21. Gabriel
Gabriel
I don’t say a word as we walk back into the house.
The screen door clicks shut behind us.
Maggie disappears toward the kitchen without looking back. She knows this isn’t her conversation anymore.
Evie walks beside me in silence, one hand wrapped around the strap of the overnight bag. I take it from her before we reach the stairs. Neither of us speaks as we climb to my room.
I close the door behind us and drop the bag on the floor beside the dresser. It lands with a soft thud.
Neither of us moves.
I stare at it for a long moment. Then I look at her.
“Unpack it.”
Without arguing, she kneels. The zip rasps through the silence.
I don’t help her. I don’t move.
I watch her take out a sweater. Jeans. The little bag that somehow holds every bathroom thing a woman needs. She carries them to the dresser one armful at a time. Each drawer slides open. Each one closes again. Slowly and deliberately, as if she’s trying to prove something.
She pauses, then pulls something flat from between two folded T-shirts.
The ultrasound picture.
Her thumb brushes across it before she sets it carefully on the nightstand beside my bed.
My chest tightens painfully.
She finishes emptying the bag, folds it flat, and leans it against the wall.
Then she turns to face me. “It’s unpacked.”
I look at the empty bag, then back at her. “It is. But I still woke up reaching for you and found an empty bed.”
She drops her gaze. “I’m sorry.”
I close my eyes. God. She sounds so broken. For one stupid second, I want to cross the room, pull her against me, and tell her none of it matters.
But it does.
When I open my eyes again, she’s still standing there, twisting the ring on her finger.
“Were you?”
Her head jerks up. “I—”
“Were you sorry when you climbed out of bed? Were you sorry when you grabbed the bag you never unpacked? When you picked up your keys? When you walked downstairs?”
Evie flinches as each question lands between us.
I shake my head. “Or were you only sorry because Maggie stopped you?”
The following silence presses against my ribs.
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you.”
“I know.” I do. That’s the problem. I take a slow breath that doesn't do a damn thing to loosen the knot in my chest. “You were trying to protect me.”
She nods, a tiny movement of her head.
“And you never stopped to ask whether I wanted protecting.”
“I thought—”
“I know what you thought.” The words come out rougher than I intended. “You thought you’d leave before your father could hurt us. You thought you’d make the hard choice so I wouldn’t have to.”
A tear slips down her cheek. “Yes.”
I scrub a hand over my face. “And not once...” My voice catches. “Not once did you ask me what I wanted.”
Her shoulders sag. “I know.”
“No.” I shake my head. “I don’t think you do.”
She looks up at me then, her eyes shining.
“You didn’t trust me enough to let me choose.
You decided what I could handle.” I take a step toward her.
“You decided what was best for me. You decided I’d be better off without you.
” I stop close enough to see the tears trembling on her lashes.
“You made every decision except the only one that mattered.”
Her voice is almost inaudible as she asks, “Which one?”
“Mine.”
The words hang between us.
I watch them hit her. Watch something inside her crumble.
She presses trembling fingers to her mouth. “I didn’t even realize I was doing it. I’ve spent my whole life believing leaving was the kindest thing I could do. If I left first, nobody had to choose me.” She laughs softly, the sound breaking halfway through. “I know how ridiculous that sounds.”
“It doesn’t. It sounds lonely. Unbelievably lonely.”
She wipes her cheeks. “Maggie asked me if any man had ever loved me the way you do. Then she asked if I’d ever loved a man the way I love you. And the answer was obvious.”
I stare at her, my heart pounding against my ribs.
She shakes her head, then lifts her eyes to mine. “I love you, Gabriel. So much. But I’ve never done this before. I’ve never loved someone enough that losing them scared me more than losing myself.”
The words hit me like a fist.
She said it. She actually said it.
Every wall I’ve been holding up since I woke to an empty bed cracks wide open.
I cross the room before I can think better of it. When I stop in front of her, she’s still crying.
“I hurt you.”
“You did.” I brush the backs of my fingers over her cheek, catching another tear as it falls. “I was angry. I’m still angry. But I’m not angry because you wanted to leave.”
Her brows knit together.
“I’m angry because you thought you had to.”
Her eyes squeeze shut. A sob catches in her throat.
I cup her face with both hands. “Evie…”
She opens her eyes.
“You never have to earn your place here. You never have to prove you’re worth fighting for.” My forehead rests against hers. “You already are.”
She lets out a shaky breath that breaks against my lips. “I don’t know how to do this. I keep getting it wrong.”
“So do I. I’ve been making this up as I go.”
That earns the smallest laugh, broken but beautiful. “So have I.”
I smile for what feels like the first time all night.
She searches my face. “What if I mess it up again?”
“You will.”
Her eyes widen.
“So will I.” I shrug one shoulder. “We’re human, Evie. We’ll get things wrong. We just have to keep choosing each other.”
She searches my face like she’s looking for the catch.
There isn’t one.
Her breath trembles. “I don’t deserve you.”
I smile, just a little. “That’s not how this works.”
She lets out a watery laugh. “No?”
I shake my head. “You don’t earn love, Evie. You receive it.”
She smiles through the last of her tears. “You know, you always talk like your heart was somehow made wrong.” She lays her palm over my heartbeat and looks up at me. “I think it was made exactly right.”
Those soft words snap the last thread of my control.
I kiss her like a drowning man.
My hands cradle her face as my mouth crashes down on hers—deep, urgent, almost desperate. The taste of her tears lingers on her tongue. She moans into the kiss, the vibration traveling straight through me, and her fingers dig into my shoulders, nails biting deliciously into my skin.
We break apart only long enough to undress each other.
