Chapter Twenty-One
E mma pulled her bottom lip into her mouth and chewed.
What on earth will I choose?
“All this stuff looks far too yummy, Mary. Just give me another minute, would you?”
Mary moved off to serve another customer. The bakery was packed. For a small town, it surprised Emma that they would be so busy on a Thursday afternoon. She’d finished painting her bathroom this morning. Ralph was now complete with a pretty blue nose, courtesy of his checking out the roller tray. The kitchen cupboards looked brand new with their shiny coat of lacquer. She’d had one heck of a busy couple of weeks.
Anything to keep from thinking.
Darby had come around to help her with the painting but didn’t ask questions after she’d refuted that Gabe had stayed that night. The questioning gaze she’d felt resting on her disappeared the moment Emma glanced at Darby, a friendly smile taking its place.
Darby’s face popped up in front of her, behind the glass of the display case. “Have you decided yet, Em?”
Emma pointed to a few different items, unable to decide on one. Darby’s running commentary on where the various choices’ deposit of fatty calories would end up had her laughing out loud.
The amusing discourse stopped abruptly, silence fanning out over the busy little bakery’s crowd.
Emma looked up and saw Darby’s sympathetic look toward the door of the bakery. Her eyes flicked to Emma in apology. Emma turned, wondering what had dampened the mood. Her eyes clashed with the stormy grey of Gabe’s. Breaking the contact, she pulled her gaze from his and turned back to the three women standing quietly behind the register.
“Darby’s right. I think I’ll pass on the saggy arse. Sorry,” Emma murmured. She turned and moved through the people standing between her and the door. Between her and Gabe.
He stood in the doorway, his large, toned frame taking up most of the exit. Emma kept her eyes glued to the safe level of chest height so she wouldn’t see curious looks from the other customers, wouldn’t see Gabe’s accusing stare.
Emma had almost reached Gabe, panicking a little when he didn’t move and still stood in the way of her escape. Just as she reached him, he stepped to the side, allowing her enough room to pass.
The moment stretched and stilled. She turned her head the slightest amount. Her nose caught wind of his scent, blown in upon the faint, crisp breeze from outside as the automatic door opened. She drew it down deep within, all in that insane moment between one heartbeat and the next.
Somehow Emma’s body kept moving, stepping out into the late-winter sunshine. The bright, cheery light suddenly appeared offensive to her. Heart pounding, she scrubbed her palms against her knee-length skirt, certain the day had grown hotter in the ten minutes she’d been in the bakery. She hurried around the corner to the carpark behind the line of shops. Opening the door of her ute, Emma hunted beneath the driver’s seat for her keys. It was a terrible habit, one she’d been chided for many times in the past, but now she was glad she didn’t have to fumble in a bag to look for them.
Seat belt buckled, Emma clenched her hand a few times to stop its shaking and inserted the key into the ignition. Her heart-shaped locket swung with the motion of turning the key, the engine of the car roaring to life.
Slamming the gearstick into reverse, she hit the accelerator and pulled out into the street.
He’s not following me.
Emma wasn’t sure if the tears that now threatened were because she’d wanted him to.
*
It took every ounce of willpower in Gabe to stand still and let her walk past him, when what he really wanted to do was take hold of her and kiss her senseless.
But that wouldn’t be smart. He didn’t want a relationship. Didn’t want to be placed under someone else’s influence again. He didn’t want this either. This… awkwardness between them. He didn’t like it. He liked her , wanted her friendship back.
The few short weeks they’d spent getting to know one another shone like a beacon in his otherwise bleak world. Since the night he’d kissed her and lost that friendship, he’d missed her smile. Missed her laugh.
Missed the quirky woman who’d named a calf Ralph.
Gabe looked up to see over a dozen people he’d known all his life staring at him. Waiting.
His mother lifted one eyebrow and cocked her head to the side. “You miss her so much, what are you waiting for? An engraved invitation?”
He opened his mouth to deny her words but thought better of it. Why bother? He did miss her and he didn’t care who knew it. Her friendship meant a lot to him, more than he could’ve imagined.
Besides, he wanted to return her shoes. He’d picked them up after she’d kicked them off in the park, bolting out of sight like the devil himself was on her heels. They now sat on the passenger seat of his ute, waiting for the woman they belonged to.
He wanted to find out what the hell Millie had said to make her look at him like he’d run over her dog.
