Seducing his Wife (The Steele Brothers Book 3) by Elizabeth Lennox (1)

 

“Figures!” Gabriella muttered as she stepped out of her rental car.  Looking around, she had to be impressed with the scale of the building.  It was one of the largest in the area and, by far, the most luxurious.  But the boom in Seattle’s corporate district didn’t interest her.  Not in any way, she told herself firmly. 

She was here for one reason and one reason only.  Get the signature, get back into her rental car and fly home.  Toby, her fiancé, would never know about Teague Steele.  No one in Boston could ever know!  This was her secret, her one stupid moment of madness. 

Teague was the biggest mistake she’d ever made.  As soon as their…time together had come to an end, she’d realized how stupid she’d been that weekend. 

Unfortunately, her weekend fling had turned into a bigger mistake than she’d thought possible.  Teague might be gorgeous, funny, interesting, fascinating to talk to and…okay, yeah, he was beyond incredible in bed.  But he wasn’t the kind of man she needed in her life.  He was rough, obnoxious, arrogant, and didn’t listen to her needs adequately.  He was just irritatingly sure that he knew what was right for her.  For them. 

Well he wasn’t right!  He’d been shockingly wrong! 

She’d been wrong to…sew her wild oats with a man like Teague Steele.  Stupid and wrong and just…stupid! 

Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself down, reminding herself that everyone made stupid mistakes that they regretted. She squared her shoulders, breathing in and out to find that inner peace that she’d struggled so hard over the past year to achieve. 

It had been like that from the first moment she’d met Teague Steele.  The racing heart, the crazy emotions, the insane actions…definitely not the actions of a woman with an intelligent and cautious head on her shoulders.  Teague made her crazy.  End of story. 

Toby understood her.  Toby was sweet and kind and so considerate, he made her feel respected and cared for.  Toby was her future.  Teague Steele, with all of his charm and devastating smiles and that amazing way he had of…well…

She shook her head and pushed thoughts of THAT out of her mind.  THAT was irrelevant now.  Teague was her past.  Toby was the man she needed for her future.  Teague was definitely not her future.  Not in any way. 

And as soon as she got his signature on these papers, she could put him out of her mind and move on with her life.  Back to Toby.

Taking another deep, cleansing breath, she carefully stepped away from the relative security of her rental car, not exactly sure where to look, but determined to find the man.  Tucking the brown envelope under her arm, she headed towards the only trailer on the construction site, hoping she appeared more confident than she felt.  From past experience, she knew that the trailers on a work site usually housed the construction managers and, if the person were a good site manager, they would know where all of the employees on the site were at any given time. 

She had to carefully step over the loose boards that had been laid down over the mud as a sort of pathway but the boards had been well used over the years and were barely better than the thick mud that seemed to surround every work site.  Mud and dust.  Her beautiful, black Prada pumps were not designed to be maneuvering around mud clumps, she thought with derision and frustration. 

When she reached the steps leading up to the trailer, she sighed with relief when she’d arrived with her lovely shoes unsullied. 

Stepping into the well-lit and surprisingly clean trailer, she was relieved with the warm interior.  A smiling brunette woman with sparkling blue eyes looked up.  “Hi!  Can I help you?” she asked. 

Gabriella returned the smile, thankful to find a friendly face.  “I’m looking for Teague Steele.  Do you have any idea where he might be?”

“Oh my!” the vivacious brunette laughed.  “He could be just about anywhere.”

Gabriella’s smile brightened, trying to hide her impatience.  So much for a good construction manager knowing where all of his or her men were on any particular day! 

“Is there any way to get in contact with him?  This is pretty important.”

The brunette pushed away from her desk, revealing an extremely round, very pregnant belly.  “Sure!” she said and pushed herself out of her chair. 

Gabriella immediately felt bad for making a pregnant woman get out of her chair.  “Don’t…!” she started to say, but the brunette woman shook her head, waving away her concern.  “Oh, don’t worry.  My doctor said to walk as much as possible now, to keep the blood flowing, so this is good for me.”

Gabriella still cringed.  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, feeling truly horrible as the woman waddled over to the window where a radio was charging.  She lifted the walkie-talkie up and pressed the side button.  “Teague?  You have a visitor,” she called out. 

There was a bit of static on the line before that deep, sinfully sexy voice came back.  “Who is it?”

Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough time for Gabriella to brace herself for its impact.  Darn it!  She’d warned herself to be careful and here she was, getting all googly just hearing his voice.  She straightened her shoulders, refusing to acknowledge that her entire body was trembling simply because she’d heard one man’s voice.  It simply wasn’t happening and she was only imagining her response because of…well, she shouldn’t think back to that time…to the way he would…. 

Shaking her head to help banish those memories, she inhaled a revitalizing breath and straightened her shoulders.  Gabriella was cool and calm, relaxed and unaffected. 

This kind of reaction was exactly why she needed Toby!  Her fiancé definitely didn’t make her crazy like this!  She never trembled around Toby!  She was calm and collected, sophisticated.  What’s more, she never, ever, lost her head.  She never worried that she’d say or do something silly or stupid.  She never laughed at inappropriate comments or blushed like a silly schoolgirl from just a wicked glance.  Those were all reactions she’d eliminated from her life; reactions that Teague generated. 

Troy was her future.  Not Teague! 

The friendly woman turned to Gabriella, eyebrows raised in question.

Gabriella hesitated, not sure if she should give her name.  After the way they’d left each other, he might not talk with her again. 

“Um…just tell him that Gabriella Hicks is here to speak with him,” she said softly, her confidence waning. 

Shoot!  She’d worn her best shoes and her most expensive suit for this meeting, needing all the confidence she could muster in order to deal with Teague Steele.  But three words, even garbled by the radio transmission, and she was a quivering mess of nerves.  Darn it!  He’d always done this to her!  From the first moment she’d seen the man in that stupid hotel bar, the man had flummoxed her!  He’d twisted her up in so many ways, driven her crazier than she’d thought possible. 

It had been a year!  A whole year since she’d heard that voice, seen the man and still, just his voice made her stomach clench with that…

No!  Absolutely not, she told herself firmly and squared her shoulders.  She would not give in!  She was stronger than this!  She could rise above the crazy sensations the man caused her to feel! 

“Gabriella Hicks, honey,” the woman repeated into the radio.

Gabriella’s fist clenched with jealous fury when the brunette woman used the endearment.  Were this woman and Teague…was that his baby?  Gabriella couldn’t believe the hatred that rushed through her mind at the possibility.  It took her a long moment to realize that there was an equally long pause from the radio.  Even Ms. Bubbly was looking at the radio as if Teague were being rude. 

But then the man did something even more outrageous.  “Tell my wife,” he emphasized that word so there could be no mistake, “that I’ll meet her at the front of the building in five minutes.”

Gabriella gulped, her face burning as Ms. Bubbly’s mouth fell open.  Her head spun back to Gabriella, then lower, obviously looking for a wedding band. 

It wasn’t there.  Gabriella had taken it off the day she’d walked away from Teague.  A sick feeling entered her stomach but she fought for control.  With her chin going up a notch, she banked her anger and forced herself to continue smiling.  “Where would the front be?” she asked, as politely as possible.  The man was horrible, she thought, with an anger that was so intense, she could barely see straight.

But these kinds of reactions had always been the norm when it came to Teague Steele.  Everything about the man made her feel raw, exposed.  Vulnerable!  Her emotions were never mild.  When she was around the man, her feelings were too powerful.  Too intense. 

The brunette pointed towards the entrance, but it was a weak gesture, diminished because of her shock. 

Gabriella had no idea where the other woman was pointing, but she nodded her head in thanks and stepped back out into the cold, cloudy afternoon.  Once she was clear of that ridiculous excuse for a pathway, she carefully made her way towards what looked like an area that would eventually be an elegant entrance to the building.  Assuming that was what Teague had meant, she stepped over puddles of mud and gravel, used whatever means possible to protect her shoes from any kind of damage and carefully avoided all large machinery.  It was loud out here, with jackhammers and cranes, men calling out to one another, as well as other construction sounds, all of it making her extra anxious. 

Darn it, she should have just hired someone to deliver these stupid papers to Teague!  She shouldn’t be here.  But she’d needed to see him one last time.  Why, she had no idea.  Maybe to apologize.  Maybe to get him to understand why she’d had to leave him.  Maybe just to prove to herself that she was over him. 

Regardless of the reason, she’d been wrong.  Dead wrong! 

But she was here now and she was determined to close this chapter on her life once and for all.  She had a sixty thousand dollar Valentino wedding dress hanging in her apartment, a fabulous fiancé waiting for her return and a very pretty diamond engagement ring on her finger.  No, it wasn’t as beautiful as the one that Teague had given her on that crazy afternoon.  But it was very elegant and….

Oh, who was she kidding?  She liked Teague’s ring better but it was over between them!  It didn’t matter which engagement ring she liked more.  She was marrying Toby!  She had a good future with Toby!  He wanted kids and a family.  He was calm and quiet and he never inspired crazy emotions within her which made her do stupid things that she’d later regret. 

Like marrying a man who was so completely wrong for what she wanted for her future.  What she needed for her future. 

