Since Gabe had her lips engaged in something that had her bones turning to mush, she couldn’t say anything. She could only nod her head. She was sorry, too. Sorry that some woman had hurt him so badly that he was distrustful to this degree.
Distrustful. She certainly knew how that felt.
There was so much she wanted to say to him. More than anything, she wanted to assure him that he was not Erol’s substitute, but the sexual chemistry between them was in total control, making them use their lips and tongues for other things than talking.
He finally loosened his grip on her waist and rubbed his thumb against the smoothness of her cheek and the wetness of her mouth. “I guess we better get out of here before they call in the mechanics,” he murmured, nearly breathless.
Still unable to speak, she nodded. He pulled her to his side after pushing the button that started the elevator moving again. When they reached the bottom floor and the elevator doors opened, Sage had to blink against the brightness of the daylight after having spent the past fifteen minutes in dim lighting.
Gabe grabbed hold of her hand, entwining his fingers in hers as he led her through the glass door. “I’m parked over here.”
They said nothing as they walked together to his car, still holding hands. He opened the car door for her and then adjusted the seat belt around her, snapping it in place.
Sage watched as Gabe walked around to his side of the car to get in. Before starting the car, he leaned over and kissed her again. This one was a lot gentler than the one they’d shared in the elevator. Moments later, he pulled back. “We need to talk, Sage,” he said huskily.
She let out a long, deep breath. “I know.”
He then started the car. Sage remained silent, trying to gather her thoughts on what she would say to him. Should she tell him about her trip to Texas to meet with Erol? Would he see that as the inability to let go instead of seeing it as the ability to move on? She shook her head, not knowing what she should do.
“How long will it take you to pack?”
Sage, who had been looking out the window deep in thought, turned and gave Gabe a sidelong glance. “Excuse me?”
When he brought the car to a stop at a traffic light, he met her gaze. “I asked, how long will it take for you to pack?”
Sage raised a brow in confusion. “Pack for what?”
“The weekend. I was dead serious when I told Mayhew that you were spending the weekend with me at my place, Sage.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Sage’s eyebrows shot up. “Your place for the weekend?” At his nod, she said, “But, there’s a lot we need to discuss.”
With a slow smile, Gabe said, “And we can do it this weekend at my place, Sage. I’m not trying to rush you into anything; in fact, there’re several guest rooms in my home. All I want is for us to be able to spend time together and talk. I’ve been to your place before; now you can come to mine.”
“But for the entire weekend?” she asked with a frown, not sure this was the right route for them to take.
“Yes. After our talk there’s a lot we can do this weekend, even though it’s supposed to snow again. You mentioned over dinner the other night that you’d never gone fishing. That’s something we can do since I have a stocked lake on my land. I also have a snowmobile we can use to go riding.” He glanced over at her. “Besides, I’d really like to spend some time with you.”
Sage considered his words for a moment. “And I will be using the guest room?”
He nodded. “If that’s the way you want it.”
“It is.”
“Then, that’s the way it will be.”
A couple of hours later, Gabe stood in front of the huge window in his living room as his gaze took in the panoramic view of the canyons and snow-capped mountains. He leaned his head back and sniffed the air. There was the smell of the burning wood in the fireplace and an unmistakable scent of a woman.
The scent of Sage.
The seductive fragrance of her perfume sent a powerful shudder through him when thoughts of the shower she was taking in the guest bathroom stood out in his mind. After taking her home, he had sat patiently in her living room while she had gone into her bedroom to pack. She’d reappeared less than twenty minutes later with an overnight bag.
During the forty-five-minute drive from her apartment to his home, they had talked about a number of things, making sure they kept the topic of their conversation off of them. She had told him of her indecisiveness about going home for Mother’s Day because of the way she still felt about her father, and about Rose Wood’s decision to come for a visit in a few weeks.
He, on the other hand, had told her how he had come to own the house and how Christopher’s wife, Maxi, had done all of the decorating of the place. He’d also told her about Christopher and Maxi’s son, Christopher Max, and how at eleven months old he had started walking last week.
As Gabe watched a family of squirrels dig their way through the snow in search of food, it suddenly occurred to him that other than Maxi, no woman had spent the night here. Then, brushing his fingers against the cold windowpane, he went still, stood almost frozen in place, as he stared at the feminine reflection that suddenly appeared in the glass. With the lights down he could see that Sage had entered the room behind him and was unaware that he knew she was there.
Gabe’s heart began beating rapidly in his chest, and he decided not to turn around. When she was ready to let him know of her presence, she would.
In the meantime, he would enjoy her beautiful reflection since it hadn’t dawned on her yet that she was being watched.
Sage had walked out of the bedroom with the intention of letting Gabe know she was there. But the sight of him had taken her breath away. He had changed clothes, and it was the first time she had seen him in anything other than business attire. It was hard not to appreciate the sight of a well-built man, especially from behind.
