21. Gabriella
21
Gabriella
I t’s been a rough couple of weeks, and that’s putting it lightly.
The weight of seeing your oldest friend be shot, your surprise nephew and his mom get kidnapped by her deranged father, and your eldest brother putting his life on the line to protect his family is overwhelming for any girl. And then with the added stress of school and finals, it’s a wonder I haven’t lost all my hair or gone insane yet.
Tonight is the first time in weeks that I’ve been able to have a moment to myself longer than a bathroom break and actually cook dinner at home. Now that Michael is awake and on the road to recovery and Enzo is busy being spoiled rotten by Evie, Rose’s best friend, I can breathe a sigh of relief. Now if my family could just cool it with the drama through the holidays, I’d greatly appreciate it.
The Jacuzzi beeps, announcing it has reached the desired temperature, breaking through my thoughts. I top off my glass of wine, giggling to myself when the bottle goes dry. Oops. What does it say about me when I can finish an entire 750 ml bottle by myself?
Stressed. That’s what it says.
I set my glass down on the side table before slipping out of my robe and climbing into the warm and bubbly water. Releasing a sound between a moan and a sigh, I sink further into the water and close my eyes, savoring the feeling of my tight muscles responding to the soothing heat by slowly releasing. This is what I needed. This and wine.
I reach out for my glass, but my fingers find nothing but empty air. Opening my eyes this time, I glance at the table to find it bare. What? I brought the glass out…right?
Sitting up, I lean over the side to see if maybe I knocked the glass to the floor, but see nothing. Not even my robe or sandals.
“Okay. What the fuck?” I mumble to myself, and prepare to climb out of the hot tub to find my phone, when a hand wraps around my hair and tugs me back hard into an unyielding chest.
“Language, angel,” a voice whispers into my ear.
“Dimitri.” His name slips from my mouth like a sigh.It's been difficult seeing him lately. We text every day, and FaceTime when we can, but it's not the same as seeing someone in person. When we talk, we skirt around the conversation we need to have, but falling back into this , whatever this is, has been easy and a lot more enjoyable than a potential heart breaking conversation.
"What do you think you're doing?" he asks, his mouth dangerously close to the junction where my shoulder and neck meet.
"What do you think you're doing?" I repeat back.
"I came to see you." His breath along my skin feels hotter than the water. "To talk to you." And then he nips at my skin and I jump. "But imagine my surprise when I find you naked for all the world to see."
"No one can see me here, Dimitri," I argue. Unless you have a pair of see through glasses, the area where my Jacuzzi rests is private. "I'm perfectly safe."
"Far from it, angel." He huffs, the warm breath sending a shiver down my spine. "You are arguably the most dangerous creature I know."
Maybe it's the alcohol or maybe it's the stress of school and the concern for my family that drives my mouth to ask, "Am I safe with you?"
"Always," he answers right away.
I close my eyes, needing the comfort of darkness to speak my next words. "But this is dangerous."
Dimitri freezes, and just when I fear he's going to pull away, he spins me around instead. When I open my eyes, he's close enough for me to see the black of his pupils consume the blue. My mouth parts with a soft gasp at the sight, an overwhelming feeling of need and fear consuming me. His dark gaze lands on my lips and before I take my next breath, his mouth is on mine.
My eyes flutter shut, my hands sliding up to rest on his shoulder, not caring that I leave a trail of water behind, before pulling him closer. His grip on my hair loosens and his hands fall to my waist, gripping me with a possessive firmness before he explores the naked curve of my back, heat exploding from wherever he touches me.
I tilt my head, deepening the kiss, and he groans in response, exploring my mouth with an urgency I match. My hands move to tangle in his hair, tugging him closer until my body is pressed against his and halfway out of the tub. The intoxication of his kiss blends with the haze of the alcohol in my brain until all I hear is my heart pounding wildly in my chest. My breath grows ragged until I have no choice but to pull away.Our breaths mingle in the cool air, and our eyes lock in a gaze of lust and desire.
"You're right," he says. "That was dangerous."
I pull back and he lets me go. Sinking back into the water, I need the security it provides me, suddenly feeling small and embarrassed by my lack of control and angry at my body for betraying my mind so easily.
"Gabriella," Dimitri calls out, but I focus on the bubbles the water makes instead. "Please look at me."
