Page 53 of Keeping Katie

“Do you mind if we have a quick meeting before dinner?” Declan asks.

“Sure. About what?” I ask.

“I want to add Patrick to the top tier, but it needs to be a group decision since it will change the structure that’s been in place all this time.” Declan motions toward his office.

Killian, Kieran, and Ronan are already in his office when we walk in. Ronan is scowling, but Killian and Kieran look relaxed as they sip glasses of whiskey.

“You’re late,” Ronan barks at me.

I grin. “Nice to see you too, man. Got up on the right side of the bed this morning, aye?”

He flips me off.

“Dude, are you going to be in a bad mood for the rest of your life?” I ask.

Killian snorts. “He’s just pissed off right now because Paige and Tessa want to go to Scotland for a couple of weeks after graduation before they come back to the States, and Declan said yes.”.

“They have no business traveling to another country to do God knows what. They belong here, where they can be watched,” Ronan growls.

Declan rolls his eyes. “I’m sending four security guards on the trip with them. They’ll be perfectly safe.”

Ronan practically snarls but doesn’t say anything more.

Kieran sits forward and sets his glass on the table in front of him. “What did you want to meet about, boss?”

Declan glares at Kieran, and I chuckle. He hates it when we call him boss. We love to call him that when we want to annoy him.

“I know our syndicate has always kept the top tier to six positions, but I’d like to add one more. It needs to be a group decision, not just mine.”

That gets our attention. For decades, there have only been six top-ranking spots in the US-Irish syndicate. To make a change like this is big. It could also be good for us. Good for the organization.

“Who?” Killian asks.

“Patrick,” Declan answers. “He’s proven himself worthy. He took a bullet to protect our women. He’s a good leader. He’s loyal.”

I nod. “He’d be a good fit. You have my support.”

Everyone else agrees without hesitation. Declan wouldn’t have made the recommendation without considering it from every angle. We trust his judgment. He would never do anything to put our family at risk.

“Cali and Scarlet are going to be sad they won’t be able to hang out with him so much,” Killian says, chuckling.

Ronan actually cracks a smile. “Aye. But the fact that he’s survived those two says a lot about him. I don’t think I could do it. I’d have them both tied up with duct tape over their mouths within an hour and they’d still figure out a way to annoy me.”

I hold my fist to my mouth to cover my grin. Ronan’s sense of humor has been absent lately, so hearing him make a jokeis refreshing. Especially since he loves Cali and Scarlet so much and would never actually do anything like that to them.

Declan grins and pulls out his phone. A second later, he looks up and smirks. “Speaking of brats. They’re in the middle of a diamond art fight. Again.”

Bash curses while Kieran shakes his head.

I squint, trying to make sense of what that means. Declan turns the screen toward me, and I get my answer. All five women are tossing tiny fake diamonds at each other and giggling hysterically the entire time. They’re making a mess. It will take forever to clean them all up. But the smile on my girl’s face, seeing her have fun, I don’t give a fuck how much of a mess it makes. If it makes her this happy, I’ll order loads of fake diamonds for her to throw around. First, though, I need to buy her a real diamond. A big fat one that she can’t say no to.

18

KATIE

Idon’t think I’ve ever felt more relieved than I do right now.I was practically on the verge of a nervous breakdown on the drive to my parents’ house, especially after I got a collection call from the insurance company again.

“This house is lovely, dear. I don’t think you need to do anything to it. I’m pretty sure I have a buyer who would be interested. He owns dozens of houses and rents themto families who can’t afford the high rent prices in the area.”