Page 42 of Sweet Vengeance
Rory stops. “That you’re Cillian’s?” His brows draw together.
What? This man is the most confusing person I’ve ever met. I’d think he was joking, but I’m fairly certain he has no clue what I mean. “No. You threatened to…” I look around, making sure no one’s close. “You know…” I make a slitting motion across my throat. The second I do it, I realize how ridiculous it is. Apparently, Rory agrees because he bursts out laughing. “I don’t like you.” I cross my arms and start walking again.
“Aw, come on. We’re bonding!” He catches up and surprises me by throwing an arm around my shoulders. “If it makes you feel better, I don’twantto kill you. And if I do, it’ll piss Cillian off, which I also don’t like, but he’s never claimed anyone before, and while he hasn’t said the words with you, I know him. Isn’t that a normal thing to do? Warn a person not to hurt someone they love?”
My brain is spinning with all the information he’s throwing at me. Murder threat aside, he’s making it sound like Cillianlikesme. “He hasn’t claimed me.” People can’t be claimed. That’s not how it works.
“Whatever you say.” His arm’s still around me.
“I’m serious. He hasn’t. We don’t even know each other—not really.” But I do know he loves his mom, that he lost her and misses her. That he has a shitty relationship with his father, and that Rory is his person. That there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for Tiernan, and by extension Dean, simply because Tiernan loves Dean. I know he’s a caretaker by nature, even if he doesn’t see it. That he’s bossy but also sweet and…
“Why do you look all dazed? I didn’t break you, did I?”
“What? No. I’m not broken. I’m just…processing.” Rory can’t be right. Why would Cillian want me? “He wants to have sex with me.” That’s all this is.
“Well, no shit. Who wouldn’t want to have sex with you?”
“Wait. What?”
“I’d fuck you too. I’d fuck you with Cillian. It would be fun.”
I stumble over a stick or, I don’t know, the air. Rory chuckles again.
“I think you and Cillian are secretly in love with each other.”
Rory frowns. “It’s not like that. Not between any of us. I love him. I probably love him more than anyone in this world and that will never change, but I’m notinlove with him. He’s like…another part of myself, if that makes sense. I would never be just with Cillian, but I enjoy being with him when someone is between us. And I would take out the whole fucking world for him if he needed me to.”
How does one reply to that? It’s intense, but I’m learning everything about the mini mob is intense. And there’s no denying their love for each other, their bond. I’ve never seen anything like it, and people who care about others this much,no matter who they are, can’t be all bad.
There’s something about the way Rory and Cillian speak about each other, about the connection they have, that is…intriguing to me. I can’t imagine what it would feel like to have someone love me that much.
“I’m glad you have each other,” I find myself saying.
“Me too. Now can we get some fucking food? I’m dying here. Seriously, I might be small, but I can eat like a fucking horse. Also, Cil will probably be mad if I don’t feed you. He said when you’re better, we’re going to teach you how to fight.”
He just spitfired what feels like a hundred different topics at me at once. I’m not sure what to tackle first.
“Yes, we can get food.”
“Good. I like you, Bunny. I think you’re going to fit in better than you believe.”
I don’t know about that, don’t know if I should want to, but…I must admit the thought is kind of nice.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Cillian
“So the guyyour boys hurt…he’s connected to me, and you know we can’t let that shit slide, right?” I say to the guy sitting on the floor of an empty warehouse outside Ashford. He’s close with the crew going around stealing cars and thinking they’ll set up some kind of business in our state.
“I’m sure they didn’t know. They wouldn’t fuck with the O’Sheas! They don’t have a death wish.” The guy crawls backward on his hands and feet—crab walking—not stopping until he hits a wall. Conan found him for us, but from what we’ve been able to figure out, he wasn’t there the night Ollie was attacked, just the easiest to find. He has a big mouth and likes to brag about the shit they’ve been doing.
“Why the fuck are we wasting time?” Dean walks over and kicks the guy in the stomach. He hunches over in pain, crying out as he clutches himself.
“Doesn’t feel good, does it? There’s three of us and one of you, just like that night.” I follow suit, my foot connecting with his face and making him lurch over the other direction.
Tiernan is leaning against the far wall, watching, dissecting, letting us handle this since we’re the ones with a deeper connection with Ollie.
No. I don’t have a connection to him. I just want to fuckhim. There’s a difference.
