Irish

by Harley Wylde

  I eased onto the edge of the bed and smoothed her hair back from her face. “Baby, you can do whatever you want. As far as I’m concerned, this is just as much your home as it is mine.”

  “Really?” she asked, rolling onto her side.

  My gaze dropped to her breasts, and maybe I was an asshole for noticing the way they moved under her shirt. I tried not to be a complete dick and stare, but my cock was already getting hard. Jesus Christ. It was going to kill me, knowing she was here in my bed and I would be out on the couch.

  “Seamus,” she said softly.

  “Sorry.” My voice didn’t sound quite right and I forced myself to stand up, then immediately wished I hadn’t. It was difficult to hide how hard I’d gotten and the last thing I wanted to do was scare Nessa.

  “Wait.” She reached out and wrapped her fingers around my wrist.

  “I can’t be here right now, Nessa. You haven’t been in my house for even an hour and already I’m…” I stopped and took a breath. “You need to heal, sweetheart. The last thing you need is me getting hard every time I look your way.”

  “Do you know how flattering it is that you want me that much?” she asked. “Maybe some women would be offended, and if it were any other guy I’d probably feel the same, but I want you, Seamus, just as much as you want me.”

  I closed my eyes, trying to get my dick under control. Then I heard the bed creak as she got up and felt her fingers slide against my cheek. I felt like I was in high school. My cock got so fucking hard it was painful. She slid her hand down my neck and kept going until she reached my belt buckle. I sucked in a breath and my heart started pounding. I’d always thought if this moment happened, I would be the one seducing her, not the other way around.

  “Nessa, what are you doing?”

  “I think we should get it out of the way,” she said.

  “Get what out of the way?”

  “Seeing each other naked.”

  I blinked and stared down at her. Did she just… “Nessa, did they give you pain medication before you left the hospital?”

  “I have to be drugged to want to see you naked?”

  “Um… babe… I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but you stripping me naked right now seems out of character. I know we haven’t seen each other in five years, but Scratch is always telling me how sweet you are. Sweet and innocent were, I believe, his exact words. So, no, I don’t think you have to be drugged to want to see me sans apparel, but the timing is a little strange.”

  She reached down and grabbed the hem of her top and yanked it over her head. Her breasts bounced free and I swallowed so damn hard it echoed in the room. My gaze scanned the rest of her body and my brain short-circuited. It wasn’t like I’d never seen a naked woman before. Hell, I’d probably seen a hundred or more of them in my lifetime, but none of them were Nessa. She was perfection, and mine!

  With a wink and a flirty smile, she turned and walked off, straight into the bathroom. I’d only taken two steps when she slammed the door shut, and I heard the lock click. Mother. Fucker. That little tease had wound me up, then shut me down. I grinned as I stared at the closed door and shook my head. Yeah, little Janessa Rodriguez was going to keep me on my damn toes, and I had a feeling I’d love every second of it.

  I chuckled as I left the bedroom, pulling the door mostly shut behind me. If she needed something and called out, I wanted to hear her, but I also wanted to give her some semblance of privacy when she came out of the bathroom. Even if she’d stripped in front of me, I didn’t think she normally would parade around naked in front of a guy. It didn’t mesh with what little Scratch had told me over the years.

  While she showered, I went to the kitchen and pulled out a box of macaroni from the pantry and some ground beef from the fridge. I set the noodles to boiling as I browned the meat, adding some salt and pepper. After I’d drained the meat and noodles, I turned on the oven and let it warm. Then I grabbed one of the foiled baking dishes I’d picked up, and mixed the noodles and ground beef before tossing in three different shredded cheeses and some Velveeta. I let the dish bake and prowled the house, making a mental note of the things I still needed to buy before this place would even somewhat resemble a home and not an empty house.

  It really did look rather pathetic. I wondered what Janessa had thought when she’d walked through all the empty rooms. Did she see the potential in this big house, or was she disappointed in how little I owned? I’d never given a shit what a woman thought, and maybe it made me a pussy to worry about it now, but Janessa wasn’t just any woman. She was the one I wanted next to me the rest of my life, if I could get over the hurdle of her dad.

