Page 19 of Shamrocks & Second Chances

We both groan as he fills me completely. I pause for a moment, savoring the sensation of being stretched and filled so perfectly. Then I begin to move, riding him slowly at first as we reacquaint ourselves with each other's bodies. He feels even better than I remembered, and I pick up the pace, eager for more.

Seamus matches my movements, thrusting up to meet me as I grind down on his cock. He grips my hips, pulling me closer as he drives deeper inside me. I cry out, losing myself in the pleasure of his touch. Nothing else matters except this moment, the two of us moving together in perfect sync. I never want it to end. Recalling how abruptly he left last time, I almost stop thrusting. For a second, it robs me of the mood.

Then he cups my chin in his hand and takes my mouth in a fiercely needful kiss. I melt into him, kissing him back with equal passion. I can feel his desire for me along with his need to reclaim what we once had. And I realize that I want that too. I want to recapture the magic we shared before, to experience the connection we felt when we were together.

Right now, nothing else matters except this moment. We have tonight, and we can worry about tomorrow later. All I care about is being with Seamus, showing him how much I've missed him and how much I still care for him. I'm nowhere near ready to tell him that, but I can admit it to myself in this moment of vulnerability.

As our bodies move together, I let go of everything else and focus on the sensations coursing through me. The pleasure builds, higher and higher, until he moves his hand between usand finds my clit. He rubs it in slow circles, sending me over the edge. My orgasm rushes through me, intense and overwhelming, and I cling to him as waves of ecstasy crash over me.

He holds me close, thrusting deeply as he chases his own release. A few thrusts later, he groans, burying his face in my neck as he comes. His cock pulses inside me, filling me with his seed. I wrap my arms around him, holding him against me as we ride out the aftershocks of our climaxes.

Afterward, we lie there for a while, tangled in each other's arms. It feels good to be with him again, to share this intimacy and closeness, but it won't last. Tomorrow will come, and reality will intrude once more. For now, I push those thoughts aside and enjoy the feeling of being with him as we drift off to sleep, holding each other without speaking. Words will only destroy this gossamer moment.

MORNING LIGHT FILTERSthrough my curtains, painting stripes across the tangled sheets. I wake slowly, then freeze as I register the warm body pressed against mine. At some point, we moved from the sofa to the bed, but it’s all a hazy blur of passion mixed with snatches of sleep. Seamus still dozes peacefully, one arm draped over my waist, and his face is relaxed in a way I rarely see when he’s awake.

Reality crashes in. What have I done?

I carefully extract myself from his embrace, gathering scattered clothing from the floor. My mind races as I dress, trying to make sense of last night’s lapse in judgment.

It was just physical, I tell myself. Two years of pent-up attraction finding release. It doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t mean I trust him again.

Seamus stirs, his eyes opening to find me fully dressed and clearly panicking. He sits up, the sheet pooling around his waist. “Morning,” he says cautiously.

“I’m going to make coffee,” I say, fleeing to the kitchen before he can respond.

I busy myself with the familiar ritual at my personal espresso machine, measuring beans and heating water with shaking hands. By the time Seamus emerges, dressed but with his hair still adorably mussed, I’ve composed myself enough to face him.

“Do you regret it?” he asks quietly, accepting the mug I thrust at him.

I focus on stirring sugar into my own coffee. “We should get an early start to your cottage. The well might take some time to investigate.”

He studies me for a long moment, then nods. “I’ll be ready in twenty minutes.”

After he leaves, I sink onto a kitchen stool, cradling my coffee. What am I doing? One night of passion doesn’t erase two years of heartbreak.

“So,” Hecate materializes on the counter, her tail swishing with obvious satisfaction, “That happened.”

I groan, dropping my head into my hands. “Not now, Hec.”

“He still looks at you the same way, you know,” she says, her tone uncharacteristically gentle. “Like you’re the sun, and he’s been living in darkness.”

“Poetic for a dog,” I mutter.

“I’m just saying—”

I toss a dish towel at her, which she dodges by vanishing again. “We have work to do,” I say firmly. “The well. The gold. That’s what matters.”

Not the way Seamus’s hands remembered every inch of me. Not the way he whispered my name like a prayer. Not the way I fit against him as perfectly as I always had.

I drain my coffee and head to the shower, turning the water as cold as I can stand it. I have a job to do, and I won’t let last night’s mistake distract me from finding Seamus’s gold and getting him out of my life again.

Even if a traitorous part of me whispers that maybe, I don’t want him to go.

Chapter 6—Seamus

THE MORNING SUN ISstarting to get bright overhead as Bella and I make our way toward my old cottage. East Lily House, as the locals call it to distinguish it from the other lily homes in Evershift Haven, stands at the edge of a clearing, its white walls gleaming in the early light. It looks like a lily, but much larger, and it’s one of Grizelda’s projects.

A faint whiff of lily fills my senses, bringing back a wave of nostalgia that’s all in memory, since I’m not inside and can’t go inside. Someone else lives there now—a family with small children, judging by the colorful toys scattered across the front yard.

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