Chapter 15: Chapter 15

“You’d better be dying, or I’ll kill you myself,” Gabby heard Blake bellow, his booming voice reverberating through the walls as he answered the front door.

Rattled, she jumped off the bed and began searching for her clothes. There was no way she was going to sit there, butt naked, with some crazy person just down the hall. There was no telling what kind of people Blake knew or who was out for him. Bikers were synonymous with crime, right? At least that was the conclusion she’d reached from watching crime shows and personal past experience.

The life of a biker could be a dangerous one, even for men like Blake who claimed to be free from those elements. Regardless of how far removed he considered himself from their past dealings, who could say for sure that his past was done with him?

Fear shot through her like a bolt at the sound of raised voices. Peeking her head through the crack she made in the bedroom door, Gabby could easily pick out Blake’s voice, but she didn’t recognize the second party. The only thing she could discern from the angry tone was that it belonged to a woman, which eased her nerves somewhat.

Blake could handle himself against a woman, surely.

Going against his directive, Gabby stepped fully into the hallway, intent on confronting the intruder head-on. Meaning she intended to peek around the corner, remaining as inconspicuous as possible in order to put a face to the voice so she could ease her curiosity. What kind of person showed up in the middle of the night at someone’s door to raise hell?

Movement ahead of her stopped Gabby from proceeding any farther. Slowly, Ash’s door creaked open and his little head appeared. He saw her first, and his pudgy face, already blistered red with the effort to hold back tears, crumpled. Throwing open the door, he ran toward her, and Gabby crouched down just in time for him to crash into her waiting arms.

Clutching him to her, Gabby rose with Ash wrapped tight around her like a little monkey. His face tucked into the side of her neck, she could easily hear his whimpering cries, and her heart lurched, her protective instincts surfacing.

Edging her way back into Blake’s bedroom, she toed the door shut softly and eased down on the mattress facing the door so no one could enter without her knowing.

What was she going to do now? And with a little boy no less? She hadn’t thought that accepting a dinner invite would result in holing up in a man’s bedroom with his kid because of an intruder.

“Shh,” she hushed, running a soothing hand up and down Ash’s curved back while she tried her hardest to hear what was going on at the front of the house. It wasn’t exactly quiet, but she couldn’t make out any words. It was all just a bunch of muffled voices that reminded her of an episode of Charlie Brown.

The shouting grew louder and then dimmed in regular intervals, spiking Gabby’s curiosity all the more as she continued sitting there in the dark. “Who the hell is that?” she muttered, the words popping out unintentionally.

“M-m-mommy,” Ash sniffled, and for a heart-stopping moment, Gabby thought he was calling her by the name. In the next instant, she frowned.

“That’s your mom out there?”

She felt his head move against her shoulder in what she thought was an affirmative. Well, if that was true, then she was definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time.

But then Ash’s arms tightened around her shoulders and she reconsidered. What if she was in exactly the right place at exactly the right time? If she hadn’t agreed to come tonight, then poor Ash would be in his room right now or, God forbid, standing out there with a front row ticket to the crazy show.

At least with her there, she was keeping him somewhat sheltered from what would no doubt be devastating effects of seeing his mom and dad fighting.

She held him closer, glad to be sitting in that room with him. Now, more than ever, it felt as if she was destined to be his protector.

An indeterminate time later, the walls vibrated with the force of the front door slamming, followed by a car door and tires peeling against pavement. Blake’s angry strides pounded down the hallway, stopping first at Ash’s room then, upon realizing he was missing, doubled-timed toward Blake’s.

Gabby’s heart clamored as the door was thrown open and Blake’s towering form appeared in the shadows. For one brief, terrifying second, he stood there, watching them, his expression obscured so that she had no hope of gauging his mood. But judging by whatever had just happened, it couldn’t be good.

“Is he okay?” Blake’s gruff voice was like a beacon in the dark, and Gabby released a heavy breath as he stormed toward them and scooped his son from her arms.

Instantly, she felt adrift, lost at sea after a storm. Clasping her hands in her lap, she watched Blake cuddle Ash to his chest, his chin propped on top of his head and his eyes firmly shut. His relief was palpable.

“He was a little scared. I brought him in here with me so he wouldn’t have to see that. What was that anyway?” she asked, wanting answers.

“Thank you. I didn’t know she was going to show up. Clearly,” he said with disdain. “I’ll fill you in later. Right now, this little guy should be in bed.”

“I’m not tired,” Ash said around a lengthy yawn.

“Well, you have school in the morning, and we all need to get some rest.” Turning, Blake headed for the door.

From over his shoulder, Ash looked at Gabby through a pair of droopy, puppy-dog eyes, and asked, “Will you stay the night?”

Gabby swallowed, unsure of the appropriate response. “I don’t know that I should, hon.” She was his teacher after all, and she was already dangerously over the line. Any more and she could only imagine what kind of fallout she’d be facing. How would the school board respond if they found out? She just didn’t know.

“Please,” Ash begged, “I feel better when you’re here. Then Mommy won’t take me ‘cause you’ll protect me.”

Right in the feels. Gabby’s hand fluttered around her throat, her words tangled all to hell.

“I would never let that happen. You’re always safe with me. Come on, buddy, time for bed.” Blake carried him out, taking her silence as answer enough. “Do you want to read another story?” she heard him ask, his voice fading the farther away they got.

Alone, Gabby dropped back on the bed and considered her answer. Did she want to leave? No. But did she want to stay? Not necessarily. She and Blake had been having fun, and she was definitely on board for more, but staying the night would up their level of intimacy, and she wasn’t certain that either of them was willing to take that next step.

