Falling For You

by Nicole Taylor

  His intention was to remove her arm from the Bible, but the moment his hand touched her, he knew he was in trouble. Her skin was satin-smooth and honey gold, as though she had just returned from the tropics. He grazed it with his thumb.

  Then she opened her eyes and stared straight at him. It felt for a moment as if they were frozen in time as they stared at each other. Then her gaze dropped from his eyes to his mouth.

  Gabriel drew in a deep breath and prayed for strength as he felt his blood quicken with desire. He wanted so badly to kiss this woman right now, but it was just so inappropriate. The timing was all wrong. Reluctantly, he pushed away from the bed and straightened up.

  For a moment, they continued to watch each other.

  Then he cleared his throat and made a gesture with his arm.

  “Your dress is in the bag. You may want to go ahead and get dressed.”

  She sat up and continued to watch him.

  “What were you doing just now?” she asked.

  “What do you mean?” he asked, already turning away and searching the shopping bag for the dress shirt he had purchased to replace his soiled one.

  “I awoke, and you were leaning over me.”

  “Sorry about that. It’s just that you were lying on my Bible. The pages are very delicate, and I…” He stopped talking because he had turned back to her and realized that her eyes were narrowed as though she didn’t believe him. “Why are you watching me like that?”

  “It just sounds like a likely story, that’s all.”

  He folded his arms across his chest. “So, tell me, what do you think really happened, princess?”

  “Don’t call me that.”

  “What would you prefer, your royal highness?”

  “You are an ill-mannered man!”

  “And you, my dear, are an obnoxious woman.”

  “Don’t try to distract me.”

  “From what? Are you accusing me of something? Do you think I was planning to take what you were so clearly offering lying across my bed like that?”

  She gasped and pulled the robe tighter around her body.

  He reached for the shopping bag and dropped it on the bed next to her.

  “Get dressed. I’ll change in the bathroom so that you have some privacy. Or would you prefer to get dressed in there?”

  “In here’s fine,” she mumbled.

  With a short nod, he walked into the bathroom and closed the bathroom door.

  He quickly unbuttoned his jacket and slipped out of it.

  To think that he had spent the last twenty-five minutes scouring a mall for a dress for this ungrateful woman. Still, she was accusing him of some injustice or wrongdoing. Patrick was right. She was a real man-eater. Or maybe she was just a spoilt brat who had missed a good thrashing as a child. Either way, this was the second time in less than an hour that this woman had lit into him for no good reason. He didn’t care why she was the way she was, he just knew that he wasn’t going to stand around and be her whipping boy. Sure, he found her attractive, but no woman was worth such grief.

  He had laughed to himself when Patrick had confessed how she had shamed and demeaned him. He had been so sure, knowing his brother, that her ire had been deserved. Now it had happened to him, and he wasn’t smiling any longer. Talk about the irony of life.

  As he finished undressing and began to shrug into the new shirt, though, he began to feel a mite uncomfortable about his position. The truth was that he hadn’t really been entirely truthful with her, had he? While it had been his intention to remove her arm from his Bible, that wasn’t how it had played out. He had become distracted by the way she felt, and then by the way she looked, and he had given in to the urge to caress her. Yes, it had been a small touch, but that was really no excuse. It had been without her consent. She had a right to be suspicious of him. She knew instinctively that he hadn’t just been removing her arm from his Bible. She was no fool.

  Gabriel finished buttoning up his shirt, tied his tie, and put on his jacket. Then he stared at himself in the mirror for a long time. He had to confess to Leiliana. He couldn’t end their brief relationship with dishonesty hanging between them. It would mean eating humble pie, but it had to be done.

  He prayed to God to give him the courage to be the man of integrity He called him to be.

  When Gabriel pulled open the bathroom door, he found the sliding door of the bedroom was wide opened, and there was no Leiliana. He looked behind him. She wasn’t anywhere else in the suite. The empty bag was there. The bathrobe was strewn across the bed. The Bible?