Teague couldn’t give her that.  He wasn’t the man for her.  Which was why she was here now, determined to fix the mistake she’d made a year ago. 

Stepping out of the temporary office, she made her way back across the slightly warped boards, heading towards the “entrance” to the building under construction.  It was a more difficult trek this time, since her knees were wobbly, and she was having more than a little trouble breathing, but she wasn’t going to reveal any of that to the man waiting for her.  She would be strong, competent, and cool as a cucumber.  She would wow him with her coolness.  She would perplex him with her sophistication and show him how wrong they were for each other. 

She had no idea what his reaction to her presence might be, but she wasn’t going to go all googly-eyed like she had when she’d first seen him.  That hadn’t been her true self.  The woman she was now, this sophisticated woman with a good job and a steady future…this was the real Gabriella Hicks. 

“Coming to celebrate our anniversary, darlin’?”

Gabriella froze.  That voice!  It was a thousand times more potent in real life than through a crackling radio.  Her stomach clenched and her toes curled up in her beautiful Prada pumps.  Every muscle in her body tensed as sexual awareness surged through her body like a streak of white hot lava. 

She looked up slowly, her eyes taking in the heavy, steel-toed work boots, the jeans with the mud on the bottom edge, long, long legs and…she rushed passed the middle part of him, unwilling to acknowledge the lean hips and impossibly broad shoulders, and forced her eyes to focus only on his face. 

But even that face was startling.  His eyes, so impossibly green she could even see the color from this distance, stared back at her, and she knew!  She knew he was remembering all of those days.  Oh, and the nights!  Those frantic, crazy, insane days and nights when they couldn’t get enough of each other. 

She hadn’t felt anything like that since she’d left him. 

Her mouth opened slightly, her breath caught in her throat, and every sense in her system reacted to the man, to the memory of the way he could make her feel.  Not just in bed, but oh yeah, the man was an expert there!  But also out of bed.  She’d laughed!  Darn it, the man could make her laugh!  About anything and everything.  She’d laughed so hard, she’d made a fool of herself! 

And they’d always been touching.  Thinking back to those crazy days, she remembered how she’d always needed to be touching him, craving that connection with him.  Sometimes it was only a light touch or wanting to hold his hand while they walked down the street.  And other times, she’d needed so much more, wanting her whole body plastered against his with nothing in between to hinder that touch. 

She shook herself mentally and pulled her mind away from those memories.  She never wanted to feel that way again!  Teague was so wrong for her!  So completely wrong! 

“Teague,” she offered as greeting with a slight nod of her head.  It was the best she could do.  Anything more, and she might…she might just break down and beg him to…to…

 

Teague couldn’t believe that Gabby was here.  His thumb rubbed against the gold band on his finger as he stared at her, stunned by her presence and more affected than he wanted to be. 

Her soft, blond hair was no longer flying around her shoulders like a golden halo.  It was all caught up in some horrible clip and twirled on the back of her head.  And she was wearing more makeup than he’d ever seen her wearing before.  She looked…made up.  He preferred the wild hair and the fresh face, the laughing eyes and the sensuous body next to his.  He’d liked the way she would bite her lip when he did something to make her tremble, or the way his hands could dive into her soft hair, his fingers tangling in those silky locks as his body throbbed with the need to possess her, to make her cry out his name as she released all of those stuffy inhibitions that made her spine stiffen.  There hadn’t been anything stiff or tense when he’d finished with her. 

Damn, his body hardened as he remembered the way she would curl into his side, her body limp and her voice nearly spent after she’d screamed her pleasure. 

That stiff, ugly suit did nothing for her incredible figure.  Even her makeup was hiding those exotic eyes.  And whatever she’d done with her lipstick made her lips look…wrong. 

Those violet eyes had flashed desire at him and those wide lips were normally full and laughing.  She’d been so beautiful a year ago that he’d felt his body tighten with anticipation even as they’d stared at each other across the bar.  No one had existed for him after he’d seen her.  He’d ignored all of his responsibilities, calling in his brother Logan to take over the meetings he’d gone to Las Vegas to handle.  He’d completely dismissed his entire carefully planned out schedule so that he could spend more time with Gabby.  Never before and never since had any woman caused him to ignore his responsibilities like Gabby had during that trip. 

Vegas!  He hated that town now. 

After a whirlwind romance where he’d spent most of his time in bed with Gabby, well, except for the trip to the wedding chapel where they’d gotten married, he’d made plans in his mind.  A new house, kids, Gabby laughing by his side until they grew old and too weak to make love any longer.  He’d just hold her hand when that time came. 

He’d been such a romantic sap!  All the stupid fantasies of being with Gabby, all the plans and hopes, had been for nothing.

She’d left him!  Damn it, she’d left him and said he wasn’t the kind of man she wanted for her future.  She’d said their marriage had been a crazy, impulsive mistake! 

At the end of their long weekend together, she’d just walked away.  No explanation, no discussion.  Nothing at all.  Just her gorgeous derriere hurrying away, her soft, blond hair whipping around her head, teasing him.  Taunting him as he’d stood on the sidewalk in stunned surprise.  At the time, he’d been too shocked to go after her.  And then, when he’d finally been able to move, the anger had surged.  Anger laced with confusion because he had no idea where to find her, to discover why the beautiful woman who had come apart time after time in his arms over the long weekend, had simply up and left. 

Sure, she’d sent him a letter explaining things.  But that letter had been a load of crap.  It hadn’t explained anything to his satisfaction, but she’d told him very plainly that things were over. 

“You look different,” he commented, trying to calm his raging temper.  Every impulse inside of him was telling him to toss her over his shoulder, carry her to his bed and keep her there until she came to her senses. 

Instead, he swung around and headed back to work.  “What do you want, Gabby?” he asked as he headed back into the building again.  He had work to do and he didn’t have time for another burst of her regrets or explanations. 

 

Gabriella stared, stunned, as he simply walked away.  He wasn’t even going to greet her?  How rude! 

But what could she expect from a barbarian like Teague Steele?  He was six feet, three inches of rude, obnoxious sex appeal with no redeeming qualities!  He’d never made things easy for her, why had she expected today to be any different? 

Rushing after him, she wanted to pick up one of the clumps of mud and throw it at his back, her fury at his rude behavior making her nuts and…

NO! 

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes for a moment, regaining her composure and her sense of calm.  She would not turn into that nutty woman again.  She would be cool and composed, elegant and sophisticated.  Words he didn’t understand, but they represented who she truly was as a person.  He wouldn’t know that because…well, he’d only seen the crazy side of her that weekend in Vegas.  He’d only known the woman who couldn’t get enough of…and who…

Enough! 

He wouldn’t make her do crazy things!  Not anymore!  Been there, done that, got the memories that wouldn’t leave her alone. 

Opening her eyes, she glared at his back, wishing she had the skills to…

Stop it!  She was a lady!  She did not attack men, no matter how obnoxious or rude they might be. 

Pressing forward, she followed after him with as much dignity as the situation allowed, no longer concerned with her shoes as much as just wanting to punch the man.  “Teague!  Don’t you dare walk away from me!”

He continued walking, his broad shoulders such a delicious target that it was hard to resist running over to punch him.  “Teague!”

He still didn’t stop, but he glanced over his shoulder at her.  “Why not?  You did it.  Why can’t I?”

She swallowed past the lump his words caused.  She probably deserved that, Gabriella thought.  It still didn’t excuse his rudeness, but…yeah, that was a good jab.  “That was different and you know it!”

He stopped, looking up at the ceiling as if checking something, and he wrote on his clipboard.  “Darlin’, how the hell can you say it is different?  Simply because you were the one doing the walking last time?”  He scoffed as he looked down at her.  “Honey, you should be quite familiar with payback by now.”

Gabriella’s mouth fell open at that comment and she couldn’t stop the heat that flooded her cheeks and neck.  Payback!  Of all the…he was referring to the time that she’d…and then he’d…

“Don’t you dare bring up those moments!”  She hated that her voice quivered with those words or that her body flamed to life in ways it hadn’t since…but the memories were making her head spin.  And her toes curl. 

She shivered when he laughed.  He moved closer to her, his height making him tower over her even in her three inch heels.  “You mean, don’t remind you of the times when we were in bed?  And you wanted to tease me with that beautiful mouth of yours?”  He paused, watching her eyes dilate, her mouth fall open, and her cheeks turn that beautiful shade of pink.  “But I didn’t let you get away with that, did I, Gabby?”  He smiled slightly when her breathing grew ragged.  “And when you thought I was finished but I…”

Gabriella slapped her hand over his mouth, trying to pretend that her body wasn’t heating up with that memory or the heat she could feel emanating off of his body.  Or the incredible, masculine scent of him now that he was closer to her. 

“Stop,” she whispered, desperate for him to stop flooding the memories through her mind. 

His fingers wrapped around her wrist and pulled her hand away.  He moved even closer to her, his body almost touching hers, and she felt her breath catch in her throat. 

“Why should I stop, Gabby?” 

His voice was low, sexy and sent shivers throughout her body.  Everything about this man made her insides tremble with awareness.  Need.  The things he did to her, the way he made her feel and…

“Please, Teague!” she gasped, desperate now.  “Please don’t do this.”

