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“I am, but the randy old bugger is not my concern.”

  “What about Maggie Riley?”

  “Maggie?”

  “Aye, the woman you were just hugging. You seem very close.”

  Clara grinned, showing a lot of gum and few dark pegs that might have been teeth back in the day. “Because the whore that has Declan is Maud Donnelly. Maybe I should punish Maggie for Maud running off with my man. Perhaps the old slut will come back to visit her great niece in the hospital when I break her legs, or better yet, the morgue when I put a bullet between her eyes.”

  The blood rushed from Michael’s head and he hung onto the bar so he could stay upright. Oh God, he’d got Maggie in more trouble. Why the fuck had he hired Declan to deliver booze to Male Review. Maud was part fucking owner and the woman was a sex fiend. Declan never could say no to a free poke, but running off with the old lady was beyond stupid. Clara would have his balls. Somehow he had to fix this. He glanced at Clara who still had the hideous grin on her face. And he needed to get Maggie out of town until it all blew over just in case Clara decided not to wait for Declan to come back of his own free will.

  “Why would you go after Maggie? Your problems are your own and nothing to do with her. Maud does as she wants.”

  Clara patted his arm. “I always liked you, Michael, even though you won’t keep your dick in your pants for more than five minutes, but sometimes you’re plain stupid. That piece of shite who has my Declan was living with your new friend, so I figure she must have helped them plan their escape. Now that we have that all straightened out I’m sure you’ll be bringing my Declan back.”

  “What if I refuse and go to the cops?”

  She tugged a gun from her handbag. “Do you really want to risk Maggie’s life by doing something so stupid? Even if they lock me up, I have friends, good friends.”

  Michael was lost for words. The woman was crazy. He had no fucking choice. Maggie would never believe him, and while the cops investigated she would be in danger. Besides, Michael had no evidence that Clara planned to do anything, and his reputation with the cops was not as good as it could be. “What if I do bring him back?”

  She chuckled. “Then I teach him a lesson he won’t forget in a while.”

  “And Maggie?”

  “Maggie will be safe. Well, at least from me if not from the likes of you.” She cackled as she climbed off the stool and swayed toward the door. “You might want to start your search in Dublin. That’s where the bugger flew to.”

  Michael tucked the receipt for three plane tickets to Dublin via London in his inside pocket. He’d considered buying two, but he was sure Maggie would go nowhere without Sam for protection.

  He climbed into his Porsche and pulled his phone out. There was a lot to organize before they flew out Monday, not least of which was getting Maggie to agree to travel with him. She’d be safe in Ireland away from Clara, and she could talk some sense into her crazy great aunt. If he was to convince her he needed some backup, he knew who would persuade Maggie no matter how much she protested.

  Once the number was keyed in he hit call and held the phone to his ear. It rang five times and he began to wonder if he would have been better to visit, although the thought gave him the shivers.

  A breathless male answered, “Hello.”

  “Mr. Riley. It’s Michael Monaghan.”

  “How are you, son, and please call me Robert”

  “I’m fine, Robert.”

  “Good, good. I’ve been meaning to come and thank you for your help getting Vivienne to come home.”

  “No need. You did most of it by yourself. So, how is Mrs. Riley?”

  “She’s great, son. Just great.”

  “Would it be possible for me to have a word with her?”

  “You want to talk to Vivienne?” Michael could hear the incredulous tone in Robert’s voice. He didn’t want to talk to Mrs. Riley but he had no choice.

  “Aye. If she’s not too busy.”

  “Just a minute son.”

  He could hear voices in the background and he took a deep breath, bracing himself.

  “Hello.” Mrs. Riley had her best phone voice on.

  “Mrs. Riley, it’s Michael Monaghan.”

  “So Robert tells me. What can I do for you, Mr. Monaghan?”

  “It’s about Maggie.”

  “My Maggie?” He held the phone from his ear and waited as she yelled, “Robert, he wants to talk about Maggie. You don’t think she would take up with the likes of him, do you? Okay, I’ll ask him… You’re not planning to do anything unseemly with her, are you? Do tell me she hasn’t decided to become a dancer. Oh God, she has, hasn’t she. She’s getting naked for money.”

