Eric stepped forward. “It was Ian.”
And the moment he said it, Mel lifted the gun and shot him right in the kneecap, the poor fuck. I didn’t even know the gun was loaded, seeing as how there was one bullet still on the table.
Mel hissed at him. “Since when do you give up your brother, you fucker?” And she had a point. Even when we commanded them, they weren’t supposed to give that information up unless someone was betraying us.
Eric yelled like a dying pig as Ian stepped forward. Pushing off the desk, I extended my hand for Mel as she rose from the chair.
“This bullet is for you, Ian,” I told him as he eyed the gun and bullet. Eric’s bitching was all that could be heard as we waited.
“Five dead because of you. Take your own life,” I said as Mel and I walked to the elevators.
“If he doesn’t,” Mel added as we stepped into the waiting elevator, “the rest of you put the idiot out of his misery. That’s an order.”
She must have timed it perfectly because the doors closed right on cue.
“I like Eric,” I told her as we rode up to the main floor. My mother was throwing one of her many end-of-the-summer charity bullshits, and we all had to attend, of course.
“Next time he will hopefully keep his mouth shut.” She smirked, obviously enjoying shooting him way too much.
“Touché, but we can use this fuck up to lay the cover-up. For all anyone knows, one of the five really could have been Orlando. We can release a statement tomorrow,” I said stopping the elevator and pushing her against the wall. I wanted her. I needed her, and if I didn’t have her right then, I would have to wait hours.
“Calm the fuck down, Liam.” She glared at me. “Whenever you see blood you get excited.”
“Whenever I see you spill blood I get excited. There is a difference,” I said, correcting her as I leaned against her.
“We have an interview we’re late for,” she said, as I grabbed the back of her neck, allowing my hands to wander up and bury themselves in her hair.
“Then we can have a quickie,” I lied, nothing ever came quick for either of us, and she knew it.
She pushed me off her as she began brushing off her dress and released the elevator to get it to start moving again. “You’re quickly becoming a sex addict.”
“Only for you.” I winked, fixing my tie as the doors opened. And there waiting for us was my mother, tapping her pumps against the floor.
“You both are late. I have Time Magazine waiting to take a photo of the happy couple without the happy couple,” she said, her voice clipped.
“Evelyn, Time Magazine will wait for as long as we want them to wait seeing as they’re the only ones we’re talking to,” Mel replied.
I watched in amusement as they spoke with their eyes. However, it faded when my mother slapped me in the arm without warning.
“The elevator Liam, honestly?” She huffed at me, while I stared at her in confusion. Mel and my mother seemed to speak a language with their eyes that no one else seemed to understand.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with him, Evelyn.” Mel smirked, before winking back at me.
“Let’s fix your hair before the whole world knows about it.” She sighed, taking Mel from my side. I hated to say it, but it ticked me off. Over the last few days, Mel and I had spent most of our time together. Sometimes we talked, most of the time we fucked, and the rest of the time we just laid next to each other. It was like we were both allowing our bodies, minds, and souls to just get used to one another, and I loved every moment of it, which was why I hated when she was taken away from me.
“I know that look.” My father smirked, as he stepped next to me.
“What look?” I hissed, as I leaned against the wall waiting for my wife to come back. My wife. It made me smirk.
“That look.” The old fool grinned. “I know it, because it comes across my face from time to time. It’s lust, it’s desire, it’s hope and love all wrapped into one. It took you a little over a week. It only took me forty-eight hours.”
I hate him sometimes. “It’s too soon for love, father.”
He snorted. My father, Sedric Callahan, snorted. “If Shakespeare had said that the world would have never known Romeo and Juliet. Do you still hate her?”
“I never said that,” I interrupted quickly. “I’ve been waiting for someone like her for a long time and didn’t even know it. However, I can’t let her know that I . . . I can lust after her, I can be loyal, and I can care, but I can’t love her yet. She doesn’t get love. So I will wait for her to feel something.”
“And if she doesn’t?”
I straightened up off the wall once I saw them heading toward us. “I’ll still be right here.”
“Who are you and what have you done with my son?” His old eyes gleamed at me.
“Do not even start, Father.”
“What are you both whispering about?” My mother eyed us carefully when she finally reached us.
My father smirked, kissing her cheek. “World domination.” She rolled her eyes at him while Mel just raised an eyebrow at me.
“You had your chance and failed. Time to step aside and let the new blood step up,” my mother said. My father pretended to be hurt, before pulling her into his arms. That was what I wanted to do with Mel, but she would most likely shoot me for showing public displays of affection . . . or any type of display.
As if to prove my thoughts, Mel stared at them in confusion before meeting my gaze as if to tell me, your family is so odd.
“Don’t you have an interview, oh new king and queen?” my father asked us with a smirk. He had officially given up his title on the night of our wedding, and since then I . . . Mel and I ruled, and he was more relaxed, happy even. He had been waiting a long time to step down, and here I thought this whole time that he just didn’t want to give up his title, but he did. He just wanted to make sure he would never have to step back in again.
After offering my arm to Mel, we both headed toward the living room, and I laughed when I saw her working on relaxing her face.
“Shut up. God knows how long we will have to smile for these people,” Mel retorted as I stopped at the door.
“Just be like Evelyn.”
“Be like your mother? You’re a sick fuck, Liam Callahan.” She winked, making me want to both strangle and kiss her.
“Be unlike yourself,” I replied through my teeth, before opening the door.
When I did, she stepped forward. “We’re so sorry we are late. Tearing Liam away from his work can be difficult. He’s shy about these things,” she said kindly, as the crew smiled at her.
It never failed to amaze me how quickly she could switch on and off. She had the ability to disarm people so easily.
“Oh, don’t be, Mrs. Callahan. We are just so glad you could make time for us. I’m Jan, and this is my crew. We were just making sure the lighting and whatnot was okay.” The woman grinned, obviously already figuring out that she was getting the interview of a lifetime. Walking up beside my wife, I wrapped my arm around her waist.
“Do you need anything? I’m sure we could have someone come to help out,” I said softly overusing my Irish accent. She froze, staring into my eyes. Without fail it happened to every fucking woman I met except Mel. The one person I wished it did happen with.