“She’s with my mother. I wanted to get her out of this crowd. What is going on, Fi?” he asked, the stress apparent in his voice. The officer eyed him carefully, standing taller as he took in the large man in front of him.
“They were doing construction and slammed a hole in the building,” she told him. “I’m not sure what’s going on. Is Shea okay? I should go with her, she’s not used to being around strangers.”
Fi’s words became increasingly panicked as she watched her younger sister. She seemed so flustered she didn’t know what to do. She was wearing the same sweatpants and tank top from last night, her messy bun decidedly messier than it had been when he’d seen her then.
“Officer, what happened?” He bypassed her and spoke to the police officer, who was now scribbling in a notepad. Fiona’s shoulders drooped, and she looked relieved not to have to explain.
“Irish restaurant downstairs was trying to put up a big new sign on the front of the building. The crane smashed it into the building instead, creating a big hole in the exterior. Now they’re saying the damage accidentally revealed potential toxins growing in the walls, so everyone’s been evacuated while it’s being tested. This place is most likely going to be condemned. Everything was barely held together with duct tape before this happened,” he told him before walking off to talk to another resident.
“Holy shit, Fi.” He gaped, shocked at the strange news, but not at all surprised the building was likely being condemned. He’d thought it should be the first time he’d seen it. “This is fucked up.”
“Welcome to my life,” she said with a languished sigh and a poor attempt at smiling. “Now aren’t you glad you didn’t want to sleep with me?”
Kieran took her hand with his and pulled her out of the crowd toward his car. He could see his mother and Shea had already rounded the corner; they were probably buckled in already. Once they reached the corner, instead of turning, he came to a stop and stared at her.
“What are you doing? Where are we going?” she asked breathlessly.
“We’re going back to my parent’s house so Shea can get her breakfast, but right now we’re stopping here until you understand something.” He positioned her between himself and the building’s brick wall. He lowered a hand to either side of her shoulders, enclosing her against him.
“What?” She gulped nervously, but her darkened blue eyes and reddened cheeks told him she was also feeling something else. Something more, something he’d been feeling since the day he’d met her.
“I want to sleep with you,” he said, watching her mouth fall open in surprise. “I want to curl up with you against my chest, dreaming, and I want to wake you up and fuck you until we both can’t walk, Fi.”
“Kieran,” she whispered, and her eyes darted around to ensure they were alone as her cheeks flushed even more. “You can’t say stuff like that.”
“I can and I will. I should have said it last night. I let you dismiss me without even trying to change your mind, and that was wrong. I should have fought for you last night, so instead, I’m fighting for you now.” He leaned down and brushed his lips slowly against hers.
She whimpered against him, her fingers fisted into his shirt.
When he pulled away, she leaned forward as if to follow him, but he kept her pressed against the wall. “I want to taste every inch of you, Fiona, slowly and fully. I want to make it so you come just by remembering the things I’ve done to your body the night before. But most of all, I don’t want to hear ever again that you think I don’t want you, because there’s nothing further from the truth.”
As he spoke, he knew he’d reached a point of no return. He’d decided that he wanted this woman, and he wasn’t going to let anything stop him from having her. Not even Fiona herself. After wasting the last two years of his life, he’d vowed never to allow himself to do that again. He wanted Fiona in his life, and he refused to wait any longer to make that a reality.
Tears formed in her sparkling eyes, and he smiled wickedly at her. “Are we clear, Fi?”
“Crystal.”
Twirling a stray strand of her messy, brown hair, he trailed his finger down her jawline to her chin. Clasping it between his thumb and index finger, he lifted her face to his and kissed her. This kiss was different than the one last night, or the whisper of a kiss a moment ago. There wasn’t heat or burning desire, even though he wanted her more than any woman he’d ever been with before.
This kiss was intimate in a way only lovers know. It screamed pain and heartache and affection all wrapped in a bundle of silky lips and wandering tongues. It was sweet and heartbreaking all at once—it was everything that they were.