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There was no way I could tell her the truth. That simply being in her presence made me stupid and I needed to stay far away from her.
“I, um, needed air. I also wanted to see if your view was better than mine.”
“It’s not the same as your view?” She smirked and my insides heated.
Fuck. Busted.
I let out a slight chuckle. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes seemed to light up. She liked it when I laughed. I needed to remember that.
“You got me on that one. Truth be told, I’m feeling a bit off. I think I’m going to call it a night.”
She nodded. Was that disappointment? Maybe she was hoping I’d pull her into my arms and plant another kiss on her pretty little lips. I sure as fuck wanted to.
Dragging in a deep breath, I headed toward the door. Maebh reached out and lightly grabbed my arm, halting me in my tracks. My stomach dropped like a rock thrown into the river.
Our eyes met, and some weird feeling hit me in the center of my chest. My breath caught, and I swore to God it sounded like hers did too.
What in the hell is this woman doing to me?
“Thank you for coming this evening,” she said softly. “It meant a lot.”
My mouth opened but nothing came out. Clearing my throat, I got my shit back together and winked. “No problem. See ya around.”
Her hand dropped to her side, and I quickly headed to the door. I loosened the tie that felt like it was cutting off my breath while I picked up my pace. When I got to the reception area, Steed took one look at me and asked what was wrong.
“Nothing. I’m going home. Tell everyone I said goodnight.”
I headed down the steps, not giving him a chance to respond or even say goodnight.
The second I made it out of the restaurant I damn near ran to my place. Sprinting up the steps, I unlocked my door, stepped inside, and shut it like the apocalypse had started and a zombie was trying to get in.
I bent over, my hands resting on my knees, and I fought to pull in a few deep breaths. My arm still burned where she had touched it. Just like my lips did last week, a slow burn that lasted for days afterward.
I stood when I felt like I could breathe again. Leaning against my door, I dropped my head against it. What in the hell was happening to me? I couldn’t bring myself to have sex with anyone, and I really needed to figure out a way to get my head clear. When I closed my eyes, I saw her smile. Her emerald green eyes staring back. This was not good. Not good at all. I wanted Maebh like I’d never wanted any other woman in my entire life. One kiss was never going to cut it.
I let out a laugh and jerked my fingers through my damp hair.
Am I sweating?
My phone buzzed in my pocket. Taking it out, I found a text from an unknown number.
Unknown: You dropped your wallet when you were on the rooftop terrace. I’ll bring it by the bar tomorrow. –Maebh.
I swallowed. How did she get my number?
My mother!
It didn’t matter; now I had her cell phone number. I quickly added a new contact and typed her name with shaking hands.
“Wait. She has my wallet? That means…I have to see her tomorrow,” I said out loud like someone was there listening.
Walking to my couch, I dropped face down into the oversized pillows and groaned.
“I’m so totally fucked.”
Glancing one more time at meself in the mirror, I took a deep breath while I chewed on the corner of me lip.
Rolling me eyes, I whispered, “For goodness sake, Maebh. Just go give him his wallet.”
I headed down the steps and into the kitchen. “Da, I’m going to run an errand.”
He glanced up from his newspaper. “Where are you going?”
“Cord’s Place.”
Me da’s brow raised. “Cord Parker? You’re going to his house, or his bar?”
I gave him a playful wink. “Does it matter? I am twenty-five, Da.”
He grunted in response. “I don’t like the way the boy looks at you.”
Me heart jumped. “What do you mean? How does he look at me?”
Shaking his head, he replied, “Like he wants ya. I don’t like it one bit.”
Me cheeks flushed. “You’re reading it all wrong, Da. Cord isn’t interested in me. Sometimes I think he doesn’t even like me, not since he found out I was opening a bar so close to his.”
The newspaper dropped, and he started to laugh. “You’re joking with me, right? I raised you to be smarter than that, Maebh.” He shook his head. “Your mother was the same way. Never noticed the men staring at her. She was naïve, like you.”
