“Not exactly,” he says, throwing a quick glance over at Colin thinking I’m too coffee-deprived to catch it.
“What aren’t you telling me?” As he chews on his apple a little longer than necessary, I know nothing he’ll say next will be any good. “Shay?” When he still refuses to speak, I look at Colin for answers.
“The house is for you,” Colin explains evenly, without having me ask him outright.
“For me? Why? Does Tiernan no longer like this apartment?”
“My brother likes it just fine. He just thinks you’d be more comfortable in a larger home in Beacon Hill. Maybe closer to my folks.”
“Oh.”
That makes sense. If we’re going to give this marriage a shot and have children someday, it would be nice to have their grandparents living nearby.
“Okay. Let me just grab a quick breakfast, jump in the shower, and we can be on our way.”
Shay looks at Colin in astonishment and then back to me.
“So, you’re cool with this?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” I shrug, grabbing some tortilla chips and eggs to make huevos rancheros. “A larger home makes perfect sense to me. Especially if we’re going to start a family. This whole apartment doesn’t exactly scream baby-friendly.”
“Oh fuck, beautiful. You are fucking breaking my heart over here,” Shay states looking pained.
“I don’t understand.”
Shay walks around the island and places his hands over my shoulders, giving them a little squeeze.
“We’re going shopping for a house for you. Not for you and my brother. And it’s sure as shit not for you, my brother, and all the nonexistent babies you think you’ll have with him.”
“What?” I croak. “I don’t understand. What are you saying?”
“I’m saying my brother has done his duty. And now he’s going to put you back in his toy chest because he’s done playing with you.”
Done playing with me?
Playing with me?!
“Where is he? Where is Tiernan right now?!” I seethe at Shay, but when his eyes widen, shocked that I’ve yelled, I turn to the one man in this kitchen who always seems to have his wits about him.
“Colin? Where is my husband at this very minute?”
“He’s at the gym.” He doesn’t even hesitate.
“Thank you. I’ll be ready in five minutes.”
“Hey, hold up. Hold up,” Shay tries to calm me down, firmly grabbing my shoulders this time. “Just exactly what do you think you are going to do when you see him? What do you think you’ll possibly gain by confronting my brother like a banshee off the rails?”
I think on that question for a moment, take it in, and really dissect it.
The answer comes to me just as easily as the sun rises every morning.
“Freedom.”
Shay steps back, puzzled by my response, and I use his bewilderment to my advantage, bypassing him and running to my room in a dash.
“Five minutes, Colin. Then I want you to take me to my husband. He has a lot of explaining to do.”
And by God, I’ll make him pay if it’s the last thing I do.
Not a half-hour later, we arrive at an old gym that looks to be on its last leg. I would have assumed Tiernan would prefer to use the personal gym provided to him back at The Avalon, but apparently he likes to get his sweat on in a gym that looks days away from being called a demolition site. With Colin and Shay at my heel, I strut with purpose through the gym’s doors, ignoring all the catcalls and whistles I get just for being the only woman here.
Men are pigs.
No way around it.
My eyes scan the seedy gym until they land on the man I came looking for. In black shorts and nothing else, Tiernan is inside a boxing ring, throwing punches at a guy twice his size. If I had any doubts that my husband had more arrogance than good sense, then this little show he’s putting on is my answer. Every swing his opponent makes is a direct hit to his chest. I cringe inwardly at the loud sound of each punch, thinking for sure he’ll have more than a few busted ribs before the fight ends. It’s only when his boxing opponent sees me standing by the ropes, that the man halts his jabs and gives my husband a little reprieve from getting his ass kicked.
“Give me two seconds to finish him off, baby. Then you can finish me off in the locker room.”
Like I said.
Men are pigs.
But before I have the opportunity to tell him where to shove it, Tiernan’s gaze lands on me, and he realizes who the ill-formed pick-up line was intended for. It all happens so fast after that. Tiernan swings his arm back and sucker punches his opponent so hard under his jaw that the over two-hundred-something pound behemoth falls flat on the mat, knocked out and probably in need of medical assistance. Tiernan doesn’t even flinch at the comatose body lying at his feet, using his teeth to tug his boxing gloves off, staring daggers in my direction.