“Like you ever have,” he growled. “You knew I wouldn’t want you to meet that man alone so you sneaked out. You put yourself in danger.”

  “I had a gun and I know how to take care of myself.” She dismissed his accusation.

  “That man could have had accomplices, just waiting to off you. Or he could have taken you.” His hands tightened as though he was afraid to let her go. “Anything could have happened to you. If I hadn’t figured out where you were . . . I don’t even want to think about it.”

  The male scent of his skin mixed with the sandalwood notes of his aftershave and teased her nose. Any time she caught a whiff, Everly flashed back to moments he’d covered her body with his, working and straining between her legs to give her the greatest pleasure she’d ever experienced. He was so near, and to feel that again, all she had to do was move a few inches closer until their lips met. He wouldn’t need more enticing than that.

  “I can take care of myself.” She eyed his beautiful mouth.

  “Not against these people, you can’t. Damn it, Everly. Tell me, am I the only one who’s in deep? Would you not care if I walked into what could be an ambush? Would it mean nothing to you if I died?” The words sounded like a desperate growl.

  She hesitated. Everly hadn’t imagined he felt the same deep attachment she did. Not really. She’d known he wanted her and, protestations aside, assumed his possessiveness stemmed from his alpha-male personality. But now he wasn’t talking about her safety or even just sex. Could he really be falling for her? Could she trust that she wasn’t yet another woman this billionaire with movie-star charisma would adore completely for a few weeks or months before he moved on?

  Could she be the woman he truly wanted to settle down with?

  Probably not. But even if she wasn’t, holding back the truth might keep her heart safe, but he’d made himself vulnerable to her, and she couldn’t return his honesty with lies.

  “Oh, Gabriel. I would be devastated,” she whispered. “If something happened to you, I would want to die. But I also can’t live in a safe bubble.”

  He fused his stare to hers, as though trying to imprint himself on her. “And I can’t let you go.”

  “I’ll always do my best to stay safe, but I can’t stop living to do it.”

  “Damn it, woman,” he cursed. She was right. He knew it and he obviously didn’t like it.

  “Kiss me,” he demanded. “Fucking kiss me now.”

  Giving in might not be smart, but her recent brushes with death made her need to seize this moment. If she didn’t drink in every second she had with him, she would regret letting this chance to touch him slip through her fingers.

  Everly suspected she was only putting off their inevitable parting, but she’d choose him—and living life to the fullest—every chance she could.

  Leaning in, she layered her lips over his with a little catch of her breath. If she had only one more night with him, she would take it.

  Soft. His lips were so soft and sensual for a man. She gripped the sides of his jaw, feeling the rough beginnings of his beard. She loved the way he felt, the contrast between his soft skin and rough masculinity. That dichotomy mirrored the man himself. His alpha exterior hid a wealth of tenderness he’d probably only ever shown to his five closest friends. Everly felt blessed to see it now. She might not have the luxury of sharing all her remaining tomorrows with him, but she had right now.

  His hand glided up her thigh as their tongues tangled together. She parted her legs to give him access. Here, they fit together perfectly, as if they were made for each another. In his arms, the world fell away. No mysteries to solve. No reporters to elude. No danger to fight. No grief, loss, or uncertainty. Just her and him and a sense of rightness.

  She ran her tongue over his bottom lip, and despite the strength of his big body, he shivered.

  “Show me your breasts, Eve.” His hand moved restlessly up her thigh, climbing higher. He skimmed his fingers so close to the place she needed his touch most. Instead, he seemed content to tease her. Time and again, he stopped short of covering her needy flesh while he claimed her mouth.

  She kissed him back, eager to tease him in return. She kissed his nose and both cheeks, rubbing their faces together with sweet affection before she ran her tongue along the edge of his ear. “What will you give me if I do?”

  “My hands touching them. My lips and teeth worshipping them. I want to lick them and suck on them until you’re so aroused you can’t think or breathe.” He maneuvered his hand back up her leg, his fingers teasing the edges of her panties. “Are you getting wet for me? Are you aching for my cock?”

