of space around her entire person, “is just talking.”
The tears prick at my eyes and I swallow the emotion that balls in my throat. Erin! How fucking dare he! I spin on my heel and glare at him, wishing I could make him feel some of the pain he just caused me. “No! That is having the personality of a fucking ice cube. But if she is the woman you’d rather I behaved like, why don’t you just go fuck her in front of all these people instead. Because I am going back to the hotel.”
“The fuck you are!” he hisses.
“So, you expect me to just stand in this room on my own and not smile or make eye contact with anyone? Is that it?”
“Just fucking behave, Jessie,” he snarls, but before I can respond we are approached by an older couple.
“Are you not going to introduce us to your lovely lady, Shane?” the man says loudly while the woman I assume is his wife beams at the two of us.
Shane smiles as he slips an arm around my waist. “Of course, Jacob. This is Jessie,” he says with a warning glance and I force my best smile as I greet them.
They ask Shane about his brothers and listening to him talking about them makes me miss them so much, but after a few minutes someone else comes along and demands his attention. He leaves me talking to Jacob and his wife, Ruth, and I assume Shane’s twisted logic considers them safe for me to converse with.
I’m still talking to Jacob and Ruth when I catch Erin staring at me with a smug grin on her face. I excuse myself and make my way over to her.
“Is something about me amusing you this afternoon, Erin?”
She tilts her head as she looks me up and down. “Hmm. Perhaps I should have warned you how much Shane hates Sean O’Connor,” she says with a smile before she takes a sip of her champagne.
God, she is a Grade A bitch. But why did I expect any less from her? I can’t even be bothered arguing with her about it. “Why does he hate him so much?”
“Because Sean was always his father’s right hand man, at least until Shane was old enough to be anyway. He hated that Patrick’s son took over and he did everything he could to make his life as difficult as possible. He was especially partial to fucking Shane’s girlfriends if he ever got the chance to be alone with them, whether they consented or not,” she says with a shudder and suddenly I wonder if she was ever a victim of Sean’s advances.
“But why didn’t Shane deal with him?” I frown because I can’t imagine the man I know allowing any of that to go unpunished.
“Because Patrick Ryan loved Sean. No doubt he saw a lot of himself in the sadistic prick. So he was basically untouchable. If Shane had retaliated, then Mikey and Liam would have borne the brunt of their father’s frustrations.”
I shake my head. The more I learn about Patrick, the more I wonder how his sons turned out to be the men they are today.
“It was fun watching Shane’s face turn purple when he saw you and Sean chatting like old pals.” She laughs and it’s not a pleasant sound, more of an annoying, high-pitched whinny.
I glare at her, wondering how much of a commotion it would cause if I were to punch her in the face right now. But that would only make her look like the victim and I can think of a much better way to hurt her.
“Yeah, he sure was pissed,” I say with a smile. “So, thank you, Erin.”
She frowns at me. “What for?”
I look over at Shane. He is talking to a group of people and they are all hanging on his every word. Dressed in his exquisitely tailored suit that hugs his broad shoulders and thick thighs perfectly, he can hold a room like no-one I have ever met and he is the sexiest man in here by a long shot. He glances at me, and our eyes meet for a second, making me swallow in anticipation before I turn back to Erin. “You must remember how good that man fucks? And when he’s pissed? Wow!” I fan myself with my hand. “I doubt either of us will be getting any sleep tonight.” I flash my eyebrows at her before walking away and leaving her standing with her mouth open and the shadow of a scowl on her botoxed forehead.
As I walk away from Erin, I look around the room for Jacob and Ruth again but they are talking to Sean O’Connor, and despite the fact that I’m still completely pissed at Shane, I understand now why he wouldn’t want me talking to him. I make my way to the bar instead and sit on a stool while I order a glass of soda.
I’ve only been sitting alone for a few minutes when I feel a warm hand on my back. I turn, expecting and hoping to see Shane, but it’s Sean O’Connor’s face that smiles back at me. I shrug his hand off me.
“Something wrong?” he grins at me. “You were much more friendly before.”
“I don’t like to be touched by people I don’t know,” I say as I scoot back in my seat, looking around the room for Shane but I don’t see him.
“But we know each other now, don’t we?” He leers at me as he trails two fingers over the bare skin on my arm and I shudder. How did I not notice how creepy he was before?
I’m about to tell him to go to hell when his hand is forcibly removed from my arm and twisted up his back. I hear the cracking of bone as Sean winces and howls in pain before his head is slammed onto the bar in front of us and he stumbles to the ground with blood pouring from his nose. When I look up again Shane is standing right in front of me with a murderous look in his eyes.
“We’re going!”
I blink at him.
“Now!” he barks as he reaches for my hand and pulls me from the stool.
I allow him to walk me out of the crowded bar while everyone stares at us. Nobody says anything and I doubt they would dare after what he just did. When we are outside in the afternoon sun, I wrench my hand from his grip.
“What the hell, Shane?” I snap.
He turns to me, full of anger and venom. “I told you to stay the fuck away from him.”
“I did!” I protest. “He found me.”
“You should never have spoken to him in the first place.”
“Erin introduced me to him. Why does she get to do whatever she wants with no reproach?” I scowl at him.
He grabs my chin in one of his strong hands, squeezing as he bends his face close to mine. “Because I don’t give a fuck what Erin does,” he hisses. “I don’t care who she talks to, who she smiles at, who she fucks.” He shifts closer to me, pressing his groin into mine until the heat from his body sears against my skin. “But you…” He narrows his eyes at me before dipping his head lower, brushing his lips against my ear and making a shiver skitter along my spine. “I see you talking to another man and I want to rip his tongue out. When you smile at him, I want to gouge his fucking eyes out. And if anyone touches you, like even brushes against you when you’re passing by, it makes me feel so fucking angry that I feel like ripping their head off with my bare hands.”
“Shane! I didn’t…” I start to plead but he turns away from me.
“Get into the car,” he snarls and I do as he orders, rolling my eyes once his back is turned. Once inside the car, I scooch over onto the back seat, shrinking into the corner so I can sit as far away from him as possible. But when he climbs in after me, he follows me, sitting on the seat directly beside me. I bristle at his touch but he seems to take that as a signal to pull me up and onto his lap as he settles back into the seat.
“Shane!” I hiss as I wriggle from his grip, but he wraps his powerful arms around me and holds me in place.
“Stay!” he growls, as though I’m a puppy dog and not a person. I am about to tell him to go to hell when I notice Erin climbing into the car too and I press my lips together. The look of anguish on her face at seeing me wrapped in the arms of the man she still so clearly loves is obvious, if only for a fleeting moment, before she disguises it with an eye roll and a look of disgust.
There is no way I will give her the satisfaction of making a scene here in the car, so I reluctantly settle into Shane’s lap, leaning against his broad chest. Some of the tension slips from him as he hugs me tighter. He barks an order to the driver and then he sighs softly before he plants a soft kiss on my shoulder. It’s such a tender kiss that it almost makes me forget how mad I am at him.
Almost.