He spun in the doorway of his mother’s bakery and hurried up the mall, around to the carpark. He’d seen Emma’s truck while on his way to her home and had decided to stop and try to find her downtown instead. He hadn’t expected there to be so many people in the shops at this time of the afternoon, all watching with curious eyes.
From his toes up, relief washed through Gabe when he saw Emma’s ute parked near her porch steps.
Pulling up next to her, he cut his engine and climbed out. Leaning over, he hooked the high-heeled sling-backs over his finger and took a deep breath, striding toward the front door.
Looking at the jamb beside the door when he knocked, he noticed the paint was no longer peeling. The peeling bits had been scraped off and sanded and it was all ready to paint. Perhaps she’d let him help as a way to say he was sorry. She obviously didn’t need his help, but it would let him spend time with her.
The door opened, and Emma’s startled face appeared. Her eyes had a suspicious redness to them, and he called himself every name he could think of. He’d somehow managed to upset her yet again.
“Hi.”
Good one, Gabe. Next you’ll ask something stupid, like how are you.
Emma tried to smile, but gave up. “What do you want?”
Well. That’s a good start.
He held up her shoes. “I have your shoes. From the other night,” he expanded unnecessarily.
“Oh.” Her face shadowed and shut all expression down.
Didn’t she want them back?
At a loss for what to do, Gabe held the heels higher. “Where would you like them?”
She pointed to the other end of the porch, at the rotten old bench barely standing. “Over there is fine. See you later.” She went to shut the door.
Gabe’s foot shot out. The door slammed his work boot between it and the jamb, the resounding thud tearing a gasp from Emma’s mouth.
Emma threw the door open, alarmed eyes wide. “Your foot! I’m so sorry. Are you all right?”
Gabe couldn’t help the grin that surfaced. She was worried about his foot. Maybe she did care enough to restart their friendship.
He held up the foot in question and twisted his ankle to show her he was fine. “Steel capped. Comes in handy.”
Residual fear turned to anger in the space of a heartbeat. Her lips pressed hard together, and she crossed her arms over her chest. He noticed with a start that she must have been in the middle of changing clothes when he’d knocked. Her shirt was different, a T-shirt now instead of the loose blouse she’d had on in the shop.
That wasn’t what caught his attention though. Beneath the tight material of her T-shirt, her breasts rested above her crossed arms.
Shit. She’s not wearing a bra.
Sucking a desperate breath into suddenly empty lungs, he tore his gaze from the sight, the temptation to take hold of her almost too strong to control.
“Was there something specific you wanted?”
That caught his attention, dragging it back from dangerous waters. Emma let out a disgusted sigh when he didn’t answer and turned on her heel.
“Do what you want. I don’t care.” She stalked down the hall and into the living room on the right.
Gabe shut the door and followed her, determined to fix their friendship. “What exactly is going on?” he asked as he came around the doorway. Emma turned, surprise he’d stayed washing over her distressed face.
“I thought you’d leave.” She dashed a hand beneath her eyes and glared at him. “As if you don’t know, Mr I’m-So-Bloody-Wonderful. I thought we were friends, and then…” Emma cut off her words and glared at him, daring him to contradict her.
“So did I. And you hit me. Okay, I may have been out of line kissing you like that, but I sure didn’t expect a slap across my face. A simple don’t do that again would’ve sufficed.”
Gabe took a moment to think, knowing his next words could make or break any future friendship.
“What did Millie say to you that hurt you so badly? She swears she didn’t say anything, but she must have for you to get so upset.”
“She’s right, she didn’t say anything to me. I was in the bathroom when she and her friends came in. They didn’t know I was there. Millie started on about how I was such a joke, what everyone really thinks of me. She said you refused to be put on the list—you admitted to that—and that you think I’m… that I’m…”
Emma’s eyes looked like they’d overflow, but she continued, her voice quiet in the silent room. “She said you didn’t want to help with the house, and that’s fine, but don’t pretend like you do when it’s not your idea. She said you think I’m nothing but trash who no one would want to date after the initial thrill wore off. That Pete felt sorry for me, and that’s the only reason he asked me to dinner.”
