“Thank God,” Val whispered when Gabe’s eyes finally fluttered open. They were dark and brooding as they settled upon her, and he reached his hand up to touch her face gently.
“Are you all right?” he asked hoarsely.
“Me?!” Val exclaimed, laughing in disbelief. “You nearly died! If Ren hadn’t shown up and driven us back here, you would have!”
Gabe’s brow furrowed. “I don’t remember that.”
“Well, good, because I was hysterical the whole time. It was kind of embarrassing.”
Gabe grinned, a sexy little gesture that made his entire face light up, and Val swallowed hard. She didn’t know what she would have done if she had lost him. The thought was unbearable.
“Is Ren still here? I’d like to thank him.”
“No, he left after stopping by the drug store and getting me a salve to put on your wounds. He said you’d make it, but I didn’t believe him until just now. When you opened your eyes. Don’t ever do that to me again, you jerk!”
Gabe sat up straight, the thin sheet falling from his broad chest as he did so. It was clear he was gaining all his strength back now, and quickly, just as Ren had promised he would.
“Or maybe, next time, you stay put when I ask you to so you don’t get yourself kidnapped and I have to fight to the death for you.”
Val pursed her lips, a combination of relief and guilt bringing hot tears to her eyes. “I’m sorry.”
“Hey,” Gabe said, his low voice a comforting rumble as he held her close to his chest. “Don’t do that, now. I only did it because I…”
Val froze, the emotion between them obvious, and she pulled away to look into Gabe’s eyes.
“I can’t live with you like this anymore,” she whispered. “I have to go on my own. Not unless…”
Gabe’s lips were on hers suddenly and passionately, and Val gasped in shock and pleasure. Her body was electrified, every sensation of pleasure awakened by his touch. It meant only one thing. He felt for her exactly what she felt for him. And now, he was ready to accept that. And she was ready to receive.
Val moaned softly as Gabe’s soft lips found their way to the nape of her neck, and she was filled with a hot wave of ecstasy as her body became weightless in Gabe’s arms. He sat her down in his lap, the thick muscle between his legs pressed firmly against her as a testament to his desire. She shuddered in pleasure when he stripped her swiftly, so the only thing between their middles was the thin sheet of her bed.
Suddenly, Gabe was on top of her, the sheet nowhere to be found, and she stared in wonder at the impossible muscles of his abdomen. They had gone through so much, and yet, he was still able to display such raw power. It filled her with something deeper than desire; a profound sense of awe and appreciation for his body.
He seemed to sense this and returned it in kind, his strong hands roaming the gentle slopes of her body, sending tendrils of fire in their wake. A creeping sensation traveled up her spine as the fire in her loins was stoked, and soon, Gabe was rocking his hips gently against her, massaging the most sensitive area of her body. She writhed in pleasure beneath him, gasping in shock when, with one abrupt, decisive action, Gabe thrust himself inside her.
An explosion of bliss shook her to her core, and she gripped Gabe’s shoulders tightly, closing her eyes to relish the fullness of the sensation. His body was becoming one with hers as they found their unique rhythm, Gabe’s hips moving in slow, sensual rotations until the only thing Valerie could think about was her own pleasure.
She met Gabe’s eyes, and they bore into her. Without speaking, she knew what he felt, and she felt the same. They were better together, both of them knew it, and now, nothing would ever be the same again.
Val cried out in ecstasy as Gabe’s muscle pried inside her again and again, each time bringing her closer to the height of her desire. He dropped his lips over her breast, taking her nipple into his mouth and lapping his tongue sweetly over it, intensifying her pleasure until she could no longer hold herself back.
She shuddered beneath the comforting weight of his body as he thrust inside her, every inch of his member making itself known to her. She couldn’t stop the contractions as her orgasm began, and they hugged his muscle tightly. Gabe growled in pleasure, unleashing the true power of his beast inside of her and nearly making Val shout out in rapture.
The sudden explosion of Gabe’s orgasm rocked Val’s body, and she was filled with the sheer force of it as she surrendered fully to her own, their bodies entwined as they shared a moment of pleasure unlike anything either of them had ever known. Gabe gradually slowed his pace as Val shuddered beneath him, and they finally collapsed together on the bed.
Gabe lifted Val up and held him tightly on top of his broad body, stroking the hair out of her face and kissing the corners of her lips.
“You sure I’m not too old for you?” he asked, raising a brow at her.
Val laughed and shook her head. “You’re not too anything for me,” she replied. “Is it wrong for me to love you the way I do?”
Gabe shrugged.
“I think it might be more wrong to hide what you really feel. At the end of the day, that’s what really matters.”
“Do you think your wife would like me?” Val whispered.
The question seemed to take Gabe by surprise. She expected him to be angry, to want to leave and never come back, but instead, he smiled and held her eye.
“She would absolutely love you,” he whispered, kissing her tenderly. “Because I love you. And I know she would want us to live happily ever after.”
Val smiled, and laid her head on his shoulder, suddenly very sleepy.
“So do I,” she said with a small yawn.
“And we will,” Gabe promised, stroking her back soothingly. “I claimed you for a reason.”
And with that, they fell into a deep, restorative sleep.
THE END