“Relax, honey. It’s just a date.”
I want so badly to confide in Carmen why I’m so frazzled about tonight, but I can’t bring myself to open up about my past. The fact is, despite the number of men in my past, this is the only date I’ve ever been on. For the first time ever, I’m actually involving myself with a member of the opposite sex by choice.
I open my mouth to speak, but a knock at the door cuts my words off, lodging them in my throat. Is it too late to throw up?
Carmen begins jumping up and down, clapping and squealing like a lunatic. “Answer it! Answer it!”
“Shh! Will you calm the fuck down?” I whisper-yell.
“Sorry, sorry, sorry.”
I swear, the woman is more excited than I am, if that’s even possible.
Another knock sounds, echoing the beating of my heart.
“Are you just gonna stand there with the deer-in-the-headlights look? Or are you gonna open the damn door?” Carmen hisses.
I slowly make my way to the door, taking a fortifying breath before I pull it open. With my eyes downcast, the first things that come into my line of vision are what appears to be extremely expensive black dress shoes. I trail my eyes further up, up, up. Gabriel’s made-for-sin, charcoal-gray pinstripe suit is doing ridiculous things for his stormy eyes. He’s matched the suit with a baby-blue button-down shirt, open at the collar.
I’m at a complete loss for words. Carmen had it backward. I almost swallow my own tongue at the sight of him.
“You look beautiful, bella.”
Those gray eyes flash, and his pupils dilate just slightly, telling me that I definitely picked my outfit wisely.
All I can do is stare like an idiot.
I feel Carmen’s presence behind me seconds before I get a sharp poke in the ribs.
“Say something back, for Christ’s sake,” she mutters none too quietly in my ear, pulling me from my stupor.
“S-sorry. I mean, thank you. So do you. I mean, handsome! You look handsome, not beautiful. I mean, you look beautiful, too. You know, for a guy.” From the heat in my cheeks, I know I’ve more than likely turned blood red with embarrassment. Rambling when I’m uncomfortable has always been a huge problem for me. I bury my face in my palms and let out a groan. “Oh God, I’m mortified.”
Carmen laughs from behind me just as I feel a light pressure on my wrists before my hands are pulled away from my face. Looking up and meeting Gabriel’s gaze, I see affection sparkling there.
“Don’t be embarrassed around me. And please don’t hide your beautiful eyes from me.”
Before I can even attempt to swoon myself, Carmen lets out an, “Aww…”
Gabriel breaks eye contact to look over my shoulder. “Carmen,” he says with a tilt of his head. “Nice to see you again.”
“You, too, lover boy. You planning on treating my girl right tonight?”
I spin around and attempt to burn holes into Carmen’s head with my mind. “Carmen! Shut. It.”
The laugh that Gabriel emits is enough to melt the panties off of any woman. Even I, with all my attempts to keep him at arm’s length, am not immune to the sensual sound of it. My nipples pebble into tight peaks beneath my dress, and I have to cross my arms to prevent Gabriel from seeing.
“Rest assured, Marley is in safe hands tonight,” he tells her, wearing that heart-stopping smile the whole time.
Carmen crosses her arms over her chest and attempts to look sternly at him. “Mmhmm. Just make sure those hands stay where they belong, Casanova.” She points two fingers to her eyes before turning them back on him.
“That’s it!” I grab Gabriel’s hand and drag him out the front door. “We’re leaving. Lock up behind you when you leave, Car,” I call out over my shoulder, not slowing my pace to get away from her before she can do anything else humiliating.
The night certainly hasn’t started off as I hoped.
“Have a good night, you two,” she yells after us. “Love you, Marley!”
“Love you, too!”
Gabriel and I make it down the flight of stairs to the parking lot before I let him take over leading me to his car. He stops me at the passenger door of a sleek black car. I have no clue how much the car cost, or what exactly it is, but I’m terrified just to sit in it. I’m afraid I could somehow sully the luxuriousness of the car.
