Celt. (Den of Mercenaries #2)(50)

Amber had felt bad, not wanting her brother to lose someone he had been so close to for years, but Aidan had shot that down.

He was nothing if not loyal.

Rob attempted a smile, but it just looked awkward with all the tension between them. “Aidan, could I borrow Amber for a moment?”

“For what?” Aidan asked, genuine confusion in his expression. “She doesn’t have to listen to whatever bull—”

“Aidan, I got it,” Amber quickly jumped in before he could go off on a tangent. Sometimes her brother could get a bit creative when he was pissed.

“Let me know when Kyrnon gets here. Can’t wait to meet him.”

Whether that was true or not, it was enough to make Rob sigh.

“Oh,” Aidan said before he’d barely taken a step. “About two weeks ago, Piper called her mom to let her know she had a raging case of crabs. Of course, then my aunt called my mom—just thought you should know.” Clapping Rob on the shoulder, Aidan raised his glass in cheers. “You should probably get checked out, though I’m hoping your dick falls off. Later.”

At some point, Amber had forgotten all about admonishing her brother for his language, and was instead trying to contain her laughter.

“He’s still angry with me,” Rob said once Aidan was out of earshot.

Amber didn’t bother denying that. “He’ll move on.” Though if he thought they would ever have the same relationship they did before, he was wrong. “How many times are we going to have this same conversation? I thought we were clear the last time you showed up at my door.”

And he had gotten an eyeful of Kyrnon.

“This isn’t about that. Well, it is, but not—” he grew frustrated, as though he couldn’t find the right words. “I want to apologize, not just for that day, but for all the days before it. It shouldn’t have happened.”

Amber wasn’t sure if he meant his last few attempts to try and get her back, or his relationship with Piper, but she didn’t care enough to ask for a clarification.

“Piper’s keeping the baby, so I think we may be seeing a lot more of each other than you would like, so I wanted to clear the air between us.” His smile was sad as he said, “We used to be great friends, weren’t we?”

The best of friends, until he ruined it.

This time, her smile was a little more genuine. “We were.”

“Maybe we’ll get there again,” he said, unable to hide that hopeful note in his voice.

“Maybe,” she agreed.

With a nod, he accepted that. “The one you’re with now … does he treat you good?”

Amber didn’t rub her relationship in his face. She wouldn’t gloat. “He does.”

“Then I’m glad you have him. You deserve it.”

Silence stretched between them after that, until they were joining the rest of her family as they all sat. Unlike everyone else at the table, Piper looked the most uncomfortable.

“So where is he? The mystery man,” Amber’s mother, Avonne, asked.

“Oh, he’s—”

“Running late.”

Kyrnon’s sudden appearance behind her had Amber glancing back in surprise. Despite how much time she spent with him, she still wasn’t used to the way he could move around so quietly.

Of course her mother had to smile wide as she eased to her feet, her manicured brows shooting up as she glanced at Amber. If there was nothing else, Kyrnon had won her over with his looks.

“Such a pleasure to finally meet you, Kyrnon. I’ve heard great things.”

She had barely heard anything at all.

“A pleasure to meet you as well,” Kyrnon said, taking hold of the hand she extended and bringing it up to his lips. “I can see where Amber gets her beauty.”

And there went that Irish charm.

Oh, if he wasn’t laying it on thick now.

Next, her father was standing to shake his hand, though he looked far less impressed than her mother. And as Kyrnon took a seat at her side, his arm stretching across the back of her seat, she couldn’t help but feel elated.

It didn’t take long for him to win them over, sharing interesting stories of his work. And as he talked, Amber noticed Aidan looking at her out the corner of her eye.

When she looked to him, he gave a sort of half frown, half smile with a shrug.

Little brother approved.





Chapter Twelve





There was a name given to the woman that wore patent leather Louboutin heels and a cold smile, but anyone that valued their life never spoke this name in Elora Coillette’s presence.

Most that crossed paths with her simply called her the Mistress, not for her taste in S&M, but because she had managed to make being a mistress a full-time occupation.

Despite her notorious attitude, Elora had been able to quell that rebellious spirit inside of herself, changing into the carefully polished woman that society’s elite haunted in upscale bars and restaurants.

Which was how Braxton Montenegro found her.

He had been different, her Braxton. With a degree in business administration from Yale, many had expected the youngest Montenegro to join in the family trade, but he had ultimately chosen a different path, one that led him into unsavory business practices with men that one should never consort with.