Page 25 of Savage Guardian

Mo mhuirnin. My sweetheart.

Ah, hell. He hadn’t meant to say that; it had been a reflex. Natural. Right.

Wrong!

From the look on her face, she was just as confused and thrown as he was.

“Well…I guess you can say you’re growing on me, woman,” he said, hoping his sloppy explanation defused whatever inaccurate thought she had going in her head.

To some, they’d view the word as a throwaway, like when you called the sweet little girl from the house down the road “sweetie pie”.

But what excuse do you have for calling a woman you barely know, a woman you should have no emotional connection to, your sweetheart?At least he hadn’t called her something even more damning, likemo chridhe. My heart.

She pursed her lips, the confusion still dimming her eyes, but she finally nodded.

“Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, my grandda called the lady bagging his groceries at the storemo chroi, simply because she always made sure his bread was on top where it wouldn’t get squished. That and the lady had a sweet spot for my handsome, charming grandda.”

Hawk chuckled, picturing an old, grizzled Scotsman laying down the charm on an unsuspecting lass.

“So, you didn’t answer my question,” he began, dropping onto the couch cushion next to her and throwing his arm over the back of the couch. His fingers accidentally brushed along the back of her head, the silkiness of her hair startling in its ability to make every nerve ending in his body fire all at once.

Pulling his arm back, he planted his hands on his knees and squeezed, battling back the need to slide his twitching fingers through the strands that smelled of highlands and shortbread. Fragrant heather and mouthwatering vanilla. Sweet and warm and welcoming.

Just like Fae.

Focus, fucker!

“We were chilling at the bar one minute, and then next you’re in here hiding.” Suddenly, a thought occurred to him, sending his pulse into his fists. “Did one of those assholes out there say or do something to you? Who do I have to kill?” he growled, the words forced through gritted teeth.

If one of his brothers hurt her, he’d rip out their throats.

Fae gasped, raising her hands to slide them over his chest and onto his shoulders, her touch immediately soothing to the beast inside him.

“No, no.” She shook her head quickly. “It wasn’t anything like that. I only talked to you and Preston. No one did anything to me.”

He stared down at her, loving the way the warmth of her palms against his skin made him feel.

“Then what the fuck, Fae?” For a moment, she seemed the recoil as if slapped. That sickness that had risen at the thought of her hurt by one of his brothers doubled, but this time,hewas the cause.

Only a moment passed before that shattered, wounded look was replaced with something…delicious. Fire licked through her warm hazel eyes, sparking a heat inside him that made him bite back a groan. Fuck, she was a fierce, wee thing. Compared to his six-foot-two frame, she was small, average for a woman, though. Probably five-foot-seven. And thick everywhere. Curvy, with all the soft flesh a man could grip tight while he was fucking her deep and hard.

As if reading his mind, her cheeks flushed and her eyes became hooded, but the look of desire was pushed aside for a look he knew all too well.

Pissed.

She slid her arms from his chest and curled her fingers against her thighs. He couldn’t even contemplate why he felt such loss when she’d pulled her hands away. Like she’d taken something vital with her.

“The fuck—as you so eloquently put it—was that I had to go to the bathroom.” She huffed and dropped her gaze to peer around the room, as if it held a trove of secrets.

He snorted, lifting his arms and twisting, indicated that they were not in a bathroom.

“This is the clubhouse office,mo ghràdh,” he drawled, enjoying how her blush spread from her cheeks to her chest…and his eyes followed the trail until—

He jerked his gaze from the creamy flesh of her bounteous tits revealed by the collar of her one size too big t-shirt. But it didn’t help that she crossed her arms, pushing the globes together so just a dollop more of creamy flesh was revealed to his suddenly rapacious gaze.

Ignoring the fact that he was visually devouring her like she was a butterscotch treat, she cocked her head and pinned him with a look of sharp annoyance.

“Fine, but Ididgo to the bathroom. I came inherebecause….” She stopped, dragging in a deep breath. “I just wasn’t feeling it out there anymore. I just needed a moment of quiet, then I was going to come out there, maybe nurse one last drink, then I was going to head back to the hotel.”

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