Intractable Souls : Book 1 of the Bound for Ireland Series (53 page)

Olivia sighs heavily. The events that lead
to it may explain his temper but it sure doesn’t excuse it. She
intends to let him know, something she could never have done with
Sam. But Ethan isn’t Sam. Something she has to keep reminding
herself when dealing with her anxiety.

“Ethan, believe me, I can’t believe I’m not
heading for the hills right now. I totally understand why it made
you angry… but what really upset me was the way you were talking to
that poor woman in your office. You should be ashamed of yourself,
that was absolutely disgusting.”

He nods in agreement, surprising her by
taking full ownership for his behavior. “You’re right. I really
fucked up. They way I acted was inexcusable. Please forgive me,
Olivia.” There is desperation in his voice that tugs at her heart
as he pleads.

“It’s her forgiveness you should be asking
for, Ethan. Not mine.” Although his anger often intimidates her,
she knows that Ethan O’Connell is a gentle soul. There is nothing
dark or evil about him. She knows that deep down. She’s felt it all
along. He is a good man with a quick temper and it’s something
she’s going to have to come to terms with if she intends to stay
with him.

He nods in agreement. “I promise to make it
right.” He searches her eyes for her acceptance before lowering his
head to stare at the floor, silently thanking his lord for sending
him this angel. She will save him from himself. He’s certain of
it.

In a reversal of roles, she presses her
finger under his chin and forces his gaze to hers. “Uh, you bet
your ass you will, Mr. O’Connell.”

Ethan stares at her, his heart pounding, as
he falls in love with her just a little bit more.

Olivia looks over his shoulder. “John is
here.”

John approaches with her phone in his hand
and places it on the table in front of her. “You seem to have a
problem keeping track of that thing.”

Olivia wrinkles her nose. “Sorry, John.”

He smiles. “No need to be.”

She’s reminded about the calls to Ethan’s
cell phone. “I tried to call your cell several times from my office
before I left, but you didn’t answer.”

Ethan looks at John and scowls, taking his
phone out of his pocket he checks the incoming call log and finds
nothing from her. “I don’t have any missed calls from you this
morning, Olivia.”

John leans over his shoulder to look at the
screen and his brow furrows. “That’s strange.”

“I even sent a text message from Rachel’s
phone.”

Ethan scrolls through messages looking for
that one as well but comes up empty. “Really strange.”

“You had it with you all morning?” John
asks.

“Yeah, except when I left it with Hannah to
charge.” Instantly he looks over to John with an alarmed expression
and they exchange a knowing glance.

Olivia looks back and forth between them.
“Speaking of Hannah, I even left a message for you with her as
well.”

Ethan’s jaw tenses as he continues to look
straight at John.

“I checked with her after lunch, Ethan. She
said she had no messages for you.”

Under his breath, he mumbles something in
Gaelic that she assumes is not very nice, and John interrupts.
“Leave it with me to deal with. You’re too upset.”

Olivia continues to look back and forth
between them. “I’m confused, what’s going on?”

Ethan reaches over and picks up her phone,
opens the contact list and makes a new entry. When he passes it
back to her he explains. “Olivia, I’ve just added John’s cell
number to your contacts. If you need ANYTHING or if you can’t get a
hold of me, I want you to call him.”

He looks at John. “You’ll make her a
priority. Anything she needs you’ll address as if the request has
come directly from me.”

John nods. “Yes, of course.”

Olivia’s eyes grow wide and she blushes.
“Ethan! That’s not necessary.”

“The hell it’s not. With everything else
that’s going on right now I need to know that you’re being looked
after. I’ll go fucking insane worrying about you otherwise.”

She looks over at John embarrassed, but he
looks indifferent, not at all fazed by Ethan’s request.

“Is there anything else, Ethan?” John
inquires.

Ethan looks over at Olivia. “No, I’ll walk
her to her car and then be back up to my office shortly.”

John nods. “Alright then, I’ll go back up
and check on Shannon.” His face turning slightly red as he thinks
about Ethan’s treatment of her and Ethan picks up on it. “Listen,
John… about what I said to her up there…”

John stops him. “Not now, Ethan. Later…
we’re going to have a talk.”

