32 | rain kisses

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CHAPTER 32

I had been staring at my reflection in the mirror for so long that it was beginning to look slightly distorted.

This is how it had been for the last three hours.

I would put on an outfit, look at myself until I thought better of it and then change into another one.

It didn't help that Gabe hadn't told me anything about what tonight's date would involve. Maybe then I would know whether to wear something casual or not.

My gaze settled on a dress at the back of my wardrobe, long forgotten until now.

The smooth material filtered through my fingertips when I lifted it, holding it up in front of the mirror.

I put it on before I could talk myself out of it, watching my reflection mirror my pleased smile when I glanced up and saw what the dress looked like on me.

Since I couldn't remember buying it, it must have been from a couple of years ago. Perhaps for a gathering that my parents tried to rope me into going to, or some kind of ball thrown by my school that I had long since pushed out of my mind.

Either way, I was grateful for its existence.

The white cloth billowed slightly at the sides, keeping it pretty and casual at the same time. This was the one.

And thank goodness it was, because in the instant that my eyes found the clock, the doorbell rang.

A small flutter settled in my stomach as I went to open the door, immediately doubling in size once it had swung open and my eyes found his.

He was leaning against the doorframe as he smiled, my two favourite dimples appearing. "Hey."

I didn't even try to fight the smile that fell onto my mouth at the sight of his. "Hi."

We said nothing else for a while, our eyes speaking instead.

Mine traced his face to begin with, lingering on the sharp lines of his jaw and nose.

They slowly trailed downwards and stopped on his chest, which was covered in a shirt and the same leather jacket that I'd seen him wearing in Cornwall. It was hanging lazily on his arms, and I was instantly reminded of why I loved him wearing it.

My gaze returned to his to see that the blue of his eyes had darkened to an almost-navy. "You look..." He trailed off.

My lips parted slightly of their own accord, waiting for the end of his statement.

I watched as Gabe's eyes locked on the action, and he quickly closed the distance between us with nothing but a quiet whisper into my ears. "Like I need to kiss you."

I barely had time to register his words before his thumb was titling my face up, mouth meeting mine with an intensity that I had only ever felt with him.

Unlike our other kisses, there was nothing even remotely soft or sweet about this one.

He claimed my mouth with no remorse and all of my coherent thoughts lost themselves in the air that suddenly felt a thousand times warmer.

My back met the cold wall next to the doorframe and my hands buried themselves in his hair, moving our bodies closer even though there was already no space between them.

The thundering of my heart in my ears was the only thing that I was even vaguely aware of as his mouth moved against mine, the groan he let out against my lips creating a current that I felt in every part of my body.

Air was a foreign concept and I refused to come up for it, choosing to lose myself in the sensation of ragged breathing, bitten lips, and fleeting touches.

His hand was at my lower back when we pulled away from each other, fingers dancing over the skin there and leaving goosebumps in their wake.

I smiled when I looked up, noting the way his curls were out of place and perfectly messy from the frantic work of my own fingers.

There were faint sparkles on his lower lip from the lip-gloss I was wearing, but I chose not to tell him. I liked the idea of leaving a mark on him a little more than I was willing to admit.

My thumb was on his cheek before I had even realised what I was doing, mindlessly rubbing along it as my breathing slowly returned to its normal pattern. "Where are we going?"

I shook my head a little at the slight smirk that fell across his face. I could already tell how he was going to respond. "It's a surprise, isn't it."

That smirk became a fully-fledged grin as he grabbed my hand and began to pull me down the hallway. "You know me so well."

Cold air began to bite into my skin as soon as we made it past the doorway, my warm breath blowing onto my fingers as I tried to keep blood circulating.

Gabe stopped me with a roguish grin before we could enter his car, holding a bag up in his hands. "I almost forgot."

I gave him a questioning look when he held it out towards me, our hands brushing as he passed it over.

My fingers curiously moved the tissue paper at the top aside to reveal a set of... straws?

I looked up at him in question to see his eyes glittering with amusement. "Just in case you feel like getting drunk and making me dance with you. Apparently, it happens more often than you'd think."

My laughter filled the cool air around us as my eyes studied his face again. I don't think he could've given me anything more Gabe if he'd tried. And it was perfect.

"Thank you." I whispered.

I could feel that my cheeks had reddened slightly and as much as I wanted to think so, I knew it wasn't because of the cold.

I opened the passenger side door of the car and sat down in the seat, watching as he did the same on the driver's side.

He adjusted the rear-view mirror with ease, giving me an eyeful of the arms that the polo-shirt was putting on full display.

When his movements paused and his eyes hooked onto mine with a small smirk, I knew I'd been caught.

I cleared my throat softly, doing my best to free up the tension that had gathered like a thick fog. "Will you tell me where we're going now?"

His eyes glittered at my question, all mischief and something else that I couldn't quite put my finger on. "Everywhere."

My brows furrowed at his cryptic response but he started the car before I could ask him about it, shooting us off into the night.

We cruised through roads, some familiar and some foreign, making conversation on the way.

"He says that the best way to..."

