by K. C. Enders
“You good?”
“So good. Do you have…” She lifts her hips, sliding her slickness against me. “Do you have a condom?”
Fuck, is this really happening?
“I”—can say no—“I’m”—maybe falling for you—“I’ve—” I don’t know how I’m capable of even the smallest thought.
“Top drawer on the left,” she breathes against my neck.
I have one. I’m prepared, but the drawer is closer. I stretch across her body as she slides her hands into the waistband of my briefs, pushing them down my hips. I hand the foil packet to her and push back, freeing my cock and shoving the briefs away.
Addie rips the wrapper open, pulling the condom out.
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
The sight of her biting her lip, wanting me has me ready to explode.
I squeeze my cock and breathe deep, trying to find all the control I possibly can.
It’s not a matter of wanting to. Fuck’s sake, I want this with her.
My jaw muscles twitch as she reaches out, rolling the condom down my length. Nothing has ever felt as good as her fist on my cock. Nothing.
She squeezes lightly, and any thoughts I had of waiting, wondering are gone. All of them, gone.
Unable to keep my lips from her, I lean in, kissing her breathless. Or maybe I’m the breathless one. Addie shifts beneath me, sliding against me, nudging me closer…closer. She tilts her hips the last little fraction of an angle, and I’m right there.
Not moving.
Addie pulls back, searching my face, her gaze bouncing between my eyes. The connection is stronger than I could have ever imagined.
“You okay?”
“I am. Are you?” If nothing else, I have to make sure there’s no doubt. None.
“God, yes.”
She slides a foot up the back of my thigh, wrapping her legs around me. I inch forward, and a breathy moan escapes Addie as I slide the tip of my cock in. I thought her fist on my cock would send me to an early grave; I was mistaken.
In fact, nothing has ever felt as good as this.
“Addie, God help me…You’re sure this is okay?”
“Yes, God, yes. Give it to me, Finn.”
Her foot pushes against my arse until I’m there. Fully seated, bottomed out. Balls deep. Fucking surrounded by her in the most amazing way.
Every moment of intimacy before now were just lies wrapped up in a pretty little bow because sliding into Addie is the best feeling in the entire world.
Nothing has ever felt as good as this.
“Oh my God, Finn…”
I don’t dare move a muscle. I don’t fucking dare.
Gritting my teeth, I try desperately to run through the months of the year in Gaelic. Anything to keep control of myself.
“Holy Christ, woman. Fuck.” I think I might pass out.
“You’re not allowed to pass out, Finn. Let me…let me…please…ohmagawd…”
I thought I’d kept the passing out comment to myself, but I guess it slipped out. “Are you…are you okay? Sweet Jesus, please tell me I can move, Addie. I don’t think I can hold still.”
Before the words are out of my mouth, her hips start rocking, and I’m back to Gaelic. This time, I’m counting…
“A haon, a dó…”
Thrusting with each new number.
“Yes, Finn…more…”
Christ, her sounds are distracting in the best possible way.
“A trí, a ceathair, fuisce, cíche…”
Addie is meeting me thrust for thrust, and I’m fairly certain I’ve died and gone to heaven.
“Ungmagawd, Finn…Finn…”
Ah, fuck, God, she’s amazing.
“A cúig, a sé, glas, gorm…” I reach between us and circle her clit, thrusting, counting, and saying random words in Gaelic. My spine tingles, and I know I don’t have much time left.
“Finn…”
“Tá tú álainn…”
“Please…”
“Ghlacann tú mo anáil ar shiúl…”
Throwing her head back, Addie comes undone—again. Squeezing me, pulsing around my cock. When she opens her eyes, staring deep into my soul, I let go. My release ripping through me, like nothing I’ve ever experienced in my life.
Because until this moment, I haven’t.
24
Adelaide
“I just want to c-ddle, but I’m missing U.”
I run my nails down the center of his back, humming softly. “Finn, are you okay?” I laugh. “You didn’t really pass out there, did you? Or die? Because that would really suck.”
