Chapter 33
Chapter Thirty-Three
RONAN
“Wow.” Ciara’s voice slices through the silence as she steps out of the elevator and into the penthouse suite, her green eyes wide as she takes in the grandeur of the room.
To me, it’s nothing special. I’ve stayed in so many penthouses that they all blur together, and it takes something truly spectacular to get my attention.
And Ciara McCarthy is exactly that.
Spectacular.
“What do you think?” I ask, more interested in how good her ass looks in those leggings as she walks ahead of me rather than the suite.
“It’s nice.”
I lean against the door, crossing my arms as my lips pull into a smirk. “At ten thousand dollars a night, it better be more than nice.”
She whirls around, panic on her face as she looks at me. “Ten thousand? You spent that much on a room? You’re insane.”
I shrug. “It’s not like I can’t afford it, Tine Bhaeg, so what’s the problem?”
She scoffs softly as she shakes her head, her blonde ponytail swaying behind her. “It just feels...excessive. There are people literally struggling to survive, and you blow a couple months’ salary on a hotel room.”
“Those people aren’t my problem.” I push myself off the doorframe and start to close the distance between us.
Her eyes narrow, and there is a flash of that fire behind them that makes her both infuriating and completely irresistible.
“You don’t care about anything that doesn’t fit into your little world, do you?”
I say nothing as I take a few steps closer.
Her breath catches as I lean down and brush my lips against her ear.
“Right now, the only person’s happiness I give a damn about is yours.”
“If that’s true, you’ve got a funny way of showing it.” She gasps as I run my tongue along her neck.
I chuckle under my breath before pulling back and capturing her mouth with mine. Then I waste no time sliding my hands beneath her sweatshirt, wanting to feel her soft skin beneath my fingertips as I force my tongue into her mouth.
She shivers beneath my touch as I trail my fingers lower until they’re sliding inside the waistband of her leggings, all while exploring her mouth with my tongue like I would if it was buried between her thighs.
“Ciara.” I groan against her lips when I feel how damp her panties are.
Her answering whimper as I gently stroke her pussy through her underwear sends a surge of blood to my cock.
But as much as I want to pull out my cock and bury myself inside her, we don’t have much time before our dinner reservations, and there’s no way in hell I’m not going to take my time fucking Ciara.
But that doesn’t mean I’m going to let my wife leave this penthouse without climaxing first.
I break the kiss and step back, a smug sense of satisfaction taking root inside me as her body literally trembles with need.
“Take off your clothes.”
Her eyes widen as she glances over her shoulder.
“Seriously, Ronan? We’re in front of a window. There are thousands of people down there.”
“I don’t care. Strip.”
“Ronan—”
“If I have to ask you a third time, Tine Bhaeg, there will be consequences.”
Her throat bobs as color starts to stain her cheeks, and her eyes glaze over with arousal.
She knows exactly what sort of consequences I’m referring to, so she does as I say, slowly peeling her sweatshirt over her head and shimmying her leggings down her thighs until she’s standing before me in nothing but her underwear.
My hand instantly moves to squeeze my aching cock as I watch Ciara remove the scraps of blue lace until she’s fully bared to me.
I take in the sight of her naked body, all soft curves and smooth skin. “So fucking beautiful.”
Her gaze drops to where I’m stroking my cock, and when her tongue darts out to wet her lips, I almost come undone.
“Turn around.” I take another step closer to her, hissing through my teeth as my cock starts to leak.
She does as she’s told, and when I step up behind her, sinking my fingers into her hips as I press my erection into her ass, she lets out a low moan as her head falls back against my shoulder.
“I wanted to do this on the fucking plane.” I grind against her ass.
She gasps as her peaked nipples rub against the glass, and I feel just how much she likes it as I reach between her thighs and slowly sink one finger inside her.
“Always so wet for me.”
“Ronan…” She desperately tries to move her hips, but I’ve got her pinned so hard against the glass she can’t move.
