The Real Deal: A Dublin Nights Novel Read online

  Her mouth rounded at my bullshit. “What government?”

  “Also classified.” Maybe I was better at spinning this new me than I thought because she appeared to be buying it.

  She studied me for a few more seconds. “I guess the club will be in good hands then. And since you’re paying in cash, it’s a deal.” She extended a hand, but I motioned toward Alessia. It was her club. She should shake on it.

  “Wow. I, um.” Alessia rose from the table when Lydia stepped away to take a call. “I messed up on your identity, didn’t I?” She moved to the railing, which overlooked the dancers below.

  I strode up next to her. “It’s fine.”

  “Why didn’t you say anything before?”

  “You were excited about us working together, and I didn’t want to—”

  “Disappoint me?” She faced me and reached for my forearm, but I didn’t move. “For the record, you could never disappoint me.”

  She really had no idea how wrong she was—I was disappointing her every second of the day, she just didn’t know it.

  I was still in The League even though I’d promised her I left my old life behind when we started working together.

  I focused back on the crowd below, my gaze falling upon a group at the bar. More specifically, one woman.

  I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Long dark hair. A gorgeous body. And when she turned to talk to someone, it was then that I saw all of her. And she had the face of an angel.

  “Sorry for slipping away like that,” Lydia said upon return.

  “You know who that is?” I pointed to the angel at the bar who was now laughing at something the guy to her left was saying, and for some inexplicable reason, I wanted it to be me standing next to her, making her laugh.

  Maybe there’d be benefits to owning this club after all.

  “Ah. The McGregors. Holly’s having her twenty-first birthday party, and she’s the reason why we have one of the hottest DJs in Europe spinning tonight.”

  That was a shot to the balls. Twenty-one was too young for me. Twenty-one was my sister’s age, so . . .

  Alessia followed my focus to Holly. “Are the McGregors important people or something?”

  “Their family business provides a lot of jobs here,” Lydia explained. “They’re also billionaires, so there’s that.”

  I flipped through The League members in my head, trying to remember if the McGregors were on it, but I didn’t think so. There wasn’t even a League leader in Dublin.

  “I know a Cole McGregor. I’m sure he’s not related to them, though. He lives in Manhattan.” Something in her tone . . . she was sad, wasn’t she?

  “Oh, that’s their cousin. He’s probably down there with them. They always celebrate together.” The way her lips twitched into a smile and her eyes seemed to gleam with pride, had me assuming the McGregors were most likely not of the arsehole-variety, which was surprising for a bunch of rich kids. “How do you know Cole?”

  A connection to her past life. Great.

  Alessia stole a glimpse at me out of the corner of her eye, then moved back and out of the line of sight of the people down below.

  The last thing we needed was for this Cole guy to recognize her.

  “Should I give you two a minute?” Lydia was more perceptive than I’d given her credit for.

  “Yes, please.” I watched her retreat before returning my focus to the McGregors. Well, to the woman I wished I could take to bed tonight.

  When Holly’s gaze lifted, as if she could feel my eyes on her, I stepped back next to Alessia and into the dark where I belonged.

  “That guy gonna be a problem?”

  I also wanted to know whether or not they’d dated and if I needed to break his legs, but I kept those thoughts to myself.

  “We lived in the same building in New York.” Her lips drew into a tight line.

  “That all?”

  Silence stretched, and it had me worried.

  This brother thing was still new to me, and I wasn’t sure how long it’d take to get used to.

  “A close friend as well. He watched out for me. Helped me when my mom died.” Her words were drowning in regret, filling the space between us.

  Was her sadness due to the loss of her mother, or the life and friends I’d forced her to leave behind?

  She blinked a few times and waved a hand between us. “Come on, let’s finish with Lydia. I still have that other surprise.” She grabbed hold of my arm, and I’d opted to let the topic of Cole and her past go.

  We wrapped up the deal in Lydia’s office, which would soon become Alessia’s, then we left for part two of the night—whatever she had planned.

  Ten minutes later, the limo parked outside of a French restaurant, and Alessia turned in the backseat to face me.

  “What’s special about this place?” I glanced at the sign above the door. Les Fleurs.

  “I’ve asked a lot of you,” she said in a soft voice. “But one of the reasons I wanted to get the club in Dublin, the hotel here, and now this place, is because I wanted you to feel like you’re home again. This is where you’re from, and I want to get to know the you before . . .”

  I gripped the bridge of my nose and inhaled at the comment I knew was coming.

  “The you before you became one of them.”

  She didn’t know anything about The League of Brothers, including their name. I’d been intentionally vague. No reason to go into detail about my job as a fixer and the things I’d done.

  “Dublin was your mom’s home, but you said she also loved Paris, which was why you moved there as a kid,” she began when I didn’t speak. “She took you every Sunday to get croissants, and I thought it’d be nice if you owned a French restaurant here sort of as—”

  “Alessia.” My chest tightened. I didn’t know how to handle emotions like these. I’d shut off the ability to feel the day Ma died. And I’d needed to become even harder, colder, as a fixer for The League.

