First and Only: Callaghan Brothers, Book 2 (19 page)

“It’ll be okay, baby,” he said, smoothing her hair.  “Do you trust me?”

She looked at him with those big amber eyes and nodded again, sending a rush of warmth through him.   

Jake was in the Pub, restocking the shelves when they walked in. 

“Lex,” Jake greeted with a friendly smile for Lexi and a quick glance toward Ian.  If he was surprised to see the two of them arrive together, he hid it well. 

“Taryn’s putting on a fresh pot of coffee in the kitchen.  I know she’s worried about you.  Think you can go in and talk to her for a bit?”

Lexi nodded quietly, offering a small, shy smile as she left the two men alone.  Ian didn’t take his eyes off of her until she disappeared into the next room.  Jake’s voice dropped down low to avoid being overheard. 

“Tell me you are not doing what I think you are,” Jake said, his voice laced with concern.

There was no good way to respond to that, so Ian didn’t.  He didn’t have to.  All he had to do was look into his brother’s eyes and Jake understood.  Along with understanding was empathy, because less than a year before Jake had had the same tortured look in his eyes.

Jake blew out a breath.  “I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Ian.”

“Not a fucking clue,” Ian responded, echoing the words Jake had said to him all those months ago.  It was honest, at least, even if he couldn’t admit it to anyone but Jake.  When Taryn came into their lives, Jake fell hard and fast.  Ian hadn’t understood it then, but he sure as hell did now.

Jake whistled softly.  “So it’s like that, is it?”

“Yeah.  Exactly like that.”

Jake held out his hand.  “Welcome to the club, man.  Hits you like a freight train, doesn’t it?”

Ian took his hand and smiled.  Oh, yeah.  Jake got it.

“You have your work cut out for you though.  It’s not going to be easy.” 

Ian snorted.  When had things ever been easy? In the end it didn’t really matter.  He needed Lexi, more than he’d ever needed anything.  He accepted that now, and all he could do was move forward with it.  But he had a feeling Jake was referring to something a bit more specific.

“Tell me.”

Jake placed both hands on the bar and leaned a little closer.  “Kieran went over to Lexi’s hotel this morning.  Apparently they got into it last night, and he’s been crawling the walls ever since.  When he finds out she’s not there, he is
not
going to be a happy boy.  When he finds out she’s with
you
, he’s going to go completely batshit.”

“I’d never hurt her, Jake,” Ian said quietly.

“Yeah, I get that.  But I don’t think Kieran is going to be quite as understanding.  He remembers, even if you don’t.”  As Ian’s eyes flashed, Jake put up his hands.  “Hey, I know you were clueless then, man, so I’m not laying blame here.  I’m just saying.”

Had he been clueless then?  Ian wasn’t so sure.  Last night, when Lexi was snuggled against him and he dozed contentedly, flashes of those golden amber eyes came back to him, eyes that had speared through him a dozen years ago when Kieran first brought her home.  Eyes that he would see in his dreams when he was away on missions and wasn’t sure he would make it home again.  Eyes he had attributed to his guardian angel, that he now knew belonged to a real woman, the one who would always haunt his thoughts and bring him home again. 
Lexi’s eyes
.

“Yeah.”  No sense sharing any of those insights at the moment.  They were too personal, too damn deep, and he was just beginning to comprehend what his subconscious had known all along – Lexi was
The One
.  His heart.  His
croie
.  Maybe some instinctual part of him had recognized it way back then, but they had been so young.  No wonder he had locked it away and buried it beneath a decade of denial. 

“I’m heading upstairs for a few.  Keep an eye on her, would you?”

Jake nodded.  “She’ll be in with Taryn for a while yet I’d bet, but yeah, I got it.”  Feeling a little more at ease knowing that Jake had his back, Ian ran up to their private living quarters to change and grab a few items.

* * *

I
an was still upstairs when Kieran’s bike roared up out front a short while later.  Within seconds, the youngest Callaghan was blowing through the door, resembling a massive, dark storm cloud. 

Lexi and Taryn came from the back, their light laughter ceasing the moment they caught the stormy expression on Kieran’s face. 

“Uh-oh,” murmured Taryn.

“Kieran,” Lexi called softly.  At the sound of her voice Kieran turned, the dark expression morphing instantly into relief.

“Lexi!  I thought I missed you!”  In a few long strides he crossed the floor and Lexi disappeared in a thorough embrace. 

