Pulse (Collide)

by Gail McHugh

  Emily rolled her eyes, stepped on the clutch, and eased out of the parking lot. “Don’t make fun of me, wiseass.”

  Her cute, sassy words made Gavin chuckle.

  “This Indie 500 woman’s not used to driving expensive cars like this. The ones I’ve owned usually yell at me when I start them up.”

  Gavin mocked shock, his blue eyes wide. “They literally yell at you? Bastards.”

  Glancing in the rearview mirror, Emily smiled and nodded. “Actually, they curse me out.” Gavin barked out a laugh, and Emily stopped before turning onto the highway. She looked at him. “How did you get the window fixed so quickly?”

  “Money has its advantages, sweets.” He grinned, curling his fingers around the nape of her neck. “Now turn your landlord on and show him what you got, speed demon.”

  Emily smiled like the Cheshire cat and pulled onto the highway.

  Gavin watched soberly as her shapely legs, belonging to him, moved under her silk sundress each time she pressed down on the clutch. Her delicate fingers curled around the shift as she glided through the gears. Her auburn hair falling in loose curls had him shifting in his seat. Fuck. He was getting turned on. Heat sliced through his stomach. But hell if she wasn’t driving like his grandmother.

  He cleared his throat and hit a few buttons on the touchscreen panel to turn on the satellite radio. “You can drive a little faster.”

  Emily sent him a questioning stare. “I’m doing the speed limit.”

  “I thought you liked to drive fast?” Gavin lifted a confused brow.

  “I said that so you’d let me drive, considering how fast you drove yesterday.” She shrugged. “I never speed.”

  A wicked grin twisted Gavin’s mouth. He leaned over, rested his hand on her right thigh, and pushed down. To add a little fuel to the fire, he caressed her flesh in a slow, circular motion. He had her now. The car sped up, jolting forward and passing other vehicles. “I feel like I’m in Driving Miss Daisy. You’re supposed to be showing this landlord what you’ve got, and so far, you’ve fallen flat on your ass.”

  “Gavin,” Emily gasped, her eyes wide as she tried to ignore just how enticing his hand felt. “You just told me not to get us killed, and now you want me to speed?” Emily pressed harder against the gas, feeling as though she had to prove herself to him. “Fine. To our deaths we go.”

  With the Lumineers ho’ing and hey’ing from the speakers, an unmistakable air of satisfaction crossed Gavin’s features as he watched the odometer climb. Hand still on her thigh, he propped his feet on the dashboard and pressed the button to roll down the window. A rush of warm air flew into the car. He pumped the radio louder. Tapping his other hand on his knee, he looked at Emily, his full tooth, sexy smile wider than she’d ever seen.

  Emily giggled and started tapping the steering wheel in unison with him.

  “Wait! Pull over here.” Gavin dropped his legs to the floor. He put his hand over Emily’s and threw the gear into neutral. Reaching for the steering wheel, he yanked it to the right, and the car rolled onto the side of the road. Gravel crunched as the car screeched to a stop.

  Confusion peppered Emily’s face. “What are we doing?”

  Staring into her eyes, expression serious, Gavin didn’t answer. Instead, he leaned over the console and gently brushed his lips against hers. Emily closed her eyes and tried to breathe. Voice low and lips on hers, he cupped her face. “Get out of the car.”

  Eyes still closed, Emily sighed when she felt his hand and lips leave her face. With Etta James streaming out of the speakers now, she watched breathlessly as Gavin ducked out of his seat. She tried to regain her sudden spiked composure as she followed suit and slipped from the car. One foot in front of the other, she moved around to where he stood. Capturing her gaze, Gavin stepped closer, reached for her hand, and slowly swept her against his body. In the heat of the late afternoon sun, Emily nearly froze. Gavin slid his arm around her waist, took her hand, and cradled it to his chest.

  “What are we doing?” she asked again, nearly breathless.

  Gavin leaned down and touched his lips to hers. Skimming lightly, they tantalized but didn’t quite fulfill her need. Emily’s nerves lit up, wild and electric.

