Page 12 of Guarding Salvation

Irish tucked a lock of hair behind her ear as she leaned in closer, her breasts pushing up and giving him a glimpse of the sexy curves under her conservative blue shirt. What made her more alluring was the fact she wasn’t trying to be. Her only make-up was mascara and lip gloss, her clothes were conservative by most people’s standards and hers was natural as far as he could tell. No cans of product holding every tendril in place. She was just herself and he wanted her badly.

She fancied him too, he could tell by the way her eyes moved over him and the pulse in her neck throbbed when he brushed his fingers over hers when she handed him a drink. Her guard was slowly coming down, but he knew he couldn’t rush it.

“Well, we rescue people who get into trouble on the mountain, mainly walkers and hikers.”

“What about the rest of the time?” She angled her head in a flirty manner, her focus on him instead of the people around her for the first time all night. She was relaxing and it was a beautiful thing to see.

“We train hard to stay fit and up to date with the latest news, and we sometimes go abroad when we’re needed. We run training courses for other groups and teach safe wilderness techniques for staying alive if you get into trouble.”

“What about you? You always want to be a barmaid?” Bein knew he needed to push her just a little and see if she opened up or shut down.

“Honestly?”

Bein chuckled. “No, lie to me. Of course honestly.”

“Hey, don’t be cheeky.” Her smile faded. “Don’t laugh, okay?”

Bein placed his hand over his heart. “Scout’s honour.”

Irish arched her brow and crossed her arms over her ample breasts, making his eyes drop as a groan escaped him making her blush and drop her arms.

“Come on, tell me before I do something stupid like jump over that bar and kiss you.”

He saw interest light her eyes as her cheeks pinked up on her porcelain skin. “I wanted to be a nurse.”

“Why is that funny?” He couldn’t understand but knew it was something to do with why she was running.

She gave an awkward shrug. “It’s not, I guess. It was just never something my family encouraged or would’ve allowed.”

“Well, families are tricky, and we don’t get to choose. My father nearly went doolally when I joined the army.”

A defeated tone entered her voice as she spoke. “You’re braver than me.”

“Nah, ye just need to believe in yourself, darlin’.” He could see his words hit the mark, but whoever had done such damage to her self-confidence had won this round. She wanted to believe what he said was true, but the fact was she didn’t. But she would. If he had any say in it, she’d reach for the stars and touch them.

He could see her watching his lips as he spoke. “Your accent is hot.”

Bein laughed at the compliment and smiled at her, letting her change the subject. He liked this girl. “Aye, so’s yours.”

Looking around, he realised the pub was empty and Bob was cleaning away some of the tables.

“I need to help Bob.”

“Sure. Can I walk you home?”

“It’s only down the road.”

“Still, can I or not? The thought of you alone in the dark don’t sit right with me.”

“And what do you think happens when you aren’t around?”

Bein didn’t want to think about that, because her being alone and vulnerable didn’t sit well with him at all. “I’m here now.”

“Fine.”

He helped Bob and Irish clean up, chatting with Bob about everyday happenings, but he could see the warning look the older man was giving him and understood exactly what it was. A warning to treat Irish with respect and he had no intention of doing anything else.

Chapter 5