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CHAPTER THREE

NIALL

F inn looked at me over his coffee cup, one eyebrow raised the way he liked to do.

“Rough night?”

“Jesus,” I replied, keeping my voice low. “I have no idea what I’m doing. Her terror is fucking killing me. I can’t take the screams…or the tears.”

“Time,” he replied. “They have to heal.”

“How do you stand it?” I asked, indicating Una sitting across the room with Anna. “I know how much you love her. I don’t have the connection to Anna you have, and her pain is ripping me apart.”

“Are you so certain about that, Niall? No connection?”

I scoffed, taking a sip of coffee. “I feel badly for her. I want to help her. She obviously means a lot to Una.”

He said nothing, his skeptical expression saying it all. I ignored him.

“You saw the news this morning?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Yes. The reporting is exactly what we needed. An explosion led to the discovery of a hidden drug lab. Assumed set off by an accident in the highly flammable facility. All casualties were thought to be employees but are unidentifiable.” I sat back.

“Those who knew where the Russians were will assume they were caught in the inferno.”

He nodded in agreement. “The racetrack is closed permanently. I think the feeling is the syndicate will purchase it and reopen so they can keep track of it. Any news on Juan?”

“No sightings. We’ll keep searching.”

“Good.”

I discreetly glanced over. Anna looked calm, happy to be close to Una. “Any decision on Brian?”

“Yes. Una said he is to be cremated, and she’ll bury him with her mum and dad. She wants a private funeral. Our crew has been informed he died a hero helping us. I am doing that for her. And I already informed the morgue. It will happen quickly before questions are asked.”

“All right.” It made sense. Brian was an asshole, but he did save Una’s life. Finn wanted to help her erase his past deeds and be remembered as being decent.

“My focus is back on the territory and the hotel. My priority, though, is Una and helping her through this.”

“Of course.”

He poured himself more coffee. “Una told me Anna grew up in a family that ran summer rentals. She has experience in the industry—at least loosely. I am going to offer to put her in our apprentice program here and give her a room to live in until she’s ready to face the outside world.

” He looked over at the two women. “She helped Una. I owe her.” He smiled at me. “I like her too.”

“Whatever you think is best, Finn.”

“Where did she sleep last night?” he asked out of the blue.

I frowned. “In the bedroom. I thought she’d be more comfortable than the sofa.”

“Ah.” He leaned over the table, his eyes bright with curiosity. “Where did you sleep?”

Standing, I narrowed my eyes. “Feck off. She was screaming. I had to stay with her.”

I stalked away, refusing to look back.

The stupid fecker was grinning. I knew it without looking. And I had no defense because, dammit, I liked her too.

I found excuses to stay in the suite most of the day.

If I had to leave to handle something, I made sure there was a man at the door.

I introduced John to Anna, making sure she understood he, too, was a friend and she was safe with him.

She seemed a little less tense as the day wore on, more at ease with her surroundings.

That evening, I came back to the suite after handling a problem at the casino, greeting John.

“Everything good?”

He nodded. “Roman was here. Spoke with Finn and visited Anna.”

“What for?”

He shrugged. “He was only in a few moments. I assumed checking up on her.”

Mystified, I went in, frowning when I saw Anna on the sofa. She smiled at me, but the tension had returned. Had Roman said something to upset her?

I sat across from her.

“Everything all right at the casino?” she asked, offering me a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

“All sorted.” I cleared my throat. “I hear you had a visitor.”

“Yes. Mr. Costas—or Roman, as he told me to call him.”

“What did he want?” I asked, my voice a little rougher than I expected it to be. I paused. “Did he upset you?”

She swallowed. “No.”

Her reply was a lie and came out more like a question than a statement.

“What did he say?”

She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It fell over her shoulders, and absently, she twirled a thick tress around her finger. “He told me all the other women were being sent home if they wanted or to a safe place to start fresh. The workers they had held captive were given the same option.”

“Yes. We’ll make sure they’re all in a better place.”

“He, ah, asked me my plans. Said they would send me back north or somewhere else if I wanted.”

I tensed. “And what did you say?”

She didn’t meet my eyes. “I didn’t know what to say.”

“You’re staying here,” I replied without thinking.

“I am?”

“You’re not ready to be on your own. You’re safe here. Una is here. I’m here. Finn has an idea for you he will discuss with you.” I stood, towering over her. “You’ll stay in the hotel.”

She gazed up at me, once again the trust and hope in her eyes doing something to my chest.

“If you want,” I added.

“Is-is that what you want?”

I bent and pressed a kiss to her head. “Yes.”

“Okay.”

“Excuse me,” I muttered. “I have to do something. I’ll be right back.”

I passed John in the hall. “You can go.”

I knocked on Finn’s door, glaring when he answered it.

“Niall? Everything okay?”