  He rushed over to the bedside table and expelled a short breath. At least she hadn’t taken his Bible.

  But she was gone. She had left just like that. Without even saying goodbye. And she claimed he had no manners! Then Gabriel spotted something shining on the floor. He bent to get a closer look. It was a tennis bracelet.

  Chapter 3

  “G ood evening, Miss Lamport. We were wondering if you had left.”

  Leiliana shook her head at the usher.

  “I had a bit of an accident. I had to change.”

  She had contemplated leaving. After Gabriel Walsh had castigated her for questioning his integrity, she wanted to sink through the floor. The truth was that when she had woken and seen him leaning over her, she wanted to reach up and pulled his head down so that her lips could meet his. But she couldn’t give in to that impulse. She barely knew the man. She wasn’t in any kind of relationship with him.

  When he made that scathing remark about her lying in his bed, she felt such a stinging sense of shame that she decided to focus on his misdeeds. She had accused him of what she had been thinking of doing herself. Not to say she believed his story. Yes, he may have been going for the Bible, but how did that explain why he was caressing her. She wasn’t dead, she had awoken to his soft touch that made her feel things she didn’t want to feel.

  After he went into the bathroom, she had decided to dress quickly and get out of there. She really had no right to be in a strange man’s room in the first place. If he’d had his way with her, she would only have herself to blame.

  “May I be seated now?” she asked the usher.

  “Certainly, Miss Lamport. Dinner is being served right now. I’ll just take you to your table.”

  Suddenly someone grabbed Leiliana’s arm and yanked her around. She gasped.

  Gabriel Walsh was standing before her, his green eyes blazing with fury.

  “Let go of me!” Leiliana demanded.

  “You forgot something.”

  “What?”

  “This.” He dangled her tennis bracelet in front of her.

  “Oh!” She reached for It, but he closed his fist around it and slid it in his pocket.

  “Give that back!” she shouted, resisting the childish urge to stamp her foot.

  Two guests glanced at them curiously as they passed by, and Leiliana was conscious that they had again attracted an audience.

  “Now, Gabriel. Don’t be childish. Give me my bracelet,” she said beneath her breath, as she held out her hand.

  He smiled his disarming smile. This time it was not aimed at Leiliana, however. It was directed at the usher, standing a little to the side witnessing their exchange.

  “She’s a feisty little thing, isn’t she?” he asked the woman with a wink.

  The usher actually giggled.

  Leiliana really felt like stamping her foot now.

  “Gabriel Wal—”

  “Now, darling, let’s not air our dirty linen in public? Let’s speak in private, shall we?”

  “I have nothing more to say to you. Give me my bracelet, or I’ll call security.”

  He looked at the woman and shrugged. “She dropped it on the floor of my hotel room.” He turned back to Leiliana. “Darling, do you think it dropped while you were getting undressed?”

  Leiliana could feel her whole body catch a flame. She lunged for Gabriel and took him by the lapel. “Let’s go,” she said, practic
ally dragging him away.

  “Be gentle, darling,” Gabriel said, feigning hurt. He looked back at the usher helplessly. “I told you she was a feisty one.”

  The moment they were alone, Leiliana shoved him with all her might. Of course, it was of little effect. Big and muscular as he was, he barely moved.

  She stuck her finger in his face. “You, sir, are no gentleman.”

  He barked out a laugh. “And you, ma’am, are no lady.”

  She raised her hand to slap him. He caught it and tugged her right up against his chest. Then he wrapped his other hand around her so that she was now effectively trapped against his rock hard body.

  “Release me,” she said between clenched teeth.

  “You are exquisite when you’re angry. Did anyone ever tell you that?” he said softly.

  She felt her legs weaken. “Gabriel, release me,” she said breathlessly.

  “I will, after you answer just one question.”

  All the while, he was staring at her mouth.

