Chapter 11
ROSIE
I’d fucked up.
In spite of all my bravado and self-imposed rules, I’d only gone and slept with Donovan O’Shea, though thankfully, not in the biblical sense.
It was pretty much a given that I was a sucker for a hot guy with bright blue eyes, muscles, and ink.
It was another given that I’d been fighting the urge to pounce on him since the moment he’d whispered dirty things to me in the bathroom at his brother’s wedding, but contrary to popular belief, I wasn’t a complete idiot.
There was also the small fact that his daughter slept just feet away from us in the hotel room, her tiny, deep breaths alerting me to the fact that after days of asking myself if I’d slipped into an alternate reality, she was very there and very real.
My body instantly became aware of Donovan pressed tightly against my back by the scorching heat of his skin burning against mine.
His muscular arm was locked possessively across my waist, and our legs were entwined together like vines.
His deep breaths pulsed against my neck, sending tiny, pleasurable shivers through my body that awoke something inside me that had lain dormant since the last time he held me this way.
I wanted him, and it wasn’t just about the way he made my body feel.
It was so much more.
If somebody had told me even just a week before that Donovan O’Shea would be a beautiful father, I would have laughed in their faces. But from the first moment I watched him carefully take his little girl in his arms, he handled her with so much gentleness that it brought tears to my eyes.
I’d always wondered deep down in the part of my soul that still missed my own dad, whether men were actually capable of that kind of reverent care.
Evan was a good father, but often impatient. He used to shush the kids when they cried and developed tunnel vision on the TV when a football game was on, as if for three hours his children didn’t exist, and it had always made me uncomfortable.
Atlas was an incredible dad. He threw his two girls around like they were indestructible—though they came from his loins, so they probably were.
My brother was rough and tumble, fun and playful, a wonderful father and protector, but nobody could call him gentle.
Dan just wasn’t that guy, and that was okay because Belle and Lola got all the gentle they needed from Sophie.
In contrast, Donovan handled Imogen as if she were made of the finest glass, and it took my breath away. My tall, muscled, heavily tattooed Army veteran was full of surprises, and I loved that because every one of those surprises was better than the last.
I was ashamed to say I’d judged him harshly. I’d bought into his reputation, which was ignorant of me. Donovan O’Shea ran deeper than anyone knew, and I felt privileged to get to know a different side of him, especially when I suspected it wasn’t a side he let many people see.
After the court hearing, Donovan thanked everyone, and we waved them off.
Callum and Maeve finally left to go on their honeymoon, and John and Abe mounted their bikes and rode away in tandem. Aislynn had to get back to Denver, and Kennedy drove Maureen’s ride back to Hambleton.
That left me and Donovan’s mom.
Donovan had to hang around to wait for Imogen’s birth certificate, so we decided to stay in Scottsbluff for one more night to give him time to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s.
Maureen was adamant that she wouldn’t leave Imogen, and there was no way on earth I would leave Donovan, so we decided to hang with the new addition to the O’Shea family while her dad went and made their family official.
We took her to the park, and then we went to a local restaurant where Donovan eventually met us, smiling like he’d just won the state lottery.
Imogen was officially his.
I meant what I’d said to Donvan during our phone call a few days earlier; I didn’t care that the goalposts had moved because he’d become a father. I could already see the changes in him, and strangely, I could feel it too.
He was calmer and less manic; he was content.
I didn’t know how a man could mature ten years in the space of one week, but he had, and I loved seeing his transformation, made even more profound by the reason it had occurred in the first place.
Donovan was terrified, but I knew he’d find his way. He was instinctive and very natural with Imogen, and there was already a strong connection between them. They constantly studied each other and seemed to communicate through their eyes and facial expressions.
Imogen was a dream, albeit a quiet, watchful girl, no doubt because of what she’d already been through in her short time on earth. Still, once Donovan got over his shellshock at being a dad, I knew he’d bring fun and laughter into her life. After all, he’d brought it into mine.
Donovan’s arm twitched, and I felt his body shift slightly. “You awake, Posy?” he breathed.
My full-body shiver was delicious.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “Just basking in the peace.”
“It won’t last,” he murmured. “Mam’s probably pacing the hall outside, waiting to get to Imogen.”