“Why not?” he argued, his voice husky.  His hand tightened around the delicate bones of her wrist. 

Why not?  Why?  Her mind wasn’t working, wasn’t processing.  She couldn’t remember.  And then the flash of light hit her finger, her diamond engagement ring sparkling.  She gasped and pulled back.  Toby!  She was betraying her promise to Toby!  “I didn’t come here for this!”

 

Teague watched her, saw the way her eyes dilated, her body fought not to arch into his so that they were touching.  Everywhere. 

“Why did you come here?” he asked softly, his grip tightening on her slender wrist.  She was so tiny, so delicate.  She was the complete opposite of him.  A year ago, he hadn’t been able to get enough of Gabby.  She was so amazingly alive, so fresh, and ready to laugh.  It was like she’d been craving laughter and release her whole life but hadn’t ever really had a reason. 

He’d given her a reason. 

And she’d walked away! 

She stepped back from him and took a deep breath.  His eyes dropped to her chest, trying to see those beautiful breasts as she heaved for oxygen but…nothing.  The damn suit was too stiff, too formal to see anything.  Her tiny waist was gone in the shapeless material; her legs were hidden because the hemline came down to below her knees.  The only thing sexy about her was the shoes.  The damn shoes that looked completely out of place here at a construction site.

Then again, Gabby looked out of place.  She looked wrong when she should look absolutely right.  Everything about her was right – for him! 

But she’d walked away. 

He had to keep telling himself that. 

He stepped back again and looked down at his clipboard, trying to get the sweet, feminine scent of her out of his nose.  She was history, he told himself.

So, why hadn’t he taken off his wedding ring? 

Disgusted with himself, he tried to shake off the spell she could so easily weave around him.  Dropping her wrist, he moved away, putting space between them and forcing his attention away from the beautiful woman who had tormented him for so long. 

“I came to talk to you,” she started off.

Teague moved over to the next column, inspecting the bolts to ensure they had been welded correctly.  Nodding his head in approval, he moved to the next, trying to feign indifference if she followed him or not.  He shouldn’t care.  He should tell her to get the hell out of the building and off of the property. 

He looked back at her, noticed her pretty, delicate steps as she tried to walk around the various equipment that was laying on the concrete floor. 

“Hell,” he muttered and walked over to one of the walls.  He grabbed a hardhat that was hanging on a hook and thumped it onto her pretty head, not caring if the helmet messed up her hair.  In fact, he hoped that it would muss it up a bit.  Anything would look better on her delicate features than that tamped down hairstyle.  What was she trying to prove?  That she wasn’t the passionate, sexy little wisp of a woman that could make a man crazy with just a smile? 

Not working, he thought, as he tried to inconspicuously adjust himself in his jeans. 

“Please, Teague,” she began in a rush when she finally caught up with him again.  She was out of breath and getting worried, needing to get away from this man.  “I have a flight back to Boston in three hours.  I don’t have much time.”

Teague spun around and looked down at her.  The look in his eyes tore at her gut.  He had to clench his fists around the pen and clipboard so that he didn’t reach out and touch her again.  “What the hell do you want Gabby?” he demanded.

Gabriella clenched her teeth, trying to tamp down her anger.  “First of all, please call me Gabriella.  I no longer go by Gabby.”

The change in her name just pissed him off further.  Leaning closer, he was less than an inch away from her when he said, “You shouldn’t be going by Hicks either.”

She pulled back.  “Why wouldn’t I? That’s my name.”

He shook his head.  “Your name,” he enunciated carefully, “Is Gabby Steele.  Remember?”

Gabriella gasped and pulled back.  “I never changed my name!” she told him with fury. 

“You didn’t need to.  You married me.  That made the name change automatic.”

She shook her head.  “No!  No way!  I would have had to submit paperwork to change my last name.”

He was quiet for a long moment, staring down at her.  In the end, he reined in his temper once more.  “Got it.  Okay, you didn’t want my last name or me.  So, what the hell do you want, Gabby?” he asked her, ignoring the more formal version of her name.  He did it partly to irk her and partly because the woman he remembered wasn’t “Gabriella”.  She was just “Gabby” with all the lushness that the name implied. 

He walked away, continuing to inspect the welding.  It didn’t matter that the construction site was ahead of schedule and under budget.  He wasn’t going to slack off if his men were firing on all cylinders.  He’d done that once with this woman, he wouldn’t do it again.

Gabriella huffed as she finally caught up with him again.  “Would you please slow down so that I can talk to you?”

“No,” he told her and wrote down additional instructions for the column he was inspecting.  “What do you want, Gabby?”

Her fingers curled into fists and he almost laughed at the fury building in her beautiful eyes. 

“I want a divorce,” she told him flatly and pulled the envelope out from under her arm.  “All you have to do is sign on the dotted line and I’ll go away.”

Teague looked down at the papers as she pulled them out of the envelope.  She even had a pen ready and the places flagged where he needed to sign. 

He couldn’t believe the sudden, furious urge to punch a wall.  The impulse was especially bad since all of the walls in this area were concrete or steel so punching them wouldn’t be a good idea. 

Instead, he stared at the woman in the sexy shoes and ugly suit.  The hardhat was too big for her and, under other circumstances, he’d think she looked adorable as she tilted the hardhat out of the way so she could look into his eyes. 

“You never wanted to be my wife, Gabby,” he growled, clenching the clipboard so tightly he was astonished that it didn’t snap in half.  “You never acted like my wife, never called yourself my wife, never introduced yourself as my wife.  As far as I’m concerned, you aren’t my wife.  So since you’re not really my wife, I see no need for a divorce from my wife.” 

With those words, he spun around and walked away from her. 

 

Gabriella stared after him, the pen in one hand and the papers in another.  Not his wife? 

He disappeared around one of the columns and she lost control of her anger.  Storming after him, she was more than ready to tackle him to the ground if need be but she was getting his signature on these damn papers! 

When she spotted him again, only about forty feet away as he consulted with three other men, the red haze of fury obliterated common sense. 

“Don’t you dare tell me that you’re not giving me a divorce!  We’ve been separated for a year now!  I’m getting married in one month’s time and I have a flight back to Boston in less than three hours.  Sign the damn papers, Teague, and…”

Gabriella had been storming across the space separating them, determined to get the obnoxious brute to sign the papers so that she could be done with this and get back to Boston where she belonged.  But something stopped her.  Literally, she couldn’t move her feet.  Looking down, she noticed that…she was sinking!  Her beautiful Prada pumps, the ones she’d spent over five hundred dollars on two days ago specifically to try and give herself a boost of confidence while having to face Teague again, were…they were sinking! 

Looking up, she caught Teague’s startled expression as well as the other men he’d been talking with.  And then she started to wobble! 

Looking down, she realized that she was now ankle deep in the wet cement and….

Splat! 

Opening her eyes, Gabriella realized that she was face down in the cement.  Lifting her head, she sputtered, spitting wet cement from her mouth, gasping for breath.  Suddenly, strong arms were pulling her out of the muck, lifting her to safety. 

Gabby looked down at her arms and legs…everything was covered in cement!  Ruined!  Even worse, her shoes…they were still in the cement! 

Gabby had been under so much stress in the past few weeks that this latest indignity was just too much!  Drawing up the divorce papers, flying across the country and facing the man that…well, facing Teague.  And now, she was covered in cement, her lovely shoes now a permanent resident of the building and her suit…her clothes were completely ruined! 

She couldn’t hold back the tears.  It was all too much and she’d been trying to keep everything controlled for too long.  Sobs burst out of her and she couldn’t stop. 

“It’s okay, honey,” Teague was saying as he cradled her against his enormous chest.  Gabriella couldn’t take it any longer.  All the tension over the past week burst out of her, she shook with her tears, the anxiety, the worry, and the long flight from Boston to Seattle this morning in the cramped back of the plane.  She’d bought the ticket yesterday and the only available seat had been in the last row, the one right by the bathrooms.  So every person who walked by grabbed onto the back of her seat, jerking her enough so that she couldn’t even sleep during the flight. 

It was too much!  She was exhausted, tense, disgusted that this man had made her so crazy that she’d once again lost her temper and now she was covered in cement!

“Honey, please don’t cry!” Teague pleaded as he pulled her closer, his strong arms pulling her higher so that his chin could rub against her head. 

Gabriella couldn’t take it any longer!  The sobs came harder and she clung to his flannel shirt, her fists clutching the material as she sobbed out all of the stress of her day and the last week. 

 

Teague wasn’t sure what to do other than to carry Gabby out of the area.  He nodded to his foreman, telling him to finish up the inspection as he carried Gabby back to his trailer. 

Marcy rushed over to him, her pregnant belly making her slower than usual.  “Is she okay?”

Teague nodded.  “She’ll be fine,” he said even though Gabby’s silent tears and shuddering body were twisting his guts.  “Don’t you have a doctor’s appointment?”

Marcy patted her belly.  “Yes.  But I don’t…”

He knew exactly what she was going to say and stopped her with a firm shake of his head.  “No, you go take care of that little guy, Marcy.  I’ll handle everything here until you get back.”