“I’ve decided to stay out the week,” she said, her words muffled against his chest as she laughingly extricated herself.  Then she smacked him solidly, though it had the same effect as a fly landing on his arm.

“What was that for?”

“For believing for one second I would leave without saying good-bye, no matter how much you pissed me off.”

His eyes softened then.  “Sorry, Lex.  After last night...”

“I know,” she said, patting the area where she’d smacked him.  “I’m sorry, too, Kier.”

“You still know how to scare the shit out of me, you know that?”

The sound of a throat clearing had them both looking toward the bar, where Ian now stood beside Jake.  There was no mistaking the look on Ian’s face.  It screamed possession.

Kieran pulled Lexi tightly against him and glared over the top of her head at Ian, his message clear.

“Ah, shit...” murmured Jake, pushing Taryn safely behind him.

Kieran’s jaw clenched, his body rippling with barely restrained anger.  Ian straightened himself to his full height and faced him head on, his body in a battle-ready stance. 

The two men faced off, clearly on the verge of blows.  But before anything happened, Lexi placed her hand on Kieran’s arm.  “Kieran,” she said quietly. 

He looked down, reading the truth in her eyes.  “Oh, fuck no
.
”

Across the room, Ian tensed even further.  Jake discreetly put a hand on his shoulder, warning him to stay put. 

Kieran’s tone was one of total disbelief.  “What the hell were you thinking, Lex?”

She was silent for a few moments, trying to think of words that could explain what she herself didn’t quite understand.  When she finally spoke, her voice was quiet but level.  “I’m not thinking, Kier.  I’m
living
.”

“But Lex –“

“Leave her alone,” Ian said, stepping forward. 

Kieran stiffened immediately, tension rippling through his body.  He pushed Lexi behind him, his body a massive shield.  “Why don’t you fuck off?”

Ian’s eyes glittered, silvery specs against a darkening blue.  “She’s not a child, Kieran.  Stop treating her like one.”

Kieran looked down at Lexi, disbelief etched in every feature.  “You didn’t tell him, did you?  He doesn’t know.”

“Know what?”  Ian demanded.

If it was possible, Kieran grew even larger with his barely controlled rage.  “You have no clue what you’re messing with, Ian.  She’s not one of your whores.”

Ian would have launched himself at Kieran at that point had Lexi not spoken up and shocked them all.  “Yes, Kier,” she said clearly.  “That’s exactly what I am.  At least for the next few days.”

Taryn gasped audibly, her hand flying up to her mouth.  Beyond that, you could have heard a pin drop in the heavy silence.  The men were shell-shocked, their expressions ranging from disbelief (Jake) to devastation (Kieran) and outright anger (Ian).  It might have been funny under different circumstances.

“No...”  Kieran began shaking his head as if he could dislodge the words and nullify them at the same time.

“It’s what I want,” she added, petting his arm as if she could soothe him, her voice a little softer.  She wanted – no,
needed
- Kieran to understand.  “Please try to understand, Kier.  I just want to feel normal for a little while.”

Lexi felt awful for hurting him, but it was the truth.  She couldn’t blame him for being upset.  He’d always looked out for her, been her protector.  This was like a betrayal in his eyes.  She could only hope he would come to understand and forgive her someday. 

Lexi smoothed away imaginary wrinkles from her top to hide her shaking hands.  With willpower and courage she didn’t know she had, she began walking toward the door, her head held high.  With a glance toward Ian, she said, “You promised me a ride.” 

Then she walked through the doors and waited on the sidewalk, keeping her eyes directed away from the inside of the Pub, hoping desperately that Ian would simply follow her out and no one would get hurt.

* * *

“I
f you hurt her I’ll kill you,” Kieran seethed.  “I don’t care how good you think you are, I’ll slit your fucking throat in your own fucking bed.”  Then he turned and stalked away, leaving the others in stunned silence.

“Well, that went well,” Jake breathed.  “He took it better than I expected.”

Ian shot him a look before following Lexi outside. 

He was almost as furious as Kieran.  How could Lexi have said what she did?  Was it possible that she actually believed that’s all she was to him?  Didn’t she understand that she had become everything to him?  Didn’t she feel the same way?

He stormed outside with every intention of setting her straight, but pulled up short a few feet behind her.  Her back was to him, but he could tell she was crying by the slight rise and fall of her shoulders.  All of his rage was swept away instantly.  The hurt he would deal with later.

