Chapter 13: Chapter 13

Okay, so…what did a guy do with a woman who didn’t belong to him, but had fallen asleep in his bathtub…naked?

Like really fucking naked.

When Ash had offered up use of their bathroom, he hadn’t really thought she’d take him up on it. He figured, after their little tête–à–tête at the zoo, she would scrounge up any excuse not to come over. Hell, he’d been waiting for her to call and read him the riot act once she got home, only to get the shock of his life when she showed up at his door a half hour later with a change of clothes folded against her chest and a tired look in her eyes.

He’d assumed that was the look of defeat, and maybe it was a little bit, but it seemed she was a lot more worn out than he’d realized.

He kind of felt bad for making her come over…

Nah, not really. Having a naked, wet, slippery woman in his home who wasn’t a raging bitch was an unexpected, but wholly welcome, treat.

Easing into the room, Blake closed the door quietly behind him. “Gabby,” he whispered, double checking that she was really asleep and not just resting her eyes. She didn’t stir. Padding over to the tub, he crouched down, unable to keep his gaze from soaking in every sweet-as-sin inch of her ridiculous body.

Damn, but she was beautiful. Soft, delicate handfuls of flesh that his fingers itched to touch and his mouth watered to taste. With heavy, teardrop breasts, dusky nipples pebbled from the chill in the air, a flat stomach, and shapely hips and thighs, she was a feast for the eyes.

And she was going to kick his ass for being in there.

But he couldn’t bring himself to regret the decision.

Trailing his fingers through the water, Blake watched her slack face for any indication that she was aware of him, but it was clear by her rhythmic breathing that she was sound asleep.

After watching a quick show with Ash while Blake worked on putting together dinner, she announced that she was going to wash up. An hour later, when she hadn’t returned, Blake decided to investigate.

Which brought him to where he was now, inches away from a silky sweet female and seconds away from imminent death.

What a way to go though.

Acutely aware that Ash was just down the hall and would probably come looking for him any minute, Blake shelved his baser urges and stroked a wet finger across Gabby’s full, pouty lips. A drop of water transferred to the crease, capturing his attention as it tracked a path down to her chin and hung there as if unwilling to sever contact.

With the back of his finger, he skimmed his knuckle beneath her chin to brush it away. The urge to trace lower, map a path down the slope of her neck and circle around pert nipples increased by each passing second.

If he wasn’t careful, he’d end up climbing in there with her.

A soft moan slipped past her lips, and Gabby’s head rolled on her shoulders. “Gabby,” Blake said softly once more, smiling as her eyes slowly opened and she looked up at him from beneath heavy lids.

“Hey, teach. You fell asleep,” Blake told her, folding his arms on the side of the tub as he watched her come around.

“I did?” Bleary-eyed, Gabby shifted to sit up, sloshing water. Her brows pulled together as she took stock of her surroundings, and Blake braced for the inevitable meltdown.

With a shriek, her arms banded around her breasts and Gabby pulled her knees up to her chest, regrettably shielding herself from his view. “What are you doing in here?”

Standing, Blake tugged the towel from the bar and stretched it out in front of him. “You were in here a long time. We got worried.”

Staring up at him, her eyes wide and filled with horror, Gabby made no move to stand. “You…you saw me naked.”

“I did.” He gave the towel a little shake. “You ready to get out?”

“Not with you in here! Just…throw it on the floor and get out.”

“What if your legs fell asleep and you fall? I won’t be here to catch you. Come on, teach. You ain’t got nothin’ I haven’t seen before.”

Her scowl deepened, creating adorable creases between her brows. For a moment, Blake thought for sure she’d start screaming like a banshee on a warpath, but she surprised him. Instead of coming unhinged, Gabby grabbed hold of the sides of the tub and stood. Water slapped at the sides of the basin, droplets sprinkling from her soaked limbs filled the room with the sound of rainfall, and she stood before him, defiant in all her bare glory.

Ripping the towel from his hands, she clutched the strip of fabric to her chest. “Get out. I need to get dressed.”

Her frosty tone brooked no argument. Holding up his hands, Blake backed toward the door. “No harm, no foul.”

Reaching for her bra next to the sink, she began dressing herself. “I just woke up with you hovering over me while I was sleeping. Do you really expect me to believe you didn’t do anything? Not even one touch?”

“You think I’d pull a nasty on you while you were incapacitated? Not likely, teach. I’m not that hard up for pussy.”

She grumbled something under her breath that Blake didn’t catch, but he figured it was probably of the foul-mouth variety, so he didn’t really care to hear it anyway. Irritated that she kept making assumptions about his character, he stepped up behind her, crowding her against the counter. Her eyes snapped up, meeting his in the mirror.

Pressing his chest to her back, he felt the excess water soak through his shirt as he leaned forward and flattened his hands on the countertop. Placing his lips beside her ear, he said, “I don’t know what your problem is with me or my kind, but I’m getting sick and damn tired of you judging me. And wrongly, I might add. So the next time you walk your tight ass through my door, you’d better remember to bring your manners with you.”

Shock and maybe a little embarrassment registered on her face before she locked it down tight. “You invited me. I didn’t ask to come here.”

“That’s right, I did, but don’t forget that you’re the one who decided to come. That’s on you.” Lifting his hand, he swept her long hair over her shoulder, exposing the length of her neck. That small bit of contact revealed all Blake needed to know about Gabby Morgan. She might not want to be attracted to him, but her body knew what it wanted well enough. Goose bumps erupted all over her skin, and he allowed his fingers to trace lightly across her shoulder and down her arm.

