Chapter 45
chapter forty-five
gabe
Luna
Have a safe flight!!! I can’t wait to see you again
Gabe
You won’t be able to keep me away
Was there anything worse than sitting through a flight with a crying baby beside you and a kid kicking the back of your seat?
That and learning the in-flight Wi-Fi was out of commission.
I held on to the knowledge that every second I tolerated the chaos around me brought me closer to the woman I loved.
“When you told me you would visit, I thought I could not be happier,” my father told me a few nights ago as we watched a football match on television. The game had gone into halftime, and I had taken the opportunity to text Luna to ask about her day. “But seeing you like this? I am even happier.”
I uncapped my beer bottle. “Seeing me drinking?”
“Seeing you in love.”
My nape grew tight with discomfort because I had never spoken to my father about a woman before. Back when we lived together, he was at work more often than not, and what few conversations we had revolved about my classes and his job. Even though I’d been staying with him for over a week, it still felt awkward to discuss Luna with him.
“Who would have thought, right?” I murmured.
He nodded repeatedly. “It is an answered prayer for a parent to know his child has found love.”
“So you still believe in it after Ma?” I’d told myself not to bring her up, but I couldn’t help asking.
My father reared back and frowned at me. “Of course. I never stopped.”
Never stopped believing in love? Or loving my mother?
“Believing in love,” he clarified, as though he knew what I was wondering about. “Yasmin . . . I will always love her for giving birth to you and the years we shared. But I stopped being in love with her long before I stopped smoking.”
“How can you believe in love when you know it doesn’t always last?”
He reached for his beer and took a drink. “Not all love is meant to last a lifetime. It takes work and commitment. Your mother and I, we put in both, but not at the same time. We made our choices, but we chose differently from one another. Our love ending doesn’t mean I won’t find it elsewhere—or that you won’t find it at all.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. It persisted, so I chased it down with alcohol. “Does it stop feeling so . . .”
“Much?”
Perfect. “Yes.”
“Sim. It ebbs and rises. It is exciting until it’s not, and that’s when you need to put in the effort to keep it alive.”
The match continued then, but I barely took in the action as I mulled over his words. When the game ended, my father raised his bottle to me in celebration of our team’s win. Turning off the television, he poured another drink. “So. Tell me about her.”
“Her name is Luna.” A thought struck me. “Actually, I was wondering if you could help me with something?”
“Of course. Anything.”
With summer in full swing, the Charleston airport thrummed with tourists wanting a change of scenery and locals escaping the rush. I resisted the urge to shove my way past a group of teens taking their time walking out of the customs gate.
I was checking that I still had the parking ticket in my shirt pocket when I heard a familiar voice call out, “Gabe!”
Glancing to my left, I peered past the throng and found Luna grinning at me in the shirt I’d given her. My heart raced, and I barreled toward her, barely seeing the bodies in my way.
As soon as I halted in front of her, she said, “You know, you should really focus on walking without bumping into people.”
The familiar words had me chuckling. “What people? I only saw you.”
Her eyes disappeared into crescents as she laughed. “Very smooth, Professor. Who knew you had it in you?”
“Trust me, I’ve been asking myself the same question.” Every time, the answer remained the same: Luna . “What are you doing here? Don’t you have work?”
“I put in overtime the past few days so I could take today off. I already missed your flight last time. I couldn’t miss it again.”
I wanted to embrace her—to pull her to me and kiss her right in the middle of the arrival hall. But I hesitated, unsure whether she would welcome the public display.
She made the decision for me, stepping forward and looping her arms around my neck. Her head fit perfectly in the crook of my shoulder as I wrapped my arms around her waist. I marveled at what I ever did to deserve my family seeing me off from one place only to arrive home and be welcomed by my heart.
“Thank you for picking me up,” I said, hugging her tighter.
“Technically, you’re the one driving.”
“Hm. Do you want me to teach you?”
She leaned back to look at me. “Now?”
I raised an eyebrow. “No. In the next couple of months.”
“Seriously?” She beamed. “That would be amazing. We can take turns driving on road trips!”
“It’s a plan.” I reached for her tote bag, but she pulled away from me and tsked.
“Not this time. You’re the one with the luggage. Did you want to eat somewhere? I packed some food for you, but?—”
“Perfect. How about my place?”
When she grinned this time, my breath hitched in my chest. “Finally,” she said. “It only took you forever to invite me back.”
luna
The last time I was in Gabe’s apartment, I’d been too worried about his fever to appreciate the converted warehouse’s design. Now I stood in the center of the living area and took in the details of the open space with its exposed brick and beams, concrete floors, and high ceilings.