She laughed, shaking her head.  “With any luck, I won’t be back.”

Marcy walked over to the waiting Mercedes where her husband, Teague’s brother, Zeke, was waiting to pick her up.  But even as Teague watched, he spotted Zeke coming out of the trailer, his eyes furious as he watched his no-longer-tiny wife waddling towards the car.  “Marcy!” he roared. 

Marcy turned slowly, her smile bright as she waved to him. 

“Don’t move, woman!” he commanded and his long strides took him down from the trailer towards her.  He spotted Teague and stopped, his eyes widening.  “Is that…?”

“Yes.”

Zeke put his hands on his hips as he eyed the woman who was covered in cement.  He couldn’t see her face since she’d buried it in Teague’s neck, but he could see that the woman was crying.  “Are you okay?” Zeke asked his brother. 

Teague chuckled.  “I’m always okay. Go take care of my nephew and favorite sister-in-law.  Don’t worry about me.”

Zeke looked over at his wife and Teague saw his brother’s eyes soften ever so slightly.  “I’ll call you later,” he grumbled.  “I want to know what’s going on.”

Teague might have agreed or disagreed, the grunt of response was non-committal.  “Go away, Zeke.  Marcy has been having stomach pains all morning and wouldn’t leave when I told her to this morning.  I confined her to the trailer, but obviously even that didn’t work since she wasn’t there when you were looking for her.”

With that announcement, all of Zeke’s attention focused on his wife.  “Marcy!” he growled. 

Marcy lifted her hand to stop his admonishment even as she rubbed her ripe tummy with her other hand.  “Don’t go there, Zeke!  I wasn’t…”

Teague didn’t get to hear what Marcy “wasn’t” since his older brother swept her up into his arms and carried her the rest of the way towards his car.  He tenderly tucked her into the vehicle and hurried around to the other side so that he could get his wife to the doctor’s office. 

Moving towards his trailer, Teague carried Gabby there, relieved when she finally stopped crying.  There were a few more whimpers, but by the time he closed the door behind him, her tears were down to a couple of sniffles. 

“You okay?” he asked as he set her down in the bathroom of his trailer. 

Gabriella pulled her arms down from his neck, uncurling her fists from his shirt.  She knew that she looked like a horrible mess and reached up to wipe her eyes.  Darn it, she’d worked so hard to put on her makeup this morning!  She’d wanted to look sophisticated and regal, composed and in control! 

Looking up at Teague’s expression, she knew that she most likely looked absolutely ridiculous! 

“My shoes,” she whispered, and had to fight hard not to start crying again.  Five hundred dollars down the drain!  That’s what she got for being vain, she told herself firmly.  Now she was shoeless, bedraggled and five hundred dollars poorer.  Not a good situation, she admitted to herself and took a deep breath.  “I’m so sorry,” she sighed, unable to look at Teague now.  “I’ll get out of your way.”

Gabby stood up in the small confines of the bathroom, about to move around Teague, make her way back to the airport.  This whole trip had been a bad idea.  Confronting Teague herself had been one of the stupidest ideas she’d ever come up with and she wasn’t even sure why she’d done it.  Maybe just to prove to herself that she could, that he didn’t have that kind of power over her any longer. 

It didn’t matter, she told herself.  She’d just go back to Boston, admit to Toby what was going on, and ask him for help.  Toby would know what to do, how to get out of this situation. 

She should have gone to him before.  In fact, she should have told him that she was still sort-of married a long time ago.  But she hadn’t thought…she didn’t want…

Darn it, those tears were starting again! 

“I need to go.”  She moved to get around him, but his big body was in the way. 

“Just stop right there,” he told her softly.  Gabriella suspected that he was trying not to laugh at her, so she couldn’t look at him.  “Take a shower, clean off the cement, and just relax.  Have you had anything to eat today?” 

Gabriella looked around, realized that she was in a very nice bathroom but not sure where.  “Um…where am I?” she asked as politely as possible.  She hadn’t thought any of the condominiums in the building were finished.

“You’re in my trailer, honey.  Just relax and clean yourself up.  Use anything you need in here.  I won’t jump you.”  With those words, he walked out of the bathroom and closed the door, leaving her to stare in astounded silence. 

She looked around, amazed that a trailer could look so…nice!  The bathroom was unlike anything she’d ever seen in a trailer before.  The fixtures were nice enough to be in a luxury home and it was bigger than she’d thought possible.  The bathroom in the barely standing trailer she’d grown up in had a toilet that sometimes flushed, sometimes didn’t, a barely-there sink that leaked, and a shower that spewed tepid warm water at best or cold drizzle at worst with a ripped curtain where she’d had to stand sideways in order to fit into the joke someone had called a shower stall. 

She considered not showering, simply to defy his order to clean up, but one look in the large mirror made her gasp with horror.  The elaborate twist she’d put her hair into this morning was a bedraggled mess with half of it hanging down over her ear and clumps of cement clinging to the ends.  Her mascara was no longer on her lashes.  Instead, it was streaking down her pale cheeks and her lipstick had been mauled off hours ago. 

Her suit was trashed, she thought with misery, and her stockings, well, those had been torture devices anyway. 

Stripping down, she was careful not to get any cement on the floor, knowing it would damage the slate.  Carefully folding her clothes so that the cement was on the inside of the folds, she cringed at the cost of getting that suit cleaned.  Was it even possible?  Gabby could just imagine the expression on the dry cleaner’s face when she dropped off the cement hardened suit and asked if she could have “same-day” cleaning. 

Switching on the shower, she was amazed that hot water came out immediately. 

When she was under the warm spray, she closed her eyes and tried to hide her misery.  Or at least wash it away.  She’d really made a muck of this day, hadn’t she?  She washed and conditioned her hair, scrubbed her face, and washed her body, feeling hugely better once she turned off the water. 

But now that she was out of the shower, what was she going to wear?  She grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body, not sure what to do.  She could rinse out her clothes, but she wasn’t sure that the suit would rinse.  It was supposed to be dry-cleaned.  She could…

Looking around, she suddenly realized that her clothes were gone!  Someone had stepped into the bathroom while she was showering and taken her clothes!

Tightening the towel around her breasts, she was all fired up to rage at Teague for his invasion of her privacy when she spotted the tee shirt and sweatpants on the bed.  Had he left those out for her? 

Immediately, all of her anger dissipated with the evidence of his thoughtfulness. 

All things considered, that was very sweet of him, she thought. 

Slipping the tee shirt over her head, she tied the ends around her waist since it was enormous on her.  Obviously, it was one of his shirts.  And the sweatpants?  Well, they were about twice her size.  She tugged the string snug around her waist and knew that she looked ridiculous with all the extra material, but she didn’t really have an alternative.  She hadn’t brought any other clothes with her, thinking she’d just fly into Seattle, find Teague, get the divorce papers signed, and fly home the same evening.  Simple plan. 

Unfortunately, nothing was simple when Teague was involved.  Her life had tumbled onto a crazy path the last time she’d been around him.  And now?  Well, suffice it to say that things were on par once again.

Stepping out of the bedroom, she stopped short when she spotted Teague.  He was so tall, so incredibly handsome!  Those broad shoulders and all of those muscles, hidden under the red and blue flannel shirt, but she knew they were there.  She’d touched them all before and knew what he, and they, were capable of. 

All of it tapered down to a lean waist and long, muscular legs.  Her eyes lingered on his thighs, thinking of the times her hands had felt the muscles there, her fingers tingling when she remembered how he’d moved her hands from his thighs to his…

“Hungry?”

Gabriella’s eyes snapped higher, looking up into his green eyes that were such a stark contrast to his black as sin hair.  Had he realized where her mind had gone?  Her cheeks warmed and she closed her eyes, trying to get herself back under control. 

“I made grilled cheese sandwiches,” he explained, looking at her curiously.  “And soup.”

Her favorite meal, she thought.  He remembered.  Grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.  It had been a special meal her mother had splurged with after church on Sundays.  Oh, the memories; she and her mother sitting at the tiny, beaten table, thinking they were so rich as they dunked their perfectly grilled sandwiches into the tomato soup.  They hadn’t been able to afford it every Sunday, but when they could…!  Oh my, such a special treat. 

She looked down, her mouth watered and her stomach growled, betraying the words of rejection she’d been about to utter.  When she looked up into those green eyes, she knew that he knew that she’d been about to say no to the soup and sandwiches. 

Changing her answer, she smiled and relaxed slightly.  “Thank you.  It smells delicious,” she told him honestly and with more than a little gratitude for another sign of his thoughtfulness. 

She watched as his mouth relaxed.  His firm lips, those sinful lips that could do things to her body…

“Have a seat,” he invited and slid a perfectly grilled sandwich onto a plate. 

She abruptly moved over to the table, amazed once again at how nice this trailer seemed.  She and her mother hadn’t even had matching chairs.  Good grief, they hadn’t been able to afford chairs back then!  She and her mother had gone to the landfill and scourged for furniture, excited when they’d found chairs even though they’d been mismatched and pretty beaten up.  The two of them had felt like princesses that night when eating dinner. 