He opens the door, showcasing supple black leather and more buttons and contraptions than I’ve ever seen on a car. I hesitate against the pressure of his hand on the small of my back as he tries to help me in.
“Is something wrong?”
I don’t even realize I’m chewing on my thumbnail until he reaches up and gently pulls my hand away from my mouth.
Worry spreads over his expression as he asks, “Are you okay, bella?”
“What kind of car is this?” I ask dumbly.
His head tilts slightly, and his brows furrow in confusion. “A Maserati Gran Turismo. Why do you ask?”
“Is…” I clear my throat and begin to wring my hands together. “Is it expensive?”
The corner of his mouth twitches, and he looks down, attempting to hide a smile. “Uh, it is.”
I look to the car, back to him, and then back to the car again. “Um…I’m afraid to get in. I don’t want to mess it up.”
Amusement lights up his features, and he doesn’t hold back his laugh this time. “What? How could you possibly mess up my car? Are you planning on keying it or something?”
“What? No! Of course not! I don’t know. I just always manage to mess nice stuff up.”
Gabriel throws his head back and lets out a loud guttural laugh, creating tiny little wrinkles around his eyes. Those wrinkles only make him more endearing. “Ah, bella, I’m not worried about you ruining it. It’s only a car. I’ve worked harder to get you to agree to this date than I have on most other things in my life. You take my breath away in that dress, and all I can think about is taking you out and pampering you tonight. Don’t worry about the trivial things. Now, will you please get in the car, so we can begin our evening?”
I have to lower my gaze, certain he’s able to see the emotions radiating there. I know it’s not smart to lower my guard around him any more than I already have, but damn it, if he isn’t making it impossibly hard. “Thank you,” I whisper, not knowing what else to say to his passionate speech.
Gabriel is creating a whirlwind of emotions in me that I don’t know how to handle. I let him usher me into the car, and I instantly melt into the soft seat. Who knew leather seats could feel so comfortable? I watch his muscular frame as he walks in front of the car to make his way around to the driver’s side, and I am overwhelmed by the naughty images flashing in my mind. If Gabriel looks so mouthwatering in a suit, the image of him out of it would probably send me into cardiac arrest, not that I’m intending to reach that point with him—now or ever.
God, what is this man doing to me?
Taking a seat next to me, he shoots me a delicious smile before putting the key in the ignition. The car starts with a purr that vibrates up my legs and spine. The sound is nothing like what my rust bucket of a car makes when I try to start it up, and that’s only if it decides to start that day.
“You ready?” he asks. He’s all confidence and pure manliness.
I’m only able to nod. The truth is, I’m not even close to ready for this man. There are warning signals in the back of my mind blaring long and loud. I have no doubt that this man is capable of breaking me. But even with all the warning signs, I can’t ignore my desire for him any longer.
Sitting in Gabriel’s car, surrounded by his intoxicating smell, is like being transported into an alternate reality where red flags and warning signs mean nothing when compared to my attraction to a near stranger.
Everything about him turns me on—his voice, the way he smells, the way he looks, the way he walks. He’s completely devastating to my senses. The problem is, I’m discovering just how much I like it, and that has made it impossible for
me to stay away. All thoughts of protecting myself have disappeared. I want him too badly. My rational side is being overrun by the side of me that is quickly becoming enamored with all things Gabriel.
“Do you have any idea what you’re doing to me in that dress?” he asks, snapping me back to reality.
When I look up from my lap, I see his stormy eyes making a track down my body. It’s so intense that I can almost feel the heat on my skin from his gaze as it travels down and then back up. A blush rises up my chest, making its way to my cheeks, and I can’t look at him any longer. I turn to look out the windshield, staring into the glowing red of the stoplight, while silently willing my heart to slow down its frantic pace.
The light flashes from red to green, but Gabriel never takes his foot off the brake.
“Uh…Gabriel, the light’s green,” I say just before the car behind us lays on its horn.
I turn and look at him to see why we aren’t moving. His eyes are no longer on my body. They’re staring directly into mine. It feels like he’s trying to penetrate the mask I try so hard to maintain in his presence. When he looks at me like he is now, I feel completely bared to him as if he’s able to see through every one of my defenses to the very core of me.
