Enamored with Ellie

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Shaun O’Reilly never expected to move to a small town, at least on his own free will. He’d been in plenty over the years after leaving his hometown of Boston and becoming an undercover officer. His parents were dead, and he had no siblings or any family really, so he willingly went wherever his skill set was needed. But now at thirty-eight, almost twenty years after he first entered the academy, he was tired of donning a new identity every few years and infiltrating gangs, clubs, and organized crime rings to bring down the bad guys. He’d been doing it for so long, the lines blurring so much; he wasn’t even sure if he was the good guy.

He tipped his beer back and glanced around the bar owned by a man from his past, who would most likely prefer Shaun grab his s**t and hightail it the hell out of his sacred little community, but Shaun wasn’t going anywhere, at least not anytime soon. The minute he stepped foot into the town lines, on a mission to warn Declan about his own past coming back to bite him in the a*s, Shaun knew Red Maple Falls was special—a place where he could finally figure out who the hell he really was.

Clarity hadn’t come yet, but it had only been two days since he’d been back. He knew it would take time to unravel all the gritty details of his past and determine if all his decisions truly were for the mission.

Declan swung a rag over his shoulder and grabbed a pint glass, bringing it to the tap and letting a stream of dark liquid flow until the glass was a quarter of the way filled. He tipped the glass to his mouth. He always did like his beer as dark as motor oil.

Declan nodded toward Shaun’s almost full glass of a local brown ale that was quickly becoming his favorite. The scar that poked out from Declan’s beard and cut down his cheek was a reminder of how one of Shaun’s missions had gone horribly wrong. “Do you want a n****e for that beer?”

“Trying to get rid of me?” Shaun asked.

“I tried to get rid of your a*s the last time you showed up. Clearly that didn’t work.” Declan glanced at him with the slightest hint of a smile. Progress. It was better than the hatred and betrayal his dark eyes usually held toward him.

“Should’ve tried harder.”

“Didn’t want to risk you arresting me again.” Declan took another long drink from his glass.

“Fine. I deserve that, but at some point, you’re going to have to forgive me.” Truth was, if it wasn’t for Shaun, Declan would be rotting away in a prison cell. He vouched for him, made a point to prove that he hadn’t been a part of any of the illegal activities his motorcycle club had been involved in. He shouldn’t even need to be forgiven. If anything, Declan should be thanking him.

“Forgive you?” Declan scoffed. “You always were a dreamer.” Declan tapped his knuckles on the bar, the giant rings he wore bringing Shaun back to a time when they were friends—brothers—who would take a bullet for the other. “Then again, I guess I never really knew you.”

It was kind of hard for someone to really know him when he didn’t even know himself.

“I guess you didn’t.” Shaun picked up his glass and downed the rest of his beer. “I’ll make it easy for you.” He reached into the inside of his leather jacket, took a twenty from his wallet, and tossed it on the bar. “Keep the change.”

“I don’t want your change,” Declan said, and now he was just being an asshole. “Sit your a*s down.” Declan swiped his pint glass and refilled it. He placed the full glass on top of the twenty. “In my bar, you get what you pay for. Now drink the damn beer and shut up.”

Shaun’s lip cracked at the corner, revealing his amusement, despite trying to stay stoic. “Fine, but only because this is a damn good beer.”

“Be sure to tell Mason. He owns the brewery and comes in here a lot. If you want to stay in town, you’re going to have to get to know the locals and try to fit in. But then again, you made a living out of doing just that.”

Another swipe. Declan was on fire tonight. Shaun wondered if he was fighting with his old lady, or just genuinely pissed at the idea that Shaun came back after leaving to tie a few loose ends up at the office.

Shaun tipped his glass to him. “Touche, and thanks for the advice. I’ll make sure to do that.”

Declan headed to the other side of the bar to help another customer. The place was filling up, and Shaun had a touch of pride for the man behind the bar. After everything he had gone through, he made something of himself. A nice, honest living.

The bell above the door chimed again, a tactic Declan used to never be caught off guard, and Shaun turned his head toward it. A woman walked in. No, she didn’t walk… She floated as if gravity bended at her will. Her long, flowy dress trailed behind her in a stream of earth-toned fabrics. Her strawberry blonde hair fell in waves, looking as if she dove in the ocean, then spent the rest of the day hanging beachside. She was petite in stature but large in confidence as she made her way toward the bar.