Sitting here in the present, with an enormous man across the table from her, she was suddenly shy, painfully aware of her clothes and lack of underwear.  She couldn’t figure out anything to say so she picked up her spoon and took a mouthful.  The tomato soup, such a simple meal, tasted even better than she remembered. 

They ate in silence for several minutes, Gabriella inhaling the food since she realized she hadn’t eaten in over twenty-four hours.  “This is really good,” she complimented.  “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.  Finish up and I’ll take you out to get new clothes.  The others are ruined.”

She sighed, her head bowing in horror at her predicament.  “I’ll be fine,” she told him, thinking of just walking and…nope, she couldn’t walk anywhere since she had no shoes. 

“I’ll take you,” he told her again, this time with a tone of voice that meant he wasn’t going to argue with her.  He stood up and rinsed off the dishes, storing them in the dishwasher.  That took less than two minutes and she was standing awkwardly in his small den area, her feet bare and her pink toenails looking ridiculous. 

“Pink,” he commented after looking her up and down.  “I remember you used to have red toenails.” 

She looked down again and shrugged.  “Pink seems more…”

“Dishonest,” he snapped.  A moment later, he took her hand and tugged her out of the door.  “Come on,” he said and grabbed a set of keys off of a hook by the doorway.  He was down the stairs with Gabriella about to follow but he turned around and swung her up into his arms. 

“What are you doing?” she gasped, trying to pull back.  He couldn’t hold her in his arms this time around.  This was different, she realized.  She wasn’t crying this time and she was painfully aware of his strong arms around her back and legs.  “I can walk!”

He completely ignored her assertion and plucked her up, lifting her into his arms and holding her close. 

“Not without shoes,” he replied firmly as he shook his head adamantly.  “Not at a construction site.”  And with those words, he walked over to a big, black truck and plunked her in the passenger seat.  “Behave!” he ordered her with a look that sent shivers throughout her whole body.

Gabriella jerked when the door slammed shut.  She sat stiffly in his truck as a man walked up and started talking to Teague.  She watched, amazed at the aura of authority that surrounded Teague.  He was a good foreman, she thought.  He looked like he belonged, and yet, there was also that strange, overwhelming confidence, that sense of authority. 

She looked away, trying to calm her heart down.  She wasn’t interested in Teague!  She was immune to his charm, to his body!  She was…wow!  Her eyes looked around at the interior of the vehicle. 

This wasn’t just a truck.  This was a TRUCK!  The black exterior and black interior made her mouth drool with jealousy.  It looked and felt like this puppy could climb a mountain and then haul said mountain into someone’s backyard!  And yet, it had every fancy gadget possible; eight cylinders, maximum torque, crazy towing capacity…all with leather seats and…oh my.  

She pulled herself together when she saw Teague walk around to the driver’s side.  Feigning indifference to his truck, she stared through the windshield as she pulled on her seatbelt. 

“How long are you going to be here?” he asked. 

She considered her options.  At Toby’s urging, she’d quit her job two weeks ago to finalize the details of the wedding.  Since he was paying for the entire wedding, she hadn’t felt the need to continue in a position, although she was definitely going find another position after their two week honeymoon.  She refused to be dependent on a man for anything, so a job, something that would give her independence, was mandatory for her self-esteem.  Gabby remembered how quickly she’d started to become dependent on Teague, just for his touch or his smile, and they’d only been together for a few days. 

With her shoulders pulled back and her heart hammering in her chest, she glared up at him, trying to appear confident and strong, even though all she wanted to do was ask him to touch her, to feel that….

Remember Toby, she told herself.  Remember his kindness and his gentle nature.  Remember that Toby never made her feel crazy or out of control.  “As long as it takes to get you to sign those divorce papers,” she told him firmly, crossing her arms over her chest as she glared at him.

He chuckled and shrugged one of those massive shoulders.  “Full wardrobe it is.”

She opened her mouth to tell him that it wouldn’t take that long, but she wasn’t going to give in to him.  And then a thought occurred to her.  “Did you happen to grab my purse out of the muck?” she asked, panicked and amazed that she hadn’t thought about it yet.

“Yeah, it’s in the back of the truck,” he told her, moving his massive truck into traffic and turning right.  The powerful engine sped them down the highway.  

Relief surged through her and she relaxed ever so slightly.  “I’ll need it to buy another outfit.  And if you can recommend a hotel…”

“Forget it.”

She blinked at Teague’s harsh words, not sure what they meant.  “Fine.  I can find my own hotel,” she snapped back at him.  “Listen, could you just let…”

“No.”  His eyes remained fixed on the highway, maneuvering through the traffic easily in his massive truck. 

She slumped down in her seat, trying to figure out a good approach.  But the man was just…rude! 

When he pulled into a parking lot, she was relieved.  “Stores!” she sighed with happiness. 

“Stay there,” he barked.

Gabriella was sick and tired of his rude behavior.  Shoes or no shoes, she wasn’t staying put like a good dog!  Unfortunately, she was too slow and by the time her anger had nudged her into action, he was already around to her side of the truck. 

When his strong hands moved to lift her once again, she pulled back as far as the passenger seat would allow.  “You’re not carrying me again, Teague,” she hissed furiously.  No way could she be in his arms again. 

He looked at her with determined patience, hands on his hips, and blocking her exit from the massive beast that was his truck.  “You’re not walking around out here without shoes on, Gabby.”

She gritted her teeth.  “My name is Gabriella!”

He leaned in closer.  “You’re name is Gabby Steele,” he came back, his voice smooth and oh so sexy.  “Shut up and let me get you some shoes!”

Without any further argument, he simply reached in and lifted her out of the truck.  But this time, instead of carrying her in his arms, he tossed her over his shoulder.  She was so shocked that she sputtered for several moments, too furious to react. 

They were almost inside the mall when she found her voice.  “Put me down, you humongous oaf!” she snapped at him, her hair falling into her eyes so she couldn’t even see where they were heading.  “Teague!  This is not dignified!  Put me down!”

“Neither are you,” and he had the audacity to smack her bottom.

She froze for a long moment, taking in the fact that he’d just…that he’d... “You did not just spank me, Teague Steele!” she gasped, her hands resting on his back, trying to look around and not allowing her hands to come even remotely close to his perfect, hard butt. 

“I’ll do it again if you continue to misbehave,” he warned her. 

He was walking into the mall as if she weighed no more than a grocery bag.  When he flopped her down, she was stunned to realize that they were now in a sporting goods store.  “What in the world am I going to do in here?” she asked him in amazement. 

He pulled out a package of socks and grabbed her foot, stuffing one into a sock.

“I can do that!” she said and pulled her foot away. 

He didn’t argue with her this time.  Instead, he handed her both socks then stood up and grabbed a box, setting it down in front of her.  “Try these on,” he told her and walked away.  A moment later, there were three more boxes in front of her. 

She opened the first box and stopped, looking down in surprise.  “These are work boots,” she pointed out.

He ruffled her hair and she smacked his hand away.  “Nothing gets by you,” he teased.  “Try them on.  Choose two pairs.”

She shook her head, too confused to be angry with him messing up her hair.  Again.  “But…I don’t want work boots!  I don’t like boots!  They hurt my ankles.”

He shrugged his shoulders.  “If you’re hanging around, trying to bother me, then you’ll need work boots.  Dainty little shoes like the ones you were wearing today are dangerous at a work site.  Don’t worry about your ankles.  The stiffness wears off.”

She looked up at him, her mouth going dry at the site of him in front of her, looking like he had that one morning…

She pulled her eyes away and looked down at the boxes, jerking her mind back to the present and not allowing her mind to go back to her dangerous past with this man.  “Fine!” she snapped and pulled on a pair.  When they fit, she shrugged.  “These are fine.  I won’t be here that long.”

“Try on another pair.”  When she looked up at him, his smile was evil.  “Hey, you never know when you’ll go face down in another cement pond, right?”

She was so angry with him after that taunt, she couldn’t even speak.  But she knew that she had absolutely no idea what went on at a construction site, so she grabbed another box and opened it up.  Another pair of work boots;, this pair looked similar, but were slightly different. 

“These fit fine as well,” she told him after she’d slipped her foot inside and laced them up.  “Where’s my purse?”

“I got this,” he told her with a wink.  “You have to save up your money for Prada.”  A moment later, he walked away with the boxes, leaving her to put one pair of the boots on and follow him. 

Oh, she was really going to get him for this, she thought with relish.  She had no idea how, but eventually, she was going to humiliate him just as badly as he was humiliating her right now.  She looked ridiculous, walking around in enormous sweats and a tee-shirt that was ten sizes too big and now…boots!  And not the nice, pretty leather kind that made a woman look sexy!  Oh no, these babies were the hard, tan leather that clunked along, weighing about ten tons whenever she picked her foot up. 

If Toby or his friends could see her now, they would laugh.  And cringe!  And she would never hear the end of it!  Those Boston society folks had very good memories! 

There was no way she could ever tell Toby about this.  He would be horrified! 

She was walking towards the cashier when something occurred to her.  How in the world did Teague know that she’d been wearing Prada shoes? 

