Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Monica
Holy mackerel.
Well worth the wait.
Frankly, if I had known it would be like this , I would have jumped in the shower with him at the conference in Boulder.
I’ve experienced my fair share of men. I’ve had great sexual experiences. I’m more fortunate than most women because I can typically get off during intercourse. But the way Gabriel possessed me? The way he took control and held my attention? Mind-blowing. Extra. Orgasmic. All the things .
Gabriel had told me once that he’d own me, but dayum , I didn’t think he actually meant it. Hands down, best ever. No comparison. To think I stayed with Marcus … I mean Nicolas … when I could have had this . Woah.
Gabriel wasn’t kidding when he said he had plans for me all night. He was insatiable! I was under the impression men in their forties don’t have sex drives, but Gabriel was hard and raring to go the entire night. Hours later and my vagina is still pulsating.
We had sex again this morning in the shower. Shower sex has always been my favorite, but Gabriel takes it to another level. I can’t believe how much we both get off on me calling him Daddy. A therapist would have a fucking field day with this, but it’s just so damn hot when he growls every time I say it. “Daddy is gonna take such good fucking care of you.” Holy hell. I’m sopping wet just reminiscing.
After our first bout of sex, I asked Gabriel why he didn’t want to wear a condom. He explained that he’d had a vasectomy years ago, knowing he didn’t want kids. He gently took my chin between his thumb and forefinger, saying, “I don’t want anything between us, querida . You’re mine, and I’m yours. Forever.” He seemed apprehensive about telling me he didn’t want to be a father, assuming I did want children. I assured him I felt the same way as him. “Fucking perfect for me, anjinho . Perfect.”
Excuse me while I go squeal like a little girl.
I asked him if I could go into the office with him today. I’m bored out of my damn mind. You can only do so much from home working in real estate. I transferred most of my clients over to other realtors while recovering, first from the smoke inhalation and then from what Nicolas did to me. I want some human interaction. Human adult interaction. I love Em, Liv, and Harp, but their kids are a lot. Gabriel telling me he doesn’t want kids is a damn relief because neither do I. I never even had this conversation with Nicolas because I had no intention of staying with him. Or maybe, deep down, I knew something was ‘off’ with him.
Gabriel and I arrive at the office mid-morning, and he wraps his arm around me as we walk inside.
“Gabriel,” I hiss, trying to push his arm off, but he doesn’t budge.
“What? Querida , they all know,” he tells me.
I stop dead in my tracks. “What?” I breathe.
“Chase called me out on in months ago. Told me he could tell by how I watched you. Even Meghan commented on it the last time I spoke to her. She said you were avoiding me. Others have made remarks as well. I don’t care, querida . I’m thrilled they know you’re spoken for.”
“Spoken for?”
“Is that too old-fashioned for you?” he teases as he leans down and pecks the tip of my nose. “You can call me your boyfriend if you’d like, but I think I’m a little old for that moniker.”
“What am I supposed to call you, then?” I wonder aloud.
“Your man. Your love. Beloved. The cock you’ll be riding every day for the rest of your life,” he whispers against my ear.
“Holy shit, Gabriel,” I whimper. God, this man turns me on like no other.
“Close your mouth, querida , or I’ll drag you into the bathroom and fill it,” he growls.
“Yes, please,” I sigh.
“Fuck. Go to your desk before I fuck you in front of everyone,” Gabriel says before smacking my ass and sauntering toward his office.
“Well. It’s about damn time,” Chase drawls from the desk across from mine. I school my expression.
“What?” I ask innocently, making my eyes wide and acting like he didn’t see a damn thing.
“You two have been circling around each other for months. I figured me sending you to the conference would have been the nail in the Gabriel-sized sex coffin, but I forgot how fucking stubborn you are.”
“What do you mean you sent me there?” I ask. He gives me a saucy wink.
“Did you really think I was sick? Cough, cough. ‘I’m too sick, Mon, do me a solid.’ You ate that shit right up. Hell, I even called and changed the hotel reservation so you’d be forced to share a room. How’d that go, by the way? Please tell me there was only one bed. I fucking love that trope in books,” he says amusingly.
