Page 37 of Save a Wish

I opened my mouth to remind her that she would have gotten to this point without me, but she pressed her hand over my lips and shook her head.

“No. Don’t say it.” She smiled. “You absolutely made all the difference here and I’ll never be able to repay you properly for what you’ve done for me.”

I had some ideas on how she could repay me. Ideas we’d both enjoy.

Flora pried the tablet from my hand and angled it to show Sadie. “I’m glad you got so much joy out of running that session, Sadie, because you have all these sessions to lead now.”

Sadie took the tablet and scrolled along, appointment after appointment rolling by on the screen. Then she looked up at Flora and me with wide, glossy eyes.

“All these people booked sessions?” Her eyebrows rose. “Sessions with me?”

“That was the point,” Flora joked. “You put them all under your spell today and you get to do it again and again.”

“But this time, they’ll pay you for it,” I added.

Sadie let out the most gleeful sound I’d ever heard then she danced a circle around me and Flora with Flora joining in. My family came over and as news of Sadie’s success spread to all of them, they too dove into the celebration.

And that was one of the best things about being a Hartley. Someone was always close by to party with. The fact that they showed all this enthusiasm for someone they’d just met simply because they knew she meant something to me made it even sweeter.

Chapter Thirteen

Sadie

“Do you have some time right now?” Beckett asked. “I could give you a proper tour of Hartley’s Nest. So far, you’ve only seen my house and the nature trail, but there’s lots more to see here.”

We stood by my car after loading my materials into it. It delighted me that Beckett didn’t want me to leave right away. We’d be seeing each other later for our date, but I liked the idea of spending more time with him now too.

“I don’t have to rush off,” I said. “And I’d love to see more of Hartley’s Nest. Before we started the event, I perhaps heard a goose. Is that possible?”

Beckett laughed. “It’s more than possible. It’s probable. Isaac, who is our veterinarian, has a Canadian goose patient right now. Someone found the poor thing caught up in a wire fence and brought her to us. Cut up pretty bad from struggling with the fence, but she’s on the mend now. C’mon, I’ll take you to see her first.”

I didn’t hesitate for a moment to take the hand he stretched out to me. We held hands now as if we’d been doing so for ages. I loved the feel of Beckett’s palm pressed to my palm, his fingers intertwined with my fingers. I hadn’t had a great deal of touch in my life aside from Orla and Fionn who I’d hugged often. In secret. This public hand-holding was all new to me, and Beckett’s hands were glorious.

“Hey, how does a man who spends more time on the business side of things here at Hartley’s Nest have such rugged hands?” I loosened my hold on him to inspect his palm which was rough and lined and masculine.

“That’s due to the fact that my brothers are always forcing me to be involved in projects.” Beckett released our hands all the way and studied his palms. “They are a mess, aren’t they? Sorry if they’re too abrasive.”

“They’re not.” I grabbed his hand before he could stuff it into the front pocket of the running pants he had worn to participate in my session. He wasn’t getting out of holding my hand as we toured Hartley’s Nest. “They’re perfect.”

He ran the fingers of his other hand over the top of mine. “These are perfect. So soft. So smooth. Delicate.”

His gentle stroking somehow reached all parts of my body, not just my hands. Waves of desire coursed through me, shocking dormant places wide awake. Places that had possibly never been awake.

Cian and I had been intimate. My parents didn’t know that, however, but one night after a royal gala—and perhaps one too many glasses of wine—Cian had convinced me to let him come up to my chambers. He’d gotten me undressed and, with my consent, had claimed me.

And that was what it had been. A claiming. Certainly not love-making. We’d united in this way in secret, of course, for my father probably would have had Cian beheaded if he’d realized I was no longer a virgin. I’d kept thinking our relations would improve and I’d get some satisfaction out of the pairings.

But, alas, they did not and I had not. I actually didn’t think Cian had either. It was all rather . . . mechanical.

If merely holding hands with Beckett, however, felt like this, my orgasm-faking years might finally be over.

I came back to the here and now where Beckett was still tracing his fingertips over my knuckles, causing a slow fire to lick at my insides.

“Massage,” I said.

Beckett gave me a quizzical look. “Massage?”

“I should add massage to my offerings.” I wiggled our joined hands. “The way you are touching my hands made me think that massage would be a great addition to my services. I should take a class in massage therapy.”