Wild Irish Dreamer - Tricia O'Malley Page 0,23
only found out about it this morning.” Fi tried desperately to ignore the sensations that slipped through her at the sight of him filling her living space. He was a large man, all muscle and brawn, and his presence dominated her senses.
“And you said it was a gift? Hell of a gift.”
“Here, let me get you a towel. If there are even towels here,” Fi amended, noticing he was dripping on her floors. She found a linen closet in the hallway and breathed a sigh of relief to see that it was stocked with towels. Pulling a few out, she returned to Liam, who thankfully hadn’t moved, and handed them over.
“Mind if I take some of this wet stuff off?”
“Sure, um – we can hang your coat in the bathroom or in the little mudroom in the foyer.” Fi’s mouth dropped open when Liam unbuckled his belt. “Wait, no, what are you doing?”
“I can’t exactly give you tips on your projects if I’m walking around in dripping wet clothes,” Liam pointed out, divesting himself of everything but his boxer briefs before Fi could protest.
“Liam! You can’t be naked in here.”
“I’m not naked,” he pointed out.
Stalking past him, Fi drew the curtains on the front window lest anyone pass by and see an almost-naked Liam Mulder in her window.
“What am I supposed to do with you now?”
“Does the flat have a dryer?”
“I have no idea.”
“Well, let’s have a look.”
With that, Liam ambled over to the kitchen, opened a door she hadn’t seen before, and discovered a small washer and dryer tucked away inside.
“That’s convenient,” Fi said.
“It is. We’ll just pop my clothes in for a quick spin and we can talk about your projects. So, tell me, why such a big gift?”
Liam turned and Fi forced herself to drag her eyes up from the tiny towel that barely hugged his waist. She met his eyes.
“What?”
“The gift. This house.” Amusement lit Liam’s eyes and a smile hovered on his lips.
“Stop it. I can’t deal with you being naked right now.”
“I’m not naked.”
“You might as well be.”
“Is that an offer?”
“No!” Fi said and shot off across the room to stand by the window, drawing in small gulps of air. This man should not have the effect he was having on her. It was likely only because it had been a while since she’d had any sort of… relations. That must be it, Fi decided; she was just in a dry spell.
“Too bad.” Liam smiled again and wandered back into her living space, forcing Fi to draw a deep breath. She hated feeling out of control and needed to turn the tables on this – and fast.
“Okay, fine. Sure, it’s an offer. Obviously, we both have an itch to scratch.” She almost choked at the look on Liam’s face – from arousal to instant panic.
“Sure and that’s a lovely way to phrase it, Fi. Is this what you want? Just to scratch an itch?”
“It’s obvious that’s what’s bugging us. We have unfinished business. Might as well be getting it out of our systems now.” Fi sauntered closer to Liam until she stood just in front of him and trailed a finger down his chest.
“You’ve a lovely way with words, Fi. Really seductive.” He caught her hand before it could trail any lower, and Fi was amused to see annoyance flash across his face.
“I’m quite the siren, I am,” Fi looked up at him and bit her lower lip. “Shall we test out these beds?”
“Stop it. Why are you being like this?” Liam gave her a gentle shove backward.
“What? You don’t like it when I meet you where you’re at? I’m just offering up what you’re going after.” Fi shrugged, stepping closer again.
“I wasn’t going after sex.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“Maybe it was the end game, but not my starting point.”
“Then what are you doing, Liam? Why are you coming here and getting in my space, throwing around all these heavy looks and sexy flirtations?”
“Because you bother me, I like you, and I’m interested in finding out why that is.”
Fi bit back what she was about to say and just looked at him – really looked at him. His face was a mixture of frustration and arousal, and something else she couldn’t put her finger on. Despite her best efforts, the faint colors of his aura began to shine around him, which meant that her defenses were low. Before long, she’d start reading his thoughts.
“You need to go. Now,” Fi decided, stepping around him