SILENT VOWS

32

A giggle nearly bubbled past my lips. It was getting harder and harder to keep my voice to myself now that I’d started talking to Conner.

Just a little longer. You can do it.

“But anyway, you’ll have plenty of time to figure it out. I just thought I’d mention it so you could mentally prepare. And make sure you knew I’d be happy to help if you needed it.” She patted my hand and nodded to herself, seemingly satisfied.

I jotted a note thanking her and ensuring I’d take care of it. I wasn’t sure how, but I swore to myself that was one compromise I was unwilling to concede.

Our shopping concluded, Aunt Etta convinced Umberto to let me join them for lunch. We had such a fabulous time together that I could have mistaken it for before—before Mom died and my world came crashing down around me. Before my father threatened my life and I suddenly had a fiancé.

That slice of the past was enough to keep me distracted with happy memories for the rest of the afternoon once I’d returned home. I listened to music and watched a home renovation show. Anything to keep my thoughts in the happy beyond where there were no deadlines or fathers or fiancés.

Sometimes a girl needed to stick her head in the sand for a day.

I was remarkably successful at it, too, until the chime of the doorbell echoed into my room that evening. I moved to the top of the stairs, staying just out of sight of the entry below. We didn’t get visitors often. I wondered if it was Conner but couldn’t be sure. The velvet strands of a baritone voice were too soft to recognize.

I was desperately curious but afraid I’d earn my father’s wrath again if I showed my face downstairs without an invitation. I had no desire to poke that dragon. Fortunately, fate intervened to assuage my curiosity.

“Noemi, come down and meet someone.” My father’s voice boomed in my ears, echoing inside the hollow of my chest.

I waited for just a second to ensure it didn’t look like I’d been eavesdropping, then glided gracefully downstairs, nearly stumbling on the steps when my eyes landed on one of the most savagely handsome men I’d ever seen. He looked like his ancestors had only recently abandoned their Viking ship to raid boardrooms instead of villages. A heavy brow casting harsh shadows over ocean eyes gave him a foreboding look, while his thick blond hair styled back in a perfect pompadour would get him inside any upscale club. Unshaved scruff on his square jaw contrasted with his perfectly tailored suit the same way he showed just a tiny bit more incisor than appropriate when he smiled. Like the wolf greeting Little Red. Everything about this man was a contradiction. An enigma. He was utterly mesmerizing and perfectly terrifying.

I forced a smile.

“Noemi, this is Keir Byrne, Conner’s cousin. You met his father briefly at the engagement dinner—Jimmy Byrne.”

I tore my eyes from the man, sensing my father communicating an unspoken message. I dropped my chin a fraction to let him know I understood.

This man was important. A power player in the Irish organization.

“It’s a pleasure.” He extended his hand. “I apologize for missing the engagement dinner, but I was otherwise detained.” Hearing his voice up close and the power it wielded sent a shiver down my spine. Every softly spoken word forced those around him to listen carefully. To dance to his tune. The subtle exercise of dominance was impressive.

“As you know,” my father cut in. “Noemi here lost her voice in a tragic accident. Conversations with her aren’t easy, so we can just head back to my office.”

Keir didn’t budge. “That’s not an issue. Conner won’t be here for a few minutes. I thought that might give me time to get to know the newest addition to our family. It’s not every day we take in an outsider.” The entire time he spoke, his eyes held mine captive. Studying. Assessing.

What was he looking for? What did he think he’d find?

I wasn’t too worried because I had no malicious intent—not toward him or his family. Any negativity I felt was reserved for my own flesh and blood.

My father agreed, albeit reluctantly. He’d clearly hoped to make the introduction and be rid of my presence as quickly as possible, but Keir had other plans.

Dad’s lips thinned. “Let’s have a seat in the living room. Noemi, you’ll have to get your pad and paper.” He peered back at Keir. “That’s how she communicates,” he explained as though I were a trained ape. “She should probably learn sign language at some point, but it’s hardly been a priority so soon after her mother’s death.”

I gritted my teeth at the manufactured grief he forced into his voice. As if my father had given one minute’s thought to her death except to cover up what he’d done. Suddenly realizing I was being watched, my eyes cut to Keir. He’d seen the glare I’d shot at my father’s back.

I wondered if it was possible to keep anything from his keen eye. If he was curious about my reaction, I couldn’t tell. He gave absolutely nothing away. The man was the Dalai Lama of calm and control. It was unnerving. Conner was contained, but his composure wasn’t so absolute, at least not when I was around. Like last night. I’d had the sense he was seconds from complete chaos, and I sort of relished knowing I had that effect on him. Keir held so tightly to his reins that I didn’t think anything could rattle him.

Forcing a smile, I tried to rid myself of emotion. If I didn’t feel it, I couldn’t show it.

“There are two more members of the family who would love to meet you,” Keir informed me as he sat on one end of the sofa, an arm draped along the back cushion like a king on his throne. He motioned for me to sit with him. “Paddy and Nana Byrne, our grandparents and the founders of our family. It’s hard for them to get out these days, but they’ve requested a visit. If it’s agreeable to you, Fausto, I thought I could run Noemi over to their house tomorrow to meet them. They rarely get out anymore.”

My heart hammered against my ribs, unsure of what to do.