  Michael couldn’t keep the grin from his face as he imagined Mr. Riley patting his wife’s hand as she all but passed out. It would be fun to play her along but he needed her help, so best get to the point. “No. Maggie’s fine, she’s just working the bar like before. But I need her help. I just found out that your Aunt Maud has run off to Ireland with my Uncle Declan.”

  “What? Maud and some man. Oh God, why? He must have kidnapped her. She’s such a sweet old lady. What does Maggie have to do with it?”

  Michael chuckled. Maud was a nymphomaniac that never needed to be persuaded to do anything by a man, but Mrs. Riley liked to pretend otherwise.

  “The problem is my Aunt Clara would like her man back and has asked me to go and fetch him. I’m not sure Maud will listen to me so I thought it would be good if Maggie came along.”

  “To Ireland with you?”

  “And Sam. I’m sure Sam will be happy to come along and protect her virtue.”

  Mrs. Riley snorted. “I think he took her virtue already. Nice young man but he really should be making more of a commitment before stealing a girl’s virtue.”

  Maggie might have lost her virtue, but from what he had seen it had been freely offered not stolen. “Will you talk to Maggie?”

  “I could come instead. Maud respects me.”

  Michael’s heart felt like it dropped to his stomach. He hadn’t even anticipated Mrs. Riley wanting to go in Maggie’s place. “It’s a long way and you’ve only just reconciled with Robert. I’m sure he would rather you stay at home.”

  He waited as Mrs. Riley had a discussion with her husband. Thank God the man was encouraging her to send Maggie. Michael had done some bad shite but nothing that deserved having Mrs. Riley on his case twenty-four/seven until he got Maud and Declan back. If she agreed to help with Maggie, he would go to church and offer up a prayer of thanks, and maybe even confess his sins, although that might be going too far.

  Mrs. Riley sighed loudly. “I do worry that Maud is being led astray and she is quite frail. Robert thinks it’s a good idea. I can’t leave my bowl’s ladies without a leader for our annual cream tea jamboree on Wednesday, and I do find flying so stressful. When do you plan to leave?”

  “I’ve got plane tickets for Monday. I’m going to go and speak to Maggie now. Maybe you could call her and let her know your thoughts.”

  “And you promise that Maud and Maggie will come back safe and sound?”

  “I give you my word.”

  She snorted. “Such as it is. All right, we’ll go over and speak to her later this afternoon.”

  Michael thanked her and hit end call. He gunned the car’s engine to life and sped away from the curb. Now he just had to persuade Maggie. This would be a test of her forgiveness.

  Chapter 11

  Sam couldn’t believe Meg had agreed to travel to Ireland with Michael. Not that she had much choice and neither did he. No way would he let the sleazy Irish git anywhere near Meg, never mind traveling halfway across the world without a chaperone for protection.

  Meg wriggled and Sam growled. “Keep still.”

  She pulled free and scrambled to her feet. So far his attempts to undress her had failed. He had only managed to remove her shoes. Even if she wasn’t interested in sex she sure as hell should be interested in a decent nig
ht’s sleep in a comfy bed. The sun was just starting to set but he was worn out. She’d only got a couple of hours sleep on the twenty-seven-hour journey from their home in Sydney and had barely dozed in the taxi from Heathrow. She’d been like a zombie while they booked into the hotel suite and he’d had to carry her upstairs. Because she was sparked out he decided to put her to bed.

  The minute he’d tugged at her shoes she’d leapt to attention, and now she refused to undress herself, never mind let him help. Maybe exhaustion had pushed her over the edge. She was known to get a little overwrought on occasion. And no one could blame her. He’d be prone to mental lapses if he had a nymphomaniac great aunt like Maud and a prude like Vivienne for a mother.

  Too tired to play games, he sat on the edge of the bed and tugged off his boots and socks. She’d get fed up eventually and undress herself.

  “What are you doing?”

