Eva
“Damn girl, you look good enough to eat!” Cassie said, eyeing me up and down.
I reached out and pulled my best friend into a much-needed hug and squeezed her until she squealed. “I’ve missed you so much!” I said. We linked arms and walked into my house. Once inside, Cassie tossed her suitcase into my spare room, which would serve as her bedroom for the next twenty-four hours, then retreated to the kitchen.
“Want to pre-game here or at the bar?” I asked.
“Definitely here. Line ’em up, honey,” Cassie said as she sat her pretty little self down on one of the stools at my breakfast bar. She had come straight from the airport and was still dressed for arctic temperatures with her wool sweater, boots, and jeans. I was definitely feeling overdressed at the moment in a black dress that was shorter than I was comfortable with. It served me right for not spending the extra five minutes it would have taken me to try on the dress in the store before buying it. But I had been distracted and in no mood to shop this afternoon.
It had been a week since our encounter in that alleyway, yet I couldn’t stop replaying what we had done, what I had wished would have happened in my mind. I nearly broke out into a sweat every time I thought about Jamie, the way he spoke to me, the way he could easily send me over the edge with just his fingers alone.
“Lemon drops, okay?” I asked.
“Does the pope wear a funny hat?” she asked with a raised brow.
Ordinarily I would have laughed at her pope comment, as it was one of her favorites, but all it did was remind me of Jamie and the fact that he was off limits due to his vocation. I gave her a quick smile instead and then went to the fridge to retrieve the ice and lemon juice. “Hmm. I took your silence this past week as a good sign. That your stepbrother priest was no longer a problem. Boy, was I wrong.”
I hadn’t texted Cassie nor had I called her again while she was in Alaska. But Lord knows I had wanted to, especially after what had happened in that alleyway. “I haven’t seen him in a week,” I said, setting the metal shaker down on the counter. I dumped a few ice cubes into it along with some Triple Sec and vodka and gave it a good shake before I filled our shot glasses to the top.
“So, you did see him again? After you and I spoke on the phone?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t intentional. I was at the hospital visiting my mother when Jamie showed up to give her Communion. I got out of there as fast as I could but he followed me.” I handed her a shot and clinked her glass with mine.
“And?”
I tossed my shot back and slammed the glass back down on the granite countertop. “He pulled me into an alley where we started to make out like two horny teenagers.”
“In broad fucking daylight?” she asked, her eyes wide as saucers.
“Yep,” I said, refilling my glass. Cassie followed my lead and downed her shot.
“Holy shit. That is so fucking hot,” she said, wiping the side of her mouth.
It had been more than just hot. That kiss hadn’t just left me breathless and wet and wanting more than he was capable of giving me. No, that kiss had been soul-jarring, the kind of kiss that fucked with your mind and made you think that no one, no man would ever be able to make you feel that way again.
Jamie Curran has ruined me for all men.
“Did you two . . . you know . . .”
“No. He put a stop to things before it could go any further and then told me that we could never do that again.”
“Fucking hell,” Cassie said, filling up her glass. “I don’t know what to say other than that really sucks, Eva.”
“It sure does. But enough about that. I only have you for one night and I refuse to talk about Jamie a second longer. Tell me about Alaska.”
Cassie gave me a quick nod before she threw back her second shot and returned it to the counter. “You should have seen what that drunk motherfucker did, the havoc he caused when he rammed his ship into that tanker. The oil spread for miles, endangering all the sea life in its path. Quinn and I worked around the clock trying to rid the oil from birds’ feath . . .”
“Quinn?”
“Um . . . yeah, he was . . . is . . . a marine biologist. He was volunteering his time, like me.”
Never in the ten years that we had been friends had I known Cassie to stumble over her words and blush so violently. Never. “Something you not sharing with me, hon?” I asked, giving her the look, the one that made her crack every time.
“I feel funny talking about this, with what’s going on with Jamie and everything . . .”
“Spill it, Cass.”
Cassie shifted in her seat as she dragged her finger around the rim of her empty shot glass. “I met the most amazing man, Eva. He’s . . . just . . . incredible.” I blinked my eyes a few times and stared at my friend. Cassie Walsh had dated and even had a couple short-term boyfriends along the way. But she had been too busy being a successful attorney and devoted humanitarian to find a man she would deem amazing or incredible . . . that was, until now. “He’s Scottish, Eva. A Scottish marine biologist. Even his name is sexy—Quinn McGregor.” I had never heard Cassie gush before. It was pretty damn cute to watch. “The attraction was so intense, and by the fourth day I knew I wasn’t leaving that state without having him.”
