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Gabe. My heart did a little flip just thinking about him.
Luke stood from his chair. “Oh, and go easy on the boy. It was my fault for the tension between you.”
I raised my eyebrows at him. He would have to explain if he wanted me to believe him.
“I knew you guys were getting close, but I was a stupid, foolish old man,” Luke continued. “After I found out you were my daughter, I asked Gabe to take a step back so I could get to know you before any distractions got in our way. I should’ve known better than to get in the way of love.”
My mouth fell open as I took in what he was saying. No wonder Gabe had nearly thrown me out of his room that night Adam and Luke had caught us together. He’d been caught red-handed, disobeying the man he considered a father figure.
“Already jumping on the protective dad bandwagon?” I asked him with a smile.
He grinned, the sparkle returning to his blue eyes. “Yes, and failing miserably.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that.” If this was failing miserably for him, then I could handle it. “I suppose I could forgive you if you agreed to let Gabe off the hook.”
“Agreed.” He kissed my forehead and left the room.
I didn’t have to wait long for company. Seconds later, my favorite pair of green eyes came strolling through the door. It wasn’t fair that I hadn’t showered in days and wore a paper thin hospital gown, while he got to look so sexy in a navy blue t-shirt and rugged jeans. He looked at me with an intensity I'd never seen before and instantly, all my insecurities were replaced by a warmth that radiated from my stomach into every limb.
“Hi, handsome.” I pushed myself up a little further in the bed and smiled.
He didn’t sit in the wooden chair like I thought he would. Striding past the chair, he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a kiss. It was soft and sweet with a hint of desperation. Unlike the impatient kisses we’d shared in his bedroom, this kiss lingered on my lips like sugar. When he pulled away, I could still feel the tingling sensation of his mouth on mine.
“I nearly lost you,” he said, cupping my chin in his hand. “Again. How many times do I have to save your life?”
I blinked back the happy tears that sprung to my eyes. “Do I have to remind you that I’ve saved your life more than a few times too?”
He grinned, flashing his perfect teeth. “That’s what partners are for.”
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I leaned back against the bed, but kept his hand between mine. “And apparently, partners are good at withholding the truth. You didn’t share that little piece of information with me about sacrifices and how to turn my blood toxic.”
A flush crept in his cheeks and he laughed nervously. “Yeah, I guess I didn’t.”
“And Luke told me about his little request for you to take a step back.”
The red in his cheeks grew brighter. “About that…”
I held a finger up to his mouth to keep him from speaking. Maybe, nearly dying had given me a sort of high, but I felt brazen.
“I am a grown woman. Not even my long-lost father gets to dictate who I see. No more playing with my feelings; no more hot and cold treatments. Either you’re all the way in or you’re out.” With a deep breath in, I dropped my hand from his lips and fixed him with a deadly serious stare. “Just answer me this. Do you want to be with me?”
I maintained a steady face, but inside, my nerves bounced around and threatened to give me away. If he turned me down, it would destroy me. But sending mixed signals was no longer acceptable. Life was too short, even for the Nephilim. We had to settle this here and now.
Gabe’s eyes smoldered as he shut his mouth. For a terrifying second, I thought he was going to leave, but he leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine.
“Yes, more than anything,” he said.
A thrill went through my body, erasing all the little pains that still remained from my near death experience. I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him closer, kissing him again. He responded in kind, running his hands over my back and down to my waist. A shiver ran through me. I’d never been so happy.
“Just in time for another show.”
Adam’s sarcastic voice in the doorway made me pull back reluctantly from Gabe. He, Ashley, and Raquel were standing just inside the room. Raquel had an I told you so expression on her face as Gabe took my hand in his and sat on the edge of the bed. I rolled my eyes and smiled at her. This would surely earn me a thousand questions from her later tonight, but it was worth it.
“You just had to go out and get yourself more hurt than me,” Ashley said, taking a seat at the foot of my bed. She wore a purple V-neck shirt that didn’t hide the thin white scar across her neck. “Steal away all the attention from me, why don’t you?”
“That was my goal,” I told her, raising one of my eyebrows.
