Page 15 of Desired By you (Always & Forever #3)

Chapter Twelve

Brad

I shouldn’t smile. I shouldn’t have just enjoyed the way she squirmed when I caught her watching me.

Shouldn’t have gotten off in the shower when she was just meters away.

But I couldn’t help myself. There was no way I could share a bed with her and hold on to my restraint without giving myself a release.

I may be able to exercise self-restraint and create boundaries in most areas of my life, but I know my limits.

I never expected her to know what I was doing, let alone watch, but a sick and twisted part of me loved that she did, and from her flushed cheeks and uneven breathing, I think she enjoyed it too.

I dry off and opt for a pair of black boxer briefs.

Usually, I would sleep naked, but I’m not a complete ass.

I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable, and truthfully, if she wants me to sleep on the floor of my guest room, I will.

She exits the bathroom, looking sheepish, unable to give me eye contact, and that’s not what I want.

I walk towards her, where she stands awkwardly, phone still clutched in her hand.

“Hey, are you okay? I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” I say, keeping my tone soft.

She sighs in relief, and her shoulders sag.

“Oh god, no, I’m sorry. I was the one who invaded your privacy.

I hope I didn’t make you feel uncomfortable.

I’m so—” I cut off her words by tugging her toward me, and she falls into my chest. I wrap my arms around her like I’ve done so many times before.

I know she’s three words away from going into full blown Gabriella rambling mode; something she does when she’s nervous, and that’s the last thing I want her to feel because before anything else, she’s my friend.

She relaxes in my hold, and we stand like that for a little while. It’s been a really weird evening. I cup her face and angle her to look up at me. “We good?” I say, eyeing her curiously. A wide smile presses across her face.

“Yeah, we’re good.”

“Good,” I say, pressing a kiss to her forehead and releasing the hold I have on her, needing to create a little distance because my brain is fried after tonight, and now isn’t the time to make sense of it.

I look at the clock and it’s just gone 2 am.

Knowing I’ll be up in less than six hours, I walk towards my side of the bed and pull back the covers.

She places her phone on the nightstand, and I flick off the lights, leaving only the glow of the Brooklyn Bridge filling the room.

“Do you want me to close the blinds?” I ask her as we slide into bed.

‘No, I like the lights,” she says softly, her words followed by a yawn. She wriggles around and moves so far over that she’s practically hanging off the bed.

“Gabriella, I’m not going to pounce on you; there’s no need to cling to the edge of the bed like a koala hanging from a tree.”

A little laugh falls from her lips, and she buries her face in the pillow.

“I know that. I just wanted to give you your space. You know, kind of like I should have earlier.”

I run my tongue along my bottom lip, grinning to myself.

God, this girl.

I reach over, hooking my arm around her waist, and tug her towards me, leaving a safe distance between our bodies for obvious reasons.

She squeals in surprise, and I nuzzle my face into her silk hair.

She smells of cherries and of something I shouldn’t want.

I should move my arm, I should give her the space a friend would, but when I feel her hand grip my arm and she wriggles a little closer, I leave my arm exactly where it is and let myself drift off holding on to the girl who is looking less like my friend and a lot like someone I desire.

Just before sleep steals me I whisper, “Night, Mia cara.”

Warmth blankets my body and a bright light makes it difficult for my eyes to adjust. It takes a few moments for my vision to focus. The morning sun streams through the windows, filling the room with an orange glow. I turn to look at my alarm clock: 8.54 am.

What the hell? I never sleep this late.

I attempt to move my left arm, but something stops me. My eyes drift down to where my body is tangled with another.

Gabriella.

Her head rests against my chest, and her arm lies across my bare torso.

Her leg hooks over mine, and my hand is resting against her bare hip.

Her dark hair splayed out behind, and the morning sun gives her skin a glow.

She looks like an angel, sleeping so peacefully in my arms that I don’t want to move.

Usually, I would be panicked, thrown off kilter that my entire morning is now out of whack.

I’ve missed my early morning run, and usually by now, even though it’s a Saturday, I’d be heading to the club or doing something work related.

But with Gabriella in my arms, the need to complete those tasks seems insignificant.

A calmness I’m not used to washes over me, and I tighten my grip, not wanting to let her go.

