This Love (Cowboys & Angels 6)

“Sir, I can put your mind to rest. The Irish mafia is not here to…well…beat the living shite out of you.”

I let out the breath I didn’t even know I had been holding.

“Thank fuck for that.”

Vi slapped me on the leg. “See, you were all worried. He’s probably just going to threaten you that if you ever hurt his daughter again he’ll have his ‘friends’ take you out slowly…and piece by piece.”

“Not making me feel any better, Aunt Vi.”

The driveway was long and when I looked ahead, I saw a large, three-story house with what looked like two wings coming out on both sides of the white stone house. Or castle. Or whatever the hell they called it over here. It was fucking huge and made my folks’ place look small. The driver turned to the right instead of taking the bridge that lead straight to the house and drove for a bit along the water.

“That’s beautiful. What river is that?” Aunt Vi asked.

“That’s the Blackwater River, ma’am. The salmon are amazing and fun to catch.”

That caught my attention. Maebh grew up on a river, yet had never been fishing?

We pulled up to a stone two-story building and the car came to a stop.

“Are you sure you’re feeling okay, Cord?” my aunt asked.

“I don’t feel a hundred percent, but I’m better.” It wasn’t a lie. I did feel better, but I was tired as hell, even though I had slept on the plane in the private bedroom. I was glad Aunt Vi kept the flight attendant at bay after she had come in once and asked if I needed anything. I got the distinct feeling she’d meant something sexual.

We stepped out of the car, and I walked around to stand next to Aunt Vi.

“I believe he only wants to see you, sir.”

Swallowing hard, I looked at my aunt and said, “If I don’t make it out alive, tell Maebh I love her very much.”

With a roll of her eyes, Aunt Vi pushed me toward the building. “For Christ’s sake, boy, get your ass in there so you can get this over with and finally see Maebh.”

I took in a deep breath and blew it out as I walked up the large stone steps. This was his private office. Shit, Maebh had certainly kept a lot about her life in Ireland from me. I didn’t care; none of it mattered, but I sure as shit wasn’t expecting this.

I glanced over my shoulder at my aunt for moral support and all I got was her waving me on. I caught her looking to her right, and she let a huge smile play across her face. I wanted to step back and see who she was smiling at. Was it Maebh?

My heart started pounding, but I kept moving forward. Once I was inside, an older woman approached me. She wore a long black skirt, black high heels, and a white blouse that was tucked neatly into her skirt.

“Mr. Parker?” she asked politely. That was a good sign. Surely Aedin wouldn’t kill me with witnesses around.

Clearing my throat, I replied, “Yes. Cord Parker.”

“I’m Jess, one of Mr. O’Sullivan’s assistants.”

One of them? Shit. Who is this guy?

“It’s nice to meet you,” I replied with a tight smile.

She nodded and then handed me a bottle of water. “Your mother has asked that you keep hydrated since you’re still getting over the flu.”

Staring down at the water, I couldn’t believe my mother’s powers reached across the goddamn Atlantic Ocean.

“Um, okay. Thank you,” I replied while taking the water from her. She waited for me to actually open it and take a drink. When I did, she smiled with satisfaction.

“Follow me, sir.”

I glanced out one of the large windows and saw Aunt Vi was talking to someone. A man. We walked by so quickly though that I couldn’t tell who it was, but it sure as hell looked like Aedin.

I started to sweat. He was going to have me roughed up first. Have one of his guys teach me a lesson.

My hand raked through my hair, and I let out a groan.

“What was that, sir?” Jess asked.

“Um, nothing.”

She opened the door to a large room that housed a table on one side, probably for meetings and such, and on the opposite side a stunning desk that sat in front of floor-to-ceiling windows.

“It will only be a few moments, Mr. Parker. Make yourself at home. In the corner is a bar if you’d like something stronger than water.”

I nodded while looking around. Behind the meeting desk, bookshelves covered the entire span of the wall. The shelves reminded me of the ones in Aisling.

“Thank you,” I said, making my way farther into the room. The door clicked behind me.

Blowing out a sigh, I made my way over to the bar. I hadn’t eaten anything except the apple and two bananas Aunt Vi had practically pushed down my throat. I walked behind the bar to see what the stash was, and my eyes widened in disbelief.