Another Man's Baby (20 page)

“Eric, long time, no see, man.” Reggie leaned forward to shake Eric’s hand and Eric shoved him backwards. Reggie shot Gabi another look, one that said, I-owe-you-that-one-Gabi-but-no-more.

“Don’t long time, no see me,” Eric growled between clenched teeth and this time gave Reggie a solid shove with the palms of both hands right in the center of Reggie’s bare chest.

Before anything could jump off, Gabi positioned herself between her husband and Reggie. “Stop that,” she ordered Eric. “You have no reason to do that. His hands weren’t on me. He’s holding a glass with one and a bottle of water with the other.”

“You’re coming home with me.”

Of course she was going home with him; that had been her plan
. “I’m not ready to go,” she said instead.

“Gabi, I’m warning you. I will physically pick you up and carry you out of here if I have to.” He glared over her head toward Reggie. “I wouldn’t advise your getting in this. It isn’t your business and I don’t need any excuse to kick your ass. I just plan damn don’t like you. And to find you dressed like that pushing up on my wife. It wouldn’t take but a word to make me kick your ass, just on G.P. Eric glared at Reggie before turning toward Gabi. “Now come on, Gabi, get your stuff and let’s go.”

“No,” Gabi answered defiantly and was genuinely surprised when the grip tightened on her arm and her husband swooped her up into his arms and carried her out of the club. He stopped, looked around, spotted her car and headed for it. Eric didn’t say a word until he opened the door and nearly shoved her inside.

“You have no right to do this,” Gaby hissed, mildly offended yet at the same time excited that he’d come. She glanced up at him and saw the fire in his eyes. Their gazes held for a moment and she shivered in spite of her plans. She had to shake away the thought, but her husband was still the one who did it for her. She could feel her emotions churning, the lust building in her nether regions. She could feel the pool of liquid desire being released.

“I have every right,” Eric answered. “Now drive and I mean home, Gabi.”

Good
, Gabi thought and drove away checking her mirror, wanting to tell Eric to back up off her car. The fool might end up ramming her, he was so angry. But anger wasn’t what she was going for. Anger could be gotten over. She was going for the jugular. She was going for gut wrenching pain. She wanted to make him hurt as badly as she did. And she knew exactly how to do it.

             
ANOTHER
MAN
’S BABY
             
229

Chapter
Sixteen

For thirty minutes Eric sat glaring at his wife while she behaved as though nothing was wrong. He was waiting for her to apologize, anything. And that damn smile on her lips was beginning to get on his nerves. When he could take it no longer, he got up and began marching from one end of the room to the other.

“I don’t believe it, you were stepping out on me.” Eric was pacing back and forth. He was so angry that he was unable to be still. He’d halt for a moment and glare at Gabrielle, then he’d return to his pacing. He wanted to strangle her for behaving like that. What the hell was she trying to prove? And with Reggie, of all people. “I can’t believe you were with Reggie.”

“No, I was at a club.”

“I saw you, Gabi, dressed like that and standing between his legs with him having nothing on but a damn G string. He might as well have been naked, Gabi!” He took her hand. “Come on,” he said, “I want you to see what I see.” He tightened his grip as though he thought she might resist and didn’t release her until she stood in their bathroom in front of the mirror.

“Look at yourself, you look cheap. You put on even more paint than you had on when you left here. You’re my wife,” he roared. “You won’t embarrass me or yourself like that ever again. Do you hear?”

Gabi sat on the edge of the tub and stared at him, not answering, allowing him to rant and rave. Okay, his anger was justified in a way. When he finally took a breath she swallowed. “You keep forgetting, we’re getting a divorce.”

“Hell no!” Eric shouted. “I told you we’re not getting a divorce, you’re my wife and it’s going to stay like that. I love you, Gabi, and you love me. Okay, you got even with me. I know you set this up. Now we’re even, we can forget this nonsense and stop acting crazy. We’re not kids and we’re not getting a divorce. Now wipe that crap off your face so we can talk.”

Evil filled her. For the first time in Gabi’s life she wasn’t thinking of the consequences, the right or wrong of what she was doing, only that it felt good for once not to be the one hurting. “I like what I have on-”

Before Gabi could finish her sentence, Eric was scrubbing her face with a wet towel, and then he scooped her up in his arms and carried her kicking and screaming toward the bed.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Gabi screamed.

