Waves of Passion (Kimani Romance)

by Linda Hudson-Smith

  Cameron looked deep into Gabrielle’s eyes. “I guess we’d better get back out there. I just couldn’t wait any longer to hold you close to me and kiss you.”

  Gabrielle wished that her cheeks weren’t stained with color and that heat hadn’t inflamed her body.

  All that from just one kiss.

  * * *

  Two hours later Marjorie and Tristan got to their feet.

  “We’ve had a blast, but it’s time to go. Let’s do dinner again soon,” Tristan said to Gabrielle and Cameron.

  Cameron nodded. “We’ll try to work it into our schedules. Even though the clinic closes for lunch and dinner, Gabrielle and I are on call after it closes for the evening. But I’m glad Phillip and Patrick are on duty now, so we can get together more easily.”

  At the door of her cabin, Gabrielle and Cameron wished the couple a pleasant night.

  Once the door was closed, Cameron turned to Gabrielle. “Mind if I stay awhile longer?”

  As usual, her heart rate was all worked up. “I’d love for you to stay.” My head tells me to send you away but my heart tells me otherwise.

  Without further query, Cameron moved back into the living room and sat on the sofa.

  “Can I get you anything else?”

  He grinned. “All I want is more time in your company. Come sit with me.”

  Readily obeying his gentle command, Gabrielle glided over to the sofa and seated herself very close to him. A whiff of his cologne caused her to draw in a deep breath. He always smelled so refreshingly manly.

  Cameron settled his arms around Gabrielle’s shoulder. “I owe you an apology.”

  Gabrielle looked baffled. “For what?”

  “I didn’t answer your question right away about me coming home with you. I was caught up in the things you might’ve told your family about us. But I saw the tears in your eyes when you left the office, and that’s when I realized I’d hurt your feelings by not responding. I’m sorry.”

  Gabrielle wanted to deny that it had affected her. But he had apologized and she should graciously accept. “Yes, I got teary-eyed. I was just disappointed that you hadn’t answered me. Luckily, everything worked out perfectly and I’m over my earlier reaction.”

  “Thank you for not holding grudges.” He stroked the side of her face with his index finger. “I’d like to hear some music. What about you? Is it okay if I load a couple of CDs?”

  Gabrielle smiled. “Music makes the world go around. Help yourself.”

  He lifted his body from the sofa and strode over to the entertainment center. He selected a CD and loaded it into the changer. Extending his hands to Gabrielle, he asked her to share a dance with him. He gently helped her up and brought her right into his arms.

  The song was slow and tantalizing as they held each other close. She felt like clouds had huddled beneath her feet as he slowly whirled her around the confined space. Laying her head against his chest came so natural for her, and she fit against his body perfectly.

  Would their naked bodies be a perfect fit, too?

  She didn’t know how she knew, but she felt sure they would.

  They danced to all nine slow songs before Gabrielle returned to the sofa.

  Cameron went to fully stack the CD changer so there would be no more interruptions. “Anything you’d like to hear?”

  “LeAnn Rimes is one of my favorite singers. I haven’t listened to her in a while.”

  “You got it, babe. I’ll throw a little Beyoncé on for me. She gets things smoking.”

  Unable to stop herself, Gabrielle began analyzing his remarks, wondering if he knew she was already smoldering beneath her clothes. She hadn’t been in his arms this long ever and she hadn’t wanted him to let her go, but the heat was on and she needed to cool down. Things were smoking between them even without the music. Every time he touched her, he left her feeling hot all over. She even got hot just thinking of him.

  As LeAnn Rimes belted out Bette Middler’s iconic “The Rose,” Gabrielle got to her feet and walked over to pull Cameron into another slow dance. “I love that song. It’s so deep.”

  “It is beautiful!” He kissed the top of her head. “As beautiful as you are.” Lowering his head, he gave her a mind-blowing kiss that sent her reeling into depths unknown. If he had his way, he’d kiss her all night long.