“Jesus. So much to unpack here,” I say absentmindedly. “First of all, you sounded legitimately sick. Secondly, did you really change the reservation? Gabriel was so embarrassed. He kept apologizing. He figured I thought it was him that set it up. And lastly, how do you know about the ‘only one bed’ trope? That’s only in romance books, right?”
Chase cackles.
“That’s your most important point, isn’t it? Not about the reservation or me being sick. It’s about me reading romance books.”
“Well, yeah. Not many men do.”
“It’s how I learn, my friend.”
“Excuse me?”
“Romance books are mostly written by women. So to understand women and what they want, might as well get into their minds.”
“How deep into this are you? Are you reading erotica? BDSM? What?” I ask.
“Fuck no. I read contemporary books. I do like the spicier ones, though.”
“Care to share your favorites?”
“I have too many to share, so I’ll go with overall favorite authors. Claire Kingsley, Meghan Quinn, Pippa Grant. I love a story that makes me laugh but gives a good sex storyline and a happily ever after.”
“I seriously feel like I don’t even know you right now,” I blurt out, and Chase gives me a crooked grin. Not only do I know all three of those authors, but I’ve secretly wondered about writing a book myself. I never thought I could do it.
“Nah. You know me just fine. For a hot minute, I thought maybe I could turn our friendship into a friends-to-lovers situation, but I knew you never saw me like that. And it’s been pretty cool being your friend and co-worker.”
“So, have your literary musings been successful? You got a woman hidden somewhere that I should know about?” I ask with a smile.
“Not yet. But I’ve got my eye on someone. Unfortunately, she’s not too open to me pursuing her right now, so I’m just biding my time,” Chase explains. His eyes brightened when I asked, so I think it’s more than a little crush or dalliance.
“I hope you find your happily ever after, Chase. Really, I do,” I say quietly.
“And I’m glad you found yours, Mon. Gabriel is one hell of a good guy.”
I beam as I look over Chase’s shoulder and find Gabriel studying me from his office doorway. “He really is. He’s the best guy for me.”
I can’t even contain my happiness as I skip over to him and jump in his arms, crashing our lips together. Gabriel’s arms come around me as he returns my kiss with ardor.
“What’s that for, querida ?” he whispers against my lips.
“Nothing. I just needed to kiss you,” I whisper.
“ Você é minha alma gêmea, querida. Meu cora??o clama for você, ” Gabriel whispers.
I open my eyes to see emotion swimming in Gabriel’s expression as he cups my cheek and brings our lips together for a tender kiss. Then, he sets me down on my feet and smiles .
“Back to work. I have plans for you, and the sooner we get home, the better,” Gabriel tells me. Those pesky butterflies are at it again, dancing in my stomach at thinking about Gabriel’s condo as ‘home.’ Our home. I’m getting ahead of myself with hoping for the future. I need to rein it in.
“Gabriel,” I call back after he walks to his desk, and he turns around to look at me. “What did you tell me in Portuguese just now?”
“I’ll tell you another time. When I know you’re ready to hear it,” he says with a wink.
Huh.
I walk back to my desk and open my laptop. The only word I can remember Gabriel saying is cora??o . A quick google tells me it means ‘heart.’ Shit, he’s told me a couple different phrases with that word in them. I try to google some other phrases to see if anything sounds like what he’s said to me, but nothing rings a bell. What does come up, however, is a website called Babbel, which claims it’s the easiest way to learn a foreign language. I immediately signed up and downloaded the app.
Gabriel is probably telling me super emotional things about his feelings for me. I can’t think of a better way to respond than reciprocating them in his native language. He feels more comfortable admitting these things to me in Portuguese, so I will do the same thing. Since he tends to leave me at home each day to either head to work or run errands, it’ll give me enough time to do the daily lessons and start working on what I want to tell him.
Hmm. I quickly google how to say ‘I love you’ in Portuguese, and it’s te amo . So I at least know he hasn’t said that. I’d remember if he said that. And somehow, I’m slightly disappointed he hasn’t said it yet. Maybe he’s waiting for me to say it first. Do I love him? Am I in love with him? I don’t think I’m ready to say those words yet. But I think it could be coming. For the first time, I’m in a good relationship with someone I can see forever with. I wish Nana was still alive. She’d absolutely love Gabriel.
