Sinead was bone-tired, her feet aching with blisters and shooting pain in her Achilles. She slipped off her high heels while waiting for a taxi. The London night air was frosty seeing as it was past midnight. Her stocking-clad feet were like ice blocks on the concrete pavement, but her feet thanked her for the opportunity to stretch out flat.
Exactly what the rest of her would do at home. She’d stretch out, lie like the dead on her own bed. So tired.
After the thirteen-hour flight from Singapore she was back to being a flight attendant zombie, going through the motions to exist but unaware of her surroundings. Incapable of higher-order reasoning. She hadn’t eaten anyone’s brains yet, but if one more passenger had asked her an inane question about typhoons or travel insurance, she might have gnawed someone’s face off.
She was finally at the front of the queue at the taxi rank. A pudgy security man she vaguely knew chatted to her about the weather, of all things. She’d had enough weather to last quite some time.
The security man took her bag for her and wheeled it to the front of the line. She watched the black cabs align themselves like a row of shiny beetles. Then she pictured her flat in an old council house and the dreariness hit her full-force. Her sigh must have been world-weary.
“Are you all right?” The security man watched her, concern etched on his forehead.
“Honestly, I don’t know. It’s been a rough couple of days.” Her lips twitched and she attempted a happy face. She’d been thinking of Gabriel all through her long flight. She missed him already.
She pulled her wheelie bag towards the black cab waiting at the front of the queue. Her name echoed in the distance. Was she hallucinating? She heard it again. The deep voice, so commanding and infuriatingly sexy, it could only be one man. The last man on earth she wanted to see. God, she was lying to herself. As much as she’d tried to push him away, she wanted to see him. She could stare at him for hours.
She closed her eyes and breathed, willing him to be a figment of her imagination. If he was really there, he was likely to do something mad like kiss her into blind, shaking submission. Then turn tail and leave again.
She might do something equally mad, which scared her. Like telling him that she loved him after two fecking days. That kind of mad.
“Sinead!”
His voice was hoarse from a combination of a lack of sleep and a worse type of exhaustion. He’d been run over by a spunky Irish steamroller named Sinead and crushed into the dust. But he was up and running again.
Tania from the airline had come through, organising for him to board a charter flight with some other first-class passengers. He’d made it to London only a few minutes behind Sinead. He’d send Tania some hotel vouchers or something as a thank you.
She was at the front of the taxi queue. He was sure it was her, although he could only see her from behind. Truth be told, he’d be able to identify her perfect arse in a line-up from farther away.
He ran to catch her, his feet pounded the footpath with thuds of an elephant. He huffed out a breath, a cloud of fog billowing. The scent of rain hung in the air, or was it snow? Freezing London weather, exactly what he needed.
Sinead was a mirage hovering out of reach on the edge of his vision. Hopefully she wouldn’t disappear like a puff of fog. Her spine straightened and she held herself perfectly still. She seemed to have heard him, but wouldn’t look at him. His feet kept up the pounding until he caught her with a touch on the shoulder. Her muscles tensed under his hand.
“I found you. Don’t run off again.” He didn’t like the pleading edge to his voice but his emotions were out of control around her.
She glanced over her shoulder at him. “If I remember, you’re the one who kissed me and stormed off in a huff.”
The security guard snorted in amusement.
Gabriel ignored it, speaking close to her ear. “Only after you said goodbye. It’s not what I want.”
She shivered and took a step back. “What the hell do you want? Make up your bleeding mind.”
“Share a cab with me? Hear me out.”
Her piercing glare was sharp enough to cut glass.
“Please.”
Air leaked from Sinead as her whole body deflated. He’d begun stroking her back. Soon he could be massaging her, minus her uniform and short black overcoat. If he was lucky.
“All right. Get in the cab.” She spat out the words. He guessed asking nicely had softened her up, but she was still pissed-off.
Opening the door for her, he let her slide into the back of the cab, while the driver dealt with their bags. Gabriel slid in beside Sinead. A tantalising flash of the top of her stockings caught his eye as her skirt rode up. How was he supposed to concentrate on talking to her with that view?
She shuffled back into her seat and smoothed down her skirt, then hit him with a smouldering glare. Yeah, okay. He’d better behave himself or she’d send him packing again.
The cabbie got into the driver’s seat and looked at them through the glass partition, apparently picking Sinead as the person to ask for orders.
