Unbearable: Russet Falls Series (19 page)

Zane happily obliged, opening her
delicately before running a gentle finger along her crevices. He pressed his
thumb firmly against her clit, rubbing her in small circles, seemingly taking
pleasure in the way Gabby’s thighs trembled and the tiny noises she couldn’t
help making.

And he didn’t stop there.

Ever so gently, he brought his
mouth to her, kissing her on her most sacred place and making her toes curl as
she grabbed clumps of his hair. He groaned slightly when she knotted her
fingers in his strands, and he seemed to work even harder at pleasuring her.

The rest was a blur of unparalleled
pleasure. She was embarrassed to admit that no man had ever made her orgasm; it
was something she had come to do on her own. Sure, she had been intimate with a
few men, but she had never been able to fully let her guard down and accept
what they were willing to give her.

With Zane it was different. She
fought against her natural tendency to push him away and resist. And, quite
honestly—she couldn’t do it.

Before she knew what was happening,
she felt her breath quicken and her heart accelerate even more so. Her thighs
trembled uncontrollably, and if she wasn’t leaning up against the wall she
surely would have fallen over.

“Oh! Oh! Oh!” She let the waves
wash over her, caught up in an experience she had never known before. Zane
continued to kiss her, sending her into a frenzy, until she was spent and
exhausted, falling limply toward the floor as Zane caught her.

“Hey, hey,” he whispered, scooping
her up.

She looked at him with wide eyes,
knowing she was giving too much of herself away; she had let her guard down.

He carried her into the living
room, laying her down on the couch. Suddenly self-conscious, she fixed her
shorts and covered herself back up. She felt Zane’s eyes lingering on her
plentiful curves.

“I—I think you should go,” she
stuttered. How had she let that happen? Zane was the person responsible for so
much of the pain in her life.

“But—’’ he looked at her helplessly,
and then his face masked over with pride. “Right,” he said tightly.

“I’m sorry, Zane. I let my guard
down. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Right. Well, don’t worry. At least
I was here to get Drake off your case and to service you.”

Gabby gasped at his choice of
words. “I’m sorry!” she cried, “I got carried away!”

“It’s fine. I should have known
better than to stop by.”

Something snapped inside Gabby, and
she jumped off the couch. “You’re right. You should have known better!” she
shouted.

“Fuck this,” he muttered, turning
and walking towards the door.

How the hell was she supposed to
live in this community with him?

“Good!” she cried running after
him, hating herself for giving in to him, and more for yelling at him. There
didn’t seem to be a healthy way to deal with whatever strange relationship they
had.

She watched him walk out of the
house and hurry down the porch stairs. She slammed the door.

“Damn him!” she cried, kicking the
door for good measure. She let out a sob and clapped her hand over her mouth.
How would she ever adjust to this new life? How would she ever find a mate?

Zane hurried back towards his
house, fuming. Gabby was hot and cold, and he had dealt with about all he could
take. He was supposed to be doing other work for Michael today, but Alicia had
screwed that up by not being around. He was too pissed off to do anything else,
so he jumped in his car and headed for the park office.

His bear was beating inside him
like the angry animal it was and he wanted to let it loose so he wouldn’t have
to deal with his emotions. He was angry with Drake, angry with Alicia, angry
with Michael and angry with Gabby. He was angry at the entire fucking world.

He shouldn’t be upset that Gabby
threw him out; he knew how she felt about him, but it still made him furious.
He knew he didn’t deserve to be forgiven, but when he was near her, she was all
he could think about. 

In the parking lot, he threw the
car into park and hopped out, striding irately towards the office. He stormed inside
and came face-to-face with Alicia.

“What are you doing here?” he
exploded.

Alicia gaped at him. “What the
hell, Zane? I’m working.”

He took a deep breath. “Sorry. That
was uncalled for. I just came from your house.”

Alicia stared at him. “Well, that sounds
pretty stupid.”

Zane tried not to snap back at her.
“Michael sent me over to talk to you about some business things.”