Looking over at him, she was mystified by the man. 

“Let’s go,” he called out to her, having paid for the boots and the socks. 

Gabriella fumbled with her boxes slightly but eventually was able to follow him out of the store.  “I need a pair of jeans,” she told him. 

He looked down at her as she tucked the second pair of boots under her arm.  “Just jeans?  That’s all you need?”

“I’ll be fine with a pair of jeans.”  She had no idea why he thought that was so funny, but she wasn’t going to look at him.  No way was she looking up at him.  He would be smiling and that irritating sparkle would be in his eyes and she’d get all googly-eyed again.  Nope, just stare straight ahead! 

“What?” she finally snapped when he didn’t elaborate. 

He chuckled as he shrugged.  “Just thinking that I’m going to love watching you stomp after me in your boots and jeans,” he leaned forward to whisper in her ear, “and nothing else.”

She pulled back as she gasped in horror.  “A shirt would be good too!” she growled, finally understanding why he was so amused. 

“Darn,” he mumbled, but led her over to one of the other stores.  This wasn’t the kind that she normally frequented, but it had a wall of jeans on one side and other clothes for both men and women in the middle. 

“Jeans for the lady,” he told the sales clerk that walked up to greet them.  “Size ten.”  His eyes moved over her figure, almost caressing her backside.  “I’ll pick out the tops.  You try on the jeans.”

Gabriella rolled her eyes.  She wasn’t sure why but she was fairly certain that he was up to something and she wouldn’t like it.  But what was the alternative?  She needed to try on the jeans even though she absolutely hated jeans.  She didn’t even own a pair of jeans, preferring leggings and a tunic top when she was relaxing.  Jeans just…they didn’t fit her properly. 

And it was fairly embarrassing that he knew her size.  The man knew women too well, she thought as she followed the sales clerk to one of the dressing rooms.  There was a stack of jeans in different styles in the teenager’s arms.  “Try these on and let me know which style suits you the best.”

Gabriella walked into the dressing room, glancing back at Teague, not sure if she should leave him to pick out her tops.  She wasn’t sure she wanted him to be in charge of that task.  But she had to get something other than these ridiculous sweat pants to wear.  Once she had the jeans, she could go shopping on her own.  Of course, she’d left her purse back in his truck.  Ugh!  She hadn’t even realized that she was walking around a mall without a purse!  The man made her so nuts!

Okay.  Fine.  This was fixable.  She’d just walk back out to his truck so that she could retrieve her purse before she dismissed him completely and then grab a cab back to the city to find a hotel.  Or maybe she should find a hotel out this way, further outside of the city.  The hotels were probably cheaper.  She’d just pulled on a pair of jeans and was looking at the way they fit her when the door to the dressing room opened up. 

The whistle was her first hint that it was Teague.  Well, the fact that the door swung open without any warning should have been her first clue, but she was too worried about the way her butt looked in the jeans.

“We’ll get those,” he told her with finality, his eyes heating up as he continued to stare at her bottom. 

She glanced up at him, then at the stack of jeans still to try on.  “I haven’t even tried on the others.  They might…”

He shook his head. “Those.  Definitely.”

A moment later, the door was closed and he was gone. 

With resentment, she still went through the other jeans.  Unfortunately, no matter how hard she twisted and turned, the first pair of jeans were still the ones that looked the best.  She hated that he was right, but the man knew his denim, she supposed.  She didn’t want to know how he was so knowledgeable regarding women’s derrieres.  Nope, not a subject she was willing to ponder.  And the feeling behind that issue had absolutely nothing to do with jealousy, she promised herself.   

She carefully folded all of the jeans, placing them in a stack with the sizing stickers exactly as they had been on the shelf, then walked out again.  “I’ll take…”

He was sitting in a chair looking at his cell phone when she walked back out, several bags filled with clothes already paid for. 

“What have you done?” she demanded.

He looked up at her, a black eyebrow going up.  “Go put the jeans back on.  I’ve paid for everything, including the ones you liked.”

She huffed a bit, irritated that he was taking control.  “What if I liked one of the other styles better?”

He shrugged.  “I’ll get you those too, if you want.  But I got you seven pairs of the others.”

Her mouth fell open.  “Seven pairs?”

He stood up, his eyes doing that “dare ya” thing that he seemed to have perfected.  “Sure, one for each day of the week.  If you’re staying till I sign those papers, then you’ve got a long wait ahead of you.”

With that, he turned and walked out of the store.  “You coming?” he called back when he was at the entrance. 

She hurried after him, grabbing the extra pair of jeans the sales clerk tossed to her in her rush.  “Jerk,” she mumbled under her breath but she hurried after him. 

When he stopped at the next store, Gabriella came to a screeching halt.  “Woah!  I’m not going in there.”

He laughed, his eyes bright with anticipation.  “Fine, you stay out here.  I’ll get what you need.”

The pink store filled with bras and underwear was not the place she normally purchased her underwear.  “Teague, don’t…” but he was already tossing things into the basket.  “Thirty-six D, right?”

She was still standing at the entrance, but when he called out to her from one of the displays, she rushed into the store, fully aware that he would simply yell to her from wherever he was in the store.  If she didn’t want her intimate sizes discussed at top volume, she had to go to him.  “C.  I’m only a C cup,” she hissed, glancing around to see if anyone else was noticing her embarrassment. 

She should have kept her mouth shut because her correction caused the odious man to turn around and look at her, or more specifically, her breasts.  She couldn’t stop the way her nipples hardened under his intense scrutiny, but she lifted her arms to cover them anyway, wishing that her cheeks didn’t have the horrible habit of turning red when he looked at her that way. 

“Prove it,” he said, leaning a very large hand on top of one of the dainty dressers filled with provocative bras. 

Gabriella backed up a step as she shook her head.  “I’m not proving anything to you!”

He laughed softly but started filling the basket once again.  “Didn’t think so,” he said and tossed in several more. 

She watched in horror as he threw in the sexiest pieces.  She’d never dare to wear things like that!  “I don’t wear thongs!” she hissed, glancing around at the other shoppers who were all smiling, obviously jealous.  A tall, gorgeous man buying loads of sexy underwear?  Oh yeah, every woman’s fantasy.  Well, her nightmare, she thought, but still, she could understand the other women’s thoughts.  Yeah, it would be nice.  If she were still attracted to Teague.  And willing to act on that attraction. 

But she wasn’t!  She was cool and calm.  Toby’s kisses never made her crazy like Teague’s had so there was no insanity, no need to wear sexy underwear like the pieces he was throwing into the basket. 

“You do now,” Teague told her and tossed in a black lace thong after holding it up to examine it carefully.  “What do you normally sleep in?” he asked.  “When you’re not sleeping naked with me, that is.”

Gabriella heard the other ladies chuckle and covered her face with her hands.  “You’re incorrigible,” she groaned. 

He leaned closer.  “Either you tell me or I pick something for you myself.”

“Leave!” she snapped at him.

“Fine,” he replied and walked to one of the walls where he started to examine the outfits that were definitely not for sleeping. 

“I’m leaving,” she told him and walked out of the store. 

His only response to her emphatic statement was that sexy, deep chuckle and she almost growled out her frustration.  The man was annoying and irritating and he knew her enough to know exactly how to push her buttons.  They might not know each other well, but the things he did know, he used to his advantage. 

When he came out twenty minutes later, she had no idea what he’d bought, but he had four bags filled with whatever was in that store, and the bags all looked packed!  “You bought more underwear than clothing!”

He shrugged.  “What else do you need?” he asked, carrying everything but the boxes of shoes and extra pair of jeans. 

She gritted her teeth, trying for patience.  “I need you to sign those papers and let me get back to Boston.”

He glanced at his watch.  “I have meetings this afternoon.  Are you going to be okay by yourself?”

She rolled her eyes.  “I’m a big girl, Teague.  I can take care of myself.”

His eyes moved up and down her figure with that teasing smile.  “Yes, you can.”

They walked in silence out to his truck and he stored all the bags back under the hardtop of his truck.  She peered under the cover, fascinated by all the items in his truck.  When she spotted her purse, she gasped with horror.  “My purse!” she almost sobbed.  It was ruined!  The black leather was coated with globs of cement and cement dust, all of it dried into the fine leather tote bag.  “It’s ruined.”

Teague stood at her side, looking at the bag in her hands.  “Back into the stores for a bag?” he suggested. 

Gabriella sighed, dropping the bag back into the truck.  “No.  I’m fine,” she told him with resentment and more than a little embarrassment.  She could just scrape the stupid cement off of the leather for now.  She’d find a new one when she got back to Boston.  That bag had cost her a lot and there was no way she’d allow Teague to buy her a new leather bag.  He couldn’t afford it.  Good grief, he probably couldn’t afford all of the stuff he’d already bought her!  The man lived in a trailer, after all.

After rummaging around in the various bags, she selected what she hoped were the least risqué underwear items and a soft, red sweater.  When she had everything she might need, she stepped into the truck, the jeans clutched to her chest.  “Stay out for a moment,” she ordered and slammed the door closed.

