Where She Belongs

by Asrai Devin

  Shanna had a dress over her head, but it barely came to her waist. She grunted as she struggled inside the fabric trap. He pressed his fingers to his mouth and watched for a moment, taking particular note of the small black silk triangle that covered her femininity. He wished he could drop to his knees and kiss that small patch and peel away her underwear to revel her treasure.

  God, he'd need new pants if he kept thinking about her in that way. He tried to keep all traces of amusement out of his voice when he spoke. "Do you require assistance?"

  She squealed and flailed harder. "Gabe, I didn't say come in."

  "Sorry. I thought you knew my knocks were only a warning, not a question. Bryce and I had an open-door policy. But then he never changed in his office." He grabbed her arm with one hand and the dress with the other. "Relax a little and this will go easier."

  "Fine." Her arm went limp and he pulled it through.

  "Now the other," he said, tugging on her other arm. Once her arms were free, he grabbed the hem and pulled it down, letting his knuckles brush her thighs. "This is the perfect dress. You look beautiful enough to skip dinner altogether and have you for dessert. Turn around so I can zip you up before I change my plans for the entire evening."

  "I don't think you'd find a willing partner. Now can I have five more minutes so I can finish reading this e-mail before we leave? You are ten minutes early."

  "I know. I couldn't wait any longer," he said. He kissed her cheek. "Turn around." She turned and he let his fingers skin her stomach and lower back. "What e-mail are you reading?" He could have looked at her computer screen, but he didn't want to take his eyes off her.

  "Oh, from Trenton, no big deal. Some work related things to help him out. He's such a perfectionist, he always wants me to go over everything and make sure it's perfect."

  Gabe kissed her shoulder with a big grin. That was a perfect start. Shanna sounded more annoyed with her so-called partner, than thrilled to help him. And better, it confirmed Gabe's suspicion that Shanna was doing his work.

  "Get your lips off me," she said, but without much vigor.

  Gabe pulled the zipper up on her dress then peered at the computer. "Maybe I should look and give you a few suggestions for improvements."

  Shanna pushed him away. "Out of my office. I'm going to read this private e-mail in private. I will come to your office when I am done."

  Gabe shrugged. "Alright." He gave her shoulders a squeeze. "Ten minutes, then I'm barging back in here and dragging you out. I won't be ignored."

  She waved him off and dropped into her chair. Gabe went to his office and woke his computer from hibernation mode. He knew it was an invasion, but if his competition wasn't playing fair, neither would he. A few taps and Gabe logged in to her company e-mail and found the message from Trenton.

  The moment of guilt passed when he read the message. Gabe turned the computer off and slammed the keyboard in. Part of him hoped Shanna was smarter than he suspected. But he knew the type of guy who would con a woman with his good looks, influence and money for his own gain; showering attention and gifts on a brilliant girl who lacked confidence in herself. She would do anything to keep that attention, because she felt undeserving of him.

  He paced his office, wanting to slam his fist into something. What he most wanted to hit was the asshole's face. He couldn't make any show of protecting Shanna. He had to show her what was going on. He had to lead her to the light.

  He poured himself a drink, attempting to calm himself. If he went in with the rage bubbling in his blood, Shanna would know immediately and want to know the cause. He would go through hell for this woman tonight if she asked. Tonight he would travel to hell. He would spend the evening talking about Trenton von Brooke.

  Never mind the anguish he would feel, staring at her beautiful form and being unable to touch her. Or whisper into her ear how he felt for her.

  * * *

  Shanna climbed into Gabe's truck. "You've never seemed like a pickup guy to me."

  "I needed something to haul the materials when I fixed up my place the last few years. All that tile work in the bathroom, done by these two hands." He held them up.

  "Well, I'll admit, I didn't really look that closely at it."

  "Maybe next time you come by."

  "Maybe." Shanna's heart felt heavy. She tried to focus on Trenton and his fucking work e-mail, but their last conversation left her angry with him. She hadn't recalled ever being angry with him before.

  "Have you talked with Trenton lately?"

  "We talked. He got pretty exciting news, he got a major project. I was reading about it before we left. I promised him I would look it over and start planning for the initial meeting to be held when I get back."

  "Sounds like a lot of work for you."

  "Might be." That really wasn't his business. Nor was anything else that went on between her and Trenton.

  "I was just asking. Thought I should change gears and be supportive."

  She sighed. "It's been a long two weeks, I'm tired."

  "You'll be on a plane and back to your life before you know it."

  Shanna felt a familiar squeeze of her chest, around her heart. A sensation she'd felt frequently during the last two weeks. Particularly during times she spent with Gabe, when he tried to pull her into the past. While the past pulled at her, she knew her future was more important. However, the longer she stayed here, the less important her life in Toronto seemed, and the more she longed for the quieter life here.

  "Maybe," she said for lack of anything else to say. Gabe would like nothing more than to know she'd been having these types of thoughts. Thoughts about staying, thoughts about fulfilling all her teenage fantasies. God, she needed to grow up.

  "It's a good thing I have the pickup for this trip," he said, as he turned off the road to the dirt path in a field. "This would be the access to the house. We own from the road this way."

