Chapter 43
CHAPTER 43
GAbrIEL
I t’s eleven thirty when we finally call it a night. I’m winning, with Leah a close second. My strategic whispers are likely having something to do with it.
Although Leah is laughing and smiling with my siblings, I can sense her distance. She’s put up a wall between us, and I don’t like it.
We enter my room and get ready for bed. Leah no longer hides herself from me. There’s no need as I know every inch of her body, where she’s most sensitive and what she likes. The same way she’s learned mine.
She grabs her things and walks quietly to the en suite, avoiding my gaze. I sink into the chair in the corner and pull off my shoes and socks. Tossing them down by the door.
I hear the shower turn on, followed by the tap in the sink as Leah runs through her nightly routine. I would normally be next to her. But tonight, I know I’m not welcome and I don’t like the pressure building in my chest, where I keep forgetting to breathe. Leah is my air and tonight that’s been withdrawn .
Ten minutes later, Leah comes back into the bedroom and makes her way to the bed, her gaze still avoiding mine.
“Leah?” I say.
“Not tonight, Gabriel. I’m tired. I just want to sleep.” She sighs, her tone relaying her exhaustion. She pulls back the covers and climbs into the enormous four poster bed, almost disappearing within its size.
She lies down and rolls onto her side, facing outwards.
I get up and make my way into the bathroom before turning back and reentering the bedroom. I stand in the doorway and face the woman who has come to mean more to me than I realised.
“Elijah, he was out of line. He’s got-”
“Issues? Yes, I got that part. He’s also looking out for you, and you shouldn’t discount that. You and me, we lied to them. Information is his thing. Can you blame him for checking me out? For being suspicious?”
I stare at her. If it’s not Elijah, then it must be me. I wrack my brains.
“I fucked up, Leah. I’m sorry.”
She gives me a sad smile. “No, Gabriel, you didn’t. But what this shows me is how different our lives are. We’ve been living in a little bubble of our own creation, without a thought of what the future holds.” Leah sighs and I move towards her. “Elijah is right. I grew up on a council estate, and my parents still live there, although they purchased their house. I didn’t go to a fancy school or highbrow university. My family has worked hard for everything they have, but to people like your brother, that will never be enough.”
“Elijah was being a dick. The rest of my family adores you, whatever the circumstances,” I say, interlinking our fingers. My temper reigniting. It makes me want to thrash my older brother. That he has made Leah feel less, when she is so much more .
Leah’s hand comes up and cups my cheek. “Gabriel, you’ve been raised in a different world to the one I grew up in. All this, your family home, playing hide and seek in the grounds... the water tower.”
A shy smile graces her lips and I wonder if her mind has returned to our afternoon at the water tower, her screams echoing around the inside as I made her come first on my tongue before filling her with my cum as she rode me on an old bench.
“I can’t change who I am. Where I come from,” I say.
I’m unsure where Leah is going with this, but the crushing vice in my chest tells me I will not like it.
She looks at me in horror. “And I wouldn’t want you to. That’s not what I’m trying to say.” She sighs and sits up, pulling the covers with her. I move to sit next to her.
“You need to explain.”
I take her hand in mine. Something I have done a lot of recently.
She lowers her eyes to where our fingers are linked.
“Elijah’s words hurt me.”
I can’t prevent the growl that escapes.
Leah squeezes my hand to get my attention.
“But Gabriel, he won’t be the first or the last. Tomorrow we’ll face your mum’s friends, acquaintances. In our little bubble, we’ve shut out the rest of the world, but that’s not how this works.”
“It can. I’ve done it successfully for years,” I say, offering her a smile. “You know I hate this life with all its false smiles and social climbers. The mindless small talk and sucking up, people telling you what they think you want to hear. The fawning. Would they do that if I was a chef or a gardener? No. It’s because my last name is Frazer!” I cup Leah’s cheeks, making her look at me. “It’s why our arrangement, our bubble is so perfect.” My final statement seems so empty. Our agreement has changed. I know this, but I don’t know how to tell her without frightening her off, especially after Elijah’s little outburst.
“I think you might be downplaying your good looks,” she says, her lips twitching, her eyes softening.
I groan and she laughs, the sound warming something within me. “In our social standing, my surname means something. It’s like a badge of honour, one many want to add to their portfolio. It started at school, where kids tried to befriend us because their parents told them to. It’s been the same with women. Before you, I’ve never known whether someone wanted me for me, my money, or my name. We might have called our romantic relationship fake, but believe me when I tell you, it’s been the most real relationship I’ve ever been in. We work, Leah. Please don’t think we don’t. The bubble you speak of, it’s where I’ve chosen to live my life. You’ve simply entered it. Please don’t burst it. I like having you in here with me. The rest of the world can be damned.”
Horror fills me as I watch Leah’s eyes fill with tears.
“That’s the longest speech I’ve heard you say, outside of work hours.” She places a hand over mine, her other coming to my cheek. “I’m happy with our bubble too and those we choose to let in. But Gabriel, this time next year, you will bring our child to your mum’s birthday party alone.”
My heart jumps at the thought.
“No, we will be,” I say, knowing I mean it.
Leah shakes her head. “That’s not what we agreed. When the baby is born, we’ll each be moving on.”
My jaw clenches at the thought of Leah moving on. She’s mine. When did my feelings change? I’m not one for relationships, the tie, the needs, but with Leah, it’s different. The more time we’ve spent together, the more I’ve enjoyed her company .
I stay silent.
Leah leans forward, placing her lips against mine. I wait, unsure of what she wants until I feel her tongue snake along my lips.
I sink one hand into her hair, pulling her closer, while the other wraps around her back, dragging her against me.
One thing I know is Leah can’t get enough of my body. If that’s the case, I shall use every trick in my arsenal to make her crave me so much she can’t let me go, and with luck, somewhere along the way, she might even fall in love with my mind too.