Page 8 of Black Wedding

Staring at me with his soulful green eyes, he holds out his hand to me, trying to pass over his mobile phone that I missed earlier. He mumbles something about using it on speakerphone only. I roll my eyes, but nod in confirmation, dialing the other number I have had memorised since I was a child. He answers after just two rings, and his strong Irish twang warms my heart.

“Who is this?” the Irishman growls down the phone and I can’t help but laugh. He has never been one for pleasantries.

“Hey, Gramps, it’s Bree,” I say cheerily, although I’m sure he already knows what’s going on. My father probably had him on speaker when the call from Liam came through.

“Motherfucker. You tell that Irish twat if he lays one hand on your pretty red head, I will find him, cut his bollocks off, and feed them to his mother. Do you hear me?! Can he hear me?” my grandfather shouts, then begins to swear in Gaelic, even though nobody else in the family can speak it. His grandparents were raised in the southern region of Ireland, and they spoke it. He mostly learnt the swear words and a few threats, but none of his siblings learnt it at all, choosing to speak English instead. I’m not even sure his father bothered to learn. He keeps telling me that he wants to teach me, but my dad has always forbidden it. Women should not swear or do anything that is not becoming of a quiet, meek, obedient little housewife. Well, he was in for a shock because there’s no way I’m falling into that category.

“Gramps, calm down, please. You know you have high blood pressure. Liam can hear you, and I want to tell you he has not hurt me in any way. Look, I know you always say you don’t want to get in the middle of things when I argue with dad, but this time he really is being unreasonable. I don’t know Liam, but I know Dad is wrong for not paying him what he is owed,” I explain and I can hear my grandfather sigh. He knows whenever I say he doesn’t have to get in the middle of our argument that he probably will need to.

“Bree, hun, there is a lot that you don’t know. The man Liam assassinated was a very important part of the business, he was essential in getting some of our cargo into the country without it being seen. We had a couple of shipments that were discovered, as well as money going missing, and that could only mean we had a rat. We conducted a lot of investigations and all the signs pointed at the leader of Marcushio Imports as being the one snitching to the cops. So of course we hired Liam to deal with him. We have worked with Liam a lot in the past. In fact, we have even offered him very heavy sums to come on board and work for us full-time, yet he refuses every time. I know your father left word with Liam that the hit was off, but it was too late. That hit has gone on to cause us a lot of shit. Initially, Leon’s second in command, Richie, took over the business and tried to keep our shipments moving, and money washed, but then Leon’s seventeen-year-old son, Vinnie, soon came along, trying to find out why his father was murdered. He suspects we are involved and has cut off all ties with us, costing us millions in product and fees. We have people we need to supply to, Bree. We need our channels opened again,” he reveals, as I try to follow along. This is the most my grandfather, or any member of the Family, has ever included me in regarding the Family business.

“I understand all that, but the mistake is on whoever ordered the hit, surely. They are the one who didn’t confirm the data before hiring Liam. He did his job, why should he not get paid for that?” I say sternly.

Looking over at Liam, I see he is piercing me with his green eyes, whilst twirling his knife around between his fingers. Almost like it is a nervous habit of his. I can relate, I am someone who always likes to have my hands busy.

“I do understand, Bree, and I’m sure your father does too. But Liam has stepped over the line by doing this. We have to retaliate. If word gets out that we negotiated or paid him, then your life would be in incredible danger. We would get people trying to ransom you all the time, and they may not be as good to you as you say Liam is,” he explains and I groan loudly.

“There will be no retaliation against Liam. I am not calling to discuss the ransom as it is not relevant any more. I am no longer being held hostage. I want to make it very clear I am here of my own free will, Gramps. Liam and I have talked, and we have decided we are going to get married. I want to claim my rights to the business,” I said as calmly as possible.

Gramps and I argued over this subject numerous times in the past. The rules of the O’Keenan family have always been that the business is passed down to the first male heir, which is how my dad was given our London based business. They try to keep me out of the majority of business discussions, but I know how it works. Our main base is Ireland, which is the one Gramps currently runs. He needs one of his sons to take over from him when it’s time for him to retire, or Grams makes him. Given my uncles are either dead, in prison, or idiots, the decision was always that Dad would move back to Cork when the time was right and that his heir would continue running the London branch.

