Gabriel

"You're the whole package, aren't you? Sexy, smart, and now you say you can cook? My hero." Chloe bats her eyes and settles onto a stool, leaning on my island bar. She crosses her legs and I have to fight not to stare at her. Wisps of hair have broken free of her loose braid to frame her face. She looks good in my house. Like she belongs here.

"A man can't give away all his secrets, now, can he?" I pause while dicing tomatoes to kiss her soft lips, and then once more for good measure. Responding immediately, her hands slide up to my neck and I almost say to hell with dinner.

I'd forgotten how nice it was to cook for someone other than myself. Chloe spent the last ten minutes entertaining me with stories about the antics of her family and the crazy clients she's had at the travel agency she helps manage.

"Well, none of the men in my family have ever been able to make more than scrambled eggs. I've never wanted a plate of spaghetti more in my life after all the hospital food. Seriously, it smells amazing."

"Of course it does. Plus, this serves dual purposes. It's both dinner and a seduction."

Chloe's eyes light up. "Oh, is it?" she murmurs.

"You bet. Cooking for a woman is my best move." I pour the diced tomatoes into the sauce and stir, glancing at her over the steaming pot.

She sets her glass down on the counter and snuggles into my side. "Oh, so this is something you do for all the ladies, huh?"

"Only the special ones."

"I bet you save all of them, too." She jabs me in my uninjured ribs and I laugh. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, you don't worry about it. I'm going to take care of you tonight." And I mean that in more ways than one, if she'll let me.

She brushes off my statement and moves to root through my fridge. "Aha," she exclaims. I turn to find her with arms full of salad mixings. She dumps the supplies on the counter and then turns to search in the cabinets.

"What are you doing?" She bumps her head on the open cabinet and yelps.

"You okay?"

"I'm seeing double, but at least I found a salad bowl."

I tug on her free hand and circle her in my arms. "I told you that you didn't have to help."

"It's just a bump. I'll be fine."

I grab a cloth and some ice from the dispenser and press it to the goose egg already swelling on her head. "You sit and relax. If you must do something, you can put together that salad while sitting. Surely, you can't get hurt that way," I tease. "The last thing we need is to take you back to the hospital."

"Har, har." She gets to work shredding and assembling the salad. "So I'm a little clumsy. You should probably know that about me up front. I also do crazy things like challenge people with guns. Spend the night with a strange man."

"Do that often?"

She sputters around a sip of her drink. "Completely not what I meant and you know it."

"C'mon. You're gorgeous. I wouldn't hold it against you even if you had. But you also don't seem like the kind of girl to take relationships lightly."

"Got me there. The last one I had ended pretty badly."

"What happened?"

"Well, he told me he couldn't ruin our friendship in case something went wrong with our relationship. He was my best friend when we got together." She drinks heartily. "Did I mention he was my fiancé when he dumped me and he recently got engaged? Again."

"His loss," I tell her. And I'm being serious, even if she doesn't think so. Only an idiot would let a woman like Chloe slip through their fingers, and I'm not a fuckin' idiot.

"You're so sweet." She finishes sprinkling cheese on the salad and wipes her hands on a cloth. Finished, she scoots off the stool and rewraps her hand around my waist. She smells candy-sweet. Too sweet for an asshole like me, that's for damn sure, but hell if I'm gonna let her go. I find the source of the scent at the base of her neck and nibble there.

"You didn't think that a few days ago," I mumble into her throat. "In fact, if I remember correctly, you weren't very nice."

"Well, I didn't know you a few days ago."

I bend her over the counter as my lips find her mouth. "I think you need to get to know me even better," I say against her lips.

Chloe

"I don't know about this."

Gabriel smiles devilishly and I respond with a full body shiver. Now that I know he wants me in return, it's like I have no control over my reactions to him.

We'd spent the last hour talking about everything. And I mean everything. He told me about his years in the Marines, and how much he wanted to get away from his horrible home life to make something out of himself.

I learned that he was one of those rare unicorns who believed in love and marriage, and when his had turned sour, it ruined him for future relationships. I'm not normally one to speak ill of another, but his wife has to be out of her mind to give up a great man like Gabe. Then again if she hadn't, we never would have met.

Once he finally lets his guard down, he is truly a thing of beauty. His smile—and his damn good spaghetti—had me reduced to a pile of goo by the time dinner was over. Well, that and the two drinks I've had to celebrate.

I toss my napkin onto the table with a groan. "I can't possibly eat any more."

"Excellent. Time for the next surprise."

The food coma I'm nursing abates a little. "Next surprise?" I eye him warily. "If it's dessert, I hate to say it, but I'm seriously going to have to pass. There's no way."

