Page 20 of Gunner

Dawn was in the kitchen, stirring a pan on the stove, her hair swept up in a loose bun with tendrils escaping around her face. The sight of her, so at home in her space, cooking dinner with a relaxed ease, made something tighten in his chest.

She turned at the sound of the door clicking shut, smiling as she wiped her hands on a dish towel. “You’re a lifesaver. I realized last minute I wanted to make something special.”

Gunner held up the paper bag. “Got everything you asked for, including the fancy Parmesan.”

She peeked inside the bag and grinned. “Perfect. Feel like helping?”

He didn’t hesitate. “Yeah, what do you need me to do?”

Dawn handed him a cutting board and a knife. “Chop the bell peppers. Even pieces, no weird shapes.”

He chuckled. “You saying I look like a guy who butchers vegetables?”

She smirked, nudging him playfully with her hip. “I’m saying I have high standards in the kitchen.”

Working side by side, they moved in sync. Gunner diced the peppers while Dawn sautéed onions and garlic, their conversation easy, natural.

He found he liked watching her in this element—focused, yet relaxed, humming under her breath as she worked. When she reached across him for the wine bottle, her fingers brushed against his forearm, and the brief contact sent a jolt of awareness through him.

When the meal was done, they set the table together, and Gunner poured them each a glass of wine. Sitting across from her, he couldn’t help but think about how good this felt—simple, normal, like they’d been doing it for years.

They ate slowly, conversation drifting to their pasts. Gunner shared stories about the club, about how he got into riding. Dawn talked about growing up in a small town, about her dreams before life got complicated.

At some point, the mood shifted. She toyed with the stem of her wineglass, biting her lip. “I don’t know why I said yes when Jesse asked me out,” she admitted, her voice quiet.

Gunner reached across the table, covering her hand with his. “Whatever the reason was, you don’t have to face him alone. I won’t let him hurt you.”

Dawn’s fingers curled around his, gripping tight. “I don’t want to be afraid of him anymore.”

“You won’t be,” Gunner promised.

Something in her eyes shifted then, as if some invisible wall she’d been holding up finally cracked. The tension that had been simmering between them since the night they met flared into something hotter, more urgent.

They cleaned up in a comfortable silence, but the air between them buzzed with unspoken words, unacknowledged desires. When they were done, Dawn hesitated before turning to him. “Stay?”

Gunner’s chest tightened. He didn’t need to ask what she meant. The look in her eyes told him everything.

He reached for her, his fingers brushing over her cheek, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “Are you sure?”

Dawn swallowed, nodding. “I want this. I want you.”

That was all the invitation he needed. He closed the distance between them, capturing her lips in a kiss that was slow and deep, meant to savor. She melted against him, gripping his shoulders as he backed her toward the couch. They tumbled onto it together, limbs tangling, mouths exploring.

His hands slid down her waist, over the curve of her hips, and she gasped against his lips. The sound went straight to his gut. He wanted to take his time, to map every inch of her with his hands, his lips, his tongue.

They took their time exploring, touching, reveling in the heat between them. When they finally stumbled to her bedroom, breathless and hungry for more, they took off their clothes.

“Get on the bed,” Gunner ordered, voice a little rough.

Dawn did as he asked and he couldn’t help but growl at the sight of her gorgeous, nude and all his. He didn’t know where he wanted to put his mouth first, the generous swell of her breasts, her nipples tightening to pebbles, or the tempting valley between her legs.

Dawn beckoned to him with her fingers and just like that, he was crawling on top of her, straddling her. He pelted her with kisses, moving his lips from the side of her neck, sucking on the hollow of her throat.

He paid close attention to her nipples, sucking first on the left, then the right. She cried out above him, begging him for more. Gunner planted more kisses down her ribs, her stomach, on the inside of her thighs.

Dawn spread her legs wider for him, moaning as he licked the folds of her pussy. Soft like petals, he thought, licking and sucking, swirling his tongue around the sensitive nub between her legs. Gunner focused on her clit until she cried out and came against his mouth. He licked her honey up, like a cat with cream.

Then he moved his body up again. Dawn panted beneath him, pupils dilated, mouth a gorgeous cherry pink, which he kissed and plundered again. When he thrust his tongue down her throat, she greedily sucked down hard on it.

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