Page 89 of Visions of You

I straightened, then turned around and ran right into a mountain of hard flesh. Gabe wrapped his arms around me, cradling the back of my head gently against his chest. I melted against his warmth, powerless to resist him.

He ran a hand over my wet hair. “Don’t worry about the suit. If it’s wrecked, I’ve got others. I don’t wear them much anymore.” His voice was even and sounded like the usual, confident Gabe, but his heart pounded under my ear. Taking a step back, he caught my facebetween his hands. “You haven’t stopped moving since we came in here. Are you okay?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but nothing came out.

His gaze sharpened. “April?”

I cleared my throat. “Yes. No. I’m not sure. I’m afraid this isn’t real. What you said to me.”

“That I love you?”

I nodded, moving his hands on my face slightly.

Amusement glinted in his eyes. “You said the same thing back to me, you know.”

My heart was ready to pound out of my chest. “And I meant it, Gabe.”

“And I meant every word of what I said to you. Today, tomorrow, and always.”

My insides melted as he bent down and pressed his lips to mine. They were much warmer now, firm and in command. The dam broke and tears spilled from my eyes, happy tears filled with hope.

Gabe broke the kiss and stared at me, a line forming between his brows. I gave him a weepy laugh. “Don’t mind me. I might be crying, but I’m very happy right now. I’m just having a hard time believing this happened. That it’s real.”

The line disappeared and his eyes softened. “Believe it. And we have all night for me to prove that to you.”

By the timeGabe led me upstairs, and we slipped naked between the sheets, my mood had cycled again. The range of emotions this man could invoke in me was stunning. Doubt and uncertainty had circled around again as I ran my trembling hands over his perfect, chiseled chest. His skin was still cool from the deluge. He rolled me onto my back, stopping halfway on top of me.

As his lips met mine, my head buzzed. I was breathing in rapid bursts, but another emotion was pushing in front of desire.

Fear.

Fear that this would all be gone come morning.

Gabe placed one large hand in the center of my chest, between my breasts. I winced, sure he could feel my hammering heart. Leaving my lips, he brushed two soft, gentle kisses over my closed eyes. “What are you afraid of?”

“I’m sorry. I’m just afraid you’ll come to your senses and realize you can do so much better than me.”

He rose up on one elbow, a small smile appearing. “Better than you? Better than the woman who spends her day saving people? You certainly saved me. Better than the woman my daughter adores? Better than the woman who’s helped me realize what I want in life? What’s important? It took the risk of losing you to finally rip my blindfold off, April. What I’m staring at now is the most important thing in the world to me.”

My frantic heart finally calmed as he spoke, and he moved his hand to my breast, stroking with his fingers. My lips parted and his eyes dropped to them.

“What you and I are together is… different,” he whispered. “I don’t understand exactly what it is, except that I can’t stand to be apart from you.”

“I can’t either. I’ve been doing everything possible to deny how I felt about you.”

“Stop denying it. This is the most real thing I’ve ever felt in my life.”

“I love you, Gabe.” Warmth radiated through me in slow pulses.

“I love you too. Let me show you how much.”

He kissed me again and gently parted my lips with his tongue. A soft, breathy sound escaped my throat, and I pressed my breast harder against his hand. I relaxed and let myself go, surrendering to the sensations only this man could bring out in me.

Gabe crawled down my body, taking my other breast in his mouth as he stroked and circled the other with his hand. My toes curled, desire rolling through me from my feet to my head. I ran my hands, no longer trembling, over those broad, strong shoulders.

And at last, I believed.

When he settled his head between my legs, I was more than ready for him. Gabe was completely attuned to my body, giving me exactly what I needed. As the rolling waves within me became larger and stronger, my hesitation became a distant memory. I arched my back, clenching both hands in his hair. Pushing him closer, tight against me as I called out into the room.

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