A Highland Heist A Contemporary Highland Romance Book Three (6 page)

“Crap. Has it already gone to hell? What did you do?” When his glare turned to a scowl, she gave him half a pout, her brows drawn over those bright green eyes. “Oh, come on, Conall. You know you can talk to me. After Angus, you’re my best friend.”

“Then that’s a sad state of affairs, ain’t it?” He let out a weary sigh, guilt nagging him for pushing Rowan away. “What do ye want me to say? You were right that night at the party-there was nothing going on between us. Some bloke was bothering her, and I was a convenient ploy to be rid of him.”

Rowan shook her head no, sending her loose curls spilling over her shoulder. “She may have been trying to avoid this other guy, but I saw the kiss she planted on you, and I can tell you now, the girl likes you.”

“She may have at one point in time, but I’ve since managed to muck things up. Not like it matters, aye? She’ll be gone in a few months’ time, and it’s not like I need the headache of a relationship.” Yet the mere mention of Maggie had him thinking of how she felt in his arms when he kissed her. The way her curves fit against his body. How his heart tripped over itself as their kiss deepened and she pulled him close.

Rowan let out a sigh and leaned forward. “You can’t have screwed up that badly, Conall. And don’t go giving me that crap about not wanting a relationship. No one wants to be alone, and frankly, it would do you a world of good to have a bit of fun. Not to mention, get laid.”

His head was now throbbing. “Rowan, I swear ye’d drive a man to drink.”

“Aw. You’re so sweet.” She leaned forward and kissed his cheek before getting to her feet. “Call her, Conall-or even better, pay her a visit. ’Cause if you don’t, then I’m afraid I’ll be forced to meddle. And you wouldn’t want that, now would you?”

He had to laugh. “You’re such a pain in the arse, lass.”

“And yet you still love me.”

***

Conall wandered through the jobsite, and though he told himself he was there purely for work, he found his gaze wandering about with the hope of seeing Maggie. Not that he’d be apologizing, since he’d done nothing wrong. But he did need to keep things civil between the two of them. They still had to work together, and the longer they went without seeing each other, the more awkward it would be.

Though he didn’t immediately see her when he entered the main room, he felt her presence. And then he spotted her, a small smile upon her lips as she stood there-speaking to Andrew, of all people. His chest tightened and his muscles stiffened as he fought to extinguish the spark of jealousy that threatened to ignite.

He thought about continuing on his way, but she looked over at him, and then smiled-the kind that reached her eyes and made them sparkle like the summer sun on a lake. He let out a deep breath as she excused herself to Andrew, and started heading in his direction.

“Hey there. Been a while.” She reached out and gave his hand a quick squeeze before letting it go. “Hope ye’ve been keeping well.”

His gaze flicked to Andrew, who was watching them. “See ye’ve patched things up with yer friend there.”

He didn’t like the man. And it went well past any jealousy he might harbor when it came to seeing him with Maggie. Maybe it had to do with one too many jerks, just like Andrew, giving his sister a hard time. But this wasn’t his sister and he should let it go. Let Maggie do whatever she damn well pleased. Instead, he found himself wanting to punch Andrew before tossing Maggie over his shoulder and dragging her to his bed to claim her as his own.

“He apologized for being pushy, and I figured since I still have to work with him for several more months, it might be best to let it go and try to get along. Surely you can see the merit in that. No?”

“Och, aye. I’m sure he truly means it, too.” Bloody hell. How was it the woman always got his back up? And in such short time. He’d barely known the lass a few weeks, yet she’d already gotten under his skin. “Sorry. Not like it’s any of my business. You can do as ye damn well please. But if ye have a moment and can pull yerself away from yer newfound friend, I need to go over a few changes I’d like to make to the security schematics.”

“Pull myself away, is it? And do as I damn well please?” Her eyebrows flicked up as she pinned him with a glare, her jaw tight. “Ye know ye can be a real arse, Conall.”

He shrugged, annoyed with himself for upsetting her when there was no need for it. “So can we get to work or do ye have other plans?”

