Page 51 of Forever Mine

“They’re both married,” I murmur, more to myself than to her.

“Yes. They are like brothers to me, Gabriel. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“I wasn’t worried,” I stammer.

“But you were jealous.”

“Yes.”

“Why?” she asks. I stare at her incredulously.

“Because I want you to be mine,querida. Clearly.”

Monica’s eyes drop from mine as she continues boxing up her new clothes.

“Which is why I can’t be here. I need to process things, and I can’t do that when you’re near me.”

“When I’m near you?

“Yes. You make me …” she trails off.

“What?”

“You make me forget what I should be focusing on.”

“And it’s a bad thing to forget? To enjoy being in my company?”

“No! It’s not a bad thing. No. But I just need some time to wrap my head around things. I need time, Gabriel,” she whispers. I sigh in frustration. “Can you email me a receipt for the clothes so I can figure out a way to pay you back?”

My eyes whip to hers.

“No,” I say clearly.

“Gabriel.”

“Monica,” I mimic. “That was me helping you. I know you would do the same thing if the roles were reversed. I have the money. You needed help. End of discussion.”

“End of discussion? Really? Gabriel lays down the law, huh,” Monica retorts.

“In this instance, yes. You lost everything,querida. Why on earth would I expect you to repay me?” I ask.

“Because it’s not normal for a boss to buy hundreds of dollars worth of clothes for his insubordinate!” I won’t correct her. It was well over one thousand dollars.

“Yeah, but it’s normal for a guy to buy clothes for the woman he loves, right?” I blurt out and then wince when I realize what I said. Monica’s eyes widen comically.

“That’s not funny,” she stammers.

“Clearly, I’m not laughing,” I respond, smarting from her reaction. Fuck. That’s not how I anticipated the conversation to go. Am I in love with Monica? Absolutely. But she’s not there yet. I know this. I need to settle the fuck down and be patient. My entire career in the Army was in Civil Affairs. I worked with civilians in other countries as a liaison. So many hours were spent waiting for responses, dealing with translators, and working on coordinating things. But with Monica, I’m finding it challenging to remain patient. I want her right fucking now.

Monica’s phone pings with a text, and she looks at it. “Em is here. I have to go.”

Before I can second-guess my actions, I lunge off the bed and stalk toward her. She hastily retreats until her back meets the wall, and I follow her until I’ve caged her in. Thrusting my hands into her hair, I crash my lips against hers. We groan simultaneously as her arms reach around my waist and pull me closer to her. I grab her thighs, hoisting her up as her legs wrap around me. My tongue thrusts into her mouth as she whimpers.

Our kiss in the bar months ago pales in comparison. That kiss was unlike anything I’ve ever had. It reeked of promise. Of content. Pleasure. But this kiss is all passion and fire. My little spitfire is giving it as good as she’s taking it. My mouth trails down her neck as she lets out little moans of bliss.

“I want you,querida. Mind. Body. Soul. I need you. I’m not going anywhere. You need some space? Fine, I’ll give it to you. When you’re ready, I’m here. I’ll be patiently waiting to devour you. Destroy you for anyone else,” I whisper against her ear as she whimpers.

“Gabriel…” she moans.

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