I can feel his chest expand and contract with each breath, but when he shakes with silent laughter, I don’t fucking know what to think. Maybe it’s relief or something.
“Addie, is tú mo neamh,” he mumbles into the crook of my neck.
“What does that mean? You said a lot of things in there I didn’t understand. It was almost like you were speaking in tongues.” I smooth back his hair as he pushes up and smiles down at me.
“It was Gaelic. I said a lot of different things. I should, erm…get rid of this now, yeah?” Finn looks down to where we’re still joined.
“The condom? Absolutely.”
He grips the base and pulls out, both of us gasping a quiet, “Fuck,” at the loss.
“Flush it then or…” He looks absolutely lost, like he’s never done this before.
Surely, that’s not right. Can’t be.
“Knot it and trash?”
When he’s back in bed, pulling the covers up over us, I settle half on top of him, chest-to-chest. “Can I ask you a question?”
He has a sweet, goofy smile plastered on his face, like he’s all kinds of pleased with himself.
“You can, and then I’ll tell you what I said in Gaelic.” His gaze dances from my face to my boobs squished against his hard chest.
“Was that…” How do I ask if this was his first time without offending him? I feel like I should have known something like that beforehand. Plus, it’s Finn, and he’s known as one of the man-whores of McBride’s, not that I really want to think about that. I’m no virgin, but…holy shit.
“My first time?”
I just stare at him, waiting.
“Was it terrible? Christ, I’m sorry, Addie.” His whole body tenses, and he avoids meeting my eye. His jaw muscles twitch.
I place a palm on his cheek, drawing his attention to me. “Not terrible at all,” I tell him. “Truly, you blew my fucking mind, Finn. But…”
Finn snaps his eyes to me. “After what happened in Dublin, I just…” He licks his lips and looks deadly serious, shrugging. “I wasn’t ready to actually go through with it. But it didn’t completely suck?”
Oh, my heart. “We have a lot of things to discuss, but that did not suck at all. Not in the least.” I place my hand on his belly and bite the lovely pectoral muscle that’s right there, asking for it. “Now, tell me what happened in Dublin. Why did you have to leave school and the…Humanities?”
He nods, confirming that little nugget of knowledge.
“Why did she get to stay, and you had to leave?”
Finn flops his arm across his face, avoiding me as much as he can. “I mentioned she was, ehm, married, yeah?”
I nod slowly, and he peeks out from under his arm, quickly darting his gaze away.
“Her husband was the dean of the school. He walked in on us during her tutor hours. She was splayed out on her desk. I was there, about to slide in and…”
Holy shit. I’m not quite sure that needs to be voiced.
“And she got preferential treatment while you were asked to go.” Who would ever guess this tender, vulnerable soul was hiding under all the cheesy lines and bravado? “I’m so sorry, Finn.” I paint his chest with kisses over his heart. His beautiful heart.
“There are eight of us kids. My two older brothers were already through uni or almost done. But the younger ones didn’t need to suffer for my mistake.
I was young and dumb, flattered by her attention, and thought I was untouchable.” He shrugs and lets his arm fall to the pillow. “The whole thing freaked me out. The dean said it was a good thing we’d not actually done the deed yet. Said he’d have called the constable. Just seemed a better idea to not take that step until I found someone worth the risk.”
My heart melts when he reaches up and tucks a lock of hair behind my ear. “So the girls you’ve taken home, you didn’t…?”
“I didn’t. That’s not so say that I don’t have other skills.” He gives me a cocky smile before turning serious again. “I’m not proud of what happened in Dublin or the aftermath. Thank you for not judging me.” His knuckles trail lightly down my shoulder and across the swell of my boobs smashed against his chest.
“We all have shit to deal with, and how we deal with it is up to the individual. It would be crazy for me to judge,” I scoff, sliding my hand down his abdomen, making him squirm as I trace the V of his muscles.