"...the basketball court..."

I found myself distracted by his lips a little too often, losing track of the words that came out of them.

"Cora?" The red beam from the traffic light a little way away was illuminating Gabe's face as he turned to me, hands paused on the wheel.

I realised that I must have zoned out again, my eyes honing in on the flicker of his tongue as he spoke and forgetting all else.

Instead of answering I leaned in quickly, brushing my lips against his and satisfying the need to kiss him that had been building up over the drive.

My lips were tingling when I pulled away, my tongue darting out to soothe them.

I raised my head to see him looking at me with wide eyes, surprise written across his features. "You just kissed me."

His reaction confused me, my mouth opening to ask why he seemed so shocked.

My words came to a halt when I realised what he meant, a sudden realisation that hit me with the same impact as the brakes he'd been slamming earlier.

Each of our kisses so far had been a joint effort, with both of us tentatively leaning in until we met in the middle. That, or they'd been initiated by him like in the hallway just mere moments ago.

This marked the first time that I had initiated one of our kisses entirely by myself.

The lights turned green again and the car lurched into action, but that wasn't the reason for the rapid rise and fall of my chest.

I was waiting for the panic to settle in, that urge to run or overthink everything that usually came at moments like this, but it never did.

Instead the hum of the engine stopped, bringing me right back into the present.

Gabe's eyes were already on me when my gaze met his, and I wondered how long he had been watching me for.

"We're here." His eyes drifted to the window with a small smile, mine following curiously.

A high rise building was squinting back at me, all iron ridges and slanted windows.

I stepped out of the car at the same time as Gabe did, craning my neck to look at it properly. It was ridiculously tall, and the reason why didn't occur to me until moments later.

A middle-aged woman with her hair piled up on her head came into view as we passed through the revolving doors and approached reception, hidden behind so many computers that it was almost comical.

She gasped when she noticed us. "Oh my goodness Gabriel, I haven't seen you in years!" She flashed us a beaming smile. "How are you?"

Gabriel responded with a smile that matched hers. "Good, thanks Janice. I have a reservation under Madden."

She nodded once, typing something into each keyboard before her head raised again. Her eyes sparkled as she spoke. "You know which floor to go to."

Next thing I knew my hand was enclosed in Gabe's and I was being pulled into an elevator, the outline of the smiley receptionist growing further and further away.

There were too many buttons on the walls to count and my face clouded over in surprise when he pressed the top one, illuminating it with neon blue light.

Before I could consider why he was taking me to the highest floor, I found my back against the cold metal and my feet a few inches off the floor, Gabriel's hand at my waist.

I think the doors of the elevator shut at some point. I wouldn't know. It was difficult to focus on anything while Gabe's fingers were dancing over the skin exposed when my dress had ridden up slightly.

"What are you—"

His eyes were blazing. "We didn't get to finish what you started in the car."

My mind was spinning faster than the elevator was moving. Or maybe it wasn't moving. I had lost track of that too.

My voice was breathy when I spoke. "Finish?"

The corners of his lips quirked at my question for a moment, before they crashed down onto mine.

He didn't hold back in the least, hands almost everywhere that his mouth wasn't. My head fell back, the sensation overwhelming.

A jerk of the floor below us brought us back to our senses, the elevator doors heaving open.

We sprang apart when a group of people waltzed in, ending up at opposite ends of the elevator.

Our gazes never left each other, the desire that still lingered transcending words.

The air slowly cooled off as the elevator rose through each floor, letting the tension between us clear.

The final floor was number 32, and it was the one that we stepped out onto. The reason for the height of the building became instantly clear.

A small gasp escaped my lips as my head turned, trying to take in every inch of the view.

Gabe had brought me to a rooftop restaurant with a view of London from every angle, the glass that lined every surface a microscope into the beauty that was London at night-time. Miles and miles of neon lights, grey high rises and winding roads.

It took me all of three seconds to close the distance between us. My head was against his chest when I spoke next, voice nothing more than a whisper. "Gabe, I love it."

A smile pulled at his lips. "After you." His arm gestured towards a booth at the corner of the room.

I slipped into the booth first, the plush red leather sinking as I sat. Gabe got us both drinks before he joined me, flashing me a dangerously dimpled smile once he was seated down on the opposite side.

My eyes glazed over the landscape through the glass before they made their way back to him. "I forget how beautiful London is until moments like this."

He nodded with a sip of his drink, gaze following the same path. "It is. Especially at night."

My head cocked a little. "Have you been here before? The receptionist knew that you would know which floor to go to."

His eyes met mine, a small smile pulling at his lips. "I have."

I waited for him to explain further but he remained suspiciously silent, that smile on his face.

My brows furrowed. It felt like he knew something that I didn't. "Gabe?"

He chuckled. "I promise that you'll understand by the end of the night."

My need to know what was going on was quelled a little by his statement, but it was still faintly present in the back of my mind when a waitress came to get our orders.

"What can I get for you?" Her eyes were solely focused on Gabriel as she spoke, but I didn't blame her. I had to suppress a smile at the thought that I still basically did the same thing every time I saw him.

