Seán repeatedly smooths his hands down my long blonde hair, and it’s incredibly soothing. “If he’s still haunting you, even now, I can take care of that problem.”
I jerk my head up as all the fine hairs lift on the back of my neck. “That sounds remarkably like…something illegal.” Surely, he doesn’t mean what he’s insinuating?
Seán shrugs before tilting my face up, drilling me with a dark look. “There is nothing I won’t do for the woman I love. If wiping that piece of shit from the face of the earth would give you the closure you so desperately need, just say the word, and it’s done.”
Holy shit. I think he really means it. As much as I hatehimfor what he did to me, there’s no way I want him to die for it. Right now, I’m glad I never told Seán his name or how I met Callan in high school and he was my neighbor. My fiancé assumed I’d met him in college, and I never corrected him. He has scant knowledge of my past relationships. All he knows is my first love betrayed me with my best friend, and it broke me, destroying my faith in men and my trust in relationships.
“You owe him nothing, darling.” Seán studies my face carefully as his fingers sweep along my jawline.
“Humans shouldn’t play God, Seán, and suggesting youunalivesomeone because he’s a cheater is more than a little extreme.”
“I don’t give a fuck. He hurt you, and I’m more than willing to return the favor.”
“That is not what I want. He’s a…he’s a father.” My voice cracks. The pain is ever-present when I imagine them out there as a family. Do they have more kids? Is Gwen enjoying the life she stole from me? I try to shake those thoughts away because nothing good comes from thinking them. I have clawed my way out of the black hole I was suffocating in, and I have zero desire to sink back into it. “Trust me when I say that little girl needs him because her mother is the vilest human I’ve ever known.”
Seán’s brows climb to his hairline. “They cheated on you and had a kid together?”
I gulp over the sudden lump in my throat before nodding. How is it, after all this time, it still hurts so damn much? “It was the worst betrayal.”
“It’s no wonder you have trust issues.” His thumb rubs across my mouth. “But you never have to worry about that with me. After what my father did to my mother, I am the last person who would ever cheat.”
“I know, Seán. I wouldn’t have accepted your proposal if I thought otherwise.” The large diamond on my ring finger glistens, and I blink as I stare at it, still finding it all a little surreal.
I met Seán nine months ago when my boss promoted me to senior design consultant and assigned me to The Devlin Hotel Group account. A team of five from the office already works on the account, with most of them working directly from the hotel group HQ. The Devlin family business is one of the most successful in New York, and it incorporates various divisions, including technology, logistics, pharmaceuticals, hotels, and some other retail interests.
Ronnie Devlin oversees the entire corporation as president, and his four sons all work in different parts of the business. Seán is his eldest son, born to Ronnie and his first ex-wife in County Cork, Ireland, and CEO of the hotel division.
The spark was obvious between me and the handsome thirty-two-year-old from that first meeting. You’d think I’d run a mile from another Irish guy, but his Irishness was definitely a big part of the appeal. Seán was persistent, repeatedly asking me out, taking my constant rejections as a challenge. No matter how often I cited professional ethics and conflict of interest, he refused to give up.
Expensive gifts started arriving at the office and my home. My desk was covered in so many flowers I barely had the space to work on it. Every evening, he’d appear and ask me to dinner.I continuously turned him down, figuring he’d eventually get the message, but I didn’t realize how tenacious he was. He went so far as to speak to my boss and gain her approval, and gradually, he wore me down.
On our first date, he took me by private jet to Quebec, where we enjoyed a horse-drawn carriage ride through the cobblestone streets of Old Quebec, followed by dinner and champagne at a Michelin-starred restaurant. Knowing I was skittish, he waited until he dropped me home to make a move, decimating every single objection I’d had with one passionate kiss.
After that, I was no longer immune to his charm, and I willingly succumbed despite my fear. Seán is so different from my previous boyfriends. The strength of his feelings for me scared me almost as much as his excessive wealth and his arrogance. He can be a lot, and I thought for sure he’d grow tired of me, but he hasn’t. Three months after we first started dating, I found myself agreeing to move in with him, and two months later, he astounded me with an incredibly romantic proposal in Paris.
I am living a fairy tale, and it’s beyond my wildest dreams. However, some nights, I wake up in a cold sweat, fighting a panic attack, wondering when it’s all going to come crashing down around me like before.
“If you change your mind?—”
“I won’t.” I cut across him on purpose, desperately wanting to change the subject. “He’s in the past.” My fingers trail up his toned upper torso, grazing the fine layer of stubble on his exquisite jawline. My husband-to-be is hot, and there are thousands of women in The Big Apple who would literally kill to be in my shoes. “You’re my future.” I lean in, pressing my lips to his mouth, wondering if it’s not too late to get things back on track. “I don’t want to look back. Only look forward.”
“I want you.” Eyes layered with lust pin me in place as he pushes me down on my back on the desk. “Let me have you.”
I part my thighs and lick my lips. “When have I ever denied you?”
Laughter rumbles from his chest as his hands run up the insides of my thighs. “How about the first three months I knew you?”
“Getting everything you want instantly is boring,” I say in a breathy tone as his fingers skim the edge of my panties. “I’m glad I made you work for it.”
He barks out a laugh. “You certainly did. I swear I had repetitive strain injury from wanking so much.” His fingers curl around the edges of my panties, ready to peel them down my legs, when the door to my office flies open, and a shriek tears from my lips.
Seán swings into action, whipping around and using his body to block the sight of me, sprawled across my desk, with my skirt shoved up to my waist, from the gatecrasher. “Ever heard of knocking, brother?”
“Ever heard of the company employee handbook?” Liam retorts as I sit up and quickly fix my clothes. “Or the no-sex-in-the-workplace policy?” As head of the legal division for the hotel group and a qualified lawyer to boot, it’s no surprise Liam is fully apprised of all the company policies.
“That’s actually a thing?” Incredulity threads through Seán’s tone.
“Don’t pretend like you’re not aware.”
