Her heart thudded in her chest and desire tugged her. How did he do that to her with a look?
His finger skimmed down her arm and he took another step. She backed up, but he followed until she was against the door.
“Admit it,” he said. “You made me cookies as a prize to lure me home to fuck you.”
His harsh words did not repel her the way they would from anyone else’s mouth. Tommy’s words and demands always made her want more. She was slick between her legs, and even though he hadn’t done more than touch her arm, she felt him everywhere.
“I . . . I . . .” She licked her lips and swallowed. She should have more confidence than this. Then she realized that what he’d said was true. She loved having sex with him, but it was always Tommy initiating everything, mostly because she didn’t have experience.
This had been her attempt to initiate.
As well she should. They were married. She’d never taken initiative with Rory. Had she made demands of him, things might’ve been straightened out much earlier. She wouldn’t go back to that kind of life, where everyone else told her what to do and when.
She stepped away from the door, her body pressing into Tommy’s, which hadn’t given an inch. “You’re right, Tommy. I lay on our bed, naked and wanting.” She rose up and licked the edge of his ear before whispering, “I absolutely want you to fuck me like no one else could.”
Her words acted like a trigger and Tommy moved fast. He tore at her clothes as his mouth took hers demandingly. They fumbled to get naked as quickly as possible, nothing but their harsh breathing in the room. When his fingers touched her wet center, he groaned and she thrust her hips, wanting more.
He pushed her to the bed and slipped a condom on before she could scoot back to accommodate him. Pulling her close, he sank into her smoothly. He kissed her neck and as he drove into her wildly, he said, “No one. No one else does this.”
Of course, he was right, no one else ever had, but she was beginning to believe no one else would ever be able to do to her what this man did.
* * *
Eileen was coming around, as Deirdre had hoped she would. Deirdre missed her aunt. Getting married shouldn’t have alienated her from everyone. Eileen had always been in her corner, and Deirdre missed that. She walked across the street with the fresh éclairs she’d made with Eileen in mind.
She knocked on the door even though she still had her key. It wouldn’t be right to walk in knowing she wasn’t welcome. Eileen answered and stood in silence for a beat, but Deirdre knew she recognized what was in the container in Deirdre’s hands.
“I brought you dessert. Or a treat to have with tea.” It was Eileen’s regular teatime.
“And what’re you knocking at the door for like you’re not family? You have a key, don’t you?”
“I didn’t think you wanted me to use it.”
She sniffed and walked away from the door. Deirdre took that as an invitation to follow. They reached the kitchen and Eileen pulled the kettle off the stove.
“You think you can buy your way into my good graces with éclairs?”
Absolutely. “Of course not. I’ve been practicing my baking since I have so much time on my hands, and I know how much you like the ones at Blackstone’s.”
She set the plastic container on the table, knowing that Eileen would have one with her tea. Surprisingly, Eileen pulled two cups from the cupboard and filled them both. Deirdre took a seat.
Eileen set a cup in front of her and looked her up and down. “You appear to be surviving at the O’Malleys’.”
Deirdre had no way to respond to that so she stirred milk into her tea. “How are you, Aunt Eileen?”
“Same as always. How are you?”
“I’m happy.” Deirdre kept saying the words, hoping someone would believe her. Right now, she wasn’t sure she believed herself.
“We’re having family dinner on Sunday.”
Deirdre nodded. She’d been in town for a couple of months and she’d managed to avoid all full O’Leary meals.
“Since you’re not working at the bakery, will you be coming?”
Deirdre took a sip of scalding tea and thought. Her aunt was extending an olive branch, and to not take it would further damage their relationship. She set her cup down. “Is Tommy invited as well?”
“He’s your husband, isn’t he?”
While she wasn’t quite welcoming Tommy with arms open, it was the best Deirdre could expect. “We’ll be here.”
She hoped Tommy wouldn’t mind her accepting on his behalf.
Eileen gave a sharp nod and opened the container of éclairs. “Do you have plans other than trying to poison Seamus O’Malley with all of your baked goods?”