My breathing picks up, and the sounds of the cars honking for us to move fade into background noise as his stare pulls me in and refuses to let go.
“Gabriel?” I ask on an exhale.
“Jesus Christ. You’re so fucking beautiful.” His words come out so softly that I’m not sure if he meant for me to hear them.
“Gabriel,” I say again.
His pupils dilate, causing the stormy gray to turn almost black, as he stares down at my lips. My panties are wet, and my nipples harden from just that one look. It feels like the oxygen is slowly being pumped from the car. I squeeze my eyes closed and squirm in the seat, trying to relieve the pressure quickly building between my thighs.
A low rumble emanates from Gabriel’s chest, causing my eyes to snap back open. The only word I can use to describe the look on Gabriel’s face at this moment is carnal.
“If you keep fidgeting like that, I’m going to have to fuck you right now.”
My breath catches in my lungs at his lust-filled voice. He leans in so close that I can feel the heat of his breath on my neck as he drags the tip of his nose across my sensitive skin. I feel like I’m coming completely undone by just being close to him.
“I can smell how aroused you are, bella. If I slid my hand under your dress right now, would you be wet for me?”
I inhale deeply, trying to control how badly my body is shaking at his closeness. Taking such a deep breath was a huge mistake. No man should ever be allowed to smell as good as Gabriel does. The scent invades my nostrils, causing my brain to malfunction. Every part of my body is screaming at me to get as close to Gabriel as possible. My brain is the only part of me that is putting up any type of fight…and it’s quickly losing.
If the driver in the car behind us didn’t choose that moment to lay on his horn, I don’t know what I would have done. Gabriel leans away from me, and at the same time, I move to put some much-needed distance between us.
“Uh…I think you should probably drive now,” I mutter, not knowing what the hell is going on with me. “The car behind us is probably pissed.”
I glance out of the corner of my eyes just in time to see a smirk tug at his full lips. He doesn’t say a word as he continues on to the restaurant.
I spend the rest of the drive willing my body to cooperate with my brain. This is bad. I know this is bad, but for the life of me, I can’t deny that there is nowhere I’d rather be in this moment than here with him. I shouldn’t want him the way I do. I should fear him just as I did the men in my past. I just…can’t. No matter how hard I fight it, the pull between us is just too strong…too exhilarating.
Jesus, get it together, Marley. This man is going to break you.
Shaking my head, I try to pull myself from the conflict taking place inside of me. I look out the windshield to see that we’ve pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant. It’s not a place I’m familiar with. Hell, I’m not even familiar with the part of town we’re in—not that it’s surprising. From looking around at the surrounding buildings, I can tell this most definitely isn’t my part of town. There isn’t a single homeless person in sight. No trash strewn along the roads. No busted-out streetlights. No drug dealers making money in the shadowed alleyways. In other words, I’ve just entered a world I have no clue how to navigate.
Putting the car in park, Gabriel twists the key, killing the engine, before turning his magnificent gray eyes on me. “Marley.”
Just one word, and he commands all my attention. I hate myself for being too weak to deny him.
“I want you,” he continues. “I’m sure I’ve made that pretty clear to you. But if, at the end of the night, you decide you want nothing to do with me, I’ll leave you alone. I’m a man of my word.”
I drop my head slightly and stare down at my lap again, fidgeting with my hands. “I don’t know what you want me to say, Gabriel. I don’t know why I agreed to this, why I’m here…” I trail off and look up to see him smiling at me.
“You’re trying your hardest to convince yourself that being with me is a mistake, but you’re still with me right now. That means you feel this, too. Whatever this thing is between us, you can’t deny it.” He leans in, his words a whisper against my ear. “You crave me just as badly as I crave you.”
I shiver at his close proximity. My chest rises and falls with my rapid breathing. “You’re planning on using that against me every chance you get, aren’t you?” I cringe at how shaky my voice is.