I tug her shirt over her head, letting it drop to the floor.
My hands immediately find her bare skin—warm, soft, and flushed.
She pushes my T-shirt up my chest. I yank it off and toss it aside.
Her fingers tremble slightly as she unbuttons my jeans, and I help her shove them down my hips along with my boxers.
My cock springs free, hard and aching. She steps out of her own jeans and panties as I unhook her bra, letting it fall away.
The cool night air of the bedroom brushes over our heated skin as we stand naked together. I take a moment to drink her in—the full swell of her breasts, the gentle curve of her pregnant belly, the flush spreading across her chest and cheeks. She’s breathtaking.
“Gabe…” she whispers.
I pull her against me, skin to skin. The heat of her body presses into mine—soft breasts against my chest, the firm roundness of her belly between us, her hard nipples brushing my skin.
She drops to her knees.
“Evie, you don’t have to—”
“I want to.” She looks up at me, her eyes full of love and desire. “Let me. Please.”
I cup her cheek. “Darlin’, you never have to beg me, not for this.” My mouth quirks. “Not unless you want to.”
She laughs softly as her hands slide slowly up my thighs, nails grazing lightly and leaving tingling trails.
She wraps her fingers around me, stroking me once, twice—firm and slow—before leaning in.
The first hot, wet swipe of her tongue makes my hips jerk.
She licks me thoroughly, savoring every inch, her warm breath teasing my skin.
When she swirls her tongue around the sensitive head, I groan deeply, my hand threading through her silky hair.
She looks up at me through her lashes, eyes dark and shining, then parts her lips and takes me in.
“Fuck, Evie…”
The wet heat of her mouth envelops me as she sinks down slowly, taking as much of me as she can, her tongue pressing flat and firm against the underside.
She hums softly around me so the vibrations shoot pleasure up my spine.
Her hand strokes what she can’t fit in her mouth, twisting gently on the upstroke.
The sight of her lips stretched around me is almost too much.
“Evie, I’m gonna come,” I warn her, giving her time to move away.
She doesn’t. She moans loudly around my cock and doubles her efforts, sucking harder, stroking faster, her free hand cupping my balls. I come with a shuddering breath, whispering her name. She stays with me through every pulse, soft and loving, until I’m trembling.
“Come here,” I say when I can catch my breath.
I lift her and lay her gently on the bed, careful of her rounded belly as I settle between her thighs.
I push her thighs wider and lower my mouth to her.
The first long, slow lick through her slick folds draws a sharp cry from her.
She tastes sweet and musky, addictive. I devour her, licking and sucking while my hands hold her hips steady.
When I wrap my lips around her swollen clit and suck gently, she arches off the bed with a broken moan, fingers twisting in my hair.
I lose myself in her—the way her thighs tremble around my head, the desperate little sounds she makes. It doesn’t take long before her breathing turns ragged.
“Gabe—oh God—”
She comes hard on my tongue, her whole body shaking. I stay with her through every wave, gentling my licks until she’s whimpering and oversensitive.
By the time I kiss my way up her body, I’m already hard again. I should be spent after the orgasm she gave me, but this is Evie. The woman I love. The woman who almost left me tonight. Damn right, my body is ready for her again.
I settle between her thighs and look into her eyes as I push inside her in one smooth, deep thrust. We both moan loudly as I sink to the hilt—her tight, fluttering heat gripping me like a fist.
I start moving immediately—long, urgent, powerful strokes that rock the bed. Sweat beads on our skin, making us slide together deliciously. Bracing one arm beside her head, I cradle her belly protectively with the other, thumb stroking the firm, warm curve as I thrust harder.
“You’re mine,” I growl against her neck. “This heart. Don’t you ever try to take it away from me again.”
“Yes—yours,” she sobs, legs tightening around my waist, heels digging into my ass. “I’m yours, Gabriel. All of me.”
“And I’m yours,” I say, my voice hoarse. “God, Evie. Always.”
I angle my hips to hit that perfect spot with every thrust, grinding against her swollen clit. Her nails rake down my back, leaving burning trails that only heighten my pleasure. Her breasts press soft and full against my chest, nipples hard points rubbing with every movement.
She tightens around me suddenly. “Gabe, I’m—”
“Give it to me, darlin’.”
Evie comes with a sharp, broken cry, pulling me over the edge right behind her. I bury myself as deep as possible and come hard, groaning her name. The pleasure is so intense that my arms shake as I hold myself over her, hips still rocking gently through the aftershocks.
Afterward, we stay joined for a long moment, breathing each other in. Eventually, I ease away and return with a warm, damp cloth. I clean her gently, stroking softly between her thighs.
Evie sighs contentedly, watching me with heavy-lidded, loving eyes, her fingers tracing lazy patterns on my forearm.
When I’m done, I toss the cloth aside and pull her into my arms, spooning her from behind.
My chest presses to her back, skin hot and damp.
I wrap one arm around her, hand splayed wide and protective over the warm swell of her belly and bury my face in the curve of her neck, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair and skin.
“Don’t ever try to leave me again,” I whisper, pressing soft kisses along her shoulder.
She threads her fingers through mine where they rest on her stomach. “I won’t. I’m staying.”
We lie tangled together in the quiet dark, hearts slowing, bodies warm and sated. A few minutes later, I feel it—a strong flutter against my palm, then a distinct kick. Evie laughs softly, the sound full of wonder and happy tears.
“She’s saying she’s staying too,” she whispers.
I smile against her shoulder and hold them both even closer, my heart finally at peace.
“Good,” I murmur, my voice rough with emotion. “Because I’m never letting either of you go.”