Chase

by Sidney Bristol

  “Te amo muchísimo.”

  His gaze darkened and a tremor of awareness shook her. She’d both forgotten and remembered the hunger that always seemed to be there. Gabriel had a voracious appetite.

  She licked her lips. Between them, he was the initiator, but she’d changed. She’d never be as bold as he was, but she had a voice now.

  “Would now be a bad time to say I want you?” Her head was buzzing too much to even attempt another language right now. English would have to do.

  Her nipples brushed his chest; she felt his jeans against her thighs. He lifted his hands to her face, fingers stroking the little hairs at her temple that never behaved.

  “It’s never a bad time,” he said.

  He swooped down, pressing her back against the workbench, and kissed her. Devoured her was more like it. His tongue thrust into her mouth, rubbing against hers. He shoved his knee between her thighs, rubbing her already sensitized sex. She gripped his shirt with both hands and wished she could just rip it off him already so they could be skin to skin.

  She loved him. And he loved her. She’d suspected it before they broke up, but having the freedom to say those words intensified the emotion swelling within her breast.

  He loved her.

  Gabriel leaned into her, bending her almost backward over the table. He trailed kisses down her neck, across her collarbone. His calloused finger traced the neckline of her tank top, and suddenly her clothes were too confining. She needed them off.

  He covered her breast with his palm and she stopped breathing. She even stopped thinking. He gently squeezed and lifted the full mound.

  “Oh, God,” she muttered under her breath.

  “Close enough.” Gabriel’s voice had gone deep, until it had more in common with a growl.

  “Not funny.”

  Nikki scrambled to get a hold on him, but he was so toned all she got were handfuls of his damn shirt. It was just getting in the way. She yanked the garment up to his armpits. For a second Gabriel just looked at her, and she wondered if he was going to let her have her way or not.

  He took a half step back, grasped the hem of his shirt, and whisked it over his head. Her mouth went dry. Sure, she’d gotten up close and personal with him a few times, but she still found pleasure in looking at him. He was a hard man, but life had made him that way. She loved everything about him. The tan lines where he went from light to dark, the scars, the body honed by a tough life, and the smile lines that would only grow more pronounced with age.

  “Nikki.” He closed the distance and pinned her to the bench with his hips. “Don’t look at me that way.”

  “What way?” She flattened her palms against his chest and slid them down, over his ribs and abs, luxuriating in the feel of him.

  “I need you out of this shirt. Now.”

  She lifted her arms and he pulled her tank top off. There was no awkwardness or shyness about her partial nudity. Not when he’d seen so much of her before. Not when she’d already revealed the most private part of her heart to him.

  Gabriel sealed his lips over hers and splayed his hand over her back, covering the catch of her bra. She held on to his shoulders and barely registered the moment when he unfastened the plain white garment. She shrugged the straps off and the bra fell between them. Her nipples puckered despite the warm temperature. Sweat trickled down her spine and she could already feel tendrils of hair sticking to her neck and face.

  “We aren’t going to make it inside,” he warned, his lips never once leaving hers.

  She grinned against his mouth. Were they supposed to? Beds were overrated.

  He backed up, pulling her after him. There was mischief in his gaze and the twist to his lips.

  What was he up to?

  She grasped his biceps and slowed her pace. The scratched-up GTO was right behind him.

  “Gabe—”

  He pivoted with her. She yelped and a thrill of adrenaline mixed with arousal shot through her body. She braced her hands against the hood of the muscle car behind her, halfway resting against it. Her heart pounded in her throat. A dozen different scenarios played out in her head. He stared at her and she licked her lips.

  What next?

  Gabriel took one step closer, his knee between her thighs. His chest brushed her breasts and she shivered. Nikki lifted her chin, eager for a kiss that never came. Instead, he grasped the waistband of her shorts and yanked them down over her hips, dragging her panties with them.

