A Question of Love (3 page)

Gabe stiffened. His balls constricted.

Connor drove into her, hard and fast. His finger circled her nub.

The world around her narrowed and faded. Sensation spiked, causing violent tremors to wrack her body. Gabe exploded in her mouth. She clasped her lips around him, conscious of nothing besides the need to swallow every last drop and the intense, mind-blowing pleasure Connor wrenched out of her.

Her inner muscles clenched repeatedly around Connor, who gave one mighty, final thrust and erupted.

Tina collapsed on Gabe’s lap. Waves of satisfaction still pulsed through her body. But that was not her overwhelming sense. Right here, right now, with Gabe and Connor, she was happy. Complete. With these two men she was whole.

“You have half an hour, Gabe. Make it count.”

Chapter Three

Now what?

Stare at her like a complete moron, unable to believe she’d just agreed to give him his requested thirty minutes? Or make the time count?

Tina stood before him, her sketch pad clutched beneath one trembling arm. At least he wasn’t the only one feeling all shaky and unhinged.

The cover of the pad was missing, allowing him glimpses of a pencil stroke-filled page. Gabe knew whatever the full picture was, it would be filled with detail and drenched with emotion.

And that was when the epiphany struck.

Taking two giant strides towards her, he enfolded her free hand in his and propelled her forward. “Come with me, T.”

Sure, he’d used the cheesy “life-changing” line to snare her attention, but now he intended to see it through. He’d disappointed Tina enough already. This time he would not.

“Where are you taking me?” she panted, struggling to keep up with him.

Gabe adjusted his gait, slowing down to suit Tina’s shorter legs. Standing a little over five feet, there was no way she could maintain his pace. Her small hand burned holes in his bigger one, the warmth of her skin and the daintiness of her fingers reminding him of a touch he had never forgotten. “To a friend’s place.”

Tina planted her feet on the ground and refused to take another step. For a woman with such a small frame she had a surprising amount of strength. “You mean to Connor’s place,” she accused.

“Connor?” Gabe asked, confused. And then understanding dawned. He shook his head in disbelief. “You think I’m taking you there so we can pick up where we left off? Seduce you all over again?”

She shrugged. “Aren’t you?”

“You jump to conclusions.” Of course he wasn’t taking her back to Connor’s place. Gabe refused to contemplate the possibility of sharing Tina again. If he ever won her back—and that might be hard considering the man in the coffee shop— he would have her to himself. Period.

Tina sniffed and took a tentative step forward. “So, where are you taking me?”

Gabe pursed his lips in thought and then answered carefully. “You changed my life. I thought I might return the favor.”

“Shit, Gabe. I am not going to sleep with you.”

Even if I beg?
“I’m not talking about sex.”

This time she had the decency to look abashed. “Sorry,” she mumbled. “I guess it’s difficult not to associate sex with you and Connor.”

“S’okay,” he mumbled back. “I make the same associations with you.” Only the associations didn’t stop at sex. They incorporated his blood heating to boiling point, his throat burning with unspoken admissions and his heart aching with loneliness.

He tugged her hand, propelling them both back into walk mode. Then he flashed her a wicked smile. “But I’m honored to hear you equate sex with me with a life-changing event.”

Tina opened her mouth to answer, then snapped it shut.

“Speechless?” Gabe laughed out loud. “There’s a first. Usually I’m the one left without a thing to say.” His body was in all sorts of hell. Walking beside Tina, with her shoulder brushing his arm, her hand in his and her hip swaying against his thigh, was nothing less than agony. Four years ago, he wouldn’t have minded. Four years ago, he’d have pulled her to a stop, turned to face her and taken her lips in a bone-melting kiss. He’d have molded her body to his and ground his erection against her belly, leaving her with no doubt as to the effect she had on his libido.

Tina glanced at her watch. “Twenty-seven minutes left. Better make the most of them.”

Gabe ushered her across the road to his car. “Jump in.” He opened the door for her. “And take that look off your face. I’m not kidnapping you. After my half hour is up I promise to drop you right back here.” He hesitated a heartbeat before adding, “If you still want me to.”

Without waiting for her response, he whipped round to the driver’s seat and set off in the direction of his friend’s house. Tina’s scent—her exotic, alluring perfume—wafted through his nose and settled in his stomach like hunger. Each soft breath she took reverberated in his ears and echoed through his chest.