When the O’Keenan’s married into my mother’s Family for the money, it was always in the agreement that it would be a Mallory descendant who runs the business. So when my mother gave birth to me, and experienced complications that resulted in her not being able to produce more heirs, they scrambled. Gramps agreed that as soon as I married, the business would transfer into the hands of my husband, with me by his side.

When I was younger, I was forced into dates with suitable boys, assholes who wanted to rule the firm one day. I continually vowed to my family that I would never marry strategically, that I would only marry for love. But as I got older I realised that was never going to be a possibility. If I wanted to take over and be the first female leader of our Family business then I needed a man who my family approved of and who met all their requirements, but who would step aside and allow me to rule. Liam was part of our world, he was strong, and given his profession he had to be ruthless and protective. He seemed like the perfect choice, but as he stares at me talking through things with Gramps, his confused expression tells me I maybe should have talked to him about our engagement beforehand, not that there was time with my father being a cockwomble earlier.

“Sweetheart, please be reasonable. Think about things. Liam might seem like the right choice right now to get back at your father and his idiot behaviour, but this is still my company. I will not throw it away,” he says firmly and I chuckle slightly, rolling my eyes. He may not have said it specifically, but I know what he is thinking when he says ‘be reasonable’. I’m surprised my father didn’t say it outright before. They think whenever I react or behave impulsively it must be because of my period. Why do men think my decisions are based on some hormonal tantrum?

Did I plan on marrying Liam? No. I wanted to kill him when I first woke up. For as long as I can remember, I have always thought about the best way to get control of the Family business that I am owed, but they will never give it to me unless I randomly grow a cock and balls. So marriage was the only other way. It had to be someone who knew who I was and what I was capable of, making every male I have ever dated in the past off the list. I needed someone who could stand by my side and help me with the business. I am not going to admit I know everything, and there will be areas I need a partner in. When I decided to get married to someone I decided to view it as a partnership. He would stand by my side, help me when needed and protect me when I couldn’t protect myself. Liam fit that bill perfectly. I always knew I would have to give something back in return for such a marriage. So for Liam to just want what he is owed, that is something I can give him and more. We can hash out the finer points later, no doubt with Gramps’ lawyer involved. Right now, I had to make him see I was serious.

Mentally, I was trying to find the right words to tell my Gramps why this was a good idea in a way he could relate to. Luckily, Liam stepped in.

“Mr. O’Keenan, I’m Liam. I haven’t met you in person before so you don’t know me, only my reputation. I am the best hitman in the country, possibly even the world. I know you have heard of my family, and know how I was trained. Believe me when I say, kidnapping Bree was the absolute last resort and I never would have hurt her. I had no idea she would be interested in activating the clause in the contract, but now that she is…” Liam says politely, but sternly to ensure that while he shows my grandfather the respect he is owed, he also lets him know he isn’t someone who should be messed with. Just as Liam is getting into the real meat of his story, my grandfather interrupts him.

“What clause?!” he shouts. Oh fuck, did Gramps not know about my dad bartering with my life?

“The clause was written into, not justthiscontract, butevery oneI have ever had with your family. It covers what happens if full payment has not been received, and all avenues of discussion have been exhausted. It states that Brianna’s hand in marriage will be given voluntarily so that I can claim rightful ownership of the London firm,” Liam explains.

“What the fuck? Why would you add that as a clause?!” my Grandfather screeches.

“Although I am an independent contractor and I work for myself, my family’s lawyer created all the official paperwork. It was only when I made contact with him to seek advice on what to do about Vernon not paying that I was advised of the clause. I didn’t know about it before then, and I definitely would never have forced Bree into it. I mentioned it to Vernon as a threat, hoping that he would see sense and just pay me what I’m owed. The decision to go through with the clause was all Bree,” he explains and I confirm it, which is why I can hear a loud groan coming from my grandfather.