Ethan looks nervous and nods, holding up his
hand halting the conversation. “I’d expect nothing less. I just
wanted to say I’m sorry.” He reaches across the table and grasps
Olivia’s hand and stares directly into her eyes. “If someone talked
to my girl like that I would have murdered him on the spot.”

She looks over at John curiously. John and
Ethan’s lawyer are a couple?

He glances back at John who, with a stoic
expression, makes his intentions very clear. “Oh, don’t worry,
O’Connell…You and I… we’re going to come to a CLEAR understanding
on how you will treat Miss Quinn from now on.” Glancing over at
Olivia, he gives her a quick wink to drive home the point that he
made the day of their first meeting.

When Ethan nods his understanding, John
turns and walks towards the elevator. Ethan looks at Olivia with
wide eyes and panic on his face. “Well… Olivia… it was nice knowing
you.”

“Huh?” What the heck is he talking
about?

“Apparently I’m going to get another ass
kicking from McCabe.” His expression softens and he breaks into a
chuckle.

“What?” She’s surprised and confused all at
once.

“He sparred with me a couple of weeks ago
and sent me to the mat. He has one hell of a right hook.” He grins,
rubbing his jaw as he remembers the impact.

Why is he smiling about that? Men are so
strange.

“Are you finished your coffee?” He looks at
his watch, knowing that he has an appointment with important
clients in his office soon.

“Yes.” She says, feeling a little edgy.
She’s certain that the added caffeine is making it worse. It’s a
strange combination of anxiety she’s feeling, partly due to the
current event that just unfolded in front of her in Ethan’s office
and partly because of the sight of him in that pale grey Calvin
Klein suit. The double breasted jacket clings to his body in
perfection from his broad powerful shoulders to his well toned
waist. The sheen of the silvery tie catches her attention as it
boldly stands out against his black dress shirt. Reminded of a
scene in a book she read once, she rubs her wrists as if she can
feel it tied around them, binding her, rendering her helpless
against his sexual advances.

Heat shoots through her from her head to her
toes and back up again as she watches him move towards the trash to
discard the two cups. Oh Dear God! There couldn’t be a more
inappropriate time to have these thoughts. The past hour flashes
through her mind at lightening speed. Babies, Abortions, Lawyers,
Screaming, Chasing, Dragging… She should be in her car, on the way
home, never to speak with him again. And yet, when he returns and
extends his hand to her she accepts it, locking her fingers
together with his and making him grin. “Stairs or elevator?” He
asks.

“Stairs, I need the exercise.” She’s really
hoping that it will help her burn off some of the sexual tension so
she can start to think more rationally.

Frowning, he shakes his head as he leads her
to the entrance to the stairwell. Pushing the door open, he holds
it, unaware of what’s going on in her mind or her panties. When she
gets down the first section of stairs, a disturbing thought invades
her brain and she stops dead on the landing. Ethan continues a few
steps down before he realizes she’s stopped and then turns to her
with a questioning expression.

Her body has stiffened angrily and there is
fury in her eyes.

“Olivia? You ok? What’s wrong?” He asks
alarmed. What in the hell did I do now?

He watches as the tension pulls her
shoulders upwards and her hands clench into fists at her sides.
“Gaaah! That BITCH deleted my messages off your phone!” She turns
with an unexpected swiftness and heads back up the stairs.

He wondered when she would figure it out.
Watching her stomp her way back up to the first floor he grows
concerned. “Where are you going?”

“Where do you think I’m going?” She barks
out angrily. “I’m going to grab that bitch by the ovaries and use
them to rip her uterus out through her nose!”

Ethan laughs aloud, and then panics when he
realizes that she’s completely serious. Oh shit! He better act
quickly before she gets to the door. Taking the steps two at a
time, he grabs her from behind and wraps his arms around her waist
attempting to stop her.

Jolting back as he grasps her, she fights
against him as rage spurs her on. Christ she’s strong! Ethan holds
on for dear life, finally lifting her feet off the floor for a few
seconds causing her to lose traction and then carries her back down
to the landing. As her body goes lax, he sets her feet back on the
ground, his face nuzzling into her neck. She pushes at his hands
trying to unclasp them. “Let me go!”

“Oh, I don’t think so, princess. I’m not
going to let you go up there when you’re this upset.”

“You’re protecting her?” She says angrily,
twisting her body trying to break free.

