Page 60 of Only You

“To tell me how to do my job? That I was wrong?”

He shook his head. “I would never tell you how to do your job. How could I? I’m just a chef.”

“Shut up. You are not just a chef, Declan Matthew Fitzpatrick.” She shook her head. “Jeez, you really are Irish, aren’t you?”

“First, don’t three name me. Second, you have no room to talk, Eileen. What did your parents do?HearCome On, Eileen?” Heat stole over her cheeks, and he laughed. “No way!”

“Yes. It’s embarrassing, considering what the song is about.”

He set his forehead against hers. “But back to why I came here. I realized I truly cared about you beyond anything I’ve felt before. While I know you can handle yourself, I wanted to see you were okay with my own eyes.”

She swallowed. “Thank you.”

“For caring? It’s as natural as breathing when it comes to you.”

Her heart melted even more. The way it was going, it would land on the floor in a splat if he kept it up.

“No. For accepting me.”

“Hey, not going to say I won’t read you the riot act for putting a target on your back. Just know that I worry about you. I don’t want to change you, but…” He drew in a deep breath. “It scared the hell out of me, that’s all.”

She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut. She knew that cost him a lot. From his staff to his charity work to his family, Declan took care of people. He wanted to care for her but was man enough to allow her to forge her way forward.

“I was planning on cooking dinner.”

“You’ve cooked me food for the last twenty-four hours.”

“I’d cook for you for a million years.” He sighed. “Too soon, right?”

“We can eat. You can cook, or we can order. But after.”

One eyebrow rose up. “After?”

She smiled. “Yeah, after.”

He scooped her up out of the chair.

“Dude! You can’t carry me up the stairs.”

“I can, and I will.”

Twelve

Need charged Declan’s blood as he set Eileen on her feet beside her bed. Like the rest of her house, it felt like her, as if every corner breathed her essence.

With careful hands, he undressed Eileen. He knew he was a bastard for wanting to touch…to taste. She was exhausted, and he had kept her up the night before…but he needed this. His hands weren’t steady, and he figured that was about right. She’d been knocking him off-kilter since they’d met.

It didn’t take him long to get her naked. He stepped forward, cupping her face with one hand as he teased her nipple with the other. She pulled away from the kiss to lean her head back and moan. Damn, even in the dark room, he could see her, and it was one of the sexiest things he had ever seen.

Declan attacked her throat, kissing and nipping at her soft skin. For such a badass, she had skin like silk. She always smelled of roses, something else that wasn’t what he’d expected. It wasn’t something that overpowered his senses. It was just below the surface as if it were a part of her true self. The best part was knowing she was like this with him and not the world. She let everyone else see that steel spine of hers, but this…this was like a secret she only wanted a few people to see.

She gently pushed him away. Her hands went to the bottom of his shirt. Slowly, she eased it up his torso, her fingers sliding over his flesh. When it was lying on the floor with her clothes, she leaned forward to lick him down the center of his chest. Dropping to her knees, she undid his jeans and shoved them down. She made a sound of irritation.

“I keep thinking you’ll be going commando, and you keep surprising me.”

He chuckled. “Noted.”

If she wanted him parading through the streets that surrounded the Inner Harbor on July 4th naked, he would do it. He was starting to realize there wasn’t much he wouldn’t do for this woman.

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