Irish Crown

by Nashoda Rose

  No comforting arms. No light touch of reassurance. Nothing. Vic was cold as ice, and yet, I still had never been so glad to see him.

  Vic’s hands peeled my arms from around his neck and I let him go, stepping back.

  His jaw was rigid and his eyes were dark and swirling with… I didn’t know what it was. Maybe pain? Or anger?

  “Your phone,” he said, placing it into my hand. “Get dressed and come out to the kitchen.” He walked out of my bedroom.

  I grabbed an over-sized sweatshirt from my dresser and yanked it over my head and quickly changed my pajama pants to a pair of yoga pants before walking out to the kitchen to see Deck and three police officers along with Vic.

  “Eva. You okay?” Deck asked, coming toward me.

  I nodded. “Yeah. Yeah. I’m okay. What was it? Do you know why the alarm went off?”

  “Someone jimmied the door open. They ran when the alarm sounded. The cop chased on foot, but lost him.”

  Someone broke in while I was sleeping. God, if I didn’t have the alarm, I wouldn’t have known.

  “Sit, Eva,” Deck urged.

  “I’ll, uh, talk to the police. They’ll want to know what happened.” Although I didn’t have much to tell them other than the alarm went off.

  Deck moved in and softly cupped my chin. “Eva, you don’t deal with this. We deal with this. Sit before you land on your ass.”

  His hand dropped and he urged me to a chair at the kitchen table. “Vic will stay with you.”

  “I’m okay, really.”

  He didn’t say anything as he moved away and spoke quietly to the three officers. They peered at me a second before walking out of the kitchen and outside to the front porch steps.

  Vic stayed, leaning against the counter with his arms crossed and his dark eyes unreadable as usual.

  “Eva,” Tyler said, walking through the open front door. “Fuck, man, you didn’t get her a drink. The woman needs a drink. And Skittles.” He tossed a bag of Skittles on the table and winked at me.

  I half-smiled and some of the tension eased.

  Tyler pulled out the chair next to me and sat. “You okay?”

  “Yeah. I’m fine.” Sort of fine. I was getting to fine.

  A glass of water plopped in front of me. It was Vic. “Thanks.”

  He nodded and went back to his position leaning against the counter.

  “I said a drink, not fuckin’ sewer water,” Tyler said. He glanced at me. “You have scotch? Or rum? Vodka will do in a pinch, but it’s not the same when it’s clear and looks like water. You want the dark stuff when shit like this happens.”

  “Beer or wine. That’s it.” The wine was mine and the beer for my dad if he popped in. The only time I’d seen Deaglan drink was that beer with my dad.

  Tyler grabbed the bag of Skittles and ripped them open. “Wine doesn’t set your throat on fire, sweetcakes. You need kick. A drink that makes you want to slam your fist into something.” He grinned. “Like Vic. He’s up for it. I always feel better after a shot of the good stuff and a few shots at Vic.”

  I smiled and he passed me a few Skittles, and I placed one in my mouth. Tyler popped a handful into his.

  Tyler winked. “Nothing like a burst of flavor in your mouth when you’re coiled up tight.”

  But that coiled up sprang when Deaglan strode into the house. He didn’t stop to talk to Deck or the officers, he came straight for me.

  I heard Tyler mumble something, but I couldn’t tell what because I was focused on Deaglan. Five days. Five days I hadn’t seen him and yet it felt like a lifetime. God, how did this happen?

  I rose just before he reached me. His eyes roamed the length of me. It wasn’t sexual; it was as if he was making certain I wasn’t hurt.

  He pulled me into his arms. “Eva,” he said in a ragged voice. “Jesus.” He kissed the top of my head. “You okay?”

  I peered up at him. “Yeah. I’m okay.” I attempted a smile, but failed miserably. “The idea of blowing up… I freaked a bit when I saw Vic.”

  Tension riddled his body as he held me close, one hand at the back of my head as I curled into him. “I told you. I won’t let that happen.”

  He had. Numerous times. “Vic said you were in Ireland.”

  “Yeah. Just flew in. Came straight from the airport.” His fingers tucked a few strands behind my ear. “I had to deal with shit back home, Eva. Shit, we’ll talk about. But we’re not doing that tonight.”

