Chapter 18
Caden
Home. Somewhere I didn't want to go. Somewhere I hadn't been in years. And now, I was bringing my wife home. What the hell would I tell my mother? How would I explain landing home with Lizzie?
Cait Gallagher was a woman to be reckoned with. I had no doubt she would like Lizzie, but now wasn't the right time for them to meet.
Once she got over the shock, she would ask about babies and when we planned to start a family. Even if we were married for reasons other than a green card, I didn't want to be a father, and it was all because of Louise.
We first kissed when we were twelve and were inseparable until six months after Charlotte's birth eight years later. Louise dropped the bomb that obliterated my world when she told me the baby I'd love from the first sonogram belonged to her boss. The fallout from her betrayal left me unrecognizable.
Maybe we could go to Ireland but not visit my family, but if word ever got back I'd been home, there would be war.
I couldn't keep the news of our wedding quiet for long. I wasn't on social media, so there was no chance of my family finding out that way, but Lizzie was, and she and her sisters were bound to post pictures. Somebody somewhere would recognize me and tag one of my sisters. This was a fucking mess, one I'd knowingly gotten myself into.
I reached out and shook Sean's hand. "I'll call my mother and tell her to expect us. She'll be ecstatic to meet Lizzie." And she'd clip me around the ear for not giving her a day out and a chance to dress up, nevermind not introducing her to my fiancée—now wife.
Cait Gallagher loved a wedding and the fact that she hadn't been able to attend her youngest son's wedding—the first wedding in the family—could send her to her sick bed. She wasn't unknown to play the martyr to get her own way. And she always got her own way. With five kids, she had to find a way to make them listen. Guilt being one of them.
"If you don't mind, I think Lizzie and I will go home. It's a long flight, and we have to pack."
"I want lots of pictures," her mother said. "Tell your family our door is open. They'll always have a place to stay if they ever decide to come visit."
"I will." I interlaced my fingers with Lizzie's, and we walked toward the door. "Thanks again," I called back before leaving.
"Fuck," I said once we were outside. "That was unexpected."
Lizzie blew out a breath. "We don't have to go. We can spend the weekend in Manhattan. Say we missed our flight, so we decided to stay in your apartment and have a weekend to ourselves." She paced the parking lot. "But that wouldn't be fair. Sean has been saving those air miles for ages. He wanted to take Mom somewhere exotic for her birthday."
"We're screwed either way," I said, tunneling my fingers through my hair. "This isn't ideal and not something I want, but we'll go, and we'll make the best of it."
"Your mother is going to hate me."
"She won't."
"Really? Her son brings home a wife she knew nothing about. A woman she didn't even know he was dating." She yanked open the car door and got in. "I'd be surprised if she didn't throw me out and call me names."
"She's not like that," I said, getting behind the wheel. "She's not a witch. She'll be taken aback and will place a guilt trip on me, but she'll love you. If there's one thing about my mother, she has a big heart and will welcome you with open arms. She'll feed you until you're bursting and will give you enough cups of tea you'll stay awake for a week from the caffeine. I haven't been home in five years. Me being back will override her anger."
The furrowed crease between Lizzie's eyes deepened. "Why haven't you been home in so long?"
"Work," I lied. "My family come and see me when they can."
"I'm not sure about this, but okay," she said, giving a resigned sigh. "We should go."
Before I could stop myself, I leaned across the center console and placed a kiss on the worry line between her eyes. "Don't worry so much. The hard part is over."
Her perfume infused the car and filled my mind. If I didn't get her out of her dress and into bed soon, I would take her here and now. But she deserved more than that. I wanted to worship her and show her how much her marrying me meant. She could have said no. Told me to get the fuck out of her life and never to come back, but she didn't. I owed her more than money. My words weren't enough. I wanted to show her exactly how grateful I was.
I turned the key in the ignition and backed out of the spot. "I appreciate everything you've done for me. I know I can be a bastard and pushy. But I'll never forget this."
"It wasn't out if the goodness of my heart," she said. "It was in my best interests, too." She glanced at me and gave me a smile, and for once it reached her eyes.
"You have a beautiful smile."
Making her happy filled me up, and, right now, keeping her happy seemed like the most important thing in the world. More important than the club. More important than a green card.
I gave my head a mental shake. Nothing about this was real. It was a fairytale.
In time, she would find someone who loved her the way she deserved to be loved. A knot formed in my stomach at that thought. I didn't own her and couldn't stop her from falling in love with someone.
In a few months, once my green card was secure, I would go back to my life—flying around the world, eating in a different restaurant every night, and fucking whoever I wanted when I wanted.
I couldn't give her what she wanted, so it was only fair I let her go, but why was the thought of that such a hard one to digest?
By the time we pulled up to Cliffside Cottage, the sun hung low on the horizon and clouds stripped the sky.
Lizzie got out of the car and stood by the cliff face. Her hair floated behind her, and the moment she turned to face me would stay locked in my memory forever.
Fuck everything else but here and now.
I strode toward her, and without saying a word, crushed my lips to hers. I ran my hands up and down her wedding dress. My dick throbbed painfully. Had a woman ever affected me like this before? Had a woman ever set a fire inside me the way Lizzie had? No matter how much I struggled to keep my barriers in place, one by one, she kept knocking them down.
When we broke away, our breaths were fast and frantic. The heat in her eyes was all I needed. I scooped her up and carried her to the front door.
"Put me down," she squealed with laughter in her words
"No chance. I'm carrying my wife over the threshold."
"Very traditional of you."
"I'm a traditional fella."
She snorted. "I doubt that very much."
She reached down and turned the handle, and the door swung open with a squeak.
"Welcome home, Mrs. Gallagher."