 

Teague was stunned for about half a minute before he realized what she was going to do.  And hell, it turned him on when he thought of her naked…or almost naked…in his truck.  Of course, it would be better if he were in there with her.  Or better still, if she were getting naked in his bedroom.  He pictured her in his house, with the old wood floors and the large windows that looked out into the woods.  She’d look perfect just about anywhere in that house, he thought.  In jeans, out of jeans, in his old shirts, or just with the sunshine to compete with the beauty of her skin.

What was he doing?  Leaning against the truck, he looked out at the parking lot, trying to figure out his plan.  She was here and she was more beautiful than he remembered.  And feistier!  Damn, she was stunning when she was trying to put him down.  She even looked adorable in his old sweats and shirt.  With a figure like hers, she could make just about anything look good, he thought.

He should just sign the papers and get on with his life, let her go back to Boston, and marry whatever idiot she’d chosen that would give her the life she wanted. 

But when had he ever taken the easy, sensible path? 

Looking into the truck, he saw one slender foot pop into the air as she pulled the jeans on over her sexy legs.  It was the pink-tipped toes that did it for him.  That pink, so completely wrong for her, made him want to piss her off to the point that she told him why she’d left him. 

Oh, she’d given him some load of BS about how they wanted different things in life, but that made no sense since the previous five days they’d laid in each other’s arms, talking about what they both wanted out of life, and their hopes and dreams had seemed pretty damn similar. 

So maybe he’d keep her around for a few days, find out a bit more about the woman who took his ring but refused to take his name.  Interesting choice, he thought as his phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket. 

It was his brother.  “Marcy’s okay, right?” he asked in place of a greeting. 

“She’s in labor,” Zeke announced and Teague could hear the strain in his voice. 

“I’m on my way.  I’ll call the others to let them know.”

“Thanks.  I’m going back in.”

Teague jumped into the truck and started the engine, his mind only partially aware of Gabby pulling the shirt down over the pale skin of her sexy stomach.  “We have to go,” he told her as he revved the engine and backed up the truck.  “Put your seatbelt on.”

She did as he told her but her eyes were wide, worried.  “What’s wrong?” she asked, knowing that something was wrong. 

“Marcy.  She went into labor.  We have to go to the hospital.”  He tossed her his phone.  “Call my other brothers, Logan and Luke.  Tell them she’s at University of Washington Medical Center and that Marcy is okay, but we need to get there for Zeke.”

Gabby looked down at the fancy phone, not sure how to even unlock it.  But as she looked over at him, a thought occurred to her.  As soon as she punched in the numbers he called out to her, the phone unlocked and something in her heart twisted.  With pain?  Regret?  Hope?  It was the date of their wedding.  His password was their anniversary!

She rejected that last possibility and ran her finger over the screen, looking through his contacts for his brothers’ phone numbers.  She came to Logan’s number first and dialed. 

“I thought you had the inspector this afternoon?” a deep voice asked by way of greeting.

Gabriella hesitated for a moment.  “Um, is this Logan Steele?”

There was a long moment of silence before he said, “Yes.  Who is this and why do you have my brother’s phone?”

Gabriella cringed at both the voice and the speed with which Teague was taking a corner.  “Yes, well, I’m uh…this is Gabriella Hicks.  I’m calling for your brother.  He’s driving.  He said that…”

“Is Marcy okay?” he interrupted. 

Gabriella was relieved that the man immediately understood the reason for the call.  “Yes.  But she’s in labor.  Marcy and Zeke are at Washington University Medical Center.”

“Got it.  We’ll meet you there.”

She called the next number, Luke Steele, and had almost the exact same conversation.  But at the end, Teague was pulling into a parking space and she told Luke that she’d let them know if there was any additional information once they were in the hospital and had found Zeke. 

“Come on,” he said and came around the truck again, opening her door before she’d even gotten her seat belt off.  He held her hand, helping her down even though she was now in boots, jeans, and the softest cashmere sweater she’d ever pulled against her skin. 

He looked down at her and she reached up to try and smooth her hair, feeling self-conscious with it going all crazy like this.  She didn’t have a brush or makeup and felt completely off balance.  But that was actually the norm when she was around Teague. 

“I look a mess,” she mumbled.

Teague took her hand and pulled her through the other cars.  “You look beautiful,” and he burst through the doors of the hospital.  He spoke to the receptionist and found out what room Marcy and Zeke were in.  “Got it,” he said.  He looked down at Gabriella.  “Can you text my brothers the information while I talk with the doctor?

“Sure,” she said and plugged in his cell phone unlock code again.  Was it significant that she’d already memorized that?  Or was she just being silly and trying to find something to connect them? 

No!  No way!  Good grief, what was she thinking?  She was trying to make subconscious connections with a man she didn’t want to have in her life!  Was she crazy? 

Yes, she must be, she thought as she raced along the hallway next to Teague, almost out of breath because he was so much taller than she was and had a longer stride.  She was practically running beside him but didn’t want to ask him to slow down.  She knew that he was worried about his brother and sister-in-law.  The faster Teague found his brother, the better off he would be. 

When they’d reached the maternity wing of the hospital, Teague spotted Zeke and went over to talk with him.  Gabriella held back, not wanting to intrude.  This was a private, family time and she wasn’t family.  Not really. 

Gabriella went into the waiting room and took a breath, looking out at the cloudy day.  She couldn’t see it from this view, but she knew that, in the distance, was Portage Bay, a large body of water with a beach off to the left.  Not that many people went to beaches in Seattle.  She thought about that for a moment.  Maybe they did, and maybe they didn’t.  It was so cloudy and rainy in Seattle, and she suspected that the waters here were as cold as they were in Maine, which was too cold for her to even dip her toes into. 

She shook her head and focused on the task at hand.  She’d sort of assumed the role of communications person for the moment, at least until she could give Teague his phone back.  Taking Teague’s phone out again, she texted both brothers the new information on the room number as well as the news that Teague was trying to speak with a doctor. 

Not five minutes later, two large and familiar looking men walked into the waiting room and stopped, looking at her with the same startlingly green eyes that Teague had.  Both sets of eyes were staring at her and she took a step back.  They looked exactly alike, and yet, not alike.  Their features were similar, but there was something about the two men that was different.  She couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was though.  She’d known that Teague’s younger brothers were twins, but facing the two enormous men, both of whom were almost as large as Teague, was startling and overwhelming. 

She rallied quickly though, assessing the two men and trying to find that space in her mind that wasn’t occupied with thoughts of Teague.  “One of you must be Luke and the other is Logan,” she said, digging deep for some long forgotten confidence. 

“I’m Logan,” one of them stepped forward.  This man looked like Teague, but he didn’t have Teague’s laughing green eyes.  In fact, both men looked significantly more serious than Teague.  If they didn’t look like him, she might even suspect that Teague was not related. 

Logan was just as tall as Teague, but where Teague had blatant muscles, this man was lithe, more like a swimmer than a boxer.  His white shirt was open at the collar and he was wearing a tailored sports jacket with his khaki slacks and cowboy boots that seemed to suit the scary look in his eyes. 

“I’m Luke,” the other man offered, stepping forward and taking Gabriella’s hand. 

“I’m Gabriella Hicks,” she responded.

Luke was a bit more bulky, but still startlingly handsome.  Both had those hard, green eyes and broad shoulders, that crazy height that made her feel small, but whereas Teague was tall like his brothers, somehow, he made her feel vulnerable.  These men were intimidating, but not in the same way. 

She didn’t fully understand the difference, but nor was she planning to stick around long enough to need to know.  The Steele brothers were all handsome men, but she was Boston bound.  Toby was waiting for her and…

She gasped when she looked down at her hand.  Her phone!  She needed to call Toby and tell him that she wouldn’t be back tonight! 

Thankfully, Teague walked into the waiting room at that moment and she turned away from his brothers and all of the questions racing through her mind. 

Turning to Teague, she looked up at him as she handed his phone back.  “Can I borrow your keys?  I need to get my purse.”

He looked at her curiously, but dug into his jeans and pulled out the keys.  “Don’t drive it anywhere,” he cautioned.  “You’re too small for that thing.”

Gabriella rolled her eyes.  “If I was able to handle you, I can definitely handle your truck,” she said, walking out of the waiting room and leaving three stunned men staring at the empty doorway.

Teague continued to watch her as she moved down the hallway, not sure what he was thinking.  Had she handled him?  And what did she mean by that? 

“You’re being handled,” Logan commented, a mysterious smile on his lips. 

Teague sighed and rubbed his face.  “Shut up,” he said, earning him laughter from both brothers. 

The men started pacing, prowling the perimeters of the room as if they were caged animals. 

Luke was practically growling.  “How long does it take to have a baby?” he asked, glancing at his watch.  “Shouldn’t it have happened already?” 

“No clue,” Teague replied and started pacing as well. 

“Seems like it should have been finished by now,” Logan commented, draining the last of his coffee and tossing it across the room to the garbage can. 

Teague glanced at his watch, wondering what Gabby needed his keys for.  He’d thought she only needed to get her purse, but she’d been gone for twenty minutes now. 

“She’s fine,” Logan commented, smacking Teague on the back. 

“She’s not fine,” Teague replied.  “She should be back already.”

