Intractable Souls : Book 1 of the Bound for Ireland Series (49 page)

I don’t care if you steal all my air

We can breathe in together as one

She’s heard the song a hundred times on the
radio but never really listened to the words, but it’s as if they
were written specifically for her. His performance ignites
something inside her that she thought she would never feel again.
She fights the tears as moisture starts to cloud her vision, afraid
that if she blinks it will force them to fall. Could this feeling
be love?

I wanna know you inside out

I’ll spend my life trying to figure out

Just close your eyes and shut your mouth

And let me kiss you inside out.

Let me love you, let me love you

Let me love you babe.

She closes her eyes as he sings those words
and imagines being trapped beneath his kiss. Her blood pumps
through her veins like molten lava and the sudden need to feel his
body against her overwhelms her. Finishing his song, he quickly
stands up and places the guitar back in its stand. When he turns
around and catches a glimpse of her in the candle light it’s
unmistakably clear that he’s looking into both his past and future.
There is only her, and no one else. She takes his breath away so
intensely that he’s not satisfied with just her body, he wants her
heart too. Fuck the agreement. He’s been longing for her to look at
him the way she is at this moment. It’s a look of desire, passion
and adoration.

He’s not going to screw things up tonight,
he’s decided that he’s going to worship her the way she deserves to
be worshipped by a man. Her soft brown curls fall seductively
across her shoulders, perfectly framing her face. He’s enchanted by
the softness in her eyes, now wide with anticipation as they look
up at him through damp lashes. Her lips soft, moist, and kissable.
He will no longer be denied them.

Sensing his need, she gets to her feet as he
moves towards her. The electricity in the air makes every nerve in
her body tingle with the anticipation of his touch and her body
immediately responds to him. No words are spoken as he wraps his
arms around her and their two bodies melt into one. Bringing his
hand to the side of her face he pauses, his eyes locked to hers as
if he’s searching for something in her gaze. He would settle for
anything; a clue, a hint, a silent confession of her love. When he
finds what he’s searching for in her riveting hazel eyes, he slides
his hand through her hair, until his fingers curl around the back
of her neck. Pulling her forward until their lips almost touch, he
holds her there and whispers against her lips. “I’m going to kiss
you now.” His intention setting off a torrent of emotions through
her body.

Her hands move to his shoulders in an
automatic defensive move but he ignores it, his voice becoming
softly assertive. “And you’re going to let me.” His demand is met
with tacit assent as she softens her grip, rubbing his shoulders
underneath her hands. Not wasting another second, he slants his
mouth over hers. As their lips touch for the first time in
consensual desire he entices her briefly with his warm, soft kiss
and then pulls away leaving her wanting more.

It’s as all first kisses should be… soft,
sincere and extremely sensual. His hands slide down her sides and
stop at her waist, gently pulling her hips against his and then
sliding, with desirous intent around to her back. His mouth stays
close to her, still tasting her on his lips, but not wanting to
push. He waits for her response.

Raising her hand to the nape of his neck,
her thumb gently brushing from his ear down along the edge of his
jaw. Moving to his lips slowly, her hesitation drives him wild.
Finally she presses against him and parts her lips, matching his
movements and sliding along them in perfect unison. Nipping at his
bottom lip, she holds it gently between her teeth before breaking
away and letting the suspense build between them. They are like
teenagers kissing for the first time, figuring out how to please
each other.

As the kisses deepen, with their building
desire, he opens his mouth wider and she responds, making his cock
swell painfully inside his jeans at the first easy touch of her
tongue. Moaning, he closes his mouth around it and moves with a
little more urgency. Feeling his response and knowing where this is
leading, she prepares herself for the rough male aggression that
comes with his need to be inside her. However, tonight there is no
hostile takeover of control, just a sweet return of affection as
they explore and learn how their mouths fit together.

Pulling away, he gently brushes his thumb
over her kiss-swollen lips as he releases her and takes a step
backwards. No! Her heart is racing and her body craves him more
than it ever has before, but she’s confused by the space that he
just put between them. Moving towards the stereo, he leaves her
standing lonely in the middle of the room while he turns the power
on. Putting the stereo remote into his back pocket, he joins her in
the middle of the room and wraps his arms around her. “Dance with
me.” He smiles, suspecting that she would refuse him nothing at
this moment. “Do you know how to waltz?”

