Rush (Breathless #1)(4)

“It’s a good damn thing Jace isn’t here,” Gabe said.

She cocked her head and stared up at him in question. “Why do you say that?”

“Because he’d have a heart attack if he saw you in this dress. Not that there’s enough of it to call it a dress.”

She smiled, her dimple deepening in her cheek. “Since Jace isn’t here, he can’t very well say anything, now can he?”

“No, but I damn sure can,” he said bluntly.

Her smile turned down into a frown. “I don’t need two big brothers, Gabe. I assure you one’s enough.”

His gaze narrowed and his lips thinned. “I have no desire to be your goddamn big brother.”

She gave him a look of hurt. If spending any time with her was such a chore, then why had he approached her? Why hadn’t he done what he’d been doing all this time and just ignore her?

She stepped back, the warm buzz of being so close to him, of having his arms around her, his hands on her body, slowly dissipating. She shouldn’t have come. It had been stupid and lame. All she had to do was call Jace. Let him know her plans and he could have told her he wouldn’t be here. Then she wouldn’t be standing in the middle of the dance floor embarrassed by Gabe’s rejection.

His eyes narrowed as he took in her reaction and then he sighed, abruptly turned and nearly dragged her from the dance floor in the direction of the terrace. The doors were open, allowing the chilly night air inside, and he stepped out, pulling her protectively into the crook of his arm.

And so she was back in his arms. Enveloped in his heat. She could smell him, and damn he smelled so good.

He didn’t stop until he was well away from the door and into the shadows cast by the overhang. The lights of the city twinkled and dazzled the sky, and distant sounds of traffic disrupted the quiet.

For a long moment he simply stared at her, and she wondered what it was she’d done that offended him so much.

His scent taunted her. A touch of spice without being overpowering. The cologne he wore was a good match. It complemented his natural scent while giving that tantalizing hint of male, rugged, wood, outdoors and…sophistication.

“What the hell,” he muttered. It was a sound of resignation, as if he were giving in to some unknown force.

Before she could respond, he hauled her forward so that she landed against his hard chest. Her mouth flew open in surprise, and a small sigh escaped. Her lips were close to his. Tantalizingly close. She could feel his breath, see the muscle twitch at his temple. His jaw was tight and bulging as if he was holding himself back. And then he seemed to lose the battle.

His mouth crashed down over hers, hard, heated, demanding. And oh God, but she loved it. His tongue pushed inward, hot and sensual, gliding over hers as he licked playfully at the roof of her mouth and swirled around her tongue in a delicate dance. He didn’t simply kiss her. He devoured her. He possessed her with just a kiss. In that span of time, she was owned completely by Gabe Hamilton. Any other man she’d ever kissed faded into obscurity.

She sighed, allowing herself to completely melt into his embrace. She became boneless, seeking more. More. More of him. His heat, his touch, that sinful mouth. It was everything she could have possibly dreamed and more. Her fantasies, her imagination…they had nothing on the real thing.

His teeth grazed over her lips and nipped at the fullness. It had just enough sting to tell her who was in charge. And then he gentled his movements, following it up with a sensual lap of his tongue, and then soft kisses over the bow of her mouth.

“God help me but I’ve wanted to do that for the longest time,” he said in a raspy voice.

She was stunned. Her legs wobbled and shook, and she prayed she wouldn’t go down, a victim of the heels she’d worn. Nothing could have prepared her for what had just happened. Gabe Hamilton had kissed her. Not just kissed her, but he’d dragged her onto the terrace and ravaged her.

Her lips still tingled from his sensual assault. She was wrecked. Utterly wrecked. It was like having a total buzz, the highest of highs. She hadn’t had that much to drink so she knew damn well she wasn’t reacting to the alcohol. It was him. Pure and simple. He was lethal to her senses.

“Stop looking at me like that or it’s going to get you into some serious trouble,” he growled.

If it were the delicious kind she suspected, she wouldn’t mind getting into trouble with him at all.

“How am I looking at you?” she asked huskily.

“Like you want me to peel that flimsy excuse for a dress from your body and f**k you right here on the terrace.”

She swallowed. Hard. It was probably better not to say anything at all. She wasn’t at all sure what had just happened here. Her senses were reeling, and she couldn’t quite come to terms with the fact that Gabe Hamilton had just kissed her and then talked about f**king her on the terrace of his hotel.

He moved in close again, until his heat swallowed and consumed her. Her pulse beat erratically at her neck, and her breathing was ragged and tight.

“Come see me tomorrow, Mia. At my office. Ten sharp.”

“W-why?” she stammered out.

His expression was hard, and his eyes glittered with a fierce light she couldn’t interpret.

“Because I said so.”

Her eyes widened, and then he reached out to take her hand, pulling her back toward the entrance to the ballroom. He never paused, and kept walking until they reached the lobby. She struggled to keep up with his determined stride as her heels tapped across the polished marble floor.