  “You know I am.” In fact, she had to bite her tongue not to beg for the pleasure he always delivered.

  “Then show me your breasts.” That damn hand moved away again, making her moan with frustration.

  “Get the zipper for me.” She couldn’t reach it. She’d needed his help with it this morning. Then, it had been a sweet intimacy. She’d almost been able to forget their fight and pretend they were merely another couple getting ready for the day. Since he’d zipped her in, it seemed only right that he tug it down and help her out of the clothes that kept them apart.

  He glided his hand up her thigh and torso, grazing the side of her breast until his fingertips brushed the back of her neck. Sensation sizzled down her spine. Then slowly, he dragged the zipper down with a muted hiss.

  “I love undressing you. It’s like unwrapping my favorite gift.” He leaned in and nuzzled her neck. “Every time I see you, all I want to do is get you naked and claim every part of you.”

  Biting back a little gasp, she let him drag her dress down her shoulders. She leaned back, giving him space to drag the sleeves down her arms. The dress fell to her waist, baring her bra. His stare fell to her chest, his breathing now ragged. He tugged at his tie, pulling at it as if he couldn’t quite breathe.

  His reaction made her feel so powerful. If someone had told her last week that today she would be stripping in a limo for the most beautiful man she’d ever met, she would have told them they were crazy. She wasn’t some sexy thing. At least she’d never felt that way. But Gabriel had changed that. Changed her. She couldn’t help but feel beautiful because he looked at her with such desire in his eyes. He never let her hide behind her insecurities—and she had no need in the face of his honest passion. Even if they parted tomorrow, she’d be forever grateful that he’d helped her find a new confidence.

  Everly unhooked the clasp of her bra and let her breasts bounce free. The minute she bared them, he licked his lips like a wolf scenting prey. He was ready to make her his meal.

  “Put your arms behind your back.”

  “You’re bossy.”

  He jerked his head from side to side. “I’m desperate. Put your arms behind your back or I’ll be forced to do something drastic and ruin these very nice slacks.”

  Gabriel was usually in control. Everly liked knowing she could make him come so close to losing it.

  Biting her lip, she grasped her hands behind her back. Her breasts thrust out and her nipples peaked as though anticipating his touch.

  “Do you know how beautiful you are to me?” He palmed both breasts, his big hands cupping her.

  “I know you make me feel that way.”

  “I want to be with you, Everly. And I don’t mean only right now. I don’t want this to end.” He looked up at her, his face filled with a question she didn’t know how to answer because she wasn’t sure quite what he was asking for. He surely couldn’t be asking for a real commitment. She couldn’t possibly think about that now.

  “Don’t make me wait,” she murmured instead. “Please.”

  He leaned in and kissed her breast, licking the turgid peak. He primed the sensitive tip, swirling around and up, flicking it with his tongue before he nipped the end with his teeth. The sensation shot straight to her sex. She gasped.

  “You don’t believe me,” he murmured. “You think I’ll discard you, but I won’t, baby. I intend to protect you, Everly. I choose you. I’ll stand by you. Even if you try to leave me because you think it’s best for us or whatever, I’ll come for you. I’ll convince you.”

  Easy to say in the heat of passion, but could things actually work out between them? She could eventually forgive the stupid things he’d said to his sister. But he was still the glamorous boy, and she was the ordinary girl falling for him. So she found it hard to trust that the words he spoke now were any more real than what he’d told Sara. Everly understood that Gabriel’s life experiences had taught him to be wary, and she understood why he hadn’t trusted her in the beginning. She wanted to believe she truly meant something to him, that they could grow together. How did she simply believe this stunning man wanted her beyond sex? Could they overcome all the issues between them and possibly build a future?

  And then she couldn’t think anymore because he sucked her nipple between his lips and pulled her close. He tugged on her, sending jagged pleasure racing through her system.

  “I need more.” He eased her down on the seat. She could feel the car rolling over the road underneath her, the rhythm somehow soothing.

