As if he read her thoughts, Jessie saw a small smile hover around the edges of Gabriel’s lips before he spoke. “Your feet must be killing you. Don’t stand on ceremony if you want to kick your shoes off.”
Jessie didn’t have to be asked twice. She sighed as she released her feet from the Jimmy Choos. The shoes were gorgeous and she loved how they looked, but they weren’t exactly comfortable. She stretched her toes and wiggled them around, arching her back and moaning as the cramps and kinks began to work themselves out. She glanced quickly at Gabriel when she thought she heard him make a sound, but he was sitting where he’d been before, motionless with his glass in his hand. Jessie shrugged mentally. She must have imagined it.
* * * *
Gabriel finished his scotch, licking the last of the smoky drops from his lips. He rose to his feet and walked to the sofa where Jessie sat, loving the surprise and slight nervousness that shone briefly in her eyes. Looks like that made all his predatory instincts come out.
He sat down on the opposite end of the sofa, causing Jessie to gasp and clutch at the leather as he reached down and captured her dainty feet in one of his hands, pulling them up so Jessie swung around on the sofa to face him. He tugged her down the sofa toward himself, relishing the slide of her satin-clad body against the leather of the sofa. His eyes tracked where her skirt had ridden up on her legs.
“The least I could do would be to help you relax.” His words were nonchalant, but his fingers meant business as he began to massage the tenderness out of Jessie’s feet.
Jessie moaned, the sound going straight to Gabriel’s already-hard cock. One more sound like that, Gabriel thought, and she’ll find herself with her skirt up around her ears and my face tongue-deep in her cunt.
He was a sick bastard, he thought, smiling to himself, since he pushed her to repeat the sexy whimper, all the while telling himself to hold back. His hands moulded to the dainty curves of Jessie’s little feet, and he found himself straying farther, wanting to touch her in other places. He murmured something about how her calves must be sore as well, then helped himself to the soft flesh from ankles to knees. He gripped the back of one knee to hold her calf still for his ministrations, subtly shifting her legs farther apart, all the while keeping his gaze locked on Jessie’s creamy skin. He alternately stroked and kneaded, manipulating Jessie’s beautiful limbs until they were pliant beneath his touch.
He almost growled at that thought. That’s how he wanted her. Soft, willing, and unsure about what he’d do next, nervously licking her lips as she stared at him from eyes glassy with lust.
Gabriel glanced up at Jessie’s face, not sure what he’d see there, and almost lost his grip on her. She had her eyes closed and her hands were raised above her head to the arm of the sofa, which she had in a death grip. Her head thrashed slowly from side to side, and she had her full lower lip caught between her teeth, occasionally releasing it so a moan could escape from the lush rosebud of her mouth. Gabriel’s senses tuned into the luscious woman writhing on his sofa, and he was gratified beyond belief to smell the muskiness of the sweet cream emanating from between her thighs, darkly thrilled that her pebbled nipples were visible beneath the satin of her gown. He smiled smugly to himself before grimacing. He knew he had to leave her like this, and his cock rebelled at the idea. Longing to bury itself in the creamy cunt preparing for such a pounding, Gabriel’s cock was difficult for him to ignore.
With superhuman effort, he released Jessie’s legs, stroking his hands down her petite limbs before standing. He waited until Jessie’s glorious eyes opened, staring at him with uncertainty, before leaning down and brushing his lips across her forehead.
“Time to get you home, love. I’m concerned you’ll turn into a pumpkin before long.”
Chapter 10
Jessie had no idea what to think. She’d been enjoying Gabriel’s attentions, had loved the way his touch had affected her, and she’d thought he’d been enjoying himself as well. But just when things had been about to get interesting, Gabriel had stood up and announced it was time for her to go home. Jessie had been left second-guessing herself and wondering if she’d stepped into the twilight zone, since the whole damn evening had been so bizarre. First Gabriel had come to her rescue not once but twice, and during the course of the evening had smiled more than she could ever remember him smiling. Finally, he’d rubbed her feet, his firm touch sending delicious tingles from her soles to her pussy. And then he’d bundled her off into a car with a servant, not even bothering to drive her home himself.
