Cathal
Everyone had left the study, and the video call was over. It was Bronagh and I left. I’d reluctantly let go of her so that we could take seats on the couch in there. She sat on one end, and I sat as close to her as possible without plastering myself against her, which was what I preferred to do.
The feel of her in my arms and that kiss, coupled with her earlier sitting on my lap, had stoked my hunger even higher. I burned for her. And I had to admit no woman had hit me this hard this fast. She gave me an uneasy look underlined with a steely edge.
“We’re alone. Let’s talk. What the hell was all that talk you fed my dad?” she asked.
“I didn’t feed him anything. That implies I lied,” I countered.
“Well, you did,” Bronagh shot back.
“No, I didn’t. Not a single word I said to him was a lie,” I told her firmly.
I saw the flicker of hesitation followed by what I thought was hope, then disbelief, but I thought the disbelief was closer to her true feelings at the moment.
“You can’t mean those things, Cathal. You’re getting caught up in the moment. You can literally have any woman you want. You’ve been a bachelor this long, why give it up?”
“If I can have any woman in the world, then why not you? I’ve been a bachelor because I was waiting for the right woman to come along, not because I was deliberately staying single.
I’ll be thirty-eight in November. It’s time.
You’ve got to know I find you extremely attractive, but it’s more than that.
We’ve talked about so many things and agreed on most of them.
I like spending time with you. You’re intelligent, so I don’t feel like I want to tear my hair out from boredom when we’re together.
I can keep going. People marry with a lot less than what we already have. ”
“Cathal, you believe in soulmates. What if we get married and you find someone with whom you have a soulmate connection? Divorce when emotions have gotten involved is a messy affair,” Bronagh argued.
“Life isn’t without risk, but if it were to happen for either of us, we’d deal with it maturely, like adults.
You admitted you don’t have someone special.
I don’t either. We have an intense physical response to each other.
And don’t forget what it means for your dad and the rest of your family’s future. We will protect them,” I pledged.
My palms were sweating due to my anxiety that she wouldn’t agree to be my wife. I promised Darragh and Daid no pressure, but if she said no, I wasn’t sure I could stop myself.
I let the silence sit between us. She wasn’t looking directly at me. She stared out the window. I made sure not to fidget or push her to hurry. It was close to ten minutes of torture before Bronagh spoke again.
“Are you sure this is what you want to do? Don’t do it as a spur-of-the-moment savior. Yes, Dad asked, but I never thought anyone would agree. I told him I was prepared to enter into a platonic, short-term marriage if the other party was agreeable.”
“Are you agreeable to amending those terms? I don’t want us to enter into marriage thinking it’s short-term.
And as I said before, it wouldn’t be platonic.
However, I wouldn’t jump you the moment the wedding is over.
I can give you time to adjust, but I want everything a marriage entails.
After that kiss, I don’t believe either of us can’t perform.
And our relationship will include children, after you’re comfortable that it’ll last. You saw that house that needs to be filled.
” I paused to smile at her. She gave me a small one back. I kept speaking.
“We socialize when it makes sense to do it. We attend and support charities and functions as a family. You would be expected to go with me to those. Mutual respect, honesty, and fidelity are a must. You asked what would happen if we met our soulmates while together. We’ll deal with it if that should happen. I don’t see that occurring for me.”
I tacked that last sentence on because I was getting a feeling that I might be looking at my soulmate.
The way she captivated me on more than one level had never happened.
It reminded me of how Darragh and the other couples acted, now that it had been brought up.
All I had to do was see if Bronagh would see me as hers.
Her gaze never wavered from mine as Bronagh said, clearly, “Then if you’re positive, I’m willing to marry you. But if you betray my family or me, I’ll make sure you pay dearly for it.”
“I won’t betray you or them, but the same applies to mine. The moment you say yes, my family becomes yours, and you will treat them like your own. I can assure you they’ll do that to you.”
Triumph spread through my body. I scooted close to her. “Let’s seal the deal,” I said.
“You want a handshake?” Bronagh asked, with a smirk on her lips and a twinkle in her eyes.
I let a growl slip as I said, “No, I want that mouth.”
We both reached for each other at the same time, then leaned forward, sealing our mouths together.
It was another electrical kiss that lasted, God knows, for how long.
What made me stop kissing her was the fact that I was on the precipice of removing clothing and taking it further.
We were both flushed and breathing hard.
It took a minute to regain my scattered brain cells to speak.
“I think we have an announcement to make to the family, don’t you? And we’ll tell your dad in the morning. Be prepared for the whirlwind to come.”
Bronagh groaned, but she stood after I did.
I’d tugged on her hands. I placed a possessive arm around her and went to find whoever was in the house.
Now that I had her agreement, I wasn’t delaying and giving her time to change her mind.
I would make her Bronagh O’Sheeran as fast as Mam and the Aintíni would allow.