  Sam glanced over his shoulder. She stood in the middle of the huge four-poster bed, completely swamped by the black leather coat Michael had lent her to keep warm. The huge garment highlighted her pale skin and long, dark curly hair, giving her an air of fragility.

  The Irish git was always trying to ingratiate himself with Meg, who he insisted on calling Maggie. With his thick brogue the name sounded seductive even to Sam. The moron made Sam’s blood boil and there was nothing he would like more than to punish the guy. Michael had been responsible for getting Meg arrested. She’d only gone along with her friend Laura’s stupid male escort business because she was out of work. She sure as hell never planned to become Michael’s pimp. He had a lot of work to do to even get her to like him but it seemed he was not deterred.

  When Meg’s parents had turned up and offered to help Meg with money if she would travel to Ireland, Sam had wondered if Michael had convinced Meg’s mother the old lady needed to be rescued. Maud had clearly run off with Michael’s uncle of her own accord and was old enough to make her own decisions and her own mistakes. Not only did the situation allow Michael to appear to be a knight in shining amour by offering to fly to Ireland and drag the crazy old lady home, but he’d wanted Meg to travel with him. No doubt Sam tagging along had put a crimp in his plans. Sam had fought hard to win Meg, and Michael was dreaming if he thought she would walk away from the love they shared for a quick shag with a sleazy male stripper.

  Sam smiled at her. “I’m getting naked.”

  “Don’t.” She held her hands out. “Please don’t.”

  Sam chuckled. “Afraid you won’t be able to resist?”

  “Yes… No… It’s just… I think I’ll keep my clothes on.”

  He threw his jacket on a chair and tugged his shirt and sweater over his head. “You need to sleep. Why don’t you get undressed? You’ll be more comfortable.”

  When he reached out to grab her leg she shook her head and backed away. With a yell, she lost her balance, windmilled her arms and then toppled off the edge of the mattress. She landed on the floor with a thump.

  “Christ. Meg.” Scooting around the bed, he discovered she was already pulling herself to her feet using the deep red duvet for support. He dragged her into his arms and ran his hands over her head, feeling for bumps before checking her for signs of concussion. She had black smudges under her dark blue eyes so perhaps it was exhaustion rather than the bang on the head that made her pupils so damn big. “Are you okay? Anything broken?”

  “I’m fine.” She wiggled free and moved across the room so the bed was between them.

  “Did I do or say something to upset you? Meg, what the hell is going on?”

  “I think we should go out. Sightseeing. I would love to see the thing. The palace thing … or … or what about that place with the wax people … the celebrity ones … just the two of us … alone. We don’t have long in London so why waste time sleeping?”

  Arms folded, he watched as she glanced nervously at the door that connected their room to the sitting room where Michael was supposed to be sleeping. If Sam had his way they would have a room of their own as far away from Michael as they could get, but the hotel was fully booked. Fortunately, Michael’s cousin Manny was the assistant manager and had done them a deal on the honeymoon suite. Michael had agreed to take the sofa bed and let them have the bedroom to themselves.

  “Is it Michael? Did he do something?”

  Meg shook her head as she rubbed at her neck and moaned softly in pain. “No. It’s just… It’s stupid.” She collapsed on the bed and a tear trickled down her cheek. “I’m stupid.”

  Hands balled into fists, Sam stood his ground, too afraid to move in case his temper made him overreact. He would love to smack the annoying shit but they had to travel together. The Irish bastard had better not have touched her. He still hadn’t forgiven him for dropping his trousers in their kitchen when he claimed he thought Meg was interviewing him for a position as a male escort, or for spying on him and Meg having sex.

  Sam was happy to admit convincing Meg to indulge him in his BDSM fantasy after-hours at Male Review, the male strip club partly owned by Maud and managed by Michael, hadn’t been his greatest moment. He’d never imagined the sleazy git would turn up and hide in the shadows until they were done, or that he would take great delight in continually mentioning it, much to Meg’s embarrassment. “What the hell is it? You’ve got no idea the things I’m imagining he did. Do you want me to punch him?” Meg hiccupped as her tears turned to laughter. Oh God, don’t let her get hysterical. He was too tired to deal with hysterical.

