Page 54 of Absinthe Minded

“Look at me, beautiful.” Gabe set a leisurely rhythm.

I watched the lines of his face sharpen with concentration. We’d had a lot of sex in our time together, and he’d rarely taken the slow and steady route. He had to be holding back for my benefit.

Lying half on top of me, he released one thigh and buried his face in my hair. “You feel so damned good.”

“Please…” I skimmed my nails down his back.

“Please what, baby?”

“Stop being so careful.” I thrust my hips against his.

He sucked in a breath and increased his speed. Once again, the pressure built inside me. I wrapped my legs around him tight enough to restrict his movement, but he seemed to take it as a challenge and thrust harder.

“Come for me.” Gabe growled into my ear.

I obeyed. My entire body shook with the force of the orgasm. Keenly aware we had a child upstairs, I bit the inside of my mouth to keep from crying out.

Before I could recover, Gabe pulled back and flipped me to my stomach. Tugging me to all fours, his fingers dug into my hips.

I grasped the sheets until my knuckles paled from the effort. Once again, I lost myself somewhere between pleasure and pain. I hadn’t felt so alive since we’d broken up.

Gabe slapped my ass hard enough to leave a handprint.

The shock of it sent me over the edge again, and he followed.

He collapsed beside me, but I couldn’t bring myself to move. I laid still with my arms folded beneath my chest and my hands balled under my chin. He caressed my back.

Smiling through the hair covering my face, I whispered, “Hi.”

“Hi.” He pulled me close and kissed my brow. “Did I hurt you?”

“A good kind of hurt.” I buried my face in his chest. “Gabe?”

“Hmm?” He eased back until he could see my face.

“Can we do that again when we don’t have any kids in the house?”

“Which part?”

“All of it.”

He chuckled and kissed me. “Yes, and often…on one condition…marry me.”

“I’ll think about it, but I need to sleep first.” I nuzzled against him.

“I love you, Maggie.”

“I love you, too.” If something went wrong, I’d blame this entire conversation on the post-orgasm hormones, but I did love him—and yes, I would marry him…one day.

19

Gabe

Wednesday morning,the alarm screamed at five forty-five. Exhausted, I reached to turn off the alarm and couldn’t find it. The realization that I’d slept in a strange bed woke me quicker than an ice bath. I smelled a familiar perfume and reached behind me to find a curvy hip—Maggie.

The way her sweet little body fit against mine made me smile, and the need to protect her overwhelmed me. She had a quiet strength about her, and a fragile heart I intended to nurture.

Maggie hadn’t accepted my proposal, but she hadn’t said no. She would be mine, she had to be—not because of my parents or money or to win a custody battle—because we belonged together.

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