She’s completely at my mercy, just the way I like it.
“Tell me, Tine Bhaeg,” I whisper in her ear as I start to slowly pump my finger inside her. “Would you have stopped me if I touched you like this on the plane?”
“Yes,” she gasps.
“Don’t lie to me,” I growl as I move my hand to tangle it in her hair.
She moans as I tug on the strands. “No.”
“I thought so.” I slowly slide another finger inside her tight pussy. “Because no one can make you come as hard as I do.”
She cries out with pleasure as I start pumping my fingers inside her, my rhythm matching my hips as I grind my throbbing cock against her perfect ass.
“Fuck, baby, I want to be inside you.” I groan as I bury my face in her neck, licking and kissing her soft skin as I fuck her with my fingers.
She’s so wet and warm, and the thought of sinking my cock almost makes me come there and then.
“Ronan,” she moans.
“Is that what you want, Ciara? Do you want me to slide my cock inside you?”
“Oh, God, yes.”
My balls start to tighten. “Keep making those noises, sweetheart, and you’re going to make me come in my fucking pants.”
Her laugh is breathy, and I pull harder on her hair as I pump my fingers faster, curling them slightly so they brush against the inner walls of her pussy.
“Do you think that’s funny?” I growl. “Do you want me to make a mess of myself?”
“I-I want you…to make a m-mess…of me—”
I bite down on her neck as I curl my fingers again, and Ciara cries out, her body arching back against me as she clenches around my fingers. “Do you want more?”
“Yes.” She angles her face to capture my mouth with hers.
I smile against her lips as I rub my thumb over her swollen clit.
Her body jerks, and from the rush of wetness that coats my hand, I know she’s close.
“That’s it, baby, come for me.” I keep my hand in her hair, holding her in place as my lips hover over hers as I work her toward her climax.
Her sweet moans turn into breathy whimpers as I rub her clit faster, groaning at how wet she is for me.
I’m tempted to skip the dinner reservations and feast on Ciara’s pussy instead.
“I-I’m comin—”
Ciara’s body tenses, and then she cries out with her release as her pussy grips my fingers.
“Fuck, yes, that’s it.” I pump my fingers inside her, groaning when her pussy pulses around them, wishing it was my cock instead.
I don’t stop until she collapses against my shoulder, her breathing heavy as she comes down from the high. Even then, I continue to move my fingers in slow, lazy strokes as I kiss along her neck, reveling in the feeling of her naked body pressed against me.
“How are you liking Vegas so far?”
“It’s average.” Her lips quirk in a smile as she sighs, and I tug on her hair.
“Your smart mouth will get you in trouble, Tine Bhaeg. Now, you better get dressed. We have dinner reservations at eight.”
The car ride over to the restaurant is thick with silence. Ciara stares out the window the entire time, her jaw clenched and her body language so closed off that I can’t quite believe this is the same person who climaxed on my fingers barely half an hour ago.
What the hell has happened from then to now?
After I helped clean her up, she got dressed for dinner in the bathroom, and when she came out, it was like she had a personality transplant. She could barely even look at me, which hurt more than I care to admit.
She says my mood swings give her whiplash, but right now she’s the one burning hot one second and stone cold the next. I want nothing more than to tear down the walls that she’s built up again, but I don’t push her.
It’s clear she’s lost in her head about something, and I just have to give her a reason to let me in.
We arrive at the restaurant right on time, and I walk in behind Ciara, a hand hovering over the small of her back as the ma?tre d’ leads us to our table.
Liam did good on his word and got us a table at one of Vegas’ finest restaurants, La Rosetta. There’s usually a six-month waiting list to get in, but with the right amount of money, I can buy a seat at any table I want.
Crystal chandeliers glint overhead, and the hum of clinking champagne glasses fills the air as we pass through the restaurant. But once again, my eyes are solely focused on Ciara.