My patience level dwindled when we had both ordered - a fancy sounding risotto for Gabe and a simple salmon dish for me - and she was still there.

"Do you need anything else?" I watched her look up at him from under her eyelashes, blinking in a way that wasn't as flattering as she clearly thought.

Gabe clearly wasn't having it, giving her a disinterested look. "No."

I had to bite back a smile at his response, trying my best to stop the corners of my lips from pulling upwards.

He leaned over the table separating us when the waitress left, voice dropping mischievously. "Couldn't have the server hitting on me when I like someone else."

"Really?" My brows raised, a smile pulling at my lips. I knew that he was talking about me just by the way he said it. "Who is this mystery girl? She sounds amazing."

He shrugged, the two dimples that hollowed into his cheeks giving away the smile that he was fighting. "She's alright."

My head cocked, amusement in my voice. "Just alright?"

The emotion in his eyes began to shift as he shook his head. There was an intensity in them that I could feel heating me from the inside out. "No."

I was still trying to wrap my head around the sudden change in his behaviour when he leaned forward in his seat, inches away from me as he spoke. "Let's go."

My brows furrowed. "What? The food--"

"We'll get more." He began to stand up. "Come with me. Please." His hand outstretched as he glanced at me, that look still in his eyes.

I gave in with a sigh, placing my palm in his.

There, as I took his hand and followed him into the night, I realised something.

I'd do anything he asked me to.

- - - -

Rain started pelting as soon as we stepped out of the car, soaking us both from head to toe in seconds.

There was nothing around us but miles and miles of wet grass, a field of green that had darkened because of the water.

My eyes widened when Gabe sat down onto it, grabbing my hand to pull me down with him.

I opened my mouth to protest against my dress becoming muddy as well as wet, but stopped at the look in his eyes.

That same look from the restaurant was back. As if he knew something that I didn't.

"Candyfloss. Look around." I sat down to see what he was talking about, something in my heart squeezing once I realised.

I had been here before.

The empty field that we were sitting in was the same one from the picnic that we had a couple of months ago, the only differences being that the grass had grown a little longer and there was no blanket on the floor.

Gabriel wiped stray droplets of rain from his face, a rueful smile on his lips as he spoke. "I was supposed to take you to all of my favourite places in London." His hands gestured upwards. "But the weather ruined it and we only made it to two."

"My Dad used to work at the rooftop restaurant that I took you to, which is why they know who I am and why I like being there so much." His gaze travelled over the landscape. "And this is where..." His sentence trailed off.

"Where what?" I breathed. The sound of rain against grass muffled my voice, but I somehow knew that he'd heard me.

He paused, hands running through his hair as he thought it over.

His face broke into a small smile moments later, his eyes meeting mine. "Where I realised how bad I have it for this one girl."

I watched him through the rain with a smile of my own as his words registered in my head, my heart thundering in my chest.

I felt heady with an emotion that I'd never felt before. Somehow happiness didn't even come close to covering it. I just knew that it was overwhelming, the kind of overwhelming that left no space for anything else.

Thoughts were clearly included based on what I blurted out next.

"That's such a crazy coincidence." I paused for a moment, biting my lip. "I realised how bad I have it for a guy here too."

My eyes danced over his face as I spoke, watching for his reaction. He gave it to me, my two favourite dimples appearing. "Did you now?"

"Yep." I nodded, fighting the urge to smile. "You don't know him."

"He's a lucky bastard." His eyes locked on mine.

Silence fell between us, nothing that could be heard except the steady pattering in the background.

We both leaned forwards at the same time, slotting together like an old puzzle. The sensation was so familiar that it was second nature now.

His lips barely even had to touch mine for that feeling to hit.

That plummet downwards that turned my stomach into a fluttering mess and had my heart working overtime.

Kissing Gabriel was addictive.

It washed over me with every stroke of his tongue, pulling me a little further under each time.

The rain didn't stop for one second, its cold assault on my skin a stark contrast from the warmth of his mouth and his hair, which my hands had found themselves buried in.

I could taste the beer that he had been drinking in the restaurant as I sucked it off his tongue, loving the way he groaned against my mouth each time I did it.

"Be my girlfriend." I barely caught Gabriel's words in the midst of the overwhelming sensation of my hands in his hair and his lips on my neck, but I heard enough to stop him, bringing his head to my eye level.

My hands were on his cheek when I spoke. "Your girlfriend?"

He nodded, face uncharacteristically serious.

My eyes twinkled. "I need to think about it."'

He looked unimpressed, mouth falling into a thin line. "No, you don't."

Laughter spilled out of me at his reaction. "You're right. I don't."

The ghost of a smile fell onto his lips. "Is that a yes?"

My head rested against his shoulder as rain continued to fall onto the grass that surrounded us. "You know it's a yes."

Boyfriend.

It had a nice ring to it.

They're so perfect together and it warms my heart <33

If you listened to a song while reading this chapter then comment what it was because it makes me happy hehe

Thank you for 30K reads, I love each and every one of you !!