“Yes, I know,” she said, running
her hand over her shiny ponytail. “I just came from his office. We’re going to
put some money into new security measures.”

Zane nodded, aware of the plan.

“Well, since you don’t seem to need
me, I’ll be going now.” She moved past him but Zane called out after her.

“Just so you know, Drake came by
this morning.”

“What?”

“He was pestering Gabby when I showed
up. I guess he thinks the rules don’t apply to him.”

Alicia’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll keep
my eye out for him. You better tell Michael too.”

Zane nodded and headed towards
Michael’s office.

“Sorry,” Michael apologized. “I
didn’t realize Alicia was planning on stopping by this morning.”

Zane didn’t react. He was angry,
yet his visit to Alicia’s had still been worth it, all things considered. Gabby
had tasted amazing and his bear senses had been able to pick up on the heavy
smell of her arousal. She could tell Zane she hated him all she wanted, but she
couldn’t deny physiology.

“Drake was bothering Gabby when I
showed up, so it’s a good thing I went over.”

“What the hell?” Michael scoffed,
“He knows when calling hours are.”

“Yeah, well he didn’t seem to give
a shit.”

“How my aunt ever gave birth to
him, I’ll never know,” he trailed off. Zane wasn’t sure of the story exactly,
but it was his understanding that his aunt had been raped. She had refused to
give up the child, and hence, Drake arrived nine months later. He had never
quite fit in, and since he was a shifter, the attacker must have been a shifter
too.

“And how did Gabby take it?”
Michael asked.

“She seemed to be handling him, but
let’s just say it was a good thing that I arrived when I did.”

Michael nodded gravely. “I’ll speak
to him.” He paused. “It seems we’re having no luck finding Gabby a suitor.”

“No,” he said shortly.

“It’s a lot for her to take in,”
Michael pointed out, “I know we’re asking quite a lot from her.”

Zane nodded, lost in thoughts of
Gabby. “Yes,” he agreed, “I think we are.”

Gabby was sulking at the kitchen
table when Alicia walked in the front door.

“Well, it sounds like you had an
interesting morning,” she quipped, putting her bag down on the counter.

Gabby rolled her eyes. “Who did you
bump into? Zane or Drake?”

“Zane. Nobody wants to bump into
Drake, trust me.”

“No wonder,” she muttered.

Alicia sighed and sat down next to
her. “It’s tough, isn’t it?”

Gabby laughed bitterly. “What part?
Being forced to marry someone I don’t know? Being ripped away from my life?
Learning that creatures from horror stories exist?”

Alicia looked slightly offended but
seemed to let it go. “Yes. I guess all of that is hard.”

“I mean—how the hell am I supposed
to just meet someone and agree to be with them?” she burst out, throwing her
hands in the air.

“I know. It must seem strange to
you. To us, well, we know that we should find a mate among us so that we can
keep the blood line going.”

“It’s impossible. I’ll never find
someone. And it’s not that I don’t appreciate all that you’re doing for me, but
I miss my own space. I can’t keep living like this!”

Alicia nodded understandingly. “Did
you know that Zane and I were engaged?”

Gabby’s jaw dropped. “What?”

“Yep.”

“What happened?”

“I did something pretty shitty. I
cheated on him with Grayson and then left him.”

Gabby’s mind was blown. As much as
she despised Zane, he certainly seemed the better choice than Grayson. And she
was shocked that Alicia would bring it up out of the blue.

“Why?”

Alicia shrugged. “I can’t explain
it. Grayson balanced me out better somehow. I know he comes off as a prick, but
I promise you, deep down he’s very sweet.” She quickly continued. “Though
that’s not to say that Zane isn’t a great guy! He really is. I felt awful for
the way I hurt him. He didn’t deserve it. But, we just weren’t right for each
other.”

She got up and poured herself a
glass of water as she gathered her things to go into her office.  “I’m not
quite sure what’s going on between the two of you,” she said, holding up her
hand before Gabby could interrupt her. “But I can’t help seeing that you two
would get along well together. You both have very,” she paused, looking for the
right words, “fiery spirits.”

