Chapter 4 #2
He stays put. And better yet, he leans back and rests one arm along the back of the couch, displaying a very impressive arm thick with muscle and an upper sleeve of intricate tattoos.
“Of course I’ll stay,” he says. “I wouldn’t just take off. Not after… Well. I’ll stay as long as you want.”
My heart makes a little leap. Not a frightened one, like before, but a hopeful one.
With his other hand, Cillian reaches over to graze his fingers along the white gauze now wrapped around my wrist. “How are you feeling? Do you want some ice? Painkillers?”
“It’s not that bad. Just a little sore.” I hesitate for a second before touching his hand. Our fingers lace together, like matching puzzle pieces finally finding their home.
His eyes drop to our entwined fingers. His features soften. “I’m sorry you were hurt at all, Paige. I wish I could have stopped it.”
“It’s not your fault. I should have been more cautious. Used a different name when I answered my calls. Installed more security, like you told me to.”
Cillian grimaces. “I know that was presumptuous of me. We hadn’t even met, and there I was—”
“It wasn’t,” I interrupt. “You just wanted me to be safe. And you were right.”
He sighs. “I wish I wasn’t.”
I turn so I’m facing him. I give his hand a squeeze. “But you came. You rescued me. Like a hero in a movie.”
Something flashes in his eyes, darkening them. “I’m no hero. Not like the ones you see in the movies.”
“You’re right. You’re better. Because they’re just made up characters. And you’re real.”
“Heroes in the movies don’t look like me,” he retorts. “Maybe the villains. But not the heroes.”
Pain spears into me, piercing my heart. “No, Cillian. That’s not true.”
He looks away for a second before meeting my gaze. “I wanted to ask you to meet before, Paige. I thought about it all the time. But I always had a reason not to. That I’d make you feel uncomfortable, asking you out when I was a client. Or you’d look at my scars—”
“Never.” It’s quick. Fierce. “I don’t care about your scars. Not even a little. And I don’t think of you as a client. I—” Belatedly, my brain registers the asking out part of his statement. “You wanted to ask me out?”
Twin spots of pink rise high on his cheekbones. “Yeah. I did.”
“Did?” I take a deep breath as I try to calm my racing heart. “Or do?”
After a moment that feels like an eternity, he gives me a hopeful smile. “I do. I told myself on the way here I’d ask you out. And if you agreed, I’d take you on a date as soon as I could.”
My heart explodes into a firework of joy. “I’d say yes. If you asked.”
Cillian stares at me for a second. Then he removes his arm from the back of the couch and turns towards me. There’s a hopeful expression in his eyes. “Would you, Paige? Would you go on a date? Or… maybe several of them?”
“Several?”
His smile expands. “Yes. Because I don’t think one is going to be enough.” A beat, and then, “If that’s okay with you?”
All the bad parts of the night slip away, replaced by a fizzy, hopeful sort of happiness. “It’s more than okay. Because… I don’t think one is going to be enough, either.”
“Paige.”
“Do you think this weekend is too soon?” I ask. “Or… maybe even before that?”
“Any time,” he replies quickly. “Tomorrow night. The night after. Whenever you want, Paige. I’ve wasted enough time waiting. I want—” He stops. Takes a breath. “This thing between us. It’s different from anything I’ve ever felt before.”
“I know.” My throat goes unexpectedly thick. “I know it is.”
After a moment of silence, Cillian raises his hand to my cheek. “Maybe it’s too soon. But… I really want to kiss you.”
My heart leaps again. At this rate, it’s about to take off and join the circus as an acrobat. “I really want to kiss you, too.”
A slow smile lifts his lips. “Good.”
Then.
He leans in.
With every inch he draws closer, my anticipation builds.
My pulse flutters.
My chest goes tight.
I look into Cillian’s eyes, watching his pupils dilate with desire. Watching the flecks of gold kindle into sparks of fire.
Something coils deep inside me; wanting. Demanding.
A whisper apart, he murmurs, “I’ve thought about this hundreds of times.”
Oh.
I put my hand on his leg. His thigh muscles flex. “I have too.”
And, in a moment I’ll remember forever, we finally kiss.
At first, it’s tender, just a mere meeting of lips. But the electricity sparking from them brings my body to life.
Then it turns to an exploration. Stroking. Nipping. Teasing.
Cillian pulls me closer, one hand on my back and the other at my nape.
When his tongue dips into my mouth, I meet it eagerly. Caressing. Tasting.
His aroma wraps around me; a masculine blend of cedar and musk with a hint of pine.
His biceps are thick beneath my hand. Though I can’t see his tattoos, I can imagine myself tracing them as we lay together in bed. Kissing them.
A low groan rumbles up from Cillian’s chest.
Our kiss grows deeper. Needier. More passionate.
My body is on fire for him.
And I know, even without going on a date, this won’t be the last time we kiss. Not even close. This is the start of something special. Magical. Something I may have waited my entire life for.
I’m lightheaded from lack of air by the time we break apart. Cillian’s cheeks are flushed, as I imagine mine are, too. As he gazes at me, he strokes his thumb across my sensitive lips. “I think—” He stops. “No. I know. That was the best kiss I’ve ever had.”
Oh.
“It was,” I agree. “It was the best by far.”
He stares at me for another second before tugging lightly at one of my curls. “I wondered what your curls looked like. If they were loose or springy. Waves or spirals. I imagined touching your hair. I wondered how soft it was.”
My heart.
In a whisper, I ask, “And now?”
His voice goes rough. “Now I know. Your hair is perfect. And it feels like the softest silk.”
Oh.
Is it possible to be in love with him already?
I don’t know. If someone had asked me a year ago, I’d have said no. That love is like the tortoise in the old folk tale, patient and slow.
But now?
I think I’m the hare. And I’m more than okay with it.
But I’m not diving into proclamations of love just yet.
Soon. But not yet.
Another kiss, though?
“Cillian.”
He strokes my cheek. “Yes?”
“What do you think about having our second kiss?”
His eyes light. “I think that’s a wonderful idea.”
So do I.
And as we kiss again, I realize I wouldn’t have had this night any other way.