“So, you never told me. How was your bath?” Gabe grabbed the cold neck of his Heineken bottle and took a drink.
“It was hot. And steamy.” Victoria dragged out the words, almost making him choke.
“Oh yeah?” His voice cracked, but the wicked play at her lips told him his answer. God, she had thought about him. In the bath. Correction, in the hot and steamy bath. Gabe rubbed his hands down his thighs as if using his jeans as a napkin. The real purpose was to shift himself from the hard-on he’d acquired during dinner that only increased in picturing this bath.
“And then my mother called.”
Gabe stopped adjusting. “Seriously?”
“I’m sorry. Where did you think this story was going?” She smiled too sweetly. Her play at innocence making him burn hotter, knowing she wasn’t a saint. Memories of her sitting on the edge of his bed, proclaiming herself ready for more, flooded his mind.
“Gabe?”
Gabe’s attention came back to the here and now, and he coughed before trying to come up with an answer. “That story? About the bath?” Victoria nodded with a smile. “I didn’t think it was going anywhere. This is only our first date, you know. What kind of man do you think I am?” Gabe placed a hand on his chest, pretending to be offended.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Victoria bit at her bottom lip before sighing and taking a drink of her water.
Oh, I’ll tell you what kind of guy I am, all right. Gabe fought the urge to clear the table and throw her on it. Even if it were only to lift her shirt and trail kisses around her stomach, he wanted the freedom to touch her. The thought was painful. Gabe adjusted again. She was bound to notice all of his movements, but he didn’t care. “So, you want to get out of here?”
Victoria didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”
Gabe got up and led them out of the restaurant, waving to their waitress on their way.
“Gabe, we need to pay,” Victoria said to him. She caught up and slid a hand down his forearm before resting her palm in his.
“Tab.” Gabe smirked back at her. “Didn’t I tell you? I’m with the band.”
Chapter 17
The line was cheesy and Gabe knew it, but it was the truth. He’d pay later…when his dick wasn’t aching and his mind was clear. Gabe stepped out into the street and hailed a taxi.
“Where are we going?” Victoria watched the taxis coming down the street. She held his hand tighter.
“I’m taking you home.”
“So our first date is…over?” Victoria looked up at him and batted her lashes.
Yeah, she wanted him as bad as he wanted her. “Well, I’m going there with you.”
Gabe watched as Victoria’s eyes went wide. She was all game to keep the date going, but she didn’t seem to like the idea of him coming to her place. This was all part of it, though, part of Gabe’s master plan. “To make sure you get home safely, of course.” She still watched him with a mixture of distrust and need.
By the time a taxi had appeared and driven them the quick distance to her apartment, Gabe had gotten himself into better control. He repeated to himself that they needed to take the necessary steps. They needed to know each other. Gabe got out of the taxi, walked around to her side, and matched her steps to the apartment’s main door.
The door opened, and she hurried in, only glancing at him for a moment before she realized he didn’t intend on coming up. She cocked an eyebrow at him. “Gabe?”
“Tori?” He lifted his eyebrows at her in question. She could be stubborn, but he wouldn’t let her get away with it all the time. “This is our first date.” Gabe paused and lowered his head and voice. “Can I kiss you?” Focusing on her, he let his full sincerity come through his voice. He had a plan, and damn it, he was sticking to it.
“Gabe. Pay the man and come back here.” Victoria’s voice was resolute.
“Are you sure that’s what you want?” Stepping closer, he cupped her elbows.
“Yes.” She breathed out heavily, sending chills down his neck.
Gabe dared lean a little closer to her. “But we need to do this right, Tori.” He let his words come out close to her ear, felt goose bumps rise on her skin where he touched her. He brought his lips over hers. “Just a kiss,” he whispered, aware that they were putting on a show for the taxi driver and neighbors. He brought his lips down to hers, but she moved away.
“Pay the man, and I’ll give you a kiss.”
Screw the plan. Gabe walked back to the taxi, paid, and came back to find the apartment door closing. He followed the sound of footsteps until he found her. Barely squeaking through the door behind her, he let it close.