Gabby rolled her eyes. “That’s one
way to put it.

 “Think about it.” She went to
leave the room and then stopped. “Oh, I meant to tell you. I saw Michael this
morning, and we’re taking on a big new project to help beef up our security.
It’s going to keep me very busy for a while, and I really could use some extra
help.”

Gabby perked up.

“I told Michael that I thought you
were bored being cooped up in here with nothing to do. He said if you wanted,
you could come on and help me. You’ll be paid of course, and right now, it
would be maybe fifteen to twenty hours a week and-’’

“Yes!” Gabby cried before Alicia
could even finish. “Yes! Please!! I’m going out of my mind!”

Alicia laughed. “I thought so. I’ll
work on getting some things together today, and maybe I can start training you
tomorrow. It’s just basic finance stuff. I promise, once you learn the systems,
you’ll be able to do it. We’ll get a workstation set up for you, too.”

“That would be great!” Gabby cried
happily, her mood lifting. Alicia smiled and left the room, leaving Gabby in
high spirits.

The following week passed much more
quickly, and Gabby relished having a purpose and being able to work. Alicia had
been right, it wasn’t hard work, but it kept her focused and it helped fill her
time.

And having her time filled was
quickly becoming a priority since she was having less and less hope of finding
a mate. Michael hadn’t actually given her a timetable, but it had been two
weeks now and Gabby knew she was running out of choices.

She had attended Lucy’s graduation,
which had been bittersweet. It reminded her of the life that she no longer had,
yet it also made her proud of her little sister. She had gone out to dinner
with Lucy afterwards, and Andrea had even tried her best to act like a normal
person throughout the meal. Lucy was enrolled in three classes in the fall, and
was on a waiting list for one more course should they open another section.

Lucy didn’t quite understand
Gabby’s situation, but she had finally seemed to accept it, and was placated by
the fact that she and Gabby could still spend time together. Gabby had every
intention of keeping her eye on Lucy, especially when her studies started in
the fall. For now, Gabby was happy to let Lucy enjoy her summer.

Gabby drummed her fingers along the
keyboard, daydreaming. The sound of the front door opening brought her back to
reality, and Alicia came walking into the small room where she and Gabby did
most of their work.

“Hey,” she greeted Gabby, setting
her bag down. “I just came from the park and I think we’re going to test one of
the security measures this evening, which means I will probably be up most of
the night.”

Gabby nodded, not really sure what
that meant for her.

“So, I think I’m going to lay down
and try to get some rest now.” Alicia glanced at her. “Unless you need me.”

“No. I’m fine. Sounds like you need
some rest.”

“Are you sure?” Alicia asked.

Gabby felt like she was being
treated with kid gloves and she knew why. Zane had stopped by last night to
bring Alicia some papers, and like always there had been explosive chemistry
between Gabby and Zane, though Gabby had been sharp-tongued.

Gabby pasted a smile on her face.
“Really. I’ll be fine.”

Alicia didn’t seem to be buying it.
“Okay. If you say so.”

Gabby nodded. “I hope you have a
good nap.” She turned back around to her computer, hoping to send the message
that the conversation was closed.

The thing that made her so angry
was that she knew that she and Zane could have had great potential aside from
the one minor detail of him
killing
her father. And even though it
happened long before Gabby had ever met Zane, she couldn’t wrap her mind around
it. Every time she looked at Zane, she saw the bear that killed her dad.

She focused back on her work,
forcing her mind away from Zane and his protectiveness, not to mention
possessiveness. And she couldn’t even start thinking about all of his sex
appeal.

Ugh. She was getting wet just
thinking about him.

Focus, focus, focus.

Somehow she got herself back on
track and when she looked at the clock it was nearly six. She had gotten a late
start that morning, but still she was surprised to see that it was that late.

She stood up and stretched, feeling
her muscles relax. She went into the kitchen to make some dinner, and once
again, she longed for her own place. Alicia came pounding down the stairs,
dressed in all black, with her hair in a high ponytail.