Jessie sighed as she looked out the car window. Gabriel had tucked her into the back seat, and since the driver showed no interest in chatting with her, she was alone with her thoughts. She wondered if Liam would still be awake by the time she got home. She hoped so. If nothing else, she’d like to have a conversation with someone she understood, someone whose motives didn’t seem to be driven by some sort of fucked-up agenda. Plus, Liam hated Edward, and Jessie would take a childish delight in ripping the bastard apart, verbally of course, with Liam’s help.
Lost in her thoughts, Jessie was startled to realize that the car was slowing to a stop, and there were no buildings in sight. The road from her manor to Hartley House was long and winding, so Jessie couldn’t estimate how far they had to go.
“Excuse me? Why have we stopped?” Jessie leaned toward the driver, unclipping her clutch in case she had to reach for her phone. Damn. Of course I haven’t brought a gun with me. Jessie thought ruefully of her arsenal at home, knowing she’d never have thought of bringing a gun to a social function. She shrugged mentally. She could be just as deadly with her bare hands. MI6 had seen to it that she could protect herself.
“A thousand apologies, Your Ladyship.” The driver sounded more annoyed than anything, and Jessie relaxed slightly. No doubt he wanted to be back at home in bed. “There seems to be a fallen branch blocking the road. You sit tight while I remove it.”
Leaving the car running, the driver stepped out and walked forward. Peering through the gloom since, as Jessie reminded herself grimly, there were no streetlights in rural England, she could just make out the branch by the light of the car’s headlights. Jessie frowned. There were no trees so close to the road that the branch should have fallen exactly there. She felt a warning tingle at the base of her skull. Something was not right here.
The driver had just stooped and grasped the big branch, hauling it backward, when disaster struck. Jessie watched in horror as two men crept from their concealment at the side of the road, both wearing ski masks. She shouted at the driver, waving her hands frantically at him, but of course he couldn’t hear her.
Without thinking about it, Jessie let her training take over. She unbuckled her seat belt and slithered over the middle console, landing in the passenger seat. At the same time as she reached over and sounded the horn, she opened the glove box of the car, mentally blessing Gabriel for the umpteenth time that evening. Sitting in the glove box was a big ugly Glock, Gabriel’s handgun of choice. Without a second thought, she palmed the weapon, noting with satisfaction that it was loaded.
She turned her attention once more to the scene outside, her heart in her throat as the driver dropped the branch and looked back at the car after the sound of the horn shattered the nighttime stillness. He spun around with a cry as the footsteps behind him registered, and Jessie cried out as one of the masked men brought the butt of a crowbar down on the driver’s head. The man collapsed and lay nerveless, a bloody gash beginning to ooze from the side of his head.
Jessie’s immediate instinct was to climb into the driver’s seat and go straight back to Gabriel’s, but she couldn’t leave the driver lying in the road, bleeding and very obviously badly hurt. She weighed her options quickly, noticing that the men had started toward the car. That settled it. She couldn’t phone anyone and expect them to arrive before...well, before the masked men did whatever it was they were planning to do, so she discarded her phone and clicked the safety off the Glock.
/>
Jessie waited in the car, cowering in the front seat as if she was terrified and helpless. She kept an eye on the men, and as one of them reached out a hand to open the car door, she made her move.
Kicking the door open with all her strength, Jessie was satisfied as the masked man howled, doubling over and dancing backward as the door smashed against his hand. He cradled his fist, snarling now, and both men started forward toward her.
Quick as a flash, Jessie raised the gun, holding it steady and taking careful aim. “One more step forward, gentlemen, and one of you dies.”
The men looked at one another, clearly unsure how to proceed.
“You won’t be able to shoot us both before we get to you.” The uninjured man spoke with bravado, but Jessie could sense he was nervous.
“Well, I suppose I might not be able to. But then again…” Jessie cocked her head as if she was considering her odds. “Then again, I might.” She smiled coldly. “It’s your choice, gentlemen.”