“What are you talking about?”
“The man has diabetes and poorly cares for himself. Yet there you are baking up a storm.”
Deirdre leaned forward with a smile. “Don’t tell anyone, but the baked goods I leave for Seamus are all diabetic-friendly, no sugar, low-carbohydrate. I don’t tell him because I know he’ll find fault. This way, he thinks he’s pulling one over on his kids, sneaking off to eat everything that’s bad for him.”
Eileen chuckled. “You are much too sweet for that man. He’s grumpy enough that he might deserve the poison.”
Then she took a bite of the éclair and Deirdre waited for her reaction. With her eyes narrowed, Eileen inspected the pastry. “You’re not trying to fool me, are you?”
“No. I would never do any such thing. I brought them all here so Seamus wouldn’t get into them.” Except for the two she’d saved for her and Tommy to share after dinner.
As if not quite believing her, Eileen took another tentative bite. Seemingly satisfied that it was full of fat and sugar, she munched away as they enjoyed their tea.
Deirdre felt peaceful sharing the simple afternoon routine with her aunt. In doing so, she realized how homesick she was feeling. As much as she didn’t want to live in Ireland with her family and run the pub, she didn’t want to be alone either. She missed her family.
“Have you spoken to my mother?”
“I wondered whether you’d ask.” She set her éclair down next to her tea. “Of course I have.”
“How is she?”
“She misses her only daughter. She’s disappointed in your decision to do this without your family.” Eileen reached across the table and patted Deirdre’s hand. “Call her.”
* * *
Tommy couldn’t believe it. He and Deirdre were going to an O’Leary family dinner. Deirdre had seemed nervous to tell him that she’d accepted for both of them, but he felt like he’d finally arrived. Growing up, he’d always wanted to have Sunday dinners like the O’Learys had. He knew Jimmy had felt the same too.
The O’Malleys were great and all, but they were far from the all-American family. When they’d been young, Jimmy had cooked a lot of frozen meals for them because their dad worked nights. As they’d grown, they’d mostly gone their own ways. They’d spent holidays and birthdays together, but they hadn’t had the mandatory family dinners that occurred across the street.
A huge part of him was also nervous because he was well aware that this was a test for him. Eileen O’Leary still wasn’t thrilled that he and Deirdre had gotten married. But this was definitely a move in the right direction. Eileen had also gotten Deirdre to call her mom. She hadn’t said much about the conversation, but at least she hadn’t gotten off the phone in tears.
Tommy buttoned his black jeans and hoped they could pass for dressy enough for dinner. He didn’t own a suit—not that he’d ever seen any of the O’Learys dressing up. He wanted to impress Eileen. Hell, he wanted to impress the whole group. Without their approval, Deirdre would probably continue to have doubts about their relationship.
As he buttoned his shirt—one he’d borrowed from Sean, of all people—his eye caught the flash of his ring in the mirror. Would he ever get used to it on his hand? Every now and then, he caught a glimpse of it and thoug
ht, Where the hell did that come from? Then he remembered the look in Deirdre’s eyes as she gave it to him and the way they’d made love after he’d slipped it on his finger.
“Ready?” she asked from behind him.
“Cupcake, I was born ready.” He turned and his mouth dropped open. She wore a bright blue dress that hugged her curves and showed most of her legs. “Wow.”
“Oh, goodness. I was not going for wow. I was hoping for happily married.”
It wasn’t often that Deirdre talked about their marriage or their relationship. He knew she was still adjusting to this new life, so when she did, it sparked something warm in him. He pulled her close and asked, “Are you?”
“Am I what?”
He didn’t think it was his imagination that she sounded a little breathless. “Happily married.”
“For the most part, my life is quite good,” she answered with a cocky tilt of an eyebrow.
“For the most part?”
“There’s no denying I miss having a job and contributing something. Living with your entire family wasn’t how I’d ever imagined the beginning of my married life.”
