7
“Hey, Murphy!”
Murphy looked over his shoulder from where he was talking to his friend and fellow architect, Storm, about an upcoming project and grinned.
“Hugh!” Murphy gave Storm a nod and went off to meet his friend. He’d looked up Hugh out of the blue after seeing Max at the clinic. He hadn’t seen either of the men in years since they’d all aged and grown apart, but Murphy had wanted to change that. It might have been more out of curiosity than anything, but he didn’t care.
His friend from school looked like he always had, just a few years older. Hugh wore dress pants and a button-down shirt, but since he wasn’t working, he’d apparently left the tie and coat at home. Murphy thought of his worn jeans and T-shirt and mentally shrugged. He was who he was, and since he hadn’t planned on meeting any clients today, he’d gone casual. Plus, he’d spent most of the morning with Storm, going through a hollowed-out bookstore that had been badly damaged during a fire. Storm’s company, Montgomery Inc., was the one doing all the work, but Storm had called in Murphy for a consult. It was a big project, and the place belonged to Storm’s fiancée, so Storm had wanted to be doubly sure on things before finishing up the plans.
Shaking himself from his random thoughts, Murphy walked up to Hugh and grinned. He was ready to give the other man a hug since he hadn’t seen him in years, but when Hugh held out his hand, Murphy shook it instead. Apparently, not everyone was as casual with hugs as the Gallaghers. Sometimes, he forgot that.
“Good to see you, man,” Murphy said after they had shaken hands.
Hugh grinned and nodded. “Good to see you, as well.” The other man looked around the burnt building and grimaced. “Looks like something did a number on this place.”
Since they were standing on the street instead of inside the building where Hugh could see worst of the damage, Murphy just nodded. There were too many safety concerns for Murphy to show his old friend around.
“Huge fire,” Murphy confirmed. “Most of the bones are still intact, but it’s going to take a bit for them to get things back to rights.”
“Them?” Hugh asked.
“The company working on the project. They just called me in to consult.” He didn’t mention that they were also related through Jake since Storm was Maya’s brother. That just tended to confuse people. “I figured we could meet down here and get something to drink at Taboo.” Murphy tilted his chin toward the café he and his family liked that was located across the street.
Hugh winced and looked down at his watch. “I can’t really stay for coffee. I had a last-minute meeting pop up down here, so I figured I could stop by and chat for a bit before I go do that. Sorry.”
Murphy shrugged, trying not to feel a little weird by Hugh’s reluctance to stay for even a few minutes. After all, they hadn’t seen each other in years. Murphy’s email had been out of the blue, but if Hugh hadn’t wanted to meet up, then Murphy didn’t know why he’d agreed in the first place.
“No worries, I get it. I’m just glad you could come and meet up, even for a few minutes.”
Hugh smiled, but it looked a bit off; as if he had something else going on in his mind that had nothing to do with Murphy. It made total sense, but it was still awkward as hell.
“Anyway, you look good, man. Life has been treating you right.” Hugh’s smile went a bit wider, and Murphy held back his own wince. He hadn’t mentioned the fact that he was sick to Hugh as it really wasn’t anyone’s business, and now things just felt even more off.
“You, too,” Murphy said instead. “Work doing well, then?”
Hugh nodded. “Tremendously. It’s a casual meeting, or I’d be a little more dressed up, but I figured it’s okay to dress down once in a while.”
Murphy pointedly didn’t look down at his shirt from a local brewery. “I get it.”
Hugh narrowed his eyes at Murphy’s face, and Murphy could swear that there was something else going on here that he couldn’t quite place. It felt as if there were animosity between them, and yet he had no idea where it could be coming from. Maybe he was just projecting. Or maybe the chemo was already messing with his brain.
“Anyway, I need to get going. It was good to see you.” Hugh held out his hand again, and Murphy took it.
“Likewise.” Well, didn’t he sound like a pompous ass, but he wasn’t sure what the hell was going on here.
Hugh left without another word and walked down the street in the direction he’d come from. Oddly, the man gave a backward glance toward Taboo, seemed to pause a moment, then kept going. Murphy had no idea what that was about, but he was a little too tired to care. Since Graham was working on Rowan’s science project today and not able to make it in, Murphy still had to meet with Owen regarding an upcoming project down at the office. Jake would have come in as well to help now that he was taking a more active role in the company, but, apparently, he and Border had a day planned with Noah since Maya was working.
“Everything go okay with your buddy?” Storm asked as he walked toward him. “He didn’t stay long.”
Murphy shrugged. “He had other things to do. Anyway, do you need me for anything else today? I want to head to the office to see what Owen wants before I go home.”
Storm reached out and gripped Murphy’s shoulder. “No problem, man. Just take it easy, okay?”
Murphy sighed but nodded. “I don’t plan on wearing myself out, but I’m not the kind of guy who just sits back and watches TV all day, you know?”
“Nothing wrong with that some days,” Storm said with a grin. “Hell, I’m just now back on my feet from being laid up for weeks.”
Murphy held back a wince at that since the other man had been injured pretty badly. But now, he was back on his feet—literally—and everything seemed to be going okay. Murphy was determined to make sure that outcome happened for him, as well.
