Chapter Sixteen
Gabe almost tripped over his own feet when he caught sight of Elle in her pink bikini and grandma hat. She was completely focused on the book in her hands, and he could make a pretty decent guess to the contents based on the shirtless guy on the cover. So she liked romance books—good to know she wasn’t immune to every so-called “trashy” thing.
He was tempted to stand there and watch her until she noticed him, but that was a creeper thing to do. So Gabe dropped into the sand next to her and grinned. “Hey.”
“I didn’t even see you walk up.” She slammed the book closed and shoved it into her bag. “Where’s Nathan?”
Irrational jealousy surged, so strong he actually saw red for half a second before Gabe fought for control. “He had a few things to take care of, but then he’ll be up here.” Though he was suddenly wishing Nathan wouldn’t show. Damn it, no. He was not going to be jealous.
Instead of looking disappointed, she smiled, brighter than the sun above them. “Okay.”
He needed to change the subject now, before he did something stupid like ask her if she still wanted his little brother. “What are you reading?”
“Nothing.” She edged the bag to the far side of her body, which only made his curiosity perk up. “Just a book.”
“Cool.” Gabe waited until she relaxed, obviously thinking he’d lost interest, before he leaned over her back and snagged the bag. Elle gave a little shriek and dove for it, but he easily kept it out of reach. And, hell, he could play this game of keep-away forever if it meant he had her squirming in his lap.
He lifted the bag over his head and she lunged, her boobs hitting him in the face. Yeah, he was totally okay with this. He used his free hand to tickle Elle’s side, and she smacked him, still trying to grab the bag. “Give it back.”
“What’s this book about, anyway?” He switched his grip and swung it behind his back. She started to go after it and then froze. Apparently she’d finally realized what their wrestling match was doing to him and, considering she was now straddling his hips, he’d bet she wasn’t completely unaffected either.
“Um.”
Elle started to slide off his lap, but Gabe hooked an arm around her waist, keeping her in place. “I like you here.”
“People can see us.” She pulled her hat further down on her head, as if that would make a difference.
Gabe leaned in until his cheek brushed hers and lowered his voice. “We’re not having sex, babe.” Though that could change with a quick jerk of their swimsuits. Not that he’d do that, not in the middle of the day where there were kids running around. He’d take her out to one of the hiking trails around Coeur d’Alene Lake some night, though, and then they’d see if her desire overrode her reservations.
“Gabe.” He let go and it wasn’t until she was safely back on her towel that her head whipped around. “My book.”
“Finder’s keepers.” Gabe flipped it open to a random place and scanned the page. “Holy shit.”
“Give it back.”
She made as if she was going to grab it, but he held up his hand, still reading. “This is pretty hot.”
“I—what?”
“I mean, I’m not normally into the whole historical thing, but damn, babe.” She obviously had great taste in more than just tattoos. When her mouth dropped open, he waggled his eyebrows at her over his sunglasses. “Want to read it aloud and then try this position out?”
It was hard to tell in the bright light, but he was pretty sure she turned crimson. “I can’t believe you just said that.”
Considering where his mouth had been just a little over twenty-four hours ago, he was surprised by her shyness. Then again, this was Elle—it was entirely possible she’d never had an explicit conversation in her life. He caught himself wondering if she’d ever watched porn and killed the thought. Doubtful. Really doubtful.
But, Christ, she hadn’t been shy in bed. Not that she was brazen by any means, but Elle had a way about her. It made him desperate to take her again and again, until they’d both been so exhausted they could only lie intertwined and breathe. All in all, one of the best days he’d had in as long as he could remember.
Gabe handed the book back. “I like your style.”
“You’re incorrigible.”
“Only most days.” He stretched, enjoying the feel of the sun on his skin. Between the lapping of waves created by passing boats and the scattered laughter of the kids on the next beach over, Gabe finally started to relax. It’d been a long time since he unwound. Forever, really.
But there was something about this chick that made it possible. He reached over and laced his hand with hers. “Thanks for coming.”
“Thanks for inviting yourself.” She laughed. “But I’m glad we did this.”
Gabe was too. “You want a beer?”
“Sure.” Elle accepted the bottle and took a tentative sip. “I don’t normally like beer, but this kind always does it for me.”
“You’ve never been to a brewery, have you?” When she shook her head, he sighed. “It’s a totally different experience. We’ll have to go sometime. There’s a new little one that opened up in the valley—amazing beer. I think we could find something you’d enjoy.”
Using her finger to trace a pattern in the sand, she seemed to look everywhere but at him. “You seem to be making all kinds of plans like that.”
“Plans like what?”
“You know, for the future.”
Gabe sat back and watched her fidget. At what point did he tell her he had no intention of going anywhere? That he wanted to see if they really could have a future? He sipped his beer. “Babe, you’re overthinking again. Are you having a good time right now?”
