Chapter 16 Bree
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Still laughing at Finn’s entrance, I pulled myself out of Ronan’s arms, smoothing my hands down my shirt and trying to fix my hair.
My desire screamed for me to stay and finish what we’d started, but my need to keep things lowkey with the townspeople pushed me toward the door.
My body hummed from Ronan’s hands on me, from the taste of him on my lips.
Later. They were not going anywhere. The way both men watched me proved that.
“I should go back down and help Declan close. Why don’t you make yourselves at home? I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Finn claimed my couch like he owned the place, kicking off his boots and crossing one ankle over the opposite knee. “Take your time. We’re fine here. Aren’t we, Ronan?”
Ronan remained so still I almost hugged him. Like my touch would bring him back to life or something.
I checked my reflection in the hallway mirror before unlocking the door. Maybe no one would notice my swollen lips. I’d managed to pat my hair back into place, but my cheeks remained flushed. Anyone with eyes would know exactly what I’d been doing up here, and with who.
This was such a bad idea. Someone would notice. Someone always noticed in towns like this where gossip spread faster than wildfire and everyone made it their business to know everyone else’s business. Mom warned me about this exact thing, but I couldn’t make myself care enough to stop.
Not when Ronan and Finn were waiting for me upstairs. I could’ve sent Ronan down in my place. Or told Finn to go back out the way he came and secretly let Declan know what was going on.
I probably should’ve taken that route, but the part of me that had always struggled to make myself fit into the mold society required stiffened my spine and sent me down to take care of things myself.
So I slipped downstairs, hoping the dim light would hide the evidence. The main room had emptied out. Tom hunched over his Guinness–probably at his fifth by now.
A couple I didn’t know occupied the corner booth, their heads bent together in whispered conversation. Tammy Whittaker perched at the bar, surveying the place with the keen eye of a cat on the prowl. She swung around as soon as I stepped behind the bar.
Of course she was still here. Nana’s old bosom buddy had a nose for drama.
I grabbed a towel from beneath the bar and wiped away a ring of beer, picking up mugs and discarding them in the sink as I worked. No sound came from upstairs, and it took a minute to remember that everyone had seen Ronan go up there, so noise wouldn’t surprise them.
Declan wiped down the bar at the other end, then moved on to cleaning the taps. He glanced up when I approached, his lips pressing into a thin, flat line before he returned his attention to the gleaming brass fixtures.
“Need any help?” I kept my body turned slightly away, fully aware that if I faced him, even looked at him for too long, I might as well carry around a gleaming neon sign telling everyone I’d fucked him already and hoped to do so again. Tonight.
“Almost done.” The emotionless tone twisted my stomach.
He moved in short, almost angry bursts of motion. Rigid shoulders and a clenched jaw solidified the emotion, along with the way he shifted away from me when I took a step closer.
Had someone told him about Finn kissing me in the hallway? Had he seen Ronan follow me upstairs and knew my excuse was a ruse? Did he think I’d chosen them and left him behind?
Oh shit. He might. But I couldn’t ask him while everyone watched our every move. Tammy had her ear tipped toward us, and she might be pushing eighty but she’d overheard a conversation from across the room last week, so I knew her hearing hadn’t gone yet.
“Bree, dear.” Tammy waved one wrinkled hand. “Can I close out my tab?”
I turned to her with what I hoped passed as a normal smile. “Of course.”
She slid her card across the bar, and I processed the payment while willing my hands to steady. The receipt printer jammed twice before I managed to rip the paper and hand it to her.
Tammy signed with a flourish, then looked over at me through her thick glasses. “You and Finn seem to be getting along quite well.”
Heat spread across my cheeks. Fuck. “He’s a great guy. He’s been very welcoming since I came back.”
It was the same thing I’d say about anyone in town. They’d all been kind to me, except for Bethany, but I’d expected that from someone like her. It was her default setting. Something she could learn to manage but wouldn’t bother because no one ever called her out on her shitty behavior.
Tammy cackled, bringing me back to the conversation before I wandered into even more dangerous territory. “I’m sure he has.” She propped her forearms on the bar and leaned in closer. “Doesn’t hurt to sneak into a quiet corner with a hot man like him every now and again, right?”
My mouth opened but no sound came out. She’d definitely seen us. Shit.
“Good for you, dear.” She patted my arm, her papery thin skin making a rustling sound.
“Finn’s a great guy. A real catch. Who cares if there’s an age gap.
When I was your age, no one cared. Good grief, my mother was fourteen when she married my father, and he was well into his twenties.
As long as you’re consenting adults, life is far too short to worry about a bunch of gossipping ninnies. ”
“I…” My breath rushed out. What did I possibly say to that?
Tammy stood, tucked her tiny purse under her arm, and sashayed toward the door, waving one hand over her shoulder.