“Where to?” The cabbie tipped his chin at Sinead.
“Roehampton.” She gave a few directions.
“Right you are.” The cabbie switched his attention to the road, starting the engine with a grumble and pulling into the light traffic.
Gabriel at least knew vaguely where she lived now, on London’s fringe, out towards Wimbledon.
Sinead faced him and stared him down across the back seat, crossing her arms under those gorgeous breasts, doing interesting things to her cleavage. Mighty distracting. He choked on a dry mouth, unable to swallow.
“So, talk.” Her words were sharp and he shrank back like a small boy in trouble with his favourite teacher. Gabriel’s face heated like a naughty schoolboy. Oh man. He needed to stop where the fantasy scenario was headed, before he asked Sinead to spank him.
“Sinead, I’m sorry about how we left things this morning at the airport. But I’m especially sorry you felt like you needed to run away.”
He shot a glance through the barrier at the driver, who seemed engrossed in watching the road. Still, the guy was probably listening to everything they said.
“Gabriel, have you gone shy? This is new.” Her teasing expression and twinkling eyes became more serious, her eyes narrowing.
“You want me to talk, then you need to talk too,” he said.
She nodded. “Fair enough. I won’t lie to you Gabriel. You hurt me. I already feel more for you than I would for a casual fling. I wasn’t prepared for you to break my heart. So I left, before you had a chance to do it.”
Gabriel’s own heart jumped as he heard the truth behind her words. He reached out to her, wanting to hold her hand in his. Wanting any sort of contact.
She backed away and raised a hand in warning.
He sighed and shook his head. “I understand and I’m sorry. But you didn’t give me a chance to talk to you this morning. I want to keep seeing you, for real. I just realised … you’re the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time. Or you could be, if we give it a chance. It’s a big decision for me. I’ve only known you a couple of days and you’ve shaken me. You’re the only woman I’ve ever met who’s made me want more.”
He didn’t know if he’d said enough to convince her to give him a chance. Damn it. He wished he’d paid more attention to all the stories his Mum told him years ago about how his father had romanced her. Before she’d found out he was a two-timing bastard. The stories were too painful to listen to and he’d blocked them out.
Sinead glanced at him, then her eyes slipped down to her hands, now crossed in her lap. “I want to believe you. There was something in your eyes last night. But—”
He didn’t like the sound of the “but”. There was never good news to follow when a woman said it that way.
“But?”
“But I think I need to lay down a couple of ground rules.” She grinned. “Yes, some rules to keep you honest.” Sinead gazed at him and seemed to dare him to respond.
She made him nervous, but she was so gorgeous at the same time, he wanted to pin her down in the back of the cab and show her who was boss. If she’d let him. God, she had him confused.
He cleared his throat. “Rules?”
“Yes. Rule number one will be no touching. I think we got a bit ahead of ourselves in Singapore. We should take it slow for a while.”
“No touching? Not even …”
He didn’t finish the sentence but his gaze tracked to her mouth, then before he could stop himself, it dropped to her sensational breasts, straining against the white shirt she wore under her unbuttoned coat.
Sinead’s gasp woke him from his hazy fog of arousal. He looked up to find her shaking her head. But the glint of fire in her eyes said she enjoyed his attention.
“Are you sure, Irish? Because the things I want to do to you … Singapore was only a taste.” How the hell did she expect him to hit the brakes now, when he knew how amazing they were together?
Her slow exhalation of breath gave him confidence. She wanted him. He’d play along with her crazy rules and wait it out.
“I’m sure. Rule number two is, you will treat me with respect and like a lady at all times. Non-negotiable.”
“Absolutely. I wouldn’t want to negotiate on that one.” He studied her face, her lips set in a straight line. Had he not treated her with respect? His Mum had raised him to be a better man than that. He’d have to lift his game. “Can I ask, how long will these rules have to remain in place? Number one in particular. I can be patient when I’m going after something I want, but I won’t wait indefinitely.”
Her lips quirked up at the corners. “We’ll play it by ear, but I’d say at least a month.”
“A month? You really are trying to kill me.”
He gripped the edge of the cab’s back seat, forcing himself to do anything but reach over and grab her. And kiss the words right out of her smart, cherry red mouth.
