Her hands on my chest pushed me gently, but I just leaned in, trying to keep contact. She didn’t exactly stop the kiss, but her hands continued to push.
“Ronan, please.”
“What,” I mumbled against her lips. “No.”
“That’s enough. He’s gone.”
In that moment, I couldn’t have given two shits who “he” was or where he had gone.
He.
Oh, right. Derek.
It took every ounce of control I had to straighten fully and set Laney back on the ground. I hadn’t even realized I’d picked her up again. It was that easy to lose myself in her.
She stared up at me, lips swollen as the pink of her tongue slipped out. I lunged again, but her hand on my chest kept me at bay.
“Ronan, stop. I mean it.”
I backed off, though her deep breaths told me at least part of her preferred I didn’t. “You don’t like it?”
She shook her head. God bless the girl, she was a terrible liar. We really couldn’t have been more different.
“It’s—it’s not that. But we’re not together. We’re not married. Kissing or doing… whatever it is we were doing… it just makes things more confusing, you know?”
I frowned. “Look, I get it. But while we figure things out, can’t we have a little fun?”
I was a better liar than a politician. I wasn’t looking to have a little fun. I was lost, and I was willing to bet she was halfway there with me. Of course she was. That’s why, like an intelligent person, she wanted to stop.
“Jeez, get a room, you two,” a woman I recognized as one of the bridesmaids said.
Laney pulled away, blushing adorably. She grabbed my hand, holding it tightly as she laughed up at me. “Sorry, Maddy.”
“Oh my god, I’mkidding.” Maddy lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper that I wasn’t supposed to hear. “Honestly, I’m jealous. You two are so cute together. Go on, girl.”
They giggled together, and Laney smiled up at me. I was having a hard time breathing. She was so damn beautiful.
“A little fun?” she wondered.
I shrugged, because it was better than getting on my knees and begging. “If that’s what you want.”
She glanced across the party, which was still going strong. The bride and groom had long since made their departure, leaving their guests to the rest of the festivities.
“Let’s get out of here.” Her cheeks were still pink, but maybe with pleasure this time. Some anticipation.
I grinned back. “Where to?”
“One day,I’m going to need you to show me around your city when it’s light outside,” I said as Mac pulled to a stop on a quiet street in Ballard, right in front of a small, unassuming brick building with a wood-sided second story added to the top.
“You didn’t get out much today?” Laney asked as she opened her door and got out.
I shook my head, following her. “I had to work.”
I didn’t elaborate. After Mac and I had found a local gym to do some sparring, I’d spent the rest of the day cooped up in my hotel room, managing calls from Liam, Liza, Dad, and several other executives. Most of my time, however, was spent talking to Brendan as he walked me through the actual realities of the job I was about to take on.
The board was voting next week on whether I would be approved as interim CEO. I needed to get back.
But not tonight.