“Bree, I’m so sorry. I can’t believe your father was such an asshole to gamble with your future. I will be having words with him about that. Liam, as for you, I hope you know that this is a plot by your father. He has wanted control of London for years but has been unsuccessful in taking it from me. He thinks getting you to marry my granddaughter is the first step to succeed in that, which it may well be. I don’t know how much choice I have in this legally, I will be looking into it. But I need to know, Liam, is this all a plan to give control to your father?” I stare at Liam as his face contorts into one of anger. I recoil slightly, confused by the pure rage that is practically pouring from this man.

“I had no idea my father had any interest in your company. I have not been part of the Family business for many years. I go home occasionally to see my mother and younger sisters, but my father and two older brothers are assholes that I want nothing to do with. So no, I work for me, and now it would seem I work with Bree.” he replies, seeming to calm down as he talks and he is now looking at me with an almost shy smile on his face, one I return.

“We have no agenda, Gramps. This may have stemmed from a bad decision made by Liam, and it may have come about because of my father and his fucked up logic, but I really do think this is a good idea. I think Liam and I could run the business for you and be fucking great at it.” I spoke with a fire I genuinely felt. I may not know anything at all about Liam, but what I do know, and what I have worked out based on this experience gives me good vibes from him. Yes, he is a dick for kidnapping me and I am not minimising that, but he never hurt me, he never threatened me, not really. I don’t even have a bruise from being manhandled, meaning when I was unconscious he carried me with care. I may have got him really fucking wrong, but we will see.

My Gramps doesn’t even try to hide his sigh this time, it rings loud and echoes through the phone speaker. “I don’t like this. Not one bit. But I trust you, Bree. I know you have talked a lot about joining the business, and I have always deterred you. It was never because I didn’t think you were capable, you are very much able to run the business, but there’s a danger, and a horror attached to our business that I didn’t want you to be part of. I always thought you wanted to marry for love. Has that changed? Because you know that once you marry Liam, that is it. There will be no divorce or re-marrying. You stay with him until you die, and if he dies first you mourn him until you pass too,” my grandfather says, sounding very somber. I am still shocked by his statement that he thinks I am capable of running the business. I never knew he thought that.

“I know I always talked about love, but I want to run this business more than anything else. You never know, I may fall for Liam the way you did Grams. Or if all else fails, I can be like my dad and live completely separate lives from him and fuck anyone who moves,” I reply sarcastically, causing Liam to splutter and cough on the water he had just started to drink. His eyes had continued to focus on me like he was assessing every word I said. Could I really fall for him? I had no idea, but I do know I want the business and this is the closest I have ever come to it. I’m not throwing it away now.

“Fine. You have two months to get to know each other and to decide if you still want to go ahead. I will come to London then and meet with you both to find out your decision. For now, I will pull back the hit that has been placed on you, Liam.” As he says that I start to shout asking who put a hit on him but Liam just laughs, which baffles me greatly.

“Why the fuck are you laughing? Do you want to die?” I ask him and he just shrugs his shoulders.

“Princess, I am the best hitman in the country, which means I know everything there is to know about security and things like that. I also know all of my competition. The only people anywhere near as good as me would be my eldest brother, who won’t take on the hit, particularly if my father does plan to use me to get this business. That leaves mediocre hitmen at best, none who stand a chance of even finding me let alone getting close enough to take a shot they won’t miss,” he explains with a confidence that is very sexy. It does border on slightly cocky, but having the title of world’s best assassin doesn’t exactly come to people who aren’t a little smug.

“Sadly, he is right. We have been trying to hire Liam for years for this very reason. You have my word that the hit is off, Liam. I appreciate that you may not trust me enough yet, but Bree can tell you I’m serious. When I say I will do everything in my power to keep you both safe, I mean it. Brianna is my heart, and you will not hurt her in any way, or I will kill you myself. Also, Bree, if you choose, you can stay in my London home for two months. Get to know each other and decide if you really want to go through with the engagement. After that, if you don’t then that is up to you. There will be no repercussions on you, Liam, that Bree herself doesn’t order. However, if you decide to go ahead with the wedding, then there will be a handover period where you learn the business. I need to know where you are, Bree, and I am guessing that Liam will not want to give up the safe house he has you in now, which is why I am saying move into my home. You can modify the security as you see fit, Liam,” Gramps explains.

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