Page 53 of Protective Heroes

She’s sitting up now, the sheet pulled around her and seeing fear flit across her expression killed me inside. “Honestly, yes.”

Did she actually say what I thought she just said?

I slid from our shared bed and dressed without looking at Evie, working damn hard to calm my heart from beating a hole through my chest. Clearly she failed to understand my intentions.

I buttoned my pants before I turned to face her. She was standing by the bed in all her beauty wearing my tee-shirt, and her crumpled sweatpants, her lips swollen from my kisses and her hair mussed from being in my bed. And she thought this was what? A one-night stand?

My heart ached to pull her into my arms and cover her with kisses, tear away the uncertainty I saw warring inside her.

“Maybe you need another spanking. One to help you rid yourself of any notion this was nothing more than a quickie between us.”

Her cheeks flushed.

“There are a few things you need to know.”

“Gabriel, really I don’t. This won’t really work.”

“You can listen to what I have to say or I’m more than happy to pull out the handcuffs.”

“Fine.” She crossed her arms over her chest pushing the ample mounds up like tasty offerings.

I kept my thoughts to myself because I knew this was something we needed out of the way before we approached her father, my friend with the news of us getting married. Small detail… I still needed to propose.

“By all means please continue.”

Little hellcat.

I stalked toward her. “Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear before I took your virgin pussy, Ice Princess.”

Evie blushed and opened her mouth to speak.

I shook my head at her. “For once, just listen. I told you before I came inside you that you were mine.”

Evie waved my words away. “Something all guys say when they are trying to get in your pants. I didn’t believe you.”

I could tell she didn’t believe her own words. She tended to bite her lip and look out over my shoulder when she was being less than honest.

“I’m not ‘all guys’ and that’s not something I’ve ever said before.”

She shrugged, looking unimpressed, and I could sense her retreating. She had to be confused by all the emotions of our time together added to the fact her father had yet to return my call. The bastard needed a good kick in the ass to see what he was doing to his daughter.

“I’ve taken you multiple times. Without any protection.”

“I know, I was there, remember?”

I raised a brow and a deep blush bloomed across her cheeks. “There is no fucking way you are walking away when you could be pregnant with my child.”

“Is that the only reason you’re fighting so hard to convince me you want more?”

I knew what she wanted and I had no problem saying the words.

“I want to see you plump with my baby multiple times over. Every day of my life I want to see you smile like you did when we pulled into Christmas. I want to see you wearing my ring and I want to wear yours, Evie.”

Her eyes were big and wide and through the tee-shirt, I could see her nipples hard, excited.

“What are you saying, Gabriel?”

Part of me worried she was too afraid to act on the emotions clashing behind those thick black lashes so I did the only thing I knew how to break through any doubts she had about how I felt.

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