Pushed Her
CULLEN
The door to the study clicked shut behind me with finality.
My father moved behind his massive oak desk, the same one he’s ruled this family from for decades. He didn’t sit. Not yet. He stood, hands braced against the surface, eyes flicking between me and Cyrus like we were soldiers who had failed him.
Cyrus moved to stand by the liquor cabinet, arms crossed. I stayed near the door, like a shadow that didn’t belong in this space anymore.
“I’m going to speak once,” my father said, voice low but razor-sharp. “So both of you better listen.”
We didn’t respond.
“ I didn't tolerate the Irish for so long to create an all-out war. I didn't listen to Sullivan go on and on about my sons to lose it all. Our relationship with the Irish has been very very profitable. It has allowed me To make more money than my father ever made, just so you two can mess it all up,” he muttered bitterly.
“I didn’t do anything,” Cyrus said quickly, raising his hands in mock surrender.
But Dad tilted his chin slightly, just a small movement, almost imperceptible but the look in his eyes made Cyrus shrink back. That caught my attention. What the hell was that? What did Cyrus have to do with this? What the hell did he have to do with Sarah?
But my father didn't let me think about it long.
“Cullen, this is your time,” he said, voice hard and cold. “This is where you step up. Where you act like my son. A Cincinnati. A man who knows what family means.”
I just stared at him. “I am a Cincinnati.”
He snapped. “Shut the fuck up until I tell you to talk.”
I gritted my teeth, rage simmering in my chest, but I clamped my mouth shut.
“I don’t care if you love Sarah or not,” he continued. “I don’t give a flying fuck if your marriage is in shambles... if you’re cheating, if she’s cheating, if you two are nothing but ashes. I don’t care.”
His voice turned sharp, brutal. “You are going to act. You’re going to play the role of a perfect husband. A husband who is devastated. Who wants blood. Who will burn the whole city down to find the reason his wife is in that hospital bed.”
He stepped around the desk slowly, like a general addressing a weak soldier.
“You are going to play that role so damn well that no one dares question it. You will look like a man in love. Like Sarah is the only fucking woman in the world.”
I glared at him, anger flaring in my eyes. But he didn’t flinch.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he said coldly. “You are playing a role. You are saving this family. Because you got us here.”
He jabbed a finger toward his chest. “I’ve tried everything. I’ve been a great father. I’ve shown you what love looks like... how to lead, how to protect. I’ve stood by you both. And still, still… you two never fail to disappoint me.”
“Okay, Dad,” Cyrus said quietly, trying to ease the tension.
But my father turned on him like a storm. “Shut up, Cyrus... This all started because of you. Because of what you did to Bella. Now Sullivan thinks Cullen had something to do with Sarah's accident. You brought this mess to our doorstep.”
“I don’t even know what the hell happened,” I said through clenched teeth.
“I don’t care,” he snapped. “What I want is for you to act your part until Sarah wakes up. Until she tells us what happened. And God help you…” He stepped closer, eyes narrowing. “You better hope she doesn’t have a grudge. You better pray she doesn’t wake up and say your name with hate in her voice.”
He stared at me for a beat longer, then turned away.
“Because I’ll tell you something, Cullen… I’d wait out a war. I’d hold off on spilling blood. But I will never back down if it turns out that my son drove his wife to hate him enough to want him dead.”
I clenched my jaw.
“She’s in that hospital bed right now because we failed her,” he continued. “You failed her, Cullen.”
That one stung. I knew it was coming, but still—it hit different hearing it out loud.
“And instead of owning that, you disappeared,” he said.
“I needed air,” I said flatly.
“You don’t get to breathe when you're at the head of a damn family,” my father snapped. “You breathe after everyone else is safe. You grieve after the war is over.”
Cyrus nodded once like he agreed. Of course, he did.
“Are you done?” I asked.
My father’s jaw ticked. “No. You’re going to sit down and come up with a plan for how we deal with this. The Irish are already suspicious that we set Sarah up. You know what that means?”
Cyrus stepped in. “They think we tried to kill our own peace offering. That we broke the alliance.”
I barked a bitter laugh. “Funny. They’re the ones who wanted this marriage. Now they think I tried to drown my own wife?”
“They don’t think. They feel,” my father said. “And they retaliate. Unless we give them a reason not to.”
“What do you want me to do?” I asked. “Show up at their doorstep with a fruit basket? Invite them to her funeral, if she dies?”
Silence. My father’s eyes darkened.
“If she dies,” he repeated slowly, “it won’t be the Irish you have to fear. It’ll be me.”
The room went dead quiet. My hand curled into a fist, but I didn’t speak. Not yet.
“Cyrus,” my father finally said, turning away from me. “Make sure security at the hospital is tight. No one gets in or out without our say. No press. No outsiders.”
Cyrus nodded and took out his phone.
"Now, Cullen. Why wasn't your wife at the party?"
I gritted my teeth before muttering, "Because she was fucking drunk..."
" And who pushed her to drink?"
“You blame me,” I said quietly. “Even though you arranged that marriage, even though you didn’t ask me if I wanted it.”
He looked at me like I was a boy again.
“You married her. That made her yours. Everything that happens to her is now your responsibility. Welcome to being a man.”
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