The Wedding Pact (The O'Malleys #2) (13 page)

“Totally makes sense why you brought us out here, then.”

She glanced at him, but the lack of light made his expression indecipherable. It was easier to talk to him this way, without those blue eyes that seemed to take in too much drilling into her. Strangely enough, a perverse part of her missed them all the same. “The stars seem brighter out here.” She opened her door and climbed into the night. The cold hit her hard enough to make her shiver, but there was something about it that was almost as cleansing as James’s kiss. She inhaled deeply, letting it scour away the last traces of her date.

James followed, meeting her at the front of the car and leaning on the hood. He tilted his head back, revealing a throat she wanted to nibble on. “They’re bright.” Without looking at her, he snagged her wrist and towed her closer. The warmth of the engine battled the cold that made her breath ghost in front of her. The circles he traced on the sensitive skin of her wrist only heated her further. “Now, lovely.”

She looked at the stars because they were easier to face than the man next to her. “My father gave me a list of men he decided were eligible. Tonight was my first date.” She shuddered at the memories pushing against her. It didn’t make any sense. Nothing particularly horrible had happened. She’d had unwanted men kiss her before, had been forced to pull similar moves, and it had never brought up the core-deep revulsion currently leaving an acrid taste in the back of her throat. She’d never lost it like she almost did tonight. Not once. “He got handsy. I was forced to defend myself, though Liam would have taken care of him if I hadn’t been able to.” But she’d needed to be the one to do it. She was so goddamn tired of being forced to rely on the men in her life for every little thing.

This, at least, she’d been able to do for herself.

James was so tense beside her, he seemed about to erupt into violence at the drop of a hat. She braced herself for him to demand the name of the man who touched her without permission, or to throw out threats that he may or may not even plan on following through with.

But he surprised her again. “Did you hurt him?”

She sure as hell hoped so. “He’ll be singing soprano for a few hours, at least.”

“Good.” And that was that. His thumb continued those circles that both soothed and made her skin prickle.

She waited, but he didn’t seem inclined to ask any more questions. The man never stopped surprising her. She wasn’t sure what she thought about that. Letting the subject drop was fine with her, though, because she was more interested in the other half of their bargain than she was with treading over things she couldn’t change and would rather not think about. “Make me forget for a while, James. Please.”

*  *  *

How could he resist her?

James couldn’t. He might be seeing red and determined to figure out who the fuck “got handsy” with her so he could go rip the man to pieces, but the desire for her undercut all that. She needed him. That’s why he was here tonight, and that was a gift so priceless, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt he didn’t deserve it.

Because there was no way he wouldn’t fuck this up.

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her with everything he had. She smelled like summer, even in late November, a reminder that this wasn’t forever and he’d be a damn fool to waste a single second. He ran a hand down her spine, fitting her against him, letting her feel exactly how much he wanted her.

Christ, he wanted her.

She arched against him, soft in all the ways he was hard, offering herself to whatever he had in mind. To have this woman, who was all fiery passion and strength, yield to him, was enough to make his head spin. It made him want to be a better man, a man who might deserve such a woman. It was a pipe dream, a stupid fucking thought, but he couldn’t shake it.

James backed them around his car and yanked open the passenger seat. He’d never been so happy that he’d gone with a ’70 Chevelle rather than the ’67 Camaro he’d had his eye on all those years ago. He guided her into the backseat and followed her in. It wasn’t enough space, but with the residual heat from their drive down here, it was better than the cold outside the car.

He kissed her again, but he didn’t stop at her mouth. Instead, he worked his way over her neck, pausing there to savor the softness of her skin as she quivered against him. A quick yank on the shoulders of her dress exposed her bra, a sheer lace thing that was completely at odds with the rest of her getup.
This
was the true Carrigan, the woman who loved pretty things and dressed herself to the nines. “Get this fucking thing off.” He pulled again, sliding it down her body. She lifted her hips to help him, jerking her arms out of the dress and kicking it off.

Then there was only her, a few scraps of cloth all that were between his hands and mouth, and her body. “Christ, lovely.” Faced with the fact this was actually happening was like hitting a brick wall. He wanted her. Fuck, he wanted her so much it was everything he could do not to rip those panties from her body and fall on her like a starving animal. The last time—the only time—he’d surrounded himself with her had been the closest he’d come to losing himself.

But this wasn’t about him.

He’d promised to help her forget, and going from zero to sixty in five seconds flat wasn’t going to cut it. James blew out a long breath, fighting for control. He’d barely touched her and he was teetering on the edge. There had to be a better way to go about this, because he didn’t trust himself.

The answer hit him right between the eyes. He sat back, shifting them around so she lay on the seat and he took the space between her spread thighs. There wasn’t a ton of room, but that hand’s width of space between their bodies would have to be enough. She lifted her head, looking down her body at him. He couldn’t see her face clearly, but the flash of her green eyes was enough. His cock was so hard, it was a wonder he could string two thoughts together. “Take your bra off.”

She opened her mouth, and then seemed to reconsider. “James—”

“We’re doing this my way or not at all. Choose.”

“Fine,” she snapped. But her movements were slow and steady as she arched her back and reached beneath herself to unhook her bra. Then she lifted her arms and pulled it off slowly, giving him a tease before she finally dropped it onto the floorboard.

His heart slammed in his chest, need demanding he reach for her this fucking instant. He clenched his fists. “Now the panties.”

“Bossy.” She lifted her hips and brought her legs together to slip the fabric off. Then she resumed her position, leaving herself completely open to him. “Any more commands?”