Gabe stared at her, shock turning his blood to ice. “How could you believe that? Yes, I refused that stupid damn list. You know that. It wasn’t because I thought you were… or are trashy. Dammit, Emma! I refused initially because I thought it was a stupid idea to begin with, one of Ryan’s crazier ones. He thought he’d win and have a huge kitty to take you out with in Bialga. Show you a good night out.”
He didn’t add that Ryan was hoping like crazy she’d want to have sex with him afterward. He ignored the cramping of his gut when he thought of his friend with her like that. It was none of his business.
“If you’d wanted to, you could’ve gotten into the whole wager thing and been dating within days of arriving here. And that would’ve been fine if you’d chosen to. But you didn’t. And Pete never felt sorry for you. He likes you. You made him feel special, like someone worth talking to. All from sitting down to have a drink with him that first time you went out with Darb. And do you think that’s a lie as well? That Darby doesn’t really like you?”
Letting out a frustrated sigh, Gabe waited until Emma answered.
“No, of course not. She’s not like that.” Emma raised her sad gaze to his. “Hassles like this are what I was trying to avoid. It’s almost enough to make me wish I hadn’t moved here.”
Her confusion was obvious. A wash of sympathy followed by fear at the thought of her leaving delved deep into Gabe’s insides and burrowed where he couldn’t dig it out.
“Why did you kiss me?”
“I don’t know.”
Liar. You kissed her because you wanted her— still want her.
Gabe ignored the annoying voice in his head and spat out the first thing he thought of. “You were upset. I thought it would help.”
He winced. His mouth was digging him deeper every time he opened it. Time to lay it on the table and see if he could salvage anything from this mess.
“I want our friendship back. I miss talking to you, seeing you. I did something stupid and it upset you, and I’m sorry.”
Emma blinked and stepped back. “So the stupid thing you did, that was kiss me, right? And now you’re sorry?”
Gabe didn’t like the tone of her voice when she said it like that. He nodded slowly, knowing he’d just said something wrong but couldn’t for the life of him think what it was. Wasn’t he supposed to say he was sorry?
“Yes?”
A flush spread up her face, anger swallowing the remaining tears in her eyes.
“You’re an arse, you know that?” She stalked past him and into the kitchen, spinning to face him when he followed her into the room. “What do you want from me? What, Gabe? I don’t understand,” she demanded, anger suffusing her face.
“Nothing! Just your friendship.” He held up his hands, at a loss to explain himself any better. How did he do that without outing himself completely? “I like you, okay? I want to spend time with you.”
What could he say to make her forgive him? To make her want to spend time with him again? To make this gnawing emptiness in his gut go away?
Emma’s face closed over with consternation. “You say you want to spend time with me, that you like me. How do I reconcile that with how I feel about you? Because I like you a lot, Gabe. And not just as a friend. I’m attracted to you. You make me feel things I wish I didn’t, that I don’t want to feel, but I do. How am I supposed to deal with that if you’re around all the time?”
Gabe stepped closer to where she stood near the counter, his surprise displayed all over his face. She actually admitted it? He’d felt the heat when they’d kissed. It had been real. “You feel it too?”
She sighed and rubbed her hand over her face. “Of course I do. I don’t know, maybe it’s just lust, or something we have to get out of our systems?”
He strode over to stand directly in front of her. “I think we both know it’s more than that. I wasn’t looking for anything either, but maybe it’s something we need to try, maybe this is something we both need.” He slipped his hand around the back of her head, her soft hair winding around his hand, entrapping him, entrancing him.
“Let me kiss you, Emma. Please.”
Her mouth parted when her gaze dropped to his mouth. She licked her lips and he was gone. She tilted her mouth to his, her soft breath teasing his lips.
He dropped his head, unable to resist her pull any longer.
*
Shock waves erupted through Emma’s entire body at the taste of Gabe’s mouth on hers. Silver fire shot along every vein, screaming down into every nerve as his tongue touched her lips then teased her mouth.
Her hands slid up his shirt, around his neck and into his hair, her fingers twisting and grabbing handfuls, holding him to her. She couldn’t think. Couldn’t do anything but feel him against her, around her, enveloping her.
She didn’t want it to stop.
She’d been fighting her attraction to him since the first day she’d seen him, keeping it hidden and controlled, to let their friendship grow instead. She’d thought it better to have him as a friend. But she couldn’t fight it anymore. Not with him kissing her, tasting her, owning her with just his mouth.