I’ve never been the dating kind, never really spent the night sleeping in the same bed as a woman, especially one where nothing happened, but I think I could get used to this feeling and this view.

My thoughts are interrupted when Gabriella stirs and stretches out beside me. I tilt my head to watch her as her eyes flutter open. She looks up at me through long, thick lashes, a bemused expression on her face.

“Good Morning, Gabriella,” I say softly. It takes her a few seconds to register, and then she leaps up and grips the covers to her chest.

“Oh, my god,” she shrieks.

Okay, not the response I was hoping for.

“Good morning to you, too,” I say, my tone laced in sarcasm. I stretch my arms and twist my body slightly, releasing the tension in my back.

“Did we…” she says, and it’s barely a whisper.

“No, Gabriella,” I say dryly. “There was an accident, and the road was closed, remember?”

Realization dawns on her face. “I remember, sorry. I’m so used to sleeping with Ali, and I like to cuddle. I shouldn’t have been lying on you like that. God, I really need to learn boundaries, I—”

I stop her rambling by tugging her by the arm and pulling her back down, flipping us both on our sides so we are chest to chest as I wrap my arms around her.

She squeals and giggles and I let out my own laugh.

I think I’ve laughed more around her in the last few weeks than I have in the last five years.

Everything feels a little lighter when she’s around.

“You don’t need to have boundaries with me, okay?

You want to stay in my bed and cuddle, you can.

If I didn’t want you here, I wouldn’t have brought you over,” I say, a slight sternness in my tone, needing to stress to her I don’t do things I don’t want to do.

Life is too damn short to spend it pleasing other people.

When you have experienced a lot of loss in life like I have, you learn that fact pretty quickly.

Losing Scotty and losing family members at a young age will do that to you.

Loss doesn’t always mean death, another hard fact I’ve learned.

She stills in my hold, her big brown eyes looking into mine, and gives me a rewarding smile, and it’s then I realize what I said. I offered her to stay in my bed whenever she wants.

“Do you want some breakfast?” I ask.

“Please,” she says softly. I begrudgingly let go of her and drag myself out of bed. When I stand, I notice my morning wood.

Fuck.

Not wanting her to see, I head straight for the bathroom, making sure I shut and lock the door, knowing I’ll need to deal with my situation before facing her again.

I hit the shower button and turn the dial to cold.

I take off my boxer briefs and step inside, my body stiffening as the cold jets of water hit my inked skin.

It takes only a minute for my body to adjust to the temperature, and it’s thankfully dealt with my throbbing dick.

Deciding I’ve tortured myself enough, I turn off the shower, stepping out, and wrapping a towel around my waist. I quickly brush my teeth and then leave the bathroom, searching for Gabriella, but she’s nowhere.

Assuming she’s gone in search of my guest bathroom, I head for my walk in closet and stop in my tracks when I am met with Gabriella’s bare ass bent over as she attempts to put on her leather pants.

“Well, this is becoming a regular thing, isn’t it?” I tease. I know I’ve startled her when she yelps and loses her balance, nearly falling into my neatly hung shirts. On instinct, I reach for her, gripping her tiny waist and hauling her body into mine.

“Oh my god, you scared me.” She gasps.

I look down at the ground and let out a low chuckle when I see her pants are stuck round her ankles.

“What were you doing?” I ask, amusement in my tone.

“I figured you’d be awhile in the shower, so I came in here to get dressed and put back your t-shirt.”

Feeling the desire to tease her a little, I lower my mouth to graze the shell of her ear. “And why did you figure I’d be in the shower awhile, huh?”

She audibly swallows, and her spine stiffens. “Erm, you know, to get clean and stuff.”

“If you wanted to see a morning show, baby girl, all you had to do was ask.” She turns on her heel.

Her cheeks flushing a crimson shade and I wonder if the bare skin of her ass cheeks would turn the same under my touch.

The image of Gabriella bent over as I drive into her from behind comes to the forefront of my mind.

I need to get a handle of these intrusive thoughts.

I step away from her, opening the top drawer of my closet and pulling free a pair of black sweatpants and turn and leave, putting space between us because if I didn’t, I fear I’d do something I’d regret and something she doesn’t want, because men like me don’t end up with a woman like Gabriella.