Chapter 26

GABRIEL

He joined the police officers at their cruiser, making a special request for them to increase their patrol in the area and report any strange activity to him as well. Lawson was asking him about the explosion, and he was about to respond when Seth called him through the gaping window.

“Jiminy! Sarah needs you to help her with something in the kitchen.” Gabe raised his eyebrow at the scowl on his friend’s face and he tried to hide the smile he felt pulling at his lips. He could almost see the question in Seth’s eyes and wondered what Rah had told her brother about why ~he~ couldn’t help her with whatever she needed.

“I’ll be right in.” He patted Lawson on his shoulder before taking his leave and entering the bakery again. “Where’s Cleve?”

“He’s fetching the hardwood board from Harry at the hardware. We need to get this window sorted before we leave.”

Gabe nodded. “Cool. I’ll just go see what Sarah needs then I’ll come and help you.”

“Yeah, sure,” Seth drawled, his eyes narrowed as he looked at Gabe.

Gabe gave a small sigh of relief when he closed the kitchen door between them, the stainless-steel door cutting off the questioning glare he could feel stabbing his back.

“Gabriel,” Sarah muttered as she flowed into his arms, her hands clasped at the small of his back. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple lightly, but she lifted her head and brushed his mouth with a soft contact, making his body tingle in response.

“Rah,” he breathed against her lips, tasting the sweetness of the chocolate chips she chewed on while she baked. He slowly ran his tongue along the seam of her mouth, delving deeply when she gasped. He groaned when he tasted the peanut butter mixed with the chocolate. His hands tightened at her waist, pulling her harder against him.

“I hate this thing,” she complained as she tried to slide her hands over his chest and her fingers tangled over the various pockets and tools on his Kevlar. He laughed softly when she stood on her toes to wrap her arms around his neck, her hands furrowing roughly into his hair, fisting the unruly strands when she took control of the kiss. He sank against the wall, tempted to pull the heavy vest off in frustration when he couldn’t feel her full breasts against him. “Per l’amor del Cielo! I can’t feel you,” she bit out.

He turned them and lifted her to his hips, the wall supporting her back as he ground his hardness into her, and she moaned her approval. “That better?”

“Si…no… I want you inside me, Gabriel,” she wailed softly.

Gabe’s chuckle turned into a growl when Sarah nipped the area of skin where his jaw and neck met, the tender spot that made his blood boil in an instant. “Shit, Sarah…”

His radio hissed softly, and he half-listened to the code filtering through, before giving his full attention to Sarah. Though he was on an elite team, the members were asked to be on alert to assist the patrol officers, and that was why he was riding with Seth. Rah arched her hips as he kissed a hot trail down her neck, and she slipped her hands beneath his vest, trying to get closer to his skin.

“Jiminy! We have to go!”

They broke apart when Seth called Gabe, and he quickly stepped away from Sarah, making sure she could support herself before running a hand through his hair, trying to tidy it as much as possible. Sarah ran a thumb across his bottom lip as she wiped away some of her lip gloss.

Gabe pressed a last kiss against her temple before tugging on her ear and whispered, “Later.”

He couldn’t hide the smile when she shivered at the promise in his voice. To avoid meeting Seth’s questioning gaze for as long as possible, he swept his black cap off the counter and hooked it on his head, surprised that he had been with Sarah so long, Seth and Cleve had been able to secure the window. Cleve smirked as he watched Gabe walk past him, and Gabe had to swallow the impulse to give the handsome man a black eye.

Seth narrowed his eyes as Gabe joined him and opened his mouth with the question Gabe dreaded. Before the words could be spoken, Sarah came from the kitchen, securing wisps of hair behind her ear, and looked at her brother.

“What took so damn long?” Seth demanded.

Gabe bit the inside of his cheek to suppress the laughter at Sarah’s innocent look when she tilted her head at her brother.

“If you had helped me with the shelving like Gabe had, you would know how to readjust them like he does,” she said.

