Page 87 of Bared Betrayal
I toywith the idea of leaving the room just to see if he would be able to tell and, if he did, what he’d do about it. But the ache between my legs is enough to convince me not to play dare with the devil.
I pick up the white tulip he left with the note and find myself smiling as a rush of warmth floods my veins. My insides are alive with a thousand butterflies beating their wings to the drum of my heart. Is this what happiness feels like? Absolute contentment?
While I kept him warm inside me, staring down at him, so many emotions overcame me that I was sure I’d explode. The thought of not being with him forced a lump inside my throat that stopped me from breathing. There was this sudden cold inside me, like ice had been pumped into my veins, and the only thing I could think of to get warm was to wrap myself against him. It wasn’t lust or desire or the need to submit. It was my soul exposed, and only he could touch it.
Trying to put on a brave face for so long has taken its toll on me. I used to be able to fool myself into believing that it was all okay, but something inside me changed, and it changed the day Gabriel touched me for the first time when I didn’t even know who he was.
What am I going to do? I don’t know where to start to try to clean up this mess I’ve made.
As I inhale the sweet scent of the tulip, I close my eyes and allow myself to picture his face. His chiseled jawline. The look in his cobalt irises makes me feel like I’m drowning in a sea of blue every time he looks into mine. The wicked grin that curls his full lips when he plays my body like an instrument. Gabriel is the reason I woke up with a smile on my face for the first time since… forever. I’m lost in my thoughts, absorbed by the memory of Gabriel’s touch. His fingers running down every inch of my skin, setting me alight with desire and longing I can’t control. I crave him even when he’s close. I yearn for him even after my body has been satiated. But everything is so complicated with Gabriel. With Sebastian. It’s so damn frustrating to let myself be consumed by desire and longing when all my rationality tells me it’s wrong.
Absentmindedly, I pluck one of the flower’s petals, letting it drift down to the carpet. The weight of guilt consumes me as I think about Sebastian. He doesn’t deserve this betrayal from either of us, but Gabriel tempts every part of my being with his touch. I forget about the guilt when I’m with him. I forget the absolute deception because I only care about losing myself in Gabriel’s arms. As much as I want to turn away from him, run in the opposite direction—something inside refuses to let go. My heart is caught in a never-ending battle between two men, each speaking to a different side of me, each owning a part of me.
Sebastian gives me normal—whatever that might be.
Gabriel gives me…peace.
I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. “Some mess you find yourself in, Kalliana,” I whisper, placing the flower back on the dresser. The only thing any artist can do when emotions threaten to get the better of her is to throw herself into her art, which is what I’m going to do.
I throw on a shirt and jeans and head to my studio. I don’t plan my work. I let the colors guide me and let the image take shape without any clear direction. Art is freedom. It’s a moment in time without chains, without barriers or borders. It’s our minds and hearts laid bare without the vulnerability of being judged.
My phone vibrates, and I reach for it, my heart skipping a beat as I hope it’s a message from Gabriel. The intense excitement has me holding my breath. But the second I swipe across the screen, my blood runs cold, the brush falling from my fingertips and landing on the thick carpet.
If you don’t say something, I will. And when I speak…the whole world listens.
The front door slams shut in the foyer.
“Kallie,” Gabriel’s voice pulls me from the panicked stupor, and I run out of the room.
“Thank God you’re here.”
But his eyes pierce me with warning as he lightly shakes his head. “Someone’s here to see you.”
I frown at him in question, then Sebastian steps out from behind him. “Really, Kallie? My father?”
Oh, God.
Twenty-Four
KALLIE
My gaze bouncesbetween Sebastian and Gabriel, a giant lump lodged in my throat. “Sebastian, let me explain.”
“You called my father and not me?”
I almost choke on a breath. “What?”
Sebastian rushes over, takes my hands in his, and pulls me into a hug. “Why didn’t you call me? If I knew someone broke into the house, I would have been on the next flight back.”
“I, uh…” I glance at Gabriel, and he gives me a knowing look before walking over to the minibar. “I didn’t want to distract you from work.”
“Kallie, you know you come first.” He hugs me tighter, and I watch Gabriel open a mini bottle of vodka, downing it in a single shot before grabbing another one.
“It was nothing,” I say, wiggling free from his arms. “I’m sure I was just blowing it out of proportion.”
Sebastian interlaces my fingers with his and pulls me down on the couch with him. “You should have called me, Kallie.”
“It was nothing. Really. Besides,” I gesture toward Gabriel, “your father helped out, and I’m safe here.”
