Present
He’s late.
Finn has been coming to meet us at our warehouse for the last few weeks whenever we’ve needed to have meetings regarding business. It started off as some sort of show of good faith, then it just became a regular meeting place.
And not once has he ever been late.
I don’t have too long to ponder over it, though, because just as I’m thinking about it, the man himself strolls in the room to find me and Luca sitting on the couch waiting for him, a fire burning behind his eyes.
“Sorry I’m late,” he grunts. “Sloane was catching me up on what’s been going on.”
I nod silently, thankful she finally decided to tell her brother what’s been happening.
“You pissed we didn’t tell you?” Luca asks.
Finn seems to think the question over for a moment before shaking his head. “No. I know my sister and she’s stubborn as hell. You did the right thing, thank you.”
We both nod, and just like that, the topic is dropped.
We update Finn on what happened that night at the docks that resulted in me being shot.
Spoiler alert—being shot fucking sucks. Luckily, I was only shot in the shoulder and it didn’t do any permanent damage. It’s painful as hell and I don’t have my full range of motion back yet, but it’s getting there.
The first few days were a struggle. My family adamantly refused to let me work; Enzo and Robyn even going as far to come and stay at my place with me for the first two nights I was home, no matter how much I told them I would be fine.
I didn’t like sharing my space, but I knew they were trying to make up for the fact that the bullet was meant for Enzo, with Robyn thanking me profusely and my brother not letting me out of his sight for the first few hours, constantly telling me I was an idiot, to which I told him his wife and baby needed him more than anyone needed me.
He refused that, too, of course.
We tell Finn about what Izzy found regarding whoever hired the guys to deliver the notes to Sloane and attack us, and we decide that while Izzy will continue to attempt to trace the online payments, we’ll all keep diligent. Finn also tells us that he has guards on Sloane, which I’m fucking thankful for. I don’t know if she noticed anyone looking out for her these past few days, but I couldn’t just leave her to fend for herself.
We’ve had a deal in place with Finn for around six months now. We provide him with firearms and weapons at a discounted rate in exchange for him keeping an ear on the other organizations, to make sure they don’t get any stupid ideas about trying to go to war with us again. And if they do, we’ll have Finn and the rest of the Irish on our side.
Just as we’re closing the meeting, Finn gets to his feet and runs a hand through his hair, looking out of the window with a sigh before shooting me a pointed look.
“I’m going out of town tonight for a few days for business…” He trails off and me and Luca shoot each other a look, silently asking why the hell he’s telling us this.
“Did you know it’s supposed to storm tonight?” he asks, and with another look in my direction, he spins around and leaves the room, leaving me and Luca to stare at his retreating form.
“Did he really just start talking about the weather?” he asks in disbelief.
I don’t respond. I know exactly why Finn left on that parting note.
And I, too, feel disbelief. But not about him talking about the weather. What I can’t believe is that Finn O’Brien, head of the Irish Mob, basically just asked me to look out for his sister while he’s out of town.
I know me and Finn have always gotten along. And I know he’s thankful for what I’ve done for Sloane since she came back to the city. But that exchange was different, that was basically him giving me his blessing. Not that I needed it, but he’s basically just played matchmaker.
The fucking O’Brien twins continue to surprise me at every turn.
Finn was right about the storm. I watch through the windshield as rain pelts the glass and thunder crackles through the air.
I’m meant to be giving her space. I’m meant to be staying away from her. But how the hell can I leave her all alone when I know she hates this weather? When I know she’s at home alone and panicking?
I’m sure she’s probably gotten a hold on how she reacts to storms in the last ten years, but I can still hear the fear in her voice from the first time there was a storm when we were together.
She may be okay on her own, but I’m not taking that risk.
She can refuse to let me in, she can push me away, she can choose not to talk to me, but I’ll sit on the damn floor outside her apartment until the storm’s over if I have to.
I take one last look at the sky before climbing out of the car and running into her building. I’m soaking wet by the time I’m inside, but I couldn’t give two fucks. The light in the lobby flickers and I choose not to chance taking the elevator in these conditions. I’m not taking the risk of getting stuck in there and leaving Sloane alone for even longer.
I reach Sloane’s door and pound on it. “Sloane, it’s me,” I call out after a moment of silence.
“Are you crazy?” she bursts as she opens the door. “I’ve had someone breaking into my apartment and you think it’s a good idea to just start pounding on my door?”
Shit.
“Fuck. I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
She huffs, but opens the door further and motions for me to come in. She disappears down the hall and comes back with a towel. She throws it at me and I quickly catch it before using it to dry off as best as I can.
