Page 65 of Naughty Irish Liar

“That day when I found out how young you were,” she frowned, and I smoothed out the wrinkles with another kiss, cuddling her closer. She didn’t seem to be fazed she was naked on my lap and I wasn’t in any hurry to encourage her into covering up. I leaned in and brushed my lips against her hard nipple.

“You know I only did that, so I could spend more time with you. I thought if you fell for me, then a few years age difference wouldn’t matter.”

The thought was swift and vicious through my consciousness how close I came at that time to saying to hell with it and her age because I’d wanted her so badly.

Only my one shred of decency swayed me.

That and “I spoke to your father about us.”

Her deliciously unpainted mouth opened, closed and then. “You did what now?”

“The next day I met him for coffee, told him I was interested in you and I asked for his advice.”

“Really?”

“He wanted to kill me at first, until I told him we hadn’t done anything. Understandably,acushla, he didn’t want the young punk he was mentoring with his hands all over his baby girl. He knew my background and you’re his little carrot haired princess.”

She snorted, poking fingers in my side. “Don’t tell me you actually listened. This wasn’t daddy’s doing.”

I grinned. She at least knew me well enough to comprehend that I went after anything I wanted, fuck the consequences. “You’re right. He asked me to wait, but I thought he was right,acushla. I wanted you with a fucking madness, but you were so young in comparison to my experience. I did the one right thing I’ve ever done in my life and I let you go.”

Catherine sighed, laying her head on my shoulder. We sat in comparative silence for a minute.

“I waited for you to walk back in my life,acushla. I hoped you would one day. I hoped your feelings were real and you’d come back to me when you were ready.”

“Why—why didn’t you come looking for me if you wanted me?”

Confusion and hurt stained her voice, as she realized my sacrifice and now I could only guess she was questioning my feelings for her if I did nothing about them.

If she only knew the magnitude of just what my waiting did. She was never far from my mind, she stole pieces of me I’d never given anyone or ever would.

I’d belonged to Catherine Clemonte for years.

At times I even questioned if I still did love her, but all I needed to do was pull up a picture on my phone and my body would seize. My heart would race, and I’d know all those feelings were real and I just had to be patient.

I turned her to face me. Kissed her hard and deep, reacquainting her tongue with mine until she became soft and pliable under my hands, and purring into my mouth.

The glazed look in her eyes was my currency. I’d never take it for granted.

Holding her cheek I made sure she was looking at me. “I was giving you six more months until you finished college,acushla, and then nothing was stopping me from making you mine, no matter what I had to do. It was enough time for you to have life experience without me possessing your ever second like I longed to do, for you to grow into the amazing, incredible woman you are and to know truly you wanted me as a woman and not a teen crush.”

“Ronan MacNamara being noble and magnanimous. I must be dreaming.” She teased.

Rubbing my chin on the top of her head, I mingled our scents and always wanted it that way. No her, no me, just us. “But then you got impatient and came to me early. Knocked me on my fucking ass, Catherine. I’ve been on unsteady ground ever since.”

She giggled curling her smaller self into me. Her fingers delving beneath my shirt to lay on my hard belly. Tormenting me as usual. I wanted her. Endlessly.

“You were a complete jackass to me.”

“I know. I’m sorry, baby. You can make me grovel for years.”

She wasn’t wrong when she’d called me an asshole. I had no excuses. She’d always deserved a better man, I’d known that. But I’d work my ass off to earn her trust, her love. Her fucking everything.

“Does this mean you really do love me?”

“Acushla,” I breathed against her temple. “Every asshole inch of me loves you with a madness that now my body doesn’t feel like it belongs to me anymore. I’m owned by a bratty ginger girl whose smile lights my fucking world. What I have is yours and all I want in exchange is to share the same air as you.”

“About damn time!” she exclaimed with an excited giggle as she climbed up to her knees and straddled me, arms around my neck, she got in as close as our bodies would allow.

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