  Part of me wondered if my heart would still work if I attempted to flip on the emotion switch again. Did I have it in me to love? To feel?

  I also didn’t know why I’d told her so much about my ma. I guess when she’d been walking down memory lane with stories of her mother before she’d passed away in a car accident, I’d felt some need to defend what happened with my mother. To let her know Ma wasn’t just a junkie.

  “We’re going to get through this. Together. We have each other now,” she said, tears in her eyes.

  “I know.” I kissed the top of her forehead and forced a smile to my face, even if something in my gut told me that no, we’d be far from okay.

  Chapter Five

  Present Day

  Holly

  “Today’s been amazing. Thank you.” Harrison’s lips parted into a devastating smile as we sat across from one another at dinner.

  We’d hit up so many places, including Guinness Storehouse, The Church Bar, Dublin Castle, and Trinity.

  “You came at a great time when there aren’t so many tourists here.”

  “Are we that bad?” He smiled.

  “Nah, we love you Americans.” I squinted. “For the most part.”

  He eyed the half-eaten bowl of traditional Irish stew. “And since we tried a drink at every place we visited, I don’t have much room for food.” He lifted his glass to mine.

  “Enough room for more beer, though?”

  “Always.” He winked.

  “Sláinte.” We clinked our glasses together.

  “This pint of Gat is pretty damn good.” His eyes thinned, probably noting the amused look on my face as he tried to sound like a local. “Did I say that right?”

  “You’re bang on.” I returned the glass to the table. “You could also order the black stuff and your server would know to bring you a Guinness.”

  He let go of his drink and reached across the table and placed his hand over mine. “Thank you for today.”

  I welcomed the warmth of his touch. The slightly fuzzy fe
eling coursing through my body right now wasn’t from the beer or the Jameson whiskey we’d had earlier. I was pretty sure I was finally relaxed. It’d been awhile since I’d felt at ease, too.

  After walking around the city and seeing Dublin through Harrison’s eyes, it’d also reminded me how much I truly loved my home.

  The city had a certain kind of energy I always missed when I traveled. And yeah, maybe it rained a lot here—but bright side? Ireland was pretty damn lush and green because of it.

  We’d started our day early, and part of that had to do with my guilt about how I’d ended last night. After Sebastian walked me back to the party, I hadn’t been in the mood to dance or do much socializing with anyone, and since Harrison had come to Dublin early to spend time with me, I’d wanted to make it up to him this weekend.

  “What was your favorite part about today?”

  “Easy.” His smile reached his eyes. “Spending it with you.”

  I sucked in a deep breath, the lingering smell of ciggies buried into the ancient wallpaper at my side stale and bitter.

  I’d have to exhale at some point.

  But damn if I’d know what to say once I could breathe again.

  I’d never be able to fall for him, even if I wanted to. It was nice to push inappropriate thoughts of Sebastian out of my head for a day and be present with someone who wasn’t so dark on the inside, but I didn’t want to mislead Harrison either.

  “What else should I know about the city?” His lips were still pulled into a smile. “Or is there anything I should or shouldn’t say while I’m here?”

  “Well, don’t ever ask a Dubliner to say, ‘top o’ the mornin’ to ya’—we really don’t say that here. And never get into a conversation with a taxi driver unless you enjoy losing an argument. They’re debate experts, and believe me, they’ll win.” I tapped at my lip. “We use the word feck or fuck liberally, and which one can depend on our mood. Same with shit and shite. Ass and arse.”

  “I noticed that, and I gotta admit, hearing you say those words . . .” He cleared his throat, and a touch of red moved up the column of his neck.

  I quickly sputtered a few other words we used as well as their meanings, then asked, “You need a pen to take notes?”

  He tapped at his temple. “All here.”

  “There might be an exam later,” I teased.

  “Anything else?” His eyes traveled to my mouth for a quick second.

  “Yeah,” I said, trying to save myself from the continued rise of color I could feel crossing my face, “you’ve probably heard someone say by now craic. Sounds like the word crack in America.”

  “And that means fun, right?”

  “Right, but if you use it, you’ll probably still come across as a tourist.”

  “Got it.” He checked the time on his watch. “We should probably get you home to change for part two of the evening.”

  I had no idea where he was taking me tonight, but he’d said he owed me the surprise this time since I’d spent the day as his tour guide.

  “You sure you’re up for spending the night with me?”

  And now my cheeks were on fire.

  Bloody hell.

  * * *

  “Honestly, I couldn’t think of anything that someone like you hasn’t done before.” Harrison’s arm was looped with mine as we started across the Ha’penny Bridge over River Liffey. The lights from the nearby buildings blinked on the river, different colors popping. “Hope you enjoyed tonight.”

  “You kidding? A helicopter ride over my city? It was amazing. It’s been a few years since I’ve been in one, and I rather enjoyed your company.”

  He stopped midway on the bridge and moved to the white railing overlooking the water. My brother had planned to propose to Anna here, but he ended up being spontaneous instead. This bridge was a staple on postcards tourists sent home to loved ones. For me, it’d always be the place where I’d come to try and clear my head. And I’d been doing a lot of that lately.

  Of course, I might rethink walking alone at night after what happened in the park.

