She clears her throat. “Eyes up here, Kennedy.”
“How can you expect me to not admire God’s handiwork when it’s right in front of me?” I ask innocently.
Norah rolls her eyes and readjusts her shirt. “You’re ridiculous.”
“And you need to learn to accept a compliment, love.”
She sticks her tongue out at me, and that’s all it takes for me to lunge for her. I grip her hips and pull her into my lap. She squeals in alarm but doesn’t protest once she’s straddling me.
She pushes her hair out of her face and playfully glares at me. “Is there a reason you pulled me over here?”
“Aye. There is. When I compliment you, I mean it,” I tell her seriously, cupping her cheek with one hand and brushing her stomach with my fingertips.
Norah shivers at the touch and slides her arms around my neck. “I know youdo.”
My brow furrows as I ask, “Then why am I ridiculous?”
She shrugs. “You’re not. I just have a hard time seeing what you see, I guess.”
“There’s not one thing about you that I don’t find beautiful, Norah,” I tell her, cupping the back of her neck and pulling her towards me. I lightly kiss the sensitive spot just below her ear.
“Eamon,” she breathes.
“Yes, love?” I murmur while pressing soft kisses down her neck to her shoulder and back up again. When I reach her earlobe, I nip it gently with my teeth.
She sucks in a breath and curls her fingers in my hair. “Show me,” Norah whispers.
I freeze, then pull back slowly to look into her eyes. Her cheeks are flushed, and she doesn’t show a single sign of hesitation.
“What?” I ask stupidly.
She trails a hand down my chest to my stomach and continues lower still. She stops at the waistband of my jeans, her fingers are slightly trembling, and her breathing is heavier. She lifts her eyes to mine. “I want you to show me what you see. I want…I wantyou.”
I’m pretty sure my heart stops beating for a second. Did she just say what I think she said?
“Norah, are you—do you—” I stammer.
She nods slowly, biting her bottom lip then grabs the hem of her shirt and pulls it over her head before tossing it on the ground.
Holy. Fuck.
She’s perfect. A goddess in jeans and a black lacy bra is straddling me right now, telling me she wants me. I’ve died and gone to heaven. Mouth gaping like a fish out of water, I struggle to speak. Finally, I clear my throat and manage to tear my gaze from her chest and back to her eyes.
My hands tighten slightly on her hips. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” she breathes, leaning in and pressing herself against my chest. “I’m one hundred percent sure. I want this. I want you.”
Then she kisses me. Gently at first, but as my hands skim from her waist to her ribs, the kiss deepens, our tongues colliding and winding aroundeach other. Her hands knot in my hair as my palms glide over her back. I’m not making any move to unhook her bra. Yet. I’m savoring every moment while making sure she’s still in control.
When she starts to slowly rock her hips back and forth over me, my brain short circuits, and I make a guttural noise in the back of my throat as I feel her heat through our clothes. This must encourage her, because her hands leave my hair and snake down to my waistband, never breaking the kiss. I’m vibrating in my skin as she hesitantly grips the bottom of my shirt and begins to slowly pull it up my torso. I drag my mouth from hers long enough to yank it all the way off before crushing her to me again in a searing kiss, my hands splayed across her back. The feel of her skin on mine is euphoric. It’s better than I ever expected. Tearing away again, I pepper her with kisses from her neck to her shoulder and lick a path back up, repeating on the other side because fair is fair.
“Eamon,” Norah gasps, her hands roaming all over my chest and stomach. I freeze when they go lower suddenly remembering I don’t have any condoms with me.
“Wait,” I say, grabbing her wrists to halt her creeping fingers. “Protection? I didn’t bring…”
“I’m on the pill,” she cuts me off. “And I haven’t been with anyone since…”
Swallowing down the rage that the mention of Norah’s assault brings, I brush a tendril of her auburn curls from her face. “I’m clean. It’s been nearly a year since my last time.”