Even beneath his knitted sweater she could detect broad shoulders and a strong, muscular back. Then there was the firmness of his buttocks that looked pretty damn good in a pair of jeans. The way the denim material fitted over his backside left nothing to the imagination. Everything she saw was unmistakably actual visual perception and not something that was based on mere make-believe fantasy. This wasn’t reality in motion but was reality standing still. To put it more bluntly, Gabe Blackwell definitely owned a great-looking tush. She’d never been one of those women who were attracted to a man’s hind part before, but the way Gabe looked in jeans was enough to make her appreciate the fact that she was a woman with good vision.
And all of this was from the back. Heaven help her when he turned around and she saw the front.
Knowing that she couldn’t stand there and secretly ogle him all night, Sage moved a few steps into the room. She wasn’t sure if it was the heat being generated from the fireplace or if Gabe had turned the heating unit up a notch, but she suddenly felt hot. Hotter than she’d ever felt before.
She looked down and saw a half-filled glass of wine sitting on the coffee table next to her. Evidently, it was wine Gabe had started drinking but never finished. She picked up the wineglass and brought it to her lips.
Gabe watched Sage’s every move. His heartbeat raced, and his chest tightened when he saw her place the wineglass to her lips. His breath caught when, with her tongue, she licked around the rim of the glass as if wanting to taste whatever spot his mouth had touched.
The thought of what she was doing made hot, rich desire flow through every pore in his body. He felt his body harden and his erection grew thick against his jeans.
He briefly closed his eyes, wondering how in hell he could have thought that he could bring her here and engage in any type of meaningful conversation with her without wanting to make love to her. He wanted to devour every inch of her in very delectable pieces, and that was only after making love to her all night long and all day through, in every position known to man and even a few that man didn’t know about yet. He w
as feeling very creative.
Gabe didn’t think he could last much longer when he watched as Sage tilted her head back, exposing a long, beautiful neck, and took a long swallow of what was left of his wine. And when she licked her lips afterward, he breathed in deeply and slowly turned around.
He met her gaze, and the look on her face was priceless, hot, aroused. Then he felt it again, that same powerful sexual chemistry that had the ability to render them defenseless. More than anything he wanted to touch her but knew that would defeat everything, especially her purpose for being there. They had to talk first.
“Do you like your room?” he forced himself to ask in a voice that didn’t sound like his own.
She nervously licked her lips again, and seconds later a pleasing smile appeared on them. “Yes. It’s simply beautiful and so wonderfully decorated. Christopher’s wife did an excellent job. Everything is so color coordinated, so feminine and so perfect.”
Gabe smiled. And just to think he had teased Maxi about overdoing it. “I’ll tell her you said that.” He moved away from the window and appreciated that since the lights in the room were turned down low, the dimness kept his erection from being so obvious.
He glanced down at the glass she held in her hand. “Would you like another drink?”
Sage also glanced down at the empty wineglass. A wave of amusement filled her, and she couldn’t help but chuckle. “I was thirsty,” she said, explaining why she had drunk his wine.
He nodded, smiling. “So I see.” He then checked his watch. “Are you hungry?”
She shook her head. “No, I had a big lunch, but if you want to fix—”
“No,” he quickly interrupted. “I’m fine.”
Gabe’s hands balled into fists at his sides. He wasn’t fine. All he could think about was what had happened last night in her apartment with his mouth feeding, devouring, making love to hers.
He blinked when he realized she had said something. “I’m sorry, I missed that. What did you say?”
Sage smiled. “I asked if you wanted to start our talk now?”
He wanted to do more than talk but decided not to tell her that. “Do you?”
Sage shrugged. “We may as well. Then we can enjoy the rest of our weekend doing all those outside activities.”
Gabe considered what she’d said for a moment. The activities he wanted to do with her were definitely inside activities. “All right, we’ll talk.”
He motioned for her to sit on the sofa, and to be on the safe side, instead of sitting next to her, he took a chair across from her. He watched as she nervously tapped her hand on the table separating them.
She glanced up at him. “I need to know where you want our relationship to go, Gabe.”
He slowly lifted a dark brow. “Where do you want it to go?”
Sage shrugged. “I’m not sure. We tried the friendship thing, and it didn’t go over too well. There’s a part of me that feels I should give myself more time before becoming seriously involved with someone. But then there’s another part that feels I need to do whatever I have to to move on and put the past behind me. And before you ask, no, this isn’t about Erol or any feelings I may still have for him. It’s a decision about me and how I want to live my life.”
She leaned back on the sofa before continuing. “Because I was involved in a relationship that lasted five years, I need time to enjoy being free for a while, without getting serious.”
Gabe nodded. He clearly understood that. He hadn’t gotten serious about anyone since Lindsey.
“And I want to get comfortable about trusting someone again.”
Gabe met her gaze. “Do you feel you can trust me, Sage?”
She thought about his question. Deep down she felt that she could. If she didn’t believe that, then she wouldn’t be alone with him now, holding this conversation, exposing her pain and insecurities to him. “Yes, Gabe, I feel that I can,” she finally answered.
Gabe smiled. “Thanks. Now, is there anything else you feel we need to discuss and get out in the open?”
“Yes, there’s the issue of sex.”
With that one single word spoken from her lips, Gabe’s heart began beating rapidly in his chest. “Sex?” he asked huskily as thick desire flowed through his nerve endings.