  I nodded.

  He pulled back, but only enough so he could look at me. “I’m getting you out of here. The guys can look after this. We’ll go to my hotel.”

  “You have a hotel room? But you just flew in.”

  “Baby, I’ve had a hotel room ever since my place blew up.”

  I hadn’t thought about it because he’d been staying with me up until five days ago. And I assumed he’d stay with Deck or Tyler if he needed a place.

  He glanced over my head at Tyler and Vic. “Call me if you have anything.”

  Deaglan released me, but only enough to slip his hand in mine as he led me past the commotion. Shielding me from it. Like he always did.

  Deaglan took me to his hotel room, which turned out to be in a five-star hotel. And the suite didn’t have basic essentials. It had elaborate essentials.

  A king-size bed sat opposite the floor-to-ceiling windows with a beautiful gray velvet bolster. Two gold-wrapped chocolates lay on the pillows and two swan-folded bath towels at the foot of the bed. There was a living space, with a couch and two chairs and glass coffee table, and everything was done in soft beiges with splashes of red.

  Deaglan ordered room service despite telling him I wasn’t hungry, but he seemed to think I’d be hungry after the adrenaline wore off.

  I decided to have a quick shower before the food came and changed into one of the white fluffy robes. When I came out of the washroom, Deaglan was out on the balcony chatting on the phone. His voice was low, but the French doors were open so I heard his conversation.

  I sat on the edge of the bed and watched him half-bent, forearms resting on the balcony railing, one leg slightly cocked.

  “Don’t be a fuckin’ dick,” he said with a hint of humor in his voice. “I’m not telling you shit.” Pause. “Yeah. And stay clear of my place, Ronan. I told my guys to kick your ass if they see you.” Pause. “I’ll be back in a few weeks.” Another pause and he straightened, turned and leaned against the railing. His eyes landed on me and instantly heated with desire as they roamed up my naked legs to where the robe parted.

  I swallowed, and my girl parts tingled and clenched.

  “Have to go. Talk soon.” He lowered the phone and walked into the room, tossing it on one of the two beige chairs seated around the small, round coffee table.

  He stalked toward me.

  Our eyes remained locked, even when he towered over me and I had to crank my neck to look up at him. “Is everything okay?”

  His hand cupped the side of my head and my chest rose and fell rapidly.

  His eyes flashed amusement. “I didn’t have time to see my brother when I was in Ireland and he’s pissed. But, yeah, he’s fine.”

  “Your brother?” I whispered.

  “My half-brother Ronan. We have the same father.” Deaglan tipped into me. “Eva, I should’ve been with you.” His thumb slid across my lower lip. “I shouldn’t have left.”

  “I’m the one who told you to leave, Deaglan.”

  His lips hovered over mine. “I didn’t leave because you told me to, Eva.”

  “Oh,” I whispered.

  My breath stilled. My heart raced and my blood rushed through my veins like a raging river.

  “I never want to leave you, Eva.”

  He kissed me. I expected fierce and bruising, which I loved. But what I got was passionate, intense, and slow.

  He held my head between his hands, as his mouth roamed over mine in deep exploration.

  It wasn’t a fling kiss. This was penetrating and co
nsuming.

  It was more.

  And it meant something. I wasn’t sure what yet, but it was more than I thought either of us expected.

  He groaned and released me. “I kiss you any longer, we won’t be eating anything but each other.”

  I smiled. “I’m good with that.” God, I liked this guy too much.

  The tension in him eased as he chuckled, then released me to walk into the washroom.

  A knock sounded on the door, and I crawled off the bed to answer it when Deaglan intercepted and corralled me against the wall.

  “You don’t get the door, Eva.”

  “It’s just the food,” I said and tried to duck under his arm.

  He blocked me with his forearm and his fingers curled into my hip. “This is about keeping you safe.” Scowling, his eyes roamed the length of me. “And you’re not answering the door dressed like that.”

  I frowned. “No one knows we’re here, and what’s wrong with this? I’m wearing a bathrobe. It’s practically a snowsuit.”