He had reasons why he didn’t want to be involved with anyone, but so did she. Emma didn’t want to be responsible for anyone again. Never wanted to be put in that position of trust. Not when it could so easily be taken away.
No one seemed to have told her body that, however. She could not stop herself from reacting to him any more than she could stop the spin of the earth, and his pull was far stronger than that.
His hands slid down her back to her bottom, pulling her against him. His moan at the feel of her against him set her skin on fire. Gabe’s hand slipped around, sliding up beneath her T-shirt to lay claim to her breast. Emma sucked in a desperate breath at feeling his hand on her bare skin, her nipples reacting so thoroughly it was impossible to miss.
She wanted his touch, it was as simple as that.
Her body’s reaction to his hand didn’t go unnoticed. Gabe tore his mouth from hers as he yanked up her shirt, pulling it over her head and tossing it to the floor. His mouth replaced his hand on her breast, his lips and tongue devouring her. First stroking one nipple, then the other.
Emma gasped in another desperate breath.
Leaving her aching breasts, Gabe’s mouth returned to hers. He raided the depths of her mouth, stealing all strength from her legs. Lifting her up to sit on the edge of the kitchen counter, his strong hands urged her knees apart to place himself between them.
He slipped his hands beneath her skirt, bunching it up around her thighs, and grazed his hands along her legs to slip under her bottom, pulling her against him.
The hardness of his erection behind thick jeans pressed against her. Emma rubbed against him, needing the touch, the pressure. Needing him.
“I want you.”
Her whispered words had Gabe’s fingers digging into the soft skin of her ass as they moved and tugged on the sides of her knickers.
Apparently finding no easy way of removal, Emma heard the soft material tear, the remains of the once-expensive underwear flung heedlessly to the floor.
“Do you have protection?” Gabe whispered. His deep voice sent shivers from her ear, down her spine.
Emma shook her head to clear it a little. “Ah, in the drawer.” She pointed at her kitchen junk drawer. Darby had given them to her a few weeks ago and she’d tossed them into the closest place possible to get them out of her sight.
Gabe lifted an eyebrow, seemingly surprised at the location. Emma laughed. “They weren’t my idea. I was given them. I threw them in the draw there because it was the closest place to hide them.”
Gabe chuckled and reached over, pulling them out. “I think I can guess who that was.” He leaned in for a seductive, spine-tingling kiss, distracting her all over again. Gentle fingers slipped between them and slid over her. She bucked against his hand and moaned at the touch. A soft crackle reached her ears, then Gabe’s hands returned to beneath her butt, and lifted.
Emma’s eyes flew open with the heavy heat of him pressing against her, then sliding slowly into her. He shifted her slightly, then slid fully into her, inch by tantalising inch. She gasped and clenched her hands tight on his skin.
Gabe’s head fell to her naked shoulder, his moan intensifying the pleasure of feeling him begin to move. Emma wrapped her legs up and around his hips, increasing the friction of where their bodies met. Eyes closing in rapture, Emma gave herself over to pure sensation.
“Emma … Oh hell. ”
Gabe’s moaned words slid over her skin like molten fire, igniting every last nerve and synapse in bliss. She grabbed at his neck, his strength holding her upright when she would have fallen.
“Please, I …”
Emma shuddered, her legs tightening painfully around Gabe’s hips, the spasm of muscles enhancing the feel of him inside her, filling her. His thrusts pushed her higher each time he moved.
She cried out, her reaction too powerful. She couldn’t hold on.
He just felt too damn good, and she hadn’t been with anyone for so long. Sensation burned her, so intense she believed her skin would melt. An inferno washed over her, inside her, branding her with his body.
Gabe kissed her shoulder open-mouthed where his head rested. He was buried so deep she felt she couldn’t breathe. Orgasm hit her in a blinding rush, harder than she ever thought possible, stealing her breath, and her strength.
Gabe’s cry resounded around the kitchen. Strong arms wrapped around her. His whole body trembled. She couldn’t deny them this. Not when he seemed to want her as much as she wanted him. Gabe sucked in a huge breath.
“Bedroom,” he rasped.
She pointed at the door to her right. “That way,” she said, her husky, sex-satiated voice whisper-quiet.
Gabe picked her up. Her legs were still wrapped around his hips, holding his jeans in place as he strode quickly in the direction she’d pointed.
This would be a night neither of them forgot in a hurry.