Allison
For one blissful afternoon, I wasn’t thinking about escape.
Now I can’t get it out of my head.
There are a thousand ways out of this house, but none of them would work, and I’m pretty sure Gregory would chain me up in a bedroom if I made more noise.
But more than that, I keep thinking about the truck running into our SUV, about the gunshots, the bodies, the blood. I keep seeing the death all around me, and I’m terrified of what will happen if I let Paul get anywhere near me.
Gregory throws himself back into work the next day.
I mope around the house, feeling sorry for myself. Even Orin gives me space.
At least until Keely arrives.
She breezes into the house, looking glorious, dirty-blonde hair in thick ringlets, wearing designer everything from ears to toes. “Hello, hello,” she says, kissing my cheek. “How are you, new sister?”
“Fine,” I say, trying to be polite, but I can’t let myself forget why she’s here. “Gregory sent you, huh?”
“Gregory requested my help,” she says, sounding cautious. She frowns at me, tilting her sunglasses down. “You don’t want to go back to Boston, do you?”
“No,” I admit.
She groans. “He told me you were entirely on board. I don’t know why I’m freaking surprised, that asshole.”
“Seriously? He’s unbelievable.”
“They all are.” She shakes her head as she drops her stuff in the kitchen. “Nolan’s not much better. They think they own the world because their last name is Callahan.” She pauses, leaning up against the island. “They sort of do, and I actually find it very attractive, but still.”
I laugh and she grins at me. I like Keely-she’s got great energy, and she seems genuinely kind and so unlike all the other Callahan boys. But I have to remember that she’s the enemy.
“I’m sorry, I know this is going to be awkward, but I really don’t want to go to Boston.”
She takes me by the hand and leads me to the couch. “I hear you, I really do. I don’t want to make you do something you don’t want to do. But can we talk about it?”
“I really don’t want to. No offense, you’re very nice, but we’re total strangers.”
“True.” Her lips press together. “That’s the thing with this family. We all started as strangers. Well, I guess Ash and I didn’t, but you get what I’m saying. Once you’re in, you’re in for life.”
“That wasn’t supposed to be my deal with Gregory.” I look away from her, feeling like I’m betraying something by admitting this. “We promised it wasn’t forever.”
She laughs loudly, leaning back against the pillows. “Oh, god, that’s hilarious.”
“I’m sorry, what’s so funny?”
“You really thought you weren’t signing up for life? That a Callahan man would marry you then let you go? That’s not how it works!”
I glare at her. “Is there an instruction manual on how to marry a Callahan man? Preferably one that doesn’t end with me killing him in his sleep.”
“No, but that’d be a fantastic idea. Look, okay, this is so weird, but we all pretty much have some version of your story. I think it might be an extremely specific fetish with these guys.”
“What is a fetish?”
“Marriage! I mean, making a contract marriage. Then turning it real through sheer force of sexy will.”
I hesitate, some of my anger disappearing. “That happened to you?”
“Yep. And to Ash, and to Dara. I’m betting Finn did it first then all the guys got together and were like, yo, bro, you can totally get chicks to wife up if you pretend it’s fake at first then give them amazing sex-”
“We are not-” I start, blushing bright red, which only makes Keely laugh.
“All I’m saying is, nobody’s surprised by that, okay? Gregory told you it wasn’t forever. Fine, that’s not a big deal. Turns out you’re pregnant though, and that means he’s not going to let you go anywhere, not with the precious cargo on board.”
I slump back against the pillows, feeling exhausted, a headache pressing at my temples. “What do I do?”
“You come back to Boston.” She says it gently. Not needling. Not pressuring. Just matter-of-fact. “I’m not going to force you. I only came because Gregory asked me, and because I could use a mini-vacation.”
“You might not, but he will.”
She shrugs. “I can’t control what Gregory does and doesn’t do. My plan is so hang around here, sightsee, get to know my new sister-in-law, then head home. If you come with me, that’d be amazing, and I think it would be the right decision. But I’m not here to force you.”
Somehow that makes it worse. She sounds so reasonable-so unlike Gregory-and it makes me want to trust her.
But she’s a member of that family, and I can’t let myself forget it.
“I’m staying here.” I say. “Whether Gregory likes it or not.”
“That’s your call.” She sits up straight, smiling. “But for now, what do you want to do? I’m up for anything.”
“Our options are limited considering I’m confined to the house.”
She waves that away. “Forget the rules. I have my own little contingent of bodyguards waiting outside. We’ll be fine. Show me around town.”
I take a deep breath. Gregory’s going to be pissed when he finds out that Keely ignored his decree. Which makes it worth the risk. “All right, let’s get going.”
“I promise, we’ll have some fun.” She loops her arm through mine. “Now, what’s there to do in this town, other than smoking weed?”