Page 33 of Desired By you (Always & Forever #3)
Chapter Twenty-Five
Brad
We landed in LA earlier this afternoon, and I didn’t realize how much I needed to get out of New York and clear my head until I felt the California sun on my skin.
Maybe asking Gabriella to come with me wasn’t my smartest idea, but having her near me brings me an inner peace I didn’t know I was capable of reaching until we started hanging out more over the last few months.
I rented a place in the hills, a two bed, three bath white brick house with an infinity pool that overlooks the Hollywood Hills and lying out in the sun, soaking in the view, confirms that I miss living in a hot climate.
New York is where my family is, and by family, I mean the ones I’ve chosen as my family, aside from my sister and nephew, but living in Miami after leaving the Marines confirms I need to be in a hot place.
I don’t have any meetings until tomorrow, so the rest of today will be spent hanging out around the pool and ordering in.
The sun is beginning to set, and an orange glow blankets the hills.
I worry Gabriella is avoiding me. She said she had to teach a virtual Pilates class as she left for LA so last minute which I understood and I watched in awe from the living area out on the patio as she taught her class by the pool and contorted her body into all sorts of ways that had my dick pulsing and my heart racing.
We haven’t had sex, yet I think not allowing it to go that far may be the only thing that will help me move on when this is all done with, but it’s becoming harder with every passing day because she is all I see, and all I want but I know she’s giving this Patrick prick a chance and that’s a good thing.
If I’ve helped her find the confidence to date, then I’ve achieved what we agreed to.
I said I’d help her find herself, but then why do I have this painful weight that sits in my stomach, knowing I am helping her fall into the arms of another man and not into mine?
I give my head a shake and run a frustrated hand through my wet hair after my swim, looking up to see Gabriella appear, holding two glasses and wearing a tiny pair of denim shorts and a cropped black t-shirt, her toned legs flexing with every step she takes.
“Hey.”
“Are you all done with your classes now?” I ask, holding a hand above my eyes to block out the sun.
“Sure am. One of the other instructors is going to cover my morning class tomorrow, so I’m free now till we go back.” She places the two glasses on the table beside me, and I note their pink color and the cherries inside them.
“What are these?”
“Cherry Negroni. The perfect mix of bitter and sweet,” she says with a little smirk.
“Just like us,” I say flirtatiously.
“How poetic.” She sits on the lounger beside me. “I saw there were cherries in the refrigerator, so I looked up a cocktail recipe. Don’t worry, I’ve removed the stones so you can eat them.”
I lift the tumbler to my lips, and I am hit with the sharp taste of the gin along with a floral tang.
Two cherries float in my glass, and I take one out and bite it from the stem.
It’s cold, and the sweet juice fills my mouth, causing me to release a little moan.
“Hmmm, tastes just like you too.” Her mouth falls open, and I give her a wink.
She lies on her side to face me, and her eyes light up. Any worries I had earlier about things being weird between us leave me. I decide I am just going to enjoy this time with her and worry about everything else when we are back in New York.
“Do you have a party trick?” she asks, her voice full of excitement.
“No. What’s one of those?” I ask, furrowing my brow.
“You must know. It’s something you can do to entertain or a trick you can do.” She sits up and sips the negroni.
“I can’t say I’ve had the time to figure one out.”
“Well, I was a bored only child, so I had to find ways to entertain myself. Plus, I had this really cool nanny from England, and she taught me how to play poker, solitaire, pairs, and snap. It's amazing what you can do with a pack of cards.”
“I do like a card game. We used to play a lot when on tour.” A memory of Harry losing to Jack at a game of poker that resulted in Harry setting fire to the cards comes to mind, and I laugh.
“Well, you’ll have to play with me, because I am the queen of card games.” Her tone is confident, and she straightens her spine as she smiles proudly.
“Okay, queen. Show us what you’ve got. I want to see one of your party tricks.”
I wonder what the heck she’s going to do, and then she pulls a cherry from her glass and pops it into her mouth. She holds the stem in her hand as she chews and then swallows the cherry.