Sinead pressed her lips together to keep from giggling. Any anger towards Gabriel had long since dissolved in the warmth spreading through her body. He was trying to offer her something, trying to make her happy. Her gaze raked over him. He was clenching his jaw so hard he looked like he might either pass out or hit something. She settled back against the back seat of the cab and squeezed her thighs together, enjoying the throb between her legs.
Seeing Gabriel so obviously struggling for control when he wanted to touch her did good things for her self-esteem. Yes, he wanted her all right. Only it wasn’t enough to pin her hopes for a relationship on physical attraction. She’d had it once before. A long time ago. She’d still never found a real connection with any man.
She wasn’t entirely sure she was doing the right thing though. A month? What had made her come out with such a thing? She wasn’t sure she could wait so long, he was so beautiful and manly with a thinly veiled temper.
But she had her reasons for slowing things down. She wanted to keep seeing him, to get to know him properly without clinging onto him for dear life. There was more to Gabriel Anderson and she wanted him to show her what he usually kept hidden from the world. And she wanted him to be invested in a relationship with her from the outset.
“Sinead? Are there any more rules you’re laying down?”
“That’s it, for now. But I reserve the right to invent new rules, if and when required.”
She enjoyed his small groan of frustration and the crinkly lines which crept across his forehead. She might have been mean but she got a thrill from causing the big hunk of overconfident man to squirm.
“Okay. You should have been a lawyer. You have a real knack for contract negotiations. I have a question. Under these new rules, am I allowed to take you out to dinner?”
She nodded, enjoying a thrill of sparkly pleasure in her belly. “Yes, you may.”
“Would you do me the honour of accompanying me to dinner tomorrow night? Or tonight, seeing as it’s already after midnight.”
“Yes, thank you. You can call me after lunch, when I’ve had some sleep.”
Gabriel nodded and she noticed him loosen his death-grip on the seat. She sighed happily and stared out the window.
After a few minutes, the cab exited the motorway and the familiar lights and streets of her neighbourhood came into view. More than usual, she looked forward to getting home to her flat. This time, after a long and tiring trip she had something, someone, to look forward to seeing.
After giving a few directions to the cab driver, they pulled up in her street. She paid the fare after refusing Gabriel’s attempt to do so, and moved to get out of the car. Quick as you like, Gabriel shot out of his side of the car and went round to her door, opening it for her.
“My lady.” He dipped his head in a half bow.
She laughed. “Thank you, kind sir.”
“Let me walk you to your door.”
The cab driver had deposited her bag on the footpath. Gabriel grabbed it, shooing her away when she attempted to carry her own bag. After a word to the driver, asking him to wait and take him to his hotel, Gabriel followed her.
They walked up the cracked concrete path to the two-storey red-brick house, now divided into four separate flats. Her place was nothing impressive, but it was home, for now. She refused to be embarrassed by her humble abode, even if he was used to the finer things in life.
She waved her hand at the house. “So, this is me. Goodnight Gabriel.”
“Goodnight.”
He moved forward to kiss her, then a shadow crossed his face. Apparently he’d remembered the rules. For a moment she wished he’d forgotten himself. But if this plan were to work, he’d have to play by the rules. They both would.
He stepped back and handed over her bag. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
“Till tomorrow.”
Her laughter couldn’t be contained, it bubbled up and escaped in a rush. It must have been contagious because Gabriel’s wide smile took her breath away as she unlocked her front door.
It would be stupidly frustrating waiting until tomorrow evening to see his face. But considering only that morning she’d never expected to see him again, she couldn’t believe her luck.
She hoped it was luck. As she closed the door behind her, she decided luck was only part of it. She had a plan, and the rules.
Gabriel downed his third espresso of the day and tapped impatiently on the cold black lacquered board room table. The long-winded budget update from his London team was making his ears bleed and figures were swimming before his eyes on his laptop screen. Five hours’ sleep hadn’t been enough, lying alone in his new hotel bed.
He’d woken several times overnight and reached for Sinead, finding the other side of the bed cold and empty. Somehow, in two nights and half a day, he’d become used to sleeping with a warm, soft woman pressed up against him. Not just any woman. Sinead. Hopefully he’d break down her defences soon and she’d be back in his bed, in spite of her infuriating rules. But that wasn’t all he wanted from Sinead. Not only that. Something else had been driving him to catch up with her in London. The possibility of something more.