“You should know something about me, Gabby,” he said gruffly. “I might be a little more rough around the edges than you’re used to, and I won’t take anyone’s shit, not even yours, but I guarantee you I’m a better man than most.”

That seemed to get through to her. Little by little, her muscles began to relax, her body molding to his. “I know you are, Blake. Anyone can see that.”

“Not anyone,” he corrected her. “Most people take one look at me and my brothers and decide we’re nothing but trouble. They don’t bother trying to see beneath the surface, see the husbands, fathers, sons, and friends. So it pisses me off when you stand here questioning my integrity.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to, it’s just…” Her mouth flapped opened, closed. She dropped her gaze from his, and Blake felt the predator in him stir.

“Just what?”

Shaking her head, she seemed to struggle with her words. “I…met…people like you once. They weren’t…good.” Pressing her fingers to her temple, she squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head again, as if trying to shake away a disturbing thought.

Not liking to see her upset, Blake dove in. “So you’ve had a bad experience with some bikers. I can understand why that might color your view of us, but you’ve gotta let that go, teach. We’re a different breed than you’re used to. If any of us find ourselves standing on the wrong side of the law, you can bet your ass it’s because the trouble came to us and not the other way around. We’ve worked too damn hard to get where we’re at to just throw it away.”

“So you really are the good guys, huh?” she asked with a small, uncomfortable half-smile.

Curling his hand around her waist, he flattened his palm against the towel over her stomach. “Yeah, teach, we are.”

“I keep sticking my foot in my mouth when I’m around you.”

“You wouldn’t be the first woman to get stupid around me. Don’t know if you realized this, but I’m kind of hot.”

Snorting, Gabby thrust an elbow into his side. Blake grinned, liking that she was comfortable enough to take his teasing and not too afraid to give something back. It was kind of a turn-on actually.

Growling low in her ear, he turned his face into the side of her neck and placed an open-mouthed kiss over her throbbing pulse. “I should get out of here before I rip this towel off and bend you over this counter.”

A tiny gasp left her lips, and it was all Blake could do not to follow through with the warning. There was only so much a man could take before he gave in and satisfied his needs.

With his hand on her abdomen, he tugged her hips back, pressing her round ass against his stiff cock. “I don’t know why you keep fighting this. You want it just as bad as I do.”

“Blake…” She sighed, her body melting into his touch, and that was all the encouragement Blake needed.

Snaking his hand up between her breasts, he grasped her chin and turned her face toward his. Capturing her mouth, he silenced any protests she might have made, his tongue delving into her hot, wet mouth to taste, lick, savor.

Tucking his free hand between their bodies, he popped the button on his jeans and shoved the zipper down. Reaching inside, he wrapped his fist around his cock and worked to free it from its confines.

The ache to be inside this woman was unlike any he’d ever experienced before—far beyond anything he’d ever felt for Jodi. He felt like a teenager again, his heart racing and his every breath a struggle. He fumbled in his pants, trying to talk himself into slowing down, but it felt impossible. Having Gabby’s naked body pressed up against his, his tongue inside her, her breasts pressing against his forearm, was shredding any bit of decency and control he had left.

Then everything came to an abrupt stop at the light tapping on the door. Gabby and Blake froze on the spot, their gazes crashing into one another’s in the mirror.

“Daddy, I gotsta poop!”

Gabby’s lips twitched and little creases formed around her eyes. “I guess that’s that.”

Blake’s chest deflated and he dropped his forehead to her shoulder. “Shiiiiit.” Of all the times Ash could interrupt, it had to be now. Knowing from experience that when the kid said he had to go, it meant right that very minute, Blake lifted his head and began tucking himself back inside his pants as he called out, “Be right out, buddy.”

“Hurry, it’s an emergency,” Ash confirmed what he already knew.

Without a word, Gabby dropped the towel to her feet and gave Blake the show of a lifetime as she bent to step into a pair of sheer, white lace panties. The position gave him a few inspirational thoughts, as well as the perfect view of a rather large, raised scar across her lower back near her spine. Judging by the dark pink shade of it, it wasn’t fresh, but it also wasn’t old.

A question formed on his tongue, but he was reminded by yet another anxious tap on the door that he didn’t have the luxury of hanging around to get an answer.

“You go, I’m right behind you,” Gabby said as she gathered a soft pink sweater between her fingers and pushed her head through the neck hole.

Reminding himself to ask about his discovery later, Blake turned the doorknob and found himself staring down at his son, who was doing his “pee-pee” dance and making a face that was so distorted Blake knew he was seconds from having an accident.

“Gabby.”

“I’m here,” she said, sounding rushed. “Bathroom’s all yours, sweetie.”

“Thank God!” Ash said as he breezed past them and slammed the door. “What were you guys doing in here, kissin’ or somethin’? Geez.”

Left standing alone in the hallway together, Blake and Gabby stared at each other wearing a pair of matching smiles. “Nothing like being caught in the act, eh?” she whispered.

Still semi-erect, Blake grimaced as he shifted himself. “I’ll be lucky if I don’t end up with blue balls.”

“I can’t poop with you standing out there listenin’!”

Slapping a hand over her mouth to quell her laughter, Gabby motioned for them to get moving. Throwing his arm over her shoulder, Blake hauled her away, making no effort whatsoever to hold in his own boisterous laughter. Well, if they weren’t going to have sex, they might as well find enjoyment in the evening wherever it presented itself.