The Pleasures of Autumn (22 page)

The red water turned pink and finally clear. ‘This bit is going to hurt, bud.’

Niall clenched his teeth as Andy pulled the remains of the shirt away from his back.

Andy allowed the water to run for a little while before he turned it off. ‘Towels,’ he directed her. ‘Lots of them.’

She hurried to do his bidding and, between them, they managed to staunch the bleeding. They dried Niall off and helped him to his feet before staggering to the bedroom and easing him face down onto the bed. Only then did Sinead see the extent of the damage.

The livid bruises ran the length of his back. An array of red scrapes criss-crossed the spaces in between. ‘Jesus,’ she yelped. ‘You need a hospital!’

Niall groaned. ‘It’s nothing. Stop shouting.’

‘I am not –’ Then she realized that she was shouting and shut up. She wasn’t much of a nurse, but as long as he wasn’t bleeding, she could cope. While Andy went to get into dry clothing, she raided the medicine cabinet. Armed with an improvised medical kit, she returned to the bedroom.

Niall eyed her warily. ‘What do you think you’re doing with that? Can’t you leave a man in peace?’

Of all the idiot men. Did he think that she could leave
him like that? Sinead rolled her eyes. ‘Don’t be such a baby. What happened to you?’

‘An RER and I had a difference of opinion.’

‘And you lost.’ She found it difficult to keep the tremble out of her voice. This had happened to him because he tried to protect her. It was her fault.

‘No. I won. If I’d lost, I wouldn’t be here now.’

Sinead opened the kit and squeezed antiseptic cream onto her fingers. With soothing strokes and a few flinches from Niall, she covered the cuts on his back. Thankfully, none of them were too deep. Despite all the bleeding, he had somehow escaped any really serious injury. God, it turned out, had heard her prayers. She stroked his damp hair, raking her fingers between the tangled strands until they were smooth. Her touch seemed to soothe him. Gradually, the tight expression eased from his face and his eyes drifted closed.

Andy returned from cleaning up the bathroom. ‘Want me to sit with him?’

Sinead shook her head. ‘No. I’ll do it.’

‘Okay. Give me a shout if you need me.’ He closed the door behind him and they were left alone.

She hadn’t realized how much he meant to her until she thought she had lost him. And now he was here, safe, and though she ached to slip into bed beside him, she was terrified that she would hurt him. She pulled the sheet up over his buttocks and tiptoed out.

She settled herself on the sofa, cuddled up with Niall’s bathrobe, and fell asleep.

The sound of Andy leaving his room woke her. He paused when he saw her on the sofa. ‘You’ve been here all night?’

She nodded. ‘I didn’t want to disturb Niall.’

‘You should have shared with me. I’d have made it worth your while.’

Despite herself, she laughed. ‘Do you ever stop flirting?’

‘Only when I’m alone. Not much point then.’

He headed to the kitchen and made himself a quick breakfast. He stuck his head into Niall’s room.

‘Still sleeping. Best thing for him,’ he said when he came back. Then he headed out to get a new BlackBerry to replace the broken one.

In the silence, Sinead walked into the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee.

‘Is any of that for me?’ Niall’s voice rumbled from the bedroom. ‘I’m hungry.’

Sinead hurried to the door. ‘You’re awake?’

Niall hissed as he tried to roll over.

She winced in sympathy. ‘I’m not sure if you should move yet. Stay still, I’ll feed you.’

‘You are not feeding me.’ He carefully turned onto his back and tried to sit up. He grimaced and lay back down again.

‘I’ll give you some more pills, but only if you eat first.’

‘Witch.’ His scowl promised retribution when he was recovered, but Sinead didn’t care. She had to find some way of making up for her squeamishness the previous night.

‘I love you too.’ She bustled around the kitchen, frying bacon and eggs quickly. It wasn’t haute cuisine but it was food. ‘Here we are.’ She cut a small piece of bacon and offered it to him on a fork.

Niall opened his mouth reluctantly but as he chewed, his expression brightened. ‘I suppose I could get used to having a maid.’

He wolfed down the eggs and bacon and looked expectantly at her. She had forgotten what a big appetite he had. ‘More?’

He nodded. ‘Thanks.’

In the kitchen she whisked up some more eggs and cooked the last of the bacon. They were down to their last egg. They would have to think about doing some shopping. She made a fresh pot of coffee and returned to the bedroom to find that the bed was empty.

Niall emerged from the bathroom. His face was ashen.

She quickly put the tray down and went to help him back to bed. ‘What are you doing up?’

‘I had to. I don’t do bedpans.’

Sinead helped him into bed, trying not to wince at the sight of his back. The bruises were more livid than the night before and the scrapes on his flesh looked painful. ‘I can see that you’re going to be a very bad patient.’

