Chapter 13

Spitting into the sink, Quinn rinsed out his mouth and dropped his toothbrush back into its holder on the counter. He straightened and looked at his reflection in the mirror, noting the huge smile on his face.

It was embarrassing how happy he was, really. He couldn’t even stop smiling long enough to brush his damn teeth, which had to say something.

Kiera had completely enveloped his world over the last two weeks and it was exactly as he’d always pictured it would be. He’d loved her for years, but he was also a realist. Even he was sure he’d glorified them at least a little in his head, but that wasn’t turning out to be the case at all. She was sweet and kind, taking care of him and encouraging him to follow his passion. How beautiful she was had already been a given, but their chemistry between the sheets was ten times what it had been the first time they’d had sex six years ago.

She was also unbelievably funny and annoyingly stubborn, both of which he’d missed so much about her. Kiera had always been a firecracker as a kid, her spunk and personality one of the first things that drew him to her. He was the joker of his family, and had always gotten shit for it. Not only was she the same, but she accepted every part of him easily. The good, the bad, the irritating—she didn’t bat an eye.

After having felt rejected by her for years, this unconditional acceptance had him reeling.

And smiling while brushing his damn teeth.

Brushing his hair quickly, he finished getting dressed to head to his parents’ house for Sunday dinner. Kiera had rushed out early that morning when she’d gotten a call from the hospital about one of her patients. He was thankful, actually, because that meant he had a valid excuse to explain her absence to his mother and hopefully dodge questions from his family.

Uneasiness settled in his stomach as he remembered the look on Kiera’s face the night before when he’d denied their relationship to his mother. It had gutted him, thinking he’d hurt her like that. She’d bounced back fast—she always had—but his guilt remained.

He didn’t even know why he’d done it—he’d just panicked. It was such an asshole move, and he knew that, but there was still a voice inside him saying…wait.

The last two weeks had been amazing, but part of him was still on high alert for when she’d break his heart again. God, he knew that was dumb. He was scolding himself for it, but hell, two weeks of bliss still struggled to compare to six years of heartbreak. He was trying. He was…just slowly. He’d put himself out there for her before, and he was going to do it again now. At least, he was going to try.

Quinn sighed, grabbing his keys from the counter and leaning against his cane.

Locking his apartment door behind him, he carefully maneuvered down the stairs, going slowly and not putting any extra pressure on his leg. He hoped this dinner would go smoothly and not become an interrogation. They were another reason why he’d hidden Kiera. They’d all been there when he’d had his heart broken, and despite his denial that anything had happened, they’d never let him forget it. Every time Kiera or her family had been at one of his family’s functions, they’d push the two of them together, trying to make a match. Sometimes it felt like his family wanted them together as much as he did.

At Rory’s house, no one had mentioned anything; their attention had been focused on Ace, Rory, and Clare. However, his phone had blown up the next morning with questions, and at the time, he’d had nothing to tell them other than Kiera was his doctor and his friend. That was technically still true, even though she was so much more now that his family didn’t know.

Getting their hopes up that he’d finally gotten the girl of his dreams, only to dash them again, seemed cruel. And likely to bring years of commentary, unsolicited advice, and merciless teasing at the hands of his brothers. No, thank you.

Climbing into the cab waiting for him out front, he pulled his cane across his lap and gave the driver directions to his parents’ house. It wasn’t far, but he still wasn’t driving himself—partially because his only transportation was now scrap metal, and partially because his leg still wasn’t where he wanted it to be.

It’d been almost seven months since his accident, and overall, his injuries were nearly healed. Road rash and skin grafts had left scars, but were otherwise entirely healed. His broken wrist was also healed and only ached occasionally. The surgery on his leg had left some lingering pain and weakness that physical therapy was strengthening. Considering how bad it could have been, and how many months out he was, he was proud of the progress he’d made.

Quinn tipped the driver and stepped out of the cab five minutes later when they arrived at his childhood home. The short driveway was already stuffed to capacity with cars, and his younger brother, Jimmy, was sitting on the front steps, cleaning his gun.

“Just gonna do that out in the street, kid?” Quinn called, moving up the front walk toward him. His brother was only a year younger than him, but everyone called Jimmy a kid anyway. They’d been the close growing up, since his older brothers had all bonded over mixed martial arts. He and Jimmy were the only two sons who hadn’t found that to be their passion—Jimmy being a cop now, and Quinn being…whatever he was. He was still figuring that part out.