I can't.
"Gabriella."
I sink deeper into the water.
"Angel."
The sound of my nickname is too painful to hear and brings the burning sensation of tears to my eyes. I close them to try to keep the tears from falling.
That's when I hear shuffling and the sound of something heavy hitting the deck floor.
Opening my eyes, I catch Dimitri reach behind his head and tug his shirt up and over, exposing his dangerously sinful chest to the world. I'm too stunned to do anything but stare in silence as he slips out of all his clothes. My hot tub isn't very large, so when he joins me, I'm forced to draw my legs up to avoid tangling with his.
But apparently, that's not okay.
Dimitri reaches forward and grabs my arm before he tugs me to him. I land with my back to his chest, and he wraps an arm around my midsection to keep me nestled on his lap. It feels too intimate and familiar, but I've also never felt more safe and warm.
"What are you doing?" I whisper.
Dimitri nuzzles his face behind my ear and presses a kiss there. "Being dangerous." His hands trace up my sides to rest on my shoulders, where he slowly massages the tight muscles he finds there.
"Relax," he softly orders. His words caress my ears like a soothing melody. "Let me help you."
"But—"
"No buts," he interrupts. "Just feel."
Going against my better logic, I obey his command and lean my head against his shoulder entirely. With each squeeze, his hands work magic, erasing layers of stress and untangling knots of guilt. And before too long, his touch has me melting like butter.
Twisting my face toward his neck, I close my eyes and take a deep of his cologne lingering on his skin. “This is nice.”
Dimitri slides his hands down my arms before cupping my breasts. I arch into his touch with a moan and when he pinches my nipples; it turns into a cry. I reach out of the water and grab his hair with my hands. His hands trail deliberately south, gently parting my legs and coaxing me to wrap them tightly around his muscular thighs. One hand returns to my breast while the other dives between my folds, seeking the bundle of nerves aching for his touch. The heat combined with his touch sends a flush over my skin until I feel feverish.
“Do you think you should feel good, angel?”
“Please.”
“Do you think girls who expose themselves deserve it?”
“No one saw…” It’s getting more difficult to concentrate when every swipe of his thumb brings me closer to a release.
“But you wanted them to see you.”
What? I move to sit up, and his hand immediately wraps around my neck, keeping me close. “No–that’s not…I swear.”
“Then what was it?” He slips a finger inside.
Frustration builds along with his edging. “I…I just didn’t—”
“Didn’t what?” he adds another finger.
I push into his touch and arch my back, desperate to find some relief. However it happens, I don’t care. I just need it.
“Didn’t. What?” he enunciates each word with a thrust of his fingers before adding a third at the very end and curling it to touch that spot only he can find.
“I didn’t want to find a fucking bathing suit!” I shout as I explode around his fingers.
He chuckles in my ear, releasing my neck and slipping his fingers from my pussy, while I come down from the high of my orgasm. “Now, was that so hard?”
I growl like an animal in heat and spin around, straddle him, and pierce myself on his cock in one quick movement. He hisses through his teeth before groaning deep at the sensation of being buried to the hilt in me.
The sound of rushing water fills the air as waves crash against the patio floor, becoming more intense and deeper the quicker we move. His piercings rub against my walls in the most sinfully delicious of ways while I rock against him.
“Your pussy…is fucking nirvana,” Dimitri moans before capturing my lips in a kiss that feels like he’s taking my soul with him. “I want to spend every day buried in it.”His hands grip my hips, hard enough to leave bruises as he takes over, thrusting into me at a pace that leaves me breathless and victim to his relentlessness, unable to keep up. I clutch his head tightly, our foreheads pressed together, feeling his warm breath on my face as our rapid breaths intertwine.
“Come for me, angel.” He brings one hand to the space we’re joined and circles my clit, once, twice, and on the third swipe, I explode. With a loud roar, he follows a second later, and fills me with his hot seed so deep I feel it in my womb.
Collapsing against his chest, I peek at the lower water level in the Jacuzzi and snort softly. “We made a mess.”
He kisses my hair, and I close my eyes at the affectionate gesture. “And I plan on making more messes with you tonight.”
I try hard not to focus on the word ‘tonight’ because he was right. This is dangerous. But if we only have tonight before we're forced to face reality, then so be it. I've always liked a little danger.