4. Chapter 4 Cara
Chapter 4: Cara
I was dreaming of Finn's hands on me when the first explosion rocked the compound.
I jolted awake with a gasp, my heart slamming against my ribs as I sat bolt upright in bed. For a second I thought I'd imagined it, my sex-soaked brain conjuring phantom bombs to match the detonation in my panties.
Then it happened again. A bone-rattling boom, followed by the unmistakable pop-pop-pop of gunfire. Shouts and screams, distant but getting closer.
Fuck.
I scrambled out of bed, my bare feet hitting the floor just as my bedroom door burst open. I shrieked and spun around, my hands flying up to ward off the intruder.
Finn barreled into the room. He had a gun in one hand and a murderous expression on his face, his eyes flickering over me in a quick, assessing sweep.
"We need to move." he barked, stalking towards me.
I was abruptly, absurdly aware of my state of undress—pink bikini panties and an oversized t-shirt, my nipples poking through the thin cotton. If I'd thought Finn would be too preoccupied with the impending danger to notice my state of undress, I was dead fucking wrong. His eyes zeroed in on my chest like twin laser beams, his nostrils flaring as he took in the peaked points of my breasts.
For a second, just a second, I saw pure, unadulterated hunger flare in his gaze. The kind of raw, naked want that had fueled my fantasies for years, my fingers just hours before. I felt branded by the heat of it, my skin prickling and my core clenching as I imagined him putting that raging lust to good use on my all-too-willing body.
Then another explosion shook the compound, closer this time, and the moment shattered. Finn blinked and the mask of icy professionalism slammed back into place.
"We need to move. Now princess," he said, wrapping a hand around my upper arm and tugging me towards the door. "Your father's orders. There's a safe room in the basement. We'll wait there until the threat is neutralized."
"A safe room?" I repeated, stumbling slightly as I tried to keep up with his longer strides. "Since when do we have a fucking safe room?"
"Since always." He shot me an exasperated look over his shoulder. "You think your dad would leave his precious princess unprotected? It's for situations exactly like this."
I scowled at the back of his head, ignoring the tingle in my arm where his fingers pressed into my skin. Even in the midst of an attack, with adrenaline sizzling through my veins and fear clawing at my throat, the slightest touch from him set me ablaze. It was completely fucking unfair.
I opened my mouth to let fly with a truly scathing retort, and bit my tongue hard enough to draw blood as Finn skidded to an abrupt halt, whirling to cover me with his body as a hail of bullets peppered the wall where my head had been a split second before.
"Fuck," he growled, his arm tightening around my waist as he pivoted, shielding me from the ricocheting bullets. "They're in the fucking house."
Cold terror tried to claw its way up my throat, but I shoved it down. I would not give in to the helpless-maiden bullshit. Not now, not ever.
"We need to get to the end of the hall." Finn started moving again, half-dragging me with him as he kept himself between me and whoever might be moving towards us. “Move.”
We made it to the end of the hall, and he entered a series of numbers on a hidden panel in the wall. A section of the paneling swung open with a soft snick.
"In," he ordered, practically shoving me through the opening. I stumbled across the threshold, my eyes widening as I took in the reinforced steel walls, the racks of weapons, the bank of security monitors showing every inch of the compound.
"Holy shit," I breathed, turning in a slow circle. "This is some serious Bond villain shit."
Finn snorted, closing the door behind us with a definitive clang. "Your dad takes his security very seriously."
"Clearly." I ran my fingers over the closest rifle, feeling the cool metal beneath my fingertips. "Think he'd mind if I borrowed one of these bad boys?"
"Absolutely fucking not." Finn grabbed my wrist, tugging me away from the weapon with a scowl. "We're staying put until the all-clear."
I rolled my eyes, trying to ignore the sizzle of heat that raced up my arm at his touch. "You're no fun."
"Forgive me for not wanting to bring you back to Declan in pieces."
I opened my mouth to argue, to let him know I knew I was perfectly safe with him and I wasn’t worried at all, when I let out an embarrassing yelp as another explosion rocked the compound, this one close enough to vibrate the steel walls of the safe room. Without thinking, I lurched forward, curling into Finn's solid warmth.
He stiffened for a fraction of a second, and I braced myself for the inevitable rejection. But to my shock, his arms came up and around me, crushing me to the hard plane of his chest. I felt his heartbeat beneath my cheek, too fast but so fucking strong, and I nuzzled closer on sheer instinct.
"I've got you," he murmured into my hair, his big hand cupping the back of my head like I was something precious. "I won't let anything happen to you, princess. I swear it."
I closed my eyes, breathing him in, letting his scent and his strength surround me.
"I know," I whispered, my fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt. "I trust you, even when you're being a giant pain in my ass."
A surprised laugh rumbled through his chest, and I felt his lips brush the top of my head. "The feeling's mutual, princess."