His grin turns almost devilish as he reaches over and trails his fingers lightly over my knee, causing goose bumps to break out across my skin.
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
And with that, he opens his door and steps out of the car. He comes around to my side and pulls open my door, offering me his hand. Just like every time before, his touch elicits an electric jolt through my entire body before centering deep in my belly.
“I want you to understand something,” he tells me, squeezing my hand tightly. “I’m coming on strong because I can’t help myself. You do something to me, Marley. But you’re calling the shots tonight. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable around me. I’ve made it clear that I want you, but tonight, you’re making the calls.”
Oh God. That certainly isn’t what I expected to hear from him. Everything he says and does makes my body crave him even more. Pulling me along at his side, he heads for the front doors of the restaurant, never once letting go of my hand as he leads us up to the hostess stand.
The petite blonde behind the podium looks up, and she does an immediate double take the moment she spots Gabriel. I can’t necessarily blame her. Everything about the man screams delicious sin. But something about the sultry look that comes over her face causes the tiny hairs to rise on my arms.
“Good evening. How can I help you?”
I have to refrain from rolling my eyes at the fact that she basically just purred at my date. A quick look out of my peripheral visions shows Gabriel shooting the hostess one of his award-winning smiles. That smile causes my hands to tightly clench of their own accord. I hate that he’s smiling at her like that.
Jesus, what’s wrong with me? I feel almost…jealous. No, there is no almost about it. It’s not something I’ve experienced before, but I have no doubt that I’m practically green with jealousy…and I hate it.
I unclench my fingers and try to appear impassive as I watch the interaction between the two of them.
“Table for two,” Gabriel says with a grin. “Reservation is under Bertozzi.”
Recognition flashes on the blonde’s face. The name Bertozzi is synonymous with wealth in this city. As if his good looks weren’t enough to attract this woman’s attention, she’s now well aware of who he is and how much he’s worth. She has yet to so much as look
in my direction.
“Right this way, sir.” She steps from behind the podium and begins to walk, swaying her hips far more than necessary for the brief trek to our table.
I take in the crowded restaurant as we make our way through. Heads have turned, male and female alike, from all directions to watch the man walking next to me. I chance a brief glance up to see Gabriel looking ahead. He seems to be oblivious to the attention he’s garnering from simply walking into the room. I, on the other hand, feel my anxiety bubbling up with every stare in my direction.
“Here we are, Mr. Bertozzi.” The blonde waves her hand toward a round table covered in a stark white cloth.
The back wall is made completely of glass, giving us a perfect view of what looks to be the restaurant’s impressive wine cellar. Two large floor-to-ceiling walls attached to the glass come out about six feet, blocking the space off from the rest of the dining area. I am beyond thankful for the secluded little nook in the middle of a crowded restaurant. Small votive candles and flower petals are floating in a glass bowl set in the center of the table, making the private setting seem all the more romantic.
Gabriel places a hand on the small of my back, causing a shock to trickle up my spine, as he guides me to the chair closest to the glass. He pulls it out and ushers me to sit. Then, he takes the seat directly to my left as opposed to the one across from me, like most people would do.
My eyes scan what I can see of the dining area not blocked by the walls surrounding our table. Every table is full, and with the exception of the piano playing in the background, all I can hear is the hushed murmurs of conversations from the patrons around us. I had no idea that it was possible for a room filled with so many people to be so quiet.
“Your waiter will be with you shortly,” the blonde says, still refusing to look in my direction. “In the meantime if you need anything, anything at all, please don’t hesitate to come to me. I’m Alison.”
Dear Lord, could she be any more obvious?
“Thank you very much, Alison.”
The sound of Gabriel saying her name with just the slightest hint of kindness sets my teeth on edge. I don’t understand what’s happening to me. Trying to ignore the contrasting feelings rolling through me, I reach for my water glass and take a fortifying drink as Alison turns on her platform stilettos and saunters back to her podium, but not before shooting a smoldering look over her shoulder. A look that, I notice, isn’t lost on Gabriel.
Destructive Page 9
