Page 21 of Tangled in His Embrace

Chapter 6

Gabby held her breath until she heard Jax walk away. A fresh tear rolled down her cheek and she brushed it away with the back of her hand. She was so mad at him. Furious. Enraged. She didn’t think there were enough words in the English dictionary to describe how she was feeling. That’s how upset she was.

Before she’d thought it was fear of being a father that had sent him running. She’d said as much at the time and he hadn’t corrected her. That had been bad enough, although on some level she could understand it. She’d been scared herself as a first-time mom, but she figured they’d get through it. Together.

So many thoughts were flooding her mind, including the fact that he could have gone off and died and she might never have known. That ticked her off more than anything. How could he have done that? Didn’t at least his daughter deserve to know if he’d died?

A part of her wanted to charge out there and give him a piece of her mind. The more rational part, however, knew that wouldn’t solve anything.

She sat up and turned on the light beside her bed. The hall was quiet, so she figured he’d gone to sleep. It had been a while since he’d stood outside her door. According to the clock on her nightstand, it had been over an hour.

Trying to make as little noise as possible in case he was still up, Gabby made her way across the hall and into the bathroom. She waited until after she’d closed the door before turning on the light.

It took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust, and then she went to the sink to wash her face. She was hoping that maybe that would help calm her down enough so she could go to sleep. Normally, she’d make herself some chamomile tea, but that would mean going to the kitchen and possibly waking Jax. She was just going to have to get by without it.

The mirror above the sink showcased the damage an hour-long crying jag could do to one’s complexion. Gabby’s eyes were red and swollen and her entire face was blotchy. All she needed were a few zits to go with it to round off the look.

She turned on the water, leaving it a little on the cold side, and splashed some onto her face. It helped. Some. But it didn’t work miracles.

After blotting her face dry and putting on some moisturizer, hoping it would help balance out the blotches, she reached for the doorknob and turned off the light. She opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Right into Jax.

She wobbled slightly and he grabbed hold of her forearms to steady her. Gabby hated to admit it, but even after everything she’d learned tonight her body still reacted to his touch. It didn’t help that he was standing there in nothing but his boxers.

As soon as the direction of her thoughts registered, she pulled away, almost falling flat on her butt. Luckily, she backed into the doorframe and she used it to keep herself upright. “What are you doing up?”

He acted as if he wanted to reach for her again, but lucky for her, he kept his hands to himself. “I was going to ask you the same question. I heard you up moving around and wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I told you earlier I was fine.” It was so much easier lying when he wasn’t standing right there in front of her.

“You’ve been crying.”

She didn’t see a point in trying to deny it. The proof was right in front of him. “Yes.”

Jax raised his hand as if he was going to cup her face, but halfway there he closed it into a fist and lowered it back down to his side. “I hate that I hurt you. It’s not what I wanted. I wanted...”

Gabby waited, but he didn’t go on. “I need to get back to bed.”

When she went to push past him, he stopped her, his body blocking her path. Her heart rate sped up as he moved in closer. If any other man did this to her, she would be filled with fear. With Jax, her body was screaming “take me” even while her mind was trying to get her legs to run as quickly as possible. Her body was winning.

This time he did reach up and cup the side of her face, tilting her head so she would meet his gaze. “I didn’t want you to suffer with me and I knew you would. I wanted to spare you from the pain of watching me die. I couldn’t do that to you.”

Her nipples, hard and ready with him this close, rubbed against his naked chest, sending an electric shock directly to her sex. She sucked in a breath and closed her eyes, trying to focus.

“I’m sorry, Gabby. You can’t know how sorry I am.” He leaned in, his lips beckoning her. It would be so easy to forget—lose herself in him again.

As tempting as it was, she couldn’t do it. “So you made the decision for me.”

That seemed to bring him up short. He looked down at her, confused.

With a little room to breathe, Gabby was able to think more clearly. “You didn’t trust me to make the decision for myself, so you made it for me.”

“That’s not—”

“That’s exactly what you did.” Gabby stepped out of his arms, feeling her anger return. She concentrated on that and not his half-naked body. “You didn’t trust me to decide for myself, to decide what was best for me.”

He seemed stunned by her outburst, but she kept going.

“You had no right to decide for me, Jax. None. It was my decision and you took it away from me.”

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