Page 19 of A Seductive Beauty
“I’ll get her.” She turns and heads through the swinging doors.
“What are you doing, Da?” I quietly growl at him.
“I’m going to see this Fiona for myself.” He smiles at me.
I look down and pinch a piece of the flaky crust off my sweet confection. The dough bursts with sweetness across my tongue and I barely hold the groan in. This is one of the best I’ve had myself. My father is correct, Fiona is amazing. I hear the mechanism of the doors as they swing open, and my eyes lift to see her enter the storefront. When she focuses on me, she takes a step back. But Mrs. O’Sullivan says something to her, and she nods before she turns toward us again.
Her hair is pulled back from her face in a tight bun at the back of her head. She has a small spot of flour on her cheek and her black uniform has spots of flour and frosting on it too. My eyes devour all of her. Her hazel eyes have dark smudges under them from lack of sleep. She pulls her bottom lip into mouth and bites it. The urge to bite it myself causes my blood to pound through my body. I remember the feel of her lips under mine. The feel of that full bottom lip as I bit into it. Her hands twist in front of her body. She looks so tiny with the flats on her feet. Everything about her is delicate, and the urge to protect her overwhelms me.
“H-hello.” Her sweet, soft silvery voice washes over me.
“Hello, Ms. Griffin, I’m Niall Tiernan.” My father stands. She extends her hand and he pulls her in and kisses each of her cheeks. She blushes, the soft pink rises up the collar of her uniform over her face and into her hairline. “I have to tell you this is the best pastry I’ve had since I went to France when I was barely out of knee pants.” His booming laugh echoes off the walls of the little shop. She looks down, avoiding my eyes.
“Thank you, sir,” she starts, but he interrupts her.
“Niall, please, my sweet.”
“Niall, thank you. I’m glad you liked it.”
“Would you join my son and me for a spot of tea?”
“I can’t, but thank you for the offer.” She finally turns to look at me. I watch as her eyes shutter and her face falls slightly. “Thank you, Mr. Tiernan, for helping with the repairs to the shop. Kayla and Mrs. O’Sullivan told me you brought in a crew and took over. I really appreciate it. Your tab is on me today.” She starts to turn but I jump up. I need to hold her. I need to breathe her in for a moment.
“Fiona, it wasn’t your fault the store was shot up, and it was the least I could do. I agree with my father, this is the best pain au chocolat I’ve had in years.” I hope the complement keeps her with us. The bell to the door dings, and I watch as her eyes move in that direction. No longer shuttered to me, I see anger flare in them. She looks back at me and then to my father.
“Please excuse me, gentlemen. Thank you.” Her body is tight, and I turn to see who she’s looking at.
I realize immediately it’s the man who assaulted her at the track. I’ve never seen him up close. He turns his eyes to me and they are dark with anger. He’s short, maybe only five-foot-five, but he’s stalky. He grips Fiona’s arm and pulls her away. I start to move toward them.
“Son, sit.” My father commands and I turn back to him. “Give them a moment.”
I can’t hear what they are saying but I watch her body language. She pulls her arm from his grasp and places it on her hip. Then she raises a finger and points at his chest.
“I can’t let him…” I don’t know what I want to say, but I sit back down angry with him and myself.
“You can’t let another man talk to her, but you won’t claim her. You won’t let others know she is yours.”
“I can’t do that to her. She’s innocent. Sweet.”
“But she’s strong. She would make a perfect match for you. A perfect queen for your empire.”
“I can’t sentence her to that. I can’t soil her that way.”
“Oh, but a wanker like that can soil her?” He waves his hand in the direction where Fiona and her friend are standing.
“No.” I clench my teeth.
I’m so angry right now that I can’t seem to remember the wanker’s name. I hear her make a noise and turn my head to check on her again. She’s struggling to get away from him, and I’ve had enough. I stand and walk over to them.
“Is there a problem here, Fiona?” It takes everything in me not to slip my hand to my back and pull my knife when I see the panic in her eyes.
“I’m okay, Mr. Tiernan.” She drops her eyes, and I turn to him and flick my gaze to his hand still gripping her arm. He releases it. “Thank you,” she stammers before she flees to the back.
The wanker grips my arm. My eyes flip down to look at his hand on me, but he doesn’t remove it.
“Fifi is my girlfriend and has been for a while, so back off.”
I lean down into his face. His fingers flex on my arm. If he gripped her this tight, he would bruise her skin. I want to bruise him just like he bruised her. My hand flashes out before I think better of it and I grip his neck tightly. My fingers digging in.
