Gabe picked up his fork to eat another bite of cake as he pondered Sage’s words. Moments later when the cake was all gone, he asked, “Did you enjoy yourself tonight?”
She smiled appreciatively at him. “Yes. Everything was simply wonderful, Gabe. Thanks for bringing me here.”
“It was my pleasure.”
Their gazes locked.
Held.
Sage inhaled slowly when she felt a shiver course through her. She couldn’t recall ever feeling this way before. At least not of this magnitude, nothing ever this intense. A part of her wondered if perhaps the reason she felt this way was because she had not been intimate with a man for almost six months, and she and Erol had shared a pretty healthy sex life. But another part of her decided that wasn’t the case at all. She could live the rest of her life celibate if she had to. She wasn’t the type of woman who routinely engaged in toe-curling lust on a regular basis. Not even on an irregular one. As she mulled over that, Gabe broke into her thoughts.
“You’re ready to leave?”
She released a long, slow breath. “Yes.”
Before exiting the restaurant, he helped her into her coat then donned his own. And as if it was the most natural thing for him to do, he placed an arm around her waist as they walked through the parking lot to his car.
It was only after he had her seated inside the warm coziness of the vehicle, with her seat belt snapped firmly in place, did a question, a very important question, suddenly pop into her mind.
How would their evening end?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Sage felt tense and unraveled. Goose bumps were forming on her arm. She gave a sidelong glance to the man standing beside her in the elevator and wondered if he detected her nervousness. He had picked up on it in the car, she was sure of it, and she’d appreciated him keeping the conversation light and impersonal.
He had told her of his meeting the day before with Parnell Cabot, and already everything was being put in place to give Eden the dinner theater John Landmark wanted. Although her and Gabe’s business discussion had been brief, it had afforded her time to collect herself, her thoughts and to relax.
But now she was nervous again. There was this shimmering heat flowing between her and Gabe. She felt it and knew that he felt it as well. He would have to be a dead man not to feel it, and she knew that he was very much alive.
How did a dinner date between two people who wanted to just be friends end? Did they kiss good night? And if so, what sort of kiss would it be? Would it be a chaste brush of his lips across her cheek, maybe even across her lips? Or would it be the kind that was a little more personal but not hot and heavy? Or would it be one drenched in sensuality that involved lips, tongues, teeth, gums—just about anything and everything. One that was incredibly erotic, hot enough to burn your toes, fill your senses and cause an ache between your legs.
Her fingers tightened on her purse. The latter type of kiss was reserved for lovers, a couple that had been intimate or was just about headed there. It was not one that would be appropriate for a first kiss and definitely not one shared by just friends.
The elevator doors swooshed open, and so did her breath. She sighed, tried to relax and decided to just follow Gabe’s lead. She had a feeling he’d done this before. He did not come across as a man who would take advantage of any situation, and from their conversation at dinner, he knew that she hadn’t dated a lot and that Erol had been the only guy she’d been seriously involved with.
As if he’d read her thoughts, he threaded his fingers through hers as they walked down the hall to her apartment door. She inhaled deeply. Maybe she was getting worked up for nothing. There was a possibility he might not want to come inside. There was an even greater possibility that he would give her a handshake instead of a kiss.
Fat chance.
He would kiss her. She felt it. She felt it in the warmth of his hand holding hers. She felt it in the quiet sound of his breathing as he walked beside her. She felt it in the occasional brush of his thigh against hers. She also felt it in her own labored breathing.
Okay, so we will kiss. One kiss. I can handle that, no big deal. But deep down she knew it was a big deal. The physical attraction between them was strong. Way too strong for friends who’d only shared dinner. For business associates. For mere acquaintances.
They came to a stop in front of her door. He untangled his fingers from hers and took a step back as if giving her space. She immediately felt the loss of his closeness. Glancing up, she met his gaze. His eyes grew dark under the scope of hers, and she suddenly sensed heat gathering first in the taut nipples of her breasts, then moving lower to that area between her legs.
She was utterly astonished at what she was experiencing. Undeniable need was rippling through her. Desire the likes of which she had never experienced before, not even with Erol.
“May I come in for a second?”
The sound of his voice, low and husky, nearly startled her out of her thoughts. The hall light illuminated his features. Somehow he suddenly appeared bigger than life, and the most sensuous looking man she’d ever laid eyes on.
Her thoughts went back to his question. He had asked to come inside, which meant that he hadn’t assumed anything. If she said no, he would accept her answer and leave.
But if she said yes …
She finally nodded as he continued to hold her gaze. “Yes, you may come in.”
Sage opened her purse and pulled out her key. Nervously, she inserted it into the lock. Her fingers were shaking, but the door eased open. She walked in with him following behind. She flipped a switch that brought a soft glow to her living room and took another step inside. She glanced over her shoulder as he closed the door behind them.