A voice floated into his brain. “The marketing budget is coming in slightly over, but we expected the outlay in the set-up phase.”
Gabriel blinked and lifted his chin. His attention had been anywhere but on his best friend, Ryan McKinlay, acting in his new role of European regional manager. Ry looked sharp, his dark hair slicked back and his grey suit Savile Row stylish. Unlike Gabriel. He was rumpled and exhausted. Not his usual style.
Ryan’s last comment required some sort of response, but for the life of him, Gabriel couldn’t work out what he was meant to say. Clearly, his head wasn’t in the game. That was unusual too.
“Gabe, are you with us?” Ryan smirked, clearly amused by Gabriel’s lapse in concentration.
Gabriel blinked and opened his eyes wider. “Sorry mate, I’m jet-lagged. I think I’m done with absorbing information for today.”
“Okay folks, show’s over. I’d like everyone to email their reports to Gabriel and myself by close of business. Thanks.” Ryan dismissed the team with his usual confident and friendly way, chatting with people on their way out.
A procession of four men and two women filed out of the conference room and Gabriel struggled to remember their names. It would click into place once he read their written reports. Hopefully.
Ryan flopped back into a swivel chair and stretched out, hands behind his head. His dark hair flopped over his eyes as he stared at Gabriel.
“Come on, spill the beans. You’re on another planet today and I reckon it’s more than jet-lag.”
Ryan had always been insightful, which made him a great people-manager. But Gabriel didn’t feel like sharing. Especially since he himself didn’t understand what was going on.
“Is it your Mum?” Ryan’s question was hesitant. Gabriel hated to think his friend might be afraid to raise the subject.
Gabriel had been otherwise occupied and the situation had almost slipped his mind in the past few days. It had been a relief. But now the guilt hit him hard, right in the gut. “No. The worry’s always there, but she’s all right for now in respite care. I might look into permanent care at the centre.”
Sinead was still occupying his thoughts. He should talk to Ryan. His best friend was probably the only person who’d understand what Sinead’s presence could mean in his life. He closed his laptop and avoided his friend’s eyes. “I um, met someone. A woman.”
Ryan sat up straight and his familiar grin appeared. “I’m surprised. One of your hook-ups?”
Gabriel’s head shake and raised eyebrows got a laugh out of Ryan. “Sinead’s something else.”
Ryan leaned forward in his seat. “Now I’m intrigued. Give me the low-down.”
“Flight attendant, Irish accent, long blonde hair, fantastic breasts. She’s hot, but she’s more. Funny and sweet. She’s got me agreeing to all sorts of crap to keep seeing her.”
“Like what? Bondage, discipline? Cavorting naked in a field?”
He snorted, but enjoyed Ryan’s joking. It’d been too long since they’d hung out. Gabriel hadn’t had the time lately. “No, but I wouldn’t put it past her. She’s making all these rules. No touching for a month.”
“Oh man, you’ll be out of your mind. You agreed? She must be special.”
“Special.” Funny, Sinead had used the same word. It was growing on him. “Yeah, you could say that. Lucky we already got down and dirty in Singapore, so I know it’s worth waiting for. It’ll be hell in the meantime though.”
Ryan chuckled and got up from his seat. “Good luck, mate. I’d like to meet her sometime.”
“She’s in London, so you might. Anyway, I’m taking her out tonight, so I’d better get onto booking a restaurant for dinner.”
“If you want my advice, don’t overthink it. It sounds like she wants to get to know you. Talk to her. Try not to be your usual charming self.”
“Sarcasm. Nice.”
Ryan laughed hard on his way out.
Gabriel was aware of his reputation with women. Some would call him a womaniser. But that wasn’t fair. He’d never led anyone on, and only chose women who wanted some fun. And he could be charming. The charm was something he utilised for business reasons, or when it was warranted. But with Sinead, he wanted something different. He wanted to be different.
Sinead was special, there was no point in denying it anymore.
Gabriel drummed the tabletop again. Working the way he had over the past twelve years, like a machine, hadn’t left any time for a real relationship. He’d always avoided ongoing commitments with women, to spare them the complications in his life. And he’d always assumed no woman would want him if she understood the issues he faced with his Mum.
Tonight could be the right time to open up to Sinead, at least for starters.
Coffee, fabulous coffee.
