Chapter 1

“That’s everything I had on me?” Kieran Kavanagh glanced up at the correctional officer standing in front of him, then back down at the clear plastic bag of clothing in his hands.

“You weren’t exactly draped in gold and diamonds when you got arrested, Kavanagh.”

Kieran smirked before taking the clothes into a small room off to the side of the processing area of the prison. He rushed to yank the dull gray jumpsuit off his body, pushing it to the ground and stepping out of it. He tossed it into a bin in the corner and then ripped open the bag of his old clothes and pulled out his jeans, T-shirt, and sweatshirt.

He slid his old jeans on, feeling that they were a bit tight around his thighs. He had spent most of the last two years mainly working out; there wasn’t a ton else to do in prison. Every muscle on his body had tripled in size, even on his legs. Next came the T-shirt, which barely made it down his midsection, stretching tightly over his defined pecs and molded abs.

Frowning, he pulled on the sweatshirt, which fit better since it used to be a bit baggier. With the warm spring air, he knew it would be a bit uncomfortable but at least it covered his abs. He was already loving the feeling of the familiar fabric against his skin rather than the overly starched prison clothes he’d had to get used to.

He pulled his wallet out of the bag and flipped it open.

Kieran Murphy Kavanagh. Age twenty-six.

He felt older, as if centuries had passed while he’d been in here staring out barred windows. It had also been a while since he had seen his name in print. Only his family had called him by his first name since he was in here. He shoved the rest of the plastic bag, with his drawers, into his pocket along with his wallet, then headed back out to the processing center. The correctional officer was standing by the exit waiting for him.

“Ready?”

“Been ready to get out of this hellhole for two years,” Kieran said, and scoffed.

“Good, don’t let me see your ugly mug in here again.”

The officer opened the door with a set of keys, leading them into an enclosed area in front of another door. He flashed his badge to a small camera on one side before a loud buzzing sound echoed through the room and the door unlatched. They did this twice more at the end of hallways before finally exiting the building. The guard nodded at him, a succinct good-bye, as he went back inside.

Kieran found himself on a concrete path surrounded by twenty-foot-high metal fencing. Breathing slowly, he moved down the path, trying not to look back. Honestly, he felt nervous, unsure of what was waiting for him out in the real world.

“Kieran!”

Snapping out of his reflective thoughts, he saw that at the end of the path on the other side of a large gate was an older woman jumping up and down, waving at him. He immediately recognized the dark red hair and tiny stature as his mother, Deidre “Dee” Kavanagh.

“Hey, Ma.” He waved and sped up, arriving at the gate as it buzzed open for him. He eagerly walked out and opened his arms for her. The small, middle-aged woman rushed into them, throwing her arms around his waist and burying her head against his chest. She squeezed him tightly and he could practically hear her smiling.

“Good to see you, too, Ma.”

“I’ve missed you so much, Kieran.” His mother sniffed, let go, and stepped back. He smiled at her and affectionately cupped her face, wiping away the escaped tears. She looked older than he remembered, and more stressed. Wrinkles lined her forehead and the skin around her eyes crinkled more than before. Guilt bit at him as he wondered if he was partly to blame for how much she’d aged in the last two years.

“All right, Ma, stop hogging him.” Kieran noticed for the first time that two of his brothers were standing next to the car.

“Quinn!” The skinny, athletic young man with jet-black hair walked up to him and shook his hand. They bumped their shoulders together and clapped each other on the back.

“I’m not a mirror, you know.”

Kieran let go of Quinn and chuckled as he looked at his twin. Their blue eyes mimicked each other’s under fluffy, short brown hair. Kane’s was shorter than his at the moment, but he planned on getting a haircut as soon as possible.

“Kane, you’ve gotten smaller.”

“Fuck that, you got gigantic. What the hell were you doing in there?” Kane sounded a little bitter at the discrepancy between them as the men hugged in greeting. Kieran was five minutes older than Kane, but they looked identical. Their family could tell them apart, but most others couldn’t. The size difference between them would make that a lot easier now.

“Maybe I should have you training me instead of Rory. I think you might even be bigger than him,” Kane said over his shoulder as he led the way back to the car.

“No one’s bigger than Rory.” Quinn laughed as he wrapped an arm around his mother’s shoulders, following Kane, with Kieran next to them. Mention of his older brother sparked Kieran’s curiosity.

“Where is Rory? Or Jimmy? Or Casey and Dad?”

“Jimmy’s working. Plus, I’m sure he’s tired of seeing prisons, as a cop,” Quinn informed him, trying to make a joke.

“Casey’s taking her midterms; she’s in her spring semester at New York University.” Dee averted her eyes as they all started climbing into the car. Dee and Quinn slid into the back, leaving the front to the twins.

“That doesn’t explain Rory or Dad. I’m guessing they didn’t want to visit the screwed-up son…” Kieran trailed off, sliding into the passenger seat. No one said anything as Kane started up the engine and pulled out onto the road.

Dee finally spoke up. “All of my boys are perfect in their own ways. And now they will all be together again for Sunday dinner.”