“What are you doing here?” she asks and bites her lip. I take a moment to take her in, noting her puffy eyes and rosy cheeks.
She’s been crying.
That’s not the only thing that has changed, though. There’s something different about her, something haunted.
That thought alone breaks my fucking heart.
“I’m here because of the storm,” I say and motion towards the window. “Wanted to make sure you were okay.”
A tear drips down her cheek at my admission and all I want to do is pull her into my arms and never let go.
“Are you okay?”
“You should have told me,” she whispers, and she must see the look of confusion on my face because she continues. “What did he threaten you with?”
Bile crawls up my throat at the thought of telling her what happened that night, how my actions ruined us forever. She’s right. I should have told her; we could have gone to my father and he would have helped us. I know that now, I just wish I knew it back then.
“He tied me to a chair and made me watch as he tortured and killed a girl who looked just like you. He told me that if I didn’t end things with you, then he’d do the same to you. I was fucking scared, Sloane. I didn’t know what else to do, so I broke us.”
A harsh sob leaves her as her legs give out and she collapses back onto the sofa. I crouch in front of her, careful not to touch her, but staying close enough to offer my support if she needs it.
“Was it really a lie?” she asks between sobs.
I love you, Sloane. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You’re my everything, so much so that my world begins and fucking ends with you. I love you, so fucking much.
“No,” I choke out. “Every word was the truth and I’m so fucking sorry I made you think differently.”
Her body trembles so much I think she might actually end up falling from the sofa to the floor, so I sit myself next to her and pull her into my lap before wrapping my arms around her. Sloane buries her head in my chest as I tighten my arms around her.
“Is this okay?” I whisper against her hair, and she gives me the slightest nod between sobs.
I wish there was a way I could take her pain away. I wish there was some way of rewriting the past. That’s the thing, though. There’s no way for me to change a thing. There is no way to erase the lies that were once told. The only thing I can do is hold on tight and hope like hell that Sloane will give me another chance to show her just how much she means to me.
“How did you know?” I murmur as her cries quieten down.
“Finn,” she whispers, and I tense beneath her. How the hell did Finn know? Was he there and I just hadn’t seen him?
“He wasn’t there,” she says, as though she can read my mind. “My father must have seen how upset I was once I got home from your place, and he bragged to my brother about how he was responsible for it. He never told him what he did to make you break up with me, but Finn was still worried about my safety, so he persuaded our dad to send me to live with our aunt.”
“So when did you leave?” I ask. That was the worst part about it all. I never saw her again after that night. It was as though she just vanished, and it wasn’t as though I could just go ahead and ask anyone.
“The next day. I had no reason to stay here other than Finn, and he was getting more and more involved with the business at my father’s demand. So he begged me to just leave without putting up a fight, so that he knew I was okay.”
I nod along as she speaks. I always knew Finn loved his sister something fierce, but to send his twin sister away just so she could be safe, even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to see her regularly for years, has a new level of respect forming for him.
“It really wasn’t a lie?” she asks.
I shake my head slowly. “No, Sloane. They were the truest words I’ve ever spoken,” I say softly and she whimpers in response, her fingers digging into the fabric of my shirt as she clings to me.
Suddenly, she tenses, like a switch has been flipped. She shifts backwards so she’s no longer sitting on my lap and scoots herself until she’s sitting in the corner of the couch while still facing me.
“Nothing changes between us.” Her voice is cold, but there’s a tremor that she can’t hide, as though she’s trying her hardest to stay strong even though the words she spoke hurt.
“Why, baby? I just want a chance to prove to you how good we could be together again.”
“I know, Marco. I believe you,” she says softly. “But it’s not you that’s the problem, it’s me.”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m not good enough for you. Things happened after I left and it’s not something you could ever forgive me for. I wouldn’t blame you for that, Marco.”
What the hell could she have done that I’d never be able to forgive her for? She could cut off one of my limbs and I’d probably politely thank her.
“It doesn’t matter. Whatever happened or whatever you did, it doesn’t matter. It’s okay, Sloane.”
She shoots to her feet, her eyes spitting fire at me as she paces in front of the sofa.
“No!” she snaps. “It’s not fucking okay, Marco. It will never be okay. You think you were the one who broke me?” she asks, letting out a maniacal laugh that could rival Enzo for unhinged.
“You may have been the one who blew my world apart, Marco. But you were not the one who broke me.”
She finally stops pacing, turning to look at me as I stare up at her. There’s something in the way she’s saying the words, like she’s trying to avoid admitting the truth while also trying to be honest.
“If I didn’t break you, then who did?”
Panic flashes across her face before she can mask it, followed by a look of gut-wrenching sadness.
“Our baby,” she whispers.
