Page 43 of Savage Promises (Quinlan Empire #2)

Lennox - April

Q uinlan Manor looms in the distance, its grandeur intimidating as always. Even though I am a Quinlan now. It’s been a great two weeks since Hawk’s Houdini trick. Shane came to my room every night and it’s like the honeymoon phase restarted all over again.

My husband parks his Corvette in the courtyard and my legs wobble when he helps me from the car. Even on the front steps, I hear the noise of a busy family gathering inside. Laughter, buzzing chatter, and children’s squeals of joy echo behind the heavy wooden front door.

Shane opens it and leads me inside with his hand firmly on my waist. The muffled sounds turn into a sharp cacophony of life and love. I clutch Shane’s arm a little tighter from the shock of it. He glances down at me, his lips curving into that subtle smirk of his.

“There are so many people here,” I say, pulling at my scarf.

“This is what Ma wanted for her birthday. Her family. ”

“Right...” My last name is Quinlan, but I still feel like a Donnelly.

The enemy.

“You’ll be fine,” Shane says softly, leaning closer so only I can hear. “Ma already adores you.”

The idea that this bustling, chaotic family could ever accept me feels far-fetched, but I nod anyway, trying to steel myself. And be ready for anything.

The house feels alive, bursting at the seams with noise and energy.

The main living room to the left of the sweeping staircase is already full of Quinlans.

Shane’s older brother Ewan is the first to greet us, a wide grin splitting his face.

He hugs Shane and then claps his youngest brother on the back.

“Hi, Lennox,” Ewan lays a gentle kiss on my cheek.

His wife Darcy smiles, balancing their infant daughter Baby Norah on her hip while their other two daughters, Sadie and Maggie, dart around her legs. Darcy’s warmth feels genuine as she hugs me tightly.

“It’s so good to see you again,” she says, in her melodic Irish lilt.

“You, too,” I manage, smiling at her before glancing down at the girls. “You’ve got your hands full.”

Darcy laughs, brushing a strand of long dark hair from her face. “Always. But that’s the joy of family, isn’t it?”

I nod in agreement. “It sure is.”

In a wingback chair in the corner by the fireplace like she’s the queen, Norah Quinlan senior sits, her eyes glassy with tears as she surveys the chaos. Two other women around her age lounge on either side of her, engaged in heavy conversation.

I greet Norah and wish her a happy birthday, but feel stupid for not bringing a gift.

She doesn’t seem to care and introduces me to the two women. “This is Trace and Rhys’s mum Freye Quinlan, and you know, Clara O’Rourke.”

I freeze, seeing the wheelchair-bound mother of the O’Rourke sons who took over the Irish Mob from her husband here in Astoria. The husband who is now dead. That explains the extra guards standing around.

I say my hellos and spin around, hearing the front door open.

Griffin arrives with his gorgeous Greek wife Ava.

Their twin toddler sons sway in front of them like little drunkards balancing on stubby, unsure legs.

Within seconds, they cause mischief, finding a table of knick-knacks to toss about and stick in their mouths and noses.

After Ava prevents a choking accident, the two boys decide to race around the living room while dodging legs and furniture.

The adults laugh and catch up.

Sabine comes out of the kitchen chasing after her son Aiden, who appears anxious to play with his little cousins. Her husband Grayson Hart follows, smiling at his family. The idling limo on the street must be his. He’s a billionaire and brother to Luke, The Sterling hotel’s CEO.

I say my hello to the Harts and then make eye contact with Shane’s enforcer Trace, who arrived before us. He sort of introduces me to his father Patrick, who sits in a corner chair, nodding off.

From another room ending a business call, Trace’s wife Shea, the Shea O’Rourke, now a Quinlan, makes eye contact with me.

A flicker of excitement rolls through me at the idea of meeting her.

She planned my small and intimate wedding, but she and Trace were out of town when we got married. I didn’t have a chance to thank her.

Shea is confident, poised, and from what I’ve heard, a powerhouse in the event planning world. We both grew up here in Astoria, but the O’Rourke princess is older than me.

“Lennox Donnelly!” Shea walks right up to me like we’re old friends and hugs me.

“Shea, it’s nice to finally meet you. My wedding was beautiful. Thank you.” I hug her back.

“Don’t mention it. It’s what I do.” She pops out a hip, looking all business. “So, Luxe. Talk to me. I drove by the other night. Wow. Wow. Wow. I have clients who would love to rent out your VIP balcony.”

A thrill shoots down my spine at the idea that she and I can do business together.

