As he pushed himself off the door, the grinning figure of Fred caught his eye.
An idea popped into his head.
No.
Wait.
Could he …?
Well, as they say, desperate times called for desperate measures.
Chapter Six
Did you really think he would want you?
You’re delusional.
Why would he choose you over her? Or any other girl for that matter?
He’s so out of your league. What were you thinking?
Temperance bit her lip, as if that would make that voice of doubt go away. However, now that that voice had once again started to make itself home in her brain, it didn’t want to leave.
She didn’t move, only stared at her door, waiting. Only when she heard the shuffle of footsteps and the sound of a vehicle driving away did she allow herself to breathe. Trudging back to her tiny bathroom, she stripped and stepped into the shower, wishing she could wash off this whole day, too.
It was better this way. Better that she stopped acting like a fool before she got hurt. She’d been giddy the entire day waiting for six o’clock to arrive, primping and preparing herself for Gabriel, even managing to curl her hair so as to hide her cheek. She looked almost normal. Almost good enough to be standing next to Gabriel.
Oh, when she opened the door and he was there … she nearly chickened out because he looked incredibly handsome. He was dressed simply in khaki pants and a dress shirt that made his eyes look bluer. His long, bronzed hair looked perfect as always, and that smile on his face made her melt.
Everything seemed to be going well, despite the initial awkwardness. She was starting to feel more relaxed and confident around him. Even starting to open up to him.
And then she came along. Vicky with her perfect blonde waves of hair. Perfect heart-shaped face and nose. Perfect body and legs till Mexico. And perfect skin.
It was obvious Vicky and Gabriel had a past from the way she was so familiar around him. She was exactly the kind of woman that Gabriel should have on his arm. Even though Vicky was on a date with another man, that hot slice of jealousy in Temperance’s chest wouldn’t go away as she watched her and Gabriel interact.
Though she didn’t really need to go to the bathroom, she had to get out of there. She was staring at herself in the mirror, trying to fix her hair which had fallen out of place when Vicky walked in, looking perfect in her designer dress and red-bottomed shoes, a cloud of expensive perfume in her wake as she walked behind Temperance and stood at the next sink over. When their gazes met in the mirror, the look of shock—and disgust—on Vicky’s face was evident. Temperance realized she had her hair pulled back, and the scars looked even harsher under the fluorescent light of the bathroom.
The horror on Vicky’s face, however, had dissipated, and a satisfied smile crept up on her lips. Temperance’s stomach clenched at the silent communication the other woman seemed to convey—that she was obviously not worthy of Gabriel. Vicky didn’t even think Temperance worth speaking to as she finished washing her hands and strode out of the bathroom confidently.
Yes, it was true what she said to Gabriel. Vicky didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to; that look was all Temperance needed. And if that wasn’t enough, seeing Gabriel at the bar, pressed up against her, was the final straw, and she high-tailed it out of there.
But he followed you here, a small voice inside her said.
Maybe he didn’t like it when a woman left him in the middle of the date, she told herself as she shut off the shower. Or he was trying to get me into bed too, and saving Vicky for later.
As she dried herself off and changed into her pajamas, that seed of doubt that had planted in her grew even more. Why wouldn’t it? It happened before, after all.
When she met her now ex, Tony, she couldn’t believe a guy like him—good-looking, charming, with a hot body—would go for someone like her. Sure, it had been seven years since the accident that left her like this, but she hadn’t had the confidence to even attempt dating. Tony had been a regular at the Wicker Park bakery where she worked as he was employed at the construction site across the street. Back then, aside from baking, she also had to work as a cashier, so he would come in and flirt with her when he got his coffee and breakfast in the mornings, eventually asking her out to dinner after a few weeks.
It had been a whirlwind romance, to say the least. She had been on cloud nine because he was the perfect boyfriend—attentive, romantic, and said all the right things. Perhaps him moving into her place a month after their first date had been a little fast, but they were in love, and they spent nearly all their free time together anyway.
However, two weeks later, he got fired from his job at the construction site because he was showing up late every day. She made more than enough to pay for the rent on her tiny rental house in the suburbs and the bills even before he moved in, so she wasn’t bothered, and he promised he would find a job quickly.
But weeks passed, and all Tony did was stay at home and watch TV or play video games on the couch all day. Her budget was getting stretched thin because she had to pay for food and for dates, but he didn’t seem to be picking up on the hints she dropped. The one time she finally worked up the courage to ask him when he was going to find work, he had snapped at her and told her to stop nagging him.
Most people would have recognized things were going downhill from there, but she was blind to it all. Maybe it was because her self-confidence had suffered so much after the fire, or perhaps it was because he turned out to be a gaslighting, abusive asshole.
It was hard to believe she had lived with him for an entire year before she finally saw the light. Well, what she saw was Tony, balls deep inside some random girl in their bed after she’d come home early from a shift and found them together.
She gathered up what was left of her confidence and told him it was over and left to stay with her boss. Stacy hooked her up with the job at Rosie’s, which she took without hesitation. The next day, Stacy helped her pack up her stuff at her house, making sure Tony was gone, and Temperance put her two suitcases and Fred in her car and drove away.
