Free Conned by Jessica Wilde

that she had obviously held back over the years. Liam
commented that Lucas was partly responsible for bringing that out in her, but
the man had argued that it was all Ash. She had just needed a reason to let it
out.
    After dessert, Lucas and Ash sat around the table with
Conall, chatting about wedding plans and Gus immediately went into the office
to catch the game. Whatever game that was. She spent the rest of the evening
chatting with Liam about his days as a captain in the police force until Ash
and Lucas said their goodbyes and headed home with their arms wrapped around
each other.
    Gus had appeared briefly to say goodbye and give his sister
a hug and sent Lucas off with a glare. When she asked what his problem was he
simply replied with, "She's my sister and I'm still getting used to
letting her go."
    Instead of feeling the usual disappointment in her own
brother for not being that way, she decided to hold onto the hope that after
this was all over, Rayce would give them a chance. Their parents hadn't been
loving and they spent most of their days and nights partying while she took
care of Rayce and helped him with his homework. She never wanted Rayce to
wonder if he was loved, because he was . She showed him every single day;
tried to keep their family together, even if it was just the two of them.
    Emily had expected to toss and turn that night. Rayce was in
the forefront of her mind and after getting to know Conall's family, she was a
little more reluctant to go through with everything. They seemed to trust her.
She didn't want to see the disappointment on their faces if they ever
discovered the truth.
    She was so distracted with her thoughts that she nearly
collided with Liam on her way to the stairs.
    "Whoa, careful, my dear."
    She felt her cheeks flush and smoothed out her hair,
"Sorry."
    "Nothing to be sorry about, you looked a little
distracted," he pointed out.
    It was then that she noticed a thicker Irish brogue in his
words. "How long have you been in America?"
    He smiled, flashing his white teeth and making his blue eyes
twinkle. "Oh, it's been a long time now. Why do you ask?"
    "I can hear a little accent every so often when you
speak. I wasn't sure about it last night, but… it's a little thicker now."
    "Ah, yes. I've been up for a while now and I was just
going to lie down. My children tell me it thickens when I'm tired or upset
about something. I don't even realize that I let it out. My Isabelle never
wanted me to lose it, but when she passed, I didn't hold onto it much
anymore."
    "Oh, I'm so sorry," she said quietly. She hadn't
meant to bring up his late wife. She could tell at dinner that the woman was
still very much missed, as she should be. She raised a wonderful family.
    "It's alright, my dear. It's not as if I could forget
her, she's on my mind every minute of the day. It's good to remember her with
someone else."
    She wished she could say as much for her parents, but that
would never be the case. The day they died had almost been a relief to Emily
and she had felt awful thinking that way.
    They were gone for two days, out on one of their drinking
binges, before she got the call that they had caused a car accident that had
almost taken the life of a baby. She'd been so angry at the time, but Rayce
needed her. She was strong for him and never brought them up in any negative
way over the years.
    "I'm beat. I will see you later this afternoon. Conall
is outside in case you were wonderin'."
    "Thank you," she blinked up at him.
    He nodded his head with a smile that crinkled the skin
around his eyes and stepped inside his room. She immediately headed for the
kitchen, sure to find someone in there that could distract her for the morning.
Ash may live with Lucas, but she did say she was going to be around a lot
getting things ready for the party in two days and Emily was relieved when she
found her sitting at the island making a list.
    "Good morning, Ash."
    "Good morning! Wow, you look great, Emily."
    Emily