“I didn’t get to tell you before, but I love your place.” It was beautiful without being flashy, modern and clean without being lifeless. He probably had a stunning view of the night sky, too, with his massive windows overlooking the river.
Gabe just kept looking at me. “I love it more with you here.”
“You should be careful about what you say,” I teased. “I might never leave.”
His brows rose. “Fine by me.” His eyes tracked down my body. “You’re wearing the shirt I gave you.”
I came up to him, stopping just short of making physical contact. “It’s my favorite.”
“It looks good on you.”
“Thanks. I bet it would look good on your floor too.”
His eyes blazed as they stared into mine. “Are you coming on to me?”
“If you’re asking, then I’m doing it wrong.” Laying my hand on his pec, I smiled at him.
He inhaled, his chest shuddering beneath my touch. “Luna.”
“I love the way you say my name,” I told him, drawing my hand up his neck to play with the curls at his nape. “You make it sound musical.”
He put his palms on my hips, the warmth searing through my top. “You make mine sound like it matters.”
“Because you matter to me, Gabe. You always have, even when I told myself I shouldn’t think about you because you were a jerk.”
“I believe you used the term ass .” His touch moved higher, following the curve of my side. “Don’t censor yourself now.”
I shrugged. “I used both interchangeably.” Smiling, I stepped so close that we were chest to chest. “I love you.”
His gaze softened. “I love you, too, Luna.”
Experimenting, I lightly scratched my nails across his scalp. He inhaled sharply, his fingers flexing, and yet he didn’t make a move.
So I said, “When I agreed to go slow, I didn’t mean glacial, Gabe. Go ahead and kiss me already.”
The corner of his mouth lifted, and my body buzzed with anticipation. “Since you asked so nicely.”
gabe
Sinking my fingers in her hair, I angled her head so I could kiss her deeply. My mouth fit over hers like it belonged there, responding to her demands as naturally as breathing. She pressed against me, our bodies so close that I felt the pounding of her heart as if it was my own.
It felt like decades since I last had her lips on mine. I savored the freedom of having her this way, taking my time understanding the rhythm she responded to the most. Soon, her kiss grew more insistent, her lips parting on a sigh. She welcomed my tongue with a moan that lit a fire through my veins, and this time I tasted nothing but Luna.
Her hands ran down my back, fingers digging into flesh. Then she was unbuttoning my shirt, and we broke apart, panting. She dragged the sleeves down my arms, and I released her just long enough so she could get it off.
“I should take a picture of you like this,” she said, sounding dazed. “You didn’t let me look at you long enough last time.”
“If you had looked any longer, you would have seen how much you affected me.” My voice came out rougher than usual. Seeing her staring at me with such clear appreciation made me glad I put in the time working out.
She gasped, and I knew what she saw. “Is that a moon on your chest?”
I brushed the backs of my fingers across her cheek. “My father always loved tattoos. He was happy I got my first with him.” I had gotten a full moon in the pointillism technique, with the crescent done in sparser points so it appeared to be glowing. It was the size of a dollar coin and lived right above my heart, where Luna belonged.
“I—it’s incredible, Gabe. I can’t believe you got it,” she murmured as she traced a circle around the moon. “But what if things go wrong and you regret it?”
“I won’t. You’re it for me, Luna. You always will be the one I want.”
Her eyes turned glossy, flitting between my face and my tattoo. “I heard it hurts more to get tats removed.”
“Good thing I’m not removing mine. Like I told you—no matter how things turn out between us, you’re a part of me.”
“I’m getting one, too,” she blurted out.
“Let’s do it together.” I already knew what I wanted for my next tattoo. But for now, I had more important things to focus on. Catching the hem of her shirt, I tugged it halfway up her stomach and paused, searching her face for any sign of hesitation.
“I want this, Gabe.”
“Anytime you feel uncomfortable and you want to slow down or stop, you let me know,” I told her, wanting to make it clear. “You’re in control here, Luna.”
“Got it.” Then she took off her shirt, leaving her in a lacy bra that emphasized the curves of her breasts and a skirt that rode up her thighs.
“Do you always wear lacy bras?”
“I love pretty clothes,” she said as she tossed her top onto the sofa. “Even underwear. You like?”
“I do.”
“Hopefully you’ll like what’s under them too.” Her tone was light, teasing even, but her eyes seemed guarded. Like she worried her body wouldn’t appeal to me when just being with her felt like a miracle.
I cupped her face in my palms. “I already know I will because it’s you.”
One moment, she was smiling at me. The next, her lips were on mine, her hands skating their way down my chest.