  "How big is the land?"

  "Thirty-three acres in all. Bryce's plan was to build the house up here and rent the rest of the land. I know the rough work has been done for water and sewer."

  "It looks like the basement has been dug and poured, and they are starting the framing for the house itself. Really, he told you nothing about any of this?"

  Gabe nodded. "Now that you've seen it and had time to process, you should ask him yourself."

  Shanna opened the truck door and walked around to look at the site. If she looked south, she could see the edges of Whittikar Cabinet’s building. Gabe followed at a small distance, and watching her as she looked around. She had a test for him. "What color is the siding going to be?"

  "Nothing vinyl. I was thinking either brick or wood panels. Brick takes less work to maintain, but I like the look of wood better." He groaned.

  She had him now. "So you've had very little to do with this project?"

  "Bryce and I have talked about it a time or two. My personal thought, I hadn't brought it up with him, was they would move in. Or we'd sell it. I wouldn't want to live up here alone."

  She made no sound as she sat on a pile of lumber. "I think Dad built this with the intention you and I would live here together."

  "I asked about that this morning. The house wasn't part of his plan. They'd always hoped we'd get together."

  Shanna threw herself at him, swinging her arms. He caught her. "You talked with him today about this? After you told me not to upset him with it."

  "Yes, because you were all emotional about it. And I wanted to get his permission before I brought you up here.”

  He held her wrists and she struggled. "Let me go, you big ass."

  "Stop struggling. If I let you go, you'll hurt yourself." She stopped fighting him and he let her go. "There. Look, I didn't do it to piss you off, or go behind your back so I'd have the advantage. I wanted to warn them and hear their side."

  "They aren't your parents. They aren't your family."

  "And yesterday you told me I was part of your family. Which is it?"
/>
  "I want to go home. To hell with supper. I'm too mad now to look at you one more minute."

  "Shan, come on. I've been good all night. I haven't said one negative word about anything. I shouldn't have warned you off asking then asked myself. I was rude. I'm sorry."

  She stood eight feet away from him, her arms crossed as she pouted. He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "Shanna, I love you, more than anyone or anything. I've loved you forever, but now that you're a woman, I want to show you how much you mean to me. I want you every morning, every day and every night."

  Shanna's body froze with joy and fear. Her knees gave out and Gabe pulled her up against him. She bowed her head. "You can't possibly," she whispered. She cleared her throat and made her voice a little louder. "You can't possible feel this way about me, Gabe. I used to dream about you saying these things to me. And now, this can't be happening to me."

  He pressed his face into her hair. "It is happening and I do feel this way." He turned her in his arms and brushed at her cheeks.

  She realized that she was crying, when he brushed away her tears. "I'm sorry it took me so long, that I hurt you while I was getting my shit together and figuring out the perfect person for me was right in front of me the whole time. I know you aren't sure. And I'll give you all the time you need, but I won't wait idly by."

  Shanna nodded, ignoring the swirl of other emotions that overwhelmed her. The feelings were so strong that she went numb to keep herself from thinking about them. She wanted space from him, but at the same time, she felt safe inside his arms. "My makeup is running."

  "You're still beautiful."

  "I'll fix it in the truck. We should go or we'll miss our reservation."

  He laughed. "This is Claresholm, sweetheart. We don't have reservations. People don't understand that."

  She joined in his laughter. "Right, we aren't in the city."

  He put his arm around her waist and pulled her against him. "I'll indulge my need to touch you out here, but once we are in town, I'll remain a chaste gentleman." He kissed her cheek.

  Shanna knew she should tell him to stop, but she seemed powerless. All the confidence of the last few days had deserted her. She should tell him that she was leaving in a few days, that she was marrying someone else, that any hope he had was false hope. She should tell him she couldn't and wouldn't live in this town, and in a house her father was building specifically for her. The voice in the back of her head said that wasn't true, that part of her did want everything Gabe was offering.

  She climbed into through truck door he opened for her. She grabbed her purse, pulled out a few supplies and set them on the dashboard. She pulled the visor down and used the mirror there to fix her face. In a few moments, all traces of tears disappeared. She smiled at Gabe, who watched her from the driver's seat.

  He grinned back. "Beautiful as always."

  His words warmed her heart. She had no idea what to do with that feeling, so she stared straight out the front.

  Chapter 10

  The waitress approached the table and they ordered. When she was gone, Shanna leaned toward Gabe. Man, if he smiled any more, his face was going to crack.

  "So, tell me about you and Trenton von Brooke," Gabe prompted.

  He expected hesitation. He expected her to want to keep it private. He expected her to still be upset with him. What he got was more information than he ever wanted about the other man.

  "Well, we met my second year. I was still, you know, shy, and I was surprised he paid attention to me. I think we met in the library when we were doing homework and he started talking with me. We started doing homework together. When I got to my last year, it was like I'd already done the work because I'd seen all his."

  Right. It seemed more likely that she'd done all his. "If you were only second year, he must have helped you a fair amount."

  She wrinkled her nose. "Not really. Sometimes I'd read his textbooks with him, read over his papers." She looked at the tabletop and tapped her fingers. Was she realizing how she’d been duped?