Sinead thanked the god of caffeine for her fix as she waited for Yuki. Shot Espresso off the Fulham Road was a sweet little Italian café, perfumed with the scent of real, fresh roasted coffee beans, a balm to her soul. It was the perfect spot for brunch with her friend, and a debrief on the Gabriel situation.
She hadn’t confided in Yuki about her new man, so far. It had happened so fast – it was only four days since they’d first met. Although with the typhoon and jet-lag, she’d entered some type of alternate universe where time stretched out like a giant rubber band. Everything had happened in fast-motion, then been jammed in place before things snapped back, not quite in a straight line. Now she was back to regular life, everything was strange and wobbly.
From her seat by the café windows, she spied Yuki heading her way. Yuki had been scheduled on a different flight back to London, so it seemed to Sinead as if she hadn’t seen her friend in weeks.
Sinead waved and Yuki answered with a tinkling laugh she could hear from inside. Her friend looked happy. Yuki’s days in Singapore with her boyfriend, Daniel, must have made her beam. Yuki pushed open the door, jingling the old-fashioned brass bell.
“Hi Sinead! It’s so good to see you. I was worried about you.”
Yuki swished her curtain of black shiny hair over her shoulder as she hugged Sinead. She sat in the opposite chair and rolled her shoulders, as if to release some tension.
“I’m grand, but it’s good to see you too.” It really was a relief to see her friend safe and well. And to have someone to talk to. “So get yourself a cup of tea and prepare yourself. I’ve a story to tell.”
“Oh, interesting. Sounds like I need a whole pot of tea.” Yuki ordered English Breakfast tea from the young waiter, a man with Italian good looks and a bright white flash of teeth. “I’m ready. Tell me this story.”
Sinead told the tale from the beginning, the flirty exchange with Gabriel on the original flight out of Melbourne, and how they met again in the airport lounge. The twinkle of excitement in Yuki’s eyes was contagious.
“Oh, I remember. A top prospect from the Young Rich List. He was gorgeous! A bit cranky but definitely a spunk. Did you do the deed?”
“Aye, we did the deed, and wow. You know it’d been a while for me. I nearly tackled him to the ground when I got him alone in my suite. Turns out he’s a marathon man and more than equipped for the task.” Sinead giggled.
Yuki squealed and clapped her hands in delight. “Yay! Sounds like exactly what you needed. Are you going to see him again?”
Sinead held her tongue as the waiter arrived with Yuki’s tea. He poured the steaming brew into a china cup with tiny rosebuds painted around the rim. Then he left them alone again.
“I’m seeing him tonight. But there are a couple of other things I should tell you. I’m not sure if I’ve lost my mind.”
Yuki’s eyes widened at Sinead’s explanation about Gabriel’s aversion to relationships and his attempt to fob her off. She left out some details of both their delicious lovemaking and rampant shagging, and the way she’d tried to run away.
Sinead sipped her latte and sighed. “It’s been years since I felt anything close to what I already feel for him. So I decided to give him a chance. But I wanted to make sure he was really interested. I invented some rules. Number one is already freaking me out – no touching for a month.”
Yuki clutched at her heart. “Whoa. You may be shooting yourself in the foot. He’s hot stuff. Don’t you want some touchy-feely time?”
Sinead groaned and rolled her eyes. “Of course I do. I’ll probably have to sit on my hands to stop myself grabbing him at dinner tonight. It’s just I want him to be a gentleman and treat me like a lady. I think I deserve it.”
“You do.” Yuki placed her hand on Sinead’s and then her mouth stretched in a wicked grin. “But some rules are made to be broken. It wouldn’t hurt to tease the man a little. Let’s go shopping for a dress that’ll have him picking his tongue up off the floor and begging to lick you like a lollipop.”
Sinead snorted and barely stopped a mouthful of coffee from exploding across the table. “You’re on. Shopping for tongue-lolling outfit. Excellent plan.”
“I don’t think I can get it over my head. Help!”
Sinead twisted and squirmed, trying to make an impossibly small “body-conscious” dress fit over her head and flailing arms. She spoke through the fabric. “I don’t think this overstuffed sausage skin look will win me any beauty contests.”
Yuki burst in from the next cubicle in the posh boutique’s changing room. Her squeal of alarm also alerted the haughty shop assistant who came rushing over.