‘You can count on it.’ Niall agreed. ‘I hate being tied to the bed.’

‘If you don’t behave, I may have to do that,’ she said.

He ate the remainder of his breakfast obediently and only when she was feeding him the last piece of bacon, did she realize that the neck of her robe was open. She was revealing quite a lot of naked flesh and Niall had a bird’s eye view. Sinead pulled the edges together and glared at him.

‘What?’ he grumbled. ‘Don’t you want me to get better?’

‘I’m sure you don’t need to leer at my boobs in order to get better.’

‘I was not leering. I was …’

‘Yes?’ she demanded, trying not to smile. He was worse than Andy – despite the fact that he had been run over by a train.

‘You could make it up to me.’ He flashed her a smile. ‘How about a bed bath?’

‘How about two painkillers? Because that’s the best offer you’re going to get.’

After making sure he took his meds, Sinead took a long, hot shower. Standing beneath the spray of water she had a vivid recollection of the night before – Niall struggling to stay conscious despite the pain and the way he had trusted her to look after him.

She had become accustomed to the strong Niall, the flirtatious Niall, the one who wouldn’t take no for an answer. He might be a gigantic pain in the ass, but seeing him injured and vulnerable like that had made her heart flip.

Stop it. You are not falling for that man. He might be the most incredible lover she had ever had, but they were nothing more than ships passing in the night. Weren’t
they? Men like Niall and Andy were amazing but they didn’t get involved. There was no way that she and Niall could have a future together. Well, not if she was in a Swiss prison.

She had to focus on finding her sister. She and Andy would go to the party tonight, find Roisin and get the stone back. Nothing else mattered.

When she returned to the bedroom, Niall was sleeping. Sinead dressed in some of the lingerie he had bought for her, smiling at the thought of him at the mercy of a Parisian shop assistant. He had good taste, she admitted, as she took out a close-fitting sweater and skirt. The clothes were very Lottie. She wondered if that was a coincidence or perhaps it was a style that he liked.

She really missed dancing. Sinead glanced over at the sleeping lump in the bed. He was sound asleep. Maybe she had time for a workout. She didn’t have any workout clothes, but could always do one in her undies. There was no one around to see her. She undressed quickly and switched on some music.

Consciousness returned. With a groan, Niall shifted slightly in the bed and his body screamed in protest. Fuck, every inch hurt. A sense of urgency forced him to open his eyes. Was Sinead safe?

The shades were down and the shutters were closed, enfolding his bedroom in gloom, but he could see it was daytime. His internal clock, which never switched off, told him it was early afternoon, probably around two or so,
and his finely attuned soldier’s sense told him that there was only one other person around.

Music drifted from the sitting room, along with the occasional hummed note and the sound of uneven footsteps. Despite the pain, he smiled. Sinead was dancing.

He relaxed.

It was a sultry Latin-American tune, the sort made for lovers to dance to, but he would bet money that she was using it to keep fit. Women seemed to be always finding new ways to exercise and Sinead’s knockout body was proof that she worked out regularly. He wondered if she danced for joy, or if it was nothing more than cardio for her?

Staid museum curators weren’t the sort who danced because they couldn’t resist the rhythm of the music, but Sinead constantly surprised him.

He wanted to see her in action, to know what she did when she was alone, but his first attempt at movement made him clench his teeth against a betraying groan. Fuck, he was in bits.

He took inventory of his injuries. His back was a blaze of agony, but there was none of the stabbing pain that indicated a broken rib. His hands were raw, and every attempt to flex his left fingers made him suck in a breath. He had bruises on his ribs, a tender spot on his jaw and a dull ache in his nuts, courtesy of Hall’s kick.

Yeah, women could go on all they liked about how painful childbirth was. Eventually most of them thought about having another baby. No guy in the history of the world had ever said, ‘I think I’d like another kick in the nuts.’

Tired of lying on his back, he tried to pull himself up. A betraying hiss slipped from between his clenched teeth. God, he hurt all over. A night at a party, trying to find this sister of Sinead’s, was going to be even more torturous than he had anticipated.

The door opened and there was Sinead, her glorious hair scraped back into an untidy pony tail, and wearing nothing more than a pair of panties and a bra. Her skin was damp and a sheen of sweat glimmered on her breasts.

His unruly penis immediately took notice. ‘That’s my idea of workout gear,’ he said.

She glared at him. ‘You shopped for me. It’s not like you bought me leggings and a sports bra.’

‘Best move I ever made. Those things are ugly.’

She came over beside the bed. ‘How are you feeling? Your colour is a bit better.’ She leaned down to touch him, gifting him with a peep at her cleavage.

‘Oh yeah, I’m definitely ready to get up.’

‘No, stay where you are –’ She stopped when she caught the innuendo in his words. ‘Do men ever think about anything else?’