“Yes.” Her voice was small, as if admitting something embarrassing.
“And do you think going to a brewery could be fun?” When she shrugged, he laughed. “It’s nothing like Lou’s—very clean-cut and reputable. I promise you’d approve.”
A smile finally pulled at the edges of her mouth. “I’m pretty transparent, huh?”
No, but it seemed the majority of the things he enjoyed, she’d be horrified by. They shared a love of art and crappy eighties action movies, though. And tattoos, too, apparently, which was even more important than the rest. Relationships had been built on less. Not to mention the future she’d painted was one he wanted more than anything. So what if they were exact opposites in some ways? It just made life more interesting.
Gabe made a mental note not to take her into another of his dive bars for the time being. Maybe later on… Maybe not. He’d have to play it by ear. Thinking back to the romance novel, he grinned. “So Highlanders are your thing?”
“We’re so not talking about this.”
He moved closer, skating a hand up her leg. “Are you sure? Because I’d be more than happy to kidnap you and blackmail you into being my secret sex slave.”
“That’s not what the book’s about.” Elle shook her head and laughed. “You’re being outrageous.”
“You like it.” He cupped her through her bikini, earning a sharp inhale.
“Someone will see.” Even as she spoke, she pressed against him.
The summery scent of suntan lotion had never smelled as good as it did on her skin. Smiling to himself, Gabe nibbled on her earlobe. “No one can see what I’m doing to you, babe. Which means I can do anything I want.” With a quick move, he slipped his hand into her swimsuit, finding her hot and soaking wet. “I think that novel got you all worked up.”
This time her laugh was tinged with desperation. “Gabe.”
“I really like it when you say my name.” He plunged two fingers into her and Elle gasped. “Better not moan. Someone will hear you.”
“Oh, God.”
Searching for a better angle, Gabe pressed the heel of his hand against her clit as he fucked her with his fingers. “They won’t know, though, as long as you scream into my mouth when you come.”
She leaned more heavily against him, her hands creating furrows in the sand. Little sounds slipped from her lips even as she so obviously fought to stay quiet. Holy shit, if there was anything sexier than Elle about to come, Gabe had no idea what it was.
Just as her body tightened with the beginnings of what he had no doubt would be an explosive orgasm, the roar of a diesel engine intruded. Sure, it could be anyone, but Gabe had never been that lucky, which meant Nathan was here. He glanced up to see the big black truck pulling into a parking space at the top of the stairway. They had two minutes, at best, before Nathan showed up. Fuck it, he was going to make his woman come, his brother be damned.
But Elle shoved his hand away. “Nathan’s here.” Without another word, she pushed to her feet and started for the water.
Gabe lost his train of thought in the face of the tiny string bikini that barely covered her ass. For such a square, she sure as hell liked clothes that drove men wild. Then again, with Elle, it was entirely possible she had no idea what she was doing to him. With a groan, he got up and followed her. Maybe the cold temperature of the lake would be enough to cool his desire.
Yeah, somehow he doubted it.
…
Elle didn’t know what to think. Okay, that was a lie. She knew exactly what to think. But part of her rebelled against the overwhelming feeling of rightness she experienced whenever she was around Gabe. Even now, knee-deep in cold water, she was half-tempted to throw caution to the wind and jump into his arms. He’d catch her—there was no doubt about it.
There should be doubt. She’d only known him a week. Sure, it’d been a really intense week, but it was still only a week. It shouldn’t matter that he made her body sing, not when she’d already proved how poor a judge her body was. Look at what she’d just been doing—getting frisky on a freaking public beach. And yet… Elle had never felt so alive in her life.
One could argue that it was strictly the post-sex high making her head fuzzy, but she didn’t think so. They hadn’t had sex since yesterday, after all. Maybe she just didn’t care. Gabe held her, touched her, kissed her as if he cared. Really cared. No one could fake something on that level. She was sure of it.
“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?”
Elle adjusted her hat in the breeze that kicked up over the water. “Just thinking.” Before he could ask her what, she looked past him and blurted, “There’s Nathan.”
But the relief at getting out of their current conversation was dwarfed by the sudden realization she was actually going to have to spend time with both Gabe and Nathan. At the same time.
It wasn’t too late. She could pretend she was sick and bolt. Elle slanted a glance at Gabe and sighed. If he thought she was sick, he’d want to go with her and make sure she was okay or, worse, threaten to drag her to the hospital. Again. No, she was going to have to keep her chin up and get through this afternoon. How bad could it be?
Nathan stopped next to their towels long enough to strip off his shirt. Elle tried to keep her jaw from dropping.