  He pushed her dress up, and before she could protest, he whisked her underwear off her hips and down her legs. Tossing them aside, he shoved the dress farther up and stared between her legs.

  Her hungry wolf had become hungrier.

  “Won’t Dax be stopping soon?” The question came out in a breathless rush. “Maybe we should wait until we get back to Connor’s place.”

  But she didn’t want to wait. The minute they stopped and the limo door opened, the world would invade again. They would have to debrief Connor on everything that had happened, and it would be hours before they could be alone again.

  But she also didn’t want to appear in tomorrow’s tabloids with her dress around her waist and Gabriel between her legs.

  He didn’t seem to have the same concerns as he crouched down and kissed his way up her thighs. “He won’t stop until I tell him to. I wanted to be alone with you. I want to taste you again. Did I ever tell you how fucking good your flavor is on my tongue?”

  His mouth hovered over her pussy, and all thoughts of stopping slipped away. He nosed her, rubbing his face right against her most sensitive parts. Everything he did felt so good, so right. It was a bit forbidden and so intimate it made her heart swell.

  “I love it when you taste me.”

  His head came up, his eyes flaring. “Do you?”

  A little smile played at his lips before his head disappeared between her legs again, teeth scraping over her inner thigh.

  “I think about you touching me all the time.” Everly gasped, her fingers raking into his short hair.

  He pulled back and cupped her thigh, his fingers whispering over her clit. “Like this?”

  She moaned, her whole body tensing. “More.”

  “Then tell me what you want. Tell me what you need. What does this sweet little pussy want from me?”

  “Kiss me.”

  “Oh, I can do that.” He laid a little kiss right above her clit. “See. I’m very good at kissing you.”

  Bastard. She didn’t miss his smirk. He was enjoying the chance to torment her and intended to make her work for it. “No. Lick me.”

  He ran his tongue along one side of her labia, then the other, in a slow slide that drove her mad. “Your wish is my command.”

  “Damn it, Gabriel. I want your tongue everywhere. Devour me. Make me ache and scream and come.” She stared at him. “No one else can make me feel like you do.”

  “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

  He lowered his mouth to her, and she gasped at the first long drag of his tongue. Her head fell back, and Everly could do nothing except surrender. She’d yearned for the pleasure, the give and take, the moments when she surrendered to him. But it would mean so much more if they had a future. She wanted to be his partner—in pleasure, in business, in life.

  Her thoughts scattered as his tongue worked its magic. “Gabriel . . .”

  “Spread wider, baby.” He shoved her knees apart, wedging his shoulders in between.

  Panting, she drowned in the exquisite bliss. One of his fingers parted her folds, breached her. It felt so good, awakened a whole new hunger in her. She pressed against it, trying to coax him to penetrate deeper, move faster. But he continued that steady, driving rhythm that made her body tighten, made tingles form, made breathing almost impossible.

  He hurtled her toward the pinnacle of desire. Everly scratched at his scalp, tried to wrap her legs around his shoulders—anything for the extra bit of sensation that would drive her over. He refused to be rushed or alter her slow, maddening slide into insanity.

  When she whimpered, he tongued her clit, then glanced up at her. His lips glistened with her arousal. “You want more.”

  It wasn’t a question.

  “You know I do.”

  “Then ask me for it.”

  “More, Gabriel. Now.” She wanted to shout her demand at him. She’d been so close to falling over the edge. “Give me more . . .”

  He seemed determined to torture her. “More of what? More of my fingers or do you want my cock?”

  There was no doubt in her mind what she wanted. “I need you inside me, Gabriel. Hard. Fast. Fill me.”

  His face lit with dangerous satisfaction. “Absolutely, but I want you to work for it, baby. I intend to make this ride last awhile.”

  He lowered his lips to her again, and Everly gasped, every muscle tensing as he drove her toward stunning pleasure again.

  In this, they were in synch. Like him, she wanted this magic to go on forever.

