Page 50 of The Apprentice
I dropped my head and let out a sigh. Fionn was missing the point, and it was a reminder of how young he was and how different from Sloan he was. Fionn’s innocence was complex and confusing. He’d seen men die and he’d watched as Sloan tore men’s organs from their bodies, yet he missed his mother’smanipulation. He was too pure for this world, and all I wanted to do was wrap him in a blanket and hide him away from everyone, including Sloan.
I straightened and stepped back, not missing the disappointment that flashed in his gaze. I shoved the hand not holding his phone into my pants pocket because then I couldn’t reach out and touch Fionn’s soft cheek, or worse, grab his face and kiss him hard.
“You don’t know your mom.” I tested the words in my mind first, but everything I came up with sounded vicious toward Annabelle. She’s a bitch who uses menorshe pressured your father to stay in the mob, when he wanted to walk away and be a family man.I didn’t know how Fionn would react to my assessment. I thought about something gentler to say.
“You never got to know her because Sloan raised you.” I shrugged. “You never spent time with her or your brothers, so I’m telling you this because I care about you. Giving her money won’t help. It’s not for Diarmuid or Bellamy, it’s forher.”
Annabelle was manipulative, and even Eoin fell for her lies.
“I know, okay?” The harshness of his tone made me rear back in shock. He glared at me and huffed, grabbing a handful of his dark hair and tugging in frustration. “Fuck. You all think I’m some dumb kid. I’m not. Not anymore. I know what she’s doing, but she’s mymom.” His steam dissipated and his shoulders slouched. His sad eyes dug a hole in my chest. “She’s my mom.” His voice came out so quiet that I barely heard what he said. “Deer and Bell are my brothers. I can’t lose them, even if I only talk to Mom when she’s looking for money. Even if she doesn’t want me in their lives.”
I didn’t know what to say, and the longer I stared at Fionn, the more I noticed the fight in his eyes. This was a man whowasn’tas innocent as I wanted to believe, but a grown-ass adult who’d struggled in ways that neither me or Sloan knew about.He was fighting battles that we were oblivious to, and that knowledge made me see him in a new light.
“Fionn . . . . Fuck.” I rubbed my face. “I didn’t know.”
“Of course you didn’t.” He chuckled unhappily and pointed at himself with his thumb. “Because I can hide things, too. You and Sloan aren’t the only ones who can keep things quiet.”
“Keep—”
“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. You won’t tell me what happened to Dad, how hereallydied.” He stared up at me and snorted when I stayed silent. “If you’re allowed to be secretive, I can, too.”
“We’re not doing it to be cruel, boy.” I stepped forward, closing the distance between us again. I cupped his cheek, uncaring of the consequences. Fionn’s eyelashes fluttered shut and the heat of his skin against my palm was addicting. I should’ve backed away as fast as I could, but I stayed there so I could whisper. “Your father never wanted you in this life. He told Sloan that he wanted you and your brothers to be free of the Company, and Sloan accepted that, agreed to it. Eoin was going to leave soon, too, but then....”
His eyes flashed open. “Then, what?” He grasped my wrist tightly, fingers brushing over my pulse point. We were too close, and yet I couldn’t move away. Tension sizzled between us, and the rest of the world vanished. In this moment, there was only us and the way we got lost in each other’s gazes. “What happened, Daire? Please tell me.”
I couldn’t. No son deserved to hear how his father was killed, especially not in the way Eoin was.
Bang!
I shot around, reaching into my suit jacket for my gun and my back against Fionn’s chest. He grabbed my suit jacket, holding on tightly as I pressed him against the wall. My heartpounded, adrenaline pumping in my veins, but the urge to protect him wasn’t needed.
The noise came from a car. A damned backfiring car that looked ancient enough to not be allowed on the road!
I cursed inwardly and spun around again, removing my hand from my jacket. Fionn watched me, those eyes sparkling with an emotion that I didn’t want to analyze or think about. I distanced myself and offered him a small nod.
“You were going to?—”
I ignored him, stalking back into the hospital. I stopped at the door and glanced toward him. “Come on. Bohdan will show you around and give you a rundown on how it works.”
Some of the spark in his posture disappeared and his jaw tightened. The iciness returning to his handsome face was like a knife to my heart, but I didn’t dare reach out to touch his shoulder like I wanted to as he strode past. He stopped beside me and ripped his phone from my hand.
“This is mine. If you take something that belongs to me again, I’ll make you regret it.” The coldness in his tone made me stiffen, but I merely inclined my chin in acknowledgment.
I wanted to make a boss out of Fionn, and this was a step in that direction, but whether it was on the right or wrong track, I didn’t know.
11
FIONN
I was on a mission, and nothing was going to stop me. The soldiers around the house glanced warily at me as I strode past, and while they each inclined their head—Like Daire had done the day before, fuck him!—they didn’t stop me as I stalked down the hallways like a predator after prey. The closer I got to Sloan and Conall’s room, though, the more wary the soldiers became. One looked ready to stop me as he hesitantly took a step forward, but another yanked him back with a shake of his head.
“Move,” I hissed.
The men scattered like frightened mice as I passed them and finally stopped in front of my destination. Taking a deep breath, I gathered my courage and knocked on the door. Twice. Once to alert Conall I was here, and another to assert my dominance. At least, that’s what I told myself.
The door swung open, and Conall stood on the other side in a pair of long red pajama pants with little hearts printed across theverythin material and a plain white T-shirt. His collar was still around his neck, even though it was nearing ten at night, and hewas obviously getting ready for bed. Sloan was still in his office—I had checked.
Conall stared in surprise. “Hi?” He tilted his head to the side. “Are you looking for your uncle? He’s still working. Something about paperwork for Elio.”