  He looked into her eyes. “A do-over,” he softly replied, rocking them back and forth. He nibbled on her lip, his free hand gripping her waist. “This is where we argued yesterday. I want a do-over so when you think of this road, this is what you’ll remember. Me holding you… you staring into my eyes… and us kissing.” Maddeningly, he played with her lips again, giving her just a little bit more. He rolled his tongue in slow and deep. Emily moaned into his mouth, her senses engulfed in the feel of Gavin’s hand floating down her hip. “Do you know what song this is?” he asked, his eyes pinned to hers as they slowly swayed to the music. “Better yet, do you know who sings it?”

  Above the roaring blood rushing through her veins and cars whipping by, Emily registered the sound of Etta James’s sultry voice. It purred from the speakers of the opened car doors. “At Last by Etta James.” Emily stared into his eyes as he pulled her closer.

  “Very good, Miss Cooper,” he crooned against her ear. “Have you been studying jazz?”

  Emily swallowed and shook her head. “My… my grandmother used to—”

  Gavin covered her mouth with his. He parted her lips and slid his tongue in, groaning as he brought both hands up to cup her cheeks. He dominated the kiss, his tongue plunging, caressing, and dancing over hers. He licked into her ravenously as if he couldn’t get enough.

  Emily’s breath caught. Her womb clenched. Feeling like a delicate flower against his chest, she went languid. Her body melted into his. Heat built between them, and his love and devotion surrounded her with warmth and passion beyond words.

  “I love you,” Gavin whispered, slowly breaking the kiss. Still cupping her cheeks, he dipped his head and leaned his forehead against hers. “I want to break the rules with you. Kiss you passionately every day. Make you smile when you’re about to cry. I want no regrets with us. I want us to laugh together until we can’t breathe and it hurts. No man will ever love you the way I’m going to love you, Emily. You’re it. My last. My forever.”

  Breath stolen, a lump formed in Emily’s throat. “I don’t know what to say,” she whispered, tears misting her eyes. “You breathe life into me, and I love you in more ways than I thought I was capable of loving, but you’re more than I feel I deserve.”

  “No, I’m what you deserve.” Gavin ducked his head, kissing her again. “You deserve a man who remembers your grandmother used to listen to jazz while she cooked.”

  Emily’s heart skidded. “You remember me telling you that?”

  Gavin grinned against her mouth. “I remember everything you told me.” He smoothed his hands through her hair. “I’m going to break you, Emily Cooper. I’m going to break you down and slowly build you back up. Second by second, piece by piece, and memory by memory, I’m going to make you realize you’re worth what I’m going to give to you. If I have to open a dictionary every day and make you stare at the word ‘worth,’ I’ll do it.” Gavin pulled her closer and chuckled. “I’ll even paste a picture of myself next to it.”

  Emily sniffled and let out a light giggle. “A picture of you, huh?”

  “Yeah. A picture of me.” Gavin tightened his hold, his strong arms cradling her as he leaned into her ear. He grazed his lips along the shell. “I can make it a nude one if you really insist.”

  Resting her cheek against his chest, Emily smiled. “What am I going to do with you?”

  He looked down at her, and Emily met his gaze. Expression softening, Gavin angled his lips above hers, his eyes searching. “Move in with me.”

  Emily pulled in a breath and went to speak but hesitated. Anxiety rained down on her, and her pulse leapt. She touched his jaw, her big green eyes staring up at him. “What?”

  He cupped his hand over hers. “You heard me. I want you to move in with me. I know it’s
—”

  “Crazy,” she interrupted.

  Gavin’s hands found the curve of her neck. “Yeah. It’s crazy, and it’s quick. It’s dangerous, reckless, and intoxicating.” Gavin paused, drawing her face closer. “But it’s what makes us. It’s what’s made us since the moment we met. Move in with me, Emily. Stay crazy, dangerous, reckless, and intoxicating with me. Just do it waking up by my side every morning.”

  Emily dropped her gaze to the ground and nibbled on her thumb nail. The whole idea was more than intoxicating. God, everything about Gavin bled her dry of anything negative. However, her uncertainty of whether or not she could truly make him happy hammered through her thoughts. It was enough he’d taken her back, trusting her again with his heart, but something inside screamed she’d never be able to fulfill what he needed.

  “I don’t know,” Emily said, looking up at him. “Let’s see what it’s like when we get back to New York. Give it time maybe.”

