Page 32 of Stolen Mafia Vows
“What about the American woman? Olivia Dragonetti. I thought you were signing a contract with her.”
“We can fuck her off now,” Ruairi steps in. “Better the devil you know.”
The Irish devil he means. The Murrays and the Byrnes have been rivals for several generations. I want to believe that Emily and I can put an end to it, but trust needs to be earned if an alliance has any chance of survival.
There’s also the minor issue of not wanting to lie to Emily about who we are.
“What’s the rush?” I ask. “I only met her a couple of weeks ago.”
“And you’ve been joined at the hip ever since.” Ruairi smirks. He can be a childish bastard when he wants something. “Or should I say joined at the?—”
“Enough, son.” Pa doesn’t take his eyes off me. “Do you love her?”
I don’t want to discuss this with my father, the man who has been closed off to affection since my mom died. But the way I feel when I think about losing Emily is all I need to know.
“I had the same gleam in my eye when I met your mom.” Dad blinks, and I realize that his eyes are damp. “You don’t need time to figure out if she’s the one. You already know it in here.” He places his hands over his heart. “The question is notdo you love her, but does she feel the same way about you, son?”
The wordsonstabs me straight through my chest. Years of thinking I was invisible have left me feeling less of everything, less of a son, less than Ruairi, less of an asset to the business, and now one tiny word is all it takes to make me whole again.
“She has already spoken to her family. She wants to quit college and stay in Ireland. With me.”
Ruairi steps closer and claps me on the back with his warm hand. “I’m happy for you, Eo. My little brother is all grown up.” Only Ruairi could make such a sentimental statement sound so patronizing at the same time.
“I’m flying back out to the States tomorrow,” Pa continues, oblivious to the jibe. “I want to speak to the Murrays and pull out of the deal with the Dragonettis before it’s signed, sealed, and delivered. Better for everyone if we have the Murrays on our side.”
“Everyone?”
He inclines his head. “That includes you and Emily. Despite what you might think, I want what’s best for you too, son.” He smiles, and this time it reaches his eyes. “Your mom and I married six weeks after our first date. She was the only woman for me. Still is.”
It’s true. I’ve never seen my father with another woman since my mom died, and I don’t know why I haven’t realized this sooner.
“I’ll come with you.” I don’t want to leave Emily here, but I should be a part of this alliance if, and when, it happens.
“Ruairi is coming with me.” Dad glances at my brother, who finally has the sense to keep quiet. “I think it’s best if we leave you out of the negotiations to begin with.”
“Why? Are you worried that I’ll hover on the fence?”
“No.” My father is unfazed. “You’re going to Liverpool. A little problem has arisen that I need you to take care of.”
I don’t ask what kind of little problem.
“I also need your assurance that you won’t let Emily into the little family secret that they’ve taken such great lengths to conceal from her.”
That goes without saying; it isn’t mine to tell.
“What about our family secret?”
“I trust you to do the right thing, Eoghan.” My father locks his feet and knees into position, swings the golf club over his shoulder, and whacks the ball into oblivion.
The ‘little problem’ in Liverpool is easily taken care of.
A new gang trying their luck. Dipping their toes in the waters controlled by the Irish mobs since the early twentieth century.
All it required was a simple case of misdirection, a drug shipment slipping through the net of the corrupt port authorities while they looked the other way. The new Boss’s toes ended up in a fish tank in his own high-class restaurant in the city, along with his head and various other body parts. Those that were recognizable anyway.
The job takes my mind off my father and brother in NewYork sitting around a highly polished boardroom table with Emily’s brothers.
It’s hard to believe that she has no clue about her family’s line of business. That’s some impressive secret-keeping if my father’s sources are to be believed. Did she never question her brothers’ high-profile roles in the kinds of casino and hotel resorts that are notoriously run by organized crime mobs? Or did they shelter her from the media too?