“No.” She chuckles, thinking he’s joking and
then looks up at him in curiosity. “Do you?”

“Yes, of course.”

Of course he does! There is that damn smirk
again. “Teach me?” She urges.

“Perhaps another time.” He has other plans
for tonight.

She pouts as he takes the remote out of his
pocket and forwards a few songs finding one with the perfect
rhythm. Stepping into her, he wraps his arms around her waist.
Butterflies, flutter around in her stomach as she puts one hand on
his chest. With the other she holds his shoulder, squeezing it and
thinking about the tattoo. Ethan sways her gently to the music,
their feet barely moving, but it doesn’t matter, all she wants
right now is to have his large body against her. When she lifts her
head to look up at him, he kisses her again, repeatedly, making up
for lost time.

“These lips are mine now.” He says
possessively when he pulls away. “Tell me they are mine. I want to
hear you say it.” He holds her chin so she can’t look away.

“Ethan.” She doesn’t want to encourage his
possessive nature.

“Say it.” His voice is soft, but it’s still
a command not to be ignored.

Heat surges between her legs and she looks
long and hard into his meadow green eyes before she answers. “My
lips belong to you.”

He rewards her with another kiss; rougher,
more greedy. Tension coils deep inside her and arousal dampens her
panties. Then he suddenly pulls away, looking at her with an
expression she can’t figure out. For the second time today he looks
like he wants to say something but he hesitates. What is going on
in his head? “Ethan?”

In one breath, he forces it out before he
changes his mind. “Olivia, I know my temper is an issue for you. I
should warn you that, I don’t know what I’ll do if I ever see the
bastard, Noah Thompson, kiss you again.”

Quickly it becomes clear to her. That look…
it’s his inner turmoil. Her face flushes red at the thought of him
witnessing Noah’s kiss.

“I just about lost my fucking mind last
night watching him put his lips on you.” His fingers dig
possessively into the flesh of her hips.

Her heart prickles with an uncomfortable
feeling. Poor Ethan, she didn’t set out to do anything to upset
him. It just happened and it most certainly will never be happening
again after what Noah called her. If Ethan knew about that, he’d
kill him for sure. But he kept his promise, even after witnessing
Noah kissing her, he controlled his temper. It couldn’t have been
easy for him. Maybe she really is important to him? The thought
makes her stomach roll. She doesn’t want him to feel this way. She
can’t bare to see the torment in his eyes. She needs to console
him, reassure him, and chase away his anxiety. That’s a switch.
It’s usually the other way around.

“Shhhh.” Running her hands over his
shoulders and chest, she soothes away his tension. Whispering in
his ear, she gently skims her mouth against the tender lobe. “My
lips belong only to you.” That seems to relax him, his shoulders
soften and he loosens his grip on her. She pulls him in for a
passionate kiss, wondering how she could have ever thought that NOT
kissing him was a good idea. Possessing his lips with a scorching
intensity, she makes him groan against her mouth as he lifts her
off the ground for a moment. Wrapping her arms around him, she
holds tightly around his neck until he sets her down. The
expression on his face is no longer turmoil, it’s something else…
desire, passion… need.

Taking her by the hand, he leads her towards
the house and out of the chilly evening air. Yes! Now we’re
talking. She scoops up her shoes along the way, making him chuckle
and shake his head. She jumps when his phone rings. It’s the first
time they’ve been interrupted all night, other than the soothing
sounds of crickets. Ethan frowns at the display. “It’s John, I
better take this.”

“Of course.” It’s a welcome break for her
libido.

“Hey, what’s going on?” He says into the
phone with concern in his voice.

“Hey, sorry to bother you, but I have Nate
Ross on the phone for you. I know you’ve been trying to touch base
so I thought you’d want to talk to him. I hope I’m not interrupting
anything.”