He chuckles and takes our dishes to the kitchen to rinse. While sitting back and relaxing, I hear a whine coming from outside, so I go out to the porch to investigate. I open the sliding glass door and am attacked by a blur of black and white. I immediately crouch down and start loving on the dog—a Boston Terrier from the looks of it. He's equal parts bug eyes and smashed nose and the most awesome combination of ugly and cute.

"Who is this guy?"

"That's Rudy. I'm surprised he didn't introduce himself earlier."

Rudy jumps up and licks all over my face. "Well, he's definitely affectionate." I laugh and give him a good back scratch. None of my apartments have allowed pets, and I've wanted one for years. "I bet he and Emily are best buddies."

"Oh, they are. He ditches me to sleep in her room whenever she visits."

"Was he my surprise?"

"This handsome guy? Unfortunately, no. But I'm sure he's loving the attention." Rudy pants happily, rolling over on his back so I can give his belly a scratch, too.

We leave him a sated mess on the porch and Gabriel leads me down the steps and to a walkway. He situates me in front of him and covers my eyes with his hands and we walk in tandem through a gathering of trees behind his house. We stop and Gabe presses against my back, breath tickling my ear as he says, "Keep your eyes closed. No peeking."

"Is this one of those situations where I should be running for my life?"

"If you run, I'll just have to catch you."

He leads me down a concrete path. I can hear the waves in the distance. After a while the concrete gives way to dirt and I have to squeeze my eyes together to keep from peeking. The sound of waves grows louder the longer we walk and then he brings us to a stop. My feet sink into the sand as my breath shortens.

"Open your eyes."

I take a few useless breaths, which do nothing to calm the internal freak out that's going on inside of me, and do as he says. He drops my hand and as soon as my eyes open he brings his fingers to his top button and undoes his shirt.

And oh, God, I go weak in the knees. I see the most magnificent expanse of chest, and sweet baby Jesus, I swear I see a flash of happy trail as he reaches the bottom. His abs flex as he strips it off the rest of the way and drops it by his feet.

He's going to kill me.

A few seconds later, he leads me to a spot in the sand where he spreads out a blanket I didn't even notice he was carrying. Then he holds out his hand for mine and when I take it he guides me down to the blanket.

He watches with hooded eyes as I recline next to him and slip off my sandals. The cool air bathes my skin, though it does little to cool the heat inside me. My hands grip the material because the sight of him sends a rush of intense arousal through me.

Gabe shifts toward me, his easy-going mood replaced by desire. When I shift again, he surrounds me with his arms and I melt against him.

The cocoon he's created with the waves and the heat from his body heighten every sensation—the smooth feeling of his skin rubbing against mine, the gentle tug of the wind running through my hair. Even though he's barely touching me at all, he's turned me on more than I've ever been in my life. This morning included.

Then he moves to me, pressing me against the blanket, his arms a cage I never want to leave. His arousal presses thick and hot against the thin material of my panties. My legs go up and around his hips to urge him closer, the way I've been wanting to all day.

His hands tangle in my hair and he pulls back just enough that my body is hovering on the precipice of pleasure and pain. With little bites, he trails a line down my throat to the thin material covering my breasts. He covers one nipple with an open-mouthed kiss, taking it between his teeth. The twin bites of pain, which are so good it hurts, cause me to cry out.

"Yes," he whispers against my skin. "I want to hear you come for me this time. No one here but you and me and I'm gonna make you scream."

He bites, nips, and kisses his way to my other breast. This time, he pulls down the material of my bra to use his teeth and tongue to drive me to distraction. I clasp his head and writhe against him. My hips move in subtle motions that mimic the flicks of his tongue. I arch into him, giving him everything. I'd only managed a taste of how good it would be between us before, and it was even better the second time around.

His hands drift down my sides and grip my thighs. For one glorious moment, his cock is right where I need it. I throw my head back in response. He uses his hands to glide my pussy up and down the length of him, taking care not to hinder his attention to my breasts.

"You feel so good." His voice is hoarse and he rests his head between my breasts as he attempts to catch his breath.

"So do you."

He lifts his eyes to mine and now it's nothing but the gentle rhythm of us rocking against each other. My hands map their way over his sun-browned shoulders and down his sculpted chest. I pause to flick the rigid tips of his nipples and delight in the strangled groan it elicits from his throat. He's covered in a smattering of scars and I want to trace every one of them with my mouth and tongue.

I lean back to get a look at his face so I can commit it to memory. He follows curving his body toward mine. His hands have my hips in an immovable grip as though he's afraid I'll somehow slip out of his grasp.

But he doesn't have to worry.

I'm not going anywhere.