“Good to see you working, though.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “So, yeah, call me if you need me to look at anything for you along the way, but you’ve got this, man. Hell, you have way more experience than I do.”
“Never hurts to use another set of eyes, just in case. Take it easy, man, and thanks.”
“No problem.” They said their goodbyes, and Murphy headed to his car parked behind his sister-in-law’s tattoo shop since there was only one small spot behind the bookstore at the moment.
Feeling a little off after meeting with Hugh, he turned up the volume on his stereo and blared nineties alternative rock as he drove toward the Gallagher offices. Each jobsite had a small office as well that they used a lot, but when they weren’t onsite and needed places to work, they had the main office. That was also where they met with clients more often than not.
Murphy had a slight headache, but unlike most people, he couldn’t just take an aspirin and call it a day. So many things could interfere with his meds and cause side effects he really wasn’t prepared for, so he chugged some water and hoped he was just dehydrated. If it persisted, he’d call the clinic and see what he could take that day.
He pulled into the lot and got out of his car, a little more tired than he’d anticipated. He might not be able to stay at the office for as long as he wanted, but he’d deal with it later. Being sick meant he had to change plans often so he didn’t make things worse.
When he walked into the building, he heard voices that didn’t belong to anyone he knew and he held back a curse. Owen hadn’t mentioned that anyone was coming in that afternoon. If he had, Murphy would have worn something other than what he had on. He was batting zero that day in terms of wearing something appropriate, apparently.
Owen walked out of his office and smiled. “Hey, Murph, we have a couple of guests today.”
Murphy tried to keep the growl out of his voice. “I can hear that.”
“Oh, we’re so sorry for just walking right in without an appointment, but when we called, and Owen said he was working with you today, we just had to come over and meet the two of you.” A fiftyish or so woman with light blonde hair that didn’t look dyed walked out beside a man around her age with light hair, as well. They had to be husband and wife from the loving looks they gave to one another after she’d spoken.
“Now, Grace, darling, let the man at least relax a bit before you accost him.”
“Oh, shush, Chris. We’re just so happy to meet some of Tessa’s friends.”
Murphy froze, blinking a few times before noticing Owen making wide arm movements behind the couple. As Murphy had no idea what Owen was trying to say, he ignored his brother.
“I take it you’re Tessa’s family?” Though the two of them looked nothing like Tessa at all. In fact, Murphy couldn’t see a single feature that told him that these two were related to Tessa, but from the way their eyes warmed, he figured he’d hit the nail on the head.
“We’re her family, yes.” Grace smiled widely. “Our daughter’s mentioned you Gallaghers a few times when talking about Liz, and we just had to meet you.”
“Plus, we knew what company we wanted to come to when we were finally ready to remodel our home. It’s best to work within the family, I always say.” Chris grinned with pride, and Murphy felt a little off-kilter.
“Oh? Tessa didn’t mention you guys were looking for a company. That’s great you came to us. We’ll totally take care of you.”
Grace came forward and patted his arm, her smile kind and her eyes shiny. “I know you will. Liz wouldn’t ever marry into a family that wouldn’t take care of their own and others. She’s like our daughter, though I don’t think she sees it that way.” The other woman winked. “We’ll wear her down, though.”
“Grace,” Chris chided, though he held the same soft smile as his wife. “The boys here don’t need to know all of that.”
Grace waved him off. “Of course, they do. Owen is marrying our Liz, and now we hear Murphy is living with our Tessa. They’re family now, too.”
Murphy froze. “Uh, ma’am, we’re just roommates. We’re not…” This wasn’t awkward at all.
“Oh, we know.” Grace waved him off. “We’re just glad Tessa had the room to help you out since your landlord went a bit crazy.” She winked. “Tessa brought it up during our last phone call since I wanted to know if I could help with the wedding.”
Tessa hadn’t really mentioned her parents much—or at all—and he wasn’t sure why. They seemed so nice. He didn’t know what was going on exactly since there was an undercurrent here he couldn’t quite place, but he hoped he would figure it out soon so he didn’t misstep.
“Anyway, we need to head out and meet with one of Chris’s old colleagues. When you’re ready for a real meeting, you just let us know, and we’ll be here. It was wonderful finally meeting you, and I do hope we see you again soon.” Grace’s eyes widened. “Oh! I know. Tessa is coming to dinner in a few days so we can tell her all about the remodel since we wanted to keep it a surprise that we want to work with Gallagher Brothers Restoration. You should join her.”
Red Alert! Red Alert!
The sirens from Star Trek blared in his mind, and he did his best not to run away in terror. “Um, maybe? Let me talk it over with Tessa.”
“It’s really no problem. We’d love to get to know Tessa’s friends more.” There was an odd pitch to her voice, and Grace blinked quickly before Chris wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
The older man cleared his throat. “Owen, thanks again for letting us see the building. And, Murphy, it was nice to meet you. I’m sure we’ll all see each other soon.” The couple walked out after waving and left Owen and Murphy alone in the foyer.
“What was that?” Murphy asked, his voice rough.