Shaun couldn’t turn away from her if he tried. His eyes were locked on this goddess who came to a stop right beside him and engulfed him in the warm scent of sunflowers. She flashed him a smile, and for once in his life, he felt his world tilt as he fumbled for words. If he didn’t introduce himself to this beauty, he’d spend the night regretting it.

“You’re new to town, right?” she said before he could manage a simple hi.

“I am. Name’s O’Reilly. What’s yours?”

Her eyebrow arched toward her hairline. “Is that your first name?”

“No.”

She glanced toward him. “Care to share your first name?”

“Everyone calls me O’Reilly.”

She turned her body to him, and he forced himself to keep eye contact and not let his gaze dip. Though, it wasn’t as hard as he expected it to be. Her blue eyes were like a beacon, holding his absolute attention. “I’m not everyone.”

“In that case. Name’s Shaun.”

“Hi Shaun. I’m Ellie.” She flashed him the brightest of smiles that could knock the wind out of the darkest soul. “I own Forgotten Treasure Antiques on the north end of town.”

“I’ve seen it.” It was a freestanding building with a wraparound porch that led up to an old building, and looked like a cross between a house and a barn. There were old bicycles and rocking chairs outside and a large sign with the word Antiques above the door. Last time he was here was in the fall, and the stairs were lined with mums and pumpkins. But what stood out to him most was the scarecrow. “You had a headless horseman scarecrow on a dirt bike.”

Her warm smile turned to one of pride. “Sure did.”

“It was impressive.”

“I know, which sucks.”

Amused by the disgust in her words, he pushed on. “Why is that?”

“Because next fall everyone is going to expect me to one up myself.”

“Why do I have a feeling you won’t have any trouble with that?”

She pressed her lips together, a coy smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I may be known to not have any trouble when it comes to out doing myself.”

Why did her words sound strangely s****l? Clearly, it had been too damn long since he’d been laid. He needed to get a grip. This woman was talking scarecrows, and his mind was swan diving into the gutter.

“I’m looking forward to see what you come up with.” He picked up his beer and tilted it to his lips.

“I take it you plan on sticking around for a while then.”

“Right now, that’s the plan.” He didn’t know where he’d be by next fall, if the itch to return to the game would pull him away from small town life and back into the thick of the bad side of society, but for now, small town living, especially in a town with a woman like Ellie, didn’t sound so bad.

“Good to know.”

“Is it now?” He turned toward her and this time he let his gaze dip. She had a brown leather jacket on that cut tight to her frame and stopped just above the flair of her hips. The material of her dress clung to her chest, outlining her t**s that looked like they’d fill his hands just right.

She shrugged. “I pretty much know everyone in this town, so it’s always nice to have a new face in the crowd.”

“Crowd? I don’t think if you took the entire population of Red Maple Falls, you’d have yourself a crowd. Maybe a small gathering.”

“You sound like a city boy.”

“Born and raised in Boston.”

“I knew I detected a slight accent.”

“Impossible.” He spent years working on dropping the accent. Undercover work didn’t exactly work if you had an accent that could give anyone information about where you came from.

“Deny it all you want. I heard it.”

He laughed. “You’re pretty confident.”

“Always.”

Their eyes met, and there wasn’t anything that could pull him away from that deep blue gaze.

“When I said make friends with the locals. I didn’t mean to hit on them,” Declan said as he came to a stop in front of them, proving Shaun wrong.

Ellie blinked, or did she flutter her lashes... “Oh he’s not flirting.”

Damn. Maybe he was out of practice because to him, he was most definitely flirting. She gave him a wink when Declan looked down the bar, and Shaun couldn’t hide his smirk. At least he knew they were on the same page.

“What can I do for you, Ellie?” Declan asked.

“Bert told me you have some of his new moonshine on the menu and insisted I stop by on my way home from work to try some. He’ll be by my shop tomorrow for a full report, so I didn’t want to disappoint him.”

“You driving?” Declan asked.

“I don’t plan on drinking much.”

“You don’t need much. This stuff might taste good, but it could take the finish off wood.”

“That potent?” Shaun had never had the stuff, but now he was intrigued.

