(Brie's POV)
Our first week in Belfast was pretty uneventful. I spent some one-on-one time with Kerrianne getting to know her one day. Another day all the women hung out while some of the guys went out with SAMBEL on a run, just to see how they went, without the threat of getting killed by Jimmy. And yet another day we spent exploring the area, mainly driving around, the guys on their bikes, me on the back of Filip's, and the women who wouldn't ride on the back of a bike were in a rented car. Today had me a little nervous though, since I was meeting Fiona. It was weird, meeting my boyfriend's wife.
When I had first found out about her, I'd almost broken the whole thing off. I was not the type of person who dated someone who was married. But after I'd had time to think about the situation, I decided to just keep seeing where this went. It wasn't like she was actually around. They hadn't been together in years, since he was exiled from Ireland, and were really only married on paper, since she'd been cheating on him with Jimmy for years, and he had had many, many girlfriends and mistresses over the years. I told him that if we really became serious, though, he'd of course, have to divorce her.
Due to the lack of rooms and beds, Filip and I were in the same one, but we slept together without fucking. I was holding him to that no sex till our hearts caught up with our hormones, and he was doing really well with it, actually. It had been almost two months, and we'd only had sex on Halloween. I really was falling for him. It had been a long time since I'd felt this way. I was almost ready to tell him I loved him, but part of me was waiting for him to say it first. I was scared to even say the words aloud, because I was worried that when I did, things would go bad. It would be like admitting I was happy, and every time I was happy, something always ruined it.
For the past couple weeks, Krystal had been telling me that it was okay to be happy; it was okay to be in love; and admitting it wouldn't mean something would happen to mess it up. If I was in love with Filip, I should tell him, because we didn't know how much time we'd get with the people we loved. I loved that she was happy now, and seemed to be past most of her commitment issues she'd had since Matthew, but I couldn't get past my fears as easily. I told her I was going to keep taking things one day at a time, and she needed to stop rushing me.
After my shower, I was standing, wrapped in a towel, at the end of the bed, with my suitcase on it, digging through it to find something acceptable. I couldn't decide exactly what was acceptable for meeting your boyfriend's wife though. Do I want to look sexy, or casual, or what? I sighed in frustration and grabbed a pair of dark blue skinny jeans and a black tee-shirt. I would do my make-up nice to keep the look from being too casual. I got dressed and was just finishing my make-up when there was a knock on the door. "Come in," I called, barely looking away from the mirror.
For a moment, I didn't hear anything but the door being pushed open, and as the silence stretched on, I had to pull my gaze away from the mirror and red wine colored lipstick I was about to put on, to see who was there. I saw Filip, eying me appreciatively. I cocked an eyebrow and he cleared his throat. "Ya look gorgeous, love. They're gonna be here soon. Ya almos' ready?" he asked, and I nodded. "Alrigh' I'll be downstairs," he stepped into the room, placed a gentle kiss on the top of my head, and then headed back downstairs. I felt butterflies fluttering crazily in my stomach, due to the kiss and the compliment, and took a deep breath. Yeah, I had it bad.
Once I'd finished getting ready, I found Filip downstairs, where he was waiting for Fiona and Kerrianne. Skye, Wendy, Jax, Tara, Tig, and Venus were all around too, along with a couple of the SAMBEL guys. McGee was gone, but Maureen still had the guys over every once in a while. Trinity was probably watching the store and Maureen was cooking dinner, I assumed, since Fiona and Kerrianne were joining us for dinner. Then there'd be the standard club party since it was the weekend. I took a seat on the arm of the chair Filip was sitting in. Skye was on a couch near me. "Nervous?" she asked, and I sent her a glare as she laughed.
Rolling my eyes, I decided not to answer, and she leaned closer, lowering her voice. "Hey, for one, you're amazing, and two, who cares what she thinks? He wants to be with you. Even if she hates you, that's not gonna change his mind. Just try not to start any more car fights," she went back to teasing, and I had to laugh at that. "There we go. I love that smile. Just be yourself. She'll probably hate you either way simply because you're with her husband. But he likes you, and his daughter likes you. That's what matters most," she said, and I thanked her, just as the door opened and Kerrianne came in, followed by someone who had to be Fiona.
