Conall (12 page)

“Um, Tatiana. I think we still have a problem,” Tony spoke up.

Tatiana gave a little squeak and turned in his direction. They’d both forgotten her brother was still sitting in the vehicle with them, his head still bleeding from the hit he’d received.

“Oh shit,” she yelled. Turning back to Conall with wide eyes, she burst out laughing. “This has been a day for the record books. Tony, I forgot…well, never mind. How’s your head?”

“It’s fine, but I probably need to get it checked out.”

Conall interrupted their conversation. “What I want to know, Tony, is how those guys followed you to your sister’s house? How could you lead them right to her? I should drop you off right here on the street and let them come get you. Better yet, maybe I should just take care of you myself,” Conall snarled in anger.

“I didn’t know they were following me! I was more concerned about you than them,” he yelled without thinking. He groaned in pain and dropped his head in his hands. “I shouldn’t have done that. My head hurts too much.”

“Good. If you weren’t Tatiana’s brother, I would—”

“Conall,” he heard Tatiana exclaim in a shocked voice. He turned to her, the scowl on his face surely giving away just how pissed he was.

“You could have been hurt due to his selfish-ass behavior. I won’t have it, Tatiana. Never again.” There was no mistaking his tone. He was pissed and he wasn’t afraid to show it.

Grabbing her brother’s hand, Tatiana never took her eyes from Conall’s face. “Please, Conall? Just…please, how can we fix this? He’s my brother.” If begging was what was needed, she would get down on her knees right now. Conall had to understand how important this was to her.

Tilting his head to the side, he gave her a hard look. “I’m not discussing this here. Tony and I will speak when we get to where we’re going. I have a spot we need to get to so that we can clean up and make sure things are handled. When we’re there, I’ll talk to Tony. Not a moment sooner.”

“But, Conall…” she began.

“No. On this, you’ll just have to understand. My conversation with Tony will be private. I’ll handle this the way I see fit. It’s the only way. And you cannot be involved. Understand?”

Her lips thinned out and he knew she was trying not to challenge him. But he had to make her understand. “Tatiana. I need you to say you understand. Because if you get involved in anymore shit. If your life's in danger one more time, I will tear this fucking city apart and anyone who gets in my way will be dealt with.” He paused, looking over at Tony with a quirk of his brow. “Am I making myself understood?”

With a sidelong glance at her brother, she sighed. Tatiana lay her head on his shoulder as they both continued speaking to her brother. Conall felt her nod her head up and down. “Yes, but don’t think you’ll always get your way. Because you won’t.”

“No, baby, I would never think that,” he said with a smile on his face.

“I can take care of myself, and I’m going to take care of you too. Even though you’re bossy and arrogant and have a nicer gun than I do,” she said on a yawn.

“I know you can.”

“Conall, thank you for coming into my life,” she said in a low voice as the adrenaline began to fade and her eyes began to close.

No words were necessary. His arms simply wrapped tighter around her, cocooning her body within his embrace. There was still Old Man O’Shea to deal with and the fallout from the Italians. Conall wasn’t worried though. Life was changing and now that he had Tatiana by his side, things could only get better.

* * * * *

Tatiana curled up next to Conall’s side as they lay in his bed later that night. Thinking back on everything that had happened that day, she was proud of how she’d handled it. Maybe there was something wrong with her. Her rational brain said she should be freaking out right now, but she wasn’t. All in all, she was rather calm about the whole situation, which scared her even more.

Earlier that day, once they’d arrived at the safe house, Conall had gone to a wall safe and pulled out what looked to be a new burner phone. He then kissed her softly and walked off into another room and called his brothers, explaining what happened at her home earlier that day. That was the only part of the conversation she’d heard, even though she strained to hear more. When he ended the call, he’d refused to tell her what else had been discussed on the hour-long telephone call. And once she thought about it, she figured she was better off not knowing the details. Based on what she’d seen so far, there was no need for her to know any more than she already did.

