“It’s fine, Tori. It takes up too much of my time anyway, and you deserve more of it.” His voice cracked on the last words. “I need to go. I’ll see you when you get home.”
“Okay. Gabe…”
“Yeah.”
“I love you.”
“I know. I love you, too.”
The conversation replayed in my mind as I finished my shift, and when I walked into the apartment, the empty spot in the corner of our room confirmed he had indeed removed his computer as well as his desk and chair. The only things besides his clothes he had brought with him when he’d moved in.
I tossed my shoes into the closet, relieved when I saw his clothes were still there and chastising myself for letting that doubt creep into my mind. Changing into a T-shirt, I left my jeans on, glad Saturdays were casual days. I tied my hair into a ponytail and walked into the other room, just as Gabe was walking in.
His smile was like a summer shower, reinvigorating me and erasing the unsettling sense of foreboding that had crawled over my skin.
“I tried to beat you home,” he said, dropping a shopping bag on the counter and scooping me into his arms. His kiss left me in a puddle before he turned back to the bag. Emptying it, he said, “I’m cooking tonight. You’re going to sit and put your feet up. My only request is that you load upLord of the Ringsso we can watch while we eat.”
“LOTRtonight? What’s the special occasion?” I teased, resting my elbows on the counter while I watched him.
Hazel with shades of amber met my eyes. His smile dropped but returned just as quickly, leaving me to puzzle over where it had gone.
“I want to spoil you tonight.” He sized up my jeans and T-shirt, his brows crinkling. “I’m adding a request. I want you in your underwear and my T-shirt again. That look is enough to drive me mad.”
I shook my head as I laughed. “And you want me to drive you mad?”
“Definitely.” He turned to the stove, rattling around in the pans. “Go on, get that ass moving and plant it on the couch. If you’re standing here with it sticking out like that when you’re in nothing but my T-shirt, I’m gonna burn the food while I use this counter in ways I don’t think the builders anticipated.”
And my cocky, sexy man was back. Heat warmed my cheeks as I ran into the bedroom. Slipping my clothes and my bra off, I grabbed the T-shirt I’d had on the night before.
“You sure you want me over here?” I asked, walking toward the sofa.
“Damn it,” he muttered, and I heard a can drop on the counter. His hands were lifting me and dragging me back to the kitchen before I could even let out a squeal. Planting me on it, he shoved my legs apart and stood between them, ensuring I could feel how turned on he was. “Guess I’ll need an appetizer before dinner.”
I fisted his shirt and pulled him to me, our lips meeting in a heated kiss that set my body on fire. His hands were greedy, his kisses hungry, just like he’d been the night before. Desperate and frenzied. He tore my shirt from me, flinging it across the kitchen before lighting sparks in me with his touches. Working his shirt off, I smoothed my hand over his chest, relishing his strength as he jerked me forward and his fingers drilled into me. My head went back, his fingers working their magic while his mouth devoured my breasts. I stood no chance. He had my body at his command, and my climax shredded me. Capturing my crywith his kiss, he removed his fingers, tangling them in my hair just as he penetrated me.
I rode the remnants of my climax as he tore into me, eclipsing me with his desire. His body moved with forceful thrusts and needy touches until my release soared, washing through me just as he broke, filling me with a growl that rumbled through his chest and claimed any remaining pieces that had slipped past his original claim.
Head dipping, his hand encased the back of my neck as if in an assertion of ownership. His eyes met mine, and in them I saw a myriad of emotions I couldn’t pinpoint. His kiss left me devastated. There was so much emotion in it that I clung to his arms.
Planting a peck on my forehead, he said, “Take that sexy body into the other room before I skip dinner and make you my main course the rest of the night.”
My breath caught at the power of his words, the dominating tone that had my insides knotting. He backed away, tucking himself back into his pants while his eyes skimmed over my naked body. “You’re too perfect, Tori. Too fucking perfect.”
He picked my shirt up and helped me put it back on, his touches tender again. Holding my cheek, his gaze was intense. No words, just a look that told me everything he needed to. Helping me off the counter, he returned to prepping dinner, watching me from the kitchen when I came back out from cleaning up. His sight remained on me the entire time he cooked and even when he brought my favorite gnocchi dish over so we could eat, they never left me.
Again, the sensation that he was soaking in all he could from me was there. We ate on the couch and curled up afterwards to watch the movie. Our paper flowers were now in a vase on the coffee table, a touch he must have added when I’d been at work. A symbol of us, two halves of the same heart, sharing space inour love for one another. An unbreakable love that I knew would never die.
That night, he made love to me. His touches slow, the frenzied need gone and in its place deliberate and reverent touches. As I came undone around him, he joined me, his climax chasing mine while he murmured, “Ti amo, luna mia,” in my ear. The whispered words echoed through my mind long after.
Chapter 14
Gabe
The room was dark, the only sound Tori’s steady breaths that told me she was sleeping soundly. I hadn’t slept, instead holding her through the night, afraid to let go because once I did, I knew I’d never hold her again. What I was about to do would crush her, and she would hate me forever. There would never be a chance of finding her again, of confessing my mistakes or the secrets I’d kept from her. There would be no second chance for me.
I looked at my watch. Four thirty in the morning. My usual gym time, but this was Sunday, and she knew I didn’t go to the gym on Sundays. I ran outside, but not this early. So, I’d snuck a sleeping pill into the glass of wine I’d brought her after making love to her. Insisting I wanted to watch the rest of the movie in bed while I held her. I’d really wanted to take her again, needing to memorize every inch of her over and over until I would never forget how it felt to touch her, never forget that she had once been mine. A constant reminder of what I’d lost when I returned home.
Moving her from my chest, I noted how she was still sound asleep. I sat on the edge of the bed, resting my head in my hands as agony ripped through my chest. I didn’t want to do this to her.Didn’t want to leave her, and it was pure anguish to even think about what I was doing. Rising, I dressed.