“I’m going to make love to you and make you remember us. I’m going to drum all of this other nonsense out of your head.”

“You can’t just make love to me.”

“Like I keep telling you, you’re my wife.”

“So damn what?  We’re getting a divorce.”

“We’re not going out like that, Gabi.” Eric started pulling off his clothes, throwing an arm over Gabi as she attempted to move.

“Do you plan on raping me?” she asked.

“I plan on making love to you.”

“Without my consent.”

He shrugged.

“That’s rape, Eric.”

“Then I suggest you consent because it’s going to happen.”

“Why, because I was with Reggie?”

“No, because I love you, damn it, and you’ve been so damn stubborn. You’re going tit for tat and it isn’t going to happen like that. Now give me permission,” he demanded, pushing her back and pulling her leather pants from her body.

For a moment Gabi thought of stopping what she was going to do. As much as she’d been telling herself she no longer had feelings for her husband she’d known all along it was a lie. He stared at her for a nanosecond and the love in his eyes touched her core. Eric was right, she loved him, but right now she didn’t want to.

“Okay, you have permission,” she said as his fingers hooked on the side of her silk panties and pulled them down her hips. His fingertips brushing her skin sent liquid fire coursing through her. This was the feeling that Reggie could never produce in her. Her body reacted this way only for Eric. Though lust raged inside her, she didn’t want to be so easy.

She couldn’t speak to him; her voice had already trembled, letting Eric know that she wanted him. Good Lord, that was the one thing she couldn’t fake. She did want Eric to make love to her. She closed her eyes, trying to will the feeling away, but it wouldn’t leave. Not when his lean brown body was poised over her and his lips were so close to hers. How the heck could she resist him? She never had before.

“Can’t we stop fighting?” Eric moaned and entered her quickly.

Her traitorous legs wrapped around him. It had been a long time, she acknowledged as her arms held him close. He felt so good, his strong brown body covering her, his face pressed close, his lips trailing kisses all over her body.

Gabi trembled inwardly. If only, she thought. The scent of the burnt panties returned to her. He wanted her because he believed she wanted another man. The thought was summarily knocked out of her mind when Eric worked his magic. The feeling of ecstasy he produced was all that she was aware of. She could feel her eyes roll back in her head, and her moans were for real, nothing fake about them. She trembled with her approaching release.

He should have done this weeks ago, Eric thought. He should have just marched his ass back into their bedroom and taken charge, not allowing Gabi to throw a hissy fit. He knew he wasn’t guilty of sleeping with anyone. In fact, the very thought of doing it had vanished the moment his wife thought he’d done the deed.

He’d missed her so much, he thought as he thrust repeatedly into her heat. Her initial fight had made him so hot, so hard. Her scent permeated the room, wrapped around him and drove him home. With each thrust, Eric thought he would come but he held off, waited until he knew his wife was plunging over the edge. It was always so good when they came together.

“Hurry,” Gabi urged her husband. “I can’t wait much longer.”

“I know, baby,” he moaned. ”I want us to come together.”

His soft whisper was like a cold bucket of ice water being dumped on her, waking her up. Eric was so damn smug. He knew her body so well. He thought this was all it took to make her get over her hurt. Yes, she loved him. With everything that was in her, Gabi loved him. And he had no right to desecrate that love.

Don’t do it,
the voices were shouting at her. One voice became ten and ten a thousand. She was going to ignore the voices. She had to do this for herself. She had to know that Eric loved her enough to bleed as she’d done.

He heard her moan. Now was the time. He growled as he felt his release nearing.

Gabi loved when they came together and now was no different, except this time when she felt them crest she opened her mouth and screamed, “Reggie.”           

What the hell?

“Reggie!” Gabi screamed.

“
Reggie
?”

Oh no she didn’t! Eric couldn’t stop the release, couldn’t hold it back. Damn. Eric shook with the force of his release, feeling a strange energy surrounding him and Gabi, feeling a difference when his fluids entered Gabi’s wetness. He groaned and fell on Gabi for about the space of ten seconds. Then as his breathing returned to normal he lifted off her and looked down at her smiling face. “Hell no!” he roared. “You didn’t just call me by another man’s name.”

“But I didn’t,” she said innocently. “Did I?”