“Would you like something to drink?” she asked, turning to him and nervously licking her lips. She hadn’t entertained a man in her own place in so long she wasn’t sure what was proper anymore. She would give just about anything to get some advice from Rose about how to proceed. But then again, maybe Rose wasn’t the one to get advice from. Her friend’s definition of a good evening was ending it with sex, hot sex, even on the first date, especially if you really liked the person and thought he was safe.
Sage’s hands tightened into fists at her sides. She really liked Gabe and thought he was safe.
“No, I don’t want anything to drink, but I would like for you to come here for a second, Sage.”
She blinked upon hearing Gabe’s sexy voice, and without further thought, she took the few steps that covered the distance between them just as he’d asked. She felt every cell in her body vibrate with their closeness. “Yes?” She met his gaze. His eyes darkened a tad more, and he reached out and spread his fingers wide at her waist.
“I had a great time tonight,” he said huskily, taking a step that brought them even closer.
“So did I,” she responded softly.
He took another step, an even closer step, and she felt the hardness of his erection pressed against her midsection. He wanted her to know just how his body was responding to her nearness.
She blinked, then looked up and watched him lowering his head toward her. She began to tremble in anticipation. And as desire swirled through her, she felt her lashes flutter closed at the same time his mouth came down on hers.
The touch of his lips to hers sent powerful shivers of awareness through her. On instinct, she reached out and encircled her arms around his neck as he slicked his tongue gently across her lips, filling her senses. Of its own accord her mouth parted to take his tongue inside, and he began pleasuring her in ways she hadn’t known existed. He gently nibbled, sucked and flitted and explored every recess of her mouth. His tongue stroked deeply, sensuously, coaxing her to share in the erotic kiss he was bestowing upon her with a hunger that took her breath away and made the warmth between her legs intensify.
She heard the guttural growl that emitted from deep within his throat that was purely primitive and purely male. And she couldn’t do a
nything but follow his lead, devouring him as much as he seemed to be devouring her, drawing his tongue into her mouth and feasting on it, greedily, hungrily and without any sense of shame.
She felt his hand rub softly against her bare back the exact moment his fingers slipped beneath the back waistline of her dress and sensually caressed the soft flesh of her bare backside left exposed by her thong panties.
She knew without being told that they had already gone beyond what was proper for a first date. It wouldn’t take much for her to begin inching down his zipper to release what she felt hot and heavy against her midsection.
Something, she didn’t know what, sent out a warning to put an end to what they were doing. It could have been another apartment door closing in the background, or it could have been the fact that if they continued much longer, both their tongues would be sucked raw. Whatever it was, at long last, he lifted his head to end the kiss. But he let his hand stay just where he had it, cupping her bare bottom.
She breathed in deeply as a semblance of common sense returned. And with it came the realization of what type of kiss they had shared. It had definitely not been a kiss for a first date. Not even a kiss for a second one. And it sure as heck didn’t seem quite proper that he was still standing close to her with his erection still cradled nicely between her thighs, jabbing her midsection while his hand was cupping the soft flesh of her bottom. But he didn’t make a move to correct the situation. He evidently had her right where he wanted her—both in the front and in the back—and shamefully she admitted that at the moment, she was right where she wanted to be, too.
“Sexual chemistry is a powerful thing, isn’t it?” Gabe finally said huskily, with his gaze glued to her wetted, swollen lips. He basked in the knowledge that he had made them that way.
“Is that what this is?” she asked, totally unsure of just what had them in such a state.
“Yes.”
She nodded, willing to believe whatever he said. “Is it always this powerful?” she asked, wanting to know.
Gabe shook his head, totally blown away by her question. Did it mean that she’d never felt desire this intense before? Not even with her ex-fiancé whom she’d been with for five years? “No, it’s never been this way for me before, and I’ve probably been involved in a lot more relationships than you,” he said in response to her question.
Knowing that was true, she said, “Well, we can’t stand in this position all night, Gabe.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, I guess we can’t.” He then released his fingers from the softness of her bare bottom and slipped his hand from beneath the back waist of her dress at the same time as he took a step back.
“I liked that,” she said honestly, meeting his gaze.
He inhaled deeply and lifted a brow. “The kiss?”
“Everything. I liked the feel of your hand touching me back there and the feel of your body pressing against me,” she replied huskily, truthfully.
“Damn.”
Before Sage knew what he was about to do, Gabe pulled her back into his arms and kissed her again. This kiss wasn’t as devouring as the other one had been, but still it sent blissful heat escalating through her entire body.
This time when he released her, she smiled. “I kind of like this sexual chemistry stuff.” She refused to pretend that he didn’t turn her on in a way that she liked. Over dinner they had pretty much set the ground rules that would dictate their friendship. Both of them had been open and had given each other a glimpse of what was underneath their businesslike exteriors.
Gabe couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his lips. “Yeah, I like this sexual chemistry stuff, too.”
She gazed up at him from underneath lowered lashes. “Do you think we let things move too fast tonight? Especially when we’re just friends?”
Gabe chuckled. “There is such a thing as being intimate friends.”
Sage frowned. She wondered if he was hinting at the same thing as a sex-only relationship and decided to ask him.