Kieran immediately remembered what every Sunday growing up used to be like, surrounded by loving family. It was Friday afternoon now, so he immediately got excited for the upcoming event. He wondered if it would be as nice as he remembered, or if he wouldn’t be welcomed.

“Kane, you got your own place?” Kieran asked, trying to change topics.

“Yeah, need a place to crash?”

“Just for a few days. I can get my own place soon.”

“You’re not going to stay with your dad and me?” Deidre leaned over the divider between the back and front seats.

“I’m a bit old to be living with my parents, Ma.”

“Nonsense, it’s not like it’s going to be forever. You’re welcome to stay with us anytime, you know that.”

“Ma, he’s fine with me,” Kane intervened, causing Dee to frown and lean back in her seat.

“Will you just trust me? Rory comes here every Sunday and brings Ma flowers.” Kane sighed, opening the flower shop door and ushering Kieran inside.

“So, what, I’m just supposed to copy him? How’s that help me?”

“I don’t know, call it sucking up, apologizing, playing nice. Any of the above. Pick one. It can’t hurt, right?”

“Whatever.” Kieran shrugged and followed Kane toward the counter.

“Go ask the lady at the counter for a bouquet. I’m going to hit the head.” Kane pointed toward the back of the shop where a young woman sat in front of a cash register thumbing through a catalog.

“Seriously? You can’t wait till we get to Ma’s?”

“Just go get the damn flowers.”

Kieran rolled his eyes at his brother’s retreating figure, then sauntered up to the counter.

“Hi, can I help you?” The young woman put down her catalog and smiled at him, the corner of her light blue eyes crinkling slightly. She was absolutely stunning, but in a muted way, as if she was trying to hide it from the world. Or like she didn’t know she was beautiful. Either way, he was having trouble taking his eyes off her.

“Uh, can I get a bouquet?” He stumbled over his words, forcing himself not to reach out and run his fingers through her long brown hair, which fell in large waves just past her shoulders.

“Sure. Of what?”

“Flowers.”

Kieran wanted to grab the word as soon as it left his mouth, his eyes widening as he realized it. The young woman stifled a smirk, her lips twitching slightly. She cleared her throat and sat up straighter, peering at him.

“All right. Well, who would it be for? Maybe that can help us nail it down.”

“It’s for my mother.”

“Do you know what her favorite flower is?”

He shook his head, trying to think of the last time he had seen his mother with flowers. In truth, he hadn’t purchased flowers for his mother since her birthday the year before he went to jail.

“No, I can’t remember. I’ve been, uh, gone for a while. Just got back.”

“Welcome back, um…” She paused, raising one brow.

“Kieran, thanks.”

“I’m Fiona.”

“As in Fiona’s Flowers? This is your shop? Wow, that’s impressive. You don’t look old enough to have your own business.”

“And you look too old not to know your mother’s favorite flower.” She stood up from her seat and walked out from around the counter toward a refrigerated section.

“Ah, Fiona: one; Kieran: zero.” He followed her to the wide selection of floral bouquets she was standing in front of.

“What about one of these? Think she might like this?” Fiona fingered some soft pink flowers that he didn’t recognize. To be fair, he didn’t really know anything about flowers anyway. Though these did remind him of his mother, the same pink blush that was always in her cheeks.

“I think she would love those—let’s do it.”

Fiona nodded and pulled the vase off the shelf in the refrigerated case, carrying it over to the counter. She pulled some plastic wrap from under the counter and began wrapping the entire thing, taking care not to crush any of the blooms. Next, she brought out some ribbons and wrapped it with a small bow.

Kieran complimented her work as he pulled out his wallet. “Beautiful. How much do I owe you?”

“Forty-nine ninety-nine.”

“Fifty bucks? Do these flowers also come with dinner and a movie?”

She blushed and dropped her eyes to the counter, not saying anything.

“I’m just kidding, here you go.” He handed her a few bills. “Unless you’d be interested in that?”

“In what?” She took the money from him and opened the cash register, putting the bills away carefully.

“In dinner and a movie. With me.”

She looked up at him suddenly, surprise etched across her face. Her cheeks blushed crimson, and it only made him like her more. She screamed innocence and purity when he was the opposite.

“I, uh, sorry. I don’t date.”

“I don’t buy that—you’re too beautiful.” He leaned against the counter, trying to get closer to her, but she handed him his purchase instead.

Kane came up behind Kieran, interrupting his flirtatious back-and-forth with Fiona. “What did you get Ma?”

“Your mother should love these pink daisies.” Fiona smiled at Kane, which Kieran could obviously tell was her way of avoiding looking at him. Avoiding looking at him by looking at his twin. Yeah, he really didn’t understand women.

“Thanks, miss. Come on, bro, we’re going to be late.”

Kieran nodded at his brother, who took the vase of flowers from him and was walking toward the door. He started following but paused to look back at Fiona for a moment.

“Don’t give me your answer now. Think about it.”

He saw her mouth fall open before he turned back and followed his brother out the door. A few years in jail hadn’t changed anything—he knew he still had game. He just hoped it was enough to charm the beautiful brunette.