I raised my hands to cup her cheeks, brought my mouth to hers. “Let me try again,” I said against her lips, right before I kissed her. She made the tiniest sound, almost a gasp, barely a whimper. Our mouths began to move against each other.
It began as a light exploration of taste and touch. Then, Gabi twined her arms around my neck, lifting her body up to mine. The embers we’d hoped to nurture flared at the contact, burning through the last of our restraint. Gentle caresses turned wild and grasping. My tongue sought hers and we began to dance, eagerly testing our new freedoms. I spread my fingers out over the roundness of her arse cheeks, pulling her harder against me and she gave a low moan.
Relief raced through my veins at the heat of our fire, at the ease with which it had sprung to life. This was what I’d always wanted. This was the us we were always meant to be.
“Connor?” My eyes snapped open at the sound of Law’s voice coming from the next room, through the door I’d left open. “Did you find the—” He stopped dead, two steps into our room. His gaze locked with mine.
Gabi hadn’t reacted to Law’s arrival. Lost in our kiss, she didn’t seem to have heard him at all. But I had, and as we continued to stare at each other, a sense of inevitability came over me. No matter what we did, we always ended up back here. The three of us caught on some bizarre carousel of lust and devotion. It wasn’t what Gabi wanted, though, and I had to put an end to it.
Closing my eyes, I tried to force myself to pull away from her embrace. But I’d waited a lifetime and her body felt incredible, and Law’s watchful gaze tripped across my skin like tiny electrical shocks, sharp and thrilling. Fuck me, I couldn’t bring myself to stop.
My hands lowered back to Gabi’s waist and I turned us in a half-circle so she would be able to see Law. Leaving the wanton bliss of her mouth behind, I trailed my lips along her jaw before I whispered in her ear. “Open your eyes.”
A few seconds later, she let out a gasp and stiffened in my arms.
I expected her to jerk away from me, to yell at Law for barging into our room, even if the door was open. She didn’t do either of those things. Instead, she gave a breathy whimper and lifted herself harder against me.
“Connor.” Her voice shook, but her nails raked their way across my back. “We’re not alone.”
Lifting my head, I looked down into her face. She stared at Law with wide eyes and parted lips. “I don’t think we’re ever really alone together, Gabrielle,” I murmured, nuzzling her cheek. “Even when it’s only the two of us. He’s always there.”
“You might have a point,” she replied.
I turned to look at Law, my hand still curled around the front of Gabi’s waist. He hadn’t moved at all, but his eyes darted back and forth between the two of us, seeming unable to find a place to land.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt.” His voice cracked and he paused to clear his throat. “I came to see if Connor found the belt.”
“He did.” Gabi trembled and her fingernails dug into my arm, but she held her head high when she spoke again. “Now you’re here, is there anything else you want?”
The words had barely left her mouth when Law began striding towards us. His mouth collided with hers, his hands cupping her face to hold her in place. I tensed, prepared to intervene the instant I saw any sign of Gabi rejecting his kiss. Only she didn’t. Her arms lifted to wrap around his neck and, when I withdrew my hand from between them, their bodies came together amid soft groans of relief.
Tongues tangled and hands roamed as I stood frozen, watching them kiss. My mouth watered at the thought of joining in, but I hesitated for fear of breaking the spell. If Gabi came to her senses, this might all be over. I didn’t want it to be over yet.
In the end, Gabi herself made the next move. Tearing free of Law’s mouth, she slid her hands down to grab on to a handful of his shirt before tugging him with her as she turned to press back against me. Her arse nestled into the cradle of my hips and I gasped at the sudden pressure on my aching cock. One slender arm reached back to curl behind my neck and, although I couldn’t see the look on her face, the flare of heat in Law’s eyes told me all I needed to know. For all her denials, she wanted this.
Law moved closer, his gaze lifting to mine. And then, he was kissing me. Just like that. And I was kissing him. He felt so different to Gabi, smelled different. The musky scent of his skin, the traces of aftershave, were in sharp contrast to the richness of her femininity. They complemented each other in my mind, against my body.
As I began to lose myself in Law’s kiss, as my arm tightened around Gabi’s waist once more, he tore his mouth from mine. We stood there for a long moment, our heavy breath mingling between us, bodies close and hands joining us one to another.
“You two have the world’s worst timing,” Law said with a cracked, husky laugh. “I need to get back, Frank’s waiting for me.” He breathed deeply, as if trying to bring himself back under control. “Christ, I’m gonna have a semi through the whole damned ceremony.”
Gabi’s laugh broke some of the tension and I stepped to her side so I could wrap my arms around her and hug her against my chest. Law’s arms came around both of us. Gabi laid her head on my shoulder, her face towards Law. He bent to place a final, lingering kiss against her lips before rising to do the same to me. When he backed away, the smile on his face was blinding in its brilliance. “I’ll see you soon.”
After he left, Gabi and I clung to each other for a long time. There was no need for words when we parted. We simply smiled at each other and went back to getting ready.
SEVENTEEN
______
LAWRENCE
The bathroom sink was cool and hard beneath my grip as I confronted the wildness of my own gaze in the mirror.
“Calm the fuck down, Miller.” I’d muttered the words at least a half dozen times since I’d returned to Frank’s hotel suite and barricaded myself in the bathroom. But I still had Connor’s taste on my lips and Gabi’s perfume in my lungs. The repetition of my new mantra had yet to prove effective.
Bending over, I splashed handfuls of water on my face. The cool liquid ran down my cheeks in rivulets, dripped off the end of my nose. It didn’t help. An inferno had ignited in my veins the instant I touched them, and it was not about to be tamed. All the heat had to go somewhere. South was the obvious direction.
A knock sounded on the bathroom door, and Frank’s muffled voice called out. “Lawrence? You all right in there?”