“Yes, sex,” Sage said, leaning forward. “I’m not comfortable with the idea of sleeping with a man just to have something to do. It’s not in me to physically share myself with someone I don’t care deeply about. Other women may not find it difficult, but I do.”
Gabe nodded again. A part of him was glad that she did.
“So these sexual urges aren’t helping matters,” she said softly.
Gabe bit back a moan at what Sage had just said. He cleared his throat. “Sexual urges?” he rasped.
She nodded as she unconsciously skimmed the tips of her fingers over the smooth skin of her thigh that her skirt didn’t cover. “Yes, or sexual chemistry if that’s a better name for it. I felt it last night with you, and I hadn’t counted on that happening,” she said in a slightly irritated voice.
An amused smile curved his lips. “Neither had I. At least not to that extent.” Then his expression turned serious as he watched the unconscious movement of her hand on her thigh. Seeing her bare skin reminded him of the soft feel of her flesh he had cupped in his hand last night. The memory made his front ache. Tilting his head, he met her gaze. “I wanted you bad last night.”
A shiver of desire coursed slowly down Sage’s spine with Gabe’s words. She had wanted him badly last night, too. And it didn’t help matters that with the way he was looking at her, his heated gaze was inflaming her entire body. “How bad?” she surprised herself by asking as a coiling tightness formed in her stomach and a torrential ache settled between her legs.
“Come here and I’ll show you,” he murmured huskily.
A shudder ran through Sage at Gabe’s invitation. She exhaled a deep breath and gazed at him through heavy eyelids. “I’m not ready to have sex with anyone, Gabe,” she said in a raspy voice. She crossed her legs when the ache between them intensified.
Gabe held up his hands. “No sex. Just foreplay.”
Foreplay that doesn’t end with sex? “How?” she asked, curious as well as aroused at the very thought.
Gabe leaned forward in his seat. “In a number of ways, but mainly doing what we did last night.”
She raised a brow. “Kissing?”
He nodded slowly. “Yes, and touching.”
Curiosity thrummed through Sage, and she wondered how they had gotten on the subject of kissing and touching. “No more than that?”
“No more than that.”
“No sex?”
“No sex. I promise. Trust me,” Gabe answered, his voice deep, husky, seductive. For the first time in his life, his restraint, his sense of honor and the ability to keep his word would be put to the test. He watched as Sage nervously nibbled on her bottom lip, contemplating his words, his request to prove her trust in him. Considering her disappointment with her ex-fiancé and her father, he knew that placing her trust in another man was not easy for her.
He sat back in the chair. The decision would be hers, and he would wait patiently for it, even if it took all night. And no matter what, he would abide by her decision.
His breath lodged in his throat when she slowly stood. He could actually feel the heat simmering in his gaze as he watched her walk around the table that separated them. And when she stood before him with as much desire in her eyes as he had in his, and at the same time openly proclaiming total trust in him for her well-being, a surge of tenderness and protectiveness welled up inside of him so profound, he almost couldn’t bear it.
He stared up at her, and a sense of peace settled over him because at that moment, he knew why he had allowed Sage to weaken his defenses, soften his resolve and break his vow to never become involved with another woman on the rebound again.
Although they still had a lot of talking to do, a number o
f things they had yet to work out, he still wanted her, because God help him, at some point since first meeting her six months ago, he had fallen in love with her. And he knew it was no use fighting it. However, he intended for both of their sakes not to leave anything to chance. He would not make the same mistakes with her that he’d made with Lindsey. He would not rush her or assume anything. They would not move from point A to point B until he thought she was ready … no matter what she thought.
“Gabe?”
His name, whispered so sweetly from her lips, reclaimed his attention. He swept his gaze over the outfit she had changed into after her shower, a blue pullover sweater and a black wool skirt that stopped midthigh. Her legs were bare, and her feet were encased in a pair of flat shoes.
Unable to resist touching her any longer, he said silkily, “Come closer and let me feel you.”
Sage swallowed as Gabe’s words filled her mind. He was close enough to touch her if he reached out his hand. But he didn’t just want to touch her; he wanted to feel her, and he wanted her to come to him of her own free will.
She allowed her gaze to drift longingly over him as he reclined in the chair, looking more handsome, more desirable and sexier than any man had the right to look. He made a move to spread his legs apart, and she knew that he wanted her to come stand between them.
Inhaling deeply and tossing all doubts aside, she took a step toward him and stood just where he wanted her to, between his widened thighs. Their gazes held, and her body began heating with a need the likes of which she had never experienced before. Her breathing quickened when he reached out and touched the front hem of her skirt, then moments later, moved his hands to touch her thighs.
Sage sucked in a deep breath as Gabe slowly began trailing his hands down her thighs, touching bare flesh. The feel of his hands on her was seductive, exquisite and decadent. She liked the way it felt.
His breathing became just as ragged as hers when his hand slowly moved from her thighs to her inner legs, gently nudging her knees apart to get his hands between them. Not going any higher than the hem of her skirt, he moved his hands gently up and down her legs as if just touching her brought him intense pleasure.
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