Connor wants me. I know that. He wants to possess my innocence, be the first in my bed, and defile me in all the ways a man can. That, in and of itself, drives me crazy with desire. But this, with Niall, is something else.
Niall simplywants, and I can feel it burning through him, searing into me. My mouth opens for him, my hands pressing against the hard muscle of his chest and then into his shirt, pulling him closer, and his hands come up to cover mine. “Saoirse—”
He whispers my name against my lips like a prayer.
“I’ve wanted you for as long as I can remember,” he breathes against my mouth. “And if I never touch you again, I’ll remember this kiss for as long as I live.”
I don’t know what to think, how to feel, what to say. I feel swept up in it, knocked off balance by the sudden force of his declaration out of almost nowhere, the ferocity of his desire. I’d never imagined being wanted likethis, and I don’t know what to do with it.
“There’s no other choice for me tonight,” I whisper, tilting my face up to look into his eyes. “But there will be other choices later. After I’m married. And then—”
I slip out of his grasp, my heart pounding in my chest, flushed and aching and so terribly confused that I wish I could run back to the safety of my room.
But I can’t. I have to face what’s ahead of me. I have to fulfillmypromise and keepmyvow.
Only then, will I be able to choose for myself—Connor, or Niall, or maybe some other lover I haven’t even met yet.
The look in Niall’s eyes as I step back, though, tears at my heart.
“I have to go,” I whisper. “I’m late.”
And then I turn on my heel and flee for the elevator.