Chapter 16

SARAH

Gabe had lost his jacket and tie by the time Sarah arrived at the house. Seeing the white dress shirt span over his broad shoulders had her struggling to breathe. The exposed column of his strong neck had her wishing that she could unbutton that shirt and expose more of his tanned torso. She quickly gulped a mouthful of the soda in her glass.

She watched him from her spot on the deck as he moved among the tables and chairs set out across the lawn. He was moving through the crowds, one of the children either on his heels or little Connor on his arm, while juggling a tray of food or drinks. He was charming with his grandmother’s older friends, flirted with some of their female colleagues, happy to make the children laugh, and avoided her as though she had an STD that was transferable through breathing the same air she did.

He'd barely said a word to her since the church, making sure that he was either on his way out or in with a tray or a special request from one of the older ladies. Besides a quick smile, he did not attempt to speak to her, and that hurt. She had thought they were past their hurdles, that they were at least on speaking terms, but he still froze her out. Every time his gaze barely met hers, she fluctuated between hope and despair. Hope that he would approach but the despair was devastating when he walked the other way.

Sarah wanted to scream, and as it was, she had cursed him at least three times over in Italian in her mind, especially when she saw the heat when she caught him looking at her and even more so when it disappeared when he blinked. He frustrated her.

“Sarah,” Seth called her from his spot beside Indie. She raised an eyebrow at him. “Come and join us.”

She frowned at her brother as she made her way down the stairs, and smiled politely at the deputy he introduced her to. Deputy Carrigan Seeff was handsome with tawny hair, hazel eyes, and a slim face that Sarah found quite cute. He was an inch or so taller than her and had a wry sense of humor that had her laughing. For the first time today, his company made her less aware of where Gabe was and what he was doing.

“I need to get ready for my shift, but can I tempt you into having a cup of coffee sometime?” he asked.

“Uh…I’d—”

“Rah, could you help me in the kitchen for a moment?” Gabe asked from directly behind her, making her jump in surprise. She spun around to glare at the man who had been ~avoiding~ her all day only to be met with an immovable mountain and challenging blue eyes.

“Excuse me, Carrigan?” He nodded as Sarah got to her feet and carefully put her glass on the table. With a final smile, she climbed the stairs to the deck and entered the house, moving toward the kitchen area. She heard movement in the pantry and proceeded in that direction, but before she could call out to Gabe, a hand snaked out and took hold of her arm. Before the scream left her lips, she was pulled into the large, walk-in pantry. Landing against the wide chest of Gabriel, she barely heard the door click shut behind her.

She gasped when she felt the wood at her back, branding into her bare skin between the straps of her dress. Gabe’s hot hands burned through the material at her hips as he stood in front of her, trapping her between the door and his body. She looked up at him, recognizing the heat that darkened his eyes, and felt her body melting in response. He leaned his forearm on the door and pulled her hips tightly against his own, his hardening manhood evident against her. She tilted her head to ask him what he was thinking when he dropped his head and took her mouth in a kiss so soft that she moaned.

Her lips burned at the brush of his over the plumb flesh, and she opened her mouth when his tongue gently touched the corner. But instead of taking what she offered, he nibbled her bottom lip until it throbbed. She sighed when he ran his tongue along her top lip, softly pulling it into his mouth and grazing it with his teeth.

“Gabe…,” Sarah whimpered, and only then did he slip his tongue between her teeth, slowly sliding it along her own and she reciprocated instantly. He plowed his hand into her hair and lifted her face more, opening her up to him before sealing their lips in a kiss so intense, so hot, so earth-shattering that Sarah wasn’t sure if she remembered her own name. He groaned and stepped closer, parting her thighs and she ran her foot up his calf until her knee settled at his hip. His hand sliding from her hip to her knee set blazing fires along her leg, weakening her bones and making her very glad that she was caught between the door and Gabriel Von Ashner.