  A slow smile smeared across Gavin’s face, and without warning, he picked up Emily, hauling her delicate body over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “Emily Cooper, are you asking me to wait longer than I already have?”

  “Gavin Blake, are you insane?” she gasped, curling her fists in the back of his T-shirt.

  “I’m the one asking the questions.” Chuckling, Gavin strolled over to his car and set Emily on the hood. She gasped again and jumped off. “What?” he questioned.

  Eyes wide, Emily swiped the hair away from her face. She frowned. “The hood burnt my ass.”

  Gavin smirked and pulled his T-shirt over his head. He spread it out across the hood, picked Emily back up, and set her on top of it. “And here I was thinking your ass couldn’t get any hotter.” Smirk holding steady even as Emily stared at him as though he had ten heads, he shimmied between her legs. Leaning in, he softly kissed her lips. “Is that better for you? If not, I can take my shorts off to give that sweet ass added cushion.” He started unbuckling his belt.

  “You are crazy.” Emily reached for his hands, her eyes skirting over every ripple of his sun-kissed abs. “Certifiably crazy.”

  Gavin lifted a single brow and nodded. “Crazy in love,” he replied, slowly leaning in again to kiss her. Sliding his arm around her waist, he pulled her closer. “Hook ‘em.”

  “What?” Emily breathed, her head tilting of its own accord as Gavin ghosted his mouth down her jaw.

  “Your legs,” he said, draping her arms around his shoulders. “Hook ‘em around my waist.”

  Emily flushed. “We’re on the side of a highway, Gavin.”

  “I know. Kinky, right?” With a wide smile, he didn’t wait for her to do as he asked. He took it upon himself, curling his hands around her calves and wrapping them tight around his waist. “Ahh, there we go.”

  Noticeably embarrassed, Emily bit her lip, her gaze shifting to the highway of speeding cars. Gavin laughed when her eyes widened as a car flew by, honking, with a passenger whistling out of the window.

  Gavin lifted his hand from one of her calves and placed a finger under her chin. He brought her attention back to him. His eyes scanned over her lush, berry-colored lips, his pulse automatically thudding. “Move in with me, Emily. Fuck, we fell in love like this… Let’s crash the rest of the way.”

  Staring into the sea of his blue eyes, Emily swallowed and clenched her hands around his bare shoulders.

  Gavin leaned in closer, brushing his lips against hers. “I can’t promise you it’ll always be sweet and tender because you and I fight hard. But I’m pretty sure it won’t be a horror ride either because you and I love even harder. What I can promise is you’ll always mean more to me than my next breath, and it’ll always be you in my life. No one else.”

  In that moment, everything Emily ever feared fell away, disappeared, muted along with every sound in the background except for her and Gavin’s breathing. Her heart, that was so empty just days before, felt as if it was about to bust at the seams. Pulling him closer, she nodded, the smile on her face rising in succession with tears falling from her eyes. “Okay, Mr. Blake. Let’s crash.”

  Matching her smile, a hint of surprise flashed in Gavin’s eyes as he pressed his lips to hers. “Really?”

  “Yes.” Emily giggled against his lips. “Really. Let’s fucking crash.”

  With his infamous smirk, Gavin swept Emily off the hood. She squealed, her feet dangling over his arms. “That was pretty easy. I figured you’d fight me a little bit more. It was my strip tease, am I right?”

  “Yes, Gavin,” she replied simply, but the hilarity in her eyes was tangible. “The strip tease did me in. Lord, help me.”

  Gavin sank his lips to Emily’s, and it was there on a long stretch of highway in Mexico, he knew wholeheartedly they would get their do-over.

  Emily looked up from her desk to the clock on the wall. “One minute left.”

  Scurrying from their seats and into a jumbled line, fifteen first graders slung their backpacks over their shoulders, tripping over one another to be first to the door.

  “Miss Cooper, will you be here tomorrow?”

  Emily walked over to the wide-eyed girl, her dimpled smile waiting patiently for Emily’s answer. Emily knelt down in front of the child. “I sure will. Mrs. Nelson won’t be back until next week.” The little girl’s smile widened as she brushed wisps of blonde hair away from her face that’d made their way out of a tight braid. The bell chimed, and the race began. “Don’t forget to bring in your permission slips for the field trip next month.” Emily glanced down the line as each child hastily shuffled past her. A percussion of “Okays” erupted along with a rumble of chatter through the hall as they fled from the room, excitement dotting each tiny face.