“She’s staying here. With me. You can tell Roman to feck off with his offers. They’re not needed.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Is that exactly how you’d like me to deliver the message?”

“I don’t care how you deliver it. Just make it clear. Tell the Italian no help is needed on this.”

Then I turned and strode away, ignoring his shout of laughter.

“I’ll handle it, cousin,” he called. “A bit more diplomatically. But consider your territory well and completely marked.”

I flipped him off and headed back to my suite, unsure why I was so pissed off.

Except when I walked in and saw Anna again, my ire melted away.

And I knew I was truly fucked.

I got her to eat some dinner. Tender chicken, mashed potatoes with lots of butter, and a rich chocolate pudding were soft items I ordered for her, thinking they would be easy for her to eat. And high in calories, given the amount of butter and sugar it all contained.

I ate with her, encouraging her with small talk. When she seemed too tired to keep eating, I slid her chair closer and hand-fed her small bites as I talked. I told her about my mum. Growing up in Ireland.

“Were you in trouble a lot as a kid?” she asked.

I grinned. “Constantly. My mum says I gave her gray hair far too young. Finn and I were always in scrapes. Back then, there was no such thing as time-out. It was the wooden spoon and my arse. And Mum had good aim, even if I tried to escape.”

That earned me a smile.

“When I was older, the scrapes turned dangerous, and she hated it. When Finn left for Canada, I was lost without him. I fell into a bad crowd. When Mum got sick and he came home a few years later, she begged him to take me back with him.” I slid a forkful of potatoes and chicken into her mouth.

“He was already a leader here and making a lot of money. He bought her a new place and made sure she had good care, and I came with him.”

“And you’re still working together.”

“He’s my family. More of a brother than a cousin.”

“What about your dad?”

I sighed, sliding her dessert toward her. I couldn’t believe the way I was talking to her. I never spoke of growing up—or my past.

“He died when I was younger. Fell off a ladder at work, hit his head, and was never right after.” I frowned at some of the memories.

“He was a good dad. Taught me things. Warned me to stay clear of gangs and illegal activities. But after the accident, he became angry. He yelled a lot. Drank heavily, whereas, before the accident, he only occasionally indulged. He preferred tea with Mum.”

I was quiet for a moment. “He died about two years after the accident. It was the men who ran the gangs who helped me to get Mum compensation for Dad’s early death. I owed them.”

“So, you became one of them.”

“Yes. Until Finn stepped in and made a deal with them. I left and came here.” I met her understanding gaze. “I was finally able to stand on my own two feet. Grow up and feel as if I mattered. Finn gave me purpose. This life gave me purpose.”

She nodded, lifting her spoon and pressing it to my mouth. I had to smile over her reversing our roles, and I let her slip the spoon between my lips, wondering if it tasted so good because her mouth had been on it.

“What about you?” I asked. “You grew up on a lake, I think?”

She pursed her lips. “My parents owned a campground. It was busy most of the year. Even in the winter, there were tasks to be done. We were always busy between school and chores. I didn’t have time for much else but those two things.”

“Did you like it?”

She shrugged. “It was all I knew when I was young. But I was invisible. I was never Anna. I was Joe and Elsie’s daughter. The girl behind the counter at check-in. Or the one helping you get water. Bill’s sister. Never Anna.”

“Bill? I didn’t know you had a brother. He must be worried sick,” I said, reaching for my phone.

She shook her head. “He died when I was thirteen. He drowned rescuing someone in the lake.”

“I’m sorry,” I murmured, reaching for her hand.

“After that, I was still invisible, except now, I was the sister of the dead boy. I hated it when I was referred to that way.” She pushed away her bowl, half eaten, the spoon still holding a mouthful.

“I thought after my parents died and I could leave, I’d come here and find out who Anna was.

Find my own life. Be seen for once.” Her hands started to tremble.

“I didn’t think I’d be seen the way I was. And once they took me, I realized I would be invisible the rest of my life. I never regretted a decision more.”

“No.” I shook my head, taking both her hands in mine. “You’re not invisible. Not to me. I see you. I see the sweet, funny, smart woman you are. Think of how you helped Una. She thinks the world of you. You will get through this, Anna. You’ll find your place, and you are going to shine. I know it.”

Our gazes locked, and I hated the doubt I could see in hers. The fear that still lingered. I wanted it all erased. I wanted to talk to her more. Get her to laugh. To see how beautiful she was when she relaxed. I wanted her to smile.

And most of all, I wanted her to smile at me.

“I see you,” I repeated. “And I like what I see. You are not invisible to me, Anna. You never could be.”

Then because I was an idiot, I bent forward and kissed her.

It was just a soft press of our lips, but as I sat back, I felt as if I had just been branded.

Anna lifted her hand to her mouth, touching her lips against the soft pads.

And she smiled.