But it seemed she hadn’t learnt her lesson.
At least things hadn’t gone far with Gabriel, she thought glumly as she pulled the covers up around her. It wasn’t even nine o’clock yet she was exhausted. Well, tomorrow was another day—a new day really. There were no limits to starting over, after all, and in the morning, she could begin afresh and this time, she didn’t need a pretty boy charmer in her future.
One of the great things about working as a baker was that Temperance’s body ran like clockwork. She couldn’t afford a sleepless night, not when she had to bake dozens and dozens of pies the next day. Though she felt more sluggish than usual today, she managed to get cleaned up and dressed, and out the door by three thirty. After locking the door behind her, she took two steps, then faltered. A strange feeling crept up her spine. Something was wrong. Spinning on her heel, she quickly realized why she felt off.
Fred was gone.
No, she wasn’t imagining it. Only the crown of wilted sunflowers remained in the spot where he usually stood guard. Picking it up, she realized there was a piece of paper underneath.
“What the—”
Meet me at the pond in Lennox Park at three p.m. or you’ll never see Fred again. For each hour you’re late, I’m going to chisel off a piece of him and send it to you.
“That … bastard!” she exclaimed loudly, crumpling the note in her hands. He did it. Gabriel actually kidnapped Fred. “Grrr!”
Stomping to her car, she seriously considered not showing up. They were talking about a plaster and paint garden statue, after all. I can order another one online.
But it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be the same Fred who drove with her for three days, guarding her belongings at every rest stop and crappy motel along the way, and kept her company through long stretches of highway, and listened to her cry and
moan whenever she remembered all the awful things she had endured.
Temperance stewed for most of the morning, burning a batch of pies because she kept thinking of ways to somehow get Fred back without having to see Gabriel. Rosie hadn’t been too pissed, but she did have to stay an extra hour to make up for that mistake, and by that time, she only had an hour to get to the park, and she hadn’t even had time to eat lunch.
At five minutes before three, she found herself walking up the path toward the pond. It was located in the middle of Lennox Park, and a gazebo sat in the middle connected to land via a wooden bridge. Her heart skipped a beat when she recognized Gabriel’s tall frame halfway across the bridge. Stop it, she admonished herself. You’re here to get Fred back.
As she approached him, his eyes went wide. “Temperance—”
“Where’s Fred?” she said, cutting him off. “I can’t believe you kidnapped him.”
“Technically, it’s stealing, since he’s not a kid,” he corrected.
“Whatever,” she fumed. “Well, I’m here. Where is he? I want him back.”
“I’ll give him back,” he began. “If we can talk.”
“Talk? About what?”
Gabriel paused. “Last night.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“You walked out on our date without an explanation.” He folded his arms over his chest. “I know I don’t deserve anything from you, but at least tell me what I did wrong so I can apologize properly.”
Her chest seized up. She was expecting a fight, a sense of entitlement because he was paying for the date, or even some kind of gaslighting tactic to make it seem like she was imagining things, but not this. Gabriel seemed to surprise her at every turn, and she didn’t know what to do. “You didn’t do anything,” she conceded.
“Then why run away? Because of Vicky? What did she say to you?”
The other woman’s name on his lips made jealousy flare up in her. “Nothing. She didn’t have to say anything.” Taking a deep breath, she decided that Gabriel at the very least deserved honesty. “We’re a terrible match, don’t you see? You deserve to be with someone like her. S-someone beautiful and perfect. The way you’re beautiful and perfect.”
“Temperance.” His voice darkened as he took another step toward her, crowding her against the railing. “First of all, Vicky may look beautiful on the outside, but she’s rotten to the core.” He swallowed audibly. “And yes, we were in a relationship, but mostly because our families were, uh, close. Her father and my sister encouraged it, but they only saw one side of her. I, on the other hand, got to see how truly toxic she is. We’d only been dating a few weeks, but she would go on these jealous rages if I even looked at another girl, then make me go through hell to earn her forgiveness.
“Things would be fine after that, and then something would set her off again. It would be some cashier at the supermarket flirting with me or a bartender at a club handing me her number without me asking for it. She would see this and the cycle would begin again—her flying off the handle, me getting down on my knees pleading with her to forgive me. Then one day, I found out the truth—from one of my coworkers actually. Vicky had come to her, and offered her money to come onto me.”
“Wait—what?” she asked. “She was paying those women?”
His head hung down, then he looked up at her sheepishly. “Yeah. I don’t understand it either—I think she got off on seeing me begging for her forgiveness and looking like she was the ‘good girl’, and I was the playboy she was going to eventually reform. I broke it off with her right then and there.” He took a deep breath. “I’m not proud of what I did after—basically slept with a bunch of women, even tracked down those other girls she paid off and slept with them to get back at her. She’d already accused me of having sex with them, so why not? I was spiraling out of control, drinking and sleeping my way through town, mostly to piss off Vicky.”
His knuckles turned white as he curled his hands tightly at his sides. “Then Damon came back, messed up from the Special Forces, and he needed my help. I joined the rangers so I could watch over him, even though I hate being outside.” He managed a chuckle. “He always said I was the one who saved him from his demons, but I think we kind of saved each other. Who knows what would have happened if I kept going the way I did?”