“Try not to drool on yourself, babe.” Though Gabe’s voice was light, his mouth thinned.
God, did he think she was checking out his brother? Okay, so Nathan was just as good-looking as she’d imagined, but that wasn’t the point. He had tattoos. Not as many as Gabe, but enough that she couldn’t stop staring. “Nathan has tattoos.”
“Uh, yeah. What did you expect?”
She didn’t have time to answer because Nathan had already made his way into the water. Seeing the brothers side by side without her anger blinding her to the details, Elle was positive she was going to pass out. They were really more similar than she’d first thought. And…the tattoos.
She’d tried so hard to pick a refined man her mother would approve of, and she’d failed miserably. Her Mr. Right radar was seriously broken.
“Hey, Elle. Gabe.”
Right, so this wasn’t awkward at all. “Hey. So…how are you?” What a question to ask. She’d just seen him two days ago. But everything seemed different now, especially after what happened between her and Gabe—and what he’d told her about their family. Elle just wanted to give them both a hug, which was a terrible idea. Good lord, she needed another beer.
Nathan’s gaze jumped between her and Gabe, his smile spreading into an all-out grin. “Obviously not as good as you two.”
Oh my God. Nathan knew. Which meant he knew she’d snuck into Nathan’s loft with the intention of seducing him. Elle couldn’t breathe even though her lungs were screaming for air.
Gabe must have picked up on her discomfort because he smacked Nathan in the shoulder, a little too hard to be strictly playful—or maybe that was her imagination talking. “Yeah, well, you win some and you lose some. I won this one.”
“Right place, right time.”
How could they be joking at a time like this? She was pretty sure the world was ending. And, yep, she was going to pass out. If things worked out, maybe she’d drown before one of them grabbed her and save herself from this embarrassment.
“Are you okay?” Gabe touched her shoulder as the world started to go white around the edges. “Babe, breathe.”
Déjà vu hit her so hard she nearly collapsed. He’d said the same freaking thing to her the night she was supposed to be having sex with Nathan. Funny, but it didn’t seem to work any better this time around. She swayed, putting some serious consideration into swimming until she couldn’t swim anymore and then letting the dark water take her. Drowning was supposed to be peaceful, right? She’d read that somewhere. Or maybe that was freezing to death? Heck, there had to be a freezer somewhere she could crawl into. Anything was better than standing here and having this conversation.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t know.” Gabe shook her and, darn it, startled her into a huge inhale. “There you go. What’s wrong?”
“Nathan knows,” she croaked.
The brothers exchanged a look and Nathan laughed. “Elle, I’ve known since that night. You left your…whatever the hell it is in my loft.”
All this time, and neither one of them had said a thing. Worse, Gabe had lied to her face about it. She jerked out of Gabe’s grip and smacked him. “What the heck is wrong with you? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Probably because you’d react like this?”
Nathan shrugged and smiled. “It’s really not a big deal.”
It felt like the top of her head exploded right then and there. She glared at her boss. “Not a big deal?”
His grin faltered. “Is it a big deal? You aren’t going to quit, are you?”
Good God, one brother was just as bad as the other. Elle wanted to strangle them, both standing there, their confusion written all over their faces. Of course they wouldn’t see what the big deal was. This kind of thing happened all the time in real life. Yeah, right. “I cannot believe you two.”
“I’m sorry, babe.” For his part, Gabe actually looked it. “But how was I supposed to find out who you were if I didn’t talk to Nathan about it?”
“But…he knows.” Her mind couldn’t get past that single thing. Nathan knew she’d been naked and intimate with his brother. His freaking brother. It wasn’t like she still wanted him after all this, but it didn’t lessen the embarrassment one iota.
“It’s really okay.” How Nathan could sound so calm and rational right now was beyond her. She just wanted to curl up and die. And he just kept right on talking. “I think it’s great that it happened. You guys are really good together.”
Elle blinked. “What?”
“I’m serious.” Nathan elbowed his brother. “I haven’t seen Gabe this happy in ages.”
“I’m standing right here—and you’re not helping.” He took her arm and pulled her away, out of the water and back onto the beach. “Babe, are you okay? Do you want to go?”
Looking into his concerned face, some of her anxiety melted away. “He’s really known this entire time?”
“Yeah. Like I said, I’m sorry.”
Nathan had known she almost slept with his brother and didn’t care. Heck, if he was okay with it, he was probably relieved she hadn’t found the right bed. That should have hurt, but now that she wasn’t freaking out, all she felt was a curious relief. Maybe she’d been so focused on finding a man her mother would approve of she’d been trying to force something that shouldn’t be forced. Air rushed into her lungs as her panic attack dissipated. Elle forced a smile, even though it wobbled a bit around the edges. “It’s…okay.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah.” And, oddly enough, she was.