Page 16 of Shamrocked
I was supposed to be here. I was supposed to find him.
Even if he was an asshole.
I don’t know what he thought I’d do. Maybe poke him in the chest, or slap him, or laugh in his face. All things I was tempted to do, sure. But I wanted to shock that smirk off his face. I wanted him to regret making fun of me, especially in front of his friends.
Even the way he sat on the table pissed me off. Knees spread, legs wide, taking up too much space. Typical man, putting his package on display.
So, I cupped that bulge in his pants and gave him a good, hard squeeze. Enough that his shoulders jerked and his nostrils flared wide as he sucked in a hard breath. “Hmm. Not bad. But I guess I should have asked for Keane instead.”
I let go of him and stepped back, eyeing the two other men at the table. One chuckled, his head tipped back so he could see me without standing up, baring the long line of his throat. He didn’t have the red stripe down his face that I’d painted, but I’d know those full, sensual lips anywhere. The other man had to be Ivarr. He smirked too, but his amusement was quiet, more solemn, and his eyes gleamed like burnished antique coins when he met my gaze. He waved both hands, warning me off. “He’s Keane. Not me.”
Keane kept his head tipped back, smiling up at me, his chair rocked back on two legs. On one hand, I wanted to kick the chair so it’d dump him on his skull. But on the other, his mouth was definitely tempting. His blond hair was wild and shaggy, giving him a wild, disreputable look that was doing some crazy things to my libido.
“I know better than to call any woman little girl. Let alone…” His eyes tightened and pain flashed over his face like lightning, gone so quickly I doubted that glimpse I’d seen.
“Do you know who I am?” I asked softly, leaning over him.
Solemnly, he nodded, but he didn’t sit up or move away. “Are you knowing where Doran is?”
“Not yet.”
Aidan let out a disgusted growl. “Then why the fuck are you here bothering us?”
“Yeah, I can see that you’re definitely in the middle of something serious here.” I peeked at Keane’s cards and snorted. “You guys should fold already. He’s got four of a kind.”
Blowing out a sigh, Ivarr tossed his cards on the table. “Utter bollocks.”
I met Keane’s gaze and the corner of his mouth quirked up, making his mouth even more tempting. He had a garbage hand, certainly no four of a kind in sight. Though I wasn’t sure why he wore black leather gloves indoors while playing poker. “What can I do for you, my lady?”
I wrapped my fingers around the strong column of his bare throat, feeling his pulse, the way he swallowed as I leaned down closer. He still made no move to free himself, or avoid me. In fact, he licked his lips, a sultry heat burning in his eyes.
It shook me to my core. I wasn’t the kind of woman who walked up to a stranger and groped or kissed a man. Yet that was exactly what I wanted to do. My fingers itched to stroke down the hard column of his throat and down into his shirt. My fingers wanted to walk down his pectorals playfully and settle over his cock. He’d have a big one. Something in me knew that already. A phantom memory, that wasn’t quite mine, floated in the air between us. I knew if I pressed my mouth to his, I’d taste honeyed whiskey on his tongue, and he’d like it very much if I dug my teeth into his bottom lip.
Shuddering, I straightened and pulled away, avoiding his gaze. Was that Doran, planting memories in my head? But how would he know what his friend tasted like? Maybe they were lovers. Or maybe a previous treasurekeeper’s memories were trying to take over in my mind. Or maybe Warwick was fucking with me, using his powers of Faerie to confuse me. I backed away but ran into a hard wall of flesh.
Aidan. He didn’t touch me, but loomed over me, his breath hot on the back of my neck. “Where do you think you’re going,little girl?”
Keane tipped his chair down to all four legs. “Chill, Aidan.”
“You think you can walk in here and touch my dick without giving me something in return?”
“I’m sorry,” I stammered out. “I shouldn’t have touched you in a sexual way. I’d have broken your fingers if you’d grabbed me like that.”
Shuffling boots and whispers told me the rest of the motorcycle gang was quickly disappearing out the door. Not that I could blame them. I turned, looking for Vivi, avoiding Aidan’s glare. She had her hand shoved down in her purse, ready to grab that pepper spray if I needed it. Bless her.
“You were there,” he growled, his voice thick with emotion. Dread, anger, I wasn’t sure. “Warwick got to you first.”
Bracing myself, I looked into Aidan’s eyes. Such a killer blue, both frosty ice and yet blazing with heat. “He said you were at the pub too when I walked in.”
He leaned down, tipping his head slightly as he studied me. “If I sample these luscious lips, am I going to taste Guinness? Or leprechaun?”
I huffed out a laugh and ducked around him, moving quickly toward Vivi’s side. “Only Guinness, asshole. Are you going to help me find Doran or not?”
Aidan sat back on the table and held his hand up, counting off his fingers one by one. “You don’t know where Doran even is. You don’t know who or what we are. You certainly don’t have a fucking clue what we’re doing. How dangerous it is. Or you wouldn’t be here.” He slammed his hand down on the table, making me jump. “Don’t you get it,treasurekeeper? We’re doomed to fail. The fae love nothing more than fucking with mortals, giving you a crumb of hope, only to laugh as a bigger, meaner creature swoops in and devours you while you cower over the bait that betrayed you.”
“So what am I supposed to do?” I retorted, blinking away tears. “Doran won’t let me sleep. I’ve painted a dozen pictures of you all this week alone. If you won’t help me…”
“Go home,” he growled so deep and vicious that his voice cracked. “This is no life for the likes of you.”