Standing up, Filip took my hand, and led me over. He let go of my hand to give Kerrianne a hug, and then put his hand on my arm, urging me from my spot a couple feet behind him, to his side. "Fi, this is Brie, my girlfriend. Brie, this is Fiona, Kerrianne's mom," he made the introductions, and I had to smile at his choice of words. I very politely held out my hand for her to shake, but she looked me up and down without holding out her hand. "Fiona, being a bitch ain't gonna change how I feel. She's bein' nice. Least ye could do is the same," he chided, and she finally nodded and reached out to shake my hand, then pushed past me to the kitchen to help Maureen. "Hey, love, that went better than it could have," he said to me.
Smiling at me, Kerrianne gave me a hug. "She's not a fan of most Americans. And even though she was with Jimmy all those years, she's always felt like she owned Da. I think she can tell he's falling for ya. For what it's worth, I think yer great," she smiled, and honestly, that made me feel a lot better. I thanked her and Filip led me back over to where we'd been sitting. Kerrianne pulled up a chair and sat near us. "I, uh, also think she's upset because I asked her if I could go on yer trip with you guys. I thought it'd be fun to stay with you while you're visiting Europe. I can suggest a few cities, too," she offered, looking to her dad for approval.
Sharing a look with Filip, I eagerly nodded. "O' course we want you to come. That'd be fantastic, darlin'. I would never say no to spending more time with ya," he answered her, and then the subject changed and I could tell how happy he was that she was coming with us. I watched him when his attention was taken by the guys, and I couldn't help but smile. He was at ease and comfortable, sitting with his arm around my shoulders, his hand absentmindedly playing with my hair. He noticed I was staring and looked over at me, eyebrow cocked, and somehow those three words I had been waiting to say slipped from my lips. He looked shocked for a moment, but quickly recovered. "I love ya, too," he said, right when I was gonna start rambling that he didn't have to say anything back.
For a moment, I didn't think I heard him right. I just sat there. I was about to open my mouth to say something, but a voice from the doorway about five feet away announced dinner. I turned my head to see Fiona, and I realized she had heard the exchange that had just taken place. I wondered for a moment if he had known she was there, but I realized that he hadn't looked past me. She was shooting me daggers with her eyes though as we all went to sit around the table. She purposefully set herself across from me. "So, Brie, since you are with Filip, are you aware of what it means to be an Old Lady?" she asked as people started eating, and almost everyone was engaged in other conversations.
Cocking an eyebrow at her, I knew the question was quite simple, but I could tell she was trying to bait me. I looked over at Filip, who opened his mouth to defend me, but I shook my head. "You're upset that your husband is in love with someone else. I get that. From what I've learned about him and his past, he hasn't been in love since you. I'm sure that made you feel powerful in your own way. You liked having him attached to you while you slept with Jimmy every night. You're also probably threatened that your daughter likes me, too. You want to know why Filip and Kerrianne both like me? I'm a good person. I honestly don't care if you like me or not," I informed her calmly. "To answer your question, yes, I know what it means to be an Old Lady, and I know how to commit myself to the man I love," I added.
There was silence from the few around who'd heard me as they waited for Fiona to respond. She studied me for a few moments, then nodded, as if in approval of me, but didn't say anything, instead turning to Maureen and saying something relevant to their lives here. I felt proud of myself, and Filip reached over and squeezed my thigh under the table. "So does this mean we get to have sex tonight, since our hearts have caught up with our hormones, because I have to admit, that was pretty hot," he leaned over and whispered in my ear. I looked at him and nodded and we both went back to eating and talking with everyone else.
A few minutes later, Skye nudged me, leaning over and talking softly to me. "Which of you said it first?" she asked. I didn't have to ask what she meant. I did wonder how she knew it had been said though. "I can just tell. You're grinning like you're getting laid tonight, which only means that you two have finally said it. So, which one of you said it first?" she asked again. I told her that I did. She groaned. "Damnit. Now I owe Krystal 20 dollars. Why, just once, couldn't she have been wrong?" she muttered. I rolled my eyes. I could have been annoyed that they'd made a bet on it, but I really wasn't surprised.
A/N: I forgot to mention in that this chapter was in Brie's POV when I did my last A/N. But I thought this would be a fun chapter. The next chapter will be from Skye's POV. I'm thinking of doing a couple other chapters in other characters POV's, if the situation calls for it, because it's kinda fun. I do have kinda an outline of this part now. I was doing research trying to figure out where I wanted them to go, and stuff, and a timeline, so I kinda know the location of each chapter, just have to figure out what will happen in each chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please let me know what y'all think. And thanks to everyone who reviewed!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.