  “Let me guess, your family owns a chopper?”

  I nodded. “My brother Adam learned to fly.”

  “That guy sounds like a man of many talents.”

  “Something tells me you’re similar.”

  Harrison took a step closer, gently placed his hand on my bicep, and skated his fingers along my coat up to my head. He moved in and threaded his fingers through my hair, which fell in soft waves over my shoulders.

  He wanted to kiss me, didn’t he?

  “I’ve had an incredible time.” His hand remained at the back of my head, fingers still caressing my hair, and I didn’t know what to do or say. “I’m glad I came early.”

  “I’m honored to be the one to show you the city, and I, um, look forward to us working together. If you’re still thinking of partnering with McGregor Enterprises, that is.”

  My talk of work had him lowering his hand back to his side.

  Was it a cold slap of reality?

  “About that.”

  His two words struck a nerve. Nothing ever good followed about that.

  He scratched at his trimmed beard. “I do have some concerns about one of your board members.”

  “Oh.” The word was more like a drawn-out breath. I knew what was coming. How could I not?

  “I was hoping you’d come with me tonight to talk with Renaud.”

  Sebastian I-Hate-Him Renaud. Of course.

  “I really do want to work with you and your family, Holly, but—”

  “You don’t trust him,” I interrupted, my shoulders sagging.

  Sebastian was going to ruin everything.

  He’d already ruined me for every other man, and he’d never even kissed me.

  But this impacted our company. First, the land deal in Limerick. And now the movie with Reed Productions.

  Sebastian’s mere presence at McGregor would be enough to destroy us. He wouldn’t need to even lift a finger.

  “Renaud’s expecting us at his club tonight. He’s agreed to answer a few of my questions.”

  This was a shock. Sebastian open up?

  “Why didn’t you mention him to me before?” A touch of distrust painted a fine line through his tone, and I regretted hearing it, even if I deserved it.

  “He’s our newest board member, and I’m still trying to wrap my head around his intentions,” I admitted. “I’m sorry I didn’t bring him up to you whenever we’ve talked. I don’t even know much about him.” Aside from rumors. Apart from the fact I wanted his body pressed to mine and his tongue in my mouth.

  I reached for Harrison’s arm this time, resting a palm on the material of his overcoat. His eyes tracked the movement of my hand and remained there for what felt like forever before he looked back at me.

  “You must already know what our family has been through this year, not just with Anna’s abduction.”

  We’d been questioned for the murder of Donovan Hannigan.

  Da had a heart attack.

  During Anna’s abduction, Da had been arrested (and cleared) for the murder of the businessman who’d been blackmailing Da to try and force the sale of our media division.

  I discovered my parents had separated and lied to us about it.

  Da resigned as CEO and chairman of the board, and Adam had stepped back as well.

  The media had pushed and poked. They’d done damage. Drew blood.

  This year had been a whirlwind. But at least my brother finally got his happily ever after. He deserved it.

  “Sebastian, well, he seized the chance to buy our stock when investors began dumping it because of all the bad luck we’d had,” I explained, “and he somehow got himself onto the board. But—”

  “I’m the last person you have to worry about in regard to the media’s spin on the truth. I’m used to ignoring them given my profession.” A small smile met his lips. “And I wouldn’t have asked for your help on this movie if I didn’t t
hink we could make this work.”

  “But?”

  “But, I didn’t do a thorough check of your board members until this past week when I’d made the decision to come meet with you.”

  “Oh.” My hand plummeted to my side.

  “I just want to clear a few things up.” He brushed the pad of his thumb over my cheek. “I need to have a better understanding of Renaud’s intentions before we move forward.”

  “Understandable.” It took all my strength to allow that word to slip from my lips, though.

  He motioned for us to walk again, taking my arm with his as if we’d been friends, or maybe lovers, for years. “You should know I called my sister today,” he said in a low voice. “I asked her to have her husband look into Renaud. If anyone can find out the truth, it’s him.”

  I stopped at his words and pulled my arm free of his.

  If our friend, who was former MI6, couldn’t find anything on Sebastian, how would Harrison’s brother-in-law have any luck? “Why talk to Sebastian tonight then?”

  “To get a read on him myself and also . . .” He took a breath. “I have more than one sister, and if anyone was a threat to one of them, I’d stop at nothing to keep them safe.” His lips crooked at the edges.

  “You think of me like a sister?” If that was the case, I’d completely misread him.

  “God, no.” He briefly covered his mouth with his hand. “There’s something about you. And I have this desire to—”

  “Protect me?” I whispered.

  “Is it crazy?” His broad shoulders arched back as he stood tall before me. A wall of masculine strength. A man who could keep me safe if I wanted him to.

  His mouth edged near mine like an invitation for a kiss, one he was waiting to see if I’d accept.

  “We shouldn’t, right?” he asked without losing sight of my parted lips.

  I stepped back, needing a second to breathe. To think.

  “I’m sorry.” His voice was low and forgiving.

  “Don’t be.”

  I could do this. I could get through this night.

  Yeah, sure. And there are really leprechauns with pots of gold at the end of rainbows.