Not-So Temporarily Married(44)

Yup, I’d called it right because Brandon looked like he was a nuclear explosion in the making. His voice was deceptively soft because his dark eyes were narrowed and lit with fury. His cheeks were flushed red, and his lips were pursed. The way his muscles were coiled tight made it seem as though he was ready to jump through the phone to attack Tommy. And considering the bomb I’d just dropped on my childhood friend, I figured he’d have a fight on his hands if he did.

Brandon stalked out of the room, taking the phone with him. I cleaned up as quickly as I could and followed after him. Snagging the shirt he’d worn the day before, I pulled it over my head and padded into the kitchen, where I found him making coffee and snarling at Tommy over the phone.

“I don’t give a flying fuck who you’ve been to her in the past, or how helpful your information is when it comes to finding Pat. Carly is mine now. I don’t know you, don’t trust you. There isn’t a chance in hell I’m gonna let some guy I don’t trust anywhere near my woman.”

I rushed forward and tried to tug the phone from his hands, determined to stop this conversation in its tracks. Brandon wasn’t having any of it, though. He shackled both of my hands in one of his own and held me in place while he continued to talk to Tommy.

“Yeah, if your tip results in his capture, I might consider letting you see her.”

I huffed up at him, narrowing my eyes. Brandon just shook his head and smiled at me like I was being cute or something.

“Don’t bother using this number again. You need something, you call me.” He rattled off his number and disconnected the call without saying goodbye. Hopefully, Tommy had gotten all the digits right because Brandon dropped my phone on the ground, grabbed a pot from the rack above the kitchen island, and smashed it.

“I can’t believe you did that!” Actually, I kind of could, but I wasn’t about to admit it to him.

He shrugged his shoulders. “You didn’t need it anymore.”

“But what if I need to call someone?”

“Use mine.”

“What if someone needs to call me?”

“You and I both know McKinnon was the only one who had that number. Now he has mine.” Stupid logic.

“But—” I sputtered. I wasn’t sure what I was even going to say next. It didn’t matter anyway because Brandon didn’t give me the chance. He picked me up and set me on the counter, stepping between my legs and pulling me tight against his body.

“If McKinnon is on the up and up, you won’t need to use a burner again anyway because your dad will be out of the picture.”

All thoughts of Brandon’s high-handedness and lack of condom usage flew out the window. I knew Tommy was trustworthy, which meant my da’s days were numbered.



My da’s arrogance was ultimately his downfall. He’d never once considered the possibility that one of his trusted men would betray him to the DeLucas, not even after his own daughter had done so. The hunt took only a day after the tip from Tommy. My da had been moving from safe-house to safe-house within the city, never straying far from home. He knew Nic was putting all of his considerable resources behind the search, but even that wasn’t enough to make my da leave town. The stubborn ass thought he was invincible.

Hell, he’d had me convinced he couldn’t be defeated, as well. I had stayed under his control and miserable because of it. All that time wasted when I could have been living life, happy and whole. No more. Pat O’Reilly’s hold over me was going to end tonight. And so was his certainty that he couldn’t be taken down by anyone. He was about to learn his fall had come about because of a mere woman—me.

My grip on Brandon’s hand tightened, making him stop in his tracks as we stood outside the door which led from Nic’s offices to the warehouse in the back of his building. My head shot up, and I watched as his expression morphed from looking like his face had been carved from stone to the gentleness I was growing accustomed to seeing. A softness he allowed only when it was directed at me, which made me appreciate it even more.

“You don’t have to go in there,” he reminded me. “Even though he doesn’t deserve the title, he’s your father. If it’s gonna hurt you to see him like this, I’d rather you didn’t. Let me take care of him for you.”

I beamed up at him, smiling wide enough that I seemed to startle Bran with my reaction to his offer. But, as absurd as it sounded considering the circumstances, some of the heaviness in my heart lifted—and it was all due to this man. His love had set me free from the chains my da had wrapped around me, even more so than my running had done... and he hadn’t even used those three little words yet.