We stayed like that for a long moment, wrapped up in each other as the muffled chaos of the attack raged on outside. I knew I should pull away, put some distance between us before I did something stupid like climb him like a tree, but I couldn't make myself let go.
Finn was the one to break the silence, his voice low and rough in my ear. "Are you okay Cara?"
Cara. Not princess.
"Mhmm." I shifted deliberately, letting my breasts brush against his chest. "I’m a little cold but okay.”
His gaze dropped like I'd known it would, taking in my sleep shirt and the tiny scrap of pink lace I called underwear. I heard his sharp intake of breath, saw his fingers flex against my back like he was physically stopping himself from grabbing a handful of my ass.
"Christ, princess," he rasped, his eyes flaring with unmistakable heat. "Are you trying to kill me?"
"So a t-shirt and panties do it for you?" I said, pressing even closer. I could feel every rock-hard inch of him against me.
“Christ Cara, we are in the middle of a situation here.”
“Do you really think they will get through these doors Finn? And the army you helped train will have it contained soon.” I shifted against him, reminding him I was only half dressed. “You can’t tell me you didn’t like our kiss last night Finn.”
A muscle ticked in his jaw, and he closed his eyes like he was praying for strength. "We can't do this. I can't. Your father—"
"Isn't here," I finished for him. "He can't see us, Finn. No one can. It's just you and me and these four, thick walls."
He shuddered, his hands flexing on my hips. "Cara..."
"No one would ever know," I whispered, rising up on my tiptoes to put my lips at his ear. "It would be our little secret. Just another kiss Finn."
A low, guttural groan escaped him, and his grip tightened to the point of pain. "It's not that fucking simple and you know it."
"Isn't it?" I nipped at his earlobe, soothing the sting with my tongue. He jolted like I'd touched him with a live wire. "Tell me, Finn—did you enjoy the show tonight?"
He went utterly still against me, not even breathing. I smiled to myself, wicked satisfaction unfurling in my belly.
Gotcha.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said flatly, but I could hear the barely restrained hunger.
"Liar." I pulled back to look at him, letting my lips curve in a knowing smirk. "I heard you, you know. Lurking outside my door while I touched myself. Do you have any idea how hot that was? Knowing you were listening, imagining all the filthy things I was doing?"
His eyes blazed, his nostrils. "Cara, I'm warning you—"
"Poor Finn," I said, trailing a finger down his chest. "So noble, so controlled. It must have been torture, listening to me moan your name. Wondering if I was fucking myself on my fingers or one of my toys. If I was wishing it was your cock stretching me open, your hands on my tits, your tongue on my clit..."
He made a sound like I'd punched him, a wounded, desperate noise that went straight to my core. His hands were urgent on my hips now, his fingers digging into my skin like he was one second away from ripping my panties off and bending me over the nearest flat surface.
"Is this what you want?" he demanded hoarsely, his eyes wild and feverish on my face. "To drive me out of my fucking mind? To make me forget every oath, every promise, every shred of my self-control?"
"Yes," I breathed, holding his gaze without flinching. "I want you to lose control, Finn. I want you to take what you want, what we both want. I want you to fuck me until I can't remember my own name, let alone all the reasons this is supposed to be wrong."
For a moment, one heart-stopping moment, I thought he was going to do it. I saw the instant when he cracked. He yanked me flush against him with a snarled curse, his mouth hovering a millimeter from mine, his breath scalding my lips.
"Fuck, Cara, the things I want to do to you," he panted, his eyes squeezing shut like he couldn't stand to look at me. "You have no idea how dark I am. The need to …"
But before he could finish the words, before he could close the distance and kiss the ever-loving daylights out of me, the chirp of his earpiece cut through the charged air.
"All clear," a tinny voice announced, and just like that, the spell was broken. Reality crashed back in, bringing with it the cold, harsh light of duty and obligation.
Finn let me go like I'd burned him, stepping back with a quiet curse. He turned away from me, running an agitated hand through his hair as he listened to the voice in his ear.
"Understood," he said after a moment, his tone clipped and professional. "I have eyes on the package. Bringing her up now."
The package. That's all I was to him, in the end. A job, a responsibility. I felt cold all of a sudden. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold in the warmth of his touch, the memory of his hands on me.
"Cara." His voice was soft, almost gentle. I looked up to find him watching me, his expression unreadable. "We need to go. Your father's waiting."
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I felt like I was going to shatter into a million pieces, and I'd be damned if I let him see it.
Finn hesitated, looking like he wanted to say something more. But in the end, he just shook his head and turned towards the door. I'd gambled and lost, played my hand and come up empty. Finn might want me with a desperation that bordered on madness, but he would never put his own desires above his duty.
I was a fool for thinking otherwise. A naive, hopeful, lovestruck fool. But as I watched him walk away from me, his broad back rigid with tension and his hands clenched into fists at his sides, I knew one thing with blinding clarity. This wasn't over. One way or another, I was going to make Finn Gallagher mine.