AIDEEN

Bronagh covered Nico’s mouth with her own, and kissed him long and hard. It caused me to clear my throat and say, “I’m happy for you both, but get a fuckin’ room.”

They separated and laughed, but before Nico set Bronagh down on the ground, he gave her arse a squeeze and glanced over his shoulder.

“Are you coming in or what?”

I cringed when Damien walked into the room and leaned against the doorframe.

He ignored Nico, lifted his hand and gestured with his finger for Bronagh to come to him. Bronagh practically floated over to him.

“Congrats, sis,” Damien murmured before wrapping her up in his arms, hugging her body to his.

Bronagh hugged him back and laughed when he gave her behind a squeeze purely for Nico’s benefit.

“I swear to God,” Nico mumbled to himself.

Ala

Damien remained by the doorway and followed her movements with his eyes. He looked over his shoulder when my apartment door opened. He nodded his head in a ‘what’s up’ gesture and moved aside to let the visitor into the sitting room.

When I saw my brother Gavin, I mentally snorted.

Everyone had a damn key to my place.

“What’s the story?” Gavin asked the room, gri

Ala

“Please don’t do or say somethin’ that will have everyone sendin’ me back to anger management.”

Gavin laughed and held up his hands. “I’m not openin’ me mouth.”

Bronagh looked to me and gri

“It’s what I do.”

She snorted and sat down on the sofa next to Nico and Ala

Gavin came over to me and sat on the arm of the chair I was sitting on. He leaned down and kissed my head in greeting. I moved closer to him and leaned against his chest.

I was meaning to ask the little shite if he had backed off from Brandon’s circle, but I remembered that Keela assured me her uncle was weeding Gavin out without him knowing it. He respected my decision that I wanted what was best for my brother, and that his gang was not it.

“Damien,” Nico sighed. “Why’re you standing over there?”

Damien shrugged, still staring at Ala

Nico glanced to Ala

Ala

He did, but wasn’t pleased to do so.

“Hi Ala

She refused to look at him as she grumbled, “I wish we were social media accounts. Preferably Twitter.”

Damien furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “Uh, why?”

“So I could un-follow you in real life and have zero interaction with you. I want it so you would never be able to think or freely speak of last night’s... events.”

“You could still do that,” Damien gri

I snorted, but looked away when Ala

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

Gavin draped his arm over my shoulder. “I’m enjoying it,” he murmured. “She was so quiet in school, I wouldn’t believe what she did if you hadn’t shown me that video.”

Damien snapped his neck in our direction.

“Aideen!” he bellowed.

Fuck.

“They made me delete it... besides, it not like it was zoomed in on their bits.”

Gavin snorted. “Still a quality video without seein’ them... I didn’t know you could twerk, Ala

She couldn’t, he was slagging her.

Nico lowly chuckled, but looked away when Damien pi

“I wish the ground would open up and swallow me whole.” Ala

“What’s the first?” Gavin asked.

I elbowed him, and he grabbed at the point of pain on his body and hissed at me through clenched teeth.

“Arsehole!”

I gri

Ala

He blinked. “Because I want to be your friend, Ala

“Little late for that, don’t you think?”

Damien was silent. “Look, I’m very sorry for what I did—”

“Stop, Damien,” Ala

Damien closed his mouth and gave a firm nod.

Things got awkward then.

“I’m goin’ to go home and die in the peace of me own apartment,” Ala

“I’ll drive you home,” Kane’s voice suddenly stated.

We all looked at the doorway and saw Kane standing behind Damien, fully dressed. He winked at me in greeting, earning a smile from me.

Ala

I saluted her. “Aye, boss.”

She lightly smiled at me before she hugged Gavin and pinched his arm, which had him hissing and calling her an arsehole like he did me. She gri

“Thanks for helpin’ me last night,” she muttered to Damien then walked out of the apartment. Kane grabbed his car keys and jogged out after her.

Damien slumped down onto the sofa after the door to the apartment clicked shut. “She hates me.”

I got up and moved over to the sofa, and sat next to him.

“She doesn’t hate you, Dame... she’s still hurt, and just confused. This is hard for her too. You’ve been gone for so long.”

He was silent then and I looked at Bronagh and Nico who were frowning at him. I caught Nico’s attention and jerked my head giving him the signal to leave with Bronagh. He nodded once then made up an excuse that had him and Bronagh saying their goodbyes and exiting my apartment.

I looked at Damien.

“Talk to me.”

He was silent for so long that I thought he wasn’t going to open up, but he shocked me when he started speaking.

“I left for her.”

I blinked at the sudden admission and Gavin stood up when Damien spoke.

“I’ll go make tea while you both talk,” he said and left the room, closing the door behind him.

I looked back to Damien and said, “Explain that.”

He didn’t look at me as he said, “I’m sure you’ve heard what a prick I used to be to girls when I was a kid?”

I wasn’t going to lie so I nodded my head.

“I behaved the way I did because it was the only co

I listened as Damien spoke, my throat sealed with emotion. I hurt badly for him. I cried my eyes out when Kane went into detail a few months ago about the things Damien went through.

“I wanted to go back to New York to make peace with her, and in my own way, I did.”

“Did you find her?” I whispered.

He nodded. “She was buried in a grave marked for Trent, Marco Miles’ nephew. I had the headstone removed and replaced with the correct information. I... I had an angel poem put on it, too, for our baby. I don’t know if a heartbeat even developed when Nala was killed, but it was a baby that was part of me. It was mine, you know?”