Page 84 of Redeem Me

I love how she put my children’s needs before her own.

‘Be ready for two.’ I force my voice into a gruff tone to hide how hard I’m falling for her.

A short, sharp knock at the front door alerts us to the arrival of dinner. Rui, a young waiter, wheels in a gleaming silver trolley loaded with delicious-smelling food.

‘Good evening, Mr Beckett.’ his voice trembles slightly as I direct him to the terrace.

‘Good evening, Rui.’ I make a point of knowing all my employees’ name, where possible.

His head snaps up in shock, his face creasing in surprise . I fetch the bottle to top up our glasses while he sets the table. Ivy being Ivy is asking him if he likes working here. Ha, like he’d say no with me within earshot.

‘This is the most luxurious hotel in Portugal,’ he tells Ivy.

‘Yeah, I heard the boss is a real dictator, though.’ Ivy winks at me. Brat.

‘Only to some of his staff,’ I bite out. ‘The ones whoshould keep their mouths shut if they value their positions.’ I eye her meaningfully.

‘Oh, I value every position,’ she snorts, and as much as I want to put her over my knee and smack her pert ass for her audacity, I laugh.

Rui’s deep brown eyes dart between Ivy and me as he backs away. ‘Can I get anything else for you, sir?’

‘No, thank you.’ I hand him a hundred euro note and motion for him to leave.

‘You and your runaway mouth,’ I tut, my eyes boring into Ivy’s.

‘You seemed to like it earlier,’ she shrugs, taking a seat at the table, poring over the decadent spread.

This woman. So full of sass. My brain is overflowing with the sinful things I want to do to her. But more than that, I want to take her to my bed and hold her all night long. To feel her body curl around mine, her heart pressed against my chest. The comforting sound of her breathing beside me.

‘What are you doing to me?’ I blurt out, watching as her head whips up from the lobster salad she was eyeing up.

‘I know what I’d like to do to you.’ She cocks a brow. ‘Just let me eat first.’ She pierces a chunk of lobster with her fork and pops it into her mouth.

‘I didn’t mean sexually, though I’ve never been one to look a gift horse in the mouth.’ I wink as I fall into the chair at her side.

‘So whatdidyou mean?’ Her usual sass is replaced with a rare seriousness.

‘You’re in my head all the time. You steal my every waking thought and most of my sleeping ones, too. You fill my life with noise and mess and a fucking dog, and I’m still fucking crazy about you.’

She sucks on her lower lip, processing for a second. ‘The feeling is mutual. You’ve turned me into one of these crazybitches who checks her phone all day, every day, in case I miss a text from you. And as much as I love your body…’ she pauses, and her eyes widen like she’s waiting for me to freak out at the “l” word, but I don’t. I’m slowly starting to accept that’s what this is. So much so, I’m almost ready to tell her. But once I do, there will be no going back.

‘You were saying…’ I prompt, spearing a scallop dripping in lemon butter, and shove it into my mouth.

‘As much as I love your body, I’ve missed your arms around me at night, and your snoring.’

‘I don’t snore.’

‘You do, but I don’t think we’ll have to worry about that tonight.’ She winks.

‘What are you talking about?’

She waves a hand over the table. ‘Am I supposed to believe youaccidentallyordered every aphrodisiac on the menu? Come on, admit it, you planned to get me even hornier and keep us both up all night, right?’ Her soft laugh permeates the air, weaving through the space between us to thaw the final remnant of ice surrounding my previously frozen heart.

‘I wasn’t planning anything,’ I tell her honestly. ‘Funnily enough, all my plans get forgotten when you’re around.’

Which is why I need to tell Dermot I’m in love with his sister.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

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