“What’s up, Ems?” Looking down at her, I notice a frown wrinkling her forehead. She looks to the right, and when I follow her line of sight, I realise she’s staring at Bailey. I hadn’t noticed him coming back into the barn, but he’s there, dancing with Noah. My chest tightens when Bailey grins at him, one hand on his hip. I have to restrain myself from holding Emmy tighter as my whole body tenses.
“Why does … um, what’s his name?” she asks, pointing to Bailey. “That blonde man, he called you Teddy earlier, but your name is Theo.” She scowls as though Bailey has personally offended her by giving me a nickname she wasn’t privy to.
I chuckle at her indignation. “I’ve known him a very long time. He’s just always called me Teddy.” My head snaps back to him. Something clicking into place. He’d insisted on calling me Teddy because everyone else called me Theo. He didn’t want to be just anyone to me.
And he isn’t.
Fuck, he’d been everything to me. The last few days, I’ve barely stopped thinking about him, and I feel like I’m right back where I started, when I realised there was something more between us.
“I need to go, Ems. Gotta cut the dance short, sorry.” I give her one last dramatic twirl in the air and place her feet back onthe ground, then I’m pushing through the other guests, making my way towards Bailey and Noah.
“Mind if I cut in?” I ask, placing a hand on Noah’s shoulder. He startles, looking up at me, then rolls his eyes and nods, stepping away.
Before he can get too far, Robbie sweeps in from nowhere, scooping him into his arms. Noah doesn’t protest, and I notice the moment his body relaxes as they slowly dance together, putting space between us.
I breathe out, trying to steel myself. Bailey’s rigid by the time I’m standing chest to chest with him. I put one hand on his hip, pulling him into me, the other clasps his hand, and he responds by placing his free hand on my bicep, squeezing slightly.
“Hey,” he says awkwardly.
“Hey.”
“What’s going on?” he asks, breath hitching.
“Am I not allowed to want to dance with you?”
“That depends.”
“On what?” I ask, swaying to the music.
“On whether you actually want to, or whether you’re just trying to keep an eye on me.”
I frown at that. Is that what he thinks I’ve been doing? “If I wanted to keep an eye on you, I could have done that from over there,” I say, nodding to the tables.
“Then why?” He looks off to the side. Just like he used to when he was anxious about my intentions.
“Look at me.”
Slowly, he meets my eyes again, brows creased with concern. I stop moving and cup his face, eyes flicking down to his lips, then back up again. His eyes blow wide and I think he realises what I’m about to do, but I wait a moment, giving him the chance to pull away. Then I lean forward so our lips are barely touching and whisper, “I’ve missed you, mo leannan.”
BAILEY
I’m suddenly eighteen again.Teddy’s lips are on mine, and they’re hauntingly familiar—soft as they move slowly against mine. It feels like no time has passed. The only thing different is the scratch of his beard against my cheek. I let out a sound of protest when he pulls away, and dig my fingers into his arms to make sure he doesn’t get too far.
“Want to go home?” he asks, grinning.
“Yeah,” I breathe. He drags me off the dance floor and out the barn doors, all the way back to his cottage without pausing or saying a word.
Once the front door opens, Teddy slams my back against the wall, making me suck in a breath. Then, finally, his lips are back on mine, and this time it isn’t slow or hesitant—he forces my mouth open, hands stroking down my back, cupping my arse as he pushes his tongue deeper into my mouth. A moan rips from my throat. His arms are the only thing holding me up as I meltinto the wall. I grab at his jacket, trying to undo the buttons, but he pulls away.
“Upstairs?” he asks.
I nod, still trying to catch my breath, and follow him.
Once we’re in his bedroom, he pulls me against him again, and my fingers weave into his hair so tightly that I’d have to be cut free before I willingly let go. The back of my thighs bump the end of the bed, and he pulls away, wiping the corner of his mouth with his thumb. “Not quite the same as I remember,” Teddy says, as his eyes rove over my body, burning as his mouth curves up into a smirk. He places one hand on my chest and shoves me onto the bed, then steps away, undoing his jacket. His dark hair frames his face in soft waves, curling around his ears, with his fringe hanging just above his eyes, brushing the bridge of his nose.
Teddy removes his shirt and waistcoat and throws them to join his jacket on the floor. His muscles tense, and my cock twitches in response.
“You’re bigger,” I mutter under my breath. But in the silence of the room, he hears every word, cocking an eyebrow at me.
