Page 10

DECLAN

“ W hat the hell is up with you?” Finn snaps at me.

He unloads another box of guns from the van into Romeo’s truck.

“It’s fucking boiling!” I tell him.

Wiping the sweat from my forehead as Conan easily picks up a box and tosses it in with a grunt.

We got a call early this morning about assisting with a job for Enzo as they’re a couple of men down. What we didn’t realize is we were the only ones on this job.

And we’ve been here for hours.

“Careful!” Me and Finn both shout at Con.

Conan brushes his hands together and slides down his sunglasses.

“Why don’t you both just stop bitching and get on with it. Faster we do it, the quicker we can have a beer.”

Finn shoots me a look, and I nod.

Conan has a fair point.

As I put my final box in the truck, we hop back in the van to return it to the warehouse.

“Not even a fucking thank you,” Finn seethes.

As I turn the key in the ignition, the van jolts.

“It’s all a test, brother. We’re at the bottom of Enzo’s food chain right now. We gotta work to be on top.”

He taps his fingers on the dash as Conan turns up the air conditioner.

“Or… we stay in Dublin and fuck the America plan off? We don’t need to expand here. We have the perfect setup back home.”

As I drive onto the main road, I chew on my lip.

“Look, with everything going down with the Bowens, who knows how long our empire will stand? Dad wanted us here, this was his dream. He wouldn’t have sent us for no reason, we gotta trust his gut.”

Conan hums to himself so I turn up the music, and Finn smacks Conan on the arm.

“It’s your fault we’re fucking dying of dehydration here, you left the damn water I asked you to bring,” Finn grumbles.

Conan laughs, but then his face drops to being dead serious.

“Wait, we’re dying?”

I hold in the laughter and keep my eyes on the road.

“That’s what you took from that sentence, Con?” Finn says, clearly irritated.

“Well, yea.” Conan shrugs.

I look at him and give him a warning glare not to wind Finn up anymore.

“What? He’s the fucking doctor here. If he tells me I’m dying, what the hell else am I supposed to think?”

As I indicate to take a left, heading on the straight back to the hotel, I zone out as those two bicker. I’m the eldest, they both listen to me. But they argue constantly between themselves.

As I pull up into the back of the lot, I hide the keys on the tire for Romeo to collect and grab my black T-shirt, putting it back on, it clings to my sweaty skin.

My dick aches and I adjust my pants.

“You caught something?” Finn laughs.

“No. I got punched in the dick earlier,” I tell them quietly.

They both stop and look at each other, then back to me.

“What? Who? Did you kill him?” Con says, trying to hide his laughter.

“No, they’re alive. And not a ‘he’, a ‘she’. A very beautiful she.”

Finn’s eyes almost pop out of their sockets.

“Beautiful, hey? Someone’s got a crush. Careful, you might actually end up with something.”

I shake my head and slap his arm.

“Enough. Beer?” I ask my brothers, redirecting the direction of conversation.

They both look at me sporting the same menacing grin.

“Fuck yes,” they say at the same time.

I rub my hands over my face in frustration. These two will be the end of me.

As they go to walk off, I put my hand out to stop them.

“Silence. I want the first drink in absolute silence. I don’t want to hear a fucking word from either of you until I’ve finished. I don’t even so much as want to hear you breathe. Clear?” I tell them.

“Whatever.” Conan strolls off and Finn walks next to me.

“Somethings getting to you, Declan,” he presses, and I sigh.

“I thought you were training to be a surgeon, not a psychiatrist.”

“Ha-ha. Smart ass. It’s that girl. Ain’t it? The dick-puncher?”

My jaw ticks as I picture her. I can’t explain it. Why did it feel like I was about to pass out when she looked at me?

It wasn’t just looking at me. She saw through me.

No fear. No judgement.

She pressed my buttons and tricked me.

I rub my hand along my throat, right where she grabbed me.

There’s something about this girl I can’t put my finger on.

“I’ll take your silence as a ‘yes’.”

I grunt, wanting to ignore my feelings. Or the fact I’ve been thinking all day about how I could get her to go on a date with me.

Something I never, ever do. But I want to learn more.

Like how she learned to fight.

And why there’s so much pain behind her eyes.

“It’s nothing, Finn. Don’t worry,” I tell him and walk ahead.

“Denying it only makes it worse,” he calls out.

Denying what?

I just met her. It’s not anything.