“That was Tessa’s parents being Tessa’s parents, apparently,” Owen answered after a moment. “I don’t know much, but from what Liz has told me, Tessa didn’t get along with her parents when she was a teenager, but I don’t think it was because of anything Chris and Grace did. I think it was just normal teenage things.” Owen paused. “That and the whole adoption thing.”
Murphy rounded on Owen. “What adoption thing?”
Owen’s face drained of color. “Oh, fuck. I didn’t know Tessa hadn’t mentioned it. Damn it. Liz told me in confidence, and I just spilled something that wasn’t my secret to tell. Don’t tell Tessa you know, okay? She wouldn’t want to know that we were talking about her behind her back.”
Murphy ran a hand over his face. “Are you saying Tessa was adopted? I don’t need to know the details, but I want to make sure I’m not thinking the wrong thing and make things worse.”
Owen looked visibly pained. “Yes, but I don’t know the details, and they’re not mine to know anyway. All I do know is that because of that, and probably many other things, Tessa didn’t always get along with her parents. Liz says that Grace and Chris have always been nice to her, and though she knows they want to be close to both her and Tessa, she’s always stayed slightly removed for fear of how Tessa might react. I don’t know what that means or why Tessa would feel that way, and it’s not my business. But Grace and Chris want us to work on their house, and they know about us because of Liz and Tessa.” Owen blew out a breath. “They’re also loaded from what I’ve heard, and their house will be a huge project for us and good for the company. But I didn’t want to truly agree until we all met. This might get complicated.”
As they were Gallaghers; apparently, they lived for complications.
“I think I’m too tired to dive into all of that right now. I’ll have to think about it later. But, Owen? Family’s family, right? I mean, Tessa isn’t any different now than before we knew about it.” He wanted to be firm on that, just in case there was a misconception.
Owen raised his hands, palms out. “Of course. I mean, to us it shouldn’t matter, but…”
“But if Tessa has issues because of it, they aren’t any less real. Got it. And now, I’m going home because I can’t focus, and frankly, I have a feeling if Tessa doesn’t approve of this, then we’re not doing the job anyway. I’m not going to hurt her just for a big project.”
Owen shook his head. “You don’t have to explain that to me. She’s Liz’s best friend, and that means she’s family. We’ll talk it out when the time comes, but if she feels weird about it, then we won’t do it. Simple as that.” But they both knew there wasn’t anything simple about it.
Murphy didn’t want to meddle in Tessa’s business, nor did he want to hurt her. So he’d make sure she was really okay with him working with her parents before the company took the job. That’s what friends did, after all.
He made his way home after saying goodbye to Owen and knew he probably needed a nap. His treatments this time weren’t as bad as when he’d been a kid, but he wasn’t at full strength. Of course, he was probably also tired since he’d spent most of the night tossing and turning over very vivid dreams that involved Tessa, a can of whipped cream, and her screaming his name.
Talk about awkward that morning.
As soon as he walked into the house, however, he knew something was wrong. Tessa sat on the couch, a pint of ice cream in her hand, and a spoon dangling out of her mouth. She turned when he closed the door behind him and sighed, letting the spoon fall into the pint.
“Hi.” The word sounded so hollow, he didn’t even bother waiting for her to invite him to the couch, he just went straight to her. He lifted her into his arms and set her on his lap so she could rest her head on his shoulder. Tired or not, he still had his strength, thank God.
“What happened?” He kissed her forehead, running his hands down her sides and back.
“Brent dumped me last night. I’d have told you when I got home, but you were sleeping. Oh, and I’m pretty sure Brent thought we were fucking and I was a slut. So, yeah. I hate him.”
“That fucker. Want me to beat him up?” He squeezed her tightly before pulling the ice cream out of her hands so they didn’t end up a sticky mess.
“No, I just want to forget him. And I’m not a slut.”
Murphy let out a low growl and kissed her temple. “You’re not a fucking slut. No man should ever make you feel less than you are because they’re insecure. If they can’t handle who you are, then they can go fuck themselves.”
She let out a watery laugh and snuggled into him. He willed his dick not to get hard since she was sitting on his lap and felt really good, but he knew that was a lost cause. They would just have to ignore Little Murphy being happy at the close contact. It was a biological function, after all.
“I hate men.”
Murphy sighed and held on. “I’d say not all men, but then I’d sound like a Twitter asshole.”
She laughed again, but this time, he didn’t hear tears. “You could never be a Twitter asshole.” She paused. “Thanks for holding me. I didn’t know I’d react this way. I didn’t know that I liked him that much.”
“It’s not that you liked him, I don’t think. He made you feel like shit, and now you’re upset about it. Right?”
“Yeah. Stupid Brent.”
“Dull Brent is gone. No more khaki pants and boring talks about finance.”
“Did he ever talk to you about finance?” she asked, laughing.
“No, but it seems like something he’d talk about. That, and golf.”
She snorted into his chest and sank into him as they talked about nothing important. Soon, her breath evened out, and Murphy reached for a throw blanket to put over them. He was just as tired, so realizing that she was warm and safe in his arms, he let himself drift off, knowing that this might be the most comfortable he’d ever been. And because he was just tired enough, he didn’t let himself worry about what it all meant.