When we finish the meal, I help Norah clean up the dishes and put away the leftovers. Standing beside her at the sink, I’m reminded of washing dishes with her at Paddy’s and when she sloshed water on me. Before I cantalk myself out of it, I splash her with water, grinning like a fool.
She gasps in shock and stands there looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. And maybe I have because I didn’t consider how the water would make her shirt cling to her body the way it is.
“What was that for?” she screeches.
“Payback.” I shrug.
“Payback? Payback for what?” She narrows her eyes at me. My fire sprite is starting to come out to play, and I love it.
“You don’t remember dousing me with water when we did dishes at Paddy’s? It wasn’t that long ago, lass,” I tease her.
“Eamon Kennedy, that was anaccident, and you know it!” She turns back to the sink suddenly, grabs the sprayer, and releases a cascade of water over me.
“Oy! That’s cheating!” I yell, reaching for the hand holding the sprayer. My other arm snakes around her torso instinctively, and I pull her into me.
Norah squeals again, squirming to get out of my grasp, but I’m not having that. I wrestle the sprayer from her and set it back in its spot before grabbing her around the waist and hoisting her onto the counter so we’re eye to eye. Panting and dripping water, we stare at each other as the tension grows thick around us. I hear the soft sound of her sucking in a breath before she reaches up to brush a strand of wet hair from my forehead. The soft touch of her fingers tracing along my jaw makes me shudder and she smiles faintly. That smile is a magnet, pulling me closer.
“Norah,” I whisper before she brushes her lips against mine.
Norah
Eamon’s mouth is barely inches from mine. My heart is thundering in my chest, but I don’t break eye contact as I close the distance between us. When my lips touch his, I feel his hands tighten on my hips, and I smile against his mouth. Teasing the seam of his lips with my tongue, he grunts in surprise before eagerly joining in. Our kiss is slow and building. My eyesdrift closed as I thread my fingers into his hair and draw him closer, my legs parting to wrap around his hips. A warm hand runs up my spine and back down again, causing goosebumps in their wake. But when his fingers begin to wander under the hem of my shirt, I freeze. My brain is betraying what my body clearly wants.
“I’m sorry,” Eamon says quickly, taking a step back and shifting uncomfortably.
I am acutely aware of the cause of his discomfort since the countertop I’m sitting on had me perfectly aligned with his…arousal.
I heave a sigh, shaking my head. “No, don’t be. I just…haven’t had anyone touch me like that since…”
“Christ. I’m an eejit. I shouldn’t have done that without asking. Or at all. I meant it when I said you’re in charge…” The words pour from him as he rubs his hands over his face.
“Eamon, stop,” I say, reaching for his hand to pull him closer. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m not upset; I promise. Things just got carried away, and my brain triggered that response.”
He looks at me carefully, trying to discern if I’m telling the truth. Tentatively, he reaches to tuck a lock of my hair behind my ear.
“You’re safe with me, Norah,” he says earnestly. “I won’t let that happen again.”
“Well, let’s not be hasty…” I tease.
He raises a dark brow at me and purses his lips. “You know what I mean. I don’t want to do anything to scare you off.”
“Not going to happen, Kennedy. I trust you.”
And I do. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that this man will not willingly hurt me or push me to do something I don’t want to do. The problem is, Iwantto do something. I wanthim.
We clean up the evidence of our water fight before I grab the bag of scones and curl up on the far end of the couch. Pulling my feet underneath me, I watch Eamon walk in my direction, eyeing him from head to toe.
“You keep looking at me like that, and I may have to kiss you again,” he growls playfully, giving me a wicked grin.
Heat floods my body, and my face flushes in embarrassment. I can’t take my eyes off of him though. He sits down next to me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and drawing me closer to him. When he brushes my cheek with the thumb of his other hand, I lean into his touch because it just feels right. Everything about Eamon feels right.
“That’s not really motivating me to stop,” I say breathlessly, heat still lingering in me, but it’s a slow burn.
Eamon groans and closes his eyes. “Norah, I’m going to be honest with you. I would love to take you right here on this sofa.”
And now I’m on fire.
“But I want more than just the physical with you,” he says softly. “I want to get to know you. And I want you to know me. I want you to be one hundred percent positive that this”—he gestures between us—“is what you want.”
