3. Kieran

3

KIERAN

I 've been restless all afternoon. Paisley is a brat. I swear the little demon gets off on driving me to drink. I wonder if she stays awake at night just thinking of new ways to irritate me.

At least she ate some of the snacks. She also didn't give me shit about leaving them for her, which in my opinion, is a win. I felt slightly stalkerish, sneaking over to Bash's house at four this morning to put the bag on her car. And why I didn't just take them out to her when she was leaving for work to hand them to her in person, I have no idea. I was awake. I was also standing in front of my home office window, watching her. She needs a damn keeper. Someone to look after her, make sure she eats and drinks water and wears fucking pants instead of those short skirts that show off way too much for my liking. If she were mine, I'd keep her hidden under as many clothes as possible. Otherwise, I'd spend a lot of time breaking the necks of all the men who turn to stare at her. Fucking perverted assholes. Yeah. She needs a keeper. A Daddy. And thank fuck, it won't be me.

Unable to concentrate on my work, I slam my laptop closed and storm out of my house for some fresh air. It works almost immediately as I'm greeted with the smell of newly cut grass. There's just something soothing about it. It only takes a couple of minutes before I get to Chloe's front door and knock. I need a distraction, and my sister will be perfect for that.

"Kieran!" She leaps into my arms and hangs from me like a baby monkey.

A lump forms in my throat as I pull her against me and hug her tightly. She's the only blood-related family I have left. Maybe it's because I'm getting older, but it makes me sad as hell that I missed so much time with her because of her asshole father. I plan to make up for all the time missed, though.

"Hey, baby sis. Are you busy?"

Chloe beams at me after finally letting me go. "Never too busy for you. I was just going over some of the blush samples the lab sent over."

She waves me into the house, and I follow her through the foyer and down a hall that leads to the private office that Bash, Cali, and Scarlet designed for her. The walls are painted a soft yellow—Chloe's favorite color—with shadow boxes hung throughout the room holding uniquely designed makeup palettes.

The gold-framed chairs with furry pouf seats positioned in front of her desk look uncomfortable as hell. I'm pretty sure they're more for aesthetic purposes than comfort. I'm also not sure if they'll hold my weight.

When I turn to look at my sister, she's smirking, just waiting to see if I'll take a chance on one of them.

She starts giggling. "Sit. You'll be fine."

I glance down at the chair again and sigh. I guess I'm sitting. As I lower myself, I half expect it to crumble, but it's surprisingly sturdy and comfortable. I'll never admit it, though.

"What are you doing here? Daddy is out with Declan and Killian."

"I know. I came to see you."

She has papers, palettes, tubes, andbrushes spread over her desk. Chloe has loved makeup all her life, so making her own line of cosmetics, is a dream come true for her. Add in the fact that she's doing it along with her besties, and she's in total girl heaven.

"Am I in trouble?" she asks warily.

Tilting my head, I raise an eyebrow. "Did you do something that you should be in trouble for?"

Her eyes go round, and her hair swishes as she shakes her head. "Nope. Definitely not. You just don't usually stop by unless you have a reason, and since Bash isn't here, I figured…" She plasters on a wide smile. "Well, anyway. What's up?"

A chuckle rumbles up from my chest because my sister definitely did something naughty. She's with Bash, though. I'll let him deal with her.

"Nothing. I just needed to get out of the house. Gonna head over to Declan's, but decided to stop here first. How's the makeup line coming along?"

Chloe's face lights up, and she practically bounces in her chair. "So good. We've all been designing the eyeshadow palettes together. Scarlet is working on the blush and setting powders, Cali's doing the foundation and concealers, Paisley is doing the lipsticks and eyeliners, and I'm doing the mascara and eyebrow formulas. Then, we come together and test everything and make changes as a team. It's been so great. Cali and Scarlet have welcomed me right into the family. Paisley, too. I'm really happy, Kieran."

