Page 31 of On The Rocks

When I agreed to this, I reckoned at least Maeve would spare me any dramatics. I hated chicks who had tantrums—it was a surefire way to put me off—but weirdly, Maeve’s tears had cut me deep.

I understood why. It was our wedding day, and Ash was right; it was probably something she’d dreamed of since she was a girl. The last thing she wanted or needed was to be humiliated, especially by the same women who were supposed to be in her corner.

But she also had to learn to speak up more. Luckily, she was about to spend some time with a woman who did exactly that and had no qualms about it. A woman who, given half a chance, would have Maeve bashing me with a frying pan the second I did something even remotely fucked-up.

My mam.

Shoving my shoulder against the large oak door, I strolled into the warmth of the church and was immediately faced with dozens of pairs of prying eyes.

I plastered what I hoped was a reassuring smile across my face and announced, “Sorry, folks. The bride’s been held up. Talk amongst yourselves for a while.”

As I passed the rows of chairs, soft giggles tinkled through the air. My stare zeroed in on Shannon and Erin, who sat tittering to each other behind their hands.

A muscle ticked in my jaw.

Those bitches knew what they’d done, and they didn’t give a fuck. They were so used to being mean little assholes that they were totally unbothered about their actions and theconsequences of them. But what they never factored into their nasty little prank was me. Before, I wasn’t on the scene. Now, I was, and I didn’t like witnessing their shit.

Not one bit.

Maeve was about to be my wife. She was a nice, sweet girl who my family loved.

She had my loyalty.

Bitch two and three didn’t, so they needed to start treating my wife with respect. Those girls had me close to blowing after seeing Maeve’s tear-stained face. It wouldn’t take much to push me over the edge.

Thank fuck they were both promised to those other poor assholes. Or I may have made the biggest mistake of my life and slid a ring on one of their fingers.

The thought made me shudder.

I approached Donovan, who was speaking to Father Michael. The priest’s stare caught mine, and I cursed under my breath, noting how he was checking his watch with a harassed look.

“Sorry, Father,” I muttered. “My bride ran into a problem. She’s on her way now.”

“I have another wedding in an hour, Callum,” the priest grumbled. “We’re already on borrowed time.” His eyes slid over my shoulder, and he clamped his mouth shut just as Paddy boomed from behind me, “Is there a problem?”

“Yeah,” I stated. “There was a problem. A big one. Now it’s solved.”

His forehead crinkled. “What happened?”

Pausing briefly, I weighed up my next words. Did I tell the head of the Irish Mafia his wife and daughters were cunts, or did I keep my kneecaps intact?

Sadly, I already knew my answer. It was in the heat of the angry burn inside my chest and the tick of the muscle in my jaw.

Meh, fuck it.

My stare flicked toward his wife and daughters before returning to him. “Let’s just say instead of helping Maeve, the women played some fucked-up prank. They tried to make her look like shit and sabotaged her dress. A girl gets one wedding day in our world, brother. Let’s just say that Maeve’s won’t leave her with any warm and fuzzy memories.”

“Fuck,” Patrick spat. “I knew I should’ve stayed back at the house. I warned them. Told them what would happen if...”

My lips thinned. “Unfortunately for Maeve, they didn’t listen to a goddamned word you said.”

His baby blues appeared again, and he quietly warned, “Careful, Callum.”

“Look,” I went on. “I get you’re looking out for Orla and your girls, but you gotta understand that I’m doing the same. You wanted me in this marriage, and this is the man I am. I respect you, always have, but I gotta have my wife’s back, too. What they did could’ve put this whole thing in jeopardy. She was talking about not coming.”

His gaze held mine in challenge. “It’s the only reason I’m not dragging your ass outside right now. You’re your father’s son, and that’s what I wanted for my girl.”

A presence appeared at my side. “Everythin’ okay?”

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