“Do you have a picture of him?” I asked, smiling.
She whipped out her phone and within seconds I was staring at some Scottish Highlander god. From the photo, he looked to be around six foot four and well over two hundred pounds. With his blue eyes, messy windblown hair and dimpled chin, the man was definitely a hottie. But it was the way he was cradling a seal he had most likely rescued in his arms that made me want to tell Cassie to marry that boy now.
“He invited me to Scotland for Christmas. He wants me to meet his family.”
“Holy hell! Are you going? Please tell me you’re going!”
“I do want to go, but Eva, what about you? Will you go to your mother’s for Christmas? I don’t want you to be alone.”
“On those off years you and I are not traveling or lounging on some exotic beach somewhere for the holidays, you know I enjoy going to my beach shack. I don’t mind being alone.”
“Are you sure? I know this is shitty timing, especially with what’s going on with Jamie.”
I pulled Cassie off the stool and hugged her. “You are going to Scotland. But you need to promise me one thing.”
“Anything,” Cassie said.
I stepped out of the embrace and looked into my friend’s eyes. “Find out if the man owns a kilt. And if he does you better . . .”
“Take pictures . . . lots of them,” she said, finishing my thought exactly.
We were both laughing our asses off when I gave her tush a swat. “Now go get all dolled up.”
“Where do you want to start tonight?” Cassie asked.
“There’s a great Irish band playing at the Plough and the Star. Thought we could go there, listen to a few songs, get lost in the band members’ Irish brogues and down some drinks before we hit the club. What do you think?”
“Sounds perfect.” Cassie gave me a wink and disappeared into her bedroom.
It did sound perfect. Listening to hot men sing while tossing back a few sounded heavenly. But all I could think about was the last time I was at the Plough, and my thoughts were immediately hijacked by Jamie. This had to stop. This wasn’t healthy. Neither was the amount of alcohol I was planning to ingest tonight to help erase him from my mind.
Jamie
“You look absolutely beat. Putting some long hours in at the hospital?” I asked, taking a seat.
“I’m putting some long hours in, but not at the hospital,” Nate said, smiling. “My girl is insatiable.” Nate moved the wooden chair aside and rolled up to the table.
Not that I was ever in the mood to listen to my brother’s sexcapades with Liz, but today I had zero tolerance for the topic. I couldn’t get Eva out of my head. She was everywhere I turned. I had hoped that coming out tonight to the Plough and the Star and having a beer with my brother while we listened to some music would distract me for awhile, but it didn’t take long for me to realize that it wasn’t going to happen. I looked over at the table Eva and I had shared more than a week ago and stared at the couple who now occupied it. The man and woman looked to be in their early twenties and completely in love. They seemed oblivious to the fact that a band was tuning up a few feet from them and that their pint glasses were empty. They appeared absolutely content to just hold hands and gaze into each other’s eyes, even when the waitress had tried to ask if they needed a refill.
“What’s up your craw?” Nate asked as he grabbed a menu. “You look pissed as hell.”
“Not pissed. Just thirsty. Where’s our waitress?” I asked, trying to force the scowl from my face. I waved a waitress over, though I wasn’t sure if she was even assigned to our particular table. I didn’t care. I needed a beer. Many beers.
“Hey guys, what can I get you?” the waitress asked. She blew a stray lock of hair out of her line of vision while she retrieved a pen from the black apron at her waist. It was only nine o’clock but she already looked frazzled.
“We’ll take two pints of Guinness,” I said.
“And an order of fish and chips. I’ve worked up an appetite,” Nate said with a shit-eating grin.
“You got it, handsome. I’ll bring the beers out right away but your dinner will take a few minutes. This place is crazy right now due to this new band,” she said before sprinting off to her next table. I looked around again and discovered that every seat in the place was taken, though more people continued to filter in.
And that’s when I saw her.
