Unbound

Chapter 34

The barrier that had stood so strongly between us was broken, and the rush of feelings that followed its destruction was unlike anything I'd felt before. If I could have melted into him right there in my living room, I would have. He'd laid himself bare for me, showing more vulnerability than I would have thought him capable of. We'd never been closer. His eyes told me that he felt the same when he broke our kiss and again cupped his hands against my cheeks.

"Do you want to..." I trailed off, suddenly too shy to ask for what I wanted outright. Instead, I nodded toward the loft. His touch remained tender but I could tell by the hunger that flashed across his features that he wanted nothing more. I turned my head to kiss one of his palms then pulled him to the ladder.

Nervously, once I reached the top, I retreated into my closet. I slid out of my clothes and quickly changed into a nicer bra before pulling my sleep shirt on roughly and fluffing my hair. I needed to buy sexier pajamas.

"What is that?" Gabriel had been sitting on the edge of my bed but rose when I came back into the room. His voice was pitched low and there was an edge there that set alarm bells off in my head.

"What, this?" I tugged at the hem nervously where it grazed my upper thighs. "It's my shirt, the same one I always sleep in. Why—"

"Take it off," he growled. "Now."

His eyes darkened and I knew that he was struggling to maintain control over his wolf. I took a step back.

"What's wrong with it?"

Through clenched teeth, Gabriel hissed: "It smells like him."

Oh. I realized, looking down at the shirt once more, that it had been Jack's. I'd taken it from him ages ago, but it was still what I wore every night when I slept beside him. I stripped it off quickly and tossed it into the laundry hamper. Shivering in my underwear, I approached Gabriel cautiously.

"There, all gone." I assured him. He was still breathing heavily, chest heaving in an effort to keep himself in check. I slid my hands up under his shirt to lay my palms on his chest; I knew the skin-to-skin contact would soothe him. It had the intended effect: he took a slow, deep breath, then sighed. He moved closer and traced the outline of my body slowly, studying every inch.

"Much better," he purred. When his hands reached my waist he picked me up and I wrapped myself around him. In his arms, I felt light as a feather.

I giggled into his kiss.

"What?" He asked.

"You were jealous. It's kind of cute." He tossed me onto the bed and quickly stripped off his jeans before he crawled up after me, kissing over my legs until he reached the sensitive skin of my stomach and I tried to wiggle away. He held me still.

"Cute, huh?" He growled against me. The hot tip of his tongue traced a line just above the waistband of my underwear and I gasped, arching my back high.

"Fine," I gave in breathlessly. "Not cute."

Gabriel spread my legs and knelt between them before he pulled his shirt off over his head. His muscles flexed dangerously as he lowered himself back over me. He reached one hand down and I lifted my hips to help him pull my underwear off. He slid his own down as well.

I was ready for him, ready to feel him inside of me. My whole body vibrated with anticipation as he lined himself up at my entrance, stiff and throbbing. Under the moonlight that filtered into the room through the snow-covered panes overhead, I watched him adjust himself around me until he dragged his eyes up my body appreciatively to meet mine. My heart, though racing against my ribs, felt so full.