Maybe Never (Maybe #2) (23 page)

Killian walks over to him and pulls out some cash to hand to the man. He inspects the passports and then nods his thank-you.
 

“Let’s go,” Killian says to me.
 

“Where to?”
 

“Airport,” is all he says.
 

I sigh as he leads me back to the taxi. He hands me the passport, which I study. I am now Erin Buffet. I glance at Killian’s that reads Scott Foss. I lean my head back on Killian’s shoulder and try to sleep.
Who knows when I’ll get to sleep in a bed?

We have been flying for more than thirty-six hours now. I haven’t slept in over forty-eight hours. My eyes are red and dry. My back aches from sitting in cramp plane chairs. I’m exhausted. We have been to Tokyo, Berlin, Paris, London, and now Dublin. I have no idea when we are finally going to settle somewhere or if this is my life now.
 

“When’s our next flight?” I ask as we get off the plane.
 

“We are here,” Killian says, smiling.

“Oh, thank God,” I say, which just makes him smile brighter.
 

He grabs ahold of my hand as we walk through customs in the busy airport.
 

“Are we staying in Dublin?”
 

“No.”
 

I want to ask him where then, but I’m tired of getting ignored. If he ignores me one more time, I swear, I’m going to lose it, so I’ll be patient until we get to wherever we are going. Then, when we are safe, I’ll ask all the questions he promised he would answer.

I follow Killian onto a bus, but it is no more helpful in telling me where we are going since there are a billion stops on this bus route, according to the man we bought our tickets from at the ticket counter. I take a seat, and Killian sits next to me. He immediately puts his arms around me so that I can rest my head on his shoulder and try to sleep.
 

“Are we Erin and Scott here, or Killian and Kinsley?”
 

He sighs and kisses me on the forehead. “Erin and Scott.”
 

I nod sadly. I’m tired of being Erin and Scott although I already answer to the name. I don’t like Erin. Erin is tired and grumpy and hungry all the time. Erin wears crappy clothes and doesn’t do her makeup. Erin doesn’t have a future. If I think too much about it though, Kinsley didn’t have much of a future either.
 

“Just sleep, princess. We still have a couple of hours’ drive ahead of us.”
 

I sigh in frustration and close my eyes, but I don’t sleep. Instead, about twenty minutes into the ride, I open my eyes and look out at the green countryside as it passes by. It’s beautiful here. There are rolling hills covered in green grass with an occasional herd of sheep or goats. I glance up and notice Killian has his head rested on mine and is sound asleep. I envy him. He’s been able to sleep on every plane ride and now bus ride while I haven’t slept an ounce yet.
 

I continue to watch the beautiful countryside as we drive down the curvy roads. About an hour into the ride, it begins to rain, which somehow makes the landscape even more beautiful, but unlike everyone else on the bus, it still doesn’t put me to sleep. So, instead, I count the raindrops on the window.
 

About two and a half hours into the ride, the bus driver comes to a stop outside of a city called Galway.

“This is us,” Killian says, grabbing our one bag that only has one spare item of clothing for each of us but is mostly filled with cash.
 

I don’t know what we are supposed to do when we run out of cash.
 

We step off of the bus and out into the rain that is no longer beautiful as I’m dripping wet.
 

“This way,” Killian says, taking my hand and leading me down a city street.
 

I shiver a little as the rain pelts down on top of me. We walk for twenty minutes in the cold rain until I can’t take it any longer.
 

“Where the fuck are we going? I’m exhausted. I’m hungry. I’m wet and not in a good way. And, I swear, we already passed that same pub ten minutes ago. If you don’t find us a place to sleep in the next five minutes, I swear, I’m going home. I don’t care if it’s safe or not.”
 

Killian’s mouth falls open a little at my words. “I’m sorry. I have a cousin who lives around here. I thought we could just stay with him, but…”
 

“You are clearly lost, so let’s just see if that bed-and-breakfast back there has any availability tonight, and we can try again tomorrow.”
 

I begin walking in that direction without waiting to see if Killian agrees or not. It’s a freaking bed-and-breakfast, for goodness’ sake. It’s about as safe a place as you can get. Plus, if anybody followed us and took that crazy schedule, there is no way in hell that they have enough energy to come after us tonight.
 

So, I walk, and Killian follows me. Within five minutes, we are being escorted to our gorgeous room in a bed-and-breakfast. I open the door to our room, and it’s gorgeous. A huge white canopy bed sits in the center of the room with a few blue and green accents scattered throughout the room. There is a balcony leading out to the city street below and a large bathroom off the room. I don’t care about all of that though. All I care about is the bed. I immediately walk over to it and crash onto it.
 

I blow out a breath as my body sinks into the heavenly bed. “You have to come try this bed. It’s amazing.”
 

Killian walks over to me and leans down so that his mouth hovers over my ear. “I have some phone calls to make.”
 

I frown.
 

“You sleep. I’ll make some phone calls, and then I’ll join you in a few minutes. I’m going to be out in the hallway if you need me, okay?”
 

I nod although it’s not okay. After the day we have had, I want his arms wrapped around me. I want to feel his warm breath on my neck as he softly kisses me until I fall asleep. I don’t want to be alone, but I don’t tell him any of that. I let him softly kiss me on the cheek. Then, he walks back out the door while I do my best to sleep alone in a strange place, in a strange country, and I still don’t know what or who we are running from.
 

I’ll ask him tomorrow
, I promise myself. Tonight, I need to sleep.
 

***

I wake up the next morning and roll over, expecting to see a sleeping Killian. Instead, I find an empty bed and a note.
 

Morning, princess.

