There was a little relief knowing Troy and Burke had gone to the contest to check out the winner and had come back impressed. From the way they started and finished each other’s sentences, Gabe pieced together that she was young, with dark hair and a good voice. Other than that, he knew Burke would “do her” and Troy was in love after meeting her once. Gabe shook his head at their priorities. Of course they didn’t care—he was the one who had to sing with her.
Ti finished wiping the silver piping around his drums and slid his drumsticks into a velvet bag hanging off the set. “You gonna invite her?”
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” Gabe looked at Ti for a good reason not to bring her.
“Oh, I’m not saying not to, but you should tell her to bring a friend.”
“Why would I do that?”
“Because Troy’s in love with the contest chick, you’ve got a girl, and I haven’t had fun in weeks.” Ti laughed, stopping when Gabe opened his mouth to object. “Seriously, though, she might feel kind of outnumbered, meeting all of us and all of us talking about the Street Fest. She’d probably be happy to have someone with her.”
“Good point.” Gabe picked up his phone. He waved to Ti slipping out the door as Victoria answered.
“What’s up?” Her voice was perky, happily expecting his call if he wanted to guess as to the reason behind her tone.
“What are you doing tomorrow?”
“Nothing, really.”
“I want you to meet the band. We’re having a dinner date with some girl that won the Street Fest contest. You should come.” Gabe waited to hear some form of hesitation, some kind of distance she’d put between him and the band, the sure sign she was going to tear them apart. Not that he believed it, but a curse is a curse. No one thought the Beatles would break up, either.
“Are you sure you want me there for that?” Victoria’s voice was hesitant.
Well crap. He really wanted her to be as excited about his band mates as he was. It would make everything so much easier, plus the bonus of having his favorite people all together happily. “I mean, if you’re uncomfortable, you could bring a friend. Ti seemed pretty interested in Sarah. Unless you don’t want to meet the band yet.”
“No, no, no, it’s not that! I just know you guys will be talking business. I don’t want to get in the way.”
Gabe’s heart lifted a little. He hadn’t realized how badly he wanted her to be there, to take the next step in their relationship, until she’d almost shattered those dreams.
“Good. Bring a friend and meet me at The Capitol Grille at seven.”
Gabe heard Victoria giggle across the line. “Yes, sir. Well…I should probably go. I guess I’ll see you to—”
“Hold on.” Gabe cut her off. She was always doing this, always ending things on him. No wonder he was paranoid.
“Yeah?” Victoria breathed heavily into the phone, obviously waiting to hear what he had to say. Now that she was waiting, he didn’t know what to say.
“Have your friend meet us there at seven. I’m picking you up. Five okay?” Gabe held his breath.
“Okay, I’ll be here.”
Gabe smiled as they hung up. Maybe Ti was onto something; she might have liked him taking charge. She seemed a little more curious, her tone a little more intrigued than during their normal conversations.
Chapter 20
Sarah had been more than eager to meet up with the band for dinner. She had been even more eager for the details on why Gabe wanted to meet two hours before dinner, claiming it was a “good sign of stamina”, and she winked at Victoria. Starting over with Gabe was unlike anything she’d ever experienced, and even though they had obviously been close before, none of it had been planned. His coming over early before meeting up with his band members felt like a supremely intimate event. Something like an initiation or meeting the parents. An event that sent every female into a spiral of self-doubt and overthought preparedness.
Victoria thought back to their previous meetings. She wanted something a little extra this time, something that would make it impossible for Gabe to even pretend he had control around her. There was one place she knew to go in a pinch. Walking into Victoria’s Secret, she scoured the racks for something she could wear under her dressy clothes but still be dead sexy if she had the opportunity to slip them off too. Her normal cheeky boy briefs weren’t going to cut it. Her outfit was already planned; a sweater dress and leggings with a pair of knee-high boots, so nothing under it could be too bulky or frilly. Her attention naturally went to the black lace bra and panties, a timeless classic, but he’d already seen her in that. The camisoles were too strappy to be comfortable, too long or too bulky to lie right under her sweater.
