Logan was just as tall as Teague, but where Teague had blatant muscles, this man was lithe, more like a swimmer than a boxer. His white shirt was open at the collar and he was wearing a tailored sports jacket with his khaki slacks and cowboy boots that seemed to suit the scary look in his eyes.
“I’m Luke,” the other man offered, stepping forward and taking Gabriella’s hand.
“I’m Gabriella Hicks,” she responded.
Luke was a bit more bulky, but still startlingly handsome. Both had those hard, green eyes and broad shoulders, that crazy height that made her feel small, but whereas Teague was tall like his brothers, somehow, he made her feel vulnerable. These men were intimidating, but not in the same way.
She didn’t fully understand the difference, but nor was she planning to stick around long enough to need to know. The Steele brothers were all handsome men, but she was Boston bound. Toby was waiting for her and…
She gasped when she looked down at her hand. Her phone! She needed to call Toby and tell him that she wouldn’t be back tonight!
Thankfully, Teague walked into the waiting room at that moment and she turned away from his brothers and all of the questions racing through her mind.
Turning to Teague, she looked up at him as she handed his phone back. “Can I borrow your keys? I need to get my purse.”
He looked at her curiously, but dug into his jeans and pulled out the keys. “Don’t drive it anywhere,” he cautioned. “You’re too small for that thing.”
Gabriella rolled her eyes. “If I was able to handle you, I can definitely handle your truck,” she said, walking out of the waiting room and leaving three stunned men staring at the empty doorway.
Teague continued to watch her as she moved down the hallway, not sure what he was thinking. Had she handled him? And what did she mean by that?
“You’re being handled,” Logan commented, a mysterious smile on his lips.
Teague sighed and rubbed his face. “Shut up,” he said, earning him laughter from both brothers.
The men started pacing, prowling the perimeters of the room as if they were caged animals.
Luke was practically growling. “How long does it take to have a baby?” he asked, glancing at his watch. “Shouldn’t it have happened already?”
“No clue,” Teague replied and started pacing as well.
“Seems like it should have been finished by now,” Logan commented, draining the last of his coffee and tossing it across the room to the garbage can.
Teague glanced at his watch, wondering what Gabby needed his keys for. He’d thought she only needed to get her purse, but she’d been gone for twenty minutes now.
“She’s fine,” Logan commented, smacking Teague on the back.
“She’s not fine,” Teague replied. “She should be back already.”
Luke wasn’t as kind as Logan. “She probably took your truck to the airport and hightailed it out of here.”
Teague thought about that and nodded in agreement. “Probably.”
A moment later, Gabriella walked back into the waiting room, her arms loaded down with bags of food and a tray filled with fresh cups of coffee. “I didn’t steal your truck and head to the airport,” she told the three of them, handing each of them a bag filled with two burgers each plus fries and sodas. “But only because I missed my flight already.” She handed Teague his keys along with his food. “And I didn’t think about it.”
The men fell in love with her, each of them grabbing a bag, Logan and Luke both kissing her cheek in thanks. “You’re a goddess,” Logan said. To Teague, he commanded, “Keep her.”
Teague rolled his eyes but took an enormous bite of his own burger. “Thanks for the food,” he told her, realizing that he was starving. The others were digging into their meal as well.
“You’re a lifesaver,” Logan told her. “Whatever it is that he did wrong, trust me, I’ll do it right.”
Teague just about punched his brother for that comment. Logan knew that he was in jeopardy and laughed as he moved across the room, out of punching range.
Gabriella took a fry and looked at the three men. All of them looked so similar, but so different as well.
“I’ll bring this to Zeke,” Teague said and picked up the last bag. “Thanks, Gabby,” and he walked out.
Gabriella wasn’t really hungry but she nibbled on her burger. When she looked up, Logan and Luke were both looking at her.
“Do I have something on my face?” she asked, picking up a napkin and trying to wipe it off.
