Page 18 of Irish Getaway
Claire’s heart clenched at the vulnerability in Evelyn’s words. She reached out, cupping Evelyn’s cheek in her palm. “Are you falling for me?” Claire asked, somehow keeping her voice steady when her heart was ready to jump out of her chest.
Evelyn’s eyes fluttered shut as she leaned into Claire’s touch. “I already have,” she breathed.
Claire closed the distance between them, capturing Evelyn’s lips in a searing kiss. Evelyn responded eagerly, her hands sliding into Claire’s hair as she deepened the kiss.
Before Claire knew what was happening, Evelyn was straddling her lap, her body pressed flush against Claire’s. Claire groaned at the contact, her hands gripping Evelyn’s hips as their kisses grew more heated. Their hands roamed, and their tongues danced. Claire ran her hands up Evelyn’s sides, and she moaned when Evelyn’s fingers slid through her hair.
It would be so easy to get carried away, to let the passion consume them both. But Claire forced herself to slow down, to pull back just enough to catch her breath.
“Evelyn,” she panted, looking up at her, lifting a hand to Evelyn’s hair, guiding it behind her ear. “Against my better judgment,” she said as she inhaled a deep breath, “I think I should go.”
Evelyn held her gaze before she slowly nodded. She dipped her head down, capturing Claire’s lips with hers once more, her tongue skimming over Claire’s as she kissed her deeply.
Claire whimpered when Evelyn eventually pulled away.
“Changing your mind?” Evelyn asked with a smirk as she swept a hand through her hair before she climbed off her. She got to her feet, holding her hand out.
Claire took it, letting Evelyn pull her up. “No,” she said with a smile. “As tempting as it would be, I am going to go.” She leaned in, one hand on Evelyn’s hip, the other on her neck, kissing her softly. “Come by the guest house tomorrow,” Claire said, their foreheads still touching. “I’ll make you dinner.”
Evelyn pull back to meet her eyes. “Okay. I’d like that.”
Claire’s hand fell to hold Evelyn’s, their fingers intertwining, and she couldn’t believe she was actually walking away from this, but it didn’t matter what she wanted. And god, she wanted Evelyn. But she’d tried to put herself in Evelyn’s shoes, remembering the way, only an hour ago, tears had streamed down her face, and it didn’t feel right for them to end up in Evelyn’s bed. Not tonight.
“I’m going to say goodnight,” Claire said, her hand still in Evelyn’s. “Or I won’t go.”
“Thank you for tonight,” Evelyn said, her eyes shimmering with emotion. “For all of it.” She lifted her hand to Claire’s cheek. “I’ll never forget it.” She looked like she wanted to say more, but her gaze dropped to Claire’s lips, and when she leaned in, Claire met her halfway, melting into the kiss.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Claire murmured as she pulled away.
“Tomorrow,” Evelyn echoed, her hand sliding away from Claire’s.
With one last lingering look, Claire turned and headed for the door, feeling Evelyn’s eyes on her the entire way, and it took all of her willpower not to glance back.
15
When Evelyn left the house just before six with a bottle of red wine in her hand, she took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh scent of rain. It hadn’t stopped all day, until the sky started to clear about an hour ago, and it was actually a nice evening now as she got ready to leave for Claire’s guesthouse. The sun appeared from behind the clouds, and she grabbed a jacket on her way out, just in case, putting it on over her black tank top.
She’d spent longer than she would have liked getting ready, torn between treating this like any other evening she spent with Claire rather than a date, but also knowing that more than likely, she was going to end up in Claire’s bed. The thought had sent a shiver through her body, bringing back everything that had happened last night and how amazing it had felt to kiss Claire. In the end, she’d decided to keep things casual, wearing faded jeans and ankle boots, her long hair down in loose waves.
As she followed the path through the woods towards Claire’s house, her mind easily drifted to last night. When those fireworks had lit up the sky, Evelyn had thought it couldn’t get much better than that, but when Claire had told her that they were illegal, and Evelyn realized how much effort must have gone into arranging it, she’d forgotten to filter her thoughts or her actions.
The idea of kissing Claire had started to invade her thoughts ever since Claire had said that she was gay, but in that moment, sitting beside Claire on that blanket, kissing her was the only thing Evelyn could have done.
Years and years of pushing her own wants and desires aside for the sake of her career had made her reckless, and she couldn’t keep those feelings locked away any longer. Thankfully, Claire seemed to feel the same way, and even if they had no future together, Evelyn couldn’t stop herself from giving into this attraction.
Before she knew it, she’d left the woods, and Claire’s home was in sight. She could already feel her heart rate increasing, and a flutter of excitement building in her stomach. Before she could knock, the door swung open, and Evelyn’s breath caught in her throat as she took in Claire standing in her doorway dressed in black jeans and a white tank top, her black hair that she had pulled back in a ponytail more often than not tumbled over her shoulders in loose waves, her blue eyes almost sparking.
“Hey,” Claire said with a smile, her eyes sweeping over Evelyn as she moved aside to let her enter. “Come in.”
“Hi.” Evelyn couldn’t help but smile back as she stepped inside, almost taken aback by how much had changed since the last time she was here ten weeks ago. That day, she’d been so quick to ignore that initial spark she’d felt when Claire’s hands had landed on her waist in the stable after she’d made a run for it to get out of the rain. When she’d come back to return Claire’s clothes, she’d let her gaze linger on Claire, and she never could have imagined that a little over two months later, she’d have kissed her.
“Hope this is okay with whatever you’re making,” Evelyn said as she gave Claire the bottle of wine.
“Thanks. I’m sure it will be,” Claire said, taking the few steps towards the kitchen to open it and let it breathe. “Let me hang up your jacket,” Claire offered, and Evelyn shrugged it off her shoulders, handing it to her.
Evelyn watched Claire hang it on a row of hooks beside the front door. Before she knew what she was doing, she stepped into her space, and when Claire turned back to face her, Evelyn was there, hands on her waist, pushing her back against the door.
A hint of a smile ghosted Claire’s lips as Evelyn leaned in, her eyes fluttering closed, and when their lips met, everything else faded away. Evelyn sighed into the kiss, loving the feeling of Claire’s hands on her hips as they deepened the kiss.