  “What question?” she whispered, desperate for him to say what he had to say and release her before she wound up making a fool of herself.

  “Why did you leave without a word?”

  She gulped and lowered her gaze to his lips. “I…I can’t remember.”

  “You liar,” he said, so close she could feel his sweet breath on her face.

  She tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he tightened his hold. “Don’t do that,” he cautioned as his eyes darkened. Catching his meaning, she gasped.

  “I just want you to be truthful with me. Why did you blaze out of there like that?”

  “Because I was afraid of you.”

  That caught him by surprise. He reared back and watched her. “Afraid of me? What do you mean?”

  There was something about the way his green eyes looked so vulnerable and tender that tugged at her. She would be honest with him. She would share that the feelings he had caused in her after just one look, one touch, scared her. She sensed that he was a man who could cause her to lose all reason. To be completely vulnerable. She didn’t want that to happen. She was comfortable. She was happy. She didn’t need her carefully ordered life disrupted.

  “Gabriel…I…”

  “Here you are. I’ve been looking all over for you!”

  They both looked up as a blond man a few inches shorter than Gabriel approached them.

  Gabriel immediately let her go. “Patrick!”

  Patrick looked from one of them to the other, a mixture of surprise and amusement shining in his light blue eyes.

  “One of the organizers just asked where you were. I told them you had to deal with something and would be along shortly. I was calling, but I couldn’t get you, so I decided to come looking.”

  Gabriel drew a hand through his hair. He pushed a hand in his pocket and then pulled it out.

  Leiliana thought the bracelet might be in it, but it was not.

  He turned to her to say something, then stopped and turned back to Patrick. He was the most flustered she had ever seen him. Which really wasn’t saying much because she had only met him over an hour ago.

  He gestured towards Patrick. “Leiliana, this is my brother Patrick Walsh. Patrick, Leiliana Lamport.” Patrick stuck out his hand, and Leiliana shook it.

  “Pleased to meet you,” she said with a tight smile.

  “Same,” he said, giving her a look she couldn’t quite interpret.

  Gabriel turned back to his brother, who was watching them with open curiosity as though he wanted to hear more about how they knew each other.

  Gabriel slid his hand back in his pocket and then stilled. Leiliana looked at him with raised eyebrows. Wasn’t he planning to give back her bracelet? She didn’t want to make a scene in front of his brother, but if she had to, she would.

  He swung back to Patrick. “Let the usher know that I’m fine and that I’ll be seated shortly, will you?”

  Clearly miffed at being dismissed, Patrick gave a small mimicking bow, turned on his heels and began to leave, then he turned back abruptly and said to her. “Nice to me you again, Miss Lamport. I must say this time around is more pleasant than the last.”

  She looked to Gabriel in confusion and didn’t miss the glare he shot Patrick’s way.

  “What was that all about?” she asked

  “Never mind him. Now back to us.”

  She held up her hand and took a step back. “Gabriel, look, I’m sorry for leaving the room without saying thank you and bidding you farewell.”

  “You were saying something about being scared.”

  She no longer felt like confessing her fears to him. That foolhardy moment had blessedly passed. She was in control once more. As long as she could keep him from touching her, she would be fine.

  “Now, may I have my bracelet back? I’ve really got to go.”

  He stuck his hand in his pocket, and this time he removed the bracelet.

  “The truth is, I did intend to remove your arm from off my Bible, but then,” he looked into her eyes, and she saw an intense look there. His voice dropped, “the way you felt, the way you smelled, the way you looked. I was mesmerized. I couldn’t move. I just watched you. When you awoke and caught me staring, I was so embarrassed I defaulted to a half-truth. I’m sorry.”

  That tugged at her insides. Here was this big, handsome man looking at her with such vulnerability. What courage it must have taken to confess to something like this. Was she going to be as courageous and admit to him that she felt everything he did? She felt her heart pound and her stomach somersault. How could she tell this man that she had wanted him to keep right on touching? What would he think of her? She swallowed.

