“Back to the point of all this,” Stefan said, pulling my attention back to him. “The reason your uncles need to be in the know is because the men who work under them have heard what’s happened or what they think has happened. Regardless, all they know is one of our own is dead and that you killed him. I need to go over what happened with Samuel and Conor so they have the information they need to keep morale up among the men.”
I supposed that made sense. Getting up from my temporary chair, I started for the door. “I’ll see you at eight,” I said before I left.
CHAPTER 17
Like Stefan had said, my family underestimated me. I wanted to keep it that way until I had a better understanding of how things worked and how everyone interacted with each other on the business side. So instead of one of the suits Stefan had bought me, I chose an old white sundress I found in my closet. It was short sleeved and went to my knees. I didn’t put on any makeup and made sure to pull my hair back into a tight bun. The white color washed me out, making my skin look paler than it actually was, which in turn made the bruises on my face and arm stick out. The look I was going for was battered and innocent.
Let the games begin.
I arrived outside Stefan’s study at the same time as my Uncle Conor. He noticed my face and immediately hugged me.
“Are you alright, darling?” he asked, his accent coming out thick, especially the word darling. There was real concern in his voice, which warmed my heart. He was a good man—or rather, good to his family. He did smuggle guns in from Ireland and sold them to other criminals across the country. No judgment though.
I was distracted from answering when his eyes traveled behind me, just before someone stepped into my peripheral. Every nerve in my body screamed it was Jamie. I glanced to my left to confirm it was indeed him and caught him staring down at me. My heartbeat accelerated.
“We need to talk,” he said, voice like stone. It gave away nothing as to what he was feeling, yet still ravaged me with anxiety. We did need to talk, and I was compelled to beg for his forgiveness, but I’d fallen into a false sense of security where I'd thought I had more time before I had to face him again. I should’ve known he’d be present at this meeting.
Looking away, I nodded curtly. Glancing between us, Conor must have read our need for privacy because he excused himself and entered Stefan’s study.
Jamie stepped in front of me and I found it extremely difficult to meet his eyes. My neck and cheeks flushed, betraying my overwhelming shame. “I’m so sorry. I don’t… I should have woken you. I’ll understand—”
“Why are you apologizing?” he interrupted.
My eyes shot up to his. They were darkened with a mixture of anger and confusion.
“Because I took advantage. You were asleep. I should have stop—”
He interrupted again by snorting with a rueful smile. It was my turn to be angry and confused. Is he laughing at me?
“I had you pinned underneath me. I woke up to you screaming and my hand…” He sighed. “I thought I hurt you—that I forced myself on you.”
I shook my head quickly. “No. We could have avoided this whole mess if I’d woken you.”
His eyes narrowed. “Why didn’t you?”
My cheeks went from pink to crimson. “I…uh.” I wasn’t ready to answer that question with honesty. “I don’t know.” Pathetic. What am I, a child?
He stared at me intently, eyes searching mine. “You didn’t make me touch you, Maura. You can’t take all the blame.”
“If that’s how you feel, can we forgive each other and move on?” My voice bordered on pleading.
His expression softened before he cupped the back of my neck, pulling me closer and enclosing me in his arms. I buried my nose in his chest, relieved to be there and that we were okay.
Walking into the meeting together, I caught Stefan watching us, his expression blank. Conor was already seated in one of the chairs in front of Stefan’s desk. Jamie and I each took one end of the couch. We were all waiting for Samuel to show up.
“Are you joining the meeting, Maura?” Conor asked, turning around in his chair. His seat was closest to the couch.
I just smiled. Conor looked to Stefan for confirmation. He nodded and Conor scratched the back of his head with a tight smile.
“This should be interesting,” he mumbled before standing up and moving to sit in the other chair, furthest from the couch. It was obvious why he'd done it, and I couldn’t blame him. He didn’t want to be caught in the middle of the shit storm Samuel was going to cause.
“Pussy,” Stefan teased. Everyone in the room chuckled and Samuel chose that moment to show up.
“Sorry for running late,” he said, shutting the door behind him. He made his way to the empty chair in front of Stefan’s desk. His gaze passed over me quickly as he glanced around the room. A second passed before he did a double take. “Maura, I didn’t see you there.” His eyes lingered on my face as he wrinkled his nose, then turned to Stefan. “She should be resting in her room. The poor thing has been through an ordeal and looks terrible.”
“You should see the other guy,” I grumbled.
Jamie rubbed above his nose with his fingers to hide his smile. Conor did nothing to hide his and Stefan looked like he was fighting a losing battle as the corner of his mouth twitched.
“Maura’s an adult. I’m sure if she wasn’t up to being here, she wouldn’t be,” Stefan told him.
“And what is she doing here? I thought we were having a meeting.” The man was completely dense.
“The meeting is about me. Why wouldn’t I be present?” I fixed my tone with naive curiosity as if I truly didn’t understand why I couldn’t be here.
Samuel glanced at Stefan. “She shouldn’t be—”
“Stefan asked me to be here in case you had any questions, but maybe he should have cleared it with you first. Shall I wait outside while the head of the family asks your permission?” Again, my voice was innocent, but my words held meaning. I was putting both him and Stefan on the spot. Stupid move on my part, and I was most likely going to catch hell for it later. I shouldn’t have dragged Stefan into my fight, but I was over Samuel’s small-minded, superior bullshit. For too long he’d overstepped his position and for too long Stefan had allowed him to do it.
The room filled with tension. Jamie and Conor seemed like they’d prefer to be anywhere else. Stefan’s eyes kept traveling between Samuel and I with a blank expression.
At first, Samuel looked befuddled, mouth slightly ajar. He recovered quickly. His lips pursed and anger creased around his eyes. Within just a few days I was in another stare off with my uncle. It was a battle of wills I was clearly winning because the more carefree I looked, the more pissed off he got.
“Can we please get to the point of why we’re all here?” Conor asked, sounding exasperated.
I cocked an eyebrow at Samuel, leaving the decision up to him. Samuel blinked before turning to Stefan. They stared at each other for a moment. I couldn’t see Samuel’s face, but Stefan’s eyes shifted. The change was slight, barely noticeable, but it was enough to show his displeasure. The tension got even heavier, urging me to fidget at the awkwardness, but I held myself still.