Gabe lowered his head and caught her nipples in his greedy mouth, nipping and sucking one after the other, making Chloe’s core spasm in pleasure. “Gabe, I can’t stand it,” she cried out helplessly, grinding down onto him hard.
He urged her head down and kissed her, their bodies careening toward climax.
Spearing her hands into his hair, she kissed him back, giving him everything she had as she wriggled in his lap, her clit finally getting the friction it needed to send her over the edge.
Moaning against his lips, she tore her mouth from his and panted, finally screaming as her channel clamped down on his cock.
He took control, grasping her hips, lifting and lowering her in short thrusts that had him following her into orgasm.
They held each other tight, their sweat-dampened bodies straining as they shuddered in release.
Chloe’s head dropped to his shoulder as she struggled for breath, waiting for her hammering heart to calm.
“Yes, goddammit. Yes. I’ll fucking marry you now,” Gabe growled against her skin.
Out of breath, Chloe still smiled. “You’re convinced?” she teased.
“I’m convinced that if I don’t make you mine officially I’m damn well going to go crazy. I love you too damn much,” he confessed. “Marry me, and I’ll make you the happiest woman in the world for the rest of your life. I promise.”
His oath was so powerful that Chloe shivered in pleasure. She stroked his springy hair, wondering how it was possible for her to be any happier than she already was right now.
She had her future.
And she had Gabe, a man more precious to her than she could ever explain, could ever have believed.
“Okay. I’m glad you finally see it my way.” She tried to joke, but the tenderness she was feeling for Gabe was vibrating in her tone.
He flopped onto his back dramatically. “I had to give up. You wrecked me.”
Chloe giggled at his antics. “I love you,” she told him as she started to swing her body to the side of his.
“Don’t.” His voice was entreating. “Stay here for a while. I need to feel you.”
She sighed as she laid her head on his powerful shoulder, their bodies melding as they touched skin-to-skin.
Chloe understood why he needed to feel her against him because she felt the same way. The feel of his body beneath her was delicious, comforting and addictive.
He held her without saying a word, his hold possessive and tender.
Chloe’s eyes slowly drifted closed with a sense of contentment that she’d longed for but had never found…until Gabe.
She fell asleep, her body plastered to his, knowing for certain that with Gabe, she was now eager for her life to really begin.
They were married three days later in a small civil ceremony, with only family attending.
Chloe couldn’t stand the pain of not having Ellie with her for her wedding, and neither one of them cared how the ceremony was conducted. All they wanted was for their life together to start.
She’d opted not to have a band to go with the beautiful ring Gabe had given her, and they’d gone together to pick out a ring for him. He’d picked a plain platinum band. Chloe had wanted something nicer for him, but he’d refused, saying he didn’t want to have to take it off his finger when he was working. So, touched beyond words by his reasoning, Chloe had let him purchase the ring he wanted without another word.
In the days before their wedding, Chloe had tried to tell Gabe everything she’d ever omitted, including the two times she’d taken James down by using the fighting techniques Lara had taught her. He’d been happy she’d had her shot at James, and relieved to hear that she hadn’t taken any shit from him even when she’d been at his mercy.
They’d also had a session with Natalie together, and they planned more in the future. Chloe wanted to lose any remaining baggage she carried, even if it took awhile.
Everybody had agreed that traveling was a fantastic idea, giving Chloe time to get away and complete her healing process.
With every day that passed, Chloe felt stronger, more capable of handling whatever came her way.
Her only sorrow was Ellie. “It’s so hard to leave still not knowing what happened to her,” Chloe told Gabe the day after their wedding as they packed their suitcases in the big master bedroom.
They were leaving the following afternoon. They’d be in Thailand for a few weeks, and then probably move on to hit some other, less touristy destinations around the world they both wanted to see. Gabe had covered the ranch for a couple of months, plenty of time for them to take a break.
Chloe was looking forward to it, but the trip was bittersweet in one way in particular.
“I know,” Gabe answered solemnly. “Do you want to postpone?”
She looked up and met his gaze, both of them on opposite sides of the bed throwing items they needed into suitcases.
He’d been so patient, so loving and accommodating. The truth was, she didn’t want to put off starting their lives together. Ellie had been gone for months. “I have to face the truth, don’t I? She very well might never be found.”
“We don’t know the truth, so you handle this however you want to, sweetheart.”
Chloe sighed and sat on the bed. “I want to believe she’s still alive, that she’s out there somewhere. I want to believe that she had her reasons for leaving and that she’ll contact me when she’s ready. Mostly, I want to believe that she left because she had to or wanted to, not because somebody took her.”
“Then believe that,” Gabe said simply.