A lot could happen in four years, Gabe acknowledged. Time tended to change a person, shaping them through new experiences. This Tina could be very different from his precious T. But if she was, his body seemed not to have noticed. He still reacted to her on base instinct. His stomach still lurched when he looked at her, and his groin still tightened when she looked at him.

He wanted to ask again what had made her so sad, but as he’d promised to take all responsibility of making conversation away from her, he chose not to. Instead he searched his brain for some neutral topic of conversation—and came up blank.

Tina saved him. “How
is
Connor?” she asked as Gabe contemplated a tight curve in the road.

“He’s okay. Quite good really. He met a woman.”

“He did?”

“Yep. Fell pretty hard for her.”

“Nice woman?”

“Very,” Gabe said.

Something about his answer must have given him away. “Was she one of
your
women?”

Gabe frowned. “You ask that as though we’ve had so many.”

She straightened her shoulders. “I don’t know how many you’ve had, and frankly, I don’t care. But you have that gleam on your face, leaving me to assume you and Connor shared her. Just the way you shared me.”

She was right. They had shared her. But that was where the similarity ended. Gabe had never fallen in love with Maddie, and Connor had never been in love with Tina. “Yes,” he said. “She was our lover.”

Tina pursed her lips. “So, Connor went ahead and introduced you to a woman he loved?”

“Not quite. I, er, met her first.” About a month ago. “I introduced Connor to Maddie.”

“Interesting,” Tina murmured under her breath.

“What is?”

“That Connor fell for her. What happened to your understanding? How does it go? Only the man who meets the woman first gets to fall in love with her?”

Gabe overstepped the brake, and the car ground to a sudden halt. “How do you know about that?”

Tina would not look him in the eye. “How do you think I know? Connor told me.”

“When?” Gabe rasped. Christ, she knew about his and Connor’s pact.

She stared out of her window. “Before he introduced me to you. Before anything happened. I was…uh…nervous. He reassured me. Told me you had strict rules that you play by.”

Gabe cleared his throat. “We abandoned the rules. They weren’t working.” He eased his foot back onto the accelerator.

“When?”

“This morning.” He wished it had been four years ago. Wished he’d had the guts to do for himself then what he’d done for Connor now. But rules were rules, and he’d stuck to them. Put his friendship with Connor before his love for a woman. Just like Connor had been willing to do for him today.

About bloody time one of them came to their senses.

“So, Connor’s off the market.” she said with a marked casualness.

Gabe listened for any other undertones to her statement. Anything that might resemble regret or disappointment. Anything that might suggest she’d had feelings for Connor. “Looks that way.”

“Lucky girl,” Tina whispered.

“Lucky Connor,” Gabe countered. Connor had found what he’d been looking for. Someone to fill up the emptiness in his life. A very nice someone at that.

Tina turned sharply to look at him. “Are you okay? About Connor falling for your girlfriend, I mean?”

Gabe’s answering smile was genuine. “Sure I am. They’re good for each other. They’ll be good together.” If he hadn’t believed that, he’d never have insisted Connor and Maddie stay together—just the two of them.

He made a left, then a right and pulled up outside a house.

Tina checked her watch. “Nineteen minutes,” she warned, and he suppressed the urge to kiss her senseless.

“Then let’s not waste time.” He had less than twenty minutes to convince Tina to let him back into her life. Twenty minutes within which his future happiness rested. Well, at least a shot at his future happiness. He climbed out of his car.

Tina followed suit.

“Uh uh,” Gabe warned. “Don’t leave your sketch pad behind. Bring it along.” If he was going to change her life he needed the pad. And damn, he wanted to make a difference to her future. Almost as much as he wanted to be a part of it.

Tina shrugged and did as he said. They walked up the pathway of a small, picturesque house with a beautiful landscaped garden. Several strategically placed sculptures highlighted a water feature and a rock garden. It was a yard worthy of a feature in
Better Homes and Gardens
.

“Okay, I’m curious. Where are we?” Tina asked as she looked around.

“Ever heard of Valerie Carnell?” He kept his gaze on her. As beautiful as the garden was, it paled in comparison to her.

Tina sighed. “Don’t tell me. She’s another one of your women.”

Gabe laughed out loud. “Not even close. We met a while back, at a fundraiser organized by the children’s cancer ward at the hospital.” Gabe had had a special interest in the fundraiser since he’d treated several patients from the ward in his physical therapy practice.

Tina nodded. “I heard about that. It was a photographic exhibition right?”

Gabe nodded and rang the front doorbell. “Right. I got to know Valerie then. She’s an amazing woman. I think you’ll like her.”