Conall and her brother had gone outside to another structure for more than two hours. Biting her nails, which she knew was a nasty habit, she’d stood at the window, looking for any sign of trouble. Conall had promised to not harm her brother and she had to trust that. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t standing guard at the window, looking outside at the place where they’d gone, waiting for them to return. Once she saw them come out, the calmness on Tony’s face was almost her undoing. He was fine. Conall had kept his word.

A few hours later, after one of Conall’s employees had come to take Tony home, she’d finally been able to relax. Watching her man sit on the couch, his glass filled with his favorite amber-colored liquor, she couldn’t help but thank her lucky stars that she’d gone to his office that day.

“At one time, I thought going to your office that day had been the worst mistake of my life,” she said, coming around to stand in front of him. She’d been freshly scrubbed and had changed into one of his shirts, the bottom of the material only reaching to just below the curve of her butt.

Setting his glass aside, he sprawled his arms along the back of the couch and looked at her. “I know you did. Me, on the other hand, well, I knew it was something special from the first moment I saw you.”

Amazed at how sexy he looked, she moved in between his legs. Spreading her legs, she climbed onto his lap, the apex of her thighs resting on the bulge of his pants. “I’m glad you came after me. I think if you hadn’t, I would have kept running and never looked back.”

Moving his arms from the couch, he grabbed her bare ass in his large hands and squeezed. His hips lifted slightly, pressing his thick cock up against her bare pussy lips. His moan of desire sent a wave of lust through her body. “
Mo grá
, I would have never have let you get away from me. You called out to me.”

Leaning down close to him, she lifted her arms, wrapping them around his neck as she tilted her head down to capture his lips with hers. “So, what happens now?”

“Life with me won’t be easy,” he said. “There are still things going on around me that need to be handled. Can you handle what it truly means to be the woman by my side?”

“I don’t want easy. All I want is you,” she said on a moan as he continued to thrust and move underneath her. She could feel the wetness seeping out of her and coating his pants.

“Then nothing else matters. Now, are you going to give me what I want or not. I need you,” he growled.

“I thought you’d never ask,” she moaned as she pressed into him, finally giving them what they both needed.

She knew being with a man like Conall would test her strength. The things he was involved in could not be ignored. But being in his arms right now, the emotions she felt when making love to him, and looking into his eyes as he looked at her with desire, was not something she was willing to give up.

She was no angel herself. Conall was the darkness that most people were afraid to confront, but not her. She was ready to walk this path with him no matter what came their way.

Epilogue

The devil always got his pound of flesh. Of that, Conall was certain. Tonight, he and his brothers would end this. Paddy O’Shea’s dirty dealings had finally caught up with him, and so had his sons. After the things he’d done to try and control them, control their lives, and run this city into the ground, it had all come to a boil and the old man was left with nothing.

The chickens had come home to roost and Conall was inexplicably calm at the prospect of finally ending the life of the man he’d hated more than anything in this world. The man who’d taken everything from four little boys. The man who dared to try and turn him and his brothers against one another. As if that could ever happen.

It had taken everything he had these past few months to not lose sight of the ultimate goal and end his old man on his own. To simply erase him from existence and save his brothers the trouble. But that would have been too easy. No, Paddy had to suffer. He needed to feel the hot breath of the wolf at his neck. The fear had to be real. Knowing that his life was forfeit made Paddy scared and he ran like a bitch. That’s what it came down to. Old Man O’Shea had finally come to the conclusion that he would never make it out of this alive. And at that thought, a predatory smile came over Conall’s face.

Taking a deep breath, his thoughts immediately turned to the woman waiting at home for him. True to her word, Tatiana had stood by him without blinking an eye. The late-night meetings, the blocked calls, and the things he could never tell her. Things that he feared would make her turn away from him in disgust. She knew some of it—there was no other option. Telling her enough to keep her safe, to make sure she was aware at all times, was absolutely necessary.

