“And a smart man knows how to pick useful allies. You’re still in contact with Keiran Masters.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’ve heard you’ve been gallivanting about the city with him again looking for a woman who is not your fiancé.”

“That woman is my friend who was kidnapped from my apartment in broad daylight by very dangerous men. Keiran’s woman is her best friend. Naturally, he offered to help.”

“His kind of help will land you in prison, boy.” His eyes narrowed with scrutiny. “Maybe you do want to marry Rosalyn.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. No man would want to marry Rosalyn.”

“Then sever your relationship with that criminal, and I’ll call off the proposal.”

“No.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m not going to do it. Keiran is more than my friend. He’s my brother. I’m not giving him up because you want to protect your image.”

“It’s about time you found your balls.”

I looked up to find Keiran in the doorway. The dark hoodie he wore over his head mostly obscured his expression so I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

“Son, we’re having a private conversation—”

“That I’m ending now. Father, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Don’t dare dismiss me for him.” I met his glower straight on, unfazed by his anger. “Leave.” After a few more moments of staring, he realized I wasn’t backing down and stood to his feet.

“I will speak to your mother about this.”

“Tell her I said hello.”

The office door slammed to a close. I expected Keiran to say something, but he simply made his way to the couch and slouched with his head against the back of the couch and eyes fixed on the ceiling.

“Something bothering you?”

“Lake wants to stay behind for a few more days.”

“Doesn’t she have finals coming?”

“She does, but she’s worried about Willow.”

“Really?”

“Why are you surprised?”

“Her reception has been kind of cold.”

“Yeah, I asked her about that, and she nearly bit my head off.”

“Maybe you should check her purse for your balls.”

“Cute.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“We’re going. She needs to study, and I want her alone so I can fuck her properly. I can’t do that with a toddler insisting on a slumber party every night.”

“Get used to it. You and Lake have been going strong for four years now. Wedding bells are ringing. Baby comes next.”

I don’t think I’ve ever seen fear in Keiran, but his complexion paled considerably, and he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “Do you think she’ll want that?”

“She’s a woman and she loves you. Of course, she will. Wait… don’t you?”

“I would love to make her mine on paper but a kid…”

I was pretty sure if Keiran weren’t already sitting, he would have fallen. “There’s no need to panic. There is still plenty of time.”

“I’m not sure I’ll ever be ready for that. I can’t create a child knowing what’s out there ready to hurt them. I used to think it could be possible, that I could give her a family, but I can’t ignore that less than a year ago, I had a hit on my head. I’ll never know if there will be another and when it will come. I lay awake at night wondering how I’m going to protect her.”

“You can’t plan your life around what-if. The right thing to do is to give you both what you need. Lake trusts you to protect her, but she also trusts you to give her happiness. Don’t fuck it up. Trust is a hard thing to earn after it’s lost.”

I expected him to react. Instead, he went back to staring at the ceiling. Instinct and years of friendship told me he had more on his mind and judging by the hard set of his jaw I knew it was nothing good.

“There’s something else.” I watched him carefully, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Mitch is dead.”

Forget the shoe. Keiran had just laid an atomic bomb in my lap that would detonate at any moment. “Fuck man. When?” Already I was mentally preparing for the legal battle ahead if Keiran was caught. He had been in too much trouble with the law to walk away for the umpteenth time.

“About a week ago.”

“How? You weren’t in Nevada.” The lingering question was in my tone which he sensed. I watched his shoulders tense with frustration.