Jimmy grinned and shrugged his broad shoulders. “Fuck, yes, I am. A friendly reminder of who we are to anyone looking.”

Quinn snorted. The big, bad Kavanagh legend was old, despite the fact that the neighborhood still treated them like royalty. Their father had run this town back in the day as part of the Mafia, and climbed pretty high in the ranks, too, after marrying the Mafia leader’s daughter, Quinn’s mother. When Quinn’s grandfather had passed away under unusual circumstances, Seamus had taken over and mostly disbanded the group. Seamus preferred to use his influence and connections to help the community of Woodlawn instead.

Still, their reputation invoked a strange mix of fear, respect, and reverence.

Quinn never understood the hype, even though he had been his father’s right-hand man until seven months ago. Stepping around his brother, he walked into the house and found his way to the kitchen. Dee was standing at the kitchen island, spooning heaps of mashed potatoes into a bowl—a staple dish of Sunday dinners.

“Hey, Ma,” he greeted her, leaning in to kiss her cheek.

“Hey, baby boy, you made it!” She wiped her hands on her apron and then gave him a proper hug. “I wish you’d let me come pick you up, or send one of the boys.”

“Uber is fine, Ma,” Quinn said, referring to the modern taxi service. “It’s barely a mile.”

She exhaled with some exaggeration. “Why can’t you let me help you more, Quinny? You’ve always sacrificed for this family more than anyone. Let us return the favor.”

“Ma, you helped me for six months,” he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. He placed a kiss on the top of her dark red hair since she was shorter than him, than all of her sons. “You were amazing, and I’m eternally grateful. But look at me. I’m doing a lot better, Ma.”

She surveyed him carefully, her brows lined with worry. “You do look wonderful, mo mhac, my son,” she said, slipping into Irish dialect. “But you always have.”

“Thanks, Ma.” He stole a roll from the breadbasket prepped to go out to the table. “Need any help?”

“Nope, I’m almost done,” she assured him. “Go be with your girlfriend in the living room. It’s so nice to see you two together. Sweet Jesus, I never thought the day would come.”

Quinn froze. “What are you talking about?”

Dee stood over a roast beef, carving slices and lining them on a serving platter. “Come off it, Quinn. I’m not prying. I’m only saying I approve. Kiera’s wonderful.”

“And wonderful Kiera is in the living room right now?” He glanced toward the kitchen doorway, listening to see if he could decipher her voice out of the half dozen voices that filled this house.

“Of course, she is. I told you she was invited to Sunday dinner.”

“Ma!” Quinn groaned. “Seriously? I told you she was busy.”

“Well, now she’s not busy,” Dee replied, shrugging her shoulders without a care in the world. “Go say hi. Dinner will be ready soon.”

His jaw tight, Quinn maneuvered his cane around the counter and headed for the living room. He paused in the doorway, wanting to survey the situation before joining the cacophony. And that’s exactly what it was.

Clare, baby Murphy, Nora, Fiona, Casey, and every single one of his older brothers were crowded around Kiera, laughing and shouting over each other. Fiona was braiding Casey’s hair while Casey took a selfie of them, and they were both in lively conversation with Nora, Kiera, and Clare, who was breastfeeding her son. He had yet to hear a word about Clare’s pregnancy news from anyone other than her, so he wasn’t telling a soul. Kane and Rory were having what looked to be a half-joking, semi-not-joking fistfight in the corner, and Kieran was swinging around a tennis racket for reasons Quinn couldn’t even begin to understand. Shea was on the window seat to one side of the room, oblivious to the rest of them as she stared out the glass—a bit unusual for her, since normally she’d have her nose buried in a book.

Wiping his hand over his face, he shook his head. This family was too much sometimes.

A wave of sadness slid through him as he saw the dog bed in the corner where Ace would usually lie to avoid being stepped on. It sat empty, untouched, and Quinn knew his loss was still widely felt among his family members. He glanced back at Shea, wondering if that’s why she wasn’t reading. He made a mental note to ask Fiona how she was doing.

Turning his attention to Kiera, he was both surprised and pleased that she seemed to be handling the onslaught of attention just fine, joining in and laughing along with everyone while dodging Kieran’s tennis swings and Kane and Rory’s scrimmage. Her hair was already in two long braids, which, admittedly, he thought looked pretty cute on her.