  By the time Janessa appeared again -- wearing a different one of my shirts and hopefully some panties -- I was pulling the dish from the oven and plating our food. Steam rose from the gooey goodness and the kitchen smelled pretty awesome. I’d run across some simple recipes online one night when I was bored as shit, and I’d actually pulled off a few. Like this one. I set the plates on the table, then grabbed some forks and got two sodas out of the fridge.

  “Hope you’re hungry,” I said.

  “For food that didn’t come from a hospital cafeteria? I’m starved!”

  “It’s one of the few things I know how to make. Mostly I just microwave shit when I get hungry, or I eat at the clubhouse or the diner in town.”

  “How old are you, Seamus?”

  “Thirty-two.” I stopped and stared at her. “Why?”

  She snickered a little. “You made it to the age of thirty-two, and you can only cook a few things? Do you have no survival skills?”

  “Are you laughing at me?” I asked with some amusement.

  “Maybe a little,” she said, holding her thumb and forefinger a few centimeters apart. “I don’t mind cooking. I sometimes even enjoy it.”

  “Your mom teach you to cook?” I asked.

  She set her fork down, her gaze dropping to the table. What the fuck did I say wrong? I’d always thought moms taught their kids to cook. My mother hadn’t bothered with that sort of thing, and the last time I’d seen her was a long fucking time ago, but surely some moms did that shit.

  “Mom was in the asylum the first twenty-two years of her life. Dad did most of the cooking, even though Mom started to learn after a while. She still doesn’t cook as much as Dad does, but I think he likes taking care of her.”

  “Fuck. I’m sorry, Nessa. I wasn’t thinking. I sometimes forget that psycho doctor was after her when we first met. She doing okay now? She seemed happy. I know she was worried about you, but I could still tell that she seemed content with her life.”

  “She’s good.” Nessa smiled. “Dad dotes on her. I found out recently that the reason they’ve only had the two boys is that she can’t have more kids. The doctor said it would be dangerous for her, so Dad got snipped. I can’t help but think they’d have had a houseful. Mom’s the best mother I could have ever asked for.”

  “Well… that’s more than I needed to know about Tex, but I’m glad you had an awesome mother.”

  Nessa laughed and started eating again.

  “When we’re done here, maybe we can watch a movie. I’m sure you’re supposed to take it easy for a while,” I said.

  “My doctor said you spoke to him.” She gave me a coy smile. “Something about whether or not it was all right to be intimate?”

  Shit. “Um, I wasn’t expecting anything to happen, but if things progressed that far I wanted to make sure it was safe. And my tests came back fine, so I’m clean.”

  I tried not to wince at how ridiculous that sounded. With my reputation, which was definitely deserved, I wouldn’t blame her if she got up and walked the fuck out. If she’d known all this time I spoke to her doctor about that, I wasn’t entirely certain why she was even here. Shouldn’t she have told her dad? I knew she hadn’t, or Tex would have cut off my balls by now. Yeah, we’d talked about being intimate, but I hadn’t expected her to just walk into the house and str
ip.

  I wasn’t scared of much, and honestly the Reaper didn’t frighten me. He wasn’t that much older than me, which was probably part of his problem with me being with Janessa. That and the fact I’d screwed anyone in a skirt for the last five years. I was lucky Janessa was willing to give me a chance, and I really didn’t want to fuck it up.

  “I’m fucking with you, Seamus,” she said.

  I wasn’t sure what to make of her. She was so different from the girl I’d met before, and yet when I looked into her eyes, I still saw that young Nessa who had been cute and flirty despite the big age gap between us. The grown-up version was saucy and sexy as hell. If I hadn’t been captivated by her before, I sure as fuck was now.

  “We can watch a movie,” she said. “I’ll even let you pick, seeing as it’s your TV and all.”

  “Very considerate of you.”

  “I’m thoughtful like that.”