“Whew. I thought for a minute there that you were going to say I wasn’t meeting your demands in the bedroom.”
She laughed and patted his chest. “That is one area where I have no worries.”
“Yeah, I didn’t think so.”
Her face grew serious. “And are you happily married?”
He cupped her jaw. “I never imagined getting married would make me so happy. I didn’t know it was possible.”
Her eyes softened. “You with the words.”
“Not just words.” He kissed her slowly, hoping that she might understand that he spoke the truth. Then he pulled away. “We better get going. I don’t want to be late.”
They walked across the street holding hands. Tommy carried the cake Deirdre had made for dessert. As she knocked, he saw Ryan O’Leary get out of his car and help his pregnant wife climb from the passenger side. Then he leaned in and stood with a small child in his arms.
Deirdre pulled him through the door without waiting for Eileen to answer, but the image of Ryan and his family stayed in Tommy’s head. He’d always wanted that, and for the first time in a long time, he felt like it might be a real possibility.
He let Deirdre guide him through the house. He registered that there were guys sitting on the couch, but they didn’t stop to say hi. Although he might’ve stepped foot in the house a handful of times as a small child when Jimmy was hanging out with Liam, he’d never been a regular visitor. The layout was identical to his house, but somehow felt more like a home. Weird, since none of the O’Learys lived at home anymore. Eileen was alone.
“Aunt Eileen,” Deirdre said.
Tommy glanced around the kitchen before settling on Eileen. She nodded at him.
Moira turned from the sink. “Hey, Tommy. About time you made your way over here.”
Maggie stood from where she’d been digging in the refrigerator. “Hi, Tommy.”
“Hi. Where do you want me to put the cake?”
Eileen took it from him and said, “Go sit down in the living room. The boys are there.”
Tommy stood awkwardly holding Deirdre’s hand. She smiled up at him. “Come on. I’ll introduce you around.” Over her shoulder, she said, “I’ll be back to help, Aunt Eileen.”
As they exited the kitchen, Tommy whispered, “You know I don’t need introductions, right? I grew up across the street from these guys.”
She stopped in the middle of the dining room. The men and women in the living room took notice of them, but said nothing. The weight of their stares was bad enough.
“True enough. But you’ve only known them as Jimmy’s little brother. Now you’re your own man.”
She looked like she might say something more about how he fit into her life, but she didn’t.
She continued into the living room, stopping short of blocking the TV. “Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to Tommy.”
Ryan’s toddler was hanging on the edge of the table to stand, and with one hand on the boy’s butt, Ryan stared at Tommy.
Liam stood and extended a hand. “Hey, man, good to see you.”
“You too.”
Then Liam pulled him into a one-armed hug. “Welcome to the family. Between you and Jimmy joining the ranks, looks like the O’Learys and the O’Malleys are really going to be one big happy family.”
“Guess so,” Tommy said.
Liam took a step back. He pointed to the people sitting on the couch and said, “This is Carmen, my girlfriend. You know Michael and his wife Brianna. She’s holding baby Erin.” He pointed to Ryan’s wife in the armchair. “That’s Quinn, who’s about ready to pop another baby out.”
Quinn raised a hand and waved. “I’d get up to hug you, but that takes too much effort.”
Ryan stood and shook his hand. “Good to see you.”
Deirdre patted his hand and said, “I’m going to help in the kitchen.”
“I’ll help,” Carmen said, jumping up.
Tommy tucked his hands into his pockets, unsure of what else to do.
“Oh, jeez, guys, cut the boy some slack,” Quinn said from her seat. “He married Deirdre. It’s not like he knocked her up and ran off.”
The toddler let go of the table and waddled over to Tommy. He gripped Tommy’s jeans with one little fist and held his other arm in the air. Tommy bent and then looked at Quinn. “Okay for me to pick him up?”
“Go right ahead.”
He scooped up the boy. “What’s your name, little man?”
“Patrick,” Ryan answered.
