Page 36 of Dare to Surrender (NY Dares 1)
The burn as he pushed deeper spoke of Gabe, our connection. I welcomed it, knowing how much I wanted to give to this man. The thought scared me. It came with the fleeting reminder of how much was still unsaid between us. But then he began a steady pumping, in and out, until he’d lodged in deep.
I felt him. “Gabriel,” I moaned, unable to keep the feelings inside.
“Oh, Iz.” His self-control fled, and he fucked me. There were no other words as he took me hard and fast, easing out, slamming in deep. All the while holding my gaze, not letting me look away as he possessed my body, his arms braced, enabling him to thrust in and out, bringing us both higher and higher. I’d never been on such a precipice before, and I needed to touch him. I tugged at the bindings on my arms, groaning when I couldn’t release myself. He reached out a hand, did something, and then I was free to roam my hands over his broad shoulders, the muscles flexing as he drove in and out of me, taking what he wanted and giving me everything in return.
I shook, felt the beginnings of an orgasm I wasn’t sure I could handle. Not with those intense blue eyes boring into me, making me vulnerable and even needier. Before I could think, he changed position just a touch, and he hit that spot. The one his fingers easily found when he wanted me to soar.
“Oohh,” I let out a long, embarrassing wail.
It merely spurred him on. He hooked an arm around my back, pulled me to a sitting position, and then I was facing him. Looking into his eyes as he ground himself into me and came hard.
My name on his lips triggered my release and brought me along with him.
Chapter Thirteen
Isabelle: Being Me
The afterglow took a long time to fade. I think I slept or at least catnapped. That was okay, since I woke up wrapped in warmth, and I was in no rush to break away from the strong arms holding me tight. He slept beside me, his big body lax, obviously finding the same ease with me as I did with him. But he gave me more. I felt so protected when I was with Gabe, so right. I could wake up like this every morning, I thought, and cut off my musings. I had no right to think beyond the here and now. Time, I needed it to make sure I didn’t jump without thinking, like I tended to do when it came to men. To the idea of security.
“Isabelle?” a female voice called out from the living room.
I jumped at the intrusion.
“Isabelle? It’s me, Lucy! I thought I could welcome you to the island, have a drink, and we could talk about—” Lucy halted in the doorway, shutting up as she took in the sight of me. In bed with her brother.
“Oh my God.” I crawled lower into the bed.
“Go away, Lucy.”
“I thought I’d welcome her, Gabe. I didn’t think you’d jump her the minute she arrived.”
I cringed. Gabe merely glanced down, making sure he was covered.
“Actually, she jumped me.” He grinned, and I sank lower, managing to elbow him in the side for his sarcasm.
“Fine. I’m going. Since it’s near dinnertime, why don’t we just meet tomorrow. Isabelle, you can text me when you’re ready to work on the club.”
The club. The reason I thought I’d been summoned here. The reminder brought the real world crashing back.
I waited for Lucy to disappear before sitting up in bed. “This really was a setup. Invite me here to work on the club as a pretext to getting me into bed. I told Lucy I didn’t have the experience, but she assured me I could handle it. I knew you’d had a hand in it, but I didn’t think…” I shook my head. “Never mind. I’ll see if Joely can bring me back to Miami first thing in the morning.”
His hand gripped mine. “Did I set you up to come here to meet me? Yes. Because you wouldn’t have come otherwise.”
I shook my head, biting down on my lower lip. “I needed the time apart,” I said. “It was the only way to get through each day and build myself into a worthy woman. Instead of respecting that, you set up a way to get me a job.”
“You’re wrong about one thing. You were always a worthy woman. Worthy of a lot more than the hand you were dealt. Success is all about who you know and what you make of the opportunity.”
“You and Lucy are drinking the same Kool-Aid.”
He cupped the back of my head in his hand, subtly controlling my ability to move. My body responded as if we hadn’t just made love … had sex. An insistent throb began low in my belly. I didn’t recognize the woman whose sexual need was so strong, who wanted … so much.
“The fact is, I gave you as much time as I could take. Patience is not my strong suit in general. When it comes to you? It’s nonexistent,” he said, his voice a guttural rumble.
“You let me go so easily. I thought you’d forgotten me.” I blinked up at him. “And before you say it, I know. It’s a contradiction to think that way considering I’m the one who walked out on you.”
His perpetually stormy eyes darkened further. “I gave you what you wanted—what you needed—for as long as I could. I always will. But make no mistake. You were never alone.”
Whatever he meant by that, I wasn’t sure I needed specifics. I’d always sensed that if something went wrong, Gabe would be there. He wouldn’t have let me fall. He’d provided an inherent safety net I hadn’t known about, and that was the key. I. Hadn’t. Known. I’d been on my own.