  I just shook my head and cleared the table. I cleaned up the kitchen and led Nessa into the living room. She cuddled against my side on the couch, and I flipped through the channels until I found something I thought we might both like. At first I thought it was an accident when she brushed against my thigh, but then it happened again. When her fingers slipped dangerously close to my cock, I glanced her way. She was staring at the TV, but the look in her eyes said the movie wasn’t on her mind, unless it had switched to a porno without me noticing.

  I let her play her games, trying to act like I didn’t notice. Another twenty minutes passed when her head rested against my shoulder and the hand on my thigh went lax. Her breathing was deep and even, and her eyes had closed. I contemplated moving her to the bed or leaving her alone. As she shifted against me, I realized she wasn’t comfortable, so I shut off the movie and carried Janessa to the bedroom. The temptation of lying down with her was too great.

  I toed off my boots, removed my belt and my cut, then stared at my jeans and hesitated. After a moment of arguing with myself, I kicked them off and slid into bed with just my boxer briefs on. I lay down next to her, trying to relax. She immediately curled against me, and I held her close. In all the years I’d been fucking women, I couldn’t remember a single damn time I’d just held one all night and slept beside her. It seemed right that my first time should be with Janessa.

  I breathed in her scent and closed my eyes, feeling content and happy for the first time I could ever remember. Other than my brothers, I hadn’t trusted anyone in a long time. Maybe not ever. Well, not since I discovered that even parents would screw their kid over if it benefited them in some way. All little kids were trusting, until you gave them a reason not to be. The grown-up me, however, hadn’t trusted anyone but the men I knew had my back. And now Janessa.

  I only hoped it didn’t all blow up in my face.

  Chapter Five

  Janessa

  Waking up with Seamus wrapped around me was a pleasant surprise. The feel of his hard cock brought heat to my cheeks, but it also made me wetter than I’d ever been before. I’d never seen a naked man in person, not even living at the compound. With so many of the Reapers settling down and becoming family men, things had been curtailed from what I’d gathered. I once overheard a conversation between Flicker and Tempest, talking about the good ol’ days when nudity was more the norm than family barbeques. I’d mentioned it to my dad and he said they were just jealous they didn’t have beautiful wives like my mom, or awesome kids like me and my brothers. With Flicker, I could see that as being true, not so much for Tempest. He was as wild as they came.

  It made me think of what my mom had said about Seamus, that he’d gone wild. He’d admitted to having been with a lot of women, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. It wasn’t like we’d had an agreement of any sort, and I’d been a kid until the past year. Didn’t make it hurt any less, though. In my mind and in my heart, I’d been his and he’d been mine.

  Seamus had said a lot of things during my hospital stay, made me believe he was ready for a commitment. What if he’d just felt guilty, though? It would explain why he hadn’t touched me. Other than a few kisses while I was bedridden, he hadn’t made a move. I suppose he could just be giving me time to heal, like he’d claimed, but part of me had to wonder if that’s all it was. I wanted him, wanted to know what it felt like to be well and truly loved by someone. Was he running scared? Or had he changed his mind about us now that I was under his roof?

  I tried to roll over and faced Seamus, but he had an iron grip on me. I felt him nuzzle my neck and I wiggled against him. He pressed his cock tighter against me, and I wondered for a moment if he was awake and just fucking with me. When he mumbled something and ground against me, I decided he was still sleeping. The way he’d acted yesterday, I had no doubt that if he were awake, he’d have put some distance between us by now. It was fun to tease him and get him wound up, but what I really wanted was for him to take charge and tell me what he wanted. I didn’t much care for the Seamus who seemed afraid he would hurt me. Yes, I’d had the hell beat out of me and had been hospitalized for about a week, but I was home and I was healthy. My ribs were still bruised and tender, but my cuts were nearly healed. The areas that had been a nasty black and blue had faded to a yellowish green and would probably be gone completely in another few days.

  “Seamus,” I said softly, wondering if I should wake him.

  He kissed the back of my neck and tightened his hold on me.

  “Seamus, are you awake?” I asked.

  “Morning,” he said, his voice still rough from sleeping.

  “Not that I mind the fact you’re turned-on this morning, but I was kind of wondering if you were going to do something about it.”