  • • •

  Gabe reveled in everything about her. As he stroked his tongue along her tender flesh and thrust a second finger deep inside her, he couldn’t help but take in everything. She smelled so good. Womanly and sweet. He was fairly certain he would die still remembering the taste of her arousal on his tongue. Her skin was so soft that he was worried about leaving a mark on her thighs from his damn whiskers, but he hadn’t had time for an afternoon shave.

  Everly didn’t seem to care. She spread her thighs wide, presenting her gorgeous sex to him without hesitation or inhibition. She opened for him like a flower that had gone far too long without the sun. He licked the pearl of her clitoris. The little jewel poked out of its hood, begging for his attention. He was going to lavish it. She might fight him everywhere else, but here they were of the same mind, had the same needs.

  He shoved his fingers high into her pussy and sucked her clit, establishing a rhythm that soon had her wriggling on his hand, desperate for relief. The sight, sound, and scent of her arousal alone fueled his desire, but with every moment, she grew more desperate, nails clawing his scalp, thighs tightening around his head. God, he loved her unabashed enthusiasm for sex, the way she never held anything back.

  He felt her clench around him and heard her keening cry. She writhed on the supple leather, her body riding out the orgasm he gave her. Her scent filled the car—and his nostrils—until he ached to tear at her clothes, claw out his zipper, and fill her with every inch he had.

  When her storm slowed, the waves softening, she sighed. “How do you do that to me?”

  He didn’t answer her because he wasn’t sure what to say. Sex with her was simply better. It had been from the first moment he’d touched her. It had also been different than the countless times with the blur of faces and bodies he’d known before. What he shared with Everly was somehow . . . more.

  If another woman had complimented his sexual prowess, he would have grinned and proven himself worthy, but her words made him feel oddly vulnerable. He didn’t want to merely be a good lay to her. He didn’t even want to only be the best sex she’d ever had—not if that was all he meant to her.

  Gabe wanted to be her only lover. He wanted to be the man in her heart.

  The thought rolled over him, and he sat back in the seat with a stunned sigh. Everything below his waist urged him to open his slacks and shove his cock inside her waiting flesh, but he needed more than pleasure from Everly.

  He, who was rarely unsure and never hesitated, sat frozen. What if she didn’t reciprocate?

  Even with the doubt and fear tumbling in his head, Gabe couldn’t take his eyes off her. She looked so lovely and wanton with her dress all gathered at her waist. All her gorgeous curves and most intimate parts were on display for him. He loved that about her, too.

  Her skin was flushed a rosy pink and her mouth was slightly open as she took a long breath and opened her eyes to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

  He shook his head. “Nothing.”

  Her flush deepened. “Don’t you want me?”

  “I want to know if you want me.” God, that sounded stupid. He should take her. She wouldn’t fight him, but he needed something far beyond her acquiescence and an exchange of flesh. Getting her into bed wasn’t the question; getting into her heart was.

  “Of course I want you. I thought that was pretty clear.” She tugged at her skirt, trying to right her clothes. “What’s going on? Is Dax just going to keep driving?”

  Shit. He’d lost her. The disappointment was more than crushing. “I’ll tell him to head home.”

  Though they wouldn’t really be heading to his home, that word seemed right because, for him, home had become wherever she was. When the hell had that happened?

  Gabe dragged air into his lungs and tried to not punch out the windows of the limo. How he was going to get through the rest of the night he had no idea, but he shouldn’t have expected more after the way he’d treated her this morning.

  He didn’t even want to think about what he was going to do for the rest of his life.

  Staring out at the Manhattan street, he watched Midtown pass by. The lights of nearby Times Square illuminated the early evening. Tourists thronged through the square, gawking at the multitude of flashing signs for everything from Broadway shows to sneakers as locals rushed by and ignored them.

  Gabe winced. He was putting off the inevitable, but he wanted to make something clear before he gave Dax a final destination. “Everly, I’m going to do whatever it takes to make you forget what I said this morning. You should know that. I realize this is a horrible time to start a relationship, but I can’t let you go because the timing isn’t right. I screwed up. I should have believed you. I can only promise that I won’t make the same mistake again. You might think I’m a complete pig for being so stubborn about your safety, but I promise I won’t shut you out.”