  She perched on the hood of the car while Gabriel stripped her of everything but her boots. The rational part of her brain said she shouldn’t do this, but she was done listening to that part of herself, at least for the next half hour.

  Gabriel grasped her knees and pushed them open. He kissed her knee and inner thigh.

  Butterflies swarmed in her stomach. Okay, so maybe she would never be as bold as him, but she was coming around.

  He cupped her mound and slid his fingers into her, curling them to rub against the walls of her vagina. Sparks of color blossomed behind her eyelids and she gasped.

  It felt so good.

  But not as good as he did.

  Gabriel withdrew his hand and stood, taking a step back. She pried her eyes open and watched him swipe the back of his hand across his mouth. The hardness was back. And not just in his jeans.

  “Turn around,” he said.

  She’d been wondering when he’d demand that. All her life, her bubble butt drew the wrong kind of attention. She’d hated that part of her anatomy. But Gabriel changed how she thought about herself.

  She turned and braced her hands on the car, swallowing down the same old nerves that clamored in the back of her mind. Nothing could ruin this moment. It didn’t matter what anyone had said a hundred years ago about her ass. What mattered was this compassionate, funny man found her attractive, and he had a thing for her butt.

  Gabriel smoothed his hands over her hips, down over the globes of her ass, and squeezed them. She drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes. She was a Plain Jane, and yet she turned him on. That was something, right?

  Heat and pressure.

  Gabriel bit the curve of her bottom.

  Nikki yelped and would have jumped had he not had her captured between him and the car. He let go almost immediately and chuckled. Okay, it wasn’t the first time he’d bitten her, either, but it had been a while. There was something primal in the way it appealed to her. As if he were marking her as his woman. Sure, the rational, feminist part of her was appalled by the idea, but being his meant he was also hers.

  Gabriel smoothed his hand over the mark, the sensation already fading.

  “I missed this.”

  “Me, too.” It was hard to speak. Hard to draw breath. The humidity was drowning her, but she wasn’t about to stop their forward momentum.

  He gripped her ass in both hands and she rocked up on her toes. His thighs pressed to the back of her legs, holding her here. She hated the rough denim. Why couldn’t he have gotten rid of his clothes already?

  There wasn’t a man alive who could do this to her. Desire thrummed in her veins until she thought she might explode.

  “Gabe . . .”

  “What?”

  “I want you now.”

  Silence.

  He let go of her and stepped back. She rocked back to her heels, but didn’t look for him. He wasn’t about to leave her. She knew he was there.

  The gentle rustle of denim was the loudest sound in the garage. She tilted her head to the side, but only saw the wall of his chest as he pressed himself against her. The heat of him seared her backside, all the way to her core. He planted his hands over hers, covering her body, and nuzzled her neck. She could feel his erection against her bottom.

  “Here? Like this?” The wicked tones in his voice undid whatever reservations she might have had. When he spoke like that, he blew her world.

  “Yes.” She rested her head against his shoulder and lifted her hips.

  “Shit.” H
e placed one hand against her stomach, arching her back, fitting their bodies together. He buried his face deeper against her neck.

  She pushed back against him, wanting more.

  “Gabe.”

  “You know how many times I’ve thought about you like this? Bent over my hot rod?”

  “Is that a euphemism?”

  He chuckled.

  “It could be.” He kissed her cheek and straightened. “Stay right there.”

  She peeked over her shoulder. Her mouth dried up. Damn, but he was fine. Tanned skin as far as the eye could see. His abs—people airbrushed to get that kind of definition. And he was all hers.

  He slid his wallet out of his back pocket and removed a condom. One of the precious three they’d bought that morning. She missed the days when they didn’t have to pause for that, but there was too much on the line to indulge in that kind of thing. She couldn’t trust the cycle calendar that she wasn’t pregnant already. Until they knew for sure, until this case was wrapped up and they could figure out what the next step for them was—if there was anywhere to go—this was their new normal.