“Makes our days of drinking whisky out of the bottle seem amateur.”

Shaun nearly grabbed his chest. Did Declan just refer to their past and in front of someone? Maybe they were making progress. “Better pour me one, then. Have to see if what you say is true or if you’ve gone soft on me.”

Declan didn’t even bother to reply, just grabbed two rock glasses and the bottle of moonshine. He poured two glasses and pushed them toward him and Ellie.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Shaun handed a glass to Ellie and held his up to her. “Cheers.”

Ellie’s head tilted. “You can do better than that.”

His brow furrowed in confusion.

“Let me try. To new friends who sometimes flirt.”

“I can drink to that.”

She clinked her glass to his, and he gave her a wink, before they both tilted the liquid to their lips and threw back their heads.

***

The taste was amazing, but the burn was something else entirely. Ellie felt like fire slithered down her throat and settled in her stomach. “That was yummy,” she said, putting her glass on the bar. “If not a little too strong for my liking.”

Shaun coughed, and Ellie found it adorable that the big, hulking man who had an air of mystery surrounding him was no match for Old Man Simpson’s moonshine.

“Yeah… delicious.” His words came out in a deep rumble before he cleared his throat. He picked up his beer and took a sip.

Ellie’s phone vibrated, and she retrieved it from her bag, sighing when a text from her brother flashed on the screen. She tapped into the text since she couldn’t not look. Maybe it wouldn’t be about the money.

Any hope at that faltered when the words popped up on the screen.

Ryan: Hey sis. I hope you’re not mad at me. I’m really in a bind. I just need a couple hundred bucks? I promise to pay you back.

She scoffed. He’d promised to pay her back every time, and she was still waiting. She understood why Sophie, had cut Ryan off. He’d milked her dry.

“Everything okay?” Shaun asked, and Ellie nodded.

“Everything is great.” She shoved her phone in her bag, deciding she’d deal with Ryan’s request later, then held her hand up to get Declan’s attention. She raised her empty glass of moonshine.

“You’re seriously going to have more of that stuff? Are you trying to disintegrate your insides?” Shaun tipped his glass to his lips, and his green eyes glared at her from the side.

“It tastes good, and it does the trick.”

“And what trick is that?”

She waved her hand. “Never mind about that. So tell me, Mr. Boston, what brings you away from city life and here to the middle of nowhere?”

He was quiet for a moment, but she kept her gaze on him, showing her interest.

Finally, his large chest puffed out with an inhale. “Seems like a good place to disappear.”

A loud laugh bellowed out of Ellie, and she slapped a hand over her mouth. His eyebrow arched at her and she lowered her hand. “Sorry. It’s just if you want to disappear, this is the absolute worst place to be. Everyone will know you, know your business, forget privacy that simply doesn’t exist in this town.”

His demeanor didn’t change. Her laugh didn’t even manage a smile out of him. “I have realized that, but the people here… they don’t know my past.”

“Oh, so you’re running from something.” He wouldn’t be the first one. Declan had come to Red Maple Falls to escape his past, too. She wasn’t surprised Shaun followed him, especially since Declan had found happiness here, despite the fact his enemy did find him and kidnap his girlfriend, but that was just a bump in the road.

“I guess you could say that?”

“And what exactly are you running from?” Declan had run from his past, Caleb of the Chain and Spoke wanted to start over, Ellie’s good friend Cassie had come to Red Maple Falls to escape an abusive ex. What was it that Shaun O’Reilly was running from?

The hand around his pint glass tightened, and he lifted his beer, taking a long sip. The corded muscles in his neck strained as he tipped his head back. He put the glass down and met her gaze. His green eyes filled with mystery and intrigue. “Myself.”

She eyed him as Declan placed another glass of moonshine in front of her. She nodded her thanks at him and turned. “How’s that going?”

“Too soon to tell.”

“Does that mean you’ll be sticking around for a while?”

He leaned in toward her, surrounding her in pure masculinity—hot, carnal, and damn near irresistible. “Do you want me to stick around for a while?”

She didn’t skip a beat, straightening. “I barely know you.” She adjusted the vintage hand painted bangles on her wrists that she couldn’t bring herself to sell. “But it would be nice to get to know you.” A smile tugged at her lips, and heat flared in her cheeks. Being forward had never embarrassed her before, so maybe it was the moonshine causing such a ridiculous reaction. “Is it warm in here?” She slipped out of her jacket. Definitely the moonshine.

