Page 33 of Dublin Devil

She bites her bottom lip. “You’d never hurt me, Sean. I trust you.”

CHAPTER NINE

Piper

I’m not sure what time it is when I wake up next. The gray haze of daylight is edging its way into the night, and I’m sad to see it go. Locked in the shadows of darkness, the two of us shared something—something more than biology.

It might be impossible for a Quinn and a McGuire to make something of their feelings, but I won’t pretend I don’t have them—at least not to myself.

I acknowledge that he’s the enemy.

I acknowledge that he’s a decade older than me.

I acknowledge that he’s a dangerous man who has tortured and likely killed dozens of people.

But with me, he’s just Sean—my black knight. My protector. The man who scooped me off the wet and bloody cement to take me out of the rain and save my life. And in no way do I think that’s dramatic.

If he recognized me, someone else could have, too, and not been so kind. Or the Russians could’ve followed me and foundme. Or I could’ve lain there bleeding in the rain and caught pneumonia. Or a drunk passerby could’ve found me barely dressed and unconscious and continued what the Russians started.

No matter how I look at it, Sean saved me and I’m glad he was my first lover.

I close my eyes and let the memory of last night wash over me. He was thoughtful and careful about everything. And after he came inside me, he got a warm cloth and cleaned me up.

The blood was a little unsettling, but he didn’t bat an eye. He cleaned us up, made sure I took my painkiller, and then snuggled in behind me.

Sean Quinn is a snuggler. Who would’ve guessed?

“Everything all right? Any regrets?” Sean’s gravelly sleep voice is super sexy.

“Everything’s grand.” I wriggle back to increase the connection of him spooning me. His morning wood meets the crack of my ass, and I wonder if I can convince him to play house with me a few more times…and maybe a few after that. “Although I have ideas about how things could be even better.”

I grind against him and groan as my hormones kick in and I’m warm and wet and wanton.

He chuckles, shifting his hips back to lessen the contact. “Created a sex kitten, have I?”

“Unleashed is probably more accurate. I’ve always had a healthy curiosity. Now I have an opportunity to bring my fantasies into reality.”

He nuzzles into the back of my neck and kisses my shoulder. “Are we talking about your list of firsts? You’ll have to show it to me, so I can make things happen.”

I wish that were in the cards for us. But one amazing night of denial doesn’t change our situation. “I was thinking abouthow different things could be if we were different people from different families.”

He lets off a throaty grunt behind me. “Aye, I’ve thought about that, too.”

“Really?”

He chuckles. “Piper, you’re a beautiful woman, you understand and aren’t afraid of or repulsed by my world, and the sexual chemistry between us is crazy. Of course, I’ve thought about it.”

His words warm something deep inside me. “So, you’d keep seeing me, if you could?”

“Until you tired of my dark-hearted, broody ways and went looking for a hot, captain of the rugby team type.”

I glance behind my shoulder and laugh. “That would never happen.”

“No? How can you be so sure?”

“Because I’m a sucker for a broody bad boy and when you add in your whole alpha protector vibe, I’m a goner. Do you know how hot it is that you would literally kill to keep me safe?”

He laughs. “Other women might call that obsessive and unhinged.”

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