“Tori…” He wanted her, but he didn’t want to screw this up like last time. Extra-considerable care needed to be given.
Victoria hopped up on the edge of her kitchen table. Cracking his knuckles the whole time, Gabe walked toward her. He shouldn’t. He should learn some self-discipline and leave.
“What are you doing, Siren?” The smirk on his lips couldn’t be helped. She lay atop the table like it was her own private oasis and he was the sailor dumb enough to ignore the warnings in his head and sail right into her. He grasped her face in his hands to study her eyes. There was no way he would learn self-control with her around.
“Purple,” she said simply.
Gabe searched her for the question he hadn’t asked.
“Purple is my favorite color.” She kissed him hard. Desire filled him like he’d never felt before. He trailed his hands down her throat.
“Pasta.” She breathed heavily into his neck. “Any kind of starch is my favorite food.” She nibbled at his neck, the taste of him causing a small moan to rise from her.
Gabe grabbed her ass, pulling her to him. The pressure of her body against his made him groan. “Jesus, Tori.” He moved his hand up, covering her breast. Her nipples were sharp peaks rising to meet him. After pulling her shirt aside, he took one into his mouth, sucked on it, and left it to kiss up her neck. At the crook of her neck, he paused. Gabe kissed slowly, not letting his mouth break contact with her skin. When the air had been kissed out of his lungs, he lifted his lips slightly off her neck, sucking in deeply. He reached for her pants, meaning to unbutton them, taste her on her own table, but her hand pushed his away, and she reached for his instead. Gabe’s hands hovered over hers as she worked them open, the wide girth of his dick throbbing to be touched. Victoria took in a deep breath, her finger running over the top of his shaft.
“Tori, let me taste you.” Gabe put a finger to her lips. “I want you.” She closed her lips around it, kissed it and released. Victoria sat up, pulled her legs onto the table, and stripped off her shirt. Expertly, she unfastened her bra and dropped it to the floor. Her legs kicked behind her, turning her body to lie flat against the table, her chest barely lifted above the wooden surface. From the angle, her mouth was too close to his dick to handle. The idea of self-control fled his brain as she licked at the small bead of liquid formed on the head of his dick.
“I’ve waited forever to hear that, but now, I want to taste you.”
Without further warning, she closed her lips around him, drinking him in, taking him deeply. He reached out to her, not to her ears or head. No, she was doing a fine job without his guidance. But he couldn’t resist the way her breasts moved with her motion, her erect nipples gliding over the table as her tongue slid around his shaft. He cupped, rubbed, and let her nipples poke out from between his fingers as he felt himself tighten.
“Tori, you don’t have to…Oh crap, Tori, I can’t stop it…” Gabe fought against himself. He wasn’t ready, and he didn’t want it to end. But then again, maybe he did. As much as he was enjoying it, he couldn’t help but want her. He wanted her to feel the pleasure she was giving him.
“Tori, I’m gonna…” Gabe squeezed his eyes closed and focused on holding back his orgasm. Victoria’s grip tightened, and a moan escaped her throat. He looked down to see her taking all of his length, her lips upturned
and eyes focused on him. She moaned again when his hands tightened on her breasts and he came. He didn’t breathe, barely made a sound, but it was as if he would pass out from the extreme pleasure he felt.
*
Victoria drank him in eagerly. He coated her throat, but unlike with Todd, the action didn’t make her sick. She wasn’t nauseated at the idea of something so crude and wasn’t embarrassed at what she’d insisted on doing. Gabe’s eyelids fluttered, and he had one hand on the table for support. Victoria smiled and reached up, stroking his shaft one more time. He shook violently. “Whoa!”
Laughter escaped her throat, and she reached for his length again, but he jerked away, shielding his cock with one hand and swatting at her with the other.
“Oh, come on!” Victoria giggled and slid off the table.
“You broke me!” Gabe laughed out loud and collapsed on Victoria’s couch.
“I did what?” Victoria hesitated, suddenly afraid she’d actually done something wrong. It wasn’t like her to be as forward as she had been.