“Yeah.” He licked his lips. “Touch yourself like you did the other night.”

This time there was no hesitation. She slid her hands up her sides to cup her full breasts, toying with her nipples until they were puckered and practically begging for his mouth. One hand stayed there, fingers still busy, while the other traveled down the center of her stomach, teasing them both, before stopping just above her pussy. “You like to watch.”

It wasn’t something he’d indulged in often. He usually just saw what he wanted and took it. There were plenty of women willing to throw themselves at him over the years, but none that he’d ever done more than fuck. This thing with Carrigan was different. He wanted to crawl inside her mind the same way he wanted her body. It was complicated and uncomfortable, and he sure as fuck didn’t want to talk about it right now. “One finger, lovely. Trace that sensitive little clit of yours.”

She obeyed, making that sexy whimper at the first contact, and he couldn’t contain it any longer. He slid his hands up her legs, starting at her ankles, bracketing the fine bones with his hands, and then moved up her calves to stop halfway up her thighs. He spread her further, wishing the light was better so he could see every single detail. “Show me how you like it.”

“Taking notes?” Her voice was breathy as her finger kept up its circling movement.

He massaged her thighs, enjoying the way her muscles played beneath her skin and her breath caught in her throat. “No point in doing something if you don’t do it well. Now, lovely. I want to see you finger fuck yourself.”

This time there was no hesitation. She slipped first one finger and then two into herself. He could
feel
her gaze on him, though he couldn’t tear his eyes off the sight of what she was doing with her hands. “Slow and steady.”

“No.” Her back arched, and her other hand joined the one between her legs, starting up where it’d left off on her clit. “I want it hard. Rough. More.”

He grabbed her wrist. “Don’t forget who’s in charge.” His hand moved like it had a mind of its own, tracing over her soft skin and following the line of her fingers to her pussy. He allowed her to pump two more times, his hand shadowing hers, and when she slipped hers away, his stayed.
Take your goddamn hands off her while you still can.

But he didn’t.

Instead, he mirrored her circles around her clit, damn near groaning when she whimpered again. “Yes, James. Just like that. Please don’t stop touching me.”

He didn’t stop. He needed to hear her make that whimpering sound again because of
him
. James ran his free hand over her stomach, marveling at how soft her skin was while he took his time exploring her pussy. She was warm and wet, and when he crooked his fingers inside her, she clenched around him. “You like that.”

Carrigan reached over her head, baring her body completely to him. “Do it again.”

He did it again, twisting his wrist so he could circle his thumb over her clit. Each time his fingertips ran over that spot inside her, she cried out and arched up, her body so tight it was like it might explode into a million pieces. “Let go, lovely. I’ll be here to catch you when you fall.”

Three more strokes and she was there, her scream ripping through the closed space of the car and her body shuddering with the force of her orgasm. James never took his gaze off her face as he worked her, drawing it out until she was limp and panting. “Oh my God…I mean…holy shit.”

He leaned down and kissed her. It didn’t matter that he was so hard, he thought he might split the seams of his jeans, or that his mouth watered for a taste of her, or that he’d give his left nut to keep going, to know that he was the one making her come until she couldn’t come anymore. That’s not what tonight was about. He kept the kiss light, even when she arched into it, and then sat back. “Let’s get you home.”

That was the last thing out of his mouth before Carrigan moved. She grabbed his shoulders, leveraging herself up to straddle his lap. “Nice try, but I’m nowhere near done with you yet.”

Chapter Ten

C
arrigan recognized what James was trying to do—back off before they had sex because part of her was still reeling from her earlier encounter. That wasn’t what she wanted from him. With only the shadows between them and their breath fogging the windows of his car, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she might never get another chance like this. It was about escape, sure, but it was more than that. She’d spent the last four months pretending that she wasn’t jonesing for another shot at James Halloran. Lying to herself.

She’d be damned before she let this opportunity pass.

His hands rested on her hips, the light touch completely at odds with the tension of his body. He wanted her. She knew he did. But he just as obviously wanted to set her aside and get the fuck out of the car. She had no intention of giving him the opportunity to run with this unexpected honorable streak.

Carrigan kissed him, pressing her entire body against his. He resisted her for one heartbeat, two, three, until the fear rose in the back of her mind that maybe she’d read the situation wrong and he
didn’t
want her. That he’d just given her a pity orgasm. She was half a second from pulling away when he growled against her mouth.

As if that sound released him, his grip tightened on her hips, hands sliding down to cup her ass and drag her even closer. His cock was a hard ridge beneath his jeans, and he didn’t hesitate to line it up with her still-sensitive clit. The friction made her moan, and he ate the sound, his tongue diving into her mouth and taking control the same way he’d taken control of her hips.

Needing to feel his skin against hers, she reached for the bottom of his shirt and dragged it up over his head. Her hands smacked the roof of the car, but she didn’t care. All that mattered was getting James as close to her as he could possibly be. And then they were chest to chest. The shock of having no barrier between her and another person had her going still, wanting to savor every second. She’d had lovers before, but they were always hurried fucks in less-than-convenient locations.

Oh God, I’ve never been fully naked with an equally naked man. How pathetic is that?

He sensed her hesitation, though he chalked it up to the wrong cause. James gripped the back of her neck. “Second thoughts?”

“No. Fuck, no.” She couldn’t tell him the real reason, not without baring a part of her she didn’t share with anyone. Carrigan rolled her hips. “Fuck me, James. Please.” And she would soak up every second of it like a flower seeking the sun.

“I tried to do the goddamn honorable thing.”