Unexpected

Chapter 6

GABRIEL

After having a drink with Jo last night, I excused myself and went to my room. Talking to her is addicting and I can't stop looking at her gorgeous face. But I promised her I wouldn't be in her way. And after that talk we had over dinner, I know I'm the last person she would be interested in getting involved with.

Not that I'll ever make a move, anyway. She's off-limits. Has always been. Will always be.

My mind kept screaming at me I should tell her about the guys arriving in a couple of days, but as we've already established, I'm an asshole who wants her all to myself. As fucked up as it is, I want to enjoy this little time we have just for ourselves, without the band's shit hovering over our heads.

In my defense, I want to at least prove to her I'm not like her ex. Not that I need to prove anything. But you know by now how crazy I am when it comes to this girl.

It goes without saying that I slept like shit yesterday. I've gotten used to being up all night while touring, but I know need to start forcing myself to be awake in the mornings to bring some sense of normality back into my life.

It's now ten a.m. and the smell of coffee lures me into the kitchen. Jo is scrambling some eggs and humming to whatever song is playing in her eardrums. The sight of her curves so beautifully exposed makes me halt. She's wearing a white tank over a bikini top and a pair of cut-off jeans.

My brain is telling me to leave and find somewhere else to have breakfast, but my eyes are glued to the easy sway of her hips. She's humming to the song now, and it's completely adorable. A smile plays on my lips when she closes her eyes and uses the wooden spoon as a microphone. God, she's beautiful.

"Cause I ain't never loved a man..." she sings and I lean on the door frame; my arms crossing as I enjoy the show.

"Ain't never had a man hurt me so bad..." She stretches the last note, spinning around and opening her eyes just in time to see me chuckling. "Holy shit, Gabe!" she shouts, her breath hitching as she clutches her hand to her chest.

"Don't let me stop you," I wink, laughing when she rolls her eyes.

"Aretha has a way to make me forget the world around me..." she murmurs, turning her back to me so she can keep cooking. "Are you hungry? I'm making enough for the two of us."

"Starving." I walk to the cabinet to get two mugs. "How about we eat outside?"

"Sounds good," she says, walking to the toaster as she opens a bag of bread.

A jolt of awareness runs through my veins at the sight in front of me, making me freeze. I've never had this with a woman before; us getting ready for breakfast together with no other expectations. The urge to protect it, to savor it, scares the hell out of me. A surge of confusion invades my heart, hot, unfamiliar, and so fucking fast it feels like a punch.

"Are you okay?" Jo touches my shoulder, walking around me and pushing on her tiptoes to get a bowl on the shelf by my right. It's too high for her, so without thinking much, one of my hands touches the small of her back as the other goes up to get her bowl.

The citrus smell of her hair combined with her own delicious floral and fresh scent catches me off guard. I speak without thinking. "You've got the same perfume since you were seventeen."

"What?" she whispers, her head turning so she can look at me. Something I can't recognize passes behind her eyes. I immediately want to take back what I said.

"Uh..." I clear my throat, walking to the coffee pot so I can put some distance between us. "The perfume. I have an olfactory memory. Some scents are just stuck in my head." Shit. I cringe the moment the words are out of my mouth. I never talk about this with anyone.