Page 122 of Twilight Tides
My husband was gentle and loving as he washed my body with his shower gel, his large hands moving over my breasts, caressing as he cleaned. By the time he’d washed between my thighs, I was a panting, needy thing all over again.
Murray obliged, lowering to his knees to take me with his mouth and hands.
I felt worshiped andessentialin a way I’d never imagined I’d ever feel.
Everything we’d dealt with for the past few months, years even, floated away, abandoned for now. There was nothing but me and this beautiful man.
It would go down in history as one of the best mornings of my entire existence.
47.Murray
Everyone felt the spirit of the fèis, just like we did every year the Glenvulin Fair fell on a sunny day. The sound of laughter and conversation filled the field as crowds of islanders, visitors, and tourists alike moved through the festivities. Kelly stood by a milkshake bar with Anna and Lucas, and even as London and I strolled from stall to stall, I kept an eye on my daughter.
A month had passed since the operation to take down the Walshes. The brothers were remanded into custody and not a week had passed since their arrival in prison when the eldest brother was killed by another inmate before he could even be sentenced. Davis informed me the younger brother, Dorian, was a follower, not the leader, and he was willing to take down people who had worked with them in exchange for a lighter sentence.
Siobhan Cosway’s group of thugs were a very small organization who were attempting to set themselves up as a matter of importance in Dublin. The bloke who’d shot Davis was taken down by the Gardai that day at the port. The others, according to Davis, were shitting themselves because Dublin’s largest criminal organization was furious Siobhan tried to take apiece of the drug business for herself without their permission. They were too concerned watching their backs to have time to exact revenge.
There would be no court case for anyone because the evidence was so overwhelming. All Fraser and I had to do was make a written statement, testifying against Joshua Hughes and the Walsh brothers.
Davis was certain there was no more danger for my family, but DI Smith had mentioned Hughes had made threats against me during his arrest.
Therefore, I couldn’t quite settle, even weeks later.
Especially as Nick Huston had once more escaped their clutches.
The feds had tracked him to the South of France and the fucker managed to get awayagain.
I wondered if one day I’d ever be able to live my life with my family without looking over my shoulder all the time.
Even as on edge as I was, I wanted to be present and enjoy our time together. As per usual, while we wandered through the fair, my phone vibrated constantly with emails, texts, and calls about work. Finally, I reached into my pocket to switch it off.
“There’s Nee and Cammie.” London tugged on my hand.
Sure enough, our friends stood near the pigpen where pig farmers from all over the islands put forth their prize sows.
Forde and Ramsay stood off to the side, drinking what looked like Gilly McCook’s “famous” shandies. Every fair, and during the Highland Games, Gilly, an elderly islander born and raised here, opened her shandy stall. No one knew exactly what was in it, but her shandies were delicious and light on the alcohol. You could have a few and never feel drunk. Sometimes I wondered if there was beer in it at all.
Nee and Cammie chatted with Aodhan, who seemed to be enjoying the female attention. Shakespeare stood vigilant atAodhan’s side, staring determinedly ahead at nothing. Then I saw Akiva lying down at Ramsay’s feet, side-eyeing the mastiff, and I realized Shakespeare was hilariously trying to avoid Akiva’s gaze.
I squeezed London’s hand. “Go. I’ll catch up with the boys.”
My wife threw me a dazzling smile before she hurried over to her friends. The sky was a clear blue today, a perfect day for the fair, but the ground beneath us was still muddy and slushy from all the rain we’d endured before the event. My wellies squelched as I made my way over to Forde and Ramsay.
“All right.” I nodded. “Have you noticed Shakespeare?”
Ramsay’s lips quirked ever so slightly. “I have. He knows who’s boss. Nothing wrong with that.”
I chuckled as I glanced back through the crowds to check on Kelly again. She thankfully remained with her friends at the milkshake stall.
“Still can’t relax?” Ramsay asked. I’d call it his usual perceptiveness, but everyone knew I was on alert. I’d refused to participate in any of the pipe band’s gigs this summer and had turned down doing a gig here at the fair. There was no way I was leaving Kelly and London alone, and I didn’t want to be distracted with music in a big crowd like this where anything could happen.
I shook my head. “I’d feel better if we knew where Huston was.”
His expression turned grim. “Aye, I know. Working on it.”
I didn’t push because he had his own priorities, including his pregnant wife and the house he was building for her on Stòr. “Where are Quinn and Taran?”
“At the house site.” Ramsay grimaced. “We had a slight issue with the window size. Quinn said he’d deal with it because Taran couldn’t make it to the fair, anyway. She’s got a dress fitting in Glasgow with Heather.”
