Lucky Bachelor (The HoliDATE Series Book 2) Read online

  Lucky Bachelor

  The HoliDATE Series

  Copyright © 2019 by Heather Young-Nichols

  Cover Art by Booked by Design

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Steamy Sensations Holiday Love

  [For St. Patrick’s Day]

  Privileged Love by Ja’nese Dixon

  St. Patrick’s Luck by Liz Gavin

  Lucky Day by Sammi Starlight

  The Billionaire’s Luck by Tracy Pedersen

  Getting Lucky by Nick Danes

  Her Lucky Charm by Liz Durano

  Patrick by Callie Vegas

  Irish Kisses by Josie Bordeaux

  Chapter One

  Three months is a long time to go without seeing the person you love. Actually, it hadn’t even been a whole three months, but it felt like much, much longer. Even worse when that person lived over three thousand miles away making option for a visit limited.

  Eagan O’Brien, the man I’d been pining for, the man I was totally and completely in love with, had come to see me over Christmas so now it was my turn to go to him. Only he didn’t know it yet.

  I’d already made the first leg and layover in New York and now was firmly flying over the Atlantic Ocean eight hours after I first left my apartment. I hated that it took so long to get to him.

  Yes, we talked on the phone every single day without exception. My dad had nearly had an aneurism when he saw those first cell bills after I came home from Ireland nine months ago. Then he talked to the cell company and they found an international plan that while more than my original plan was still less money than paying international toll for each call. Those calls, some video chats, and the intermittent face to face visits were all we had to get us through until I graduated in May. In May, Eagan would come to me, watch me graduate, so that we could really start our lives together. Our life together had already started but we wouldn’t be apart after I finished school.

  Or I hoped we wouldn’t. There were still things to get figured out.

  The week at Christmas had been amazing but not long enough so when I happened to find a fantastic deal on a last-minute flight, I jumped. Yes, I’d miss a bunch of classes because our spring break had been back in February. But I’d talked to each of my professors. Explained where I was going as well as why and they seemed to appreciate my honesty. But they warned me to stay on top of my syllabus and turn in any assignments online. I’d guess that it being the last semester of my senior year, the professors were more chill. Whatever the reason, I’d take it. But I spent the last three days working ahead so I wouldn’t have to do anything while in Ireland.

  Other than Eagan.

  I’d gone back and forth so many times on whether to tell Eagan I was coming to see him. Telling him was the obvious choice. He’d pick me up at the airport and we’d have that moment where we saw each other and had a glorious reunion in public. And that would’ve been great. Amazing even.

  But for some reason, a reason I didn’t have the words to explain, I wanted to surprise him. Over the last nine months, he did everything possible to remind me he was thinking of me. Sweet texts. Sexy texts. Random pictures. Random deliveries of flowers and little things that he bought online and had delivered to my door just because he was thinking about me, he said. Sometimes he’d ask me to send him a new selfie which I’d always do. Sometimes he told me he’d used the last one and wanted something new. I didn’t ask him to elaborate but given how he said, I knew exactly what he meant.

  The idea that he might’ve… touched himself while thinking about me probably should’ve… grossed me out, embarrassed me, yet it didn’t. It didn’t at all. But I’d never send him anything of me without clothes on. My mom didn’t raise no fool.

  Finally the plane touched down in Dublin causing my heart to race with excitement. We were in the same country right now and he didn’t even know it. This was either going to go really, really well, or pretty wrong. The only way it wouldn’t go well was if Eagan happened to have left town without telling me which was highly unlikely.

  My excitement was messing with my brain.

  Because I only brought a carryon with me, I got to skip the luggage area which saved me time. The less minutes I spent on stupid stuff, the better. But I did coast into the restroom at the airport before finding the car rental counter where I hoped my reservation was already waiting for me. I’d just spent a long time on an airplane and wanted to freshen up as much as possible.

  First I changed my clothes, put on some new deodorant, and did my best to make my hair look presentable. It was a little longer since he’d last seen me. I freshened up my makeup and slid a little lip gloss over my lips. It wasn’t much but I did my best.

  When I got to the car rental counter, there was a small line. I groaned silently. This would be more time keeping me from Eagan. Thankfully, it moved pretty quickly and in no time, I was sliding behind the wheel of a rental car, ready for the half an hour drive.

  After putting his address into my phone’s GPS, I pulled away from the airport, not all that anxious to return in four days.

  Ireland would never not be beautiful to me. When I came with my mom last year, I hadn’t considered that I’d come back. Maybe one day, sure. But then I met Eagan O’Brien and he helped me out when I had nothing and no one while being trapped in a country that wasn’t mine. And I fell in love with him. Now there was no going back.

  Eagan lived above the pub he owned with his brother. So once I got close, I pulled off because, while he wouldn’t recognize the car, I didn’t want him to see me until I was ready for him to. But I let my bag in the car and only took my purse with me.

  I stepped out into the fresh air and took a deep breath to calm myself down. I’d never done anything remotely like this in my life.

