Page 37 of Almost Priest

“Oh, it tis, my love. This is purely a McCullough thing.”

“How much did you drink?”

He shut one eye and pressed his finger and thumb together. She looked down at him in exasperation.

“A smidge doesn’t do this.”

“Aye, but a smidge a dozen times can be a powerful thing. It ganged up on me and now I’ve gone and fallen on me arse! But it isn’t all bad, you see, because now I have a beautiful lassie looking over me.” He laughed, “And now I’m spoutin’ poetry. Do you like poetry, Sammy?”

She rolled her eyes. “Here, let me help you up.”

She held out her hand, but rather than reach for it, he said,“Oh Sammy dear, I’m down here, lying on me back. What keeps me here is the beer, a beautiful woman, and the fact that I’m a wreck.”

“Lovely.”

But he wasn’t finished.“When we drink, we get drunk. When we get drunk, we fall asleep. When we sleep, there’s no sin. When we commit no sin, we go to heaven. So, let's all get drunk, and go to heaven. But in heaven there is no beer so let’s drink it up while we’re here!”

She frowned. “What is that?”

“An old Irish toast.”

Rolling to his side, Colin tugged his jeans over and rifled through the pockets. He pulled out a flask and frowned when he put it to his mouth and nothing came out.

“You don’t need any more of that,” she said taking the flask out of his hands and yanking him off the ground.

He was unsteady and she was glad the bed was there to catch her before he knocked her on her ass. However, when he practically fell on top of her she wasn’t sure it was such a good thing. The heat of his body singed through her clothing and she quickly scrambled out from under him.

She sat up and tried to steady him beside her.

“How’s your shoulder, Sammy dear?”

He moved her hair away from her shoulder and eyed her scratch from earlier. It really was just a scratch. His thumb gently traced the curve of her shoulder as he watched the movement, transfixed.

He whispered,“Here’s to temperance supper, with water in glasses tall, and coffee and tea to end with—beautiful Sammy, and me not there at all.”

He took a deep breath through his nose. “Why do you smell so good, Samantha? Better than any flower or meadow, nothing like any other woman I’ve ever been in the presence of.”

She looked down unsure what to do. She should stand, but she wanted to stay. His hand slowly lifted to her chin and turned her to face him. His eyes looked as though he had been to hell and back.

“You’re a temptation I cannot seem to outrun, Samantha. And now I’m going to kiss you again. Tell me I can kiss you one more time.”

She was suddenly very aware of her body. The weight of her panties, the fact that she’d come into his room in nothing but a tank top, the pull of her breasts against the ribbed fabric of her shirt as her nipples chafed with each pull of her lungs, the spot where his naked thigh touched hers, and the way he looked into her eyes and saw a part of her everyone else seemed to somehow overlook, it was all too much.

“Colin—”

“Please.”

She knew it was wrong, but what was she supposed to do? She wanted him to do it! Slowly she nodded.

He leaned into her and captured her mouth as if he had been waiting to do that since the moment they last broke apart. His hands found her hips and coasted across her back as his chest pressed into hers and he lowered her to the bed. Her mind cried danger, but her hormones didn’t seem to care.

He kissed her like a man starved for the affection. His mouth tasted of sweet liquor and that earthy flavor she associated with him and him alone. It was nothing like the first kiss or even the second for that matter. He got better by miles with each intimate second.

Her legs reflexively curled closer to her chest as she pressed her thighs together. He licked at her mouth, whispering words of pleasure with each couple of breaths. The heat of his palm coasted back to her hip and stopped just over the cotton band of her panties. His fingers slid under the fabric and touched her hip there.

“So soft you are, Samantha. I had never imagined you would be this soft.”

The bulge of his erection pressed into her side. Never in her life had she experienced something so erotic. She feared she would burst if he stopped. It was wrong.

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