  “I’m worried he might sneak in and watch us again.”

  “What?” God he loved her, but some days she made no damn sense. They weren’t even having sex.

  “I think he gets off on watching us.”

  Sam blew out a breath, relieved it was paranoia and not something Michael had done that apparently had her skipping along the edge of sanity. Not that she didn’t have a point. The man clearly had a penchant for voyeurism, but regardless of what Michael did or didn’t plan to do, Meg needed to sleep. “Give me a minute.”

  Before she had a chance to respond he crossed the room and opened the door. Michael stood in the middle of the lounge tugging a long-sleeved white T-shirt down over his damp chest. Sam would kill for a hot shower and a change of clothes but that wasn’t going to happen as long as Meg was freaking out.

  Michael stopped dressing. “Sam? To what do I owe the pleasure? You do know it’s customary to knock. I’d hate you to catch me naked, well, not unless you paid first. I don’t give strip shows for free, unlike some people.”

  The shit-eating grin on Michael’s face made Sam stop dead before he followed through on the urge to throttle him. The man would love an opportunity to claim Sam had started a fight.

  “You’re such a smart-arse. You’re the only one who likes to get naked for strangers. Meg and I don’t deliberately set out to titillate you, and if spying on other people having sex is the only way you can get your rocks off you’re a sicker bastard than I ever imagined.”

  “Are you done? Feel better? Now did you want something, other than to take out your sexual frustration on me?” Michael glanced at his watch. “By my reckoning it must be over thirty hours since you and Maggie got all hot and bothered, unless you snuck one in on the plane when I wasn’t watching. No wonder you’re tense.”

  “Fuck off.”

  Michael chuckled. “If that’s an invitation to join in I’d be happy to, but just in case you’re confused, I’m not interested in men.”

  Sam took a deep breath. Why did he let the man needle him? He didn’t think Meg’s nerves could take being witness to a full on brawl, but Michael was going to get his one day soon. Right now his priority was doing whatever it took to get his sweetheart to go to sleep. “How much do I have to pay you to get lost for a while?”

  Michael stopped tucking his shirt into his black leather pants and looked at him, one eyebrow raised. “Depends how long you want to lose me for.”

  “Couple of hours. Until I persuade Meg to go
to bed.”

  “So, it is sex, then.”

  “No, she won’t get undressed and go to bed because she thinks you plan to spy on her.” Sam clenched his fists and barely held back a growl of anger.

  “If you say so. How about we call it a hundred pounds and I’ll get lost all night?”

  Sam took his wallet out of his back pocket and tugged out some notes. “How about we call it forty and you can be home before midnight?”

  “Afraid I’ll turn into a pumpkin? I didn’t know you cared.”

  “No, I’m afraid you’ll forget to come back at all. If you hook up with some poor hapless female and miss the flight to Dublin we’ll never find Maud, and this nightmare will continue indefinitely. The sooner this is over and we go our separate ways, the better.”

  “Agreed.” Michael took the cash and shoved it into his pocket just as the door to the corridor swung open. Michael’s cousin Manny stepped inside.

  “Well, look at ya. All spruced up and ready to go at last.”

  Sam looked from Michael to Manny and back again. “You planned to go out all along? I thought you took a shower and changed because you stink. Give me my money back.”

  Michael patted Sam on the shoulder as he walked toward the bedroom. “Should have asked but a deal’s a deal.”

  “Where are you going?”

  Michael shoved the door open, and Meg leapt back into the middle of the bed. “See, he is spying on us.”

  “I want my coat, darlin’, and then I’ll be out of your hair and you can knock yourselves out.”

  “Your coat?”

  “The one I lent you in the taxi because you were freezing your pretty little arse off.” She looked down before shrugging out of the fleece-lined black leather coat. Once she’d climbed off the bed she held it at arm’s length.

  Michael took it off her. “Hmm, it’s still warm and smells of your perfume. I’ll be thinking of you.” With a chuckle he slipped it on.

  Once Manny and Michael had left, Sam crossed the room and slid the lock shut tight before turning to Meg. “Now, will you please get undressed?”