It takes a moment before understanding dawns on him, his eyes widening when he realizes what I mean. “Oh, um, here, let me draw you a bath.” Gabe releases me from his grasp and walks through the living room, presumably heading to my bathroom to fill the tub.
Oh, this sweet, sweet man.
I’m smiling as I lock the front door and head down the hallway, removing my jewelry as I walk. The sound of rushing water greets me as I step into my room. Undressing as I go, I set my earrings on the dresser before sitting on the bed and working to unclasp the buckles of my shoes.
Gabe walks in, leaning against the door jam, watching me. His shirt is open and untucked and his shoes are kicked off, discarded next to the door. He’s standing there completely unaware of how fucking sexy he looks, making me bite my lip.
He chuckles, shaking his head. “Those damn shoes,” he mutters.
Smiling up at him, I continue to get ready for my bath. “Hey, can you help me with the zipper?” Standing, I offer my back to him.
The soft padding of feet lets me know that he’s coming to help me out of my dress. Tilting my head down, I make sure my short hair is out of the way. Bending down, he kisses the back of my neck before lowering the zipper.
My body trembles at the innocent touch, aware of the pleasure it received from him.“Thank you,” I whisper.
Clenching the bodice to my chest to keep the dress from falling to the floor, I’m suddenly nervous. He’s my best friend and I’m not sure where to go from here. I mean, we just had sex on my porch. Is he staying? Will this be a ‘Thanks for riding my cock, I’ll see you later’ type thing or is this more? Turning to look at Gabe, I’m not sure what to do, but he’s already unbuttoning his shirt.
“What are you doing?” I can’t drag my eyes away from him as he continues to expose more of his chest to me, the corner of the tattoo on his left peck peeking out. He got the firefighter emblem tattoo a couple of years ago after having served five years at the station. I haven’t seen it in awhile, but the effect it’s having on me now…damn.
He reaches the last button, then shrugs out of his shirt, his eyes watching my expression as he does. “If you think there's anywhere I’d rather be than here with you, then Sunny, you don’t know me at all.”
Chapter 8
Gabriel
Lying in bed beside Melissa feels like a dream.
Had I wanted to do more than massage her skin during our bath? Hell yes. But I also didn’t want to take things too far too fast with her. I was content to just hold her in my arms in the warm water. We didn’t say much—I’m sure both of us are still reeling from the night—but there was a shared contentment to it all.
After our bath, we made our way back into her bedroom, where she quietly lifted the covers in an offer for me to join her. I couldn’t refuse.
How had I not known that I’ve wanted her all this time?
It’d become glaringly obvious the moment our lips touched. I could no longer deny that the warm feeling in my chest whenever she was around—the way I watched her when she’s in the room, the jealousy I harbor for her ex-boyfriends—was anything but desire.
Do I want my best friend?
She fell asleep shortly after sliding on a silk nightgown and tucking her body close to mine. I, however, am unable to fall asleep, my mind still whirling with emotions that I haven’t even begun to process.
One thing I know for sure is that I don’t want to lose her. She’s my best friend and I fear I may have ruined everything after tonight. Do I regret what we did? No.Hell, no. The feeling of her body squeezing my cock, her cries of pleasure as I took her, were something I’d never experienced before. It was like we were always meant to be that way.The things I said to her… the words that came from my mouth…Typically I don’t tend to be so vocal in bed, but the way Mel had made me feel had me losing all control.
Feeling a sense of shame, I reach up and cover my face with both hands, stifling a groan at my behavior.
That can never happen again.
Melissa twitches in her sleep, a small whimper escaping her parted lips. Turning on my side, I watch her as she sleeps, no doubt caught up in a dream with the way her eyes dart beneath her closed eyelids. Not wanting to wake her, I gently caress her smooth cheek, praying with all my might that I hadn’t just ruined the most important relationship in my life.
***
Barely having slept all night with my mind running through all possible outcomes from what we did, I came to the conclusion that we need to talk about it. No sweeping it under the rug, but a genuine adult conversation over everything that happened last night.
Sitting at the small round table in the dining room, I’m sipping my coffee as she makes her way through the living room. Her hair’s a mess, sticking out in every direction, having dried while she slept. She’s not a calm sleeper. She flopped, scooted, and rolled around the bed all night. It’s amazing that she could get any sleep at all.
Her light pink silk nightgown hangs from thin spaghetti straps, the thin fabric not doing a damn thing to conceal her nipples poking through the fabric. Of course, my eyes zone in on her chest.
Hand scratching the back of her neck, she stifles a yawn. She pauses when she sees me sitting there. “Good morning.” Except it sounded more like “goo mornin” through her yawn. She walks past me, heading straight for the coffee pot. My eyes follow after her as she reaches up and opens the cabinet containing the mugs. The hem of her nightgown just brushing past the lower curve of her ass making me bite my fist to keep myself from crossing the room and grabbing her.
Pull yourself together, Gabe.