Blake wasn’t exactly what she would deem boyfriend material, unless she was measuring his incredible way with kids, with everyone he cared about, and with her. He was respectful and kind and sweet and sexy and demanding and incredible in bed from what she’d experienced of his skills so far. So, basically, her list of pros versus cons was leaning heavily to one side and she was screwed, no pun intended.

The nice girl inside of her, the side that wanted to stay out of trouble and follow her parents’ teachings, told her to make a break for it before it was too late, but the devil on her shoulder was whispering all the things she wanted to hear. It highlighted the good, with a special feature of what they’d been getting down to moments before they were so rudely interrupted.

Blake had been inside of her, his thick cock buried deep, turning up the volume on her orgasm and keeping it going for what seemed like forever.

She’d never, in all her years, throughout all her lovers, experienced something so earth-shattering. There was no other way to describe it. If they never said a word to each other again, that moment would be ingrained in her memory forever.

And she had a nagging feeling that Blake Mahone might have ruined her for all other men in that single, mind-blowing moment.

So it was probably best that she go before she got in any deeper with him. Besides, he didn’t appear to be in the best of moods, and the way he’d just walked from the room rested heavily on her mind. She didn’t know what to take from it. Was he mad at her lack of decision, or was he just plain mad?

She didn’t know him well enough to say one way or the other.

Righting her clothing, Gabby located her missing socks and began putting them on. She would just go home, get some sleep, and sort tonight out in the morning.

“He crashed the second his head hit the pillow,” Blake’s soft voice was saying as he rounded the corner. When he saw what she was up to, he stopped dead in his tracks. “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

Pausing with her toes tucked halfway into a sock, Gabby looked up in confusion. “Uh…home?”

“The hell you are.” In two long, determined strides, Blake grabbed hold of her upper arms, and shoved her back onto the bed. Standing before her, the faint glow of moonlight slashing a silver path across his torso, Gabby watched as he stripped out of his clothing, revealing all that sinewy muscle she’d had her hands on earlier.

Suddenly, she couldn’t wait to touch him again.

“You’re not going anywhere, teach,” Blake growled as he shoved his pants down his legs and stepped out of them. His cock, already hard, jutted from his hips, arrowing straight for her. “I’m not even close to being done with you.”

“Blake,” Gabby breathed as he got to work stripping her naked again, but her thoughts fled the instant his lips caressed her skin. For the life of her, she couldn’t recall what she was going to say, never mind formulating a complaint of any kind.

“I need this right now. I need to be inside you, teach.” His voice was unlike anything she’d ever heard from him—edgy and desperate. It was clear that he was still affected by his fight with his ex, and he needed to blow off some steam. Gabby found she couldn’t say no.

Kneeing her legs apart, Blake planted himself right where she wanted him to be, and leaned to the side. He came back a moment later with a silver packet between his teeth. His eyes, dark and laden with heat, held hers as he stroked himself.

Gabby had never seen anything so erotic…and she watched porn once when she was in college.

The way the muscles in his arm flexed with each pull made her clit throb and her pussy tremble. Needing some kind of relief, Gabby’s hands covered her breasts and squeezed.

“That’s right, teach, touch yourself. Squeeze those perfect tits, show me how you like it.” Blake’s gruff words spurred her on, and Gabby began pinching her nipples, relishing the shock of pleasure that shot straight to her core. Blake dialed up the intensity, slapping her aching clit with his cock, until all Gabby could do was writhe in pleasure and pain, an exquisite mix of sensations that had her teetering on the brink of losing control once more.

The soft tearing of the foil wrapper barely registered, Gabby was so lost to the moment. The only thing she could do was lie there and feel. A moment later, she felt a whole lot more.

Taking his time, Blake filled her to capacity, edging in slowly and retreating, stretching her open to accept every inch. When he was fully seated inside her, Blake folded over, covering Gabby in a blanket of warmth. She latched onto him, her nails digging into his shoulders and her heels into the backs of his powerful thighs as he began to rock his hips in time with her heartbeat.

“Look at me, Gabby,” Blake’s forceful voice commanded. “I want to watch you when you come.”

Prying her eyes open, Gabby’s stare met his, though it was difficult to make out any details in the darkness. Still, despite the lack of clarity, she felt connected to him somehow. She attributed the feeling to orgasms, since he’d been the only man to ever deliver her not just one, but two.

Reaching back, he hooked his hand behind her knee and pulled her leg up, tucking it beneath his arm, and the new angle had him diving even deeper into her, hitting spots that no man had ever touched.

Gabby’s gasp of surprise and profound pleasure sounded extra loud to her ears, but she couldn’t help herself. It was impossible to hold back, not with the way Blake was pounding into her, making every cell in her body buzz.

That familiar feeling began to take over, creeping up her spine. Her limbs began to vibrate, and her skin seemed to shrink, and then Blake swiveled his hips and Gabby’s eyes slammed shut, an explosion of light erupting behind them. For a suspended moment, she felt as if she were floating, but it didn’t last long. Readjusting her legs to rest against his shoulders, Blake rose above her and drove into her at a brutal pace.

Wrapping her fingers around his wrists, all Gabby could do was hold on. She watched in fascination as the skin around Blake’s eyes tightened, his lips peeled back from his teeth, and his muscles bunched and flexed under the strain. When his rhythm became disjointed, Gabby arched up and captured his mouth, swallowing his roar as he released inside of her.