  On a sigh, Emily stood and made her way to her desk where she gathered papers she needed to grade. After shoving them into her canvas bag, she scooped up a novel she’d begun reading during her lunch break. Walking over to the door, she gave the classroom one last glance and exited the room. She’d barely turned the corner when she ran smack into Laura Fitzgerald, another substitute teacher who’d started a few weeks before. Native to New York and what Emily would consider a “Club-O-Holic,” Emily was pretty sure what she was about to say.

  “Just who I was looking for. We’re going out tonight.” The tall, leggy brunette smiled, her brown eyes wide with excitement. “Webster Hall’s having ladies night this evening. Wanna come? Brooke, Cary, Stephanie, Angie, and Melinda are going. I know it’s a Thursday, but hey, you only live once, right? We’ll all snooze while they’re in library tomorrow.”

  Clubbing assumption correct, Emily smiled and continued making her way past the front office. “I can’t. I’m going out to dinner tonight with my boyfriend.” Emily shrugged into her coat. “Next week?”

  Laura frowned, then realization crossed her features. She raised a plucked-to-perfection brow, a curious grin sliding across her lips. “The new boyfriend?”

  Smiling, Emily nodded and made a show of checking her watch. Wanting to pick up something to wear for the evening, she’d planned on trekking a few blocks over to a small boutique Olivia had showed her when she’d first moved to New York. Still needing to stop at the post office to drop off a change of address, she knew she’d be pressed for time to get ready.

  “Maybe swing on by after dinner?” Laura asked hopefully, keeping pace with Emily as she pushed through the front doors.

  “Yeah. Maybe. I’ll text you later.” As they stepped out into the frigid, mid-December air, Emily wrapped her scarf around her neck. “I have some papers to grade. If I can get them done early enough, I’ll come out for a while.”

  “Shit,” Laura exclaimed, turning back into the building. “I forgot my keys. Sounds like a plan. We’ll be there after ten.”

  Emily waved and watched Laura disappear into the school. After sliding on her gloves, she started down the stairs. The parking lot had mostly emptied, the school busses gone. A winter breeze plucked at the hem of her pencil skirt as she re
ached in her purse for the forms she would need to give to the post office. Her heart fluttered when she glanced at Gavin’s address. Still afraid they were possibly moving too fast, Emily soaked in the fact that when Gavin looked at her, his eyes moved over her face as though memorizing every line and curve. He’d easily led her through the maze of conflict they’d found themselves in with love and determination she’d never experienced. In difficult conversations, he’d mentally held her hand as though keeping her from falling off a cliff. He soothed her, loved her, and admired every flaw she had. But above everything, he’d never given up on her. Two magnets drawn together from the beginning, even when she’d threatened to tear them apart, Gavin was the one who kept them together. Emily simply cemented their fate when she showed up in Mexico. A trip she’d never regret.

  Sighing with warmth from a future filled with the unknown, but one she was sure would bring them to where she and Gavin needed to be, Emily’s stomach fell away when she heard Dillon’s voice calling her name. Her pulse pounded, the sound of it loud in her ears. A small gasp left her lips as her eyes widened, her vision filling with darkness in the bright, late afternoon sun. She shivered and turned in his direction. Arms crossed, leaning against his car, he stood across the street, his eyes pinned to hers. Without a second thought, Emily pulled her phone out of her purse.

  “What are you going to do, Em? Call the cops?” he yelled, his voice stinging through the air like a hive of angry bees. “I’m more than a hundred feet away from you, and I’m not on the school property.”

  Emily didn’t look up, nor did she answer him. She opened her phone, her fingers trembling as she dialed 911. When the dispatcher came on the line, Emily heard Dillon laugh.

  “911. What’s the nature of your emergency?” the female asked.

  “I need an officer at Hamilton and Stone Avenues,” Emily stammered. Her eyes snapped between Dillon and the half-empty parking lot.

  Dillon shook his head, his smile maliciously bemused as he strolled across the street, both hands tucked in his pants pockets.