She holds the stem out in front of me. “I can tie this in a knot with my tongue.” She says it so innocently, and I sit up and place my feet on the patio tiles, giving her a challenging stare. “Prove it.”
She matches my stare, sticks out her tongue, and places the cherry stem on it, rolling her tongue back into her mouth.
I watch as she works, but her focus never leaves mine. Her eyes flash with something that looks a lot like lust, and I fist the towel beneath me to prevent myself from reaching out and pulling her on top of me.
When she pokes her tongue out, my eyes drift down to where a perfectly knotted cherry stem sits on the end of her tongue and I nearly damn well lose it. I pluck the stem from her tongue, and a low growl erupts from my throat.
“Do you have any idea how fucking hot that is, baby girl? I can think of a few ways you can use that talented tongue of yours.”
“Oh, yeah.” She presses her mouth together and places her hands either side of her as she leans back.
“Take your clothes off,” I demand, my tone firm, my body firing up.
“Why?” she asks innocently, cocking her head to the side.
“Because I’m about to perform my own party trick.”
A sharp gasp escapes her, and she stills, eyes wide.
“Take the clothes off, Gabriella.”
She looks around at the surrounding houses, the sun now setting so low that a little darkness has crept over the valley.
She reaches for the hem of her cropped shirt and pulls it up over her head in one swift movement, revealing a red string bikini, and fuck, red is her color.
She stands and pops the button of her shorts, letting them fall to the ground, exposing a matching string bikini bottom that barely covers her pussy.
I run my tongue over my top teeth and moan in appreciation. “You’re fucking incredible.”
I rise to my feet, towering over her, and she cranes her neck to meet my eyes.
“Where do you want me?” Her voice is far more confident than it was the first time we fooled around.
“I need to get you wet first.” I pull her body towards mine, and before she can say anything, I wrap my arms around her thighs and throw her over my shoulder and stride toward the pool.
“Brad, oh my god, nooo,” she squeals, but her words are cut off when I jump into the pool. Our bodies meet the water; it’s cool and crisp and tingles against my burning skin.
I pull us both to the surface where she flicks her head back to move her soaked hair away from her face.
She coughs and falls into a fit of giggles, and I can’t help but smile and laugh right along with her.
She wraps her legs around my hips and her arms around my neck, and to my shock, plants a kiss on my lips.
Tingles float up and down my spine with every stroke of her tongue.
I move us till her back meets the tiled edge of the pool.
A surge of desire works its way through my body.
She’s intoxicating, addictive, and I need her.
I lift her out the water and settle her on the edge of the pool.
“What are you doing?” Her words are breathless.
“I’m about to show you all the tricks my tongue can perform.”
I hoist myself out of the pool, water splashing onto the white tiles as I walk over to the little table and pick up my drink. I get back in the pool, keeping the glass above the water until I get back to her, and I maneuver her so I am standing in between her legs.
I take a sip and then wrap my large hand around her delicate throat and gently pull her closer to me, feeling her pulse stutter beneath my fingers.
I move toward her, watching her pink lips part the closer I get.
As soon as my nose brushes hers, I tilt my head, letting our mouths meet in a soft caress of lips.
Then, slowly, I press deeper to her, this time with purpose.
The drink lingers on my tongue as I let it spill slowly into hers, a warm rush shared between us.
Her lips curve around mine, trying not to let a drop fall as a quiet moan vibrates against my mouth and I can't tell if it’s me or her.
I pull back and watch her throat expand and flex beneath my inked fingers as she swallows down the last of the cocktail, wishing it was my cock in her mouth and my cum sliding down her throat.
Placing the glass beside her, I lean in, planting a kiss between her breasts, and work my way down her torso. She leans back, and I widen her legs.
I pluck the cherry from the glass and hold it to her mouth. “Suck it.” Her mouth latches onto the cherry, and she closes her eyes and moans around it.
I dip the cherry back in the alcohol and repeat, my dick hardening.
I pop the cherry in my mouth, biting it from the stem and tossing it on the side, the sweetness filling my mouth only reminds me of how good Gabriella tastes.