I fold my arms, staring at the people who have been declaring my whole life that I healed their hearts when they couldn’t conceive after James. My birth parents had died in a fire, and with no other relatives, Rian and Amelia Quinlan took me in as a foster child and then adopted me. They’ve always treated James and me as equals, so I’m surprised to be shipped off to the first bidder who comes along with a good offer.
To my father’s half-brother, who he’s never spoken to before in his life, no less.
“Now, Darcy,” my mum begins with kind eyes but a strong voice. “We’ve given you every opportunity to find a husband since…you know.”
I don’t want a husband. Considering the poor lot of the men around here, I’m better off on my own. They won’t buy that excuse, though.
“What about my job?” I sit with my legs crossed, challenging everyone.
“Job, job, job.” Sadie sings from the couch. Thankfully, at four-years old, she has no idea what we’re discussing.
“You can be a nurse in New York,” Mum informs me like I don’t know that. “I hear they have them there.”
“You think a mafia boss will let me work?”
“Shh!” Dad hisses. “They don’t use the word mafia there.”
“I think they do,” James, who’s a struggling busker, adds. “Just not to the authorities.”
My uncle Ewan’s message was very clear to my father. He wants to present me as a bride to his boss, Kieran O’Rourke. His sister, Norah, was Kieran’s fiancée, but she passed away seven years ago. It was a love-match I was told. Which means he’ll probably never love someone else.
That isn’t the life I want. “No.” I shake my head.
My parents stare at each other, worry slashed across their mouths. “Hear Ewan out,” Dad stresses. “Take the trip. Meet the buck.”
I try looking Kieran up quickly on my cell but can’t find any pictures. None of Ewan either. All I got out of Mum and Dad about him is that he’s thirty-eight, owns a very successful investigation firm, and he’s not married.
“What about…” My words trail off.
My parents look at each other, and my mum just blushes. Dad shakes his head, staring at the ceiling. They can’t be serious about sending me away.
When the doorbell rings, it’s a loud gong, and panic rises in their faces. Stepping back, I mutter, “Who might that be?”
“I’ll get it!” Sadie runs for the door.
Dad slides a phone into his back pocket. “Just hear him out.”
“He’s here. Now?Today?” I realize I never asked when this would happen. My heart pounds as all of this gets real very fast.
Perhaps they were afraid I’d take off. They’re right to worry because I’m currently contemplating which window to jump out.
The bell Mum keeps above the door chimes, and seconds later, a man a few hairs above six-feet tall steps into our living room. The energy around me changes, and I feel dizzy. A jolt to my soul makes me take a step back.
It’s…Him. The man from Carney’s five years ago. I’d recognize those wide shoulders and that swagger anywhere. He looks exactly the same with that golden hair, round, blue eyes, and the long nose I can still feel pressed between my legs as he licked me to madness.
Those full lips I remember enter the room before he does. This man, the man who took my virginity five years ago,is my uncle!
Thank the good Lord we’re not blood relatives. We’ve not sinned in that terrible way.
I stare, open-mouthed, heart racing, palms sweaty. He stares back, blinking, looking confused. He wears a stylish jacket and carries a leather duffle in one hand.
In his other hand, leading him into the living room, is Sadie. My daughter.
Hisdaughter…
CHAPTER FOUR
Ewan - Ten Minutes Earlier