“Absolutely.” I dig into my purse and hand her a business card. “That’s my direct line. I don’t have a sales manager yet. ”

“Get one. I plan to keep you busy.” She winks and then turns her smile to Shane getting his mother something to drink. “And congratulations. Here’s to being a Quinlan.”

I bow my head. “To being a Quinlan.”

The Quinlans are a force to be reckoned with. They gave their name to the only O’Rourke sister and now a Donnelly. The Donnellys have always been a powerful family in Astoria. Dad and Garrett only blackened our name in our immediate circles.

“Let’s toast our wise and fierce mother.” Ewan raises a glass, quieting the room. “Happy Birthday, Ma!”

Before I feel empty without a drink, Shane slips a flute of champagne into my hand.

“It’s so good to see the house like this again,” Norah says softly, her voice trembling. “I miss it. I hope we can resume our Sunday dinner tradition.”

I swallow hard, feeling like an outsider. This is their legacy, their history. A part of me wonders if I’ll ever truly belong.

“So... When will you and Shane add to the chaos?” Darcy whispers, standing on the other side of me.

I freeze, the weight of her question heating my neck.

“Um,” I stammer. “I just opened my new club. I think I need at least a year to settle in. You know, do all the hard work upfront and then turn it over to a manager I trust.”

“I’m a surgical nurse at a busy hospital. You can have it all.” She smiles. “I can’t wait for Shane to be a dad. He’s going to be a wonderful father. My girls adore him. He lets them put a tiara on his head when they do tea parties.”

I nearly drop my drink. “Really?”

She leans in and whispers, “They have to look tough on the street to survive. But family is what they know. This is what’s safe to them.” She gazes out at the packed living room .

Safe...

I nod, hiding how choked up I am, hoping I’ll get to find out. We are married. He said it’s real. That means...kids. Someday. So why is the knot in my stomach tightening all the time, like something dark and looming is heading for us?

Little boy laughter in the television room down the hall turns into a sudden chorus of high-pitched wails. Griffin and Grayson spring from their chairs, tall on their feet. They’re laughing as they jog to see who did what to who.

“Feels like yesterday when Ewan and I were beating the hell out of each other,” Griffin jokes.

Ewan rocks his infant daughter to give his wife a break to have a drink and catch her breath. “I’m telling you, brats,” he calls out to the guys, “little girls are the golden secret they don’t tell men.”

Sadie and Maggie are now playing on kiddie iPads in the dining room. Quiet. Like angels.

“Let’s see if you still feel that way when they start dating.” Shane slaps Ewan on the back.

“Dosser,” he laughs at his brother.

Dinner is served buffet style from trays set up in the kitchen. There’s no agenda. No games. Just the family stopping time to honor their mother and be together.

Like they’re not crime lords in Manhattan. Not killers. Not feared on the streets.

Conversation buzzes all around me, mostly talk of kids, to which Shea looks uncomfortable and smiles at me like we’re working-girl partners in crime. I heard she couldn’t have kids, but Trace went to the end of the earth to marry her.

When the plates are empty, Ava, Shea, and I clear them away while Sabine lights the candles on a massive cake in the dining room .

“Let’s sing happy birthday!” she says, waving everyone in.

The entire family gathers in the classic dining room to sing happy birthday to Norah, who breaks down and starts crying. Ewan and Griffin are there at her side. She leans on her oldest sons, who help her blow out of the candles.

My mom didn’t live to see anything like this, and I miss her so much suddenly. But maybe it’s best she left this world when we still held a semblance of a happy family.

The warmth in this room is palpable, but it starts to feel suffocating. Nibbling a piece of cake on Norah’s fine gilded plates, I wander to the large bay window at the front of the dining room.

As I eat the delicious cake, I push aside the graceful lace curtains and my gaze drifts across the street to my family’s house. It’s dark, compared to the lit-up three-ring circus going on here. I think about Neve and wonder if she’d be welcome here one day.

The new club has kept me occupied, and I haven’t thought much about how my sister is getting on since she was caught with her coach. She’s made no attempt to reach out to me.

Sigh. Once again, it’s up to me to be the bigger person. Maybe she’d like a piece of cake. Heck, did she even eat dinner? My maternal instincts kicking in, I set my plate down and glance at Shane, who studies me with steady scrutiny.

“I want to check on Neve,” I say quietly.

“Now?” His smile slips immediately. “My family is all here. Together. You’re a part of this . Us.”

I wilt and wince at the same time, guilt twisting in my chest. “I know, but she’s still my sister. She’s alone over there. ”