Her heart lurched thinking of the pain he had gone through, and she stood there speechless for a moment before she found the words she wanted to say. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I’m not really sure.” He scratched at his chin. “But, well, I’m not perfect, see? Maybe I was acting crazy because of Vicky, but I was an adult. And what happened after, I’m not proud of it. I was pretty rotten, too, and I regret that I may have hurt people along the way.” Carefully, he took another step closer to her. “Maybe you’re right, I do deserve to be with her. We’re the same, she and I, using people like that.”
“Oh, Gabriel, that’s not—” She paused for breath. “You don’t …. You’re not … I mean, she was a terrible, toxic person and turned you into one too. But you changed, and obviously, she hasn’t.” It was strange to see this side of Gabriel—vulnerable and raw. “I’m sorry I ran out on you last night without any explanation, that was childish of me. I should have waited for you to explain. I just saw you guys getting so … close, that I thought maybe you had changed your mind and you would rather have been with her.”
“What? Oh no, baby.” A hand reached out, landing on her shoulder. “I don’t want her. I want you. I like you. Is that so hard to believe?”
That voice of doubt in her screamed yes. But, looking up into his sky-blue eyes, seeing raw emotions play on his face, it was hard to believe his words weren’t sincere. “I like you too,” she whispered. “Can we start again, Gabriel?”
A look of confusion passed across his face before he broke out into a dazzling smile. “Baby, I would love nothing more.” His hand crept up from her shoulder to her neck, cupping the left side of her jaw, then he leaned down, his head lowering toward hers.
Oh God, he was going to kiss her!
Yes! “Um, can I ask you something first?”
His golden brows knitted together as he stopped halfway. “Okay?”
“Would you really have chiseled parts of Fred off?”
The comment made him laugh. “What? No, I wouldn’t do that to poor Fred. And sorry about steal—kidnapping him. I was desperate.”
She hadn’t thought he would do something as cruel as that. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yes. Can you kiss me now?”
“Gladly.”
Their lips met in a gentle brush, but it was enough to send a delicious sensation through her body. His mouth moved over hers carefully, but when she let out a low groan, his kisses became more ardent. Hands planted on her waist, his fingers looping into her jeans and tugging her closer until her body was flush against his. God, she could feel how hard and taut his muscles were.
His mouth coaxed hers open, and she complied. His tongue swept inside her mouth, teasing hers until she responded. He tasted like sunshine, all warm and balmy, like laying out on the grass on a summer day. She wanted to experience more of Gabriel, her mind spinning like a top and making her dizzy at the possibilities.
However, disappointment tugged at her when he pulled away. Did he not like kissing her? “What’s wrong?”
He glanced up at the sky and chuckled. “That.”
“Huh?” Something wet pelted her on the forehead, followed by another, then another. “Oh!” Their kiss must have short-circuited her brain, because she didn’t realize it had started raining.
He grabbed her hand and tugged. “C’mon, let’s get outta here.”
She followed his lead, doing her best to keep up with him, but his long legs meant that for every step he took, she had to take two. Seeing her struggle, he slowed down. However, the rain quickly turned into a deluge. As the downpour continued, they dashed across the green lawn, giggli
ng and laughing until they reached the parking lot.
Gabriel opened the passenger door of his Jeep, but instead of helping her up to the seat, he scooped her up into his arms. A zing of electricity coursed through her despite the layers of wet clothes they were wearing, though before she could process it, he deposited her into the seat and shut the door.
Oh. Wow. And that was just from one touch. How would he feel—
The driver’s door opening jolted her out of her thoughts before they turned very R-18. She blushed and turned away from him, hoping he didn’t notice her face was red.
“Fuck.” Gabriel ran his fingers through his wet locks.
“What’s wrong?”
“Fred.”
“Fred?” Oh dear, she’d forgotten about her little plaster friend. “Where is he?”
“Back at the gazebo,” he said sheepishly. “Sorry. I’ll go get him.” He kissed her on the lips, then rushed out of the vehicle.
She leaned back on the seat, touching her fingers to her lips. The fluttering in her stomach wouldn’t stop—not that she wanted it to. It was still hard to believe—Gabriel liked her. He had gone to all these lengths for her, even bared his worst secrets. He’d kidnapped Fred, for God’s sake, so she would hear him out.
A clap of thunder made her look out the window. It didn’t seem possible, but the rain came down even harder, and then she saw something coming toward her in the distance. A giggle escaped her throat as the figure came into view—it was Gabriel, running in the rain, Fred clutched in one hand. He dashed toward the car, quickly opening the rear passenger side door. Carefully, he set the gnome in the back before shutting the door. Then, he slid into the driver’s seat.
“Sonofa—” He shook his head, sending droplets flying. “Sorry. But I got our man.” He cocked his head at Fred, who grinned back at them.
“Thank you for getting him,” she said. “I would have forgotten about him.” Because of that kiss, she added silently.
Blackstone Ranger Charmer Page 7