Dressed in a black dress that accented every curve and three-inch heels that I imagined locked behind me as I pounded into her, Eva glided across the crowded bar with ease. She was holding some redhead’s hand and laughing at something she had said as they made their way toward the bar. Despite the mob of people, the bartender noticed Eva immediately and he made a beeline over to her. I literally saw red when his eyes drifted to her cleavage, and I nearly leaped from my seat when I witnessed two men stand from their barstools and offer their seats to Eva and her friend. The way those two slimeballs looked at Eva and her friend, eyefucking them and most likely picturing the many ways they wished to violate these women, made me want to run over and beat the living shit out of them.
“Is that Eva?” Nate asked. He must have followed my gaze and was wondering what the hell I had been staring at for so fucking long. “I hardly recognized her in that . . . dress.”
“You’re married,” I said, my tone harsh.
“Married, not dead. Liz reminds me just how alive I am on a daily basis,” Nate said with a chuckle. Everything he said tonight was pissing me off. The waitress arrived with our beers and left just as quickly. Nate downed half the pint in a few sips and set the glass on the table. “I’m going to go say hi to our little sis and her friend. I’ll be right back.” I wanted to stop him, prevent him from alerting Eva that we were even here, but I couldn’t. Nate would know something was up if I did. I pounded my beer instead and waved over our poor waitress to order another beer along with a shot. I needed to get drunk. Fast.
I watched my brother make his way over to Eva and her friend. Eva was in the middle of talking to one of those two slimeballs when Nate interrupted. I watched Eva turn and flash my brother a smile that made me so fucking jealous. Nate kissed the back of her hand and shook the redhead’s before pointing his finger in my direction. That easy smile Eva had been sporting just seconds ago faded into a nervous one as our eyes locked. Even the redhead appeared a little jittery, and I wondered if Eva had told her about me . . . about what we had done.
Fucking shit. They’re coming over here.
Our waitress arrived with my shot and beer. I needed to remember to tip her well. I threw back the shot and was a few sips into my beer by the time Eva and her friend arrived at our table. It took a minute for my manners to kick in but I finally managed to stand and greet them.
“I asked Eva and Cassie to join us,” Nate said. Of course, he did. Fuck! “I’ll go grab another chair from somewhere. Be right back.” And just like that, I was alone with Eva and some redhead who looked as uncomfortable as Eva.
“Eva, I’m going to hit the ladies’ room before the band starts. I’ll be right back.”
“Cass, do you want me to go with . . .”
Cassie either didn’t hear her or intentionally ignored her, but whatever the reason Cassie darted off like her ass was on fire, leaving me alone with Eva. “You look beautiful,” I blurted out.
Her lips parted and her cheeks grew feverish. Flustered, she took a seat and I followed her lead. Ignoring my compliment, she said, “Don’t worry. Cassie and I weren’t planning to stay long. We’ll leave after a few songs.” Her hand trembled as she raised her glass to her lips and took a sip. I watched her tongue swipe the remnants of her fruity drink from her lower lip and I groaned. Her breathing hitched, her pupils dilated, and her already pink cheeks turned crimson. “Please stop looking at me like that.”
“How am I looking at you?”
“Like you want to take me out back and fuck me against the brick wall.”
Christ!
Nate arrived with the extra chair hooked to the handle of his wheelchair and a tray of drinks balanced precariously in his lap. I was tempted to take one of the cold beers off the tray and pour it down my pants. The erection I was now fighting was fucking painful, and I ached for relief. Cassie returned a few seconds later from the bathroom, and we were soon sitting back and listening to the band play.
“So, where are you two ladies headed after this?” Nate asked.
“To the club. My girl needs to dance and let loose,” Cassie said, eyeing Eva. Eva finished her drink and smiled.
The thought of Eva dancing and grinding up against men, men like those two fuckers from the bar, made my stomach turn and my fists clench. “Are you okay?” Eva whispered in my ear.
I looked over at Cassie and Nate, who were now engaged in a discussion about endangered animals and then turned my attention back to Eva. “Is that what you want? To let loose? To feel a stranger’s hands grip your ass as he dances with you?”
Her eyes narrowed and I instantly felt like a jerk. “You know what I want, Jamie. And that right there is the problem.” Eva swiped my beer from the table and finished it. “Cass, you ready to head out?” Eva asked.
“Um . . . sure,” Cassie said. She grabbed her purse and thanked Nate and me for the drinks.
Like a tool I stood, shook Cassie’s hand and acknowledged Eva with a strained smile. Before I could cause any more damage, I excused myself to the bathroom and hid in there like some fucking pussy until I was certain that the girls had left.