  “I accept your apology, but I have to go.”

  “I see.” He seemed disappointed. But it was for the best. She was not interested in romance. It was too dangerous. Gabriel wouldn’t understand. How could she explain to him that she didn’t want to get hurt again? Someone like him was particularly dangerous. He was way too good looking, too charming. She was sure to be putty in his hands if he chose. No, she couldn’t allow herself to be so vulnerable to another man ever again.

  “Don’t forget this,” he said as she began to turn away. He held out the bracelet. This time when she held out her hand, he placed it in her palm, then his hand closed over hers. When he gave it a slight squeeze, she bit down on her lip.

  “Goodbye, Gabriel,” she said with finality, and gently tugging her hand away from his, she turned and walked into the dining room.

  ~*~*~*~

  “What are you sulking about?”

  Gabriel heaved a sigh. He wanted to ignore Dot, but he didn’t think that rudeness was a Christian virtue, so he shrugged one shoulder and hoped she would be satisfied with that.

  She was not.

  “I am currently reading a book called Understanding Emotions Through Facial Expressions. I can tell that you are distressed about something.”

  “Why?”

  “For the last fifteen minutes, I have watched you bounce your knuckles against your mouth, bite your lip, smooth down your hair, and avoid conversation.”

  “No, I mean, why are you reading that book?”

  “Oh, well, you know, I’m heavily involved in social interactions in my line of work. The ability to understand facial expressions is an important part of non-verbal communication. If you simply listen to what a person says but ignore what their face is telling you, then you are only getting one part of the story.”

  Gabriel wondered if Dot understood, based on his facial expression, that he wished she was at another table. He now regretted asking the usher to ensure that he was seated next to her. The request was given before Gabriel met Leiliana and had been motivated by his interest in discussing the purchase of JJ Inc.

  “So, what’s eating you?” she asked.

  The woman seated a few tables across from them wearing that fetching red number he had bought for her was eating him. Ever since he had literally run int
o Leiliana Lamport, she had been consuming his moments and his thoughts. Right now, he should be mentally preparing for his speech. Instead, he was thinking about their last moments in the lobby when he had gotten a distinct impression that she was bidding him adieu. But why? He knew that she felt the same force of attraction for him that he felt for her. He could swear that she was about to confess to it moments before Patrick interrupted them. Then poof! Like that, she was the cool, detached princess again.

  Since it really wasn’t Dot’s affair, he didn’t share any of this with her. He simply said, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  Dot slid her hand up his arm. “How about we talk about us instead.”

  Gabriel remembered how Dot had wanted to have this kind of conversation during her father’s wake a few months ago. She had fallen into his arms, crying. He had held her as Dmitri Lebedev, her ex-husband, stared darts through him, as though he thought Gabriel was interested in picking up where he had left off with Dot.

  “Are you listening, Gabriel?” She watched him eagerly with her wide blue eyes.

  “What makes you think I’m not listening?”

  “Non-verbal cues again. You’re distracted. You won’t even look at me.”

  Gabriel was distracted, he couldn’t deny that. But the real reason his gaze was averted was that he couldn’t look at Dot without seeing her gaping cleavage. While one of her breasts was hidden by her hair, the other was liberally exposed in the deeply v-cut gown.

  He glanced across the room again and was surprised to find that Leiliana was now staring at him. He straightened in his seat and smiled at her.

  Her gaze shifted to Dot, then she shot him a scathing glance, picked up her drink, and looked away.

  “Is it her?”

  Gabriel sighed deeply and decided that he would ignore Dot this time.

  “Is she the one who spilled the red wine on your shirt?” she persisted.

  His head swung around. “How do you know about that?”

  “Your brother told me what happened.”

  Gabriel felt like pounding Patrick. While he hadn’t told him to keep the incident a secret, why did he have to blab to Dot?