Page 11 of Declan

“Kids often are,” Dare replies, his gaze also following Flora and her friends. “They’re certainly tougher than us adults.”

“Do you think she’d like one of those big play structures?” I ask distractedly, eyeing the far corner of the lawn where it’s particularly flat. I don’t wait for an answer as I reach for my phone, pull it out, and send a message to my general contractor.

Dare and Tony laugh, and Tony answers, “Of course, she would. But is that really needed, given how little time she spends here?”

I frown at him, offended that he thinks she won’t be spending a lot of time here going forward. “Then she’ll just have to spend more time here, so I’m not wasting my hard-earned money.”

My phone pings, and I glance at the screen to see my contractor has confirmed he’ll do whatever I want and prioritize as needed, so I quickly reply to get it done ASAP and contact Clementina with the details. I send her a message, letting her know, then I set my phone aside and turn my gaze to Tony. “So how do we wanna do this?”

Tony’s eyes light up, and Dare suddenly appears intensely interested in what we’re talking about, as Tony replies, “Depends on your overall goal.”

“My goal?” I ask in confusion. “I want her. What other goal is there?”

Dare snorts and rolls his eyes. “Yes, dumbass, we get that. But how do you want to go about it? Do you want him to traditionally ghost her or literally become a ghost?”

I ponder the question briefly, unsure how to answer, when Tony adds, “From what you’ve told me so far, I prefer it if he no longer exists. But I’ll trust and respect your decision on it.”

Antoinette and Carolina join us, and Antoinette asks, “What are you talking about?”

“Whether or not we’re killing someone this trip.”

Carolina huffs out a laugh. “That’s easy. Do they deserve to live or not?”

“I’m leaning toward not, but sometimes, I like to give a guy a chance to redeem himself by making the smart decision without being forced to.”

“That’s a huge mistake,” Antoinette answers, her lips twisting in annoyance.

“Huge,” Carolina adds. “All that does is allow them more opportunities to prove what an unrepentant shitbag they are. Very rarely do they come to their senses and use their brains for good.”

I sigh, unable to argue with them, given their own experiences with shitbags. I also have little faith that blowhard Bobby will do the right thing and vanish on his own, large sums of money or not.

“I see there’s a big concert tonight,” Antoinette says, jabbing me in the arm with her elbow.

“A concert that has been sold out for months,” I reply with a bitter laugh.

“Are you saying you can’t get tickets?” Dare asks sarcastically.

“It would be tough, but I most likely could if I wanted to.”

Dare looks at Antoinette and asks, “You girls wanna go to the concert?”

“Yes!” they reply at once.

I groan, knowing what’s coming before Dare even speaks. “Well, if Declan can’t score you girls some tickets for tonight, I’m sure I can.”

“I’ll get them,” I say with a glare at my big brother. “But I will escort the ladies, and you two assholes can stay behind and hang out with Flora and your mutts.”

They both laugh, obviously not unhappy with the arrangement. I figure it will be good to have Antoinette and Carolina meet Issa. They’re both exceedingly intuitive, and they may pick up on details I’d miss.

But I still huff as I pick up my phone and rise from the table, walking into the house to sell my soul for VIP tickets to a pop concert.

4

An Official Declaration

Declan

Ittookacouplemore phone calls than anticipated, but I eventually manage to snag what they wanted.

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