She’s wearing a dark green backless gown that shows off her smooth skin and killer curves. Her blonde hair is loose around her shoulders, and my fingers itch with the need to touch it. To wrap it around my fists and tug on it hard until she’s gasping with pleasure.
I clear my throat as we approach the table, and I step around Ciara to pull back the chair for her.
She slides into her seat without even acknowledging me, but she somehow manages to offer the ma?tre d’ a warm smile as he unfolds her napkin and drapes it over her lap.
By the time our water is poured and I’m handed the wine list, I’m no longer aroused.
I’m fucking furious.
“What’s the problem?”
She stares blankly at her menu before lifting her eyes to meet mine, and for a moment, I think she might finally open up and tell me what’s been on her mind ever since we left the penthouse, but then she shrugs and sets her menu on the table.
“Honestly? I don’t even know where to start,” she mutters.
“Start at the beginning.”
She opens her mouth to speak, but when nothing comes out, the lid starts to lift on my anger.
“Your hot and cold act is exhausting,” I state.
Her gaze sharpens as she glares at me. “Are you serious? If anyone’s hot and cold, it’s you. One minute, you want me, and the next you’re tearing me down or mocking my family.”
“That’s not fair.”
“It might not be fair, but it’s true. You say one thing, Ronan, but your actions don’t match your words. I never know which version of you I’m going to get.”
My jaw clenches as her words hang in the air between us.
I can’t deny she has a point, and the truth of it stings more than I care to admit. But I also can’t deny that I want her. Hell, I need her. But I’m not good at the emotional stuff, and I never have been.
Fuck it. I guess I can try if it means catching a glimpse of the Ciara I got to know on the plane ride today. The one who felt more like a friend than an enemy.
“I think I’ve been pretty clear about the fact that I want you. Or have you forgotten what happened thirty minutes ago?”
“There’s nothing clear about it, Ronan. You only want me when it’s on your terms.”
“You’re more than welcome to initiate at any time, sweetheart.” I hope to ignite that fire in her, but it seems my words have the opposite effect.
“It doesn’t matter now anyway.” She blinks back tears as she opens up her menu once more.
“Tine Bhaeg…” I reach for her hand across the table, but she instantly recoils, shoving her hands beneath the table and out of reach.
“Don’t call me that.” Her voice cracks.
What the hell is going on inside her head that has her almost in tears?
I rack my brain as to what it could be, thinking back to the game we played on the plane all the way to when I had her naked body pressed against me, but I come up short.
“I’m going to need you to tell me what’s wrong, Ciara.” I keep my hand on the table. “I can’t read your mind.”
Her throat bobs as she looks anywhere but at me. “I refuse to let myself love you,” she finally says, her voice trembling. “Because you killed my father.”
Her words pierce my heart like a fucking bullet.
This is what this is about? Her god-damned father?
“You don’t know him like I did.” My words come out colder than I intend them to, but I don’t care. When it comes to Ciara’s father, the illusion she has regarding the man he was needs to be shattered. “You have no idea who he really was.”
Her brow furrows as confusion flashes across her face. “What do you mean?”
She deserves to know the truth, but as the words sit on the tip of my tongue, I realize I can’t be the asshole to tell her.
I’d much rather have her hate me than be the one who destroys her.
“I need some air.” I get to my feet.
Ciara’s eyes stay on me as I stalk across the restaurant floor, but I don’t look back. I don’t need to see the look of disappointment on her face, not when it’s already burned into my mind like a brand.
Outside the restaurant, the dry desert air fills my lungs as I stare down the infamous strip. The city feels endless, nothing more than a mass of neon lights, but all of my earlier excitement at the thought of showing Ciara this place is gone, leaving behind a bitter taste in my mouth.
I fucked up. I shouldn’t have said anything about her father when I didn’t have the guts to tell her the truth. And now I’ve planted a seed in her mind that she won’t be able to let go.
The selfish part of me, the part that wants her love, craves it, wants her to find out, if only to realize I’m not the monster in her story.
Her father is.