The men looked at one another and then back at Jessie. She could tell that they were trying to decide if she was bluffing, or if she was only pretending to be competent with the gun she held. She decided to give them some inspiration to leave.
The two men howled and jumped as Jessie fired a round, grazing so close to the man on the right that he had to have felt the disturbance of the air before the bullet was embedded into the branch behind them.
“You almost shot me!” the man accused, almost hopping up and down in rage.
“Yes, well I can’t believe I missed.” Jessie aimed the gun again, but before she could fire, the men turned tail and ran, making quite a racket as they stumbled and ran on in the darkness.
“You haven’t seen the last of us!” The shout trailed back toward her, making her wonder what the hell it was supposed to mean.
Jessie waited silently a moment with the gun still primed and ready until she heard an engine roar to life and the squealing of tires making a hasty departure.
Once sure of herself, Jessie lowered the gun and moved quickly to the driver, who still hadn’t stirred. She reached down and breathed a sigh of relief as she felt the steady beat of his pulse.
She took stock of the situation and sighed. No way would she be able to move that branch by herself, and she’d rather have help before trying to move the driver. She estimated that they were still closer to Gabriel’s estate than her own, so with a feeling of trepidation she went to the still-running car and switched it off, palming the keys before dialing Gabriel’s number.
“Hello?” Gabriel’s voice wasn’t sleepy at all, and the fact that he’d answered on almost the first ring told Jessie he hadn’t yet gone to bed.
“Hello, Gabriel.” The precariousness of her situation dawned on Jessie, and she looked around herself as the nighttime sounds seemed louder than a moment ago.
“Lady Jessamy? Are you all right?” Gabriel’s voice cracked like a whip.
“I’ve had a bit of an incident.” She filled him in briefly, not wanting to waste time explaining while she was still outside in the middle of the night with an injured man and a promise of retribution from two masked men.
“I’m coming. Get back in the car and lock the doors.” With that, Gabriel ended the call.
As if that’s going to happen, Jessie thought to herself. She wasn’t about to leave the driver lying by himself in the road, especially if those two assholes came back, so she took her phone and the gun and sat down beside the driver to wait. She took off her wrap and laid it over the driver, knowing it was more important right now for him to be kept warm than for herself.
She estimated that ten minutes had passed when she heard a powerful roar coming from the direction of Hartley House, and she watched as a pair of headlights became visible in the darkness. Not content to assume it was Gabriel, Jessie roused herself and trained the gun on the approaching vehicle. She sighed in relief a moment later, lowering the gun as she recognized Gabriel’s Hummer. Frankly, she was delighted to see the massive vehicle. She knew it was bulletproof, and right now she was feeling a tad vulnerable.
“Gabriel,” she called, “Help me get him into the Hummer. You can drive him back to yours and I’ll borrow your car. I’ll ask Liam to drop it off…”
Jessie’s words stuck in her throat as she got a good look at the fire blazing in Gabriel’s eyes. She stopped, jaw practically on the ground, as he strode over to her. His long legs covered the distance between them in a matter of moments, and Jessie was shocked when Gabriel stopped directly in front of her and gripped her shoulders.
His teeth were clenched. “Did I not instruct you,” he grated, his fury evident, “to wait in the fucking car with the doors locked?”
Jessie was solemn. Gabriel was seriously pissed. “I didn’t want to leave him alone, Gabriel. What if those two bastards came back?”
Gabriel released one shoulder to pinch the bridge of his nose, and Jessie could see his nostrils flare as he took deliberately even breaths.
“That’s exactly my point, Lady Jessamy. What would you have done if they had indeed returned?”
Jessie smiled, a small, lopsided quirk of her lips. “I would have shot them.” She held out the gun. “Thank you, Your Grace, for keeping your vehicles so well stocked.”
Gabriel’s face was unreadable as he took the gun from her. “Dammit, Jessamy, you can’t guarantee that nothing would have gone wrong.”
Jessie gently removed his other hand from her shoulder, holding it in hers for a moment to try and calm him. “But, Gabriel, it didn’t. Nothing went wrong.”