  * * *

  “How Do I Live” by LeAnn Rimes came on next and it ruined her mood. She fought the darkness, but knew she couldn’t win a war bigger than she was. She couldn’t stop her tears when she remembered how many nights she’d played that song after she and Jordan had broken up and she had cried her heart out. She’d asked herself so many times how she could live without Jordan, but none of that was applicable now. Living without him and letting go of their twisted relationship was the best choice she’d ever made. Jordan was a tainted piece of her history.

  Gabrielle knew that the same song would definitely apply to Cameron. She’d already asked herself countless times how she would go on if his feelings for her didn’t develop as deeply as the ones she already had for him. Mad at herself for asking for the song to be played, she fiercely but silently admonished herself.

  To add injury to insult, “The Heart Never Forgets” then came on. It was another song Gabrielle heavily related to. She felt like doubling over from the agony of what her heart hadn’t forgotten, what it would never forget.

  Removing herself from Cameron’s warm embrace, Gabrielle slowly walked back to the sofa and dropped down onto it with a heavy heart. The evening was over for her and she hated it. Once she got into this kind of funk, it took her a long time to bounce back.

  With a look of concern on his face, Cameron sat down next to Gabrielle and put his arm around her in a consoling manner. “Something happened. Want to talk about it?”

  She shook her head. “It won’t do any good.”

  “Try me. You might be surprised,” Cameron said.

  “The last two songs brought back bad memories.” She turned to look him square in the eye. “I shouldn’t have had you play them. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard the CDs, and I didn’t know I’d still feel so hurt.”

  Cameron squeezed her shoulders. “What can I do to get you back in a good mood?”

  “You should probably just go. This mood isn’t going to improve.”

  “And if I refuse to go?”

  Her eyes narrowed as she burned her gaze into his. “That’s not an option, Cameron. I need to be alone.”

  “Why? You said you’re over your past hurts. What’s keeping you from trusting again? You can trust me, Gabrielle—I’m not going to hurt you.”

  “You may not intend to, but it can happen regardless.”

  “Tell me your fears.” He gently stroked the length of her hair with one hand, massaging her shoulders with the other. “You can trust me to understand, Gabby.”

  Her eyes leveled on him again. “I am over the past hurts, but I still can’t forget them. I can’t go into another relationship with blinders on. You’re the perfect package, the perfect ten all women love to talk about. But we’re shipmates, and we work together. If we continue down the path we’re on, and you suddenly pull back, it’ll be so awkward for me around the clinic. I don’t think we can survive a working relationship and a romantic one.”

  Cameron frowned. “What if you’re the one to pull back, like you’re doing now? Don’t you think it’ll be awkward for me, too?”

  Gabrielle shrugged her shoulders. “I hadn’t thought of that. I’m too busy protecting my own heart. Somehow men don’t seem to get as devastated as women. Why’s that?”

  He shook his head. “Not true. Men hurt deeply, too. They just hide their broken hearts and they don’t share it with anyone. I think we’re more able to move on rather than get depressed.”

  “My heart wasn’t hurt due to love. I thought I loved this guy, but I never even liked him. I failed to go with my first impression of him and it backfired on me. If I can’t protect my own hear
t, who in the hell can?”

  He eyed her with deep curiosity. “Can you trust me to also protect it? It’s obvious that we’re deep into each other, so why can’t things just flow naturally? Stop thinking about what might happen because it may never occur. I don’t toy with the hearts of women.”

  “Like I said, you’re the perfect package. But that doesn’t change that we’re coworkers. Been there and done that.”

  Cameron was bitterly disappointed in the way things were going, yet he felt that he couldn’t give up on her, not when he wanted to be with her the way he did. “I feel a very special connection to you, a strong one; the kind I’ve never felt before. Will we go the distance? Only time can tell, but if we don’t give it a chance, we’ll never know.”

  Gabrielle shook her head. “I just don’t think it’s that simple.”