“Like this?” Finn runs a finger down the bridge of my nose, tapping my silver septum ring. “And this?” he asks, grabbing a fistful of my hair, tugging my head to the side. He kisses me, licking at the seam of my lips before wrapping his free arm around me and pulling me closer.
“Some people wear their hearts on their sleeves. I change my hair with my mood, and nothing pisses my dad off more.” The light, easy kisses I trail up his neck flames and smolders into a passionate thing that runs away from us.
“Tell me what you said earlier.” I lazily stroke his cock, running a finger around just below the crown.
He groans and gently thrusts his hips. Scooting down his body, I slide my leg across his hips and straddle his thighs.
Not needing any encouragement, Finn reaches into my drawer and grabs another condom, tearing open the packet. He hands me the condom and tosses me a Finn wink. “It was sexy as fuck, watching you sheath my cock. Do it again?”
I take the condom, arching a brow at him, waiting.
“Fine. I was counting in Gaelic, trying to distract myself so that I wouldn’t blow too quickly.”
With the lightest touch possible, I slowly roll the condom down his length. Finn watches me with hooded eyes.
“Then, I got distracted and went with whiskey, your tits, and the different colors you’ve had your hair.” He runs his hands up my hips until he’s cupping my boobs, pinching and rolling my nipples in the same lazy way I stroke him.
I lift my hips, positioning him at my entrance. “What else did you say?” I ask on a gasp as I lower myself until I’m completely and deliciously full.
Finn thrusts slow and deep, our bodies rocking, hands caressing and touching. He pulls me down, so we’re chest-to-chest, the new angle robbing me of my ability to breathe.
“I said, ‘You are lovely.’” He slowly drags his cock out until we’re just barely connected. “That you take my breath away.” He murmurs against the shell of my ear as he thrusts back in, “And that you are my heaven.”
“More…” Dear God, his words squeeze at my heart.
He wraps me in a mixture of Gaelic and English as he brings me to a shattering release.
25
Finn
“Can you imagine if someone wrote you a list of reasons they loved you?”
“No. It would probably be the shortest list in the world.”
“You’re right. All it would say is, Everything.”
I pull on the soft gray T-shirt I had done up for today. It’s not a holiday, nothing special to the rest of the world. Just to me.
“Finn, you’re working tonight, right?”
I quickly slide into a button-up as Addie exits the bathroom in a cloud of vanilla-scented steam. The blue of her hair is so much darker when it’s wet and twisted into the complicated braid that I can’t quite figure out, no matter how many times I unravel it.
I pull the sides of my shirt together, buttoning over the letters first. “I am. Will you keep me company for a bit?”
Addie slides her hands round my waist and pushes up onto her toes to kiss me. This is dangerous because there is nothing I want more than to deepen this kiss and take her back to bed, losing myself in her.
Addie breaks our kiss and nods. “Yeah, I have to get some work done though. What time are you going in?” She sifts through the few bits of clothing she keeps at my flat.
I’ve not moved yet, but I did talk with my landlord about his daughter breaking in. He installed a keypad lock for us instead, and I’ve not seen Bitchy McCuntface around the pub in ages.
“Erm…I have some things to get done before my shift, and Kieran needs to leave early again. I should probably go soon.”
“Again?” She spins, hands on her hips. “What the hell does he do? He’s never at work on time. Never works a whole shift. Why does Francie keep him?”
“The accent, love. He’s got it, and he can pour a pint. I’ll get him sorted.”
Addie rolls her eyes and plops down on my bed, shoving her foot into a red Converse. “That’s stupid. If he can’t show up and do the whole job completely, then he needs to be replaced. There should be ramifications for not…” She’s lost in her head and mumbling about McBride’s.
She’s so fucking cute; I can hardly stand it. With all the stealth I can manage, I tackle her to the bed, caging her in and kissing her until her hands are pulling at my belt, and we’re both panting.
