“I just remembered something I forgot to arrange for my new home is all.” This time he did pull his eyes up.
“You’ve moved ta my lovely Ireland then?” His eyes locked with hers and she swore his pupils dilated as they stared at one another. She nodded and broke whatever spell had been holding them.
“Yes. To Kilkenny actually. I’ve purchased a little sweets shop there and hope to simply change the name and treat the people there to my own pastries.” He hadn’t asked for all that information and she briefly wondered if it was too much and felt another flush rising. She certainly had to get a hold on either her mouth or her reddening skin before this man caught onto her.
“That sounds lovely.” He looked like he was going to say more when a sleek black car pulled up to the benches. Rissa didn’t recognize the make but it was clearly European and not one she knew from her time here in college. The car stopped and the driver stepped out and walked up to her.
“Miss Pembly?”
She nodded, another devilishly sexy accent, but it had nowhere near the power of her mystery reader.
“Forgive my lateness. I’ll take you into to Dublin now.” He walked to her bags and effortlessly rolled them toward the car.
“Guess it’s time for you to surrender my Kindle, sir.” She did her best to smile with a twinkle in her eye, desperately trying to flirt with him now simply because she’d never see him again and if she was going to stop making a fool out of herself with every sexy accent she’d better start practicing that it didn’t phase her.
“That it must be.” He grinned at her as he passed the device back. Again his hand brushed against hers and lingered.
She prayed she wasn’t flushing yet again and pulled back gently and he let it go.
“Safe travels, lass.”
Just as easily as he’d struck up a conversation he’d dismissed her. She felt a little disappointed and simply walked to the car. She thought she heard him saying that he was leaving now as she stepped into the car and closed the door on her first failure in Ireland. “Let’s hope the business does better than my attempt at picking up a man.”
Chapter 2
Kieran cursed his cell phone the minute he hung it up. He’d been on a vacation of sorts. His last case for Interpol had left him with a gunshot to the side and he’d been put on mandatory R&R by the powers in charge after his recovery and he’d literally just landed back home after two weeks in Paris.
Prior to seeing the American woman he’d been itching for a case, had been afraid nothing would be assigned to him because had he not been shot, he might have been arrested for making his own choices regarding an informant. But then he’d seen Miss Rissa and the call to come into the office was the most piss poor timing of any he’d ever received.
She was beautiful and clearly so tightly wound he’d been fantasizing about making her come undone since he’d seen her across the way in baggage claim. Her hair was clearly not a natural blonde, but the cool white suited her and her pale green eyes. He figured she was trying to hide her body beneath boring business clothes, but it was a lost cause. The brown slacks clung to her round ass so well he could greatly appreciate the lack of a panty line. Her breasts looked full in the blue blouse and all he’d wanted to do was unbutton each and every pearlized button with his teeth and bare her to him.
He hadn’t been lying when he asked about her book, his mother had taught him to love a good book and he’d thought it was a great ice breaker. Not that he would consider the torrid sex she’d been reading as a good book, but he certainly had every intention of making sex with her as hot as the book was.
Kieran could tell from the choppy way she spoke she was interested in him too. The dreamy look she got in her eyes when he was talking to her hadn’t gone unnoticed either. But it was when he brushed her hand the deal was sealed. His cock had jumped to life so fast he almost wondered if he’d been celibate the last few weeks and imagined all the sex he’d had with his little Parisian. It hadn’t meant anything, just a good way to release tension. Desiree was an Interpol agent as well and they’d learned years back they were good in bed and made a point of seeing each other when they could. It was really the reason he’d gone to Paris.
But his dick wanted the little blonde American almost as much as he wanted to be the one to make her shatter. Kieran had been known for a bed partner or two, but he didn’t normally pick them out just by looking. He hadn’t wanted to take his hand off her and it killed him not to pull her into him and claim her mouth with his before she got into her ride. But he knew she was a flight risk, he could tell from how she shifted on the bench when they talked and the pretty little flush she got in her cheeks when they spoke. A flush that made his cock twitch with need. He’d never been one to like shy women, but something about her was making his hormones go on red alert. If he wasn’t mistaken she’d flirted, just a little bit with him and even given him the perfect excuse to bump into her at some point.
He’d heard her say her name twice and it seemed fitting for her. Rissa Pembly, something that spoke to a classy woman and he had no doubt that’s what she was, or at least the facade she put on. Her choice of reading material left room for suspicion to see if the shy girl liked it hot and rough.
Finding out she wasn’t just a tourist was perfect because he had every intention of seeking her out, right after he checked in at the office.
***
Kieran tugged the door closed behind him and dragged his hands through his hair. His back thumped into the chief’s door and he just let himself breath. He felt a hand clap down on his shoulder and then heard his partner, Jamie’s voice.
“That could’ve been a lot worse.” Normally his partner was all straight ties and rule following, but there was a playful undertone and he wanted to punch him for it. Instead he forced himself to count to ten and not deck the man who had his back, in the face.
