Page 65 of A Little More Forgiveness

See, smart.

“Oh, Gabe.” He placed his arm around my shoulders, pulling me in. I hesitated briefly before yielding, my body molding against his side, protected in his embrace and enjoying the tingly sensation as his hand slid down to cover my heart. “It didn’t mean anything. I promise.”

I grunted but didn’t reply.

“It doesn’t mean we don’t want you.”

Another grunt from me.

He grasped my chin and carefully turned my face toward him. He lowered his head and gently kissed me, his lips reverently caressing mine, and I felt his touch all the way to my soul. His tongue slid out to glide along my lips, and I opened for him, letting him inside, a shiver rippling all down my spine when our tongues caressed.

After a few moments, he eased off, looking me in the eyes. “I want you, Gabe,” he confirmed, his voice honest, heartfelt. “We both want you.”

I tried to respond, but he kissed me again, and I lost myself in his touch, my pulse kicking up and my jeans getting tighter as arousal fired in my veins. I’d been wrong to ever contemplate this as a quick fuck. The butterflies churning in my stomach and the rapid beat of my heart made themselves loud and clear— I was in deep, way, way deeper than I’d kidded myself acceptable.

Leo sat back breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling. I followed him, needing to stay connected, and as I swayed against him, he snickered softly, pulled me tightly to his chest, and squeezed. “Let’s go inside, shall we? It’s far too cold to be out here.” He stood and offered his hand. “Mitch is waiting for us.”

Us. The word sounded good, so, linking our fingers, I let him lead as we made our way through the yard and into the warmth of the cabin. We removed our jackets and boots and went into the kitchen to find a worried-looking Mitch pacing on the hardwood floors. He stopped when he saw us, and stepping forward, immediately entering my personal space, wrapped me in his arms, reconnecting us.

“Worried about you,” he murmured in my ear. “When you weren’t in bed when we woke up, we were scared you’d gone.”

Fuck.

“Thought I’d done a Leo, huh?’

“Hey,” Leo protested, hands on his hips, a mock scowl firmly in place, making us both smile. “But yeah, something along those lines.”

“Sorry.”

Mitch dragged his hand over his face. “Why’d you leave and not say anything?”

“I didn’t think.” And I hadn’t. In my head, the way I’d been, I’d wanted to find a space out of their orbit to gain some perspective on my feelings. We were all in a pressure cooker cooped up in the cabin, and sometimes the only way to relieve the tension was to get away and be on your own. “It won’t happen again.”

Mitch considered me intently for a long time. “I’ve made breakfast” was all he said in the end, letting the matter rest. “Let’s eat before it goes cold.”

Relieved at being let off the hook, I sat at the kitchen table. At some point they’d need a more detailed explanation of why I’d disappeared, but I was grateful for the extra time they afforded me to get my head on straight before having to spill out my fears.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Mitch

The stalls cleaned, I spread out the straw bedding for the horses and sorted out their food and water.

“Knock, knock,” Gabe’s rich voice sounded from the front of the stables.

“Down here,” I shouted, walking out of the farthest stall so he’d see me.

He wore my oversize jeans, old boots, and thickly padded jacket. They didn’t show off any part of his sexy fit body, but they didn’t need to, as the image of him naked and bent over the couch last night as I’d fucked into him had been playing on a constant loop in my head all morning. Coming inside him, my seed mingling with Leo’s, filling him up, had been turning me on since I’d awakened. Knowing our essences were all over him, in him, the images it triggered had my hard-on still raging hours later.

“What’s up?” I asked, my brows drawing together as he cautiously walked toward me. Unusual for him, he appeared nervous, so my internal radar instantly pinged. He stopped in front of me and scuffed at the floor a few times.

“Gabe?”

He puffed out a breath, the cold air streaming in front of his face. “I spoke to Leo. Wanted to speak to you too. To explain…” he trailed off, and I realized this was a continuation of his conversation from last night, and he struggled with how much more he wanted to say.

I got the idea he’d scarcely given us the highlights of what had occurred between him and his ex-boyfriends, the real story running much deeper. Although it happened a while ago, his memories were still extremely raw, and the wound caused him a lot of pain. Pain I hated seeing. Pain, I realized with profound awareness, I wanted to take away.

“Let’s take a walk.” Leaning the rake I’d been separating the straw with against the stable wall, I closed the short distance between us. The need to clear my head after my epiphany was too strong to ignore, and a walk usually worked for me to help straighten things out. Laying my hand on his shoulder, Gabe let me turn him around and guide him outside. The snow had stopped for the time being, and the sky had returned to a clear brilliant blue. The winter sun shone weakly through the canopy of evergreens as I directed us along the path leading down to the lake, the bright white dazzling in the sunlight after last night’s fresh layer covered the ground.

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