  Another knock and a man’s voice, “Room service.”

  His eyes flicked to the crevice between my breasts where the robe parted and lower to my naked legs. “He’s not looking at you in that,” he said, jaw clenched, lips firm and his eyes unyielding.

  I’d never seen him like this, but I had no energy to fight the issue, and it was silly anyway. So I let him have it and Deaglan opened the door while I sat cross-legged on the bed.

  I saw the waiter attempt to wheel the cart in, but Deaglan stopped it with his foot. He shoved a bill in the waiter’s hand and wheeled the cart in himself. I was uncertain whether that was a safety issue or because I sat on the bed in a bathrobe.

  Deaglan placed the tray of food on the bed, and I scuttled up to the top and leaned against the velvet-padded headboard.

  Deaglan’s brows rose. “You’re hungry.”

  I nodded smiling. “Starved.”

  “Here.” He passed me a white napkin before picking up a large tiger shrimp with his fingers and holding it out to me. I bit into it and he popped the rest of it in his mouth.

  “Mmm. Delicious,” I said.

  He sat beside me, legs outstretched, a bowl of linguine on his lap that he currently spiraled with his fork. With one hand cupped under the fork, he held it out to me. I opened, and he slid it into my mouth. His heated eyes remained on me as he watched me chew.

  I swallowed. “Does linguine turn you on?”

  “You turn me on,” he replied. “Everything you do makes me rock-hard, baby. When your tongue licks your lower lip when you chew, barely visible, but enough to wet the surface. And when you like what you’re eating, your eyes soften, and you slow your chewing as you savor every bite.” He paused, twirling the fork in the pasta again. “It’s the same look when your mouth is around my cock.” He lifted the fork and ate a mouthful of pasta.

  “Because I love the taste of your cock and I want to savor it.”

  He finished chewing and swallowed. “You don’t need to savor it. You can have as much of it as you want.”

  I laughed.

  And that was how it went. We talked, and he fed me linguine and shrimp while sitting in bed, and when we were done, he stripped off my clothes, then his, before he teased my nipples with chocolate ice cream, then proceeded to suck on my ice-cream-covered nipples.

  We showered, and he washed every inch of my body before he kissed every inch, then fucked me against the foggy glass with my legs around his waist and his hands on my ass.

  He toweled me off himself, and as he did it, his tongue captured pearls of water clinging to my skin. I ended up sitting on the bathroom counter with his mouth between my legs and my body shuddering.

  When he was done, he swept me up in his arms and carried me to bed where he wrapped me against his warm, hard body.

  Then we slept.

  When I woke, Deaglan wasn’t in bed and I sat up holding the sheet to my naked chest as I looked around the room for him.

  A breeze wafted into the room and the sheer white curtains billowed before settling back in place. The balcony doors were open and Deaglan stood in his jeans, while leaning his forearms on the railing.

  At first, I thought he was watching the sunrise, but his head was tilted down and his hair fell forward in front of his face. I reached for my panties and over-sized sweatshirt at the foot of the bed, slipped them on and climbed out of bed.

  Padding across the room, I walked out onto the balcony. I didn’t say anything, and neither did he.

  I came up behind him and slid my arms around his waist, pressing my body into him and resting my cheek on his naked back. He didn’t move, but his shoulders slumped and his head dipped lower.

  We stood like that for a while. Neither of us saying anything as the sun rose and the city awoke below us.

  His hand slid down my forearm and rested on top of mine for a second before he moved.

  He straightened, and my arms fell from around his waist, but not for long as he faced me and drew me into him again. This time, my cheek rested on his chest as he towered over me, arms holding me to him.

  He kissed the top of my head. “Morning.”

  “Morning,” I whispered in a sleepy voice.

  Something had shifted last night, mostly with him, but me, too, because when he kissed me, when he thrust inside me, it wasn’t fucking. It was more. It was him. All of him.

  “How long did he hit you for?”

  I tensed and tried to pull back, but he tightened his arms and I relaxed against him again. “A few months.” The physical. The emotional was a lot longer. It was as if he was preparing me for when he finally did hit me. Making certain I was worn down enough, so when his slapped me the first time, I questioned myself, not him.