‘Can’t speak for all men, but if I ever fail to appreciate a beautiful woman, you’ll know I’m dead.’ He forced himself to move, anxious to be fit for action again.

‘No, stay there.’ Sinead put her hand out to keep him in place.

Her warm palm on his naked chest felt far too good.

She blushed. ‘Do you really think I’m beautiful?’

‘A total babe,’ he assured her.

‘I’ve got no make-up on.’

‘That’s good. It might smudge when you’re giving me a
blow job.’ He wanted to make her laugh, chase that vulnerable look from her eyes.

‘I am not giving –’ She broke off, seeing the laughter he was trying to keep hidden.

‘If you’re not going to play with me, I’ll have to get up and make my own entertainment.’ He threw off the single sheet that covered him. The apartment was warm, he noticed. She must have turned up the heat.

Her glance strayed down to his crotch, to where a noticeable bulge tented his boxers. ‘Tell you what. I’ll entertain you, but you’ll stay in bed. Deal?’

He caught the hint of curiosity in her eyes. ‘Not if you are going to talk about politics or something boring like that. I’m a simple man, I like simple pleasures.’

‘Simple?’ She snorted. ‘How about I dance for you?’

Now that was an offer he hadn’t expected. He nodded. ‘Deal.’

She disappeared into the sitting room and turned up the music. It changed to something slow and sultry. When she came back, there was a subtle difference about her. She took up her position, struck an attitude, and allowed the music to take her.

Niall swallowed. This answered his question. She danced because she was in love with the music. Who would have thought it? He fought down a flicker of jealousy. He wanted to put that look on her face.

‘Closer,’ he said hoarsely.

Obediently, she moved closer to him. He could reach out and touch her, but sensed that if he did, she would stop dancing. And he didn’t want anything to stop this. She was mesmerizing.

Her spine was made of elastic, so flexible it seemed able to move in any direction. Her hips moved independently, keeping the beat of the music while her hands caressed her breasts and floated down her body, outlining the sweep of her hips.

‘You’re good,’ he said.

Her blue eyes were deep pools of mystery and mischief. ‘No, I’m bad.’

She leaned over him, this time deliberately moving to allow his eyes to take their fill.

He swallowed. He could smell her, a tantalizing mixture of sweat, musk and female arousal. His cock hardened.

She noticed and her smile widened. She untied the knot holding her hair up and allowed it to fall down over his chest. It brushed him like a thousand butterfly wings.

‘Do you like that?’ Her voice was deeper, throaty, seductive.

‘Oh yeah. Can’t you tell?’ There was no hiding the state of his erection.

‘Then you will probably like this too.’ She leaned forwards and planted a kiss at the base of his throat. It was light and delicate, not nearly enough, but he didn’t move, determined to let her do what she wanted.

He nodded.

She kissed him again, this time on his chest.

His breathing deepened, but he forced himself to stay still and allow her to do whatever she wanted. Again, he figured that she would leave if he tried to touch her.

Sinead nibbled her way down his chest, stopping to lick his nipple on the way. Funny, he had never realized how
sensitive it was. Now his hips moved involuntarily every time her teeth closed on his nipple. He groaned.

She checked his expression, then grinned wickedly and went back to what she had been doing. ‘This is fun,’ she told him.

She worked her way down his body, kissing and licking as she went. The wetness she left behind was warm and he cherished each kiss.

He tried to remind himself that she was not going all the way with this. She had said she wasn’t giving him a BJ. He would enjoy whatever she did and not push for more.

His cock had other ideas. It reared up hard against his boxers, demanding attention.

She licked at his belly button, dipping her tongue in and making him shudder. Goosebumps rose wherever she touched, and he had to fight to keep from dragging her head down lower. She would stop soon.

Instead, she nuzzled her face into his belly, pushing aside his boxers. She took a deep breath. ‘I love the way you smell.’

He forced his voice to work. ‘How do I smell?’ He couldn’t be too sweet right now.

‘Male, musky, like Niall.’ She buried her face in his crotch, licking and kissing. She climbed up on the bed, moving so that she could look up at him while she played with him.

He spread his legs, allowing her all the room she wanted. She settled herself between them, kneeling up and staring down with a look of triumph. ‘All mine!’ She knelt back on her heels and took up where she had left off.

Sinead sucked one of his balls into her mouth. Thanks
to Irena, it was smooth and hairless. He groaned, unable to control himself.

Her hand kept a grip on his hips. ‘Shh, don’t make noise. You don’t want to drown out the music.’

Belatedly, he realized she was kissing him in time to the music. He would never be able to listen to ‘Straight … to Number One’ again without getting a hard-on.
He lay back, allowing her to do whatever she wanted, while he held on to the edge of the bed to keep himself from grabbing her.