GABRIEL

She tasted like the apple and cinnamon tart she had earlier with undertones of the orange juice she had been drinking throughout the day. It was intoxicating. It was addictive. It was like drinking from the river Lethe, the river of forgetfulness that wound through Hades, which eliminated the memories that kept him awake at night, the memories that made him feel like he was drowning. She was his lighthouse, his harbor, his haven. And he would always associate the taste of apples and cinnamon with that of an angel. His angel. ~This~ angel.

He slanted his mouth and gave free rein to the emotions he had held back for so long, giving in to the temptation that had been chasing him since the moment he walked into the church that morning. A summer’s worth of temptation, seeing her in a one-piece swimsuit that clung to her body like a second skin, that so lovingly contained her full breasts and rounded backside that had him going out of his mind with want.

He ran his hand down her leg, beneath the hem of her dress, and up the silken length of her thigh, cupping her silk-covered backside, his thumb tracing the edge of her panties and he swallowed her moan, the sound vibrating down his spine and settling heavily in his groin. She shifted her leg higher on his hip, fitting the juncture of her thighs to the thrust of his manhood. He broke the kiss and nibbled a path to her neck as she lifted her head even higher. Gabe grazed his teeth down the slim column of her neck and gently bit into the pulse point. She exhaled on a rugged breath that made his head spin, and he couldn’t contain the groan that shuddered through his body.

“Fuck, Sarah, what I wouldn’t do to be—”

“Mommy!”

“Shit,” Gabe hissed. They broke apart, their eyes locked in a stare so heated that Gabe was sure he was about to implode. They both took deep breaths to control themselves. He took hold of her wrist as she reached for the door. “Take a minute. I’ll see what’s going on.”

She nodded, and with a deep breath, he pulled the door open slowly and peered out, trying to see which side Amelia had disappeared to. He saw her blonde pigtails bouncing down the hallway as he stepped out of the kitchen. She immediately turned to him when he called her.

“I would like more ice cream please, Gabe?” Amelia asked, and he couldn’t refuse a damned thing those green eyes asked him.

“Why don’t you go see if baby Connor is awake, and I’ll bring you the ice cream…with sprinkles.” He smiled at her happy squeal, and he could almost hear Sarah’s groan behind him. He waited until the little girl closed the door behind her before turning to the pantry and peeking in to check on Sarah.

She looked so delectable with her lips swollen from his kisses, her hair tousled from his fingers, and a bright red line down her neck where his stubble had scraped across her skin. A spurt of satisfaction washed through him when he spotted the light bruise at the base of her neck where he had bitten her, marked her. She looked even more tempting than before he pulled her into the pantry.

“What the hell was that all about?” Sarah hissed as she walked past him, spinning around on her heel to face him before bending down to take her shoes off.

He admired her grace as she tossed her shoes under a bar stool at the counter before leaning her hip against it and crossing her arms over her breasts. “What we’ve both been needing to do for a very long time, Rah.”

“Why today, Gabriel? Why drag me up here now?” Then she frowned at him as she thought of something. “Why when Carrigan asked me—”

“Don’t mention it, please Rah.” His voice was gravelly as he made the plea. “I know that I don’t deserve to keep you from finding someone who makes you happy, but I can’t seem to stop myself from interfering and I’m sorry. This was not my intention; I just couldn’t stop myself. As earth-rocking as that kiss was, Rah, I don’t think it will be a good idea to repeat it.”

“Gabe?” She frowned at him in confusion, her green eyes troubled as she looked at him.

He gave a wry smile as he cupped her cheek. “One secret every time we meet…”

She nodded.

“Today’s secret is that I crave you, Sarah, but I ~will not~ burden you with my shit.”

She took a step toward him, but he held up a hand to stop her.

“Gabe.”

He felt his heart crack into a million splinters at the sob in her voice.

“Go have fun with Carrigan, Rah, he’s a good man.” He gave her another smile. “I promised my glitter girl some ice cream, and I always deliver on my promises.”