‘Sal—’
‘—was hoping I was a prostitute,’ I finish.
His jaw tightens. Sal should be very grateful that magic is stopping Cillian from harming him, because I’m not sure anything else could.
‘And then I find you here with Matt?—’
‘My best friend’s boyfriend. Cillian, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but up until now, no one has ever been interested in me for longer than a few minutes– a day at most. Even you– you come along, kiss me, occasionally even sleep beside me– but then you’re off again, making it clear that you’re not interested. That you don’t want me, that I’m not enough for you.’ I slap my hands on his chest to make him let go. I should have known better. This won’t be leading anywhere. Cillian will do what he always does, what any guy I meet does– go so far and then disappear completely. And you’re probably right. No one sticks around. No one ever wants me enough to?—’
‘Niamh, how can you think that? Say that? That isn’t it at all.’
‘Really? Because for years,years, Cillian you’ve kissed me, sometimes even comforted me. But you’ve always been gone by morning, made it clear in public that I was nothing to you, thrust Vittoria in my face. Yeah. I get it, I’m the dull little virgin. And nothing more. Too stupid to understand that you were just being nice, for her sake. And?—’
‘That’s not why. That’s not why at all,’ he insists, his blue eyes piercing me. ‘Niamh.’ My hands are resting on his shoulders as we stare at one another, and suddenly he cups my head and pulls me towards him, his lips crashing into mine, kissing me as though I’m the reason for his existence. The warmth of his mouth sends shivers down my spine as our tongues tangle together, dancing in a rhythm that feels so right. The muscles in his shoulders harden under my fingers as he pulls me closer against his body. Then we break apart gasping.
He drops his forehead to rest against mine, and for a moment we just breathe.
‘Then why?’ I whisper. But he doesn’t seem to want to answer that.
Instead, he shakes his head. ‘You have to know that you are infinitely… desirable,Gléigeal.’
‘Stealing Declan’s term of endearment for me?’
‘It fits. It’s mine now,’ he promises. ‘If Declan uses it again… it’ll be the last word he utters. I’ve been selfish,Gléigeal.’
‘What do you mean?’
He kisses me again, his tongue pushing its way into my mouth, seeking acceptance as his kisses get deeper and more urgent. His hand pulls at my wet T-shirt, removing the fabric stuck to my body as he slides a hand under the material. He presses it against the small of my back, his mouth moving across my lips, down the line of my jaw before he drops kisses down my neck, and I shiver. I cup his head with my hand and force him to still.
‘Cillian?’
Now he looks at me steadily. ‘Rose is right,’ he says. ‘I’ve kept you for myself, pushed other men away from you. Then abandoned you to be with Vittoria. My only excuse is that if she’d ever realised how much I wanted you, then she would have?—’
‘You want me?’ I know he does, I’ve probably always known, but it matters, hearing him say it out loud.
He adjusts his hips, letting me feel exactly how much he wants me. The hardness of his cock brushes against me as he guides my body in a slow rhythm, the thin fabric between us creating a delicious friction against my most sensitive spot. I wrap my arms around his neck and he lifts me so my legs tighten around his waist while the cool waters of the loch heighten every sensation and leave me wanting more.
‘From the first night I saw you, I’ve been drawn to you. It’s as if you were meant for me. But I have a duty to my family, to The Unseelie Court and I thought the best thing, therightthing was for me to marry Vittoria. You’ve made me feel things I couldn’t let myself feel. And I can’t leave you alone. No matter how hard I try, I can’t get thoughts of you out of my head. I want you, Niamh. I always have.’
I stare at him for a long moment, the weight of his words and the feeling of his body against mine reflecting everything he just said, but what does it mean?
His arms encircle my waist, and I can feel his hand move further down to my buttocks as he pulls me closer, removing any gap between us. I’m flush to his abs, and I can feel his erection pushing against me.
I capture his lip between my teeth and gently pull, before I kiss him back. ‘And I want you,’ I breathe. ‘I want whatever you’re willing to give me.’
‘I want to give you everything.’ His thumb strokes me, and I gasp as I feel him rub slow circles over my clit. It’s not the first time he’s touched me but it’s the first time he’s touched me when he knows I want him like he wants me. And it feels different. And even if it’s just for tonight, here in the Underworld, Cillian Hunter can be mine. But first there’s something I need to know for sure.
‘What did you mean when you said you kept other men away from me?’
Chapter22
Niamh
TWO YEARS AGO
‘We’re halfway through uni, and I never seem to meet anyone,’ I moan to Rose, stirring my Porn Star Martini.
‘You meet plenty of guys,’ she says.
