TrustMe
Page 42
So after one more deep, steadying breath, she walked inside.
She found Gabe standing at the tall windows at the back of the house. He was gazing moodily out at his big backyard, looking quite unlike his usual elegant self, dressed as he was in a faded black T-shirt and ancient jeans, with his hair mussed, his feet bare and what looked to be several days’ worth of black stubble shadowing his face.
As if only then registering her footsteps, he started to turn. “Dammit, Coop, what could you possibly—” The words died on his lips. “Mallory. You’re here.”
“Yes. Yes I am.”
For an instant his eyes squeezed shut and then he took a swift step toward her and her heart lifted—only to plummet again as he jerked to a stop and his expression closed up.
All right, she thought, trying to control her hammering pulse. For a moment she’d hoped this was going to be easy, that they would simply fall into each other’s arms and kiss and talk and everything would instantly be all right again…
Except she’d learned real life didn’t quite work that way. Sometimes, no matter how frightened or unsure or how big the risk, you just had to lay your heart on the line and hope for the best.
She breathed in, breathed out. Cleared her throat and plunged in. “There are some things I need to say.”
Thrusting his hands in his front pockets, he inclined his head. “Okay.”
Eyeing the rigid set of his shoulders, she began slowly, “We both said some pretty hard things the other night, and I’m not going to apologize for most of them. But I do regret one thing. You are everything my father isn’t. You’re strong and dependable and honorable and a man to be counted on—and if I made you think for a minute that I didn’t believe that with ever fiber of my being, I’m sorrier than I can say.”
Taking a breath, she again tried to gauge his reaction, her stomach tightening even more as he simply stood there, not giving away a clue as to what he was thinking. “Don’t get me wrong. I still don’t agree with the way you did things.” Her heart gave a little lurch as the line of his mouth grew even more forbidding. “But I know you truly thought you were looking out for me. Your methods may have been high-handed, but your intentions were pure. And that means a lot.”
She swallowed. “I guess what I’m trying to say—” she dredged up a slight, tentative smile, still praying fruitlessly for a glimmer of response in return “—is that I love you, Gabe. I know I’ve made my own share of mistakes, but if you’d be interested in giving us another chance—”
Before she even finished what she had to say, he was across the room. Hauling her into his arms, he demolished every last inch of space between them.
The joy—the relief—was so intense that for a while it was all she could do to absorb it. Eventually, however, she realized the thumping she felt was the furious beat of his heart and the last of the coiled tension that had been strangling her the past hours abruptly unwound.
Oh, no, not indifferent, she thought, holding him fiercely as he rocked her against him, his face buried in her hair.
Not indifferent by a long shot.
“God but you gave me a scare,” he said finally. Loosening his hold on her, he brought up his hands to cradle her face as he rested his forehead against hers. “Walking in here, looking so damn serious and beautiful. I thought—”
His throat worked, and the sight of him—big, strong, and normally so articulate—struggling to find his voice made her own throat ache.
“I thought you’d come to say goodbye. Before I ever got the chance to tell you how sorry I am for hurting you. Or admit what a fool I’ve been. The truth is, there’s a lot I need to tell you—some of it about the past and my feelings for my dad that I’m only starting to see myself. But for now that can wait.”
He leaned back just a little more, exposing all the naked emotion on that compelling face. His eyes, green and clear, met hers directly and this time he wasn’t holding anything back. “What won’t wait is this—I love you, Mallory. Looking back, I was pretty much a goner from the first time we met, only I was too stubborn to see it then.” His strong, sensuous mouth quirked a bare fraction. “I was convinced I didn’t want that kind of complication in my life, and I think I would’ve gone right on believing it if I hadn’t walked into Annabelle’s that day.
“But seeing you there, all alone, knowing you were in trouble…As much as I wanted to, I just couldn’t walk away—not and live with myself. And you know what?”
She shook her head, pretty sure she was staring up at him with her heart in her eyes—and knowing she’d never find anyone else who would cherish her more.
“It was the best decision I ever made. And if you’ll give me the chance, I swear I’ll spend the rest of forever making sure you feel the same way.”
His lips found hers then. And standing there, with the sunshine pouring in through the window around them, Mallory knew that with Gabriel Steele she’d always be safe.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-0916-3
Copyright © 2007 Harlequin Books S.A.
The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:
Trust Me
Copyright © 2005 by Jen M. Heaton
Tempt Me
Copyright © 2006 by Jen M. Heaton
Tame Me
Copyright © 2007 by Jen M. Heaton
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