Passionate Addiction (6 page)

“Bright idea this was,” he mumbled to himself. “Go see Gabi. Find out if she’s hot. That won’t complicate things at all.” He was such a jackass. He couldn’t even blame the influence of drugs for this fuck up.

The devil on his shoulder insisted he walk in there and take what she rightly offered. On the other shoulder sat a poor excuse for an angel who shrugged and said,
“Why the hell not?”

“Exactly.” He straightened. “Why the hell not?”

He vaguely remembered having great reasons against going in there only a few moments earlier. Now, for the life of him, he couldn’t think over the image of her wet body in his mind.

Grasping the door handle, he turned the lever and pushed forward. Warm steam hit him like a physical blow. It was nothing in comparison to what the sight before him did to his body. His knees weakened and his thighs tightened. Even his gut did a freaky little flip that had him swallowing hard as he stumbled into the room and moved back to rest against the door.

Gabi stood with her tanned back to him, the rush of water running over her shoulders and down her spine. Steam fogged the glass, restricting the view to her lower half, but he could still make out the roundness of her ass and the outline of the gorgeous legs he soon hoped to have wrapped around him. Her body defied logic—a mix of heavenly temptation and delicious sin—not a flaw to be seen.

With natural seduction, she glanced over her shoulder, scorched him with her wanton perusal, then turned back to face the taps. “Are you going to stare, or are you getting in?”

Green light. Go, go, go, buddy.

Normally, he would’ve had his clothes off faster than you could say “instant erection,” but this was his angel. There was no room for error. If tonight’s test of their relationship proved to be too much, he needed to make sure what they shared was perfect. Unforgettable. Not rushed and riddled with regrets.

“You sure this is what you want?” he asked and had no idea why. If she changed her mind, it would bring him to his knees. “There’s no going back from this.”

She chuckled, the feminine sound penetrating his heart. “I think it’s a little late for that.” She shot him another glance over her shoulder. “And besides, you’ve seen me naked now. I won’t be letting you outta here until we’re equal on that tally.”

He raised a brow, and she turned away with a grin.

Far be it for him to let a woman down, especially one so important. The only thing that made him pause with his hands at the hem of his shirt, was the knowledge of what his nakedness would reveal…a lot more than just his mighty Johnson. He had tattoos. Lots of them. And all held special meaning. Gabi knew about most of them, hell, the entire world knew about most of them, but there was one she definitely wouldn’t be aware of. One he didn’t flaunt. One that kept his hands poised at the bottom of his shirt, contemplating if this really was the right thing to do.

To hell with it.
He was finally here with his angel and he wouldn’t pussy-foot it now.
Grow a set, Kennedy.

In seconds, his shirt was on the floor and kicked to the corner, followed by his boots, socks, boxers, and jeans. His cock stood proud, hard as stone and eager as all hell to reach nirvana. He walked to the shower unfazed by his nudity, yet his insides churned with vulnerability. His body had never been a weakness. It was everything else—his mind, his heart, his soul. It all seemed tainted from the stupid choices of his past. And he’d made many.

The one thing that gave him strength to carry on was knowing Gabi knew all his mistakes and continued to be his friend regardless. He would never lie to her. Not even about his feelings. If she asked him what he wanted out of this encounter, he would tell her—no doubt freaking her out in the process. Settling down with a woman didn’t scare him. In fact, it was the opposite. He may not deserve love, but it didn’t stop him from craving it. From her.

When the fuck did he turn into a chick?

He swallowed his nervousness, clenched his fists a few times, and then opened the screen to paradise. The shower was large, roughly the size of the one in his apartment back home, with shiny black tiles and two showerheads at either end. He had no interest in standing under a spray by himself, though. His place was beside Gabi.

She kept her back to him, not noticing or maybe not caring that he now stood behind her with waning restraint. He paused inside the screen door, staring at the trail of water cascading down her spine, over the indentations at the small of her back, covering the lush ass he itched to palm. He shook his head and convinced himself that tonight wouldn’t end well. Anyone who knew the secrets of his life would know he hadn’t worked up enough brownie points to earn the pleasure of having this woman in his life on an intimate level. He didn’t deserve her.

