"It's nice," I told him. "You're lucky to have a mother like her."
"Yeah," he shot back sarcastically. "Sure I am."
He was.
Johnny didn’t realize it, but in the space of an hour or two, his mother had taken more of an interest in me than my own mother had in months.
Maybe even years.
"Listen, you better just take a shower and give me your clothes," Johnny said with a sigh. "Otherwise, she's just going to come back and keep nagging on about pneumonia and all that shite."
Was he serious?
Was I actually supposed to take a shower in his house again?
"I am serious," Johnny muttered, reading my thoughts. "And I am sorry."
"Oh." Blushing, I knotted my hands in front of myself and shrugged uncertainly. "Um, okay?"
He stared at me for the longest moment before shaking his head. "Come here."
"Come where?"
"Here," he instructed, gesturing for me to follow him into his ensuite bathroom.
Like a baby foal, I hurried after him, all shaky legged and clumsy.
Hovering in the doorway of his luxurious bathroom, I watched as he reached over the tub and turned on the shower.
"You, uh, said you had a problem with it last time," he mumbled with a shrug.
"Did I?"
"Uh, yeah," he replied, shifting uncomfortably. "You were mumbling in your sleep about my shower scalding you."
I turned beetroot red.
"Oh, god, I'm sorry," I choked out, feeling nervous again.
"Stop," he warned with a smile. "It was cute."
"Cute?" I squeezed out, practically hyperventilating.
"Uh, yeah, I'll put some clothes out for you again." Johnny's cheeks turned a flushed shade of pink as he stepped around me and hurried back into his room, "Same as last time."
"Where will I put my clothes?"
"Just throw them out to me when you're naked– ah, when you're ready," he muttered gruffly. "I'll put them in the dryer," he added before closing the door and leaving me alone in his bathroom.
Trembling, I sank down on the closed toilet lid and exhaled a ragged breath.
Oh, god.
45
I'm a virgin
Johnny
I was in so much fucking trouble.
For once, my problems had nothing to do with my adductor and everything to do with the girl naked in my bathroom.
"What the hell was that about?" I hissed when I found my mother in the kitchen.
"Hello, love," my mother replied, as she continued to chop carrots, clearly oblivious to my outrage.
"Hello?" I balked. "That's all you've got to say?"
Setting her knife down on the chopping board, she turned to face me.
"That girl is fragile, Johnny." Mam nibbled on her lip, brows furrowed in concern. "There is something about her that makes me want to wrap my arms around her and cuddle the sadness out of her eyes."
Yeah, I knew the feeling.
I knew that feeling very fucking well.
"So, you force her to come over here?" I hissed. "Tell me how that was a good idea?"
"Oh, god," Mam strangled. "I haven’t upset her, have I?"
"No, she's okay," I bit out, "But I'm not."
I was so far from okay, the word was a blip on my radar.
"What's wrong, baby?"
"What's wrong?" I practically spat. "Ma, you just snookered me! What were you thinking bringing her here?"
"You were enjoying yourself up there," Mam said with a smile. "She was beating you at PlayStation, huh?"
Yeah, she was.
Shannon was kicking my ass at GTA and ruining other parts of my anatomy.
I had no clue how I ended up getting my ass handed to me by that pint-sized girl, but that's what happened.
Watching her completely dominate my PlayStation was so fucking hot.
Seriously, her skills with a controller, and her ability to kick my ass like she did, only made her infinitely sexier.
She was fucking perfect.
I was so caught up in her that I could have sat there all night, just being with her.
And then my Ma had to go wreck it and make everything all awkward and strained again.
Jesus, she was naked in my room.
Naked.
I couldn’t handle that.
Not when all I wanted to do was be naked right with her.
I was only seventeen.
This was a temptation I doubted a man twice my age could resist.
I shook my head and expelled a frustrated breath. "Why, Ma – why in god's name would you do this to me? And this –" I held up Shannon's jumper and shook it around, "Why would you make her shower here?"
"Did she have a shower?"
"She's currently in my shower."
"Oh, that's good."
Good? "What are you trying to do to me, Ma?" I demanded. "Why would you do this?"
"She was wet!" Mam defended. "And so are you," she added with a concerned look. "Go and change your clothes before you catch pneumonia."
"I will," I growled. "When you tell me why you screwed me over?"
"I didn’t screw you over, Johnny," Mam replied. "Don’t be over-dramatic."
"You knew I had a PT session I had to go to this evening."
Since I'd been banned from the pitch, Jason, my personal trainer, wanted my ass in the pool every evening for the rest of the week.
And now?
Now I was trying to figure how to get myself out of a situation that only had one appealing result.
Shannon naked on my bed.
With me naked on top of her.
Preferably in her.
If my fucked-up dick held out.
Stop it, asshole.
Stop those thoughts!
"You knew I needed you to take me because I don’t have my bleeding car," I hissed, frustrated. "And now? Now, I have a naked girl in my room, Ma. A naked fucking girl and I'm holding her bleeding clothes."
Stalking towards her, I dumped Shannon's wet uniform on the counter and glared at her.
"What kind of mother does that to their son?"
"Well, you're down here with me," Mam replied calmly, patting my cheek. "So, I raised you well."
"Ma," I growled.
"I thought you could do with a rest," she huffed. "You look so tired, sweetheart."
Give me strength…
"And you were having so much fun," she added with a rueful smile. "I haven't seen you relax like that in years."
True.
But not the point.
"And my car?" I demanded. "What am I supposed to do without my car?"
"Your father's picking it up on his way home this evening," she replied, having a bleeding answer for everything. "There's been some hiccup with the case, so he'll be home tonight and he'll take me to the airport in the morning." She checked her watch and sighed happily. "He should be home any minute – he left Dublin over three hours ago."
Normally when my mother pushed my buttons, my father would smooth things over, but not this time.
No, because as delighted as I was to hear my Dad would be home for the night, Mam had gone way too far this time.
She had meddled in something I didn't want anyone meddling in.
She meddled with Shannon.
"Why did you do this?" I repeated.
"Because I think you two are doing a line together on the sly," Mam said with smirk. "You look so cute together."
"Doing a line?" I gaped at my mother. "What are you talking about? You know I don’t take drugs! I'm tested all the fucking time."
"No, love," Mam chuckled. "Doing a line together as in secretly seeing each other." Shrugging, she added, "I was trying to let you know that I was okay with you having a girlfriend, and I was trying to make Shannon feel welcome."
God.
This woman.
"Well, I can assure you that I am not doing lines of anything – cocaine or girls," I snapped. "We are just friends."
"She's a lovely girl, Johnny," Mam offered. "Seems very fond of you." She turned to look at me when she said, "You could do a lot worse than a nice girl like her."
"Yeah, well, I don’t see her like that."
Lie.
Lie.
Barefaced Lie.
"She's just a friend."
More lies.
"That's it, Ma."
"Do you honestly think you can sell me that shite, Johnny Kavanagh?" Mam shot back, lips twitching. "I'm your mother. I brought you into this world, and I know every single time you tell me a lie."
"I am not lying," I lied.
"You're lying to me right now."
"I am fucking not."
"It's okay if you do, love," Mam said in a reassuring tone.
"We're friends," I bit out. "That's it."
"But you like her?" Mam asked after a long pause of silence.