Chapter 30

CHAPTER THIRTY

FINNIGAN

Fueled by an unfamiliar nervousness, I head to the church to pick up Catlin much earlier than we had agreed upon. Parking my bike next to our little slab of concrete, I’m pleased to spot two of our guys lingering around the perimeter of the church grounds. While they immediately stand out to me, I highly doubt that they would get a second glance from either Catlin or Father O’Flaherty.

After removing my helmet and climbing from the bike, I pull my phone from my jeans to text Cat.

I’m in our spot, piscín

CATLIN

You’re early

I missed you

While it’s not a lie— I miss the fuck out of her when we’re apart— I omit the full truth of being concerned for her safety.

Uncle Sean was actually just leaving.

Subtly, I look up from my phone to see the church van driving toward me with Father O’Flaherty behind the wheel. I attempt to avert my face, hoping he doesn’t notice me loitering.

I have to finish up this announcement and lock up

Meet me in the convent in about ten minutes

Realizing she’s all alone in that big, empty church, I quickly decide against waiting. This will be much more fun. With a smile tugging at my lips, I briskly walk around the block, shooting her a quick response.

See you soon.

Silently taking the church steps two at a time, I quickly reach the landing and crack the main door of the church to ensure she’s not in sight. When I find the coast clear, I slip inside, flip off the lights, and slam the door. Papers flutter from the table in the center of the vestibule, and the sound boom echoes down the nave.

“Hello?” Cat calls down the stairs. “Uncle Sean?”

I slink into the narthex and reach the light switches for the main level. Flipping them all, the only remaining light is filtered through the stained-glass windows, leaving shadows cascading down the center of the church to the altar.

Fucking perfect.

The old stairs creak beneath Cat’s heels as she takes her time coming downstairs. Her shoes click on the tiled floor in the vestibule, and she timidly calls, “Uncle Sean? Is that you?”

Walking past a table, I push over a candelabra, causing it to clatter to the tiles beneath it. The clang reverberates around the narthex as the candles roll across the floor, and I slip into the shadows in the nave.

“Hello?” Her breathy voice cracks. Her pace slows as she hesitantly makes her way toward me. “Is someone there?”

Grabbing a Bible from the back of a pew, I carry it a few steps before letting it fall to the tile floor with a hearty thud. Catlin’s heels scratch across the floor as she spins around with a fear-filled squeak flying from her lungs.

“Uncle Sean?” she tentatively calls in the darkness. “Finn?”

The church is near silent. The only sounds filling the vast space are her increasingly heavy breaths and her hesitant steps as she continues to creep closer to me unknowingly. She stands only feet from where I’m cloaked in the darkness, and for a second, I swear I can hear her heart thumping.

Adrenaline is coursing through her, and the scent of her fear is fucking intoxicating. Taking a silent breath as she passes, I inhale the intoxicating scent. But it isn’t all fear I smell. The unmistakable aroma of her arousal that I’ve been drunk on for weeks is so strong that her panties must be absolutely soaked.

My sweet girl—ever full of surprises—likes this.

Standing in the aisle between the pews, she slowly spins in a circle, trying to find the source of her unease. “Finn…” Her voice is laced with fear when she shouts, “This isn’t funny!”

I deepen my voice and gravelly whisper from the darkness, “It isn’t supposed to be.” Her entire body grows rigid; a devilish chuckle rattles from my lungs and echoes throughout the nave.

Her feet are rooted in place, but she’s desperate to run. Catlin swallows hard, the gulp in her throat audible in the distance between us. She takes a step back toward the narthex before abruptly turning and running toward the altar. To the courtyard—where she thinks I’m waiting—in the convent.

Running along the wall of the church, my boots stomp against the tiles with every long stride. I close the distance between us quickly, catching her as she runs past the altar. A terrified scream billows from her when I grab her from behind. Lifting her from the ground, her feet kick against my shins, and she claws at my arms wrapped around her, screaming at me to release her. Her heels fall from her feet, clattering against the tiles as she continues to fight me .

I’m so fucking hard I might burst.

Roughly bending her over the altar, I press my hand to her back and pin her to it. Writhing against my firm hold and playing along, she cries, “What do you want?”

Her heart pounds so hard that I it reverberates against my hand pressed to her back as I lightly kick her feet apart. I grab the flowing skirt of her floral dress and toss it over her back, growling at the sight of her new lacy panties. Firmly gripping them, I press my fingers through the fabric and tear them from her.

Dropping to my knees and pressing my face into her from behind, I growl, “To earn my spot in heaven.”