She made a production of checking her watch. “It’s a bit late, don’t ye think?”

Bollocks. He hadn’t really checked the time, and it was already after five. “Tomorrow then.”

Silently cursing, he turned to go when a capable hand grabbed his arm and he found himself looking into her blue eyes, those full kissable lips of hers curling in a shadow of a smile. It was all he could do to not pull her to him and cover her mouth with his, desperate to have her in his arms. He wanted to kiss her until she yielded, wanted to take her pressed against the wall or bent over the table. She called out to every primal urge in him and it took all he had to resist her.

With her head cocked and one brow perked, she stood there, arms crossed, leaving him to wonder if she could read his mind-to wonder if she was aware of the effect she had on him. “You owe me for a ruined meal-one I worked hard on, mind ye-and since ye don’t like to cook, ye’ll be buying me dinner.”

“Am I now?” A smile pulled at the corners of his mouth as he was left shaking his head and wondering how the hell she’d snuck in past his defenses and left him falling for her. He might be damn good at securing any type of network or server, but he’d left himself wide open.

She linked her arm with his, moving them towards the door. “I wasn’t asking, love.”

He was happy to play her games-for now. “Does this mean I’m forgiven?”

“Forgiven?” The sideways glance she gave him and her mischievous laugh had a ball of heat and need knotting in his stomach. “And miss out on all the fun of doling out yer punishment while you’re tied to my bed? I don’t think so.”

Bloody hell. He didn’t think they’d even make it home if she kept this up. “If there’s someone here who’ll be tied to a bed, it’s not me, lass.”

“Promises, promises.” When she leaned into him, the warmth of her body, the feel of her on his arm, sent his pulse hammering and his cock growing hard. “So where are ye taking me?”

He did his best to clear his head, to focus on what she was saying instead of what she’d look like splayed naked on his bed. “Ye do realize there aren’t a whole lot of restaurants in town. Ye’ve got yer choice of the pub or the chipper.” Conall tried to think of other alternatives, but food was
not
what he wanted after their taunts.

Stepping out into the brisk September air coming in off the sea, he steered them towards his car, conveniently parked near her deathtrap of a bike.

She grabbed her helmet, and turned to face him so the sun escaping through the clouds picked up the flecks of gold in her eyes and illuminated the blue. “Well, if ye wanted to get some work done over dinner, then we could grab something at the chipper and take it back to your place or mine.”

“The chipper it is then.” He breathed in the cool damp air in a futile attempt to clear his head and rein in his thoughts. If he kept up on the road he was on-if he gave in to the overwhelming need he had of her-he knew he’d eventually regret it. Women like Maggie broke hearts. Shattered them to smithereens. And his heart was already weary and battle-scarred.

Yet by the time they abandoned her bike, grabbed the food and headed back to his house, he’d had enough time to start second-guessing himself. With her at his side, all thoughts of keeping his distance washed away on a wave of need.

He knew it’d be a mistake, and yet he liked her-a lot. Far more than he should or was wise. Then again, it’d be easy enough to just enjoy the time they had together. It’s not like she’d be around past the New Year. Still…something nagged at the back of his mind and in the pit of his gut, telling him it could all go cursedly wrong. A woman like Maggie? You couldn’t play with fire and not get burned.

Maggie sat by his side, munching on her fish and chips and tossing Piper the occasional treat, while he pulled out the plans and looked them over. Not that he could concentrate on the task at hand when he was distracted by thoughts of impending doom and a primal need to get her naked. Bollocks.

“Leave it for now-your fish is getting cold. Nothing tastes worse once it gets soggy.” Maggie shifted towards him, sitting sideways, with her plate in her lap. “There’s plenty of time for work-and fun-later. Besides, ye’ll want to keep yer energy up.”

“Will I, now? And do I get a say regarding the night’s entertainment?” He shouldn’t be playing this game, and yet…Damn. She was smart, pretty and fun, and in many ways far safer than getting involved with anyone else, since she’d soon be gone.