  His chest rose as he inhaled a ragged breath. His hand cupped the back of my head and his thumb lightly brushed over the scar. “It wasn’t your fault, Eva.”

  I tried not to stiffen, but I did and his arms tightened. “I know.”

  He gently kissed the scar on my head. “Do you?”

  I swallowed. “Logically, I do.”

  “A man like that is a coward. He tries to crush a woman, break her down to make himself feel powerful and in control. But he’s fuckin’ scum.”

  He had crushed me. He invaded and made me feel powerless. Alone. I’d felt really alone and maybe that was the biggest reason I wanted to open the center for women in similar situations. So, they didn’t feel like they were alone. They had others to fight for them. With them.

  After a minute, I whispered, “Why is this personal to you, Deaglan?”

  He was silent a minute and I didn’t think he’d answer me when he said, “My mom. She was abused for years.” My chest clenched and stomach coiled. “I was too young to do anything about it.”

  That was why he was so protective. He’d been unable to protect his mom from the abuse he’d witnessed as a child.

  “She tried to hide it from me, but even being so young, I knew. Maybe not exactly what was happening, but I knew it was wrong. I knew the man was a bad guy.” He paused. “She’d hide me in a trunk under the window when she knew it was going to be bad. I’d wear these big earmuffs that she’d decorated with all these fake gems to make it look like a crown. She tried to make it a game and told me I was the king and the trunk was my private throne room where I was protected and nothing could touch me.

  But covering my ears wasn’t enough. I heard her screams. Her crying. But worse was the sound of her body hitting the floor. That thump. Fuck, I hated that thump. I think I was scared she’d never get up again. That one day she’d stay on the floor.”

  My throat tightened and tears pooled in my eyes and slipped over the rims. What he must have witnessed as a child hearing his mother being abused. It explained a lot as to why Deaglan was the man he is today. Why he was adamant about protecting me after I was mugged. The relentless need to find who was responsible. Why he was so angry when he found out about Curran.

&nbs
p; I pulled back to look up at him and his eyes were dark and riddled with emotion. “Was he your father?”

  He shook his head. “No. I didn’t meet my real father until I was twelve and went to live with him when the bastard finally went too far and killed her.”

  Oh God. “That’s why you want to find Curran.”

  He placed his finger under my chin and tilted my head as he bowed over me. “My mom escaped him, Eva. But she lived for years looking over her shoulder with the constant fear he’d find her. And he did. One day, the bastard did.” He tightened his hold. “I won’t let that happen to you, Eva.”

  “Cheers,” Ally said, raising her mint and lime tequila refresher. “To Kendra landing the man of her… I mean, job of her dreams.”

  It had been four days since the false alarm, the hotel, and Deaglan telling me about his mom. I suspected there was more, but I didn’t ask. I knew it had been hard for him to share what he had about his mom.

  We stayed at the hotel because he didn’t want me living at the rental, and when I wasn’t working, he was also with me, which meant he helped me paint the foyer in the new house and hang the chandelier.

  And tonight, he was meeting me at the bar to celebrate Kendra’s promotion. I thought it was to make sure I was safe even if I had Luke, but he’d said it was because Kendra was important to me.

  “You look amazing.” Charlotte said. Kendra’s sister was twenty-five, single, and had a five-year-old little girl, Maddie.

  I glanced down at my sexy little black dress that was snug, mid-thigh and had a low V-neck. I wore my black, two-inch pumps with the turquoise soles and angel hair straps that circled my ankles. “Thanks.”

  “Does it have anything to do with that Irish stud in your bed every night?”

  I smiled, “Maybe. He’s coming tonight.”

  Her thin arched brows lifted as she chewed on her straw. “Really? Kendra told me he only shows up at night for sex and leaves in the morning.”

  I raised my eyes heavenward. “Your sister doesn’t approve of casual sex. Even if it’s amazing casual sex.” And feels more than casual.

  “My sister is so focused on her career, she’s forgotten what it’s like to have a man between her legs.” She sipped her drink. “Hey, when are you coming up to the farm? Maddie is dying to see you.”