Her new life was fun, but it was also becoming something else—expensive. Victoria sighed and mentally added up her bank account. She really shouldn’t keep spending, but what could one more trip to the mall hurt?
* * * *
After getting home, she changed in a rush. Her hair was finally straightened to perfection; the chosen sweater dress lay smoothly over her newly covered body. Victoria took a deep breath and answered the door. Desperately, she had wanted Gabe to see her purchases, but now that he stood a door’s width away, she wondered if she’d be making a fool of herself. Maybe he wouldn’t like the lingerie, maybe he’d think she was skanky, always pushing herself on him.
Gabe smiled as she greeted him. She hoped he was taking in her darkly painted eyes. Lord knows, she didn’t need blush, his gaze was giving her a natural rouge. “Come on in.” She opened the door to him. He stepped inside, taking her into his grasp immediately.
“You look great.” He ran his hands down the length of her torso. His fingers brushed right over the top of the garter, but he didn’t seem to notice. She started to lead him to the kitchen table to sit when she remembered the last time he was over. Smiling through the growing heat in her cheeks and on her neck, Victoria led him to the bedroom instead.
Opening the door, she stood outside and ushered him in. “Look, I’ve made some changes.”
“Wow, this looks amazing.” She watched as his gaze lingered on the artwork, paused on it as if he’d seen it before.
“I’m not sure what that one says, but it felt right, ya know?”
Gabe nodded. “It’s Latin.”
“You speak Latin?” Victoria turned to him, shocked.
“I dabble. It’s good to mix into lyrics.” Gabe’s smile was crooked, almost embarrassed.
She took in the light gray dress pants he wore; they were just the right length to his black dress shoes. The black button-up shirt was fitted tight around his shoulders. The colors contrasted to the blond of his hair and the light blue of his eyes. God, he’d match my decor perfectly if he’d get on that red comforter.
Gabe took her hand, twirled her, and pulled her to him. “Do you want to know what it says?”
Her sweater pulled up as he twirled her, but she didn’t dare adjust it while in his arms. Looking up into his eyes, she no longer cared what the canvas said, but she nodded just to watch his lips move at a closer distance to hers. Gabe’s mouth opened, but his gaze caught over her shoulder, and his eyes widened.
“Tori, are those…tights?” His gaze never left the mirror behind them.
Butterflies launched flight under his pensive touch. His fingers gently lifted the side of her sweater, revealing the top of the tights and brushing the soft metal clasp that held them to the garter belt. Victoria felt her face go hot. She watched his finger brush the clasp to the tights again. Unable to control her thoughts, they threw at her the darkest of possibilities. That was when he would tell her he didn’t want her as much as she wanted him. That she was trying too hard for his attention, too insecure to be with him. Gabe let go of her, and her heart fell to the floor. He dropped to his knees before her, his hands running up the tops of her thighs and pushing her sweater up to right below the garter belt. Enough that he could see this was well-thought out. Enough to know she wante
d him desperately. And then he would leave. No one wanted a desperate girl.
“Tori.” Gabe’s voice was flat, his gaze not leaving the tops of her thighs.
“Yeah?” Victoria pushed her legs together. She tugged at her sweater and pulled it back down, ready to bolt from her own home.
“We’re not going anywhere tonight.” He hesitated, and she held her breath with his pause. “Not until you take that sweater off and let me see you.” Gabe looked up at her, his perfect ice-blue eyes bordered by thick, brown lashes, his lips turned up and moist.
Relief fled through her, and she grabbed the hem of the sweater, pulling it off and tossing it lightly on the floor.
“God, I’m glad I got here two hours before dinner.” Gabe’s hands wandered back up her legs. Rising slightly, his hands took control of her thighs, picked her up, and plopped her backward onto the bed.
