Love & Loss (51 page)

‘Take it telling her didn’t go down too well?’ Gabe asked as he set his pool cue down.

‘O this was before I told her. We were play fighting and she split a pillow on me then poured a bottle of Zinfandel over my head.’

‘Why do I always miss the hot stuff,’ groaned Doug as I blew another feather away.

‘Come on baby, you stink, go and get in the shower then you can come and fill us in.’

‘I’ll go and leave you to it.’ Doug advised.

‘No don’t Doug. I’ve ruined your boys night by coming back early. Stay, I’ll go and have a shower, then order a pizza. I have a load of reading to do for English so you’re not in the way.’

‘Pizza?’ his eyes lit up and Gabe shook his head.

‘I give up with you two. Go and get in the shower, I’ll order pizza all around.’

‘Will you order Lexi one as well. I know she won’t bother cooking when she’s feeling miserable, so I can sneak in and put it on the hall table and text her to tell her.’

‘You’re so sweet. Is she ok?’

‘She will be. She needed some alone time.’ I pursed my lips for a kiss and he shook his head laughing.

‘No way. Shower. Now.’

I was mortified when I got in there and saw the state of me, I had feathers all through my hair and stuck all over my vest. I chuckled before blowing out a deep breath and hoping she was ok in there. I picked the feathers off and hopped in the shower, scrubbing really hard to get the stickiness of the wine off my skin and out of my hair. We’d had a really hot day, so I threw on a pair of white jersey shorts and a clean black vest top and made sure the sash windows were as open as I could get them to let a breeze into the bedroom.

‘Perfect timing,’ grinned Doug as he carried the four pizza boxes over to the dining table. I searched for Lexi’s meat feast cheese stuffed crust and headed across the landing and quietly opened her door. I tiptoed in and put the pizza box on the hall table. I couldn’t hear a sound, so at least she wasn’t crying. I crept back out and the boys were already at the table eating as I grabbed my phone and joined them.

There’s a pizza on your hall table. I know you like to eat when you’re upset. I’m here if you need me, anytime. Love you Lexi xxx

We were halfway through eating when I heard a phone buzz and I quickly dropped my slice and grabbed my phone, disappointed to see she hadn’t replied. I looked up as I heard Doug grunt in surprise and saw he was texting on his phone as he closed his pizza box.

‘You ok Doug? Not like you to leave pizza.’

‘I’m fine I need to … shit,’ he went red as he looked at me.

‘She text
you
?’ I whispered as I realised why he was embarrassed. It felt like a sword through my chest when he nodded.

‘Sorry Mia, I’m sure it doesn’t mean anything, I mean we’re not even together anymore, you’re her best friend.’

I attempted a smile and nodded, pushed my pizza box back, headed to the bedroom and shut the door. I slid down it and sat on the floor as I started crying. She’d never asked for someone else when she was hurting, it was always me. I jumped as the sliding door to the dressing room opened and Gabe walked over. He slid his arms under my legs and an arm around my back and hoisted me up into his arms. He carried me into the lounge and sat in the armchair as I cried on his shoulder and he stroked my back, not saying a word and I loved him even more for knowing that I wasn’t ready. We sat in silence until my tears dried and he tilted my head back and kissed the tip of my nose.

‘She’ll come around.’

‘What if I really screwed up Gabe?’

‘We talked about this baby, you didn’t force a meeting and he doesn’t know that she has the means to contact him. It can all be ignored if she doesn’t want to deal with it.’

‘I don’t understand why she’d want Doug over me though.’

‘Maybe she needed someone neutral. When you were upset about your meeting with Richard you didn’t call her, you called me,’ he reminded me as he ran his nose up and down mine.

‘I guess,’ I sighed. Gabe was right, I’d expected Lexi to share me with Gabe, how could I begrudge her wanting to share parts of her life with someone else, someone I knew she still loved, even if she wouldn’t admit it. ‘Can we talk about something else, to take my mind off it?’

