Saving a Legend: A Kavanagh Legends Novel (20 page)

“But just because it’s fast doesn’t mean it’s not right, Fi. I’ve spent the last few years living a life of no choices, no responsibilities, no freedom. Then I came home, and I’m here with you, and you’re my choice. You’re what I want, Fiona, and I don’t need time to know that.”

A faint smile tilted up the corner of her lips as her heart beamed at his sentiment. “Really?”

“Really,” he promised, brushing his lips over hers before kissing her softly. He dropped his head back onto the pillow and curved an arm around her.

Fiona found herself wondering what he meant by a life of no choices, of not being home. She’d been distracted by the sweetness of his words, she’d missed everything else. Not wanting to ruin the afterglow of their lovemaking and the way his arms felt around her, she decided to wait to ask another day. Instead, she was going to give herself the break she needed, so she let her eyes flutter closed as she draped an arm over his chest.

—

“Since when are these things optional?” Kieran asked his mom as they stood in his parents’ kitchen with Rory and Quinn.

“Sunday dinners are not optional, but Jimmy’s stuck at work,” Dee countered, tossing a salad in a large decorative bowl.

“It was optional for you for two years.” Rory grinned at Kieran, prodding him with his elbow before dropping his hand back down to pet Ace’s head. The two were literally never apart.

“Shut up,” Kieran replied with a harder prod to Rory’s ribs.

“Maybe I should become a cop. Then I can use the work excuse on a Sunday, too,” Quinn chimed in, picking a grape tomato out of the salad bowl and popping it in his mouth. Dee smacked his hand away.

“Yeah, right,” Rory and Kieran said in unison.

“What? You don’t think I can be a cop? Jimmy’s younger than all of us, and he made it through academy,” Quinn postured, standing defensively with his hands on his hips.

Kieran laughed. “Because he’s straight-laced, a rule follower, and kind of a stick in the mud. You’re covered in so many piercings and tattoos that a bad guy would only need a magnet to beat you.”

Rory and Dee both joined in laughing as Quinn rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. He’d gotten even more tattoos since Kieran had been gone, his arms now completely covered by tattoo sleeves. A few crept up his neck, and Kieran figured there were more on his chest and back, although he hadn’t personally checked and wasn’t planning to.

“What’s so funny?” Seamus walked into the room and kissed Dee on her temple, hugging her sideways as he, too, reached into the salad and stole a tomato.

“Quinn wants to be a cop.” Dee tried to conceal the smirk on her face. She was never one to cut her kids down, always telling them that they could do whatever they wanted. However, Kieran could tell that the thought of Quinn as a cop was a little hard even for her to wrap her head around.

“Ace has a better chance of making K-9 than Quinn does of making cop.” Seamus nodded to his son’s big black-and-white dog.

“Ace would make a kickass K-9.” Quinn dropped his tough stance and laughed in agreement.

Kieran admired him for that, his ability to take everything in stride. He was always lighthearted, easy to please. It was one of the reasons he did so well managing Legends with their dad: his customer service skills were the best. He enjoyed the business aspect of it more than the fighting, although he did have some wicked moves in the ring.

“I can hear you fools laughing from upstairs.” Casey walked into the room with Clare trailing behind her.

“Hey, Case.” Rory hugged Casey tightly, kissing the top of her head before finding his way to Clare.

Kieran envied Casey and Rory’s closeness, even though he was probably the second closest to her after him. Casey was like a little sister to them, and she was easily the favorite. All the brothers, himself included, wanted nothing more than to shield her from every bad thing in the world, especially after everything she’d been through.

“K, good to see you at these. I’ve missed you!” Casey smiled at him, hugging him next as Clare and Rory wrapped an arm around each other, looking happier together than he’d ever felt alone.

“I was here last week, Case.”

“I know, it’s just nice seeing you around again.” She moved on to hug Quinn.

“I found some stragglers!” Kane announced, suddenly appearing in the kitchen and bringing Fiona and Shea along with him. Both hovered in the entryway, not fully committing. Kieran smiled when he saw Fiona and immediately walked over to usher them in.

Hellos and greetings echoed around the room as everyone welcomed his girls. He winked at Fiona but spoke to Shea first, kneeling down to be at her level and then pointing around the room. “Shea, this is my brother Rory and his girlfriend, Clare,” Kieran told the little girl, pointing to his burly brother and Rory’s miniature blond girlfriend.

