Page 26 of Playboy

A smile spread across her face, and her blue eyes twinkled. “What’s stopping you?”

Playboy’s heart skipped a beat at her words, her openness catching him off guard. Without another word, he steppedcloser, cupping her face gently with his hand. He looked into her eyes, seeing the same longing and anticipation reflected back at him. Slowly, he leaned in, his lips brushing against hers in a soft, tender kiss.

Gabby responded instantly, her arms wrapping around his neck as she pulled him closer. The kiss deepened, filled with a mix of passion and tenderness, a release of all the emotions and tension that had been building between them over the last nine months. Playboy felt the world around them fade away. The only thing that mattered was the warmth of her strawberry-flavored lips against his and feeling her in his arms.

For months, he had imagined what it would be like to hold her and kiss her. The way her small but strong hands clung to him and the way she pressed her body snugly against him felt fucking amazing. Her sensual actions only made him want her more.

He deepened the kiss, smothering her soft moans. Jesus, he needed to get himself under control before he embarrassed himself. But she tasted so good and was such a passionate kisser that he didn’t want to stop. It was difficult to pull away.

She was the first to pull back. They were both slightly breathless. Playboy rested his forehead against hers, his arms now wrapped around her body. “Wow,” he whispered, a smile playing on his lips. “That was…amazing.”

Gabby nodded, her eyes still closed as if savoring the moment. “Yeah, it was. I can’t believe we waited this long.”

Playboy chuckled softly and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead. “Me neither. But I’m glad we finally did. And I want you to know that this isn’t just some fleeting thing for me. I care about you a lot, and I want to get to know you.”

Gabby opened her eyes and looked up at him with a tender expression. “Same. And I’m glad we finally talked about this andmade our feelings known. Let’s promise each other that going forward, we won’t hold back anything again.”

He smiled, feeling a warmth spread through his chest. “Alright. No more holding back.” He pulled her into a tight embrace, holding her close. “Just us, taking things one day at a time.”

Gabby nodded against his chest, and Playboy felt a sense of contentment and excitement.

Pulling back, he looked at her, taking in her flushed cheeks and sparkling blue eyes, which added to her sexiness.

“Damn, you’re lethal,” he told her, gently brushing his thumb across her bottom lip as he kept a firm hold around her waist.

She ran her hands up and down his arms and grinned before pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, looking a little off-kilter but also happy.

“I think that kiss between you and me has been a long time coming.”

Playboy’s eyes widened as her words sunk in, and a smile slowly formed on his lips as he squeezed her tighter against him.

“You’ve thought about kissing me too?”

She tilted her head back to look up at him. “Are you saying that you haven’t?” She countered, giving him a sassy expression with one eyebrow raised.

He snorted, then cupped her cheeks with his hands. Because of their height difference, he leaned down and looked straight into her eyes, wanting her to see he wasn’t bullshitting.

“I’ve wanted to kiss you ever since that night at Leo’s when I first looked into your eyes as I was holding you in my arms. Call me fucking crazy, but you caught my attention, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.”

He loved the way she nibbled on her lip as if trying to figure out what to say. She may be a badass MSRT team member and an excellent sharpshooter, but Playboy could tell that under allthat tough armor, there was an innocence and submissiveness side of her, and he couldn’t wait to bring more of that out of her.

As she silently stared deep into his eyes, Playboy could feel a shift in the air surrounding them. It was like an energy drawing them together. His heart was pounding in his chest. For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped. He saw her eyes widen, and he knew she had felt it, too.

“You feel it, don’t you?” he asked, hoping he wasn’t wrong.

She nodded right before she closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest.

Playboy could hardly speak. His little but strong dynamo hugging him had totally blown his mind. Hell, she almost made him blow something else. His cock was hard as a steel pipe.

He kept mentally asking himself if this was real. The crazy thoughts meandering through his mind were off the charts. Could he be the man she wanted? Could he make her happy? The answer was simple—hell yes! His mind and body told him he wanted forever with this woman.

???

Gabby’s lips still tingled from the kiss she shared with Playboy. Her heart was racing with the thrill of it being everything she had imagined—tender, passionate, and filled with a depth of emotion she hadn’t fully realized until that moment.

She needed a moment or two to calm her racing heart. Never in her life had that organ beat the way it did for Playboy. She smiled, feeling better that she wasn’t the only one, as she could feel Playboy’s heart beating rapidly under her cheek.

Once she felt steady, she slightly pulled away from him and looked up at him.

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