Page 34 of Her Michigan Mob Boss

“Of course.” Emily was quick to agree. “And I’ll talk you up a bit. Let her know there’s more to you than your tendency to be an overbearing asshole.”

“I’d appreciate it,” I said dryly. “Can you see that her luggage is brought to her? Max dropped it at the gatehouse last night.”

As Emily walked off, I wondered if I was doing the right thing. What if Annie didn’t come around? She might never see the situation from my perspective. The urge to run back upstairs and tell her I was letting her go was strong. I could send someone to Scotland to watch over her until I was sure she was safe. I just couldn’t do it, though. As selfish as it was, I needed her here. For better or worse, she was mine.

ChapterThirteen

Annie

For three days, I held my resolve to not speak to Ciaran. I didn’t utter a single word to him, even though we inevitably ran into each other in the corridors. At first, he tried to engage me in conversation. When I refused to respond, he eventually got the message and gave up. It was childish, but I was determined to drive home my point. He couldn’t take away my freedom and expect me to make nice.

While I’d eaten breakfast and dinner with one or more of his siblings, Ciaran had taken his meals in his study. It was a thoughtful gesture on his part, allowing me to socialize with his family while he ate alone.

I tried not to feel bad for freezing him out, but I did. Ciaran masked his emotions well, but the way his shoulders drooped whenever he saw me betrayed how dejected he was feeling. It made it harder for me to consider him a monster for refusing to let me go home.

If I said I was happy not speaking to Ciaran, I’d be lying. Although I enjoyed spending time with his siblings, I wanted to bridge the gap with him. I understood now that he genuinely wanted to protect me. Emily had convinced me Ciaran believed I was in danger and couldn’t bear the thought of me being harmed. His desire to keep me safe showed he cared. The problem was, he went about showing me that in entirely the wrong way. If he’d told me everything up front, I’d probably have agreed to stay.

On the fourth morning after Ciaran brought me to the lake house, Emily and I sat at the table in the breakfast room. The entire house was beautiful, but this was my favorite spot. Smaller and more intimate than the formal dining room where we ate our evening meals, its walls were painted a warm yellow, and the carpet was blue. The wooden table had space for six to sit comfortably. But the best part was the bay window with views out over the lawn to the lake.

“Are you up for a bit of shopping today?” Emily asked as I sipped my coffee. “There’s a great outlet mall not far from here.”

Though I wasn’t sure Ciaran would allow it, I nodded. “Sounds good.”

“We’ll have to take guards with us.”

“That’s okay.” I’d expected as much. On my first day here, I’d spotted several armed men patrolling the grounds and realized just how important security was to the Reilly family. I guessed it was part of the mafia world I was now certain they were involved in. “If it means we can get out of here for a while, it’s worth it.”

Emily had been great over the last few days. Although she must have had better things to do, she hung around the house with me. When I preferred to have space, she backed off, but didn’t go out in case I needed her.

She shot me a sympathetic look. “You’re going stir-crazy, aren’t you?”

I couldn’t deny it. In the last couple of days, I’d swum in the luxurious pool in the basement, run on the treadmill in the gym, and spent time in the library, which was every avid reader’s dream. It still wasn’t enough to keep me occupied. I was used to doing more about the house, to coming and going as I pleased. Being stuck indoors was getting to me.

“I could use a change of scenery.” Picking up a croissant, I took a bite and almost moaned at how deliciously buttery it was.

“We’ll make a day of it,” Emily said. “We’ll do some shopping, have some lunch.” She clapped her hands enthusiastically. “Ooh, can go to the aquarium.”

“There’s an aquarium at the shopping center?”

“Yes. It’s amazing. They have all these different fish there.”

“Well, I’d hope so,” I said dryly.

Emily laughed, then fell silent as Ciaran came into the room. I couldn’t miss the dark shadows beneath his eyes, nor the stubble at his chin. Though he was dressed smartly, he looked as if he hadn’t even run a comb through his hair. He acknowledged us both with a nod.

“Good morning.”

“Hey, big brother.” Emily returned his greeting with her usual warmth.

Like me, she watched him closely as he went to the table at the side of the room and helped himself to a couple of pastries. He poured himself a cup of coffee and walked to the door.

Something inside me snapped. Ciaran looked so forlorn, I couldn’t bear to shut him out anymore.

“Aren’t you joining us?” I asked.

Ciaran turned back to me, eyebrows raised. “Do you want me to?”

“It’s your home.” I cursed myself for my response. Why couldn’t I just have admitted I wanted him there?

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