Ethan suddenly realizes that when he
answered the call he accidently hit the speaker button allowing
Olivia to hear the conversation. She raises her eyebrows. “Nate
Ross? As in Lead Singer of the group ‘Follow’?” She’s obviously
impressed.

“Good evening, Olivia.” John’s voice is very
professional and he doesn’t seem surprised at all that they’re
together.

“Hi John.” She smiles and bats her eyelashes
at Ethan who rolls his eyes.

“John, just hold on a minute.” Ethan turns
the speaker off and puts his hand over the phone. “Yes, that Nate
Ross. Will you excuse me for a minute?”

Olivia is embarrassed at her intrusion.
“Yes, I’m sorry, I should get going anyways.”

He grazes his thumb along her chin. “I’ll
only be a minute. Don’t go anywhere.” Heading up the stairs he puts
his phone back at his ear. “John, go ahead and put Nate through
now.”

When she hears the door close, she assumes
all the secrecy has something to do with the grand opening. He’s
been very tight lipped about his plans for the big night and she
finds it really quite annoying. Wandering around the room looking
at his pictures she picks up the one of his family, looking at it
closely and thinking how wonderful it must be to have everyone
together at Christmas. Exhaustion sets in suddenly making her eyes
feel heavy. It’s getting late and Ethan kept her awake all last
night. Christ the man has stamina. If he comes back downstairs
he’ll want to continue where they left off and she’s too weak to
fight him. Emotionally it’s been a rough week and she just needs
some time to recharge. Besides, work comes very early in the
morning, so it’s probably best that she just leaves now and avoids
having to deal with him when he returns downstairs. She can send
him a text when she gets home to let him know she’s home safe and
thank him for the evening. He won’t like it, but that’s just
tough.

Standing at the doorway, she slips her feet
into her shoes with her hand on the doorknob trying to make her get
away. When she turns the knob and tries to pull open the door it
won’t budge. Feeling the heat from his body behind her, she raises
her eyes to find his hand flat against the door holding it shut.
Holy shit! How did he get there so quickly without making a
sound?

“Let me guess, in your other job you’re a
Ninja?” She jokes, hoping he finds the humor in it.

“Right you are, and now that you know my
secret, I will have to keep you locked up in my bedroom to keep you
from revealing my secret identity.” He nuzzles his cheek against
the top of her head and lets out a stifled laugh.

With one hand still pressed against the
door, he uses the other to retrieve hers from the doorknob and
gently turns her around to face him. Eyes lowered she says nothing.
Moving in close, he leans his forehead against hers.

“You weren’t going to leave without kissing
me goodbye were you?” His voice is feathery soft and calming.

Closing her eyes, she slowly raises her head
so that her nose rubs against his. When their lips meet, in a slow
sweet gentle movement, she kisses him. Wrapping his hands around
her body, he holds her tightly, until she can no longer bare the
intimacy of the moment and puts her hands to his chest, using the
leverage to push away from his embrace.

“Everything ok, princess?” He searches her
eyes for a sign.

“Yes.” She stares right into his big green
eyes.

“Then why are you sneaking out?”

“Because I knew you would try and convince
me to stay. Honestly, Ethan. I’m exhausted. Some sex fiend, who
just can’t seem to get enough, kept me awake all night last
night.”

A grin forms on one side of his mouth.
“Mmmm… I hate when that happens to me.”

She scowls at him. “Somehow I doubt
that.”

He chuckles. “Ok, I won’t try to stop you if
you want to go home.”

She breathes a sigh of relief. “Thank you.
And we still have to have a talk about the tires.”

He edges forward doing that sexy little
thing he does, lowering his eyes and admiring her body from head to
toe in a slow perusal. Smirking and biting his lip as he goes as if
he has some very dirty, devious plans for it. It makes her pulse
jump every time.

“Why don’t you just pretend that I’m the
tire salesman?”

He doesn’t have to finish his sentence, she
knows what he’s about to say. “Seriously, Ireland? That’s not
funny.”

He shrugs. “You shouldn’t restrict your
talent to fast food delivery men. Don’t you believe in equal
opportunity?” His smirk is infectious. “Tire salesmen need sex
too.”