“Hi,” she said cheerfully, pulling
out some fruit.

“Why are you so happy?” Gabby
muttered.

“I just had a long nap and now I
get to work on something really exciting.’’

Gabby rolled her eyes. “I’m getting
tired of not having my own privacy,” she lamented.

Alicia laughed. “Sorry. Were you
hoping to eat dinner in the nude?”

“Maybe,” Gabby sulked. “At least I
would have the option if I lived alone.”

“Well, at least you have the place
to yourself tonight!” She smiled, took a big bite of her apple and waved before
heading out the door.

Gabby made herself a sandwich and
settled down to eat alone. She never realized how much she craved alone time
until she had been forced to live with someone. And it wouldn’t be any
different when she found a mate! She would just go from living with Alicia to
someone else! A guy, nonetheless.

Gabby shuddered.

That seemed even worse.

She cleaned up her plate and went
into the living room. She felt like a caged animal and she decided she would do
some yoga to unwind. She had never been a big yoga person, but she had picked
it up once she started living with Alicia. Alicia had an entire stack of yoga
DVDs plus a few mats, and Gabby took the things out and settled herself.

She moved from upward dog into
downward dog, taking a deep breath as she tried to clear her mind. She was
determined to feel relaxed. She moved into tree pose, closing her eyes as she
brought her hands in to her chest. She was just beginning to feel relaxed, when
she heard a knock at the door.

Sighing, she went to see who was
disrupting her peaceful yoga session.

She pulled the door opened and
scowled.

“Zane. What are you doing here?”
She was suddenly acutely aware of her tight shorts and tank top.

“Alicia needed me to drop something
off.”

Gabby crossed her arms. “Alicia
isn’t here right now.”

“I know. That’s why she needed me
to drop it off.”

Gabby raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Zane tossed a folder down on the
hallway table. “Yep.” His gaze was just as stony as Gabby’s, but then he
cracked, and Gabby could see the emotion.

“I think you need to go,” she said
woodenly, moving towards the open door.

“Gabby,” his voice caught in his
throat. He reached out for her arm, but Gabby pulled back, glaring at him.

“Don’t, Zane. Just don’t.”

He restrained himself this time,
not reaching for her again.

“How am I even supposed to look at
you?” she burst out, feeling the anger bubble up inside of her. “How am I
supposed to forget what you did?”

“You can’t,” he said simply, a look
of resignation on his face.

Something about the way he said it—so
simple and matter of fact, set her off.

“You asshole!” Gabby screamed,
lunging at him.

Zane only had a moment to react,
but he was quick enough and he stumbled back, before reaching out and grabbing
Gabby to restrain her.

“Stop! Let me go!” she sobbed,
fighting and kicking at him. “It’s your fault. You! All these years!” she
choked. “All these years, and it was you!” She dissolved into sobs and Zane
pulled her close, his body so warm, warmer than any human Gabby had known.

“I know, I know,” he murmured, “how
can I ever show you my remorse?” He held her close, the heat of his body nearly
making her perspire. He ran a hand over her arms, trying to comfort her, and
Gabby let him. He held her close and then his hands were tangling in her hair,
pulling at her and tilting her head back before he brought his lips to hers.

She didn’t want to kiss him.

Her brain yelled NO.

Yet, her body…

Well, her body was completely betraying
her and screaming for more. Every nerve ending was crying out for more of Zane,
and she despised herself for being reduced to nothing but a wanton, greedy
woman.

She kissed Zane back, her body
pressing closely to him, and he growled with desire, grabbing hard at her ass
and squeezing it so hard she yelped with pain before pleasure flooded her body
again.

When Zane saw how she responded, he
bit on her lip roughly.

“Hey!” she cried out, but Zane paid
her no attention as he cupped her ass again, squeezing her tightly against his
hard cock.

Oh God.

That felt good.

Way, way too good.

But there was no stopping Zane, and
if Gabby was being brutally honest, she didn’t want him to stop. Because as
much as she despised him and hated what he did to her and her family, she
couldn’t fight her body’s need for him.