“Hi, Shea, it’s great to meet you!” Clare squatted down to shake her hand. Shea just looked at her hand but didn’t take it. “That’s okay, we don’t have to shake.”

“How about a wave?” Rory joined them lower to the ground and gave Shea a small wave. Shea smiled, liking that, and waved back to them both. “Oh, and this is our dog, Ace. You can pet him if you want.”

Rory motioned for Ace to come over from where he was sitting comfortably at Dee’s feet. The dog stood and plodded over to them, pushing his nose up against Shea’s hand. She giggled and pulled back, but the dog insisted, so she finally petted him gently. The look on Ace’s face said he’d made a new friend for life.

“And this is my brother Quinn.” Kieran pointed next to the heavily marked man. Shea’s eyes widened as he leaned down and waved at her. She shrank away from him and stepped back into Fiona’s legs. Fiona put a hand on each of her shoulders to comfort her.

“It’s okay, Shea. He’s nice, I promise,” Fiona told her assuredly.

“I am, I swear.” Quinn sported a look of guilt, as he could see his piercings and tattoos had frightened the young child. “It’s just a little decoration, that’s all.”

“You look like a robot,” Shea finally spoke, narrowing her eyes at him, still unconvinced. Kieran burst out laughing, and so did everyone around listening in.

“Do you like robots?” Quinn asked her, completely undeterred, a big smile still on his face. Shea nodded yes. “Then maybe I’ll be a robot.”

“Is it time for dinner yet?” Kieran interrupted. Too much attention might unsettle Shea—and Fiona.

Fiona shot him a grateful smile, and he knew she was still nervous about being around everyone. Standing, he wrapped an arm around her and hoped tonight would go well. He was more than a little nervous that someone in his family would say something about his prison time before he had a chance to tell Fiona himself. His family tended to be very positive thinkers, not wanting to dwell on the past, so he was hoping this would pay off tonight.

It was a risky move, for sure, but he planned on telling Fiona about it this week, although not in front of Shea. It was hard finding time when the young girl wasn’t with them. Not that he minded, because he already adored Shea, but a conversation about his past wasn’t appropriate for a child’s ears. And anyway, he was having a hard time figuring out how to broach the topic.

“Just a few minutes ’til the food is ready,” Dee said. “Why don’t you bring this salad out to the dining room table, Shea?”

Dee handed the big bowl to Shea, who took her task very seriously and walked out of the room. Ace stuck like glue to Shea’s side, almost at eye level with the small child. Kieran thought he even heard Shea whispering to the dog, and the sight warmed his heart.

“And everyone, this is Fiona, Shea’s big sister and
my
woman,” Kieran introduced her proudly. Fiona blushed but gave the small crowd a wave.

“I’m Clare, I’ve heard so much about you.” The petite blonde stepped forward and gave Fiona a hug. Kieran let go of her just enough to let others hug her. “And this is Kieran’s oldest brother Rory.”

Rory hugged her as well, smiling. “I’m also his boss.”

“Oh, that’s right, he told me,” Fiona said with a nod.

“Temporarily,” Kieran quickly added.

“I’m Quinn, the family robot.” Quinn took a turn hugging her next, and Fiona laughed heartily at his joke.

“You already know my parents and Casey, since you’re staying here, of course.” Kieran motioned to them. “And I guess you’ve met Kane before, too.”

“Yup, I think I’ve met everyone, but I’m probably going to mix up some of your names. This is a big family.” Fiona slid an arm around Kieran’s waist, as if in need of a base to hold on to.

“Everyone but Jimmy, my youngest son. He’s working today. Maybe next week.” Dee lined up several dishes on the counter that were ready to go for dinner. “How about everyone help Shea and start bringing stuff out to the table now?”

“Sure thing, Ma,” Quinn said, grabbing a basket of rolls and heading for the table, sampling one on the way.

“Oh, Fiona, will you take this plate out for Shea?” He saw his mother hand a simple plate to Fiona that had carefully laid out rows of chicken nuggets and carrots.

Fiona looked up at Dee with tears in her eyes, nodding. “Thank you.”