  Every part of this place was marked with memories of the time I’d spent here with Eagan last year. It hadn’t been long, yet, we’d packed in so much that everywhere I looked filled me with memories. The street that I’d parked on ran parallel to the one his pub was on. I turned right and walked the block up but stopped and peeked around the building to make sure he wasn’t outside for any reason. Then I turned right again and was mere steps away from the man that I loved.

  Several people greeted me out front but then it was time to go in. I pulled the door open and stepped into the pub where Mom and I had eaten every day of Ireland trip.

  I’d arrived at lunchtime so the place was packed and alive with conversation. All with deep Irish accents that I’d come to find the sexiest of all accents. The biggest smile came to my face as I frantically searched the room for Eagan. His brother, Cian, was working behind the bar but Eagan had to be there somewhere. He had to be. He’d told me he basically worked every day other than hanging out with his brother because without me there, he didn’t have much to do.

  I sucked my bottom lip into my mouth, holding it there between me teeth when finally, Cian glanced up, looked back down, and did a double take. A smile crossed his face and I raised my eyebrows as I gave him a quick wave.

  Cian shook his head and glanced back toward the kitchen and yelled “Eagan! Need some help out here, brother.”

  Finally… he came through the door. His dark hair was a little longer t
han the last time I’d seen him. Every time I laid eyes on for the first time of a visit, my breath caught in my chest. Eagan O’Brien literally took my breath away. He said something to his brother that I couldn’t hear because he didn’t yell like Cian did.

  I assumed Cian would’ve told him I was standing there but he hadn’t seemed to. Instead, he loudly said, “Go help over by the door.”

  Finally, seemingly at roughly the same pace of a sloth, Eagan looked in my direction. Just as Cian had, his gaze passed right over me then immediately snapped right to me. He froze for a good thirty seconds as if he thought his eyes were tricking him before a grin slowly spread across his face.

  Chapter Two

  I was starting to think Eagan would never come over to me but once his smile was there, he hopped over the bar, and weaved around the tables, making his way to me. He could’ve gone around the bar but he had chosen not to. Which meant he was either trying to show off his amazingness or he didn’t want to take the five extra seconds going around would’ve taken to get to me. Either way my skin heated more and more the closer he got.

  About six wide steps was all it took for Eagan’s long, hard body to slam into mine and his arms to wrap around me tightly. So tightly, in fact, that he lifted me off my feet and snaked his arm up my back so that his hand fisted in the hair at the back of my neck. He held me against him like he didn’t ever want to let me go and I fucking hoped he wouldn’t.

  When he pulled back a little, I thought he wanted to say something. Instead, his lips crashed into mine, kissing me with such intensity, his tongue demanding against mine, that I completely forgot we were surrounded by a pub full of people until someone let out a loud whistle.

  I laughed against him mouth which, unfortunately, brought that particular moment to an end.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked once I was back on my feet. I talked to him every day and yet his voice still made my knees weak.

  “I’m a surprise,” I said back as I ran my hand down the side of his beautiful face.

  “The best fucking kind,” he said before leaning down and kissing me again.

  This was only the fourth time we’d been in the same place at the same time. When that happened, we tended to spend a lot of the time kissing… and naked.

  “Jesus,” Cian said after suddenly appearing beside us. “People are eating.”

  Eagan didn’t respond and instead grinned over at his brother while keeping me tucked in close to his side.

  “Get the fuck outta here and have a scuttle. You’re making people sick.”

  He kissed the side of my head then said, “I don’t want to leave you short.”

  “If I need the help I’ll get Collen to come down but go.” Cian pointed at the door and walked away from us.

  “Let’s go,” he said then grabbed my hand and pulled me out the door.

  Him living about the pub turned out to be quite handy because we were out of the public eye and alone in his apartment within a minute. I missed this place. This apartment he’d offered me as a safe haven months ago when he only just met me. But Eagan’s that kind of guy. I was in a foreign country and in distress. He offered me his own apartment with the idea that he’d stay with his brother.

  He never stayed with his brother.

  As soon as he closed the door, I leaped into his arms. Him holding me tightly was the best feeling in the world. I wanted him naked against me but even clothed… I didn’t want to ever let go.

  Maybe coming here for only four days was actually a bad idea. Being apart, the longer we went, the more I got used to it. Now my heart had already started to ache at the idea of leaving him far too soon. Each time we separated, the first week came with a broken heart.

  But no, I decided. I’d rather deal with the pain of leaving him, or him leaving me, if it meant even an hour with him.

  Eagan held onto me tightly as I began kissing him. He didn’t break out connection as he walked up over to the couch and dropped onto it, me on his lap. The move gave me leverage to hold onto his shoulders and demand everything I wanted from his soft lips. His hands slid up my thighs, on top of my jeans, until he settled on my hips and pulled me into him. Still having our clothes on should’ve been considered torture. Though I assumed we’d get there soon enough. At least until Eagan pulled back and his lips were no longer on mine.