Victoria giggled in delight. She sat straight up, allowing close access to everything she wanted to reveal to him. His fingers brushed carefully over the lace on her bra, played with the bow between her breasts. Gabe knelt, leaving a hot trail of kisses down her stomach to the top of the garter belt. Victoria wriggled beneath his lips. She reached for him, her fingers barely skimming his shoulders as he shifted himself lower, still seemingly mesmerized by her tights.
“Nope, not this time.” Gabe smiled up at her. His fingers fell to the inside of her thigh, but she instinctively closed her legs tighter. She didn’t want him to know how turned on she was by the slightest of his touches. “Let.” Gabe kissed the top of her tights. “Me.” His tongue trailed to the place where his fingers remained stuck between her thighs. “In.” The demand alone was enough that her legs loosened, her traitorous knees abandoning their position together. Gabe groaned when his lips connected to the soft silk that separated him from her sex. Lying there like the dead couldn’t be sexy, but Victoria had no idea what to do. She worried, hoping she was sexy enough, doing the right things, but then it all stopped with the soft tugging she felt. Having pinned her down, she couldn’t even grab him, only reach the tips of his blond curls.
Gabe’s fingers worked under the silken bands of her panties, pulling them toward her knees, which she found had opened farther on their own accord. She reached for the clips to release her tights, but the warmth of Gabe’s hand on hers stopped her. He shook his head slightly before returning to his task. Slowly, her panties were gone, and Victoria could feel the bareness of her skin on her red comforter. Gabe sat back, admiring her and unbuttoning his shirt.
Lying there, wet and desperate, Victoria sighed at the sight of his strong chest. She longed to touch him; her tongue begged to run across his pecs. Gabe caught her glance and smiled. Rough hands pushed her thighs up and placed them over his shoulders. His tongue slid softly up her sex, parting her lips and prompting a low moan.
Gabe’s tongue flicked expertly against her clit, and she felt herself grow close to an orgasm within seconds. Her nipples peaked, the ecstasy he was inducing driving her mad. She would fight against it; hold onto the pleasurable pain for as long as she could. Gabe’s glorious tongue didn’t stop, even when his finger slid between her folds and into her. Victoria gasped and grabbed at the comforter, holding tightly as if it would help her fight. His finger slid slowly in and out of her wetness, his tongue brushing her clit, so in tune with what she wanted she found herself screaming. Ribbons of light shot past her squeezed eyes, and a rolling started in her stomach, enhancing with every penetrating movement.
The comforter pulled and pushed, thrown around in her intense state, and she let out one last guttural cry of pleasure. Her body shook at Gabe’s final touches. Hair clung to her face as she looked from side-to-side, focused on breathing, and fought to open her eyes.
Gabe wiped at his mouth with the back of his wrist, smiling as he watched her writhe. He reached down with one hand and undid the button on his pants, letting them fall. Despite the fatigue and stress her body was under, it only took one look at his thick shaft bulging from behind his boxer briefs for her to come undone all over again. She had to have it. She wanted more of him. After pulling back the red comforter, Victoria slid her bare ass onto her black silk sheets and reached for him.
“Are you ready?” Gabe’s voice was deeper than it had been, more serious, somehow demanding. The thought made Victoria want to bite her lip and whimper, beg him to come to her. So she did. Gabe’s boxer briefs were gone in a flash, and he was pulling on a condom, dragging her to him by the ankles from where she had scooted up the bed. He lifted her feet, causing the back of her thighs to connect with his chest. She braced herself, waiting as he lowered his erection and rubbed the head of his cock against her. She was more than ready. Before she could tell him, he sighed heavily and thrust himself into her. A small cry escaped her throat, but Gabe didn’t stop, didn’t ask if she was okay. He pulled one of her legs high above her, planted a hand near her head and held her other thigh against his chest.
Primal urges rang up within her. A voice she hadn’t heard herself use before begged for more, harder, faster. And Gabe complied. He fucked her hard and fast, their bodies slapping against each other with every deep thrust. Victoria felt the familiar pressure again and pulled up to be closer to him even while he was inside of her. Slowing their pace, Gabe laid her leg down around him. She propped up on her elbows, his mouth seizing her as soon as she was close enough. Their lips collided in a hard, passionate fusion, both of their hips moving in sync with a common goal. And then she couldn’t even kiss him, she breathed so hard. Her head fell back, mouth open, his name coming out of her in a steady stream.
