All the men are here, and Keir is standing back as they shout at and over each other.
Roberto throws his hands in the air. “Leave, Piper. Arghhh, you shouldn’t be here.”
“Why? All the rest of the family is here. It’s not fair because I’m the girl that gets left out. Let’s go, I bet I can kick your ass.” She stands and pushes on Roberto’s chest. Joey snickers, and it’s then that Keir spots me.
“Sailor…” All eyes turn to me. Her eyes, the same as the rest of the family’s, almost twinkle when they land on me.
“So, this is the woman Paige doesn’t like.” She smirks, strides over to me, and puts her arm through mine. “We are going to be best of friends.”
Keir groans at her words, and Roberto swears before he turns to Keir. “Kick her out!” Roberto barks.
“So, tell me… how’s it been with all these men? Are they annoying you?”
Wren wakes, her cry making my head whip in the direction of her room.
Piper’s eyes go wide, and she looks to me. “I wasn’t aware of this...” She drops my arm as I pull away and hurry back to Wren’s room. I hear Piper follow, her heels clicking along behind me. I reach Wren and lift her from the crib, and she stops crying immediately.
“I’m amazed Keir let you bring a kid,” she says, smiling at Wren. “She is cute, though.” I’m not sure if Wren is meant to be a secret, so I say nothing.
Roberto does, though. “She’s Keir’s daughter.”
Piper notices the venom in his voice and scrunches her nose up at him before she returns her eyes to me. “Welcome to the family.” She waves, then exits the room.
Roberto looks at me, then Wren, before he does the same.
“It’s best you go out for the day.” Keir is standing in the doorway. It’s then I notice his hands are red, the knuckles in particular. I choose not to ask about it because that’s his business.
“I want to go exploring anyway. Do you have a car I can use?”
“Piper will take you,” Keir says as he walks in and kisses Wren on the cheek, then looks at me, his nose so close to mine his breath tickles my face. “Have a good day. Phillip will give you my credit card before you leave.”
I nod, unable to form words because I’m so focused on his lips.
“Spend as much as you want, buy what you want.”
Again, I nod.
Keir smirks, knowing full well what he’s doing to me. He licks his lips, steps back, then walks out of the room.
Wren makes a sound, and I remember I need to feed her and not think about how much I wanted him to kiss me in that moment.
Piper is loud, outgoing, and a lot to handle. But I kind of like it. I like her.
“I still can’t believe he has a daughter and you’re with him. I mean, when women are born into this family…” she points to herself, “… I am the older one, just so you know,” she keeps pace with me as we walk into a baby shop, “… we become second to our brothers. It’s always better when a man is born first, then the girl doesn’t expect anything, you know? But when you are born first, it’s harder. Way harder.” She sighs. “We all knew Roberto would go all-in with Keir. That he would become as high profile as he did. And he is. But I hate the fact that it wasn’t me. I can outshoot, outrun, almost do everything better than Roberto.”
“I’m sorry.”
She smiles at me. “What I’m saying is, that the girl is an afterthought. She doesn’t get to go on ‘work’ things.” She makes air quotes around the word work. “No, we stay at home, out of the spotlight, and are never allowed to enter their world.” She rolls her eyes. “Yet, here you are, at his place, protected by his people, and from the gossip I’ve heard from the boys, he idolizes her, which is rare.”
“You didn’t have a good relationship with your father?”
“I do, now that he’s retired and living his best life. I just went and spent a year with him in Italy.” She smirks. “Most of the family retire back home.”
“I bet it’s beautiful,” I say as we look around the baby store.
“It is. Hey, when was the last time you went out?”
“Out?” I question. “Like dancing and drinking?”
“Yep, the very same. Keir owns a club here and we can go and get free drinks and VIP treatment all night. What do you say?” she asks, clapping her hands excitedly.
“I have a child,” I remind her.
“And she has a father. Ask him to watch her.” She raises an eyebrow. “I’m sure he doesn’t say no to you very often.” She pulls a cute little pink suit from the rack. “Oh my God, get this. It’s the cutest.”
I reach for it and look at the price tag, then shake my head, passing it back.
“Do you not have his credit card?”
“Yes, but I don’t feel right using it.”
“Please. That man has more money than sense. Use it. It’s not for you, it’s for his daughter.”
Then she proceeds to grab so many clothes and baby things, that when I walk up to the counter and see the final price, I almost have a heart attack. I’ve never spent that much ever. It hurts my soul. She pries the card from my fingers and pays, because I can’t, then basically skips out of the store.
“Now, let’s get you a dress.”
I try to tell her no, but she has the card. And let’s be honest, she’s his family.
I’m sure she knows him better than I do.
Keir walks in as I lay Wren down to sleep. I haven’t seen him all afternoon because when I got back, he was gone. His knuckles are still red and raw, and he looks exhausted.
He offers me a tired smile. “Piper mentioned she’s taking you out.”
“I told her I had Wren,” I say, looking to the crib.
“You know she’s safe with me.” He steps closer and gazes down at her. “She’s asleep. So what do you plan to wear?” he asks, looking to the bags of clothes piled on the bed. They’re mine, most are for Wren.
Dillan hated me going out, yet here Keir is, asking me what I’m wearing.
Oh, how things have changed. How I have changed.
“I didn’t spend it, Piper did.” I bite my lip waiting for Keir to go crazy over the cost.
“It doesn’t matter. I told you to spend up big. I couldn’t care less that you did. I wouldn’t have given you the card otherwise.”
“You really don’t care?” I ask.
Money has always been something you ask for and expect to pay back, not something you are given. Yet here Keir is freely giving it to me.
“It’s mine, which makes it both of yours.” He nods to Wren. “Now, show me what you plan to wear.” He settles on the couch next to all my things, but he doesn’t seem to notice or care.
“Do you plan to watch me change too?” I ask with my hand on my hip.
He simply nods, leaning back and lifting one leg up on his knee as he waits for me to do exactly that.
Well, it’s not like he hasn’t seen me naked before. So what’s the difference.