Gabe’s hand reached up and linked with hers, his rough fingers sliding over hers as he peeked up, a wide grin on his face. His grip tightened, and he pulled her down on top of him.
“Why did you do that?” Gabe’s fingers brushed strands of hair away from her eyes, pushing them behind her ear.
If he hadn’t been touching her so affectionately, she would have run off crying. What could he mean by asking why did she do that? “I…I’m sorry…I thought—” Victoria searched for words to describe why she had taken him so possessively.
Gabe grasped her hand lightly and pulled it to his mouth, kissing her knuckles. “You didn’t do anything to apologize for.” His smile was kind. “You are amazing in so many ways, Siren.”
Victoria fought to keep control of her breathing. Her emotions had been everywhere. She was feeling sexy and confident on the table, then scared and ashamed, and now…now she didn’t know how she felt. When he said he wanted her, it filled a void inside. She couldn’t stop thinking about the way he had said it. He was telling the truth. He really did want her, and from the look on his face now, she felt sure he still did.
“I don’t want to screw this up, Tori. We agreed to start over, and that’s what I’m trying to do. If I don’t throw you against the wall and,” Gabe laughed, “ravage you, it doesn’t mean I don’t want to.”
Victoria slouched on his lap, sliding farther off so she could nuzzle her face in his neck. The closeness she felt to him was too strong for how little they really knew each other. But she’d known Todd for years, and yet he never really knew her. Maybe this was the way it was supposed to feel. Her breathing slowed, and her eyes felt heavy. Being close to him was a comfort in her life she needed more than she realized. He put her at ease and thrilled her at the same time. Her world shifted under her slightly, and suddenly she was weightless. The carefree feeling had swept over her, and she closed her eyes. She didn’t want to open them to disappointment as she had so many other times in her life.
Softness encased her, and she finally stirred from her state. Victoria blinked heavily as she took in her surroundings. Gabe’s broad shoulders were turning out of her bedroom door. “Gabe?” she called out softly. She watched as his shirt twisted around him as he turned back to her. Victoria sat up, trying to knock the haze away.
“Hey.” Gabe sat at the edge of the bed.
With a lean into him, Victoria rubbed at her eyes. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened.”
He chuckled lightly, his arm coming around and squeezing her shoulder. “You’re tired, Siren. It must be exhausting putting me so fully under your spell.”
Victoria didn’t fight him, only curled deeper. “Must be.”
Fingers brushed her face. “Go to sleep, Tori. Call me when I can see you again, okay?”
She nodded at his words. Even in her dream state, she was excited to know she’d see him again. Her blankets curled around her, her pillow sank, cradling her head, and Victoria found herself in the sweet state of delirium right before a deep sleep. Gabe’s scent was stronger on the pillows he had leaned on. She rolled over a little later, finding herself face first in it. She breathed in deeply, her chest filled with hope and happiness where only a week ago she had felt despair and rejection.
* * * *
Finally awaking, Victoria glanced out her living room window into the setting sun. She’d slept away the afternoon. She wrapped her arms around her waist, a satisfied grin picking her lips up as she sat down at the kitchen table. Growls from her stomach made her get up to find something to eat. She placed some toast on a plate but grabbed a rag to clean the table off with it first. It wasn’t like her to be so wild with a man, but she sure wasn’t going to eat off the spot too. Victoria chewed on the toast, wondering what Gabe might be up to. He said to call him for a second date. How long should she wait? What would they do? Victoria had no idea, but she knew who might.
“Sarah?” she questioned into the silence of the phone. She heard some muffled noise in the background and waited patiently. A loud clatter of pots and dishes told Victoria that Sarah was still at work.
“Hello,” Sarah whispered into the phone.
“I totally forgot you were working. I’m so sorry!”
“Yeah, yeah, working. How’d the date go?” Sarah’s voice squeaked as she moved to a quieter part of the kitchen.
“Amazing. But he told me to call him for our second date. What do I do?”