It was like he’d summoned the Devil himself because a tap sounded from the door and Maureen’s voice drifted through. “Morning, lovelies. It’s only me. Take no heed, I’m coming in.”
Donovan’s body jolted, “What the fuck—?” He tugged the sheet to cover my bare legs just as the door opened.
My shocked stare jerked upward to see Maureen side-stepping toward the crib with one hand covering her eyes.
“Don’t mind me,” she called out breezily.
“I can’t see a thing. I’ve just come to get my granddaughter, Imogen.
I was just telling Rhonda down at reception that she’ll be missing her nanna by now. ”
I felt my face burn, and I squeezed my eyes shut because everybody knew if you couldn’t see it, then it never happened, right?
The bed shifted as Donovan went up on one elbow. “Ma! Are you fucking crazy? How did you even get in?”
A little mewl filled the air, and I heard Imogen’s cute, sleepy little voice call out, “Baba.”
“I was telling Rhonda down at reception what a long day you had yesterday, and that you’d no doubt be desperate for a lie-in.
She programmed me a card for your room so I could come get my granddaughter, Imogen, and let you two have a break.
Wasn’t that just lovely of her? Then she said you’d probably want to give Rosie the business, and I said, well, of course he will.
Rosie’s beautiful and my Donovan’s a red-blooded male just like his athair—”
“Ma!” Donovan snapped, cutting her off.
“I’m only saying, aren’t I?” Maureen shot back defensively as she side-stepped toward the far wall.
I clamped my mouth shut and silently began to laugh as I heard the sound of bags rustling.
Donovan grunted, “For fuck’s sake, Ma. I can’t believe you’ve just walked into my room like that. What if I were buck-assed naked?”
“Hush now, Son. I’m your mother, not the Virgin Mary. I’ve seen your flute before. Jesus knows I used to change your nappies, didn’t I?”
“Christ,” he cut out.
Cracking one eye open, I watched Maureen bending over the shopping bags, which were full of the baby's new clothes and toiletries, while she picked out what she needed.
“I’ll just get my granddaughter Imogen’s things and take her to my room for a shite and a shower before we go down for breakfast,” Maureen announced.
“I’ve told Martine and Maria in the restaurant all about my little angel face, and they can’t wait to meet her.
” She shoved an armful of clothes and diapers inside a bag and moved toward the crib, making kissy noises.
Then she crooned in her baby voice, “Morning, Imogen. You’re going to meet Bob the porter and young Justin, who helped me with my bags.
Suzanne, the hotel manager, can’t wait to meet you.
She’s an ologist, you know, just like your auntie Maeve.
I showed her your picture, and she’s dying to give you a little cuddle. Won’t that be lovely, Imogen?”
A resigned sigh went up, then Imogen held her arms out for her nanna and said a garbled, “Baba.”
“The little pink crochet outfit I brought you will be lovely. What do you think, darlin’? You want to wear Nanna’s outfit? You’ll be the prettiest girl on the block, and all the little boys will want to kiss that angel face.”
I felt Donovan tense, and he grumbled, “Fuckin’ hell. Shoot me now.”
Maureen lifted the sleepy baby girl from her crib and shielded her eyes again for the return journey to the door.
“Take your time, loves,” she sang. “Imogen and I will be downstairs visiting for a while. I think I’m going to FaceTime Elise Stone and Iris Decker while I’m downstairs, so we’ll be a while.
” With that parting shot, Maureen slipped through the door and quietly clicked it shut behind her.
My silent humor turned into loud laughter.
Donovan’s eyes were still glued in the direction of the door. “Am I losing my mind, or did my mam just break into my hotel room and kidnap my daughter?” he asked, his tone incredulous.
I turned my face toward him and giggled. “Yep.”
“I didn’t even get a good morning cuddle from my kid,” he groused. “But it’s okay ‘cause fucking Rhonda down at reception will. My mother’s a pain in my ass. Day fucking two and she’s already up in my shit. Can you imagine living with the woman? She’s gonna drive me nuts.”
I shifted around to look at him until our faces were inches apart. “It’s worth it to get Imogen home.”
Donovan’s eyes veered to meet mine and softened. “Yeah. It’s worth everything, and Ma and Rhonda are right about one thing?”
My eyebrows pulled together. “What’s that?”
His dimple popped out. “At least I get to give you the business.” He leaned forward and ran his tongue across my bottom lip.