“Oh, honey.” Dee smiled, cupping her cheek. Kieran watched the exchange between them and couldn’t help feeling as if something big had just happened, like Fiona had become part of the family before his very eyes. He wasn’t entirely sure what the interaction was, but he smiled at the thought of Fiona being a Kavanagh.

I really am moving fast,
he thought. Yet still, it didn’t frighten him in the least.

Finally, the group dispersed, taking dishes into the dining room and setting the table. Five minutes later, everyone was seated, grace had been said, and plates were piled high with Dee’s famous home cooking.

Kieran looked around the table, taking in all the smiling, chatting faces of everyone he loved. Dee and Fiona were talking about flowers to his right and Shea was to his left asking Quinn about world domination by robots. Shea was also rhythmically petting Ace, whose head was sticking up next to her chair. Kane and Rory were discussing fight techniques, and Clare was asking Casey about her date last night.

It was pretty much an average Sunday dinner with his family, with the addition of Fiona and Shea. He was proud of his family for accepting them so easily, not only at dinner but in their home and their lives. As he watched all of them and ate his mother’s delicious food, he was hit with another realization—he was an idiot. A complete idiot.

He’d wasted two years in prison, missing these exact moments together, missing these meals, and all because he had liked the allure of nonregulation street fighting. All because he’d liked making up his own rules, and still breaking them. The women, the drugs, the violence that came along with the underground sport, were intoxicating and fun. But they were nothing compared to what he had given up: two years with people who loved him, with people who accepted him for who he was.

He’d traded in love and family for a tiny cell and iron bars.

Shaking his head, he took a bite from his roll and vowed to himself that he was never going to take love for granted. In fact, he was going to surround himself with it as much as possible.

Starting with Fiona.

“Kieran, you look like you’re lost in another world.” Clare smiled at him from across the table.

“Oh, sorry, guess I was. What’s new with you, Clare?” he asked.

Clare shrugged and stabbed a piece of broccoli on her plate with her fork. “Nothing, we’re getting ready for the clinic grand opening next week. You’ll be there, right?”

He nodded, cutting off a slice of butter from the butter dish and spreading it over his roll. “Yeah, and then I’ll be looking for a job the next day since the construction will be done.”

“What about working at Legends?” she said, lowering her voice to keep his father from overhearing, but Seamus was deep in conversation with Dee and not paying attention to them anyway.

Kieran wasn’t sure that door was open for him anymore. His father still didn’t trust him, and rightfully so.

“Maybe…I don’t know. Is the grand opening going to be black tie?” he asked, changing the subject and taking a bite of the buttery roll.

“Yep, it’s an official gala. There will be press and catering and all kinds of fancy things like that. Rory wanted to go all out.” Clare squeezed his brother’s hand, speaking in a normal volume once more, before popping another piece of broccoli into her mouth.

Rory returned her smile with such adoration, Kieran could feel it radiating between them. Before Kieran had gone to prison, Rory had been at the top of his career as a fighter, happier than he’d ever seen him but always alone. Then he’d had his accident and his career had ended, all while Kieran was behind bars. From what he’d heard from family members, it had gotten pretty ugly. Not even the best times in their lives—before prison and broken knees—compared with the expression on his brother’s face right now, though.

Kieran found himself envying the connection between Rory and Clare, watching the soft gazes pass between them and their affectionate touches, and he hoped Fiona would one day open up enough to let them enjoy the same type of connection.

“So what happens after the gala? You’ll run the place as a vet?” Kieran asked, swallowing the last of his roll.

“Not yet. Dr. Prentiss will be the main vet, and I’ll be working alongside him as I learn. I finish my bachelor’s degree this summer. Thankfully, it didn’t take me as long as most since I had some credits already and was able to take an expedited program. Then I’ll start at a vet program in the fall outside of the city—definitely not looking forward to that commute!” She was animated as she talked about her future. “I won’t be official for a few more years, but I can’t wait.”

He envied her excitement. He had no idea what he wanted to do with his life. He’d been on the path to be a fighter, but he had never found it all that fulfilling. He enjoyed the action itself, but the championships, the matches, the titles—all of those things seemed pointless. Just racking up wins to be the best? He didn’t really want that. He wanted something more, work that was centered on something other than himself.