If I could melt into a pile of goo, I'd be in a puddle on the floor right now. Seeing Chloe so happy, so content, and thriving after everything she went through with her asshole father is all I need to feel complete. I love being around Cali and Scarlet, but having my sister here is the cherry on top. And I couldn't imagine her with a better man than my best friend.

A small twinge makes my chest ache, and I pull an antacid from the inside pocket of my jacket. I've been having a lot of heartburn lately. Not sure what's up with that. I've always been healthy as a horse.

"How's it going having Paisley live here?" Fuck. Why did I ask that? It's none of my business how it's going. I have better things to worry about than that little demon.

Chloe's lips curl up, and it feels like I'm staring at the Cheshire Cat. "I think the better question is, how's it going for you having Paisley living so close?" she asks.

That twinge sparks again, and my shoulders tense. Maybe I need to go to the doctor for a physical.

"It's fine. She hates me and tries to irritate me on purpose. It's not like she's the first brat I've ever been around. You have met Cali, right?"

She brings her hand up to her mouth to quiet her giggle. "And you don't do anything to irritate her on purpose?"

I shrug and cross my fingers over my chest. "If she would obey instructions once in a while, maybe she wouldn't find me so irritating."

"You're impossible sometimes, you know?"

"I know. But you still love me, and that's all that matters."

Her eyes sparkle, and she comes around her desk to wrap her arms around my neck. Even though I'm sitting in this God-awful chair and she's standing, we're close in height.

"I will always love you, Kieran. No matter how grumpy, bossy, stubborn, and difficult you can be. You're the best brother in the world, and I'll shank anyone who says otherwise."

Snapping back, I furrow my brows and study my sister. "Shank? What exactly do you know about shanking someone, and should I be concerned?"

She bursts out giggling and lifts her shoulder. "I learned it from Paisley. But it's true. If someone tries to say you're not the best brother, I'll totally shank them. Right in the eye."

Cupping my sister's chin, I pin her with a stern stare. "So fierce. But let's leave the violence for more serious things, okay?"

"Okay," she whines. "If you say so. But it could really be therapeutic, I think."

Shaking my head, I fight a smile. Jesus, my sister is cute. Getting this time with her means the world to me. "Where did you say Paisley works again?"

Chloe smirks and arches an eyebrow as she crosses her arms over her chest, trying her best to look tough. "Why do you want to know?"

I rise from the hideous chair to my full height, and she takes a nervous step back. When I cross my arms over my chest and mimic the expression she's giving me, she lets out a deep breath and drops her hands.

"It's not fair when you use your height and scowly face to get what you want. It should be a rule between us that you're not allowed to do that."

I tap my chin and pretend to think about it for about two seconds before I shake my head. "Nah. This works for me. Now, answer the question."

"Why do you want to know? Are you going to get her fired?"

This time, it's me who drops my hands and stares at my sister in disbelief. "I may be an asshole, Chloe, but I wouldn't do anything to make your best friend lose her job. Now, the guy she said was an asshole, probably. Not her, though. She might irritate me, but she's part of this family now, whether I like it or not. I'd protect her like I'd protect any of you girls."

Chloe stares up at me, her mouth hanging open slightly. "You like her."

The muscles from my neck to the tips of my shoulders tense. "As a friend of my sister. Sure. I guess."

She scoffs and shakes her head. "No. You like like her. Like you want to fuck her."

"Chloe!" I snap. "Jesus Christ. I do not, and don't talk like that. She's just my sister's annoying friend, okay?"

My tone does nothing to sway her. Nope. Her grin just gets wider, and it's irritating the hell out of me. Why did I come over here again? Oh, right.

"Tell me who she works for. Please?"

Her face falls, and all her humor disappears. I knew the please would work. It always does with her. She knows if I use it, I'm serious.

"She works for a financial firm. I can't remember the name, though. Brun Financial or something with a B, maybe? Why do you want to know so bad?"

I press a kiss to the top of my sister's head and turn to leave. "The less you know, the better. I love you, and if I haven't told you lately, I'm proud as fuck of you. Be good."

" H ow is it that with all our resources, this fucker is still in the wind?" I demand as I look around the room.