Tatiana was unlike anyone he’d ever met before, but he would never let her go. Not only because she was loyal, but she was a fucking goddess. Making love to her was explosive. His body craved hers. At night, as they were lying in bed, exhausted and sweaty as he’d finished claiming her body once again, his hands would tingle with the need to touch her. Their connection was that strong. Tonight, after all this mess was done, he would go home to his woman.

It was time he made an honest woman out of her. He laughed at the thought. She didn’t care about those things, but he did. It was time. And after they finished tonight, he’d claim his woman again.

* * * * *

The brothers lined up—Conall, Fionn, Kieran, Shannon. It had taken a few months, but once they located the old man it was a simple case of hunting him down. In the end, the bastard never left South Boston. All the wrongs perpetrated against them came down to that moment.

Paddy gazed up at them, defiance and hate clear in his bright green eyes. Gone was his crew—there was no one left to protect him. The layers he’d built over the years as a shield disintegrated. Dead men were the only testament left to their da’s crumbling empire. A warning that the O’Shea brothers now controlled the area. It was time for a new era.

Their father straightened, squaring his shoulders. His coat hung off a gaunt frame. The once large man was a mere shell of himself. Slowly, each brother raised his arm. Their guns varied from a thirty-eight to a 9-millimeter to a couple three-eighties. Paddy met the gaze of each man, his sons. A wistful smile lifted the corners of Paddy’s mouth. He raised his arms out from his body. They pulled the triggers, riddling his body with bullets.

Falling back and to the ground, their father lay dying as they continued to rain down fury on a man who had done everything in his power to destroy them.

It was done. The devil had his pound of flesh.

* * * * *

Conall walked into his penthouse and was immediately hit with the sound of soft jazz playing in the background. Candles were lit and cast a glow over the living room.

He was tired, but he knew what Tatiana was trying to do. He would need her tonight. She knew it just as much as he did. Thinking back to that first day he met her, he never realized they would be here. He was damn glad they’d made it. She could have turned away from him at any point, but she never did.

Loving her made this life easier. Walking into the living room, he saw her lying on the couch facing him. Naked, but wearing a pair of red stiletto heels she’d purchased a few weeks ago at his request. Fuck, he loved this woman.

“Welcome home, baby,” she purred.

“Is that for me?” he said, motioning toward her.

“Always,” she responded and then took a sip of red wine. “Hard day at work?”

“Nothing I couldn’t handle.” He began taking off his shirt as he walked toward her. “Why are you still awake?”

“I wanted to surprise you.”

“I’m definitely surprised. Tatiana, baby, I need you tonight.”

“You have me. Always.”

That’s what he liked. His woman didn’t ask questions, she just knew that he needed her. And for her, that was enough. Watching her unfold from the couch and begin walking slowly over to him, he inhaled deeply.

“Yeah, that’s it, sweetness. Come to Daddy.”

The future would not be easy, and Conall and his brothers would have to find that balance to keep things moving and not run things as their father did. But at night, at home with Tatiana, this was his beacon. She was his light. His safe haven. Gathering his woman in his arms, Conall thanked whatever heavenly entity had brought her into his life all those months ago.

Picking Tatiana up in his arms, he walked them back to their bedroom. The rest of tonight—hell, the rest of his life—was all about the woman in his arms.

He may be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, willing to kill—and die—for his family, but within these four walls, he was just Conall O’Shea. Her man. Her protector. Her lover. With a wicked smile, he realized that he was just fine with that.

The End

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The characters I write will not be perfect. None of us are. They will make mistakes. All of the hero's will have redeeming qualities, but on the outset, you may not be their biggest fan. My heroine's will be the kind of women you want to hang out with. They're the women next door, down the street and around the corner. They are the ladies you would want to spend time with on a Saturday night drinking a martini.

I have been an avid reader of romance novels since the age of 14 and know what appeals to me as reader. My goal is, and will always be, to provide that same experience for the women and men who read my novellas and short stories.