Page 26 of Finn

Early evening faded into night as I sat in my office. Niall was out of the building, and no one bothered me as I stared out the window, drinking whiskey and thinking. Remembering when we started. How bright and complete my world felt.

I had wined and dined Una for a week. A week of conversations over the table. Texts and calls. I went for a couple of runs with her. We didn’t talk much, but I did enjoy the way it felt to be by her side, our pace matching once I shortened my stride a little. I teased her about it, making her laugh, which, in turn, made me smile. I did love her laugh. I also liked how her ass looked in her tight leggings, but I kept that information to myself.

Then she offered to cook me dinner, and I asked her to make it at my condo. I rarely spent time there, but the thought of having her there, in my space—filling it with her scent, the sound of her laughter, the aroma of her cooking…creating a memory I could relive—was too much to resist.

Over dinner, she told me she was ready to sell her father’s house and move in to a place of her own.

“I know a great building,” I informed her. “Clean. Affordable. Good neighborhood. I can give you the manager’s name.”

She beamed at me across the table. “Thank you.”

“What about Brian?”

“He’s looking for his own place.” She sighed. “He’s having trouble moving ahead without Dad. I’m looking for a two-bedroom place so he can stay until he finds his own.”

I bit my tongue so I wouldn’t tell her he would never move out if she let him in. He would sponge off her for as long as he could.

After dinner, we sat on the sofa, enjoying the fireplace and the quiet music. On impulse, I stood and took her in my arms, dancing around the room. She was tiny in my embrace, making me feel like a giant. A protector. I pulled her closer, smiling at her hum of approval. Looking down, I met her eyes, the green glowing in the dull light. Bending, I captured her mouth, kissing her. She sighed as she wound her arms around my neck and kissed me back. I picked her up, still moving as she wrapped her legs around my waist, and I deepened the kiss. She gripped my hair, pulled the knot out, and ran her fingers through the shaggy mess.

“God, I love your hair,” she murmured. “It’s so sexy, Finn.”

Right then, I swore I would never change it. I cupped the back of her head, my hand filled with her curls. “Back at you, Una. You are so beautiful.”

She whimpered, crashing her mouth to mine. With no thought, I walked to my bedroom, unable to tear my mouth from hers. I laid her on my mattress, hovering over her.

“Tell me you want this. You want me,” I demanded.

“Yes.”

I ran a finger down her cheek. “Once I have you, you’re mine, Una. All mine.”

She caught my hand, kissing it. “I already am.”

That was all I needed to hear.

I kissed her, hovering over her on the mattress. I lost myself to the taste of her. The scent of her skin as we shed our clothing. How she felt so right molded to my body. Her softness cradled my muscled form, curving around me perfectly.

I buried my face into her neck, groaning as she touched me, the feeling of her hands on my skin like nothing I had ever experienced. How this tiny woman could affect me so deeply was a mystery.

“Finn,” she whispered. “You’re so beautiful. Everything about you.”

“Even the scars?” I replied, trying to keep it light.

“Even the scars. I hate seeing them, but they tell me you survived.”

I gathered her hair from around her face. “That’s what I did until you came into my life, mo chroí. I survived. Now, I want to live. Feel. Experience everything. With you.”

She crashed her mouth to mine, stroking, finding me hard and aching for her.

“I’ve never…” she confessed, her voice low.

My breath caught. She would be mine. Completely and utterly mine.

The caveman in me roared in satisfaction.

“I’ll use a condom,” I assured her.

“I’m on birth control,” she replied. “I want to feel you, Finn.”