“Have a good night, Bree. You too, Declan.” She left me standing there with my face on fire and my heart trying to beat out of my chest. If Tammy knew, it wouldn’t be long before the whole town knew.
How long would it take before I became the subject of every whispered conversation and pointed look?
A towel the bar with a slapping sound, and I jerked my attention to Declan.
Soulful blue eyes fixed on me with a hard expression that put a scowl on his handsome face. Hurt lingered there, and I realized that I’d been right.
He thought I’d chosen Finn, or maybe with Ronan since I’d sent him upstairs in front of everyone. He thought I’d decided to leave him out.
It’s not what you think. I willed him to read the silent message, softening my expression and tipping my head toward him. I didn’t dare move toward him to explain. The couple in the corner booth were absorbed in each other, but Tom still sat nursing his Guinness.
I had no choice but to keep up the charade, grab another towel, and wipe down the tables.
We fell into a careful dance around each other.
Declan stayed behind the bar. I covered the floor.
But I found reasons to round the bar and brush against him.
Carrying an armful of mugs, I ‘tripped’ over a tiny bump in the floor and threw out a hand to catch myself, conveniently letting my hand land on his back.
When I reached past him to put away the glasses, I made sure my shoulder brushed his ribs, keeping the contact brief but not letting him feel like I was avoiding him too much.
When I actually stumbled over a stool when a scraping sound came from overhead, his hand shot out to steady me, his gaze shooting to my face, then the ceiling. The warmth of his hand burned through my sleeve, and I smiled up at him. “Thanks. Don’t know what I’d do without you.”
The couple finally settled their tab and left, calling out goodnight and bundling into their coats.
Enough time had passed since I’d come downstairs. If anyone realized Ronan hadn’t come back down, they might not think anything of it. I dried my hands. “Hey.” I waited for him to turn. “It’s getting late and I’m exhausted. I think I’ll head upstairs for the night.”
His expression didn’t change. No recognition flared. I needed to make it more obvious without being obvious to the remaining patrons.
I took a breath and said exactly what I’d said to him on St. Patrick’s Day when I decided to give in to the one thing I’d been wanting. Them. “Declan, lock the door.”
His eyes flared an instant before he controlled the motion. His head dipped in a short nod. “I will.”
“Thanks. Good night.”
“Night, Bree.” Those two words tacked onto my skin and followed me up the stairs.
I barely managed to keep from running. Knowing what waited for me up there, and what would be happening soon, my breaths already came in panting bursts. I halfway expected to open the door and find an empty apartment.
What if they’d changed their mind and slipped out through the fire escape?
I rushed through the door.
Finn sat on the other end of the couch, his feet kicked up and his head back as he stared at me upside down.
Ronan sat in a chair beside the window, his elbow on the arm and his chin in his cupped hand. “Did he get the message?”
“I think so.” I twisted my hands together. “Maybe I should text him. Make sure he understands.”
“Come here.” Finn patted the cushion beside him. “He’ll figure it out.”
I sank onto the couch and tucked my hands beneath my thighs. My knee pressed against Finn’s, and the solid warmth of him helped quiet some of the anxiety.
Minutes ticked past. Five. Ten. The pub stayed silent. No footsteps on the stairs. Nothing.
What if I’d been too subtle?
Surely he didn’t think I really meant for him to lock up and go home.
I pushed to my feet. “I’m going to check on him.”
Finn grabbed me around the waist and pulled me onto his lap. “He’ll come.”
“But what if he doesn’t?”
Finn cupped my face. “He’ll come, Bree. Declan’s not stupid. He knows what you meant.”
“Give him a few more minutes.” Ronan settled onto the couch beside Finn. “He’s probably finishing up. In the meantime.” He kissed my shoulder, then my neck. “We can all use a little distraction.”
I should say no. I should make them wait for Declan, but the heat spiraling through me, that firm, demanding need that pressed me down onto Finn’s lap where the ridge of his cock rode the space between my thighs, kept me in place. “Promise you’ll go get him if it takes much longer.”
Ronan nodded, his gray eyes resolute. “I will.” He eased his hands down my arms and to my wrists, circling them with his fingers and raising my arms over my head.
Finn kissed me again, deeper this time, his hands going to my waist. When he broke away from the kiss to nod at Ronan, all my hesitancy vanished.
Ronan pulled my shirt over my head and released my wrists.
This was insanity. And I never wanted it to stop.
Finn lifted me off his lap and worked the zipper down on my jeans, tugging the material and kissing every inch of skin he exposed.
“Don’t stop.” I reached back and locked my arms around Ronan’s neck where he stood behind me.
Rough hands grazed my hips and slid between my legs. “You’re so wet for us.”
“I need you.” The door swung open. “All of you.”