“Mmm, he sure knows how to readjust them,” Cleve muttered close to Gabe’s shoulder, his gray eyes sparkling with mischief.

Gabe narrowed his eyes at him but shook his head when the man laughed and patted his shoulder. With a sigh, Gabe looked at Seth and nodded to the door as he reminded him, “We’ve got to ride.”

He watched his friend struggle with the questions but ignored them as he followed Seth to the door. He turned, winked at Sarah and mouthed, “Later.”

With a soft flush, she nodded and blew him a kiss that made him laugh as he walked to his patrol vehicle.

***

Gabe

Are you awake?

Sarah

Yes. Baking for breakfast. Are you joining us?

Gabe

Would love to, but I need to report early. Just hoping to see you before I go to work.

Sarah

Okay. How long till you get here?

Gabe

Open the door…

The sky was still dark in the early fall morning, the horizon barely glinting as the sun rose when Gabe sent Rah the text. He figured she would be up early to get Amelia ready for school. He had hoped he could get a few minutes alone with her before he had to report for an extra early shift.

He had sat for a long while in the parking area of their apartment complex, waiting, and wondering why she held such a spell over him. He couldn’t stay away from her even when he knew he was only going to break her heart. That was why he had never formed any strong connections with his previous girlfriends. They were together for the fun and there was no sadness when they drifted apart, which normally happened when he went back to his unit. The military had been his lifelong lover…until now. And now it was his new unit in the sheriff’s department. Same job, different uniform.

And yet, Sarah made him feel like he was cheating on her when he put his job first. As if he was pushing his heart aside to spend time with his first love. Sarah wasn’t a fun-till-it-ends kind of girl. She was a forever kind of woman.

Gabe took a deep breath and climbed the stairs to the apartment that Sarah shared with Seth, knowing he could never offer Sarah forever, even if he wanted to. His need for redemption will never allow him to. But he couldn’t stay away from her either. She was like a cool milk bath on sunburnt skin, a Band-Aid on a grazed knee, glue to a shattered soul.

“Hi,” she greeted him breathlessly when she opened the door, and he couldn’t help the smile that he felt.

“Hi,” he whispered. She pulled the door wider, and he followed her into the kitchen. “Seth still sleeping?” His truck had been in its parking spot, so Seth wasn’t with Indie and Connor this time.

Sarah nodded. “He’s got the eight till four shift.”

“How come they haven’t set a date yet?” Gabe asked. Seth and Indie have been keeping everyone in suspense about the wedding date, but neither could give a definite answer.

Sarah shrugged. “Indie wants a winter wedding with fur and poinsettias. Seth wants to elope. Hopefully, they’ll find a compromise soon.”

Gabe laughed softly. “He doesn’t have a bad idea. Turquoise seas in the background, a canopy of palm trees on a pure white beach, a justice of the peace, and just the person you love.”

She turned to him. “Is that your idea of the perfect wedding?”

He gulped, knowing that this was his opportunity to tell her that he didn’t plan on getting married at all. But the words got stuck in his throat as he looked at her, an image of Sarah in a flowing white dress walking down the aisle of St. Bartholomew’s, a crown of wildflowers on her blonde hair, Amelia bouncing ahead of her flashing in his mind. The purity of her smile hit him hard in the gut as she stared at him with love shining from her green eyes.

He blinked the image away. She didn’t deserve a man like him. She deserved someone stable and would come home every night at five, have dinner with her and Amelia before they did family things together, and tuck Elli into bed. A man whom Gabe would happily rip to pieces before he could escort Sarah into the master bedroom and—

“Gabe?” Sarah’s cool hand on his cheek made him blink at her, his murderous thoughts scattering in the sight of her concerned gaze. “Where were you? What were you thinking just now?”