Oh, that was her game. Eric was so angry at her that he wanted to do as she’d done when she’d caught him with Jamilla. He wanted to throw something, namely her.

“This wasn’t fair, Gabi. That was evil. You waited until I was right there and did something like that. Why don’t you just get a knife and stick it in my heart?”

“I just did.”

“I thought it was an accident.”

“It was,” she said and started to cry, covering her eyes. “Reggie just made me feel wanted, loved.”

She wailed as though that was supposed to make him feel better. He glared down at her. Yes, he’d started it but still, damn, it hurt.

He dropped to his knees on the side of the bed, pulling her with him. “We’re going to stop this.”

“You started it.”

“Tit for tat, baby?”

“Tit for tat. How does it feel?”

“Look, you wanted to hurt me, and you did. We’re even. It’s over. Now we’re going to stop this nonsense and start acting like we’re married.” He looked straight into her eyes. “We both know you did this to get back at me. And I’ll admit your using Reggie was the best way to pound some sense into me.”

“I didn’t use Reggie.”

Eric glared at her and pulled her closer. He could feel her warm breath on his face, smell the scent of sex mixed with the sugar cookie smell. “Reggie might not know you were using him but you were. Now come on, admit it. You never did anything with him, right?” He saw the gentle smile that curved her lips. “You’re evil. You’re not going to say, are you?”

“Honey, why would you think my being with an old boyfriend…oops, I mean talking to an old boyfriend, was any reason to worry?” She cocked her head a little to the right, her gaze sweeping him up and down. “Don’t you remember? I still had my panties on.”

“Gabi?”

“Don’t Gabi me, I did have them on.”

“I don’t know whose panties were in the car.”

“I do. I’m sure they were Jamilla’s.”

“Have you asked her?”

“Do you think I’d give either of you the satisfaction?”

“Gabi, I don’t need this right now. I’m hanging on by a thread here. Do you have any idea how rough my new assignment is on me right now?”

Gabi pushed away. “How would I know?  You don’t talk to me, remember?”

When she was far enough away she shoved out her foot, hitting Eric squarely in the chest. “You do what you damn please for months, then when you think you have something to worry about you want to blame it on the marines. I’m not blaming the marines for your actions and I’m not blaming the war. I’m blaming you. And if I did sleep with Reggie, at least I waited until we were separated to do it.”

Eric roared so loudly that Gabi found herself moving farther back in bed. She’d struck a nerve. He was ticked.

“Tell me the truth now!” Eric growled, his eyes bulging and his hands clenched at his sides.

“I was tempted,” she replied softly, knowing that her quiet demeanor was doing a heck of a lot more to her husband than shouting it out.

“Don’t do this, Gabi.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“Tit for tat, baby. I know what you’re doing.”

“Good.” She smiled. “Since you know I’m only doing this for revenge, you should stop worrying about it.”

“You’re not going to bait me, I know you love me.”

“Of course I love you…just like I knew you loved me when you were tempted, when you were out dancing with every hoochie you could find. I knew you loved me when you kept pushing me away, refusing to talk to me. I knew you loved me when I caught you practically having sex with Jamilla in public. I knew you loved me when you talked to me like I was nothing and treated me like crap, when you refused to make love to me, when you pulled out as though I was stupid. And I knew you loved me when I found the used condom and panties in our car.”

“Did you do anything, Gabi?”

“No more than you did.” She leaned back on the pillows and closed her eyes. “Maybe a little more, maybe a little less.” She sighed. “Reggie does look good, though, doesn’t he? I think he’s been working out. He dances at the club. She hunched her shoulders. “I don’t blame him if that’s what he wants to do. He told me he makes very good money.”

“He’s a stripper?” Eric’s eyes narrowed. “Reggie is a stripper? Did you sit there and watch him strip down to that damn G string?  Is that why you were standing between his legs?”

“Exotic dancer.” Gabi laughed. “I don’t think he’d like being called a stripper, but hey, go for it. In answer to your question, yes, I watched him dance. He’s very good. He kinda dedicated his dance to me.” She ran her tongue across her lips. “His stage name is Chocolate Pudding. It should be something like Caramel Candy, or Brown Sugar.” She laughed harder. “Can you believe it, Brown sugar?” She allowed her eyes to close slowly and wrapped her arms around her body.