“No, I’m protecting you.”

Something changes at that moment. A calmness
sweeps across her. She’s no longer angry, no longer thinking about
the scene in his office and all the reasons she should walk away
and never see him again. Her fatalism prepares her for the
realization that whatever his shortcomings are, she is meant to be
his. She’s meant to surrender to him. Her body softens and then
becomes tense in a whole different way. He feels it as it moves
through her body. With one hand still banded around her waist he
moves the other to caress across her breasts finding her nipples
hardened in arousal.

His own pulse starts to race as he wraps
himself around her, thinking about lifting her skirt and taking her
right here in the stairwell. His only hesitation, is the danger of
being caught. At the moment, he’s not even sure if he cares. He
wants her. Feeling the movement in his pants, Olivia pushes herself
back against his hips so that the head of his dick rubs between the
cheeks of her ass. She smiles as she feels him respond, springing
to life and hardening with his usual thickness. Licking her lips,
she digs her heels in and tries to break free again, making him
tighten his grip around her again.

“Stop it.” He whispers into her ear.

Ethan reads her body like it’s one of his
favorite books. Knowing the plot… anticipating the outcome. He
knows that she’s excited. His control and her resistance, are the
source of her arousal. Ethan’s lips form a wicked grin. “Seems
you’ve got quite the nasty temper yourself, baby girl. Tell me, how
long did you think you’d be able to keep that a secret?” Nibbling
that tender spot on her shoulder, he makes her breathing stutter
and then he leans in close. “Jesus Christ, do you see the affect
you have on me? I am so turned on right now.” He growls, his voice
saturated with sexual desire, as his rock hard erection pushes
heavily into her back.

Biting at her lip, she holds back her smile.
Locked firmly in his arms she continues to play. The more she
fights him, the harder he grows. The more he tries to restrain her,
the wetter her panties get. It’s so wrong, but so incredibly
arousing. He takes a couple of steps, overpowering her, pressing
her body into the wall and holding her there, his chest expanding
as he breathes heavily against the back of her neck.

Ethan is a master at this game and when she
teases him a little bit more, her movement causes him to press
harder into her. Dipping down, he rubs himself along her backside,
drawing a low sensual growl from deep in his throat. His hands rub
down her sides and curl around the hem of her skirt, dragging it
upwards to expose her thighs. She tries to hide the amusement in
her voice. “Apparently… holding me here against my will makes your
dick hard Mr. O’Connell.”

He smirks as his erection pulses and swells
harder at her words. “Apparently.” He admits. “It was THAT... and
the way your dirty mouth talks about my dick.” Breathing heavily
against her ear, he glides his hand between her legs and into her
damp panties. Her body keens as he presses and rubs against her
very sensitive clit.

“There is something wrong with you.” She
teases as she moans, her muscles now exhausted from struggling with
him, she surrenders to his hand. He laughs once and moves his lips
down her neck. After brushing her hair to the side he gently slides
her top off her shoulder to expose her skin and kisses her there.
“That’s funny, because the only time I ever feel right is when I’m
with you.” He whispers against her skin.

Loud, squeaky hinges echo through the
stairwell, as the heavy door swings open and footsteps bound toward
them. Startled by the intrusion Ethan eases away, allowing Olivia
to turn around and face him, her back now resting against the
concrete wall. Standing sideways against her hip, he leans his
forearm against the wall and hides his arousal from the person
approaching. Pretending to be engaged in nothing but a casual
conversation, Olivia looks at him, appearing to be listening
intently. Her gaze keeps dropping down to his lips. His warm, soft,
delicious lips. She longs to have them pressed against hers,
tasting him, kissing him, despite the acidity of the words spoken
in his office. For heavens sake hurry up and pass already!

Rounding the corner of the landing, the
intruder slows as he sees them, glancing at them awkwardly as he
passes. Ethan nods a polite greeting while Olivia avoids eye
contact all together. When the door to the underground parking
slams shut, she slides her hands into the space between his jacket
and his body, running them from his abs to his hips and making his
muscles tighten under her touch. Oh how she wishes that his crisply
ironed dress shirt didn’t prevent her from touching his skin. She
scrunches the fabric in her hands thinking about pulling it free
from the waist band of his pants and getting underneath it.
“Please… kiss me.” She says desperately.