“I have to go, Addie. But I promise you, we’ll pick this up later, yeah?” I drop a last kiss to her thoroughly swollen lips and climb off the bed, tucking my erection away the best that I can. Then, I head to McBride’s as she goes back to her flat.
ADELAIDE
Finn is up to something. He thinks he can hide shit from me and have all the surprises, but I have a few of my own.
I didn’t lie to him when I said I had work to do today. I have several new clients and have been busier than ever. Nope, I didn’t lie. I just didn’t tell him the whole truth.
Aidan has been outrageously generous in handing out my name, recommending my work, and the inquiries have been shocking, to say the least. Through his photo shoots with several bands and ever-expanding client list, I’ve been hired to overhaul the website and promo materials for one of the big music festivals in Kansas City.
Timing has been weird, and the organizers had some issues with some of the bands and their branding, but in a show of good faith, they gave me a pair of tickets and are flying me and a guest out next week. We don’t just get to attend the show; we have full access to the venue, the musicians, and an amazing setup in my hometown.
It took all of a minute for me to decide who my plus-one would be. Finn’s mild obsession with music and specifically Of the Room made it a no-brainer. That, and he’s weaseled his way into my cold, dead heart.
Things are all cleared with his boss for me to steal Finn away for a few days.
Back at my apartment, I set Eric down, and he scampers off to find the Flounder toy Finn gave him. I make my way to my bedroom to finish getting ready, drying my hair and styling it in soft, beachy waves. It reminds me of ocean waves, and I love it, but it might be time for another change. Maybe purple? Maybe the soft pastel rainbow that Finn sent me for my Pinterest board?
I swipe on mascara and some lip stain and swap out my total nerd glasses for cute nerd glasses.
Grabbing my laptop, I settle on the couch to print off the flight vouchers and festival info, making mental notes of a few major things I want to completely change on the website and a few other cool touristy things that are must-dos in Kansas City.
After a couple of hours of work, it’s time. I take Eric out to do his thing, pop him into his crate, and change into the shirt Virginia scored for me. I text her on the way to my car to make sure everything is all set for Finn’s surprise at McBride’s.
FRANCIE
I settle into my usual seat at the corner of the bar, waiting for the show. Neither Finn nor Adelaide has any idea of the other’s surprise. Maybe an in
kling that there is one, but by no means what it is.
It settles my heart to see the boy find his way, and Adelaide is good for him. He needs someone to challenge him, keep him in line, and keep his head from getting too big. He’s grown up a lot in the time he’s been at McBride’s. Training up the new lad, Kieran, has been a challenge—one that Jimmy wasn’t quite up to and didn’t manage nearly as well as I’d hoped. But Finn’s got him sorted. I have all the faith in the world that Finn will be able to sort Jimmy out as well, if need be.
Applying to the university for his business classes was the final little step the boy needed to get himself lined up for the future. He needed to put the events from Dublin behind him. Know that he’s capable of taking the courses he’ll need to run a business. To secure his future. Because, as much as I love all my boys here—Aidan, Jimmy, Finn, and now, Kieran—there is only one completely suited to take over when the time comes.
Finn has a love for McBride’s in a way the others don’t quite possess. He loves the patrons, loves the lifestyle. It’s the perfect fit for him to carry on, looking out for the boys here now, for the Irish lads along the way who need a place to land for a bit, and for himself to grow into who he’s meant to be.
He’ll do well.
Finn hustles through the pub, getting the last little details set. Making sure that his ladies have what they need. They are all wearing their matching shirts, newly altered to add an additional line of text, and drinking whiskey like only classy women can. Neat.
I lean in as he comes back to the bar. “Make sure the grannies have a round on me, yeah?”
He gives me a sly look and asks, “Want me to put that on your tab, old man?” He sets a fresh pint of Guinness in front of me and winks.
I check the clock above the bar. “It’s about time.”
Finn looks over his shoulder, and with a quick nod, he pulls his button-up shirt over his head, leaving him in just the T-shirt he’s so proud of.