It was probably why Michelle kept calling him. The viper of a woman was a constant reminder of his lapses in judgment. The coked up heiress-wannabe-celebrity resembled more of the type of woman he would end up with.

But until his past caught up with him, he would take and cherish every piece of heaven he could get his hands on. Pushing the haunting memories to the back of his mind, he stepped forward, leaving an inch between them—one his dick eagerly jerked to fulfill. That’s when she turned and stopped his heart completely.

He had a glimpse of her full breasts, the rosy red nipples straining toward him before he dragged his gaze to her face. She peered up at him through flickering lashes, her blue eyes now darker as she grinned.

“Do you know how many times I’ve imagined you naked?” He couldn’t help the smile that tilted his lips when her eyes widened.

“Liar.”

He raked his gaze down her body, trying hard not to focus on the petite patch of curls between her thighs. Then he closed the distance between them, the hardness of his erection resting against the low of her belly. Her skin was so soft, so smooth. “It’s true. Even though I had no clue what you looked like, I fantasized about you all the time.”

She narrowed her gaze, her hands coming to rest on his biceps.

“Still don’t believe me?” he asked.

She raised her brows and shook her head. “Not in the slightest. I’ve had the image of you taunting me for years.
I’m
the one who’s been going through hell wanting to see you up close…and completely naked,” she finished with a cheeky grin.

He leaned in to nuzzle her neck, hiding his shock. The warmth from her body sunk under his skin and warmed his frigid soul. He was the drug abusing rock star from a deadbeat family. He didn’t deserve her friendship, let alone her interest.

Her hands found his hips and trailed up the muscled groove running from his groin to his abdomen. Light fingers ran up the middle of his stomach, fanning out, her fingertips searching his skin, finding the tiny discolored battle scar on his side.

“Gunshot wound,” he murmured and loved the way she chuckled in reply. She knew all his stories, all the challenges and achievements that made him who he was today.

When she reached his left pectoral muscle, she paused. A sharp inhale of breath sounded over the running water and he tensed, knowing exactly why she’d done it. Words escaped him while she studied the plane of skin.

His chest pounded as he waited for her to pull away, to flee. She didn’t. She stood before him, her eyes focused on the tribal angel design with Gabrielle’s name inscribed along the top of one outstretched wing.

Her gaze snapped to his, her eyes wide, her mouth slightly ajar. Fearing the worst, he swallowed, his Adam’s apple convulsing uncomfortably. All his tattoos had a meaning, and none of them were more monumental than the one over his heart. “You’re my angel, Gabi.”

Her mouth closed and her nose scrunched as she began blinking, faster and faster.

“Hey, don’t cry.” He cupped her chin, tilting it up to place a soft kiss on her lips. When he leaned back, he was smiling. If she hadn’t fled by now, with all the awkward insanity and intense emotion, then he was confident she never would. It didn’t get much crazier than inking your skin with the name of someone you’d never met.

“You saved my life. I never want to forget that. Even when I’m old and senile. Even if we drift apart. No matter what happens, I will always hold you close to my heart.”

***

Gabi stared at the swirled lines that made up the angel adorning Blake’s chest. Each second that passed made her eyes burn hotter and her heart pound harder. A scream tightened her lungs, one of pure happiness and excitement, and she fought not to let it out.

They’d been through so much together. She’d helped him battle his addiction, fight the demons that kept trying to tear him down, and in return, he was her rock. He comforted her through the grief of losing her brother, listened to her pain, and not once had he turned his back.

“Say something,” he asked, his voice rough.

“I love you.” The words burst free without thought. She’d loved him for so long, as a friend and much, much more. It wasn’t the first time she’d made the admission. The words had been shared between them for years in a friendly manner.

This was different. This was a declaration from the very heart of her, and it was a relief to let it out.