  “Will you give me the chance to show you I’m an upstanding, honorable man? I can’t guarantee what may or may not happen for us. There are no guarantees in love and life.”

  The sincerity in Cameron’s eyes weakened her position. “I can try my best to give you a chance to do that, but what are we going to do about our relationship publicly? How do we handle the pressure of working together?”

  Cameron smiled. “We’ve already been very public. Others have seen me holding your hand. Let them draw their own conclusions. There are no ship rules against fraternization, so there’s not a single reason we can’t operate in public as a couple just like others. Take time to think about it.”

  Gabrielle kissed Cameron lightly on the mouth before she got up from the sofa. She strolled over to the balcony door, opened it and went outside, where she hoped to find the brightest star to make a wish upon. She also wanted the breezy air to help clear her head.

  Gabrielle went into deep thought. Let things go with the flow, she told herself. Like Cameron said, there are no guarantees in life and in love. She dashed away hot tears with her fingertips. There came a time when a woman had to take what she wanted and accept that the consequences may not turn out to be the desired ones. She wanted Cameron in her life for however long it lasted. To deprive herself the company of the man she’d already fallen deeply for served no purpose.

  Opening the door, she poked her head inside. “Come join me. It’s breathtaking.”

  “I’d love to.”

  Cameron had stayed behind to give Gabrielle time alone to sort out her feelings. He hoped she’d give him a chance to prove to her that he wasn’t a heartless man. Her pain was much deeper than he’d expected. No matter how hard she’d tried to hide it, she couldn’t. The road might be rougher than he’d imagined, but he was used to navigating in the worst of conditions. All he knew was that she was worth whatever time he’d spend trying to break her away from the past.

  Outside on the balcony, where stars shone brightly overhead, Cameron stood facing Gabrielle. Her back was against the metal railing as he gazed into her eyes. The desire to kiss her permeated his entire being, making him weak with longing. Cupping her face between his hands, he tilted her head slightly. His heart beat like a jackhammer, and at the same time his breathing fluctuated between shallow and ragged. Cameron’s head came down slowly. Then his lips tenderly sampled the sweetness of her lusciously ripe mouth.

  As his lips undulated hungrily over hers, Gabrielle suddenly felt her tension completely collapse. Pressing her hand onto the back of his head, she held it in place, guiding his full lips back to hers, kissing him fervently. Wild, zinging sensations sailed through her, making her want Cameron in the worst way.

  Gabrielle pulled her head back and their eyes connected. “Should we do this again?”

  A familiar question, she mused, the same one she’d asked herself over and over.

  His smoky gaze embraced her, piercing her composure. “What do you think?”

  “We’re coworkers, Cameron. Is mixing labor and lust a good idea?”

  “What I feel with you is so much stronger than lust. Should I just continue to feel tortured around you?”

  “Tortured?” Her eyebrows slanted. “What makes you feel that kind of agony?”

  For a brief moment, Cameron closed his eyes. “Have you ever wanted something so badly that you thought you’d die if you couldn’t get it? I feel tortured because I’ve imagined having you emotionally and physically since I first laid eyes on you.”

  Gabrielle’s eyelashes fluttered. She knew exactly what it felt like to desire forbidden fruit. The need to taste it was horribly tortuous. She turned her back. “Somebody please help us,” she whispered.

  Help Cameron and me get through passion’s raging storm without losing ourselves to mere sexual gratification and the possibility of never experiencing anything else. Was sex worth the tough sacrifices? No, she concluded, it wasn’t. But as he’d said, this wasn’t about sex. This was about deep feelings and the fear of rejection and pain. I have to trust him because he’s already in my blood. I’ve already compromised my heart.

  Gabrielle knew she wanted more than sex with Cameron. And she no longer questioned how much more—she knew she wanted a close and personal relationship with him.

  To silence the fear he saw in her eyes, Cameron kissed her, curving his tongue around hers, probing deeply. Increasing the pressure on her lips, he took full advantage of her sweet mouth. His erection felt as if it was bursting through his pants. Placing his hands on her buttocks, he brought her in closer to him, wanting her to feel him.