  He turned toward her, one side of his mouth twisted up, and winked at her as he rolled the condom on. Heat crawled up her neck. She would probably never get over all of her shyness, but she sure as hell enjoyed looking at him.

  Gabriel leaned over her again, one hand on her hip. Their noses bumped and her heart clenched.

  “God, you’re beautiful,” he whispered.

  It wasn’t the most dignified position, and yet, the way he looked at her, the reverence in his voice, she felt it. To the tips of her toes, she was beautiful. For him.

  She spread her fingers wider, bracing herself on the car. There was no need to tell him what she needed. Not now. Not when their bodies were so in tune. Gabriel squeezed her hip with one hand and guided himself to her entrance with the other. He gently pressed into her, sinking a few inches into her channel.

  “Oh . . .” She scooted her legs open wider and pushed back, closing her eyes as the intrusion stretched her. It had been so long since she’d been with anyone. Their hurried coupling had left her a bit sore, but in the best way possible.

  “Easy,” he muttered.

  He pulled almost all the way out of her and pushed back in. It was good, but not entirely right. She eased down to her elbows, bracing herself fully against the car. Gabriel grabbed a handful of her hair and kept the other hand on her hip. This time, he slid deeper, the penetration effortless and right.

  “Oh, damn,” he muttered.

  Nikki moaned. Words were too much effort right now. She laid her cheek against the car and surrendered herself to the feel of his cock moving in and out of her. His balls gently tapped her mound with each thrust. His weight shifted not only her, but the GTO as well. She curled her fingers, but there was nothing to grab hold of against the hood.

  The hand at her hip slid around her pelvis. Her breathing hitched and she rocked up onto the balls of her feet.

  Oh . . .

  His fingers brushed her mound and down over her clit. Electric tendrils of awareness snaked through her body. A pleasant warmth wrapped around her, reducing her muscles to goo and her bones to jelly. He stroked the bundle of nerves again and the sensation grew sharper. She wiggled her toes and clenched her muscles as he thrust.

  “Oh, baby,” Gabriel said against her ear.

  She lifted her hips and this time he stroked and thrust at the same time.

  “Oh, oh—Gabe!”

  “That’s it.”

  She arched her back and stared at the side of the garage without seeing it. A cascade of pleasure began deep inside her, growing and spiraling up and out of her. His movements became harder, but they never lost the regular rhythm.

  He captured her clit between his fingers and rolled it gently.

  Nikki tossed her head back and let out a startled shout.

  The orgasm was sudden and all consuming, riding up from her toes, rolling up through her body, and robbing her of her senses while Gabriel continued to move in and out of her.

  He grasped her ass in both hands while she lay mostly spent across the hood of the GTO. Her breath fogged up the paint, but she doubted he cared about that. The thrusts grew harder, pushing deeper. She pushed up on the balls of her toes, reveling in the feel of him moving inside her. Even now, after she’d come, it felt so damn good.

  The sounds of their labored breathing and the slap of flesh mixed together with the creaking of the car. It was an erotic soundtrack, one that would be burned into her mind.

  Suddenly, Gabriel pulled out of her.

  “Gabe—?” Foggy-headed, Nikki lifted her head.

  He grasped her hand and pulled her upright.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked. Was it her?

  “I want to see you.” His voice was savage and deep.

  He picked her up and sat her on the edge of the hood. The metal bent a little under her weight, but he didn’t seem to care. He pushed between her legs and thrust deep all in one motion. They both gasped, and she lost herself in the dark depths of his eyes.

  She eased down onto her elbows while he leaned over her, braced on the car. He withdrew and thrust. Her breasts rubbed against his chest and her sex throbbed.

  “Gabe,” she whispered.

  He didn’t reply, but he did move, slow at first, then building in power until the car shuddered under each thrust. This was what life with him would be like. He would be there to catch her, to love her, to make her laugh. He was it. All of it. In one hot, hunky package.

  Tears pricked her eyes, but she blinked them away.