  Talk about disappointment. I pushed my bottom lip out in a pout but that made him chuckle low in his chest.

  “Don’t look at me like that, dote,” he said and used his index finger to push my lip back into place. The first time he’d called me that, I thought it meant something close to idiot. I’d given him my very best angry face until he explained that it really meant I was adorable. He could’ve been lying to get himself out of trouble but I didn’t think so. For the most part, Eagan had adjusted what he said to me so I’d be less confused most of the time.

  “Well, how am I supposed to look. I thought we’d be naked by now,” I said back. “I thought you’d already be inside of me. Imagine my disappointment.” It was hard but I schooled my face of all the laughter forming inside of me.

  “Now, now,” he chided me. “I’ll do anything you want me to do to you soon enough. But I’m curious.”

  The way he said he’d do anything I wanted him to made my stomach drop. Eagan would never disappoint me so I’d wait.

  I sighed and said, “Fine. What are you curious about?”

  “You’re here.” He ran a hand down my back. “How are you here? And why didn’t you tell me you were coming? I would’ve come to the airport to get you.”

  “I know you would’ve. But I wanted to surprise you.”

  “You definitely did that.”

  “The look on your face when you first saw me was worth it.” I ran my thumb across his lips and sighed. The quicker I explained, the quicker we’d get to the naughty part of this reunion. “I was messing around online last week and… ” I shrugged. “Sometimes I like to check the price of a plane ticket to see you and see how far out of my student budget it is. Which let me say, holy shit, dude. You’ve come to see me three times are you insane? That’s a lot of money.”

  Eagan laughed out loud this time. “You’re worth it.”

  “But that’s insanely expensive.”

  He held the sides of my face as he leaned in and gave me a slow, languid kiss. The kind I felt everywhere as if his tongue wasn’t only stroking mine but stroking every inch of my body. The kind I had I dreamed of every night since the last one we’d spent together. The kind that made me forget whatever the hell I had been trying to say.

  But then he pulled back far, far too soon. “Like I said. You’re more than worth it. Besides, what choice did I have? Go the entire year without seeing you? Touching you?” Eagan shook his head slowly. “I’d pay a lot more if I had to.”

  “Well, I came across a deal I honestly thought wasn’t going to be real. Turned out it was and it was an amount I had in my savings account so here I am.”

  “Not your entire savings account, I hope.”

  I shrugged. “Not all of it.” What I didn’t want to tell him was that the account was pretty pathetic now. It wasn’t easy as a student to build a savings account. I worked summers and even some during the school year but not enough to cover much. This trip was a huge splurge for me but straddling Eagan the way I was made me forget all about the money. “Now, how about that naked part?”

  Eagan game me a sly grin before diving back in to kiss me again. This time… he didn’t stop.

  There’d be talking, so much talking, afterward but when we got together the sexual beast had to be fed first.

  His fingers slid into my hair, tangling right behind my ears and it was moments like this that I was truly reminded how much I missed him when we were apart. There were lots of things I missed about him. Many moments where I wished he was with me. But this was one of them. The closeness. The intimacy. This was irreplaceable.

  Before I got any more lost in my thoug
hts, Eagan rose from the couch without dropping me or letting go for even a second and walked us over to his bed in the corner. His place was set up like a studio apartment with each area defined but open. No doors to get in the way.

  He slowly lowered me onto his bed, not breaking our kiss even as he climbed on top of me. Only when he pulled back to yank his shirt over his head did I realize how much I needed to breathe. My chest swelled and sank rapidly as I tried to regulate that breathing. But damn seeing him half naked almost took it right away again.

  I slid my hands up his chest and didn’t stop until I was clasping his face and trying to pull him back down.

  “Nuh-uh,” he said. I scrunched my face up because there was no way in hell he’d deny me. Or I didn’t think he would. He never had before. “Your turn.”

  That did nothing to help my confusion. My turn for what? But then he twirled two fingers in the air telling me to get up.

  Oh. Oh he wanted my shirt off.

  As I pushed myself up, Eagan moved back at the same time to give me room. Instead of pulling it off myself, I raised my hands into the air and raised an eyebrow at him. Eagan’s tongue peeked out between his lips, wetting them quickly before he yanked my shirt off roughly. When I moved to lay back down but he shook his head before his lips crashed into mine. It took everything I had not to fall back but he held me there as his hand slid around my back and unclasped my bra.

  Without anything standing between his hand and my breast, he cupped it then squeezed as we fell back against the mattress. He landed on top of me.

  Eagan kissed me again before trailing his lips and tongue down my neck. When he got there, he sucked a nipple into his mouth as my fingers tightened in his hair. When he scraped his teeth against the sensitive nub, I moaned. He dropped a kiss right above my belly button then lifted his head, resting his chin on my stomach and gaze up at me.

  “I’ve missed you,” he said softly.

  I bit my lips together but even that didn’t stop me from grinning like a fool. The words didn’t exist for me to explain how much I missed being with him. It would take a while. So instead I said, “Prove it.”