Both men looked at her curiously. She sensed there was an underlying current of anger, but they weren’t showing it. “You’re not going to hurt him again, are you?” Logan asked, breaking the silence.
Gabriella blinked, not sure what to say. Was she going to hurt Teague? And if they were concerned that she was going to do it again, that meant that she’d done it before.
Her mind pictured Teague the day she’d walked out of his life in Las Vegas, but she couldn’t remember his features on that day. She’d been too busy trying to force her feet to keep walking away from him, to not run back into his arms. She’d kept telling herself that they were too different. That they wanted different things in life.
She’d messed up by marrying him, but she’d been caught up in the whirlwind that was Teague. He made her crazy and she did stupid things around him, like marrying almost a complete stranger. Like spending days in bed with the man! Like ignoring all of her goals and thinking that it would be okay to marry a man who couldn’t provide the security she craved, the respect she needed. She couldn’t fit into Teague’s world. She knew it and he had to have figured it out.
She carefully put her burger down. “I don’t want to hurt him. I never wanted to hurt him. He’s a good man, we’re just not right for each other.”
“What are you here for then?” Luke demanded. His voice was gentle, but still firm and she fully understood that he wasn’t a man to mess with.
She sighed and wiped her hands on a paper napkin. “I’m here to finalize things. I just need his signature on the divorce papers and I’ll go back to Boston. I promise, I’ll never haunt his door again.”
Both Luke and Logan looked at each other and Gabriella felt her stomach tighten with that look. When their green eyes came back to her, she wanted to run and hide. “What can the idiot in Boston give you that Teague can’t?”
Gabriella sighed. “Security,” she said immediately. “Respect. The life that I want.”
Her instant reply softened both of their expressions. They almost seemed to understand and Gabriella’s tension eased somewhat.
“What do you want out of life?” Logan asked gently.
Gabriella wrapped up her meal and tossed it into the trash. “It isn’t really something I can explain,” she told both men. “Something neither of you would understand.”
Luke polished off his burger and bundled up his trash. “No man can give you security like Teague can. And if you don’t know that, then you don’t know Teague very well.”
“I don’t need to get to know him. I have plans. And…” She stopped when both men laughed.
“The fact that you’re here means that your plans are probably toast,” Logan explained and Luke nodded in agreement.
After that, Teague walked back in and Gabriella was relieved. “I really should go,” she told Teague, feeling like she was intruding.
“Stay,” he told her and pulled her into his arms. “Marcy is going to be okay, right?” he asked her, resting his chin on her head for a moment.
This vulnerable side of Teague startled her. He always seemed so confident, so in control. Nothing ever phased him.
It appeared that Marcy’s labor was blind-siding him. She looked over at the other two men, both of whom were looking to her as well, silently imploring her to reassure everyone. Why did they think she would know any more about this pregnancy stuff than they did? She’d never been pregnant, never had a baby. Did having mammary glands and a ut
erus automatically indicate that she knew everything there was to know about giving birth?
Obviously it did, she thought with a touch of humor as she continued to stare at the three men. “Well, speaking from experience,” she teased, but when none of them laughed, she shrugged her shoulders. “From what I’ve heard, it could take up to twenty-four hours for the baby to be born.” The men’s stares became outraged. “It isn’t an easy process,” she defended. “It takes a lot of energy to give birth.” She felt like she needed to defend the entire female population. But when the three men stared back at her, almost unbelieving, she sighed with exasperation. “You guys try creating a human being in your body and see how long it takes to…” she stopped, not sure she wanted to go down that path. “Well, you know,” she said and gestured to the middle of their bodies.
The three men turned a bit green at the idea, but they stopped staring at her. She felt Teague’s arms tighten around her and she wanted to hug him back. Her arms went around his lean waist and she rested her cheek against his chest. “I’m sure Marcy is okay. Otherwise, the doctor would have come in to…”
“It’s a boy!” Zeke announced, bursting into the room and looking for all the world as if he’d done all the work. “Eight pounds, ten ounces and he’s doing great.”