“You know, it’s a good thing blood stains clothes or I’d seriously make you regret that statement.” He ground his teeth together and pushed off the door, tugging at his coat. Whenever he got uncomfortable clothing always felt confining. If he was honest he wasn’t really pissed at Jamie’s comment. He was pissed because the whole time his chief had been threatening to kick his ass out of Interpol he’d been thinking about taking that pretty little blonde on top of the desk, against the window and pretty much on every surface his brain could think of. It was utterly ridiculous, he wasn’t a hookup artist, but he’d never had trouble getting laid and he’d had plenty of it the past weeks, but he couldn’t stop wanting her. Maybe it was because she’d essentially rejected him, but she sure as shit had gotten under his skin.
He’d been in the chief’s office answering to the crime he committed on his last mission. The guy who’d shot him had been previously captured and let go for information. A protocol no-no. Informants could be cut a deal, but choosing to let them go on our own without approval was a big fucking mistake. A mistake he wouldn’t make twice because getting shot again wasn’t ever making his to-do list.
Dropping to his desk chair he winced a little as pain raced up his side and he kicked his feet up on the desk, something his chief would surely disapprove of. But Jamie jumped up and sat on the desk shortly after so they would at least get bitched at together.
“You do know they make this thing that removes stains right?” Jamie cocked a perfectly manicured black brow at him.
“You know I’d heard somewhere that women dinnea like getting punched so tell me, why are you trying ta get me ta punch you?” He sneered at Jamie and opened his web browser to the Bus Eireann site to figure out just how he was going to make sure he got his fill of the blonde American.
“Please, you think if I didn’t like being punched I would’ve joined Interpol?” Jamie hopped down off the desk and straightened his tie.
Everywhere the guy went he had to be impeccable. He once told Kieran it was his duty as a gay male to be the best dressed person in the room. His accent was impossible to p
lace due to all the undercover assignments he’d been on in the past and it seemed to drive both men and women crazy. It never ceased to amaze him how Jamie could switch on a dime from tight lipped straight man to goofy guy.
“Hmm I wonder if she has that party trick too.”
“Wonder if who has what trick?”
“One day I’ll stop muttering because your ears are too good. I was just thinking out loud.”
Jamie snorted and walked away from the desk without another word and Kieran focused on the bus schedule. You know you arrest people for doing shit like this. It’s called stalking. He put his elbows on the desk and dropped his head to his hands with a groan. What on Earth was he doing? Stalking a woman because she’d accidentally let it slip that she’d be in Kilkenny running a bakery? Just the mere thought about her again sent a spiral of lust through his stomach and his dick pulsed slightly to life in his pants. He clenched his teeth and ran his finger over the scroller on the mouse as his eyes trailed down the bus times.
He didn’t have to actually go to Kilkenny. Just see if she’s at the station and play dumb. “Brilliant, O’Connell. Absolutely brilliant.” He’d lost his mind and all for sex. Not that sex wasn’t a good thing to lose his mind for, it just didn’t sit right with him that a random female had wound him up so damn tight. His hand hovered over the “purchase connection” red button and the ticking of his watch thudded in his ears and he swore he could hear the flick of his eyelashes. Mere seconds had passed, but his brain had kindly slowed them down to a painful crawl while he contemplated the stupidity of his actions.
“Fuck it. Fuck it all.” With one click he’d set the course for the night and leaned back in his chair, lacing his hands behind his head. “And just how does it feel ta be a potential stalker, Kieran? Oh just wonderful.” He laughed at himself and pulled his feet down from the desk to get all his paperwork done. Paperwork, the bane of an agent’s existence, but after a medical leave suspension he sure had a ton of it. His eyes glanced to the now printed bus pass in his printer and it gave him just the motivation he needed to get his work done and his ass off the clock.
Chapter 3
Rissa’s breath hitched and caught in her throat as her eyes made contact with the devilishly sexy man from the airport. She hadn’t been able to get him, his tailored suit and his panty wetting accent out of her mind. Even walking around Dublin and getting reacquainted with some of her favorite places hadn’t stopped the sexual fantasies from bombarding her every step of the way. She’d secretly wished she’d seen his boarding pass or something that would have given her a name to add to the fantasy. She’d been hoping it was something sexy and quintessentially Irish so she’d dubbed him Liam in her fantasies all day. Never in a million years had she thought she would bump into him. Dublin was a huge city and she only had a few daylight hours after a quick nap at an old friend’s, to wander before heading to her new home. But it hadn’t stopped her from hoping.
The deep navy of his eyes met hers and his grin sent a wave of lust through her so hard she had to take a deep breath. What were the odds that he would’ve been on the same bus as her? Her suitcase rolled over her big toe as she stopped in a stupor and she flinched and cursed as the pain danced its way through her foot for the second time in one day. She looked down to make sure she hadn’t ruined her only non flour covered pair of heels and the chuckle from that morning filled her ears. She flushed and took a few slow breaths before picking her head up. She was apparently supposed to meet Mr. Dark and Devastatingly Handsome again and she certainly didn’t want to blow it like she often did when her friends tried to hook her up back home.
“Well I do think I’ve heard that laugh before.” She did her best to smile through the pain in her foot as she picked her head up to look at him and she was met with another of the deep laugh.