*
The sight of her arched backward was too much. The way her tits bounced in the frilly bra, the garter belt and its tiny attached skirt giving it a look of fake innocence. It mocked him as his gaze traveled her body for the millionth time. Her screams had come louder and more rapidly, met by his bass reply. It was over too soon, the concentrated moment of ecstasy, and he wanted to remember every second of it.
With the last of his strength, Gabe ditched the condom and climbed back onto the bed. Collapsing, entangling in each other, Gabe was falling into breathless slumber when he heard Victoria ask him, “What does it mean, Gabe?”
He glanced up at her, her slender fingers barely reaching the bottom of the canvas on the wall. He held her gaze, ran a finger from her temple to her lips where she kissed it gently. “Freedom to be.”
Time had passed, how much Gabe didn’t know. He knew only that when his eyes opened, he was on his side with a girl that made it easy to be happy curled in his arms. Victoria’s blonde hair was messy and tangled, her lips turned up as she slept. Slowly, Gabe moved his arm and traced the length of hers. Victoria mumbled something in her sleep but kept right on smiling while she slept. Was she thinking about him? When she had been with her ex, she’d told Gabe that talking in her sleep was something that terrified her. She doesn’t look terrified. Pride made his lips curve as he bent forward and kissed her temple. She had no need to be scared ever again, and Gabe wanted to tell her, but how? And just what did that mean?
Chapter 21
Sirens went off everywhere, the sound reverberating against the walls of the apartment. For all of the contentment they had curled together, there was at least one piercing octave of siren going off to destroy it. Victoria jumped from her sleep, clinging the thin silk sheet to her chest like a shield. A pause in the siren caused deafening silence before it began once again. Dinner! Gabe sprang from the bed and reached for his obnoxious cell phone.
“So, whatchya doin?” Ti’s voice came through loud and clear, and mockingly, but Gabe didn’t focus on that part.
Gabe rubbed at his eyes. “Fell asleep. What time is it?”
“Let’s just say that the rest of us are here.”
“Crap, I’m sorry, we’ll be there in no more than fifteen. Get me a water with lemon, and uh…” Gabe looked at Victoria, who was scrambling to get dressed, her cheeks the color of her comforte
r. “Tori, what do you want to drink?”
“Sarah took care of her, don’t worry, we’re just gossiping. Get here when you can, I sent a taxi to get you guys.” Gabe could hear the laughter in Ti’s voice; he knew exactly why they’d fallen asleep. The guys would probably give him shit about it being the first step a chick took in ruining the band, but he found that in the same breath he really didn’t care what they thought of it. Possessiveness and a need to comfort her was what he felt around her. Even if his band fell apart at dinner, he wouldn’t take back a moment of what had happened. The world could fall into chaos as long as he had her. Gabe buttoned his pants and pulled his shirt back over his arms.
Looking up, Tori appeared fully dressed with a black pen in her hand. She leaned against her dresser. He watched as she colored in the lines she’d drawn on her eyelids earlier. The smooth contours of her sweater clung to her slender hips. Gabe had to look away to ensure they made it to dinner tonight, but he couldn’t help getting closer to her. His smile reflected back at them, her face burning in the mirror.
“I guess we better go, huh?” Gabe beamed, his reflection looked drunk, his smile was too wide, and his eyes shone wildly.
“I made you late.” Victoria turned between him and the dresser and slowly buttoned his shirt.
“You did, huh? Well. Should we be more late then? I can make you late this time.”
Victoria finished the last button and let her fingers rest on it near his heart. “I hope the guys aren’t mad.” She puckered her lips, looking like she was fighting chewing on them.
Gabe wondered how much their opinion meant to her. He couldn’t imagine putting what they thought over having her. He was whipped. He was happy.
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