“How’s Marcy?” Teague asked, clapping his older brother on the arm.
Zeke ran a hand over his face. “She’s doing okay. Tired. Angry and hungry, but she’s feeding our son at the moment.”
The three men stared at their oldest brother in horror. “What the hell are you doing out here then?”
Zeke threw back his head and laughed. “Good point,” he said to Luke and received a pounding hug from each of them before he headed back to his wife and his newborn son.
Gabriella looked around the room, unaware of the beaming smile splitting her face. The others were just as excited and grinning like proud papas and she chuckled as each of them hugged her. One would think she was part of this family, she thought, as she pulled back when the three brothers started discussing ways to celebrate.
“Dinner!” they all said.
Gabriella laughed. She’d just brought them burgers about…she glanced down at her watch, shocked to realize that ten hours had passed. Good grief! It was almost midnight! Where had the afternoon and evening gone?
Teague grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room as if she belonged, as if she were part of the family.
Gabriella tugged back, gaining his attention while the other two men continued slapping each other on the back and discussing which bar they were going to invade.
“What’s wrong?” Teague asked, not releasing her hands.
She shook her head. “Why don’t you and your brothers go have fun, celebrate? You and I can talk tomorrow over breakfast.”
He shook his head. “Now what kind of a husband would I be if I left you here all alone?” he grinned. “You’re coming with us. You won’t be able to get to my place without me anyway.”
“I can just…”
He was already shaking his head. “You’re not staying in a hotel, Gabby. You’re staying with me. You’re in a strange city. It isn’t safe.”
Gabriella rolled her eyes. “Teague, I traveled a great deal for my job before I…”
His eyes narrowed so she stopped speaking. “Before you what?”
She sighed. “Toby convinced me to quit my job so that I could get ready for the wedding.”
He looked furious for a moment, but then his face cleared and he smiled again. “That’s one obstacle out of your way then, right?”
She blinked. “What obstacle?”
He shrugged and tugged her along behind him. “You won’t miss work on Monday when you don’t go back to Boston.”
She almost smacked her forehead at his logic. Was he doing this on purpose? Trying to drive her nuts?
Of course he was! The man loved driving her crazy.
But she wasn’t doing that anymore! “Teague, I’m checking into a hotel.”
He continued walking, keeping her hand in his. “Just one drink. Come on, you’ve got to celebrate the good news of my nephew being born. It’s tradition.”
She didn’t really have a choice since the man lifted her up into his truck once more. She didn’t argue because, truth be told, she wasn’t looking forward to trying to find a hotel this late at night. She was tired, ready to find a bed, but she could humor the man for a little while. He was a new uncle, after all. And his good humor had always been contagious.
“Fine,” she grumbled, but there wasn’t really a point since he’d already slammed the truck door closed and was walking around to the driver’s side, taking her agreement for granted.
Ten minutes later, the four of them were raising a glass of beer to celebrate their nephew’s birth. Normally, she sipped white wine but tonight, she reverted back to her preferred beer and smiled as the three men started discussing all the various activities they were going to do with their nephew. Camping, archery, skeet shooting were all among the top ten along with a list of sports that each of the enormous men were eager to teach him.
Gabriella leaned back in her chair, drinking a seemingly endless glass of beer. When she was lifted up into Teague’s arms once again, she was feeling too good to worry overly much about the action. Nor did she care which hotel he took her too. All she wanted was a soft bed. Exhaustion and alcohol making her body numb.
Chapter 2
Gabriella shifted in the soft bed, not wanting to relinquish the dream she’d been having. She was warm, more comfortable than she had been in a long time, and she’d slept so soundly! She hadn’t slept through the night in a year and this just felt too delicious to give up.
When the tingling started on her neck, she thought something might be wrong, but everything felt too good to do anything about it.
