The mighty Quinns: Liam - By Kate Hoffmann Page 0,25

warmth of his arm against her nape made her knees a little weak and her brain a little fuzzy.

She couldn’t deny her attraction to him. What woman wouldn’t be attracted? That dark hair that never seemed to see a comb. And those eyes, always with a devilish twinkle that made him seem all the more dangerous. Ellie knew she couldn’t let herself surrender to that kind of charm, but sometimes she couldn’t help herself. “I remember most of what happened,” Ellie murmured. “Especially the headache I had the next morning.”

Though she’d been more than a little tipsy, the wine hadn’t affected her memory, just her inhibitions. The things she’d said to him, the things she’d done, still brought a flood of embarrassment. She remembered throwing her arms around his neck and begging him to dance. She also remembered being scooped up into his arms and carried to the bedroom. And she remembered how much she’d wanted him to kiss her. But after that her memory got very fuzzy.

Still, it didn’t matter. Memory or none, when she woke up fully dressed the next morning, Ellie knew that nothing had happened. Liam Quinn had been the perfect gentleman. Maybe it was all for the best, Ellie mused. If something were to happen between her and Liam, she’d certainly want to be in full possession of her faculties when it did.

“I’m never going to drink wine again. And I’m never going to figure out how to use this. Look at all these buttons and lights.”

“This is better than a new lock,” Liam said, handing her the manual. “It’s a whole security system. It will keep burglars out.”

Ellie groaned inwardly as she took the manual from his fingers and wandered over to the sofa. Every time she had to program her VCR, she had to spend a half hour with the manual. She’d even found a self-help book called Electronics Anxiety, written specifically for people who were frightened of their computers and VCRs and alarm clocks. But it hadn’t helped.

And now she’d be held prisoner in her apartment by a bunch of wires and circuits and a very loud alarm. She wasn’t sure she’d ever want to go out again. “But I don’t need a security system. I could just get a dog.”

A very loud dog. But then she’d have to feed it and walk it. Ellie sighed inwardly. A man would be a better choice. If she had a man in her bed every night, she’d be able to get some sleep…or maybe not. Especially if she had a man like Liam Quinn in her bed. “Stop it,” she murmured, pinching her eyes shut and driving the thoughts from her mind once again. “How much is this going to cost? I can’t afford this now.”

Liam glanced over at the security technician who was picking up the last of his tools. “Ed is a friend of my brother, Conor. He put the system in at the pub. He’s doing this one as a favor.”

“All right,” Ed said. “These are the keys for the new locks. All the directions for programming in the code are in the manual. It’s easier than programming a VCR. I’ve wired all the windows and the door, so if any of them is opened when the alarm is set, it will go off. I’ve also installed glass-break sensors. The alarm will go to the security company who will call the police.”

“Great. Thanks, Ed.”

“Yeah, thanks, Ed,” Ellie echoed.

“No problem,” he said. “Call me and we’ll set up a time for you to come over and take pictures.” After Liam shut the door behind Ed, he turned to Ellie and smiled.

“Pictures?” she asked.

“He wants some photos of him riding around town on his new motorcycle. I told him I’d take some.”

“Then this wasn’t really free.”

“It was a good trade. And now you’re safe.”

“No,” Ellie countered, “my stuff is safe. No one can get in when I’m not here.”

“And no one can get in when you are here. Or if they do, the alarm will go off and the police will come. Believe me, when that horn goes off, the burglar isn’t going to stick around.”

“I’m not sure I’m going to be able to work this.”

“Come here,” he said. “I’ll show you how. It’s easy.” Reluctantly, Ellie got off the sofa and crossed the room to the door. “You just push the star key twice, then wait for the red light, then punch in your code. We’ll do 3-5-5-4. See, that spells ‘E-L-L-I.’