Sinead huffed out a breath then sucked in her belly. Her less than glamorous yet sensible white cotton knickers were making an appearance. The ones with the unravelling elastic, reserved for when she was feeling jet-lagged or pudgy. Or when she’d got back from her travels and hadn’t had a chance to wash her clothes.
The shop lady poked her ribcage with a bony finger. “You are aware there is a side zipper, I presume?” Ms Haughty-Pants enquired. Obviously Sinead hadn’t seen the zipper or she wouldn’t be in her current predicament.
At least Haughty was helpful, releasing the stuck zipper and Sinead’s head with it. Yuki helped to wrench the dress off, thrusting it at the shop lady with unnecessary force.
“Here, why don’t you go find my friend something delectable to wear? She wants her new man to try to lick her all over, although she’s not going to let him.”
The shop lady sauntered off with a barely disguised look of disgust. Sinead giggled and patted Yuki on the shoulder. Sinead picked up a tiny bandage dress from a pile on the chair in the corner, but Yuki slapped her hand away.
“Wait! No more sausage dresses. I have the perfect thing.”
Yuki dashed into her original cubicle and was back quick as a flash, closing the door behind her. She waved a bright red silk dress, swaying from the hanger with a pleasing swish.
Sinead admired the intricate swirl of fabric at the front, like a rosette. Sliding her fingers down the length of the dress, she let out an oooh at the softness. “I don’t know, it’s more your style.” Sinead went for modern, edgy styles, while Yuki liked feminine, retro fashions a la Audrey Hepburn.
“Try it on. I’ll bet your fancy-man will love it.”
Sinead was sold on the dress the moment it slipped over her head with a whisper against her skin. It fell with a low v-neckline, gathered under her breasts, then it floated down to her knees. A naughty split was hidden under a fold at the centre seam.
“Your boobs look awesome in it. Gabriel’s going to be dribbling on you before you finish dinner,” Yuki said.
Bubbles of excitement rose in her belly until she almost popped. Her lips tipped upwards. “I guess it’s a winner.”
Sinead’s happy face slid downwards when her phone chimed from the depths of her cavernous tote bag. She fished it out and glanced at the caller’s name on the screen, then mouthed to Yuki. It’s him.
“Hello Gabriel. It’s a pleasure to hear from you.”
He had the perfect evening planned. When he should have been concentrating on work, Gabriel had spread out the contents of his briefcase across the spare executive desk and studiously ignored it. Instead, he’d called in a couple of favours to snag VIP tickets to a sold-out Slammers gig at an exclusive club he’d never heard of, and booked a table for dinner at the Italian wine bar, North.
It was enjoyable, trying to work out what type of date would appeal to Sinead. A mixture of fun and glamour, he guessed. He grabbed his phone and dialled her number before he knew what he was doing.
When she answered, he could have sworn he heard giggling in the background. What was she was up to? He could picture her, face lit up with internal sunshine, radiating from her creamy skin.
“Hello Gabriel. It’s a pleasure to hear from you.”
Relaxing back in his leather chair, his lips stretched upwards. “The pleasure is all mine, believe me. What are you up to?”
“I’m trying on a pretty dress which apparently makes my boobs look awesome.”
Heat spread from his neck up to his face at the image she conjured. He was pretty sure his eyeballs were bugging out. She was teasing him, trying to get a reaction, he could tell by the lilt in her accent. It was damn well working.
“Oh Irish, will you wear it for me tonight?” His voice was huskier than usual due to a serious case of dry-mouth syndrome.
“Why yes, I think I will wear it tonight.”
How was he going to get through a whole evening with her in some super-hot dress with all the boob action, with no touching? He cleared his throat.
“I can hardly wait. I’ve got some surprises lined up for you too. How about I pick you up from your place at seven?”
“Seven o’clock sounds grand. Looking forward to seeing you all handsome. Bye.”
“Bye.”
He ended the call and found himself staring out the window. Grinning like a kid who’d been allowed to lick the last traces of cake batter out of the mixing bowl. He had to go and think of licking things. Sweet and tasty things.
The heat that’d spread over his face now rushed downstairs and overheated matters. What the hell? No other woman had ever had such an effect on him. Uncomfortably hard, he shifted in his chair and stretched out his legs.
Sinead had better not leave him hanging for long. He was trying, making an effort to be the gentleman she wanted. But he wasn’t known for his patience.