  His body tensed, and then he groaned before putting some space between us. I hated that fucking space. Turning to face him, I cuddled close again. His gaze fastened on me, and I had to admit he looked pretty cute first thing in the morning. His hair was sticking up and the growth on his jaw was thicker.

  “I’m not a baby,” I said.

  “I noticed.”

  “It’s obvious you want me. I just don’t understand why you won’t act on it. I thought I was coming here to get claimed by a big, bad biker. Instead, I get a guy who doesn’t want to touch me and seems worried about hurting my feelings or some shit. What the hell, Seamus?”

  “You’re still healing, Nessa. Besides, we don’t know a damn thing about each other. I’m trying to do things the right way. You’re not some club slut I’m going to screw and then forget.”

  I chewed the inside of my cheek and contemplated how I wanted to handle it. “No, I’m not a club slut, but I’m still a woman. I’m not someone who’s going to run scared because you have morning wood. I’m a woman who happens to be really damn wet and turned on.”

  “You’re not playing fair,” he said, narrowing his eyes.

  “Never said I would. Five years, Seamus. Five fucking years. Do you think I honestly want to wait a second more?”

  “I want your first time to be special.”

  I snorted.

  “What?” he asked. “I can’t want to make it memorable? You only get one first time, Janessa. I’m trying to do the right thing for the first time in my fucking life.”

  “I’m a biker’s daughter. I lived in an asylum for a while where the staff raped the inmates and tortured them. Mom protected me from that shit, but I wasn’t stupid. I knew what was going on. I don’t need you to handle me like I’m spun glass and will shatter at any moment. I’m tougher than you seem to think.”

  “Your dad entrusted you into my care,” he said. “If he thought for one second that I fucked you, he’d cut off my balls.”

  “No, he wouldn’t,” I said, even though I wasn’t entirely sure about that. “Mom wouldn’t let him. She knows how I feel about you.”

  He reached up and ran his fingers through my hair. “I think it’s pretty evident that I want you. I just don’t want to fuck this up, whatever it is we have between us. I’ve never cared about a w
oman before, and I…”

  “You what?” I asked when it seemed like he wouldn’t finish his sentence.

  He shook his head, apparently thinking better of whatever he’d been about to say.

  “Seamus, I’m nineteen and until you kissed me the day I woke up in ICU, I’d never been kissed. I’ve never had an orgasm. Never seen a naked man. I wanted all those firsts to be with you, and now that I’m here, I can’t seem to get you to make a move. So, I’m going to make this easy on you.”

  Sitting up, I tugged my shirt over my head and tossed it onto the floor. I hadn’t bothered with panties last night, hoping Seamus might take advantage of me. He audibly gulped as he stared at me, then I settled back down on the bed next to him. When he didn’t make a move, and I honestly couldn’t even tell if he was still breathing, I reached out and grabbed his hand, then placed it on my naked hip. I could feel a shudder go through him and it made me feel powerful to have that kind of effect on him.

  “You seem to be overdressed,” I said, tugging on the waistband of his underwear.

  “Are you sure about this? One hundred percent certain you want to do this?” he asked.

  “I’m positive, Seamus.”

  “If you change your mind or want to stop at any time…”

  “I won’t,” I assured him. “Now show me what I’ve been missing. Just watch the ribs.”

  He hesitated only a moment before he stripped off his boxer briefs and threw them over the edge of the bed. I sucked in a breath, then regretted it. Pain shot through my ribs, but I was too fascinated with Seamus’ cock to pay them much mind. I didn’t have anyone to compare him with, but he seemed rather… big. It didn’t scare me, though. If anything, it just made me hotter.

  I sat up on my knees and reached out to run my hand over his chest, down his abs, then paused before running my fingers along the length of his cock. It twitched and I saw a bead of pre-cum gather on the tip. His shaft was silkier than I’d expected, and he was really damn hard. I wrapped my fingers around him and stroked, marveling at how he felt. His breathing changed and his eyes darkened, but Seamus didn’t utter a word of complaint or tell me to stop as I explored his body. His hands were fisted at his sides and I appreciated the restraint he was showing.