Gabriel and I establish a rhythm really easily. Typically, I wake up with his face between my legs. Absolutely not complaining, as an orgasm is the perfect way to wake up. Since I’m the poster child for hating mornings, he’s found I’m much nicer when sexually satisfied. Shower sex is next, and I’m not complaining about that, either. The morning light reflecting off the mirror makes Gabriel’s eyes gleam as he stares into my eyes. That’s something I definitely wasn’t prepared for. Gabriel maintains eye contact from the first thrust to the last. Power, lust, and passion personified. Should my eyes close even momentarily, he will demand I open them immediately. He won’t even continue until I do. “Eyes on me while I’m fucking you, querida .”
When we’ve both finished, he pulls out and then watches his cum leak out of me. The feral expression on his face never ceases to amaze me. He obviously likes marking me. Really making me his.
While I wash my hair, Gabriel gets dressed and makes us coffee. I’m not a huge coffee drinker, especially none of that weird shit Liv drinks, but I need a cup in the morning. I have no idea why so many realtors offer showings at the crack of dawn, but that quick hit of caffeine is warranted. So unless someone wants me to murder them, I must start with a cup of coffee each morning.
Gabriel has begun allowing me to stay at the office longer each day. I protested initially, but he explained his hesitation without sugarcoating it. “Someone is after you, anjinho . I don’t know if it stops with Nicolas. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe. No one is taking you from me.”
Needless to say, I’m letting him control my whereabouts right now. There’s something incredibly calming and peaceful about having him be so caring and attentive. I’ve never had that from a man who didn’t appear maniacal or chauvinistic and possessive. My dad was a narcissistic and controlling asshole. He didn’t do anything out of love. He did it out of necessity for La Famiglia. He wouldn’t have shed a tear if I had perished the day I walked out of his house. But Gabriel is entirely different. He’s controlling, but out of fear for my safety. Fear of losing me. His adoration for me outshines everything else.
A month after we finally got together, I’m waiting for him at work late one evening. He’s finishing up a ton of paperwork, and I’m bored out of my mind. The Babbel lessons can only take up so much time in a day.
“Can I take your car and go visit Em?” I ask from his doorway.
He looks up from a pile of paperwork, exhaustion written across his face. He sighs before scrubbing a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, querida . I didn’t think it would take me this long. I still have at least an hour to go. These contracts have to be finished tonight.”
“It’s okay. I can go to Emily’s. Or if you’d feel more comfortable, I can just go home,” I tell him softly. Gabriel stands and walks toward me, pulling me into his arms.
“Isn’t it too late to visit Emily?” he asks.
“No. She’s up with a newborn. I bet they’re all still up. She said everyone is having trouble acclimating to the new family dynamic,” I explain. Em gave birth to a little boy the day after Harper, Victoria, and I went to the mall. Jack was right again. His batting percentage on predicting gender is perfect. We all love to tease Nathan that he has a little clairvoyant son, but I think it’s just something with those Riggs boys. I bet the new little one, Elijah, will be as well.
“Okay, querida . Go straight to Emily’s and then text me when you get there,” Gabriel says as he leans down to kiss me. He deepens the kiss for a moment before groaning and pulling away. “You better go before I strip you down and fuck you on my desk. Then I’ll never get you home.”
I pause, envisioning that scenario. I’m tempted to stay, but Gabriel slaps my ass as he grabs his keys and hands them to me.
“I’ll walk you out to the car,” he says.
“You don’t think I can manage walking the twenty feet to your car?” I tease.
“Just being extra careful, querida . I would never forgive myself if something happened to you on my watch,” he says quietly. My mood immediately sours as I remember why I’m always with Gabriel. We still haven’t figured out the connection between the Bianchi family and my family and who might be pulling the strings. We have no idea how Nicolas even found me.
Gabriel gives me one last kiss as I get behind the wheel, then waves to me as I pull out of the parking lot.
I don’t see the car that immediately turns its lights on and pulls out behind me. I don’t know how closely it tails me as I drive to Emily’s house.
But Gabriel does see it. And he’s panicking.