  Her body hungered for the feel of him nesting deeply inside her. Visuals of him making love to her had her lathered up. His sex grinding into her hips increased her desire for him. If only she could find the courage to reach down and stroke him through his clothing. But that kind of bravado wasn’t in her.

  The vision of tasting Cameron’s entire body caused Gabrielle to gasp wantonly. She wouldn’t protest one iota if he took her love-starved body right there on the balcony. Making love to him consumed both her daytime fantasies and nighttime dreams. She’d awaken in the middle of the night bathed in sweat, disappointed that he wasn’t lying beside her. Her body craved his.

  As though he had read her mind, he lowered his body onto the chaise and brought her down on top of him. As he recaptured her lips, his hands hotly roved over her hips and the back of her thighs. Cameron wished she didn’t have on pants, since they restricted access to the moist center of her core.

  Raising herself off him, Gabrielle smoothed her clothes. It was one thing for her to sunbathe nude on the balcony, but as much as she wanted to have him make love to her right here, she felt the need to practice caution. Taking hold of his hand, she helped him get up. She slowly walked into the cabin and over to the alcove where her bed was.

  After lying down on the mattress, she motioned for Cameron to lie with her.

  He lay alongside her and rested his head next to hers. Taking his hand, she guided it under her shirt and toward her braless breasts. The stunned look in his eyes pleased her, but the throbbing response of his sex made her crazy with desire.

  As Cameron moved his hand back and forth between her breasts, tenderly squeezing and massaging them, Gabrielle felt as if she was ready to explode into a wild orgasm. His hands felt moist and hot on her tingling flesh, and she turned her head from side to side to try to control her roller-coaster emotions. She wanted him to take her right then. She wasn’t all that experienced in lovemaking, but she knew what turned on a man and what worked for her.

  Lifting his head from Gabrielle’s chest, Cameron turned up on his side. His eyes went to the zipper on her pants just before his hands reached down and lowered it. Sliding his hand inside her silk panties, he explored her intimate zone with gentleness. Taking a deep breath, he parted her legs and slid his hand between them. Without any resistance from her, he inserted a single digit deep inside her. The pooling moisture around his finger let him know she wanted him. As she raised her hips to remove her pants, he watched her intently.

  Prepared to stop all aggressive actions if she sent off
such a signal, Cameron studied her closely as he slowly stripped away her panties. Nothing about this moment would be rushed. He didn’t know how much time they had, but he planned to ask her to sleep in his arms all night long, whether they were on call or not. It didn’t matter which cabin they chose.

  A loud warning signal suddenly went off in Gabrielle’s head, and she sat straight up. She couldn’t help thinking about Jordan and the horrific damage he’d done to her heart. “I can’t do this,” she whispered, struggling with her emotions. “I’m too afraid.”

  Cameron smoothed his hand over her hair. After pulling the comforter back, he covered her. “It’s okay. We don’t have to. We should probably concentrate on getting to know each other through and through. I want you more than I can express, but I want you to be comfortable.”

  Gabrielle didn’t know what to make of his comments. It sounded as if she was being rejected in a supersensitive way. There was no way she could go forward even if she wanted to. They both had to know it was right for them, but she didn’t feel devastated by that because of the sincere way in which Cameron had made his feelings known. Perhaps he had actually stopped her from making an even bigger mistake than she’d made before.

  Gabrielle sighed deeply. “I’m sorry I couldn’t go through with this.”

  “Don’t worry about it.” He kissed her forehead. In tune with her emotions, he went about the necessary task of redressing her, kissing her every few moments.

  “Thank you, Cameron. You’re very understanding.”

  “I’d like to think so. I’m sorry I let things go this far. I feel like I’ve taken advantage of you, I’m your superior and this shouldn’t have happened. I should’ve listened to you, but all I thought of was what I needed. Can you forgive me?”