She lifted her gaze to his dark, smoldering eyes and felt the undiluted passion coming off him in waves. He growled low, and on instinct, they leaned into each other, their mouths meeting in the middle. His tongue swept her bottom lip, smooth and fluid, making her knees weak and her heart stutter.

He was so strong, so commanding, and she needed to be closer. She undulated against him, making her desire known. He gripped her ass in response, causing tiny whimpers to escape her throat. Their kiss became faster, harder, until she was too delirious from passion to make a sound.

He broke the connection, leaving her reeling and clutching his chest for support. “I want to make love to you,” he said between breathless nips to her lips. “I want to spend all night inside you. Touching you. Tasting you.” His arms circled her back, hugging her close. “I’m never going to want to stop.”

She nodded, running her hands around his neck, stroking the short hair at his nape. Damn, she loved this man, with his black as night eyes and his heart of gold. He had the exterior of a hellion and the soul of the divine—a tangled combination that she had never been able to resist.

He squeezed her tight and spun her around in the snug space. She squealed and gripped him as he reached around her waist to open the shower door. Dripping and naked, he walked them from the bathroom, into the adjoining bedroom. They kissed with each step. The soft pecks curled her toes. The deep thrusts of tongue clenched her womb. Their hands ran over each other in a voracious need, brushing and gliding, skin against skin.

Her calves hit the mattress and Blake spun them again. He lowered to the bed and sat, pulling her with him so she straddled his lap. The hardness of his erection ran along her entrance, teasing her with the implication.

He gazed into her eyes, a playful grin tugging at his lips. “I’ve died and gone to heaven, haven’t I? Or Mitch drugged me and I’m dreaming.” He nuzzled her cheek and placed kisses along her jaw. “I’ve never done anything to deserve this… You.”

The warmth of his breath swept over her wet skin, giving her tingles, driving her to madness. Her fingers ran into his hair, scratching, tugging, allowing her something to cling to as his tongue found the sensitive spot below her ear. Her hardened nipples ached for the tenderness of his mouth and she arched into him, giving the tightened buds the friction they craved against the light dusting of hair covering his torso.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmured into her neck. One arm held her around the waist, while his other moved to her breast. “I’m gonna make you feel so good, Gabi. You’ll never regret what we share tonight.”

She leaned back to make eye contact. They were bathed in shadow, only the soft glow from the living room lamp giving them light. It turned his irises an intense black, darker and deeper than the ink running down both arms and over his left pec. “I’ll never regret you, Blake. Ever.”

For long moments they stared, loving each other with teasing strokes of fingers and slight gyrations of their hips, never breaking eye contact. The moment was surreal. Him being here was surreal. She couldn’t get over it, couldn’t understand it, but she’d be damned if she would question what was happening between them. This was what she’d always wanted.

As she loved him with her gaze, her skin began to cool from the water dripping from her hair and she shivered.

“Cold, angel?” he murmured low.

She smiled, loving the nickname more than words could express. “A little. Maybe you could warm me up.” She pushed her knees against the mattress, moving herself higher, hovering the heat of her sex above his cock. “Do you think you can do that?”

He chuckled and grabbed her forearms, yanking her body around so she lay on the bed and at his mercy. The lower part of her legs hung over the mattress and he towered over her, piercing her in place with his self-assured smile. “I can sure try.”

His left palm trailed over her skin, from her shoulder, around the curve of her breast, along her stomach. She held her breath, luxuriating in the way he worshipped her body. Every nerve ending was raw, every heart beat stuttered, anticipating his next move.

He slid over her, bringing his head down to her chest. She gripped the quilt and drifted in bliss as he licked away stray droplets of water from her sternum, her ribs, and finally her tight breasts. His mouth hovered over her nipple, and he peered up at her under thick, black lashes. “Still cold?”

She swallowed, on the verge of begging him to continue. “Mmm-hmm.” She nodded and bit her lip, fighting back a smile when he grinned.

“Now’s not the time to point out that it’s probably your cold heart causing the probl—”

She gripped the short strands of his hair and lightly pulled until his face came up to hers. He chuckled and settled between her thighs, his erection poking her entrance. “I have a cold heart, do I?”