Tina wrinkled her nose, an action Gabe had always found both sexy and endearing. This time wasn’t any different, he realized, as his ribs tightened around his heart. “I don’t understand. Why are you bringing me to meet her?”

“Because, T, she can help you.”

The front door swung open, revealing a middle-aged woman brightly clad in an ankle-length dress comprised of layer upon layer of colorful silk. At least Gabe assumed it was silk. His knowledge of dress fabric was, he supposed, limited at best.

Her face lit up at the sight of him. “Gabriel!” She threw her arms open, and he stepped into her welcoming hug. “Darling. To what do I owe the pleasure?” She pulled back and gave him both of her cheeks to kiss.

“Val—” he smiled, “—I’ve brought someone to meet you. Someone I think you’ll like. A lot.” He angled his body so Valerie could see Tina. “Tina Jenkins.”

Valerie appraised her with obvious interest. Then she returned her gaze to Gabe and lifted a speculative eyebrow.

Gabe resisted the urge to shift beneath her scrutiny.

“Why Gabriel, she’s just a little bit of a thing. Doesn’t even reach your shoulders. I couldn’t see her standing behind you.” She stuck out her arm and took Tina’s hand in hers. “A pleasure to meet you, my dear.”

Tina looked at her with big eyes. “Uh, and you too.”

“Is that a sketch pad I spy?” Valerie asked, staring at Tina’s other arm.

Tina tensed, as if drawing the pad closer to her body. “It is,” she answered hesitantly.

Valerie smiled up at Gabe. “Well, then. Why don’t you two come right on inside and we can chat.” She turned around and bustled them both through the door.

Tina shot Gabe an inquiring look. She held one palm up as if to say, “Who is she?”

Gabe grinned. “You know the gallery where the exhibition took place?” He winked at her. “Valerie owns it.”

***

Tina wanted to skip down the path towards Gabe’s car. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt like skipping, the last time she’d been this excited about anything.

“Don’t pinch me,” she warned Gabe. “If this is a dream I do not want to wake up.”

“It’s not a dream.” His grin was infectious. She couldn’t help but smile back. “Val loved your work.”

“My own exhibition? Can you believe it?” She threw her head back and laughed. “She wants to show my sketches. Wants to
sell
them. Who would have thought it?”

Gabe’s hand on her arm stopped her in her tracks. “I would have.” The look on his face whipped the air from her lungs. He stared at her with hooded, hungry eyes. “Anyone who’s ever seen them would believe it.” The mixture of lust and respect in his expression almost brought her to her knees.

Except she’d been on her knees with Gabe before. She’d worshipped him on her knees, pleasured him, taken him to the same incredible heights he’d taken her—and still he’d left her. It didn’t matter how he looked at her now or how much her own body ached to respond to the desire burning in his gaze, she would not give in to her impulses. No matter how grateful she was to him for introducing her to Valerie.

She swung away from him, feigning a playfulness she no longer felt. “How am I ever going to lug all my sketch pads to her gallery? I must have one hundred of them.”

“It’s not a problem. I’ll help you,” Gabe offered. “Unless…” The fire in his eyes dimmed and he shrugged. “It’s been a lot longer than thirty minutes.”

Tina checked her watch, stunned to see over two hours had passed since they’d arrived at Valerie’s. And just like that her heart dipped in her chest. Gabe’s half hour was up, long ago.

Thank God for that. Now she could walk away and not look back. What a relief.

He opened the car door for her. “Would you like me to drop you back at the coffee shop?”

Tina stared at him. That would be the best idea. The car trip would give her ample time to thank him for introducing her to Valerie, and then she could get away from him. Perhaps she’d send him a gift tomorrow. A bottle of wine. Or scotch. Something to express her gratitude. At least she wouldn’t be trapped beside him any longer, yearning to pick up where they’d left off four years ago. Yearning to feel his and Connor’s hands on her body again, their lips on her mouth.

“I could drop you at home?”

Nope, bad idea. She’d feel compelled to invite him in.

“Or I could do what I’ve been wanting to for the last few hours and take you in my arms and kiss you.”

Tina’s jaw fell open. “What—?”

Gabe’s gaze dropped to her mouth. He shook his head. “Not just the last few hours,” he said hoarsely. “The last four years.”

Her vocal powers eluded her. There was not one single thing she could think of to say in response. Not one.

“Christ, T, I’ve dreamed of seeing you again.” His massive hand was on her cheek now, and he dragged his thumb over her lower lip. “Kissing you again.”