“I could say the same for your apparent disaster with finding a safe place ta stand.” He flashed that smirk of his and she swore her knees were going to give out if she didn’t sit soon. But all of the benches were taken and even with her petite size she had a mental of image sitting on her suitcase and the damn thing rolling out from under her, leaving her flat on her ass.
“Maybe I’m just too enamored with Ireland to pay attention to what I’m doing?”
He took a step closer to her and closed the distance between them. Her pulse raced at his closeness, his head was titled down and she squeezed her eyes shut, silently praying that he was going to kiss her. As soon as the thought formed she snapped her eyes open. She did not kiss random strangers. Which wouldn’t have mattered anyway, his face had stopped a respectable distance from hers. Disappointment surely flickered across her face when she should have been relieved. Too bad you’ve been fantasizing about him finding you and taking you all day long, Rissa.
“Well here I was hoping you would say both times you were too taken by my presence ta pay attention.” His voice was low, whispered and it played tricks with her mind. He was either interested in her or a jerk that simply liked to flaunt his hotness around. She took a deep breath in hoped to play nonchalant.
“Hmm, nope, the city has definitely been the source of my captivation.” She smiled at him and the bus pulled up next to the stop and any response he may have uttered was lost in the roar of the bus brakes and her head dropping into her purse to find her bus ticket. Grabbing the piece of paper in her hands she turned to look back at him, but he’d taken a step away and was grabbing his ticket from his wallet.
***
Disappointment had settled in her stomach like a lead weight. They’d been ushered onto the bus just as the beautiful night sky had opened up for a traditional Irish summer storm. She didn’t mind the rain terribly, in fact she was excited at the prospect of sitting next to her window on a rainy day and reading while her pastries baked. But she hated having to be wet, her pants clung to her in a highly irritating fashion and her hair tickled the back of her neck as it began to curl from the water drying.
However the real reason was that the mysterious stranger had boarded so long after her that he was not able to claim the seat next to her. Not that she was certain he would have even tried, but the opportunity had not even been there. He nodded and winked at her as he walked past and for the last two hours she had to keep physically pinching herself or biting her lower lip to not turn around and check for him.
Instead she’d been lost in a sex hazed fantasy that made sitting on the bus embarrassingly uncomfortable because she couldn’t get the images from her mind. Dirty images, images that were nothing like who Rissa presented herself to be, but images she promised herself she would try out if she got the chance with this man. Casual sex wasn’t her thing, but she was not a shrieking violet once she was ready to sleep with a man. Her sex drive was sometimes far and above that of her partners, her need to try new things was something that either won them over or sent them running. Her desires didn’t run too dark, nothing that would touch the BDSM things she had read about. But she was easily bored in bed and liked to keep things spicy- sex in nothing but stilettos, sex on inappropriate surfaces, role playing, and nothing set her off like the commanding tone a man got in his voice when he ordered her to come.
She shivered in her seat as she pictured herself sprawled out under the man, his cock thrusting in and out of her core and his navy eyes locking on hers as he pinched her nipples and ordered her to come. Rissa’s back involuntarily arched off the bus seat and her head tipped backwards at the idea. She was going to get in late, but wanted to make sure the key she’d been mailed worked at the bakery before heading to the small apartment she’d rented. Now she wasn’t so sure she was going to be able to do that, she needed some serious alone time and a way to banish this man from her mind so she could focus. The business was why she was here and while she really did want a sexy Irishman to sweep her off her feet she needed to stay focused and focus and baking were really the only things she was terribly good at.
“Excuse me, sorry this is for you.” The woma
n next to her handed her a folded up piece of paper and she took it and unfolded it.
“Care for a seat buddy swap?”
She grinned, knowing exactly who it was from. Her Irish stranger was absolutely interested in her and for once she wasn’t going to be the timid shy girl that blew it with the guy. She was going to make sure he didn’t get away. Nothing said brand new adventure like starting it off with a hot hookup - or so she’d always heard.
Grabbing a pen from her purse she wrote “sure” back and asked the woman to pass it back to wherever it had come from. A few seconds later his accent cut through the images she had of what if they’d been alone on the bus and she casually slid across his lap to get out of her seat.
“Scuse me, lass, this is my girlfriend and I was wondering if you might swap seats with me for the last leg of the travels so I can sit with her?”
Hearing him call the other woman lass shouldn’t have affected her, but she had hoped he didn’t use it on all women.
“Oh, of course. Just let me grab my things!” The woman next to her had an American accent too and quickly grabbed her purse off the floor and walked back to where the man must have been pointing.
He slid into the seat next to her and she couldn’t take her eyes off him in the dimly lit bus. She hoped he couldn’t tell she was assessing him. The hard muscles of his body showed through the white dress shirt he was wearing. She wanted to slowly peel each of the buttons open and slid the shirt off to explore his body with her hands. She shook her head to focus on the outstretched hand. She placed hers in his and again enjoyed the feeling of his warmth and large hand.
“Name’s Kieran by the way. I think it’s about time I introduced myself. And you might be?”
Kieran. The name sounded in her mind and smiled, not as sexy as Liam, but not too bad.
Naughty Bedtime Stories: First Taste Page 14