“Hold on.” I chuckled even as my blood pooled down to my groin.
“I’m getting tired of waiting for you to make the next move.”
I raised an eyebrow at the challenge, then I lifted her by the waist and carried her to the sofa.
She squealed as I laid her on her back. “Gabe!”
“You wanted me to make my move.” I caged her in my arms.
“How caveman of you.”
“Luna, I’m just getting started.”
Ducking my head, I skimmed my nose down the curve of her neck and breathed in her subtle scent. Her skin broke into goosebumps, and I followed their path with the tip of my tongue. She gave a full-body shiver, launching her hips upward.
“Gabe.”
“Hmm?” I pressed kisses across her collarbones before drifting down to the gentle slope of her breast. I still couldn’t believe I was touching her like this. For years, I’d forbidden myself from thinking about her in anything but a platonic way. Now that she was underneath me, arching up her chest for my mouth, I wondered if I was dreaming.
“You can skip those,” she told me. “There’s not much there.”
I cupped them and circled my thumbs around the lace-covered peaks. “Not much?”
She sucked in a breath as I pushed the edges of her bra down and kissed the slopes of her breasts. Her fingers tangled in my hair, scraping my scalp. The sensation zipped down to my cock, hardening it further.
Keeping my eyes on her, I circled her taut nipples with my tongue and enjoyed the way she bucked into me.
“Always—such a—smartass,” she gasped.
“Only when I’m right.”
She moaned, and then she pulled me up to meet her mouth, kissing me frantically. Her need matched my own. Forget breathing. This was all I needed—her mouth on mine, her legs shifting restlessly beneath me. I ground my hips against hers, and she threw her head back.
“I want you, Gabe.”
Looking into her eyes, I found the truth of her words staring back at me. “Luna.” This woman and that stubborn tilt of her chin would be the death of me.
“I’m sure. I’ve just been waiting for you to come around.”
Her certainty humbled me. “We agreed to go slow.”
“Slow. Not glacial,” she reminded me. She smiled at me then, so sweetly I felt it in my bones.
Still, I couldn’t rush this. I wanted our first time together to be special.
But that didn’t mean I couldn’t give her something else.
Pressing a long kiss on her lips, I moved down, worshipping her body with my hands and mouth. Her stomach compressed as I dipped my tongue into her navel. A glance at her face showed me her eyes were barely open enough to watch me, her lashes fluttering against her skin.
I drew my hands up her thighs, feeling them tremble under my touch. As I went higher, I kept my gaze on her, taking in her reactions. Her lips parted and so did her legs, a silent invitation for me to proceed. My fingertips grazed the juncture of her thighs, and her hips launched up, pushing the hem of her skirt higher to reveal her underwear.
I traced the edges of her panties and she moaned, her fingers diving into my hair. My knuckles brushed down her center, and I felt the dampness of the lace that concealed her. Seeking out her clit with my thumb, I rubbed gentle circles over it, all the while tracking the little sounds escaping her throat.
My erection throbbed against the sofa as I lowered my head over her.
She sucked in a breath. “Oh God.”
I felt high on her scent. Our eyes met right before I brought my lips to her clit.
“Gabe.” Her hips thrust against me, and I slid my hands beneath her to cup her ass, lifting her to my mouth.
Her moans grew louder as I nudged the edge of the lace aside to give way for my tongue. She was addicting, driving me to the limit of my restraint.
Working my lips against her clit, I slipped a finger inside her and closed my eyes at the incredible feel of her.
“I need more.”
Carefully, I drew my finger out and replaced it with two. As I thrust into her, she clenched around me. She met my mouth and my fingers in increasing speed, the sounds of her pleasure rising, spurring me on.
I rubbed that spot inside her and circled my tongue over her clit. She bucked, and I watched her eyes go sightless as she reached her climax. I just managed to hold back from grinding into the sofa despite her squeezing the circulation from my fingers.
Waiting until her breathing evened out, I pressed one last kiss to her and eased myself up her body.
“That was”—she blew out a breath—“amazing.”
I smiled at the satisfaction in her voice. Resting my chin on the crook of her shoulder, I took in deep breaths to calm my arousal.
Then she shifted, her hand coasting down my stomach. My erection ached, pressing insistently against my trousers.
I caught her hand before it reached my waistband. “This was just for you, Luna.”
Her brows swung up. “Really? Well, I want this too.” She popped my button, and I stopped breathing as she went straight for my cock. Her eyes widened, then her lips curved in a smile that was all feminine power. “Here’s to equality in our relationship.”
And she proceeded to blow my mind.