Olcan (Boston Bear Brothers 2)

Olcan squinted at her, feeling a mix of amusement at an impotent and disgust at the thought of him touching her.

“He was impotent,” he observed.

“He was gay,” she clarified.

“Gay?”

“Yes. For all that Sean was, he was at least honest about it. He preferred men.”

“But I thought you told me before that a jealous husband killed him after catching him with his wife?”

“Yes. That’s the story, and it is partly true, but he wasn’t with the wife. He was with her brother who was staying with them while he was home from the military. It was a mix-up, but it was too late, and she covered for him rather than outing her own brother to the clan.”

“You knew.”

“Yes. Sean and I had become friends, of sorts. I was angry with him when I found out he was gay. I’d spent months blaming myself for his lack of interest. He finally took pity on me, telling me the truth in confidence. I knew he was having affairs after that, but it was hardly any concern of mine. I mean, he didn’t want me, and well, it was actually a relief. As far as the affair, he confided in me about that only days before the incident. He was in love and wanted to go away where he could be what he was without interference. He had just been diagnosed with the tumor and wanting to live his final days in freedom.”

“What does any of this have to do with you coming here and trying to set my family up to be destroyed?” he growled, growing impatient with the backstory she was telling, most likely to try and gain sympathy for herself.

“After Shawn died, the family took it out on me. The doctor revealed the tumor to them, told them it would have been only a matter of time before he’d died of natural causes. They blamed me for not telling them, for not doing enough to take care of him. They blamed me for being a bad wife, said if I had pleased my husband, he wouldn’t be out shagging other people’s wives. If I had given him a child, he’d be more grounded.”

“Why didn’t you tell them the truth?”

“I told you. He might not have been a good husband, but he was my friend.”

Olcan laughed at this and stood up, walking over to the bar to fix himself another drink. “I’m so glad you have such high regard for your friends. Too bad you had so much less regard for a man who . . .” He stopped. He wouldn’t say the words to her, not now, not ever.

“I’m here to tell you now, Olcan. Sorley has been calling me to find out what I know about you.”

“What have you told him?” he asked, trying to sound calmer than he felt. Fergus had left this family to him, and he’d been screwing the enemy under his own roof.

“Not much. I’d not known much to tell him at first, and by the time I did know things he’d be interested in, I had decided that I didn’t want to reveal anything that might hurt you.”

“Right. I’m supposed to believe that? What did they promise you to come here and draw a target on my family, Niamh? Money? Status? I guess you are your father’s child, huh?”

“Freedom. They promised that instead of passing me around to every horny bear in the clan and using me as a fuck toy and incubator to build clan numbers, they’d let me go,” she said, the fear gone out of her eyes, replaced with fire.

Olcan stopped in his tracks. The words hurt. The thought of it hurt. Neither hurt as much as knowing she’d betrayed him since the day he’d laid eyes on her. He’d been nothing but a pawn in a game designed to save herself. Still, could he really blame her for wanting to save herself from such a disturbing fate?

The answer was no, but neither could he forgive her either.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Niamh. You can leave here, go where they can’t find you, and I will make sure no one comes after you from my family,” he said abruptly.

“I love you, Olcan,” she said softly.

“Well, that’s great, but it’s a bit too late for that, if you even mean it.”

She nodded, didn’t attempt to convince him. Instead, she stood and looked him in the eye.

“There’s more, Olcan. Sorley called me. It’s why I came here tonight to talk to you instead of waiting any longer. He’s sending someone to kill Fergus and his family. He asked me to pry the information out of you as to where they are so they can get to them while they are separated from the family.”

Olcan bit his lip again, taking a deep breath before responding. “But they don’t know where he is yet?”