Page 70 of Loving Wild

Going back to work isn’t even going to bring me normality, not when I’ll be working for the woman Gabe once had an affair with.

Drawing in a deep breath through my nose, I slowly release it through my mouth and attempt to calm my racing heart and the panic—triggered whenever I think too much about all of this—bubbling in my belly.

I lay there for a long moment, listening to the sounds of talking and laughter sounding through the house, and before I can overthink anything else, I let out another long sigh, climb out of bed, and head to the bathroom. It’s not until I catch sight of myself in the mirror that I remember what we did last night.

My hair’s a wild mess of curls after sleeping with it wet last night. I’m not sure if it was alcohol, exhaustion, or our height difference which meant that after we got our laughter under control, we ended up abandoning our attempts at shower sex. This, of course, all happenedafterthe dirty, filthy, drunken bed sex we’d had prior to staggering to the shower.

I smirk and give my eyebrows a wiggle as the memories hit and feel a certain level of satisfaction at doing what we did in Jackie’s house.

I didn’t care last night if we were loud, this morning, with the prospect of facing Gabe’s unfiltered family over breakfast, I can only hope none of them heard what we were up to, but if they did, I’m a big girl, and can handle whatever shit they’ll likely throw my way.

This is how I want to wake up every morning for the rest of my life, smiling at the great sex I had the night before, not about exes and abusers.

After splashing my face, cleaning my teeth, putting my hair up and getting dressed, I strip the bed, then head downstairs to find the man who fucked me into unconsciousness last night.

* * *

The main kitchen,living and dining areas of the house are on the first floor, the same as our bedroom, and the smell of bacon hits me as soon as I step out of the door.

Moving along the hallway, I enter the wide-open space of the kitchen. Sam is at the sink, Jess at the cooktop, and Dani is setting the table.

Looking past them and through the living and dining areas, I can see Gabe out on the front balcony with his dad and brothers.

“Morning, Ren, you want some coffee?” Dani asks.

“Morning. I’d love some please.”

Jess and Sam both turn my way and smile.

“The dancing queen’s awake. How you feeling?” Jess asks.

“Pretty ordinary,” I admit. “Anyone got any painkillers? My head hurts, and I’ve got cramps.”

“Cupboard above the fridge.” Sam gestures to my right with her chin, hands buried in the sink as she washes glasses.

I open the cupboard door, but I’m not tall enough to reach the basket inside. Grabbing a fork from the table, I stand on tiptoes and attempt to hook the basket with it.

“Struggling, Little Bird?” Gabe asks against my ear as one hand grips my hip, the other reaches over me, pulling the basket down and over my head.

Turning, I expect him to step away, but after twisting around to place the basket on the kitchen bench, he turns back to me, his hands going back to my hips as he looks down with a smile.

“You’re awake,” he states the obvious.

“You left me,” I complain while sliding my arms around his neck.

“You were out cold, I needed coffee, and I could hear the kids were up. I wanted to make sure Ava was getting herself sorted. We have a lot to do today.”

“Like what? I’ve got a headache and cramps. Once we drop the girls off, I just want to go home and get under a blanket on the sofa and eat crap for the rest of the day.”

He tilts his head as I talk and instead of the sexy smirk or serious scowl I usually get from him, I get a gentle smile.

“What?” I question, suddenly feeling paranoid.

“We can do that, but we’ve got other shit to do first.”

“Like what?” I question again, just as Dani shoves a mug of coffee between us. Gabe steps away from me, and without answering, heads back out to join his dad and brothers on the deck.

I watch his long, lean frame move through the room, his arse looking extra spectacular in his jeans today. My stomach does a few backflips, and the fanny flutters return as I remember what he was doing tomyarse last night, all thoughts of whatever it is he might want to do later leaving my brain.