  Gabriel’s eyes grew unfocused and the tendons on the side of his neck stood out. She grasped his hips, driving her nails into his skin, urging him on.

  All at once the movements stopped and he groaned, burying his head in the crook of her neck. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed the crown of his head.

  She could live the rest of her life with him and be happy.

  His body relaxed over hers, pressing her down against the hood while they caught their breath. She stroked his shoulders, his arms, feeling the scars she remembered and the new additions. She slowly became aware of other sounds. The neighbors, a lawn mower, children playing somewhere on the street. Had they heard their lovemaking?

  Nikki squeezed her eyes shut. Good thing this wasn’t actually Gabriel’s home. She’d hate to have to see these people regularly after this.

  Gabriel moved first. He propped himself up on his elbows and kissed her briefly. She adored the sleepy, sated expression on his face. He eased out of her and shuffled over to a trash can that still had the price tag dangling off one side. She was too boneless to move. She tilted her head to one side and swallowed down the laughter threatening to bubble out of her. Gabriel’s jeans and boxers pooled around his ankles. He hadn’t even bothered to remove them.

  He glanced her way, a lazy grin on his face, and winked again before pulling his clothes back up and on. She sighed. It was probably time to do something else. Something responsible.

  “Stay right there,” he said.

  She froze in her halfhearted attempt to get up and remained sprawled across the car. He crossed to her and gently helped her off the car. They turned and eyed the sweaty outline of her body against the purple paint.

  “It’s a shame that’ll wash off,” he said.

  “Is not.”

  She rested her head against his shoulder and reveled in the simplicity of being happy.

  “Here.” Gabriel snagged his T-shirt and pulled it on over her head. The garment hit her mid-thigh, and honestly, after their little workout, she needed a shower before she put on any more clothes.

  “I want a nap. Think there’s time for that?” She stretched, looping her arms around his neck.

  “One sec, babe, and I’ll make that happen.” He turned away and grabbed the Desert Eagles on the workbench.

  He wouldn’t be the man she loved if he absently left guns lying
around. Any other woman might be offended that he paused to pack up the tools of his trade, but not her. Their jobs were dangerous, but there were some risks they didn’t have to take.

  “Anything else?” She hugged the soft fabric to herself. She’d tried to recreate his scent, to capture some essence of it for herself, but she’d never been able to do it. This was all him, and it was wrapped around her now.

  “Nope. Just you.”

  He scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the house. It was a needless show of strength, and yet she adored him for moments like these. When he treated her like she was precious. He might try to protect her too much, but she understood why. Love made all the difference. It didn’t make them perfect, but she could forgive him when he went too far.

  He laid her down in the bed and set his firearms on the nightstand. She lay on her side and watched him strip down to nothing and join her. She shed his shirt, wanting to feel him. He pulled her to him, wrapping her in his arms.

  She loved him. And now he knew. Whatever came next, they’d figure it out.

  Chapter Twenty

  Gabriel’s eyes popped open before he’d actually achieved consciousness. Unlike the numerous times he was awoken, alone, by his memories, this time, there was someone with him. A soft, warm weight held him in place, but it wasn’t Nikki who woke him. The low hum of his cell phone sliced through it all, triggering him to action. He uncurled one arm from around Nikki’s shoulders and blindly reached for the source of the buzzing on the nightstand.

  “Mmm?” Nikki shifted, but didn’t move from where she’d sprawled across him earlier. She peered up at him, her lips curled into a sated smile, reminding him that not all that long ago they’d been doing other things.

  “Emery. What?” he said into the phone, now fully alert. It was—what? Four in the morning?

  “I found her. Isabella. It’s really Isabella Lopez.” There was tapping in the background. Most likely Emery was still on the hunt for some bit of information that eluded him.

  “Where?” Gabriel jabbed the speaker button. Nikki needed to hear this.

  Both of them sat up, staring at the phone.