Sucking in a deep breath, Gabe knew he could never confess what he had been thinking. Instead, he lifted her onto the counter and took her mouth into a kiss that held all his emotions. The love, the fear, the uncertainty, the hope…

Sarah pushed her hands through his hair and responded with the same wild abandon he was feeling. She widened her legs to accommodate his hips as she hooked her ankles around his waist, pulling him closer. He groaned into her mouth and cupped her butt, but then clenched his fingers into her flesh when she lifted her hips against him.

“You are not walking out of here without putting out this fire, Gabriel,” Sarah murmured against his ear, making him chuckle softly. He hooked his fingers into the waistband of her light flannel sleep pants, and she lifted her hips to allow the material to slip free.

“Rah,” he growled when he realized that she was naked, his fingers slipping into her wet folds. Sarah bit her bottom lip to stop herself from crying out. She reached for the black pants of his uniform and unzipped him, her fingers finding him hard and hot. Gabriel sealed his mouth over hers to smother their mutual moans at their joining.

She clenched around him, her hips rocking hard against him as she chased her release. His fingers tightened on her hips as he allowed her to set the pace, and then pulled her tightly against him, cupping her head against his shoulder, his black T-shirt absorbing her scream as she shattered, his own groans of ecstasy seeping into her skin as he closed his mouth on the bare skin exposed by Seth’s old T-shirt that she wore.

They clung to each other, breathless and spent, their foreheads resting together. Gabe ran his thumbs gently across her cheeks as he watched the flush recede from her face. Her eyes were soft and languid as her dark golden lashes lifted slowly and she smiled as she met his gaze. With slow, gentle movements, he straightened his clothing before helping her put her pants back on.

He lifted the hem of her T-shirt and placed a soft kiss between her breasts before dropping it back in place.

She pushed her hand through his hair and cupped his jaw, lifting his head so that he looked at her. “You’re making magic in my life, Gabriel Von Ashner. You remind me what having fun in life is all about.”

“Don’t become too attached to me, Sarah. I’ll only break your heart.”

Her eyes grew concerned when she looked at him. With strong, sure hands, Sarah rested her palms on his freshly shaven jaw and smiled softly at him. “That warning is a summer too late, Deputy.”

“Rah…” He sighed, but she tightened her hold on him and kissed him. Gabe closed his eyes at the comfort he found in the soft touch. With a deep sigh, he clasped his hands over hers and kissed them before putting them down on the counter. A sound from Seth’s room had them pulling apart abruptly. He glanced up at the clock on the kitchen wall with the wooden spoon minute counters and swore softly. “I have to go.”

She nodded even as he brushed a quick kiss against her swollen lips. “Be careful and call me later.”

SARAH

With a deep sigh, Sarah slid from the counter and took the cinnamon buns out of the oven just as Seth stepped into the kitchen, his blond hair sticking up.

“Coffee,” he whispered in a gravelly tone, moving to the pot and placing a kiss on her cheek as he passed her.

“Buongiorno, fratello,” Sarah chided softly as she transferred the cooling buns to a plate.

“Mmm…,” Seth hummed as he watched his sister. “An exceptional one for you, I see.”

Sarah frowned at him as he took a bun from the plate and bit into it. “It’s customary to greet before heading for the coffee, Sethford.”

“I agree,” he smiled. And then ran a fingertip across the fresh teeth marks on her exposed shoulder. “But it seems you already got your buongiorno…sorella…”

Sarah could feel the deep blush rise up her cheeks at Seth’s astute teasing. “Go shower,” she grumbled, removing the second, half-eaten bun from his hand and stuffing it into her mouth.

“You can be so glad I want to spend some time with Indie and Connor before my shift.” Seth laughed as he snagged another bun before leaving the kitchen, but then he stopped at the door. “It’s good to see you so carefree, Sar, but be careful. Jiminy doesn’t do permanent. He’s married to the job, Sar, and you’ll always be the mistress in that triangle.”

She frowned at Seth’s retreating back, feeling the chill seep into her bones. It was eerie how her brother had put into words what had so eloquently been in Gabe’s gaze before he left.