“But it could have, dammit!” Gabriel raked a hand through his long dark hair, and Jessie noticed for the first time that it had come undone from its neat queue, giving him the air of a pirate.
“Jessamy!” Gabriel barked at her, his hand moving to her chin and holding her head immobile. “I gave you an order! You deliberately chose not to follow it!”
Jessie stared at him, dumbfounded for a moment before her sense of righteous anger bubbled to the surface. Put like that, Gabriel sounded like the domineering asshole he usually was, and Jessie forgot in an instant the pleasure of having him rub her feet.
“An order?” Jessie took a step forward, directly into Gabriel’s chest, poking him with a lacquered fingernail. “You gave me an order? Who the hell do you think you are?” She was fairly trembling now, furious with him for trying to control her.
“You spend an evening rescuing me from those horrible people at the party, and now you think you get to tell me what to do? I have also been trained by MI6, Your Grace, and am perfectly capable of looking after myself. I have no need to hide in a car, leaving a helpless man to who knows what!”
As Jessie’s anger peaked, she realized that her breath was coming in gasps. With each gasp, her breasts heaved directly into Gabriel’s chest at the bottom of his rib cage, and without her wrap she was conscious of the beaded tips of her nipples as the silk of her gown caressed them on every inhale.
She came back to herself an instant later, realizing that she’d pressed herself right against Gabriel in her wrath, hoping to force him backward. Of course that hadn’t worked, she thought angrily, since the jerk just stood there staring down at her, all dark and angry and totally sexy as hell. She found herself getting lost in the dark pools of his eyes, and her breath hitched as he licked his lips.
Just as Gabriel opened his mouth to deliver what Jessie was sure would be a scathing retort, the driver moaned and stirred. Jessie spun guiltily toward the man lying in the road, horrified that she’d totally forgotten about him while she’d been busy staring at Gabriel’s mouth. She started toward him, but Gabriel reached for her and caught her by the hand.
“This is not finished. We will continue our conversation later.”
With that, Gabriel strode around Jessie, releasing her hand and leaving her fuming. He picked up the driver with no visible effort, being careful of the man’s head and laying him down in the backseat of the Hummer.
>
Once he’d arranged the driver and closed the door, Gabriel walked to the big branch that was still lying across the road. He took an end and tugged, hauling the heavy branch off the road with apparent ease. Jessie looked at him enviously, wishing she’d been able to move it as easily. If she had, she’d never have had to call him in the first place.
Jessie stalked toward the car, intending to drive herself home while Gabriel could go drive off a cliff, for all she cared. She hadn’t made it more than two steps when she felt a big hand on her shoulder for the umpteenth time that evening, an evening that, at this point, she felt would never end. Gabriel spun her around to face him again.
“Going somewhere?” His voice was silky, that aristocratic eyebrow raised high.
Jessie gritted her teeth, reminding herself that she was a titled lady, and as much as she might like to hop up and down screaming at him, it was beneath her. She raised her chin a notch. “I am going home. I wish to go to bed. This evening has become...tiresome.”
Gabriel grinned at her. “I won’t stop you. In fact, I’ll ensure you arrive safely.”
Jessie frowned at him. “Really, Your Grace, you’ve done quite enough this evening.”
As if he hadn’t heard her, Gabriel took a firm grip on Jessie’s elbow, his other hand pressing against the small of her back. “Those men could still be on the road. I’ll drive you home.”
Jessie huffed as he bundled her into the Hummer, buckling her seat belt for her and taking the keys to the car. She twisted her hands in her lap. She was uncomfortable with this for so many reasons. She watched as Gabriel moved the car from the road, parking it alongside for someone to pick up later. She was enthralled by him even as she was cross with him. She loved the way the night wind whipped his long hair around his chiseled face.
Gabriel got into the driver’s seat, putting the big vehicle into drive and maneuvering it carefully down the road. Jessie could tell he was looking for other signs that something was amiss, and she was secretly grateful for his presence. As annoying as he was, he was wonderful to have close by during sticky situations.
Jessie's Jewels [Submissive Sirens 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 6