“I have a good remedy for that.”

If it included an ice-cold shower with the man, she was in. Yup, definitely the moonshine. Still, she was curious about how his mind worked. She leaned in closer, a breath away from his very kissable lips. “Really, and what would that be?”

“A ride on my motorcycle.”

She bit her lip as the suggestion sent a jolt of excitement coursing through her. “Are you stating a fact or asking me to go for a ride?”

“Both. So what do you say?”

“I could never turn down a ride on a motorcycle. There’s just something about all that metal purring between my legs.” Oh, she totally just said that. She kept her eyes from widening and held what she hoped was a seductive gaze.

The way Shaun stood up from the table, she assumed she was successful.

“Let’s go, kitten.”

“Kitten?” That wasn’t one she had heard before. Normally she’d tell him no nicknames but the way the word rolled off his tongue in that deep, sexy tone, she wouldn’t mind hearing it again and again.

“Fits you.”

“And how is that?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, dropping a twenty and a five on the table. “You like purring, you get distracted by your bracelets clattering together.” She touched her bracelets then and quickly let go when he gave her a knowing smirk. “You seem impulsive, playful, and you’re damn adorable.”

“You act like you know me when we’ve only been talking for a short time.”

“I’m good at reading people. But I know there’s more to you. Beneath that flowy dress and wavy strawberry blonde hair that makes everyone think you’re this sweet, hippie-esque, small-town girl, there’s a whole other side of you—a side I want to get to know.”

“Then what are you waiting for, big boy?”

“Big boy?”

“You call me kitten, then I’m calling you big boy. Now let’s go.”

She strutted toward the door and heard Declan mumble something to Shaun in passing. She didn’t turn back. She was a woman on a mission, and that mission was to get on Shaun’s bike, close her eyes, and feel the wind in her hair, giving her a taste of freedom, fueling the memories of the girl inside of her. The girl who dreamed of bigger things. The girl who dreamed of adventures with hot guys and endless nights.

She was once wild and free. Voted most likely to leave this town behind, but when the time came to let her wings soar, the fear of the unknown was too much. Instead of traveling the world, hopping from one hostel to the next, exploring ancient ruins and walking the earth where history was made, she firmly planted her roots in the safety of the familiar. Red Maple Falls was small, microscopic in the eyes of other so-called small towns, and she was just a small-town girl. Always would be. No amount of traveling would change that. So she decided to embrace it. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t have a little fun and tap into that dormant side of herself.

The cool air of late April washed over her, and she inhaled deeply, taking in the familiar scent of sugar maples and hemlocks. Something she surely would have missed if she up and left to travel the world.

“I’m this way.” Shaun’s hand lightly touched the small of her back, and his breath skittered across her neck.

She swallowed down the unexpected spark of desire and ignored the goosebumps popping up along her skin. His hand pressed gently into her, and she allowed him to guide her toward the side of the parking lot where his Harley Davidson was backed into a space.

Black saddle bags draped over the sides, and she wondered if he managed to pack his whole life up on those two bags and the luggage back on the rear. The bike itself was all black, the only colors from the silver of the pipes and engine. It was classically beautiful, just like its owner.

He took a helmet off the back rack and handed it to her. She eyed the black helmet with a painted skull in the colors of the Irish flag. “We don’t wear helmets here.”

“I’m aware of that, but if you get on my bike, you’re wearing a helmet.”

“Really? And why is that? Why do your rules overpower the states?”

He reached up, tucking her hair behind her ear, his calloused thumb dragging lightly down her ear. “I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself if you hurt even a single hair on this pretty head of yours.”

She snatched the helmet from his hands. “I didn’t take you as a sweet talker, but the lines you come up with…?” She shook her head, her hair fanning out around her. “They’re both charming and endearing, if not a little cliché.”

He ran a hand over his face, but he was too late. She already saw a c***k of a smile at the edges of his mouth. “You going to put the helmet on or what?”

“If I put the helmet on, I can’t feel the wind in my hair, and then what’s the point?”

“Then you better hold on tight.”

“I plan on it.”