We have a full house tonight at Declan's. Aside from the top six Irish leaders, we have the boss and underboss of both the Italian and Russian mob, as well as four of our friends who work in the shadows doing vigilante shit when needed. Then, we have a couple of guys who work for an elite team of men who do special forces-type shit that is way beyond any kind of skill the rest of us have.

Cage, our main contact from the Elite team, taps on the table, his expression calm and maybe even slightly bored. "Because he knows the second he comes out of hiding, he's a dead man, so I'm guessing he'll be living under a rock for a while."

"Shitty guns are still being sold, though, so he still has some guys out there working for him. If we can't find him, we start with the ones we can find. The low-level assholes," Declan says.

I crack my neck, trying to loosen the tension that never seems to go away. "I want Smoke found. I want him alive so he can look me in the eye while I drain the life from his body."

Bash glares at me. "If anyone is going to kill him, it's going to be me. She's my wife."

"And she's my sister," I argue.

Grady rolls his eyes. "You two can fight over who gets to kill Smoke later. First, we need to find him and get these guns off the fucking streets before our buyers start to think they're coming from us and give us problems over them."

He has a point. We're known for supplying some of the best weapons in the underground market, and if our customers start to question our quality and integrity, it could cause major problems for all the syndicates running operations in the US.

We spend the next while coming up with a plan. Cage and his team will continue looking for Smoke, while we'll keep up our efforts to weed out all the bad guns and drugs and get information from anyone who's willing to sing. We're also going to keep our eyes and ears out for any more trafficking of women and children. The fact that it happened the first time is unacceptable.

When everyone starts to disperse, I nod at Cage. He tips his chin and follows me out to the wide hallway, where we have a bit more privacy.

The muscles in my neck are tight, and I already know I'm going to regret this. "I need a favor."

Cage smirks and leans his back against the wall as he crosses his arms over his chest. "Favors come with a price, Kieran. You know that."

Irritation prickles down my spine. I swear to God, if this asshole weren't so fucking dangerous, I'd hate him. He's so damn cocky. He has good reason to be, but still. It grates on my nerves.

"I need trackers on Paisley," I reply, deciding to ignore his comment.

"She yours?" he asks.

Pinching my eyebrows, I glare at him. "No. She's not mine, but she's part of this family. She's my sister's best friend."

Clucking his tongue, his eyes glimmer. "If she's not yours, it's not really right to track her, is it? Would she appreciate that? From the text messages she's exchanged with Chloe, it seems she hates your guts."

This time it's pure fucking rage that courses through me. "What the fuck are you doing reading her messages? Have you been seeing her?" I demand louder than I intended.

A couple of men passing by glance at us, probably trying to decide if they need to help me out since they're Irish and Cage is not.

Cage doesn't appear the least bit threatened as he lifts his chin to the men. "For a woman who isn't yours, you're a bit possessive over her, huh, mate ? I don't blame you. She's cute as fuck."

Not caring about the consequences, I react and throw my fist into his jaw. Blood immediately trickles from Cage's mouth, but he doesn't flinch. Nope. The psychopath fucking smiles, his teeth red.

Bash, Killian, Grady, and a few other guys rush out of the room, ready to act on whatever's happening.

"What the fuck?" Grady snaps, staring at Cage, who smirks and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.

"All's good. Just helping Kieran realize he has feelings for Paisley," Cage replies steadily.

I scowl at him, ready to hit him again. "You're a fucking asshole. I don't have feelings for her."

Bash laughs while Killian and Grady exchange amused expressions.

Cage reaches out and pats my shoulder. "Her car, phone, and shoes are fitted with trackers already. I knew you'd be asking at some point. I'll send you the information to access them."

Then he walks past me toward the foyer like nothing happened while my closest friends smirk at me knowingly.

I turn on my heel, ignoring them completely, and stomp down to Declan's wine cellar, where I grab a bottle of white wine. Then, I raid Cali's candy drawer in the kitchen before I leave and head to my sister's house.

Fuck those assholes. I don't have feelings for Paisley.