He thought about his past relationship with Debbie and shook his head. He didn’t want to share anything like that with Sage. “No, I don’t mean a sex-only relationship, Sage. What I’m saying is that we may have left your apartment this evening as friends, but I don’t think friendship will work between us with all this chemistry we generate.”
She lifted an arched brow. “Are you suggesting that we don’t go out on any more dates?”
“No, that’s not what I’m suggesting. In fact, I think just the opposite. We should continue to date with no restrictions, taking things at a pace that is comfortable for the two of us. I don’t want you to do anything you aren’t ready to do, and I’ll know when you’re ready.”
She considered his words for a few seconds, then said, “And how will you know when I’m ready?”
He smiled. “I’ll know.” Then his gaze grew serious, and he reached out and threaded his fingers in her hair to hold her face in place. “But the one thing I won’t tolerate, Sage, is playing substitute. Understood?”
Her eyes widened in startled shock. Substitute? What is he talking about? Then she remembered what he’d accused her of that day at lunch. How could he still think that she would use him as a substitute when Erol had been the furthest thing from her mind tonight?
Anger ripped through her, and she took a step back. “Maybe it’s you who should understand something, Gabe. I don’t play games. I’ve told you the real deal between me and Erol, and I don’t know why you won’t believe me and why you’re so convinced that I’m still carrying a torch for him when I’m not. But since you seem to believe that, maybe it will be best if you and I don’t go out again.”
“Sage—”
“No, please just leave.”
Gabe sighed. She was upset, and he knew it. He also knew that he had certainly made a mess of things. He wanted to stay and talk about it, but with the mutinous look on her face, he decided to do what she’d asked and leave, not wanting to upset her any further. He turned and headed for the door. He glanced back over his shoulder before opening it. “I’ll call you.”
She glared at him. “Don’t bother.”
He stopped and turned around. “Good night, Sage.” He then walked out the door.
“Gabe Blackwell actually thinks that you’re using him as a substitute for Erol?” Rose asked in astonishment over the phone line.
“Yes, can you believe such a thing?” Sage asked, still fuming. After Gabe had left, she had stripped off her clothes, taken a shower to cool her still-heated body, put on her pajamas and placed a call to Rose. She had totally forgotten about the time difference; however, Rose, who didn’t have a job to go to the next day, was awake and eager to hear what she had to say.
“Yes, I can believe such a thing,” Rose said softly.
Sage frowned. “And just what do you mean by that?”
“Hey, just hear me out before you get in a huff. First of all, although Erol has his strong points, too, in good looks and being a fine brother and all, I think Gabe is a man in a class by himself. Not only is he good-looking and fine as a dime, he’s also pretty damn wealthy. However, on the other hand, you just got out of a relationship that you’ve been in for five long years with the same guy, and for that reason, I can see how Gabe might think you really aren’t over Erol.”
When Sage tried to interrupt, Rose said quickly, “Sage, think logically for a moment. Most people, especially an emotional woman as yourself, aren’t able to wipe out five years of loving the same man within a six-month time period. I think it’s unrealistic for you to even want anyone to believe that you still don’t feel something for Erol.”
Sage nervously bit her bottom lip. “Okay, so my love for Erol hasn’t completely died, so what? That has nothing to do with Gabe, especially when there’s no way Erol and I will get back together.”
“And you’re absolutely sure of that?”
Sage inhaled deeply, feeling angry and frustrated. “Why won’t anyone believe me? I thou
ght I had you in my corner, Rose.”
“And you do, girlfriend. I’m just trying to make you see reason and for you to understand why Gabe would possibly feel threatened by Erol’s memory.”
Sage raised her eyes to the ceiling. “But that’s just it. Erol doesn’t occupy my memory. There are days I don’t think of him at all.”
“Have you heard from him since you’ve left?”
“Yes, in the beginning when I first got here, he used to call occasionally, but then I finally asked that he stop calling because we had nothing to say to each other.”
“Have you seen him?”
“No.”
“And what if you were to see him, Sage? It’s been six months since you broke off your engagement, and then you left Charlotte for Anchorage. I want you to be honest with yourself as well as with me. What would be your reaction if you were to see him now? Can you honestly say without a doubt that you and Erol won’t get back together? I know he hurt you by what he did, but when you think about it, the two of you had a pretty nice relationship before his screwup. He loved you, and I know for a fact that he still does. Whenever I see him he asks about you. And he looks so sad it’s a shame. And to make matters worse, I hear he still isn’t dating anyone. He actually believes that when you return to Charlotte, all will be forgiven.”
Sage rolled her eyes. “Well, he’s wrong.”
“Then, you need to tell him.”
Sage released a frustrated breath. “Don’t you think that I have? I don’t know what it would take for him to believe me other than for me to become seriously involved with someone else. But the craziness of it is that the one person I feel a desire to become serious about doesn’t trust my feelings for Erol. I feel caught between a rock and a hard place.”
Rose giggled. “Hey, that isn’t a bad place to be, if you get my meaning.”
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