Her eyes found his after a few moments and she smiled, the same innocent look his mother had had in the kitchen. He motioned for her to come join him. She frowned, looking as if she was about to refuse, but then grinned and excused herself.

“Hi!” She pushed up on her toes and kissed him.

He let himself linger in her lips for a moment, nipping at her. Pulling back, he got his wits about him and gripped her wrist, guiding her into the hallway and out of sight of his family.

“Not so tight!” she squeaked, yanking her wrist from his hand. “Rude. That hurt.”

He frowned, guilt washing through him since he hadn’t realized he’d been holding on that tight. “I’m sorry. Are you okay?” He lifted her arm back up, examining her wrist, but she waved him away.

“I’m fine, but why are we hiding in the hallway?” She tilted her head to the side, leaning closer to him and placing her hands against his chest. Her eyes suddenly gleamed as she glanced toward the stairs. “Did you want to go do it in your bedroom? Fulfill a teenage fantasy or two?”

“Jesus, Kiera.” He exhaled sharply, seriously considering her suggestion. He grabbed her hips, pulling her against him, wanting to feel the friction of her body against his. Something about her French braids and the T-shirt she was wearing, knotted at her waist, was making it hard for him to focus on what he’d originally wanted to talk about. She was offering him exactly what he’d dreamed about in high school, and she was even dressed the part.

This was going to be hard. Possibly literally.

“We have a few minutes before dinner,” she said, a wicked grin spreading over her face.

“Don’t distract me right now, Keeks. I had something to talk to you about.” He was just having trouble remembering what that was when all he could think about was her bent over his bed, muffling her shouts into the pillow so they wouldn’t be discovered.

“Okay, what is it?” Her hands trailed up his arms and down his chest, his skin on fire at her touch. She grinned up at him, a mischievous gleam in her light blue eyes that made his dick throb.

He frowned, racking his brain for what his point had once been. “Shit, you’ve got me all hot now. I’m trying to remember.”

Kiera laughed, her nose wrinkling the way he’d loved since they were kids, which led him back to his original thought.

“I got it now,” he said, chuckling. He pushed a stray hair that had escaped her braids off her face. “Not that I don’t love to see you, babe, because you know I do, but what are you doing here? I thought we agreed it was too soon.”

Kiera raised one brow, her smile only slightly dimming. “Uh, no, we didn’t. You said that, and I said it was dumb.”

He blinked, not sure how to come back at that since it was a pretty accurate depiction of events. “Sure, but—”

“Quinn, your mother tracked down my mother on her cruise—don’t even ask me how she did that because I can’t even reach my mother the majority of the time—and got my phone number.”

Quinn balked. “She what?”

Kiera nodded, a this-isn’t-that-surprising look on her face as she transferred her weight to one leg and continued. “So then your mom called me this morning, begged me to come, and my patient emergency was over, so here I am. Now my family knows about us, your family knows about us, and it’s all out in the open.” She gave him the same sweet smile he’d just seen on his mother, shrugging her shoulders. “So buck up, buddy. This is happening.”

He tipped his head backward slightly and took a deep breath before laughing. “Is this how it’s always going to be? You and my mother teaming up against me?”

“Probably.” She nodded, wrapping her arms around his neck. “You going to be okay with that?”

He pinned her body to his and kissed her softly. “Probably.”

“Good, because I like you, and I like this, and I’m falling for you, Quinn.” She arched up on her toes, pressing her lips to his. “So, let’s not be dumb about it, okay? All in?”

He searched her eyes, his heart thudding against his rib cage at her words. She’s falling for me. Even though the last two weeks had given him a good indication they were headed that direction, hearing it directly from her was so fulfilling—like everything he’d hoped for, wished for, wanted had come true.

All the years he’d spent pining after her weren’t for nothing.

He grinned and kissed her again, harder and filled with everything he wanted to say, but was too afraid to put out there yet. He’d been all in for a lifetime.

“So?” she asked, catching her breath after their heated moment. “What do you say?”

“All in, Keeks.”

“Good, because you make me happy, and I like that.” Kiera gave him one last kiss before pulling him toward the living room. “Come on. You’ve got to hear about Kieran’s newest obsession. It’s the funniest story.”

“Does this involve a tennis racket?” he asked, holding her hand as they headed back.

Her smile said it definitely did. “Oh, you don’t even know the half of it.”