Her eyes widened and sparkled with mischief as she munched on a chip, a teasing smile on her lips. “Not if yer tied to the bed, ye don’t.”

His skin felt too tight to contain the need and energy that coursed through him. He had to admire such boldness, and it only added to the growing attraction he was desperately trying to ignore. “Are ye always such a flirt?”

She shrugged. “Like I’ve said before-there’s no point in not making the most of the opportunities that come our way. That said, I’m damn picky, if it makes ye feel any better. And you, me dear, make the cut-and then some.”

She set aside her plate and then put his on the end table, out of the dog’s reach, before slipping one long leg over his lap to straddle him, the weight and heat of her supple body having an immediate effect. A surge of need coursed through him as he ached to have her, his pulse pounding and his heart thrashing against his ribs as he fought to take a breath. There was no chance of coherent thought. No chance he could resist her even if he wanted to-not that he did. It felt too right. Too perfect.

He sat forward so she was but a breath away, her breasts pressed against him as he slipped his hands down the length of her back, settling on her waist to pull her even closer. With a teasing smile, she shifted her hips against his hard length, so he could think of nothing but ravaging her. It had been months since he’d last been with anyone, and now no one but Maggie would do. He was going to have her in a most thorough manner and wouldn’t let up until he’d explored every inch of her, until she was laying there spent and utterly satisfied, until she could utter no one’s name but his.

Her hair fell forward as she leaned over and kissed him, the scent of coconut and lime filling his head, their kiss deepening. By the gods, he wanted her, and with the heat of her pressed against him and her lips tasting like honey fresh from the comb, there was no possible way he could take this slow. Not that it mattered. Maggie didn’t seem to have much patience either, her hands already running down his chest and pulling his shirt up over his head.

He followed suit, quickly ridding her of her top, his thumbs brushing against her hard nipples through her red lacy bra, eliciting a moan from her sweet lips. A flick of the clasp, and he set her glorious breasts free-when a buzzing vibration sounded.

She pulled away and dug out her phone as he continued to trail kisses down her neck. “Fuck.”

“Ignore it.” He held her close, his words coming out in a murmur against her soft skin.

With a hand on his chest, she pushed him away. “I can’t. Sorry. It’s my bus with all the tech in it. There’s been some sort of disturbance.”

She was already sliding off his lap with a string of curses that alternated between English and Irish as she pulled on her bra, and he caught one last glimpse of her perfectly pert breasts. He groaned, desperately trying to ignore the pulsing ache between his legs that threatened to overtake him. “I’m coming with ye.”

“Ye don’t have to. I can come back once I get it sorted.” She turned her shirt the right way out, and pulled it on while he grabbed his own and got dressed.

His temper sparked to think she’d just leave him behind when the security of
their
project might be in jeopardy-
and
that she’d run into a potentially dangerous situation on her own without giving it a second thought. As if he’d just sit there on the sofa with a hard on, casually waiting for her return while she dealt with who the hell knows what.

“I’m coming with ye, Maggie. Does your phone tell ye what sort of disturbance it is?” Conall was sure she had all sorts of information being sent through to her smartphone.

“From the readings it’s giving me, there hasn’t been a breach, but there was an attempt at the door. It sounds an alarm if it’s been tampered with, so it may have scared off whoever was snooping.” She threw on her jacket, and was already heading for the door, leaving him to catch up. “I’ve got surveillance cameras there, but I’m not seeing anything over the feed that’s being sent to my phone. Once I’ve got the actual footage, we should be able to zoom in and see what happened.”

That was something, at least. They could figure out exactly what happened rather than guessing.

He found himself admiring how thorough she was with her work, and damn if it didn’t make him like her all the more-beyond the lust and want. That fact that she could be both serious about some things and yet still have a playful side made her all the more intriguing.

With her bike still at the cottage, he drove, though it left her antsy and on edge, her entire body taut. She glared at him. “Could ye not drive just a wee bit faster?”