‘Sure, what do you want to talk about?’ he asked as he wiped under my eyes for me.

‘Me working.’

‘I know you miss your dancing and I’m sorry baby, but it wasn’t safe for you there. The club was in a rough part of town and there wasn’t enough security to deal with any trouble. I should never have agreed to let you start in the first place and I can’t believe it took bloody Milo to make me see sense. Plus now these campus murders are escalating, I need you as safe as possible.’

‘I know that but I need to work Gabe.’

‘Why?’

‘Why do people tend to work? To earn money.’

‘If you need more than you have coming in from your parents I’ll give you an allowance.’

‘Gabe Austin, if I didn’t know how romantic you could be I could be offended at you offering to pay me an allowance, like a trophy girlfriend.’

‘Tell me what you need, let me help.’

‘No, I need to earn my own money and build up my savings.’

‘I don’t understand, you’re not a big spender. Where are your allowances disappearing to?’ he looked at me puzzled and I sighed. ‘O my God are you doing drugs again?’

‘Gabe,’ I snapped as I sat upright on his lap. ‘I did pot a few times and tablets
once
, I’m not a drug addict.’

‘You’re hiding something from me I can tell. What’s going on?’

‘Nothing,’ I sighed and tried to get off his lap. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist.

‘Mia?’

‘Fine I’ll tell you, but I don’t want you swopping in with your bucket loads of cash trying to fix things, it’s important to me to do this on my own.’

‘Do what? What needs fixing?’

‘I didn’t tell you everything about my fight with Richard before Christmas.’

‘You lied?’ he fixed me with a disapproving glare.

‘No, I just didn’t tell you some other bits.’

‘Still not impressed Mia.’

‘Are you just going to criticise me or do you want to know?’

‘Fine,’ he sighed.

‘I need to work because I’m giving my allowance from Mum and Gerry to Lexi.’

‘That’s really sweet of you baby, but what does this have to do with your fight with Richard.’

‘Because I don’t have an allowance from him anymore.’

‘Since when?’

‘January. I told him to stick it, I didn’t want his money.’

‘So what have you been managing on?’

‘The money I was making at Peppers while I saved a load, but I’ll run out of savings if I don’t start working again.’

‘Why do you have to be so bloody stubborn?’ he sighed as he shoved a hand through his hair. ‘Just let me give you money every month.’

‘That’s a really kind offer Gabe, but I don’t want to be a kept woman and feeling like I can’t spend money on whatever I want because it’s yours. Plus I really miss the dancing and the social side of it with the other girls. I finally felt like I was standing on my own two feet, without relying on my parents for once in my life and it felt good. I liked having some financial independence, you’re always spoiling me and I wanted to be able to afford to do that for the people I care about.’

‘You really loved your dancing that much?’

‘Of course I did, how could you ask me that? I’ve been dancing as long as you’d been swimming and you know how hard that’s been for you.’ I reached up and touched his face as he frowned. ‘Are there no other clubs in town that I could perform at? Ones that meet your stringent requirements?’ I pouted and gave him
the look
and he started laughing and put a hand in front of my eyes.

‘Stop trying to break me with those baby blues. I’ll look into it, but I’m not promising anything ok?’

‘Ok,’ I giggled and kissed his palm. I pulled his hand to my mouth and looked into his stunning eyes as I gently kissed each finger, then took his index finger and put it in my mouth and ran my tongue around it as I sucked.

‘
Mia,’
he sighed as his chest rose and fell more rapidly. ‘You were crying five minutes ago.’

‘And I’m not crying now.’ I quickly straddled his knees and put my arms around his neck and leaned in to whisper in his ear. ‘You look so hot with your damp hair, don’t you want me too?’

‘Always baby,’ he murmured as he clasped the back of my head and left a trail of kisses up my neck. ‘There’s never a second in a day that I don’t want you.’

‘So take me now. I’m yours.’

‘Mine.’

‘All yours,’ I sighed as his lips found my weak spot and I felt him swell below me.

