Breaking Down(The Garage Series Book 2)(29)

A chair scraping across the floor caused me to open my eyes to see Gabe standing up and leaning over me with hungry eyes.

"Let's go take a shower," he demanded.

"What about this mess?" I asked weakly because I didn't think I could stand let alone clean.

"The mess can wait. I need to take a shower with you."

"Okay, but you're carrying me." I stretched my arms above my head.

Gabe chuckled before sliding his hands behind my back and lifting my lax  body into his arms. I wrapped my drained legs around his waist and my  useless arms around his shoulders. He braced my weight with his hands on  my ass, and he walked us out of the room and toward the bathroom.                       
       
           



       

His clothes were still soaking wet and cold against my skin. My body  bounced against his as he carried me into the bathroom, and by the time  he sat me down on the counter, my body had come back alive. I watched  him strip his clothes off piece by piece. The muscles of his stomach  bunched under his movements and caused me to squirm with the urge to run  my tongue over every ridge.

He kicked his blue jeans off his legs and almost fell over when they  stuck to his skin. A giggle bubbled out of me, and he narrowed his eyes  as he bent down and pulled the material the rest of the way off.

"Is something funny?" He stalked toward me, now completely bare.

"Nope." I giggled again. "I was always told never to laugh when a man has his pants down."

Gabe lunged for me, and I squealed in laughter. He lifted my ass off the  counter and stood me up in the shower. I pulled my panties down my legs  while he turned on the water.

"Do I need to show you that I have nothing for you to laugh about?" He cocked an eyebrow up at me.

"And how are you going to show me that?" I teased.

"I'm going to fuck the laughter right out of you."

He gripped my thighs in his hands and slammed me up against the shower  wall. I started to kiss his neck and worked my way down his shoulders.  His beard tickled my face as I ran my tongue along his skin.

"Shit. I need to get a condom." Gabe cursed as I bit down on the skin of his collarbone.

"I'm on birth control, Gabe." I didn't move my mouth away from his skin  as I talked. I continued kissing every inch that I could get my mouth  on.

Gabe lined himself up with me and slid into me with a groan.

"You feel so damn good."

He pulled my face away from his body and gripped my chin in his hand. He  covered my lips with his and began fucking my mouth in the same rhythm  of his hips. The shower poured down over us, but I barely noticed. Gabe  was pounding into me, and my back slapped against the wall with each  thrust.

"Rub your clit for me," he demanded in my ear.

I reached my hand between our bodies and did as I was told. Rolling my  fingers in small circles, I quickly brought myself to the edge. My walls  clamped down around Gabe, and he pounded into me with a ferocity that  threw me over. The orgasm ripped through me, and I bit down on Gabe's  shoulder. I was grasping for some sense of control, but it was a futile  effort because it was gone. I was literally putty in Gabe's hands, and  he could control my body like it was an extension of his own.

He thrust into me several more times as my body tightened around him  then he slammed by body against the shower wall and came on a loud  curse. I dropped my feet to the ground but Gabe kept his arms around me  to offer any support I might have needed, and I realized that even  though I could stand on my own two feet, I would always need his  support.





When the day rolled around that we had to head home, I was sad to leave  the bubble we had created around us, and I was worried about our  relationship regardless of the reassurances that Gabe had given me. I  was worried about the pressures our responsibilities would put on us and  how we would handle them together.

Despite my concerns, we fell into a normal routine that felt far too  natural. We both would go to work, me at the clinic, Gabe at the shop,  then we would come home to my apartment and spend our evenings together.  Gabe was practically living in my apartment although neither one of us  had even brought the subject up.

Gabe sold his grandparents' home even though I begged him not to. I was  worried that he would regret that decision one day. I didn't want him to  give up the only good memories of his childhood that he had, but Gabe  insisted that he sell it. He said there was no reason to keep the home.  All his good memories of his family weren't in the home, they were with  him. I couldn't argue with that.

We spent time with our friends, and Kat's belly grew rounder and rounder  every day that I saw her. Blake and her were the most excited expectant  parents I had ever seen. They found out that they were having a girl,  and Kat was already busy decorating the nursery.

I, of course, was taking my aunt responsibilities extremely serious and  already had a stockpile of frilly, pink clothes waiting on my niece.  Blake seemed more anxious once he found out it was a girl, and I  couldn't blame him. If she was anything like her mama, she was going to  be a knockout. Blake was already talking about how she wasn't allowed to  date until she was twenty-five. Kat just rolled her eyes and gave him a  reassuring pat as if he really had a choice in the matter.

I was working in the clinic with Dr. Smith holding down a dog that was  almost the same size as me when I felt my phone vibrate it my pocket.  Our tech had called in again and it looked like I would be spending the  following day looking for her replacement. By the time we finished  getting the large dog back out to his parents, I almost forgot to check  my phone.                       
       
           



       



Gabe: Meet me at 6:00PM. 812 Front Street. No questions.

Me: No questions? Not even one.

Gabe: Not even one.



I was confused as all get out, but I was also excited. The playful Gabe  that I had once known was back in full force. He filled my days with  smiles and laughter and never let me doubt whether or not he wanted me.  The uncertainty that once filled our relationship had disappeared.

The subject of children was still sore, but it was something I was  willing to give him time on. I wanted children, but I wanted Gabe more. I  would give up my dream of being a mother before I would give up on him.

When the end of my work day finally rolled around, I changed out of my  dirty scrubs and back into my normal work clothes. I was eager to see  what Gabe had planned for us tonight. Hell, I was just eager to see him.

I punched the address he sent me into my GPS and followed the directions  that led me right outside of town. I became more and more confused as I  drove down residential roads where the houses seemed to get further and  further apart. The drive only took me about twenty minutes, but I felt  like I was in a completely different town. The houses to my right were  all lake-front properties and I could see glimpses of the water through  the trees. My GPS beeped before telling me that I had arrived at my  location, and I turned right into a long driveway. Gabe's motorcycle was  parked in front of the garage, but he was nowhere in sight.

I parked my car beside his bike and turned off the engine. The house was  a large white farm house with a wraparound porch that had two large  porch swings swinging by the front door. The front porch light was on,  but I saw no signs of anyone anywhere. I sent Gabe a quick text to find  out where he was.

I waited five minutes with no reply before I finally climbed out of my  car and headed toward the door. The front door was open but a glass  storm door separated me from the interior of the house. As I made my way  up the front steps, I spotted a folded white piece of paper taped to  the door and one single light pink peony laying on the Welcome Home  doormat.

There was still no one in sight so I knocked on the door, still  completely confused. No one answered the door so I cupped my hands  around my eyes and peeked inside. There was no furniture in the home. It  looked like a completely blank slate. The only thing I could see were  more flowers leading a path through the house.

Hesitantly, I pulled the paper off the front door and unfolded it.

Follow the flowers, beautiful.

The note was in Gabe's handwriting, and the butterflies in my stomach  took off in a flurry. I picked the peony off the ground and pulled it to  my nose. I took a deep breath and filled my lungs with its smell before  turning the handle on the door and taking a step inside.

Most of the lights inside the house were on, and I marveled at the  beauty around me. The home was historic but had obviously been updated.  The dark wood floors looked original but boasted a dark hue that seemed  to make the white crown molding around the rooms pop.