Went to find my cousin, so we will have a place to stay on a more permanent basis. They have doughnuts downstairs for breakfast, so you should be good until I get back. Don’t leave the bed-and-breakfast. Be back soon.
 

~K

I crumble the note and toss it toward the trash can in the corner of the room. I miss, and I watch it bounce once on the floor before coming to a stop. I hate his note.
 

I look at the clock that says it’s almost eleven a.m., and Killian still isn’t back yet, although I don’t know how long he’s been gone. I get out of bed and realize I’m still wearing the same clothes I was last night. I walk over to the corner of the room where Killian laid out my clothes but took the bag, leaving me with no money, no ID, nothing.
 

He left me stranded.
 

I take a shower, and then I change into the new clothes, which consists of a pair of jeans that’s a size or two too big and a white cotton T-shirt. I don’t look great in them, but at least I am clean.
 

I head downstairs, but I am guessing that whatever breakfast was served is now long over.
 

“Good morning,” one of the owners says when I make it to the lobby.
 

“Good morning. Are you still serving breakfast?”
 

She smiles at me. “Breakfast usually ends at ten thirty, but I think we have some leftover doughnuts.”
 

“That would be great. Thank you.”
 

The woman scurries into the back and pulls out a basket of doughnuts.
 

“Thank you,” I say again as I take a couple out of the basket.
 

“Are there any places in this area that you recommend I see while I’m here?”
 

She smiles. “Well, just walking around the city of Galway is beautiful. I’d recommend seeing the nearby castle and cathedral along with the Spanish Arch. I would also stop in a jeweler and get a Claddagh ring, especially if you are here with a special someone. And if you haven’t made it to the Cliffs of Moher yet, I highly recommend that.”
 

“Thanks,” I say.
 

I take my doughnuts with me and then head out of the bed-and-breakfast. I walk down the street to the main city block and begin walking, taking in all of my surroundings. The town is beautiful, just like she said. I instantly fall in love with the beautiful colors of the storefronts. The stores are quaint and small, compared to the large and bright casinos I’m used to in Las Vegas. It’s so much calmer here. Everyone smiles and says hi to me here. No one is in a rush here. It’s nice. The only problem is, Killian isn’t here with me.
 

I spend the day exploring many of the places the woman suggested, including the beautiful cathedral and Spanish Arch. I go into several jewelers and admire all of their Claddagh rings. And, every few hours or so, I check back into the bed-and-breakfast to see if Killian has made it back. Each time, I come up empty until I am starting to worry that something might be wrong.
 

I head back to the bed-and-breakfast around dinnertime. I don’t have any cash and am thankful to find a small dinner of tea and shepherd’s pie is included. I fall in love with the tea that I sip on when Killian finally comes back.
 

I glare at him when he walks in.
 

“I’m sorry,” he says when he walks over to me.
 

“I don’t want to hear it.”
 

“I’m sorry. My phone calls took a lot longer than expected, and I found out my cousin doesn’t live here anymore.”
 

I narrow my eyes. “Where does he live?”
 

He grimaces. “Dublin.”
 

I shake my head in frustration.
 

“We can take a bus tonight if you want.”
 

“No. I want to stay here. At least for a few more days.”
 

I can tell Killian wants to argue with me, but he doesn’t.
 

He leans down to kiss me, but I brush him away. I can’t. I’m too angry with him for leaving me alone all day and for still not telling me the complete truth about why we are here. I thought today would be full of answers about why we flew around the world, but instead I got nothing but worry.
 

I yawn.
 

“Come on,” he says. “Let me get you to bed.”
 

I stand and follow him back to our bedroom. We walk inside in silence and then begin undressing, both preparing for bed without speaking. I just take my jeans off, and then I climb into bed.
 

“I still have lots of questions,” I say to Killian.
 

He removes his shirt, revealing his body that I immediately want to jump. I bite my lip and look away while he continues to undress. I will not fuck him, not after leaving me alone to worry. Not after lying to me time and time again.
 

“And I want to hear all of them.”
 

I look at him, and my eyes brighten a little. He begins climbing into bed when his phone vibrates on the nightstand next to the bed, stopping him. He looks at the number and then to me, but I already know what he is going to say.
 

“I have to take this.”
 

I feel him climbing back out of bed, and he puts his jeans back on. I close my eyes and roll over as he walks out the door. A single tear rolls down my cheek. I don’t understand how I’m here with Killian, but I have never felt more alone.
 

How did forty-eight hours change the course of our relationship so severely? How is it possible to feel so distant from someone I thought I loved?
 

If this is the real Killian, I’m afraid I made a terrible mistake. I want the man who stood up for me in the courtroom. The man who couldn’t keep his hands off me in the bedroom. Not the man whose work and own needs come before me.
 

I watch Kinsley sleep. Her lips are pursed, and her now short locks curl around her flushed cheeks. I watch her chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm. I want to kiss her, but I don’t think she would like that, not after leaving her alone and not telling her the truth of why we are here.
 

I didn’t plan to spend the day away from her. It just happened. To contact the FBI without them tracking me, I had to go route the call through different locations, which required a computer and Internet access that I didn’t have at the bed-and-breakfast. I had to drive an hour away to get a laptop, and then I spent most of the day in various cafes using their Internet.
 

I spent the whole day getting my ass chewed out by the FBI, but I think I finally convinced them that I did the only thing I could. The only problem is, they couldn’t identify any criminals in the Felton Grand casino, which means the men don’t have a record. And it means, we will be here for quite a while as they try to figure out who the men are that I overheard in Mexico and then again in the Felton Grand.
 

It also took me much longer to track down my cousin whom I haven’t seen in twenty years. It required me getting ahold of my father since he was the only one who knew my cousin’s address. He finally gave me the address, which I guess was progress since the last time I saw him.