Pulling her into his arms, he cradled her against him, drawing them back into a hidden alcove along the side of the building.  “Ssshhh, Lex, it’s alright,” he soothed, rubbing her back. 

“I hurt him.”

“He’s alright, baby.  He’s a big boy.  He’ll come around, you’ll see.  He’s just trying to protect you.”

Lexi wasn’t a sobber or a wailer.  Her tears were subtler than that, quiet little hitches that drew little or no attention.  He held her until she calmed down.

“What you said, Lex.  It just isn’t true.”  He lifted her chin and forced her to look at him.  She had to know she was so much more than that to him.  Christ, in the span of a few days she had become
everything
.

She attempted a smile, wiping impatiently at her eyes, neither confirming nor disputing him.  “So.  Do I get that ride or not?”

The sadness in her eyes faded into the background, replaced by that implacable mask he’d seen the day of her father’s funeral.  She was pulling away, distancing herself, and he hated it.  But he also sensed that it was not the time to push it.

“Yeah,” he said, shelving the topic for later. “A deal’s a deal.”

An hour later, all bad thoughts had faded into the background as he opened up the throttle.  Lexi was snuggled securely against his back, her arms holding tightly around his waist.  He’d taken it slow through town, letting her become acclimated to the feel of the bike, learning how to move with him.  It required a fair measure of trust on her part, following his movements and instructions exactly until he was assured she wouldn’t panic. 

He shouldn’t have worried.  She was a natural, moving with him as if she were a part of him.  Before long he felt confident enough to head out onto the twisting, winding mountain roads.

Having Lexi with him felt so right.  Before long he felt all of the tension leave her body, replaced by childlike excitement.  He could feel it in the way she held him, and in the little exclamations she let out every now and then.  Ian pulled off the road near the top of the mountain.  Her hair was windblown, her face flushed with joy, and her eyes glowing almost as brightly as they had in her hotel room.

“That’s the most wonderful thing I’ve ever felt!” she exclaimed as Ian lifted her off the bike.  He raised his eyebrow doubtfully.  “Well,” she amended, blushing a furious pink, “the second best, anyway.” 

Ian laughed out loud and kissed her.  “Come on,” he coaxed.  “Bet you’ve never seen this before...”

He led her along a barely visible path to a little rocky shelf that overlooked the entire valley.  “Oh, Ian,” she said in breathless awe.  “It’s so beautiful.”

“Yes,” he said softly, sliding his arms beneath hers and pulling her back to his chest.  “You are.”

I am desperately, hopelessly in love with you, Lexi
.
Marry me and be mine forever.
  The words were right there in his head and on the tip of his tongue, all too ready to be spoken.  He even took a breath in preparation to say them.

“You don’t have to do that,” she said quietly.

“Do what?”

“Say things like that.  I already said I’d stay through the end of the week.”

Ian turned her around to face him, disbelief evident.  “You think I’m kidding?”

She shrugged.  Ian was dumbstruck.  Lexi wasn’t just attractive, she was gorgeous.  Her clear amber eyes, the multi-hued hair that curved into her body.  And that body!  Dear Lord, she was like a Greek goddess in the flesh.  But more than that, more than the physical features that had every male turning his head, was an inner beauty that was infinitely more attractive, yet she was completely unaware of it.  She was at once vulnerable yet strong.  Innocent yet passionate.  Quiet yet intense.  But how could he make her see that? 

He couldn’t.  Not in words, anyway.  So Ian resorted to the next best thing.  He would show her.

Ian lowered his head and claimed her mouth with absolute possession.  He poured everything he felt for her into that kiss, willing her to understand.  Within seconds she melted against him, becoming pliant in his arms.  That was his Lexi.  He forced himself to pull away, his breathing nearly as ragged as hers.

“You.  Are. 
Beautiful
.”

She gazed up at him with heavy-lidded eyes.  He loved that he could do this to her with just a kiss.  “Make love to me, Ian.” 

Ian didn’t know what surprised him more – the fact that she suggested it or the fact that he hadn’t already been thinking of doing exactly that.  The truth was that he had been perfectly content sharing the view with her in his arms, happy to simply be with her and share her excitement.  Seeing things through her eyes was like experiencing them for the first time himself, whether it be sex, riding the Harley, or looking out over the breathtaking valley.  Something told him that would never change, either.  No matter how many times she gave herself to him it would never be enough.  They could come back to this ledge a hundred times and each time would be better than the last.