  "Sorry to interrupt. I have your wine," the waitress said, sliding it in front of them.

  "Thank you," said Shanna. "We have to let it breathe for a bit first."

  "I don't think I've had a wine I had to let breathe. Most of my wine drinking was in the tailgate of a truck parked in a field. And it was right out of a bottle we passed around."

  "The good old days. Remember when you used to buy us underage kids alcohol?"

  "I knew if I didn't, you'd find someone else. At least this way, I knew how much you had. And where you were going."

  "I used to daydream that we'd just take the wine and you'd take me back to your house, well it was that old house on Birch Drive."

  Gabe's heart skipped. She'd fantasized about him as a virgin. God, he wished he'd been her first, instead of that asshole, Kenneth Gibson. He tramped on his imagination before it went further down that road. He'd come in his pants if he thought too hard. "I'm going to swing the topic back to the starting point, because your high school fantasies are probably too much for me to handle during a meal. Do you want some wine?”

  “Good enough, I guess. Yes please.” He poured them each a glass from the bottle.

  They both took a drink, then she tapped her nails on her glass. "Right, so Trenton. I learned a lot from him."

  "Sounds like more so from his textbooks."

  Shanna looked up at him sharply. "Well…"

  Gabe looked at the wall behind her. "Sorry, maybe I'm overstepping my role." Shut up, man.

  "What role is that?”

  “Objective listener. I said I wanted to hear more. Anyway, so you helped him.” His GPA went way up, he seduced an innocent girl. Gabe took a long drink of the wine while he managed his show of emotions. This was harder than he thought.

  “He took me to fancy dinners as thank-yous, and eventually all our friends said we were dating. He graduated and moved off campus. He spoiled me, and I helped him with work when I had time. I graduated and we moved in together. He helped me with getting a job at Brooke Enterprises International.”

  “Sounds as though you live a lavish life.” That was something he couldn’t give her here. Claresholm would always be small.

  “Only the best restaurants and clubs. We’ve been to New York and San Francisco this last year. We are hopefully going to Mexico after Christmas. Maybe closer to February.”

  He could take her on trips. There were places he longed to see and he would love to explore with her. “What about Europe?”

  “Trenton has been, so he’s not as excited. His grandparents live in England. It was on our someday list. Or mine.”

  "How about working with him? That must get stressful."

  "I find it quite challenging."

  "You don't mind being an assistant?"

  "I'm not going to be his assistant long. When I get home, I’m going to move on. Likely into HR."

  "Wasn't your focus marketing?"

  "Yeah, but I have a better knack for people."

  "Says who?"

  She twirled the stem of her wineglass. "People I work with. Trenton. He says marketing is really cutthroat. Everyone is out to get their coworkers. Hyper-competitive. I don't want that type of work."

  So go to a different company. Gabe clenched his teeth as he leaned back, but he managed to stay quiet. "I guess for Trenton it will be hard to find another assistant as good as you."

  "Of course. I'll probably still have to proof his stuff. He's not great with spelling or grammar. He's good at talking people into things."

  Gabe decided to keep his knowledge to himself for now. He'd tell her later, when he dropped her off. He didn't want to piss her off before supper. "Maybe we should change the subject."

  "How's your Mom? Living in Red Deer must be a big change."

  “I only see her a few times a year myself. She and Wes have been married nearly ten years. She likes the city now.”

  “That’s good. I should ca
ll her. It always seems I never make time for things like that.”

  “She’d like that. She’ll always have a soft spot for your family.” His father had worked for Whittikar Cabinets as a truck driver. He died in an accident when Gabe was seven. Bryce had always felt responsible for Gabe and paid for his college education.

  “You can only thank Dad for paying, you worked hard to get where you are. I think I always admired that and wanted to be like you.” She paused and looked at her thumb, with frown she sucked the digit into her mouth.

  Good lord, her mouth should come with warning signs. His pants got a size smaller and he tried to adjust himself.

  He lifted his eyes to hers in time to catch the glint in her eye. Knowing her own power made her sexier. "I admit that I didn't notice you until I came back to work for your dad."

  He was dying to reach across the table, take her hand and suck her finger into his mouth. The waitress stepped into his peripheral view. He reluctantly looked away from Shanna as his food was placed before him.

  * * *

  By the end of the meal, Shanna let her guard down. Despite the tension the conversation about her boyfriend and life had caused, she put all the things she’d confessed to Gabe out of her mind and focused on enjoying her best friend again.

  When they climbed in the truck, Trenton’s threat floated back into her head. She clenched her fists on her legs, staring hard out the windshield.

  Gabe obviously noticed her tension. He parked the truck outside her parent’s house. "What's wrong?" He reached over and touched her leg.

  She realized since leaving the restaurant, she'd worked her forehead into some deep lines. She rubbed them away with her palm. "I was just…" She shook her head. "Nothing, never mind."

  "Shanna you can tell me anything. You already told me everything about you and Trenton."

  "I was thinking about the last conversation I had with Trenton. He was a total ass to me out of nowhere. And after everything we talked about, it just made me think."