Page 38 of The Celtic Resolution
“Mmm so extravagant,” I tease, popping another fry into my mouth. “How can a girl possibly think ill of you after that?”
Bruno laughs loudly and shakes his head so hard that several strands of dark hair sweep down and kiss his forehead. “Y’know, for someone so dangerous you have a knack for making me feel human.”
I nearly trip with how similar his words are to my own thoughts. “Really?”
“Really. After I got out of prison, I felt like I was branded. Like everyone who looked at me could instantly tell I’d been in prison and knew everything about me. Adjusting to life out here is so hard to explain because… I dunno. I find myself missing stuff on the inside because I understood it. I even make my noodles the same way because it’s familiar. But after meeting with my father…” He puffs out his cheeks. “Even Mary, bless her, she looks at me just like the others do. I don’t hold it against her though, she’s the only one who cares for me. But you…” His eyes meet mine as he continues to slowly walk backward. “I dunno. You just make me feel real.”
Shit.
As he speaks, one thing becomes shockingly clear and I don’t know how I missed it before. Maybe I was purposefully ignoring it. But I like him. Really like him. Hearing him talk like thismakes my cheeks warm and pride swell in my chest which has never happened before.
My heart is racing because of all the walking we’ve done, or because I’m growing a baby, or eating while walking. It’s racing because of him.
I’m crushing. Hard.
“But you better be careful,” Bruno grins. “If you’re not careful, being too nice to me will have terrible consequences.”
“Such as?”
“This crush I have on you might turn into something much more. After all, prison taught me not to sit on these kinds of things.”
He says it like a joke, like it’s a passing tease and there’s no truth to his words but when I look in his eyes, it’s like I can see right into his soul and the truth is clear to see.
Or it’s my own wishful thinking.
“Well,” I smirk, increasing my pace slightly and walking past him. “Who’s to say it hasn’t already for me?”
Two can play at this game.
17
BRUNO
Awarm streak of sun across my eyes eases me awake the next morning and I quietly curse past me for not closing the curtains firmly enough. As I lay there with consciousness slowly trickling back into the rest of my body, my sleep-addled mind blearily retraces my steps last night searching for the reason why I didn’t close the curtain properly.
Wait… Saoirse. She came back to my motel room after that sort of kind of admittance that she liked me and we fell into bed together. No wonder I didn’t care about the damn curtain. Smiling softly, I stretch out on the bed, easing all the lingering aches from my muscles until my leg brushes against something smooth and warm.
Hold on.
I don’t remember her leaving.
Rolling over, I’m met with the gorgeous sight of Saoirse asleep next to me. Her auburn hair is spread to one side, her dark lashes flutter faintly against her cheek as she sleeps, and her slender neck bears the proud markings of my over-eager mouth. Soft pink dusts her cheeks and she shifts slightly,tightening her arm around the pillow she’s cuddling. She looks so incredibly peaceful.
And beautiful.
I half confessed to my crush yesterday to gauge how much of her interest in me was genuine and how much was just situational. Never did I expect her to reply with something similar and while we danced around the topic of feelings, it’s clear to me that she feels something. I want to turn that something into everything.
Moving closer, her pale shoulder is irresistible so I kiss lazily along the slope of her shoulder blade.
Saoirse stirs immediately but she doesn’t open her eyes. “Mornin’.”
“Morning,” I whisper, kissing her shoulder once more. “How did you sleep?”
She doesn’t reply. Instead, she moans softly and buries her face into the pillow. “Don’t wanna wake up.”
A day in bed would be fantastic. A dream, really but as tempting as it is I remember Saoirse setting alarms before she fell asleep because of an important meeting she has today that she can’t miss. We’ve woken before her alarms in this case but it’s probably not a good idea to go back to sleep.
“As tempting as that is,” I murmur, kissing along the plane of her shoulder blade to the dip of her spine. “I’m pretty sure you have stuff to do today.”
