Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 92734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
James grabbed his phone and dialed. He’d meant to call Carrigan back earlier, since his promise to her was still ringing in his ears, but he couldn’t with the memory of what he’d done to Joe still riding him so hard. It wasn’t going away anytime soon, though, and maybe some time with her was just what he needed to center himself. The longer the line rang, the tenser he got.
What if she’s in trouble? She hadn’t left a message earlier, but that didn’t mean a damn thing. He’d told her to call when she needed him, and then the first time she’d called, he hadn’t answered. Good job, dipshit.
The call clicked over to voice mail and he cursed. “I’m sorry I missed your call. I’m here now.” As tempting as it was to keep talking, to postpone the moment when he had to admit he’d fucked up, he made himself hang up.
A knock on his door made him frown. “What?”
“It’s me, boss.” Michael poked his head in. “I double-checked that shit you gave me. It’s all like Joe said. The first meeting Ricky actually pulled off was with those guys you met at Tit for Tat.”
His breath left him in a rush. Thank Christ he’d been able to put the brakes on his brother before he did any more damage. “Good.”
“Anything else you need from me?”
“Check on my brother and you can head out.” Between Joe and the aftermath, he’d wasted the day away. Where are you, Carrigan? He made sure his ringer was on and pocketed his phone. He wasn’t going to be able to eat anytime soon, but he couldn’t sit up here and mope in his room for the rest of the night. It was important he be seen, both as a warning and a promise to his people. Which meant Mickey’s was on the agenda.
He drove down there even though it was within walking distance. It was tempting to just keep driving. Too tempting. He had to remind himself of his responsibilities and what was expected of him more and more often as time went on. As shitty as it was, he dreaded the day where it all became second nature to him. When he finally fully stepped into the man he was required to be in order to run the Hallorans.
The monster.
Fuck, he was a moody bitch today. James walked into Mickey’s, ignoring the way silence fell as the men there caught sight of him. He made a beeline to the bar and nodded at Tommy. Tommy actually blanched before he caught himself. Not you, too. James forced his shoulders back and nodded. Fear or love. He might have been coming in here since before he could legally drink, but that history didn’t matter anymore. What mattered was that Tommy now saw him as someone to be feared. “Whiskey.”
He ignored the way the bartender’s hands shook as he poured a healthy glass and passed it over. James didn’t say thanks—just took the glass and retreated to his customary booth in the back. From here he could see everyone in the place. He sipped his drink as they slowly relaxed, and conversation started back up.
Good. He might scare the shit out of them now, but they weren’t completely crippled by it. When his old man came into a room, no one spoke until he left it again. James didn’t like to think about what he had to have done in order to command that kind of fear.
Because he already knew.
He checked his phone again. Nothing. This was so damn stupid. James shook his head and downed half his whiskey. He should just track her ass down and make sure she was okay—except that was stalking, and he’d already crossed too many lines when it came to Carrigan. He couldn’t drop everything and go rushing to her side when that wasn’t what she’d asked him to do. There had to be a line somewhere.
He set his phone aside and concentrated on the whiskey in his glass, letting the low conversation from the pub roll over him. She’d call if she needed him. Simple as that. He just had to make sure he didn’t drop the ball next time she did.
If she called again.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Carrigan checked her phone for the twelfth time in five minutes. There was no way around it. Not only had James not called her back since the first time, but Kellen O’Neill was late. Extremely late. Over thirty minutes late.
She should have known after the conversation with her mother that the day was only going to go downhill from there, but the puppy had been so eager over the phone that she hadn’t really thought he’d stand her up. Another glance at her phone. Yeah, still late. She heaved a sigh. She should just go home. Dmitri had already offered her a legitimate choice, even if it was the best option of a group of truly shitty options. She didn’t really need Kellen O’Neill.