And then things started to not feel so comfortable. She was too hot. And the sensations in her dream were too…real! She’d had erotic dreams before, dreams where Teague was making love to her like he had so long ago in Vegas, but this was better. More powerful. Sleep was the key, she thought, trying to stay asleep. But the dream was too real, too strong, and she couldn’t maintain her blissful sleep.
Using her legs, she kicked the sheets off her legs, desperate for cool air, hoping it could cool her body down.
Her breasts were tight, the peaks hard and aching. So when a rough, calloused thumb rubbed against the tip, she moaned, her body arching. She was immediately wide awake and trying to figure out what was going on. Looking around, she saw that she was in an enormous bed with Teague’s hard body pressing against her back. She was wearing one of his tee shirts and her underwear, but nothing else.
“What are you doing?” she demanded, trying to jump out of the bed but Teague’s strong arm stopped her, keeping her right there with him.
He groaned and nibbled on her earlobe, smiling when she gasped, her nails digging into the skin on his forearm. “You were the one who woke me up, darlin’. I’m just doing what you were demanding of me.”
She froze, her mind thinking back to the dream. Yes, in her dream, she’d been begging him to touch her, to make love to her. But she hadn’t realized that he was actually in bed with her!
“Well, I’m telling you now to stop!” she told him, shivering when his hand continued to cup her breast. Her fingers were gripping his wrist, trying to hold his hand still but she suspected he wasn’t moving his fingers because of reasons other than her grip.
“Are you?” he asked softly, his voice husky.
She glanced behind her, catching his eye and that dratted trembling started up. “Teague.”
“What are you asking for, honey?” he asked gently, his hand sliding up and down her waist. “Just tell me what you want.”
She closed her eyes, trying to keep the sensuous feeling of his touch from making her melt. “I want…”
He bit her earlobe again; a touch more pressure this time. “Tell me,” he urg
ed, soothing her ear with his tongue before moving to her neck. “Anything you want. Just admit it, Gabby.”
She moaned, arching into his caress. She wanted him! For so long, she’d wanted this man. From the first time she’d seen him in the bar, she’d wanted him. Now he was here, right behind her, and he smelled like man and musk and everything she’d wanted for so long!
“Teague,” she gasped, wanting to say the words. Wanting so badly to ignore the cautious side of her brain, the side telling her that this was wrong because it felt so incredibly right!
She opened her mouth, about to tell him exactly what she wanted, but the ringing phone stopped her. Looking around, she saw Teague’s phone resting on the kitchen table, which was right through the doorway.
“Ignore it,” he coaxed.
Gabby shook her head. “It could be your brother,” she pointed out, waiting tensely for him to respond. Teague froze and looked at the phone. For a long moment, she thought he was going to ignore her comment and continue to make love to her. And for a long moment, she prayed that he would. If he could ignore the cautious side of her brain, so could she.
Fortunately, he muttered a curse and stepped out of bed. Gabriella watched, stunned as she watched him walk down the narrow hallway of his trailer, gloriously naked and unashamed of it.
Grabbing the sheet, she pulled it up, her eyes glued to the man’s tight butt. She told herself to look away. Demanded that she look away. But her eyes were hungry, desperate for the sight of Teague.
His deep voice answered his phone even as he turned. She got another eyeful when she saw that he was fully erect. Again, she wasn’t able to look away. For a long time, she just stared at him, at that part of him that could give so much pleasure.
But then his deep voice broke through to her sex-starved brain. He was ending the conversation and she looked up at him. He winked at her, telling her that he knew she was looking. That he liked her looking.
She jumped out of the bed and raced to the bathroom, locking the door against his deep laughter. Gabby sighed as she leaned against the door, closing her eyes and feeling like a fool. Again. Darn him! How could he keep doing this? She was wound up tight and ready to explode! And he knew all of it, had done this to her in Vegas, made her so desperate for release that she was begging, clawing at the sheets. When he’d finally given her that release, she’d been unable to move for a long time afterwards.
Seducing His Wife Page 5