‘Drop the lock on the door in case Doug comes back. He can knock,’ he instructed. I scrambled up and flew over and did as I was told and heard him laugh. ‘Someone’s keen.’

‘And you’re not?’ I raised an eyebrow as I looked at the bulge in his sweats and lifted my vest over my head.

‘Damn it Mia, your breasts are perfect.’

‘Just my breasts?’ I gasped in mock horror. He quickly stood up, grinned and winked and dropped his bottoms to reveal he was commando. ‘O. My. God.’ I groaned as I looked at his thick heavy penis. It didn’t matter how many times I saw it, it still filled me with awe.

‘Just my cock?’ he gasped with a chuckle.

‘It’s a work of art,’ I sighed as I wriggled my shorts and knickers down in one move.

‘You’re a work of art baby, one I intend to fully appraise and appreciate right now. Get that hot arse over here,’ he ordered as he stripped of his t-shirt and stood in all his naked glory. I’d barely stepped over to him before he grabbed me and lifted me up onto his hips, one hand supporting my bottom, the other up my back as he firmly held the nape of my neck and kissed me. He took his time as he held me, exploring my mouth as if we’d never kissed before and every time we did, it felt as if it were the first time. I still got that fluttering of butterflies in my stomach, the tingling of my scalp, the feeling that I might just pass out from the ecstasy of it. I gave back as good as I got, my hands roving, clutching his shoulders, neck and face as I writhed on his hips. I could feel his erection gently tapping against me and I desperately wanted him inside me.

‘Now, I need you now,’ I gasped as I broke away. One look at his face told me that he was right there with me. He kneeled down and gently tipped me backwards onto the lounge rug, my legs still hooked around his waist and plunged himself into me as I cried out his name and arched my back. He pulled all the way out and dove into me again, over and over, slowly but with a force that could rupture my insides, until I was clawing at his shoulders and begging him for more. I was teetering at the brink of an orgasm from his teasing alone.

‘You’re so beautiful Mia, I love you so much,’ he sighed as sank into me again and held himself there, my muscles tightening around him, desperate to keep him inside of me.

‘I love you too Gabe, please stop teasing me.’

‘I want to take my time and watch your face and hear you beg and scream,’ he grinned as he did it again and I cried out.

‘You’re
evil
,’ I groaned.

‘You love it,’ he laughed as he rammed into me hard making me squeal.

‘
You
love it and you’re still evil,’ I sighed. The feeling of fullness was bad enough, but the sight of his bulging biceps, strong shoulders, firm chest and
that
face above me would send even the most sex immune woman into meltdown. ‘
Ahhhh
, Gabe, please,’ I begged as I dug my nails into his tight backside as he started to move faster, circling his hips and hitting every erogenous zone inside me.

‘You’re insatiable baby, you just can’t get enough of me can you?’ he groaned.

‘No,’ I gasped on another well needed intake of air. He grabbed one of my ankles and pulled it over his shoulder, angling himself even deeper inside me until I was screaming with pleasure and tearing at his skin. I nearly broke a tooth as our mouths collided in a frenzy amidst the screams and groans until I flung my head back and sobbed as my climax hit me like a freight train and my whole body spasmed.

‘Damn it Mia,’ he yelled as he stiffened and powered into me one final time and filled me before collapsing on me to catch his breath. I slowly ran my hands up his damp back and shoulder blades before clasping his face and kissing his lips over and over.

‘You. Are. Incredible,’ I sighed as my pelvic muscles continued to contract involuntary, echoes of my orgasm still rippling.

‘Hmmm, you make me incredible baby,’ he replied kissing me back. ‘No one has ever come close to how you make me feel, in or out of bed. Are you too tired to go again?’

‘Already?’ I looked up at him in amazement.

‘Your desire for me just keeps the blood flowing in his direction,’ he chuckled.

‘I’m going to make him age prematurely then because my desire is showing no signs of waning for you,
ever
,’ I whispered. ‘You’re the most gorgeous, sexy, hot man alive.’