Tommy could’ve guessed. The firstborn boy named after Ryan’s dad. The boy’s dark hair and blue eyes made him blend right in with all of the O’Learys, except for Liam and Moira, the redheads.
He had a brief thought to wonder what his own child might look like. He wasn’t ready to take that step, but he wanted this. Patrick squirmed in his arms, obviously done in his investigation of Tommy. If only his dad would do the same.
When Tommy set Patrick back on the floor, Ryan said, “Can I have a word?”
“Sure.”
Ryan walked toward the front door and stepped out. Tommy followed, crossed his arms, and waited.
“Look, man, this is rough. I’m getting calls from my cousins in Ireland because they’re so upset about this bullshit you pulled. At the same time, I’ve got Moira and Liam telling me you’re a good kid.”
Tommy waited for more.
“No one understands what the hell you two were thinking.”
“Her family—yours—wanted her to come home.”
“She was always supposed to go home.”
“True. But they wanted her to leave early, and neither of us wanted her to go.”
“So you got married? That’s bullshit.” Ryan stood, looking poised for a fight.
Tommy reminded himself that Ryan was the closest thing to a big brother Deirdre had right now. Tommy would have the same reaction if Norah were in this position. “I want to spend my life with Deirdre. Yeah, we rushed things, but I don’t regret it.”
Ryan blew out a breath. “Has she talked to her family?”
“She called them, but hasn’t told me much about it. I think she’s homesick.”
Ryan nodded. “Don’t fuck this up.”
“I won’t.”
Ryan turned to go back into the house.
“Hey, Ryan. Any ideas how I can help her with the homesickness?”
“Talk to Maggie. If anyone can understand being away from family, it’s her.”
Tommy went back into the house. Liam looked at him with raised eyebrows. Tommy nodded to let him know everything was okay. Liam had been Jimmy’s best friend since they were kids. Tommy was used to being around Liam. He felt like he had an ally in the house. He had no idea why Jimmy wasn’t there when his fiancé was. Then again, Jimmy hadn’t been much of an ally lately.
He sat
next to Liam as Ryan went to the kitchen. Quinn scooted forward in her chair. “It’s not as bad as you think.”
“What?” Tommy asked.
“The O’Leary inquisition. In fact, you probably have a leg up on the rest of us because you’ve already proved your intentions by jumping into marriage.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” Liam said. “I think the only one who escaped was Shane because he and Maggie had been friends forever.”
“Jimmy didn’t have such a hard time,” Quinn said. “After getting over you punching him, anyway.”
“You hit Jimmy?” Tommy asked.
Liam nodded. “He was sleeping with Moira and told me after. I was pissed.”
“It obviously didn’t last.”
“Nah. They love each other. Not much I could do about it.”
Maggie came into the room and handed them all a bottle of beer, except Quinn, who received a glass of water.
“Can I talk to you a minute?” Tommy asked Maggie.
“Shoot.”
“I think Deirdre’s homesick. Any ideas how to help her?”
Maggie’s eyes lit. “I have the perfect idea. But we’ll need Moira’s help.”
The look on Maggie’s face was slightly frightening, but Tommy would suck it up to make Deirdre happy.
Chapter Nineteen
For the next week, Tommy walked around with a pit in his stomach. Although he knew Maggie’s idea was brilliant—a surprise birthday party would be amazing—keeping a secret from Deirdre and lying to her made him feel like crap. And she was starting to get suspicious. When he’d lied and said he had hockey practice one night but didn’t need her to come, he’d thought for sure she’d call him on it.
But she didn’t. She looked at him with concern, but didn’t question him. His gut burned, but he convinced himself that it would be worth it. He only needed to make it through the week.
And he still had to figure out how to hide his other surprise from her ’til then. He walked into Kai’s office and sat on the chair in front of Kai’s desk.
“Did you need something?”
“Yeah. I want you to do this tat for me.” He slid the drawing across the desk.
Kai studied it for a minute and then looked up at him. “You sure?”
Through Your Eyes Page 25