Free Mastering Maeve by Tara Finnegan Page A

savouring every inch. Her arousal was too much for him and soon he could hold off no longer; his orgasm came hard and fast as he growled his satisfaction.
    He flopped down on the bed beside her, and Maeve lifted her head to rest it on his chest, savouring the closeness. Yes, she was absolutely certain this was what she wanted, she decided. And out of the blue she was overwhelmed by sadness at the realisation Larry was probably right in his assumptions two weeks earlier; how could this work? He lived in Texas, she lived in Ireland and they both had commitments in their respective countries. No matter how much she cared for him, it seemed doomed to failure.

Chapter Five
     
     
    Larry became aware of hot moisture trickling on his chest followed by a soft sobbing.
    “Are you crying, Maeve?” he asked in surprise. “What on earth is wrong?”
    “No, I’m fine,” she lied.
    “Tell me,” he warned ominously. “We agreed no more charades, remember?”
    “How long before you have to leave again? And what then?”
    “Oh, is that all,” he chuckled softly. “Don’t worry. We’ll find a way to work something out, if that’s what you want. It is what you want, isn’t it?” he asked, surprised at the thudding in his chest as he waited for her answer. It would have been so much easier if he could have felt that way about Emily, he thought ruefully, but love didn’t always come calling in convenient locations. And although he had only known Maeve for such a short time, he was already pretty sure he did love her. The pain he felt during the couple of weeks’ separation when she wouldn’t communicate with him had taught him that. He needed her in his life; maddening, infuriating woman that she was.
    “You know it is.”
    “I’ve learned to take nothing for granted with you. You rock the very foundations of my existence. It’s something wonderful when we work together, but very frightening when we pull apart. I hated being away and despaired when you shut me out. I had to come back.”
    “I’m really glad you did. I missed you, but I was too proud and offended to admit it. When you stopped me before, I thought you weren’t interested. It took me all of my courage to make a move and then you knocked me back. I thought I’d just made a great big eejit of myself.”
    “I’m real sorry, sugar, I didn’t want to mess it up and just made it worse.” Larry silenced her insecurities with a kiss. Then, realising the time, he reluctantly released her as she had to go on duty. Much and all as he would have liked to keep her to himself, his business head reminded him that the one hundred and fifty thousand euro he was about to hand over equated to approximately two hundred thousand dollars, a sum not to be sniffed at in any currency. He couldn’t afford to distract her too much.
    He watched her as she pulled on her clothes. Her long muscular legs were surprisingly sexy; he always thought he favoured a softer figure. While hers was full and curvy, the football field had made it really strong. He laughed aloud at the thought of her wrestling him; big and all as he was, he reckoned she’d put up a fair fight. Just as well she seemed to prefer to be submissive.
    “What?” she asked accusingly.
    “Nothing, honey, I’m just happy,” he lied. He didn’t dare tell her in case she took it as a criticism; he’d mucked up too badly already. She accepted his sweet talk as truth, kissed him, and left.
    Larry stayed right there on the bed where Maeve left him, drowsy from the lovemaking and jetlag. As he drifted off to sleep, he was praying that when he saw her later, she would still be warm and sweet. The danger with a spitfire was one never really knew. When she had time to think, she might just regret what had happened.
    Hunger woke him three hours later. And horniness. He had been dreaming of that sweet white ass turning pink under his touch. With much trepidation, he decided to head for the dining room. He was pleased to