Luke wasn’t as kind as Logan.  “She probably took your truck to the airport and hightailed it out of here.”

Teague thought about that and nodded in agreement.  “Probably.”

A moment later, Gabriella walked back into the waiting room, her arms loaded down with bags of food and a tray filled with fresh cups of coffee.  “I didn’t steal your truck and head to the airport,” she told the three of them, handing each of them a bag filled with two burgers each plus fries and sodas.  “But only because I missed my flight already.”  She handed Teague his keys along with his food.  “And I didn’t think about it.”

The men fell in love with her, each of them grabbing a bag, Logan and Luke both kissing her cheek in thanks.  “You’re a goddess,” Logan said.  To Teague, he commanded, “Keep her.”

Teague rolled his eyes but took an enormous bite of his own burger.  “Thanks for the food,” he told her, realizing that he was starving.  The others were digging into their meal as well. 

“You’re a lifesaver,” Logan told her.  “Whatever it is that he did wrong, trust me, I’ll do it right.”

Teague just about punched his brother for that comment.  Logan knew that he was in jeopardy and laughed as he moved across the room, out of punching range. 

Gabriella took a fry and looked at the three men. All of them looked so similar, but so different as well. 

“I’ll bring this to Zeke,” Teague said and picked up the last bag.  “Thanks, Gabby,” and he walked out.

Gabriella wasn’t really hungry but she nibbled on her burger.  When she looked up, Logan and Luke were both looking at her.

“Do I have something on my face?” she asked, picking up a napkin and trying to wipe it off.

Both men looked at her curiously.  She sensed there was an underlying current of anger, but they weren’t showing it.  “You’re not going to hurt him again, are you?” Logan asked, breaking the silence.

Gabriella blinked, not sure what to say.  Was she going to hurt Teague?  And if they were concerned that she was going to do it again, that meant that she’d done it before. 

Her mind pictured Teague the day she’d walked out of his life in Las Vegas, but she couldn’t remember his features on that day.  She’d been too busy trying to force her feet to keep walking away from him, to not run back into his arms.  She’d kept telling herself that they were too different.  That they wanted different things in life. 

She’d messed up by marrying him, but she’d been caught up in the whirlwind that was Teague.  He made her crazy and she did stupid things around him, like marrying almost a complete stranger.  Like spending days in bed with the man!  Like ignoring all of her goals and thinking that it would be okay to marry a man who couldn’t provide the security she craved, the respect she needed.  She couldn’t fit into Teague’s world.  She knew it and he had to have figured it out.

She carefully put her burger down.  “I don’t want to hurt him.  I never wanted to hurt him.  He’s a good man, we’re just not right for each other.”

“What are you here for then?” Luke demanded.  His voice was gentle, but still firm and she fully understood that he wasn’t a man to mess with. 

She sighed and wiped her hands on a paper napkin.  “I’m here to finalize things.  I just need his signature on the divorce papers and I’ll go back to Boston.  I promise, I’ll never haunt his door again.”

Both Luke and Logan looked at each other and Gabriella felt her stomach tighten with that look.  When their green eyes came back to her, she wanted to run and hide.  “What can the idiot in Boston give you that Teague can’t?”

Gabriella sighed.  “Security,” she said immediately.  “Respect.  The life that I want.”

Her instant reply softened both of their expressions.  They almost seemed to understand and Gabriella’s tension eased somewhat. 

“What do you want out of life?” Logan asked gently. 

Gabriella wrapped up her meal and tossed it into the trash.  “It isn’t really something I can explain,” she told both men.  “Something neither of you would understand.”

Luke polished off his burger and bundled up his trash.  “No man can give you security like Teague can.  And if you don’t know that, then you don’t know Teague very well.”

“I don’t need to get to know him.  I have plans.  And…” She stopped when both men laughed. 

“The fact that you’re here means that your plans are probably toast,” Logan explained and Luke nodded in agreement. 

After that, Teague walked back in and Gabriella was relieved.  “I really should go,” she told Teague, feeling like she was intruding. 

“Stay,” he told her and pulled her into his arms.  “Marcy is going to be okay, right?” he asked her, resting his chin on her head for a moment. 

This vulnerable side of Teague startled her.  He always seemed so confident, so in control.  Nothing ever phased him. 

It appeared that Marcy’s labor was blind-siding him.  She looked over at the other two men, both of whom were looking to her as well, silently imploring her to reassure everyone.  Why did they think she would know any more about this pregnancy stuff than they did?  She’d never been pregnant, never had a baby.  Did having mammary glands and a uterus automatically indicate that she knew everything there was to know about giving birth? 

Obviously it did, she thought with a touch of humor as she continued to stare at the three men.  “Well, speaking from experience,” she teased, but when none of them laughed, she shrugged her shoulders.  “From what I’ve heard, it could take up to twenty-four hours for the baby to be born.”  The men’s stares became outraged.  “It isn’t an easy process,” she defended.  “It takes a lot of energy to give birth.”  She felt like she needed to defend the entire female population. But when the three men stared back at her, almost unbelieving, she sighed with exasperation.  “You guys try creating a human being in your body and see how long it takes to…” she stopped, not sure she wanted to go down that path.  “Well, you know,” she said and gestured to the middle of their bodies. 

The three men turned a bit green at the idea, but they stopped staring at her.  She felt Teague’s arms tighten around her and she wanted to hug him back.  Her arms went around his lean waist and she rested her cheek against his chest.  “I’m sure Marcy is okay.  Otherwise, the doctor would have come in to…”

“It’s a boy!” Zeke announced, bursting into the room and looking for all the world as if he’d done all the work.  “Eight pounds, ten ounces and he’s doing great.”

“How’s Marcy?” Teague asked, clapping his older brother on the arm. 

Zeke ran a hand over his face.  “She’s doing okay.  Tired.  Angry and hungry, but she’s feeding our son at the moment.”

The three men stared at their oldest brother in horror.  “What the hell are you doing out here then?”

Zeke threw back his head and laughed.  “Good point,” he said to Luke and received a pounding hug from each of them before he headed back to his wife and his newborn son. 

Gabriella looked around the room, unaware of the beaming smile splitting her face.  The others were just as excited and grinning like proud papas and she chuckled as each of them hugged her.  One would think she was part of this family, she thought, as she pulled back when the three brothers started discussing ways to celebrate. 

“Dinner!” they all said. 

Gabriella laughed.  She’d just brought them burgers about…she glanced down at her watch, shocked to realize that ten hours had passed.  Good grief!  It was almost midnight!  Where had the afternoon and evening gone? 

Teague grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room as if she belonged, as if she were part of the family. 

Gabriella tugged back, gaining his attention while the other two men continued slapping each other on the back and discussing which bar they were going to invade. 

“What’s wrong?” Teague asked, not releasing her hands. 

She shook her head.  “Why don’t you and your brothers go have fun, celebrate?  You and I can talk tomorrow over breakfast.”

He shook his head.  “Now what kind of a husband would I be if I left you here all alone?” he grinned.  “You’re coming with us.  You won’t be able to get to my place without me anyway.”

“I can just…”

He was already shaking his head.  “You’re not staying in a hotel, Gabby.  You’re staying with me.  You’re in a strange city.  It isn’t safe.”

Gabriella rolled her eyes.  “Teague, I traveled a great deal for my job before I…”

His eyes narrowed so she stopped speaking.  “Before you what?”

She sighed.  “Toby convinced me to quit my job so that I could get ready for the wedding.”

He looked furious for a moment, but then his face cleared and he smiled again.  “That’s one obstacle out of your way then, right?”

She blinked.  “What obstacle?”

He shrugged and tugged her along behind him.  “You won’t miss work on Monday when you don’t go back to Boston.”

She almost smacked her forehead at his logic.  Was he doing this on purpose?  Trying to drive her nuts? 

Of course he was!  The man loved driving her crazy. 

But she wasn’t doing that anymore!  “Teague, I’m checking into a hotel.”

He continued walking, keeping her hand in his.  “Just one drink.  Come on, you’ve got to celebrate the good news of my nephew being born.  It’s tradition.”

She didn’t really have a choice since the man lifted her up into his truck once more.  She didn’t argue because, truth be told, she wasn’t looking forward to trying to find a hotel this late at night.  She was tired, ready to find a bed, but she could humor the man for a little while.  He was a new uncle, after all.  And his good humor had always been contagious. 

“Fine,” she grumbled, but there wasn’t really a point since he’d already slammed the truck door closed and was walking around to the driver’s side, taking her agreement for granted. 

Ten minutes later, the four of them were raising a glass of beer to celebrate their nephew’s birth.  Normally, she sipped white wine but tonight, she reverted back to her preferred beer and smiled as the three men started discussing all the various activities they were going to do with their nephew.  Camping, archery, skeet shooting were all among the top ten along with a list of sports that each of the enormous men were eager to teach him. 

Gabriella leaned back in her chair, drinking a seemingly endless glass of beer.  When she was lifted up into Teague’s arms once again, she was feeling too good to worry overly much about the action.  Nor did she care which hotel he took her too.  All she wanted was a soft bed.  Exhaustion and alcohol making her body numb.