“What do you want to do?” Sarah’s mind was about as one-tracked as they come. She knew what she wanted and how to get to it, that was all that mattered to her. It didn’t matter if anyone else thought it was a good or bad idea, and she almost never felt embarrassment.
“Ugh. I don’t know. Is rape an acceptable answer?” Victoria laughed and was met with an outburst of air on the other side of the line.
“Down, tiger! I thought starting over was going to tame you. Dang, you sound like me!”
“Crap. I’m scared now.”
“Yes, you should be.” Sarah’s voice was low, but Victoria could hear her smile. “Brainstorm and we’ll discuss it later. I gotta go!”
Victoria hung up and then wandered around the apartment, wondering what they could do in the early summer air.
* * * *
Gabe opened his apartment door without needing to unlock it. Any other day he might have wondered who was breaking and entering, but not today. Not when Ti knew it was date day.
“All right, stud, what happened?” Ti sat behind the drum set he kept in Gabe’s apartment. A normal guy would want to sit on the couch when not playing, but not Ti.
Gabe threw his coat on the bed. “She’s amazing.” Ti nodded in encouragement. “She wasn’t so thrilled about the whole just-a-kiss-good-bye thing, but the private room at the restaurant was killer.” Gabe smiled and rubbed at his jaw, remembering her face when the host brought her in.
“So how are you going to top that?” Ti laughed. “See, this is why I don’t date. Expectations are too high.”
“Ahh, but what if you found one girl you couldn’t stand the idea of sharing? Not to mention, I’m one step ahead of you.”
Ti’s mouth opened to protest but stopped.
“I told her to call for date two.”
“Very nice, very nice. So how long do you think it will be before she calls?”
Gabe let out his breath. “I hope not long.”
“All right, enough of the chick. We need to discuss some band stuff.” Ti clapped his hands together.
“What band stuff?” Gabe hesitated, not sure he wanted to know.
“The people behind the Street Fest are holding a contest. Whoever wins will get to open for us at the fest.”
Gabe rolled his eyes. He hated when people kept adding to shows. “And?” As far as he was concerned, they could give the opening act to any random twelve-year-old that could carry a tune as long as the reps showed up to hear Banshee Exodus. His boys deserved that at th
e least.
“And, the contest is only open to the country music genre.”
“It’s what?” Gabe looked over to Ti, hoping he was joking. “We don’t sing country!” Why on earth would their fans want to sit through something they wouldn’t like? What if it turned fans away? Worse yet, what if all the country fans showed up for the openers and then left when Banshee Exodus hit the stage? That would look even worse to the reps. That kind of genre mashing didn’t make sense.
Ti let out a small huff. “Actually, we might not, but you will. The winner is singing a duet with you as the grand finale of the set.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Ti rose from his seat and put a hand on Gabe’s shoulder. “At least it’ll open us up to new fans.”
He tried but failed. Gabe couldn’t believe his luck. The contest would be held the following Friday at a local bar, but Gabe had no intentions of going to see who won. His strings were being pulled, and he wasn’t happy about it, but he wasn’t going to go above and beyond for it. A year ago he would have taken anything a higher-up tossed at him. Hell, he would have dressed up in a chicken suit while they sang if it got them a label. But now? Now he wasn’t so sure all this manipulation was worth it. He’d found happiness with Victoria that nothing rivaled, and while her inspiration was bringing back his passion for playing, he wasn’t sure he needed the reps.
Frustrated, Gabe signed into the band’s website. The back of his mind had him questioning if this was a good idea, if he wanted a label badly enough that he’d allow himself to be manipulated. He posted a thread about the news he’d just heard. The hits were coming in quick. His fans weren’t thrilled with the idea, but the finale had them hooked. They couldn’t wait to see if he could pull it off. Turncoats. The window for a private chat opened before his eyes.
WriterGuy: Hey there, sleeping beauty. What’s up?
SongSiren: Our date. I have an idea.
WriterGuy: Shoot.
SongSiren: Why don’t we go to the zoo? The weather’s pretty nice, but it’s early enough that the tourist number should be pretty low…
Siren's Song Page 10
