Page 26 of Once Bitten

“This is Kara, Patrick. Careful of her, she bites.” He pulled his sleeve up to show Patrick the red mark on his arm.

“Oh my, then she’s a keeper.”

“Are you staying the night, Mr. O’Reilly?”

“It’ll just be for the night. Have you got any room?”

“Just the field view room up top, Mr. O’Reilly...if we’d known you were coming...”

“Shhhh, that’s perfect. Can you get Rodney to help us with our bags?”

“Yes, of course, sir. Let us know if there’s anything else you need.”

“I will.” Finn replied.

“Not you, sir, I was talking to the lovely lass, you’ve already got everything you need.” Patrick winked at Finn and I burned a deep red.

“Come on then, bitey lass, follow me.” Finn pressed his hand against the small of my back and led me up the stairs.

***

“Here we are,” Finn slid a key into the lock and pushed on the heavy door with his shoulder.

The stairwell up to the room had been lowly lit but the room at the top opened into a bright and airy spacious suite. The curtains wafted with a soft breeze from the fields outside, and the stone walls were covered in paintings of the Irish countryside. An arched doorway led into an adjoining bedroom with a king-size bed covered in soft cloudy pillows and red velvet curtains and bed runners. It was beautiful.

“What is this place?” I asked, in awe.

I walked around the room unable to stop myself from running my fingers over the textured stone walls and luxury linens.

“I told you, this is home. Well, one of them. I have 3 small boutique hotels like it, this one here in Ireland and then two more in France and Italy. Each one is a little bit different, blending into its surrounds. But this was the first. It’s home.”

“It’s exquisite.”

He turned to look at me, searching my eyes for the truth. “Really?”

I breathed a sigh of contentment and smiled at him, in a way that I hoped he felt my sincerity, “yes, Finn. It’s absolutely perfect.”

I walked to the large bay window that led out to a small balcony and pulled the white lace curtain aside, staring out at the view of bushes of bright yellow flowers as far as my eye could see.

“Wow.”

He came up behind me, pressing his body against me as he matched my gaze out the window. My body responded by stiffening, and I felt a warmth spread through me, through the parts that made me feel alive, feminine, something I hadn’t felt in a long time.

“I think so. Wow.”

“What are those?” I pointed out to the field, trying to distract myself from the way his body was brushing up against me.

“Those yellow flowers? They’re called Furze.”

I felt his fingers brush over my eyelids, warm and soft.

“Close your eyes, Kara,” he leaned in and whispered next to my ear.

I let my eyelids follow his fingers, feeling my eyelashes fluttering softly against my upper cheek.

“And take a long deep breath...now.” He instructed.

I drew the air into my lungs, feeling each fresh molecule wash over the soft hairs of my nostrils and fill up my chest.