At first Raff had directed me to the confessional, but I shook my head and said I needed to speak to the priest somewhere else—a place where we could take my bags and I could keep them close.
Raff seemed to have a clue as to what I was up to, but instead of calling me out, the grin on his face told me he was going to keep my secret. He seemed to like the idea of me one-upping Kelly. Maybe because not many people were able to.
Two chairs were in front of a simple desk in the priest’s office. I sat in one, sighing as I did, and then glanced at the bag hanging over the second.
My heart skipped a beat and I took a deep, deep breath to try and regulate it. It was making those feathers flutter again in the pit of my stomach. My fingers drummed against the wood, and my foot had an insane urge to tap.
Five minutes went by, and right before I stood from my seat, too nervous to sit, the door opened, and an older man walked in.
“Father Flanagan?” I said, turning in my seat.
“All day,” he said. “Raff said you’d like to have a word with me.”
I stood and he stopped cold—his eyes took me in from my head to my hands. I was rubbing my palms against my jeans.
“My name is Keely Ryan,” I said, sticking my hand out. “I was told you’re a family friend of the Kelly family.”
He took my hand, but instead of shaking it, he set his free one on top of mine. “I consider Cashel Fallon and Killian Patrick as close as blood.” He paused. “Are you in some kind of trouble, Keely?”
“Trouble.” I shook my head. It would do no good to tell this man about the kind of trouble Cash Kelly was, because he probably already knew. “No, that’s not the right word for it. But I am glad you consider Cashel Fallon family. Does the branch extend to me? Since he’s chosen me for his bride?” I smiled—a cunning smile, as my Mam called it.
Father Flanagan’s eyes drifted from mine to the bag hanging over the chair, and then back to mine again. They were bright blue to go with what was probably once a head full of red hair. “Have a seat.” He nodded to the chair I’d been sitting in. “Let’s hear your plans.”
The grin he gave me matched Raff’s, and the smile that came from me this time was true.
The emerald surrounded by diamonds on my left finger reacted to the soft lights in the office. Even though it had sat on my finger since Kelly had put it there, I never took the time to admire how beautiful it was.
Maybe because admitting that to myself felt like giving in a bit.
I was having a hard time doing that on principal.
What I was about to do, though? Felt liberating.
An ounce of control made my life feel a little less chaotic, and so I gave myself permission to admire the ring for what it was. Just a ring that looked exceptionally beautiful in this light and on my finger. It was a piece of jewelry that made me feel feminine. I really hated to admit that anything Kelly did had worth, but the ring was stunning and proved that if he had actually picked it out, he had good taste.
“Of course,” I whispered to myself. “He chose you, didn’t he?”
Then I laughed at myself, because I wasn’t his choice at all. Fate. Fate riding on the wings of vengeance had chosen me to be his bride. I should’ve ended up with a man who was the opposite of Cashel Fallon Kelly. A man who worked hard to earn an honest dime. A man who was predictable and reliable. A man whose touch didn’t burn me to my core and put me at ease at the same time. A man who brought me peace, not chaos.
Even the role on Broadway shouldn’t have been mine.
Those things—the man who seemed larger than life and the role on stage—should’ve belonged to my sister. She was destined for big things. Things that Mam had said come with being a star.
So the life I was living? It felt like a big lie.
Before I could get too carried away with the poor-me line of thinking, voices met me from outside of Father Flanagan’s office. I didn’t bother getting up from my seat this