Page 58 of Anchor
“Your life is much too exciting for me,” I say emphatically.
Laughter dances in his eyes, even though he can barely keep his head up. “That so?”
Somehow, our hands find each other. I don’t know if it was a conscious decision on our part, or if we’ve somehow forged a link through tragedy that can never be broken. Either way, I don’t want to let go.
“Yes,” I say, once I manage to find the words. “I think I’m over the excitement. After this, only boring dates from now on.”
Gabe grunts as he shoulders through the paramedics working on him to sit beside me in the ambulance. Red and blue lights play over his face. “So thiswasa date?”
I chew on my bottom lip and look down at my feet. Shit, was I wrong? Was this too soon? I knew I should have kept things casual. I shake my head mentally. I never learn. After Thomas, you think I’d be a pro at knowing when a man wants to ditch me.
He thumbs my chin up. “I don’t know if I could call this a date,” he says. When I start to pull away he holds me captive. “What I feel for you goes past the normal get-to-know-you stage, Chloe. I don’t have a name for it, but I do know I want to see you again. I don’t want this to end.”
My spine straightens and I wrap my uninjured arm around my waist to contain the urge to jump up and tackle him. “You don’t?”
Gabe shakes his head and his hand slides down to cup my cheek. I find myself leaning into his touch despite my better judgment.
“Of course not.”
“But what about—”
He kisses me and then leans his forehead against mine. There are paramedics, policemen, and even F.B.I agents darting around us. It’s chaos, but when he moves even closer to nuzzle my cheek with his own, the world spins away until it’s just the two of us.
“Hey, Gabe,” Tyler interrupts, breaking the moment.
I try to contain my frustration and blow a piece of hair out of my face. Gabe’s fingers tense against my cheek, and if I weren’t so close, I would have missed his low growl.
“What is it?” he asks.
Tyler’s knowing smile splits his face. “Gotta couple questions for you. Paperwork.”
Gabe’s fingers knot in my hair. I burst out laughing. Tyler chuckles along with me.
“Swear to God, man, if you don’t disappear, I’m banning you from the shack.”
The smile fades from Tyler’s lips. “That’s low,” he says.
“So is interrupting me when I’m in the middle of something. Again.”
Tyler ignores Gabe’s fierce scowl and holds up a hand to me. “Nice to see you again, Chloe,” he says.
I take his hand and shake. “You, too.”
“Five seconds,” is all Gabe says.
Tyler laughs. “Good luck with this jackass. He’s a handful.”
Glancing back at the jackass in question, I just smile. “I think I can handle him.”
He claps a hand on Gabe’s back. “Make sure to drop by the station when you’re feeling up to it.”
Gabe jerks his chin in acknowledgment.
When we’re alone again, he runs his hand over my hair. “Look, I’m exhausted, you’re exhausted. I’ve never been good at the emotional crap. The only thing I know is I don’t want you to leave yet. I’d like to get to know you more, spend some time with you when we aren’t getting shot at.”
My smile builds slowly. “Boring, you mean.”
“I could use a little boring,” he says.