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Chapter Sixteen
- Suzanne -
Ithink every girlbelieves in her own version of Prince Charming. How he looks. How he acts.
How he treats her.
And then sometimes, life brings the most amazing surprises.
I always considered myself to be the average girl - reasonably attractive, slightly curvier than some. I did well in school and graduated top of my class in both high school and college. I became a freelance writer because I loved the freedom it gave me. I always pictured myself living a more traditional life, but as the bindings grew tighter, as I grew older, I became more and more uncomfortable with the idea of that traditional world where I had an accountant husband, two children, a dog, and a white picket fence.
I grew up with those expectations. It’s what my parents had, what I was groomed to expect. But it didn’t bring them the American dream.
After my father was murdered, I learned I couldn’t count on “normal.” I rebelled in my own quiet way. I got the degree, I got the jobs, and I got out of the small town that was a constant reminder of what I’d lost.
I found out security could be ripped away from you at any second.
I always thought my future involved the predictable, the banal, and bland.
Gabriel was none of those things. He was too hot to be banal; too charming to be bland, and I had no idea what to expect from him. I should have been irritated by that - two am visits, coffee and bagels, then WHAM -do you want to spend the weekend with me?
I didn’t know the girl who threw caution to the wind and said “hell, yes!” but she was the girl I’d always wanted to be. Gabriel brought her to life. I wasn’t going to silence her now.
We finished lunch, drove back from the Bronx to midtown, and made ourselves comfortable in the luxurious hotel room Gabriel had reserved for us. At first, I was too awed by the room’s posh interior to be nervous about sharing a room. I’d only seen elegantly decorated rooms like ours on the television - marble floors, sparkling chandeliers, and even a welcome basket with roses, strawberries, chocolates, and champagne.
And the view...Once I explored the room like a child in a candy store, I pulled open the drapes. We didn’t have a balcony, but the view from the wall of windows was breathtaking. The lights twinkled all over Rockefeller Center, putting on a show that was worth the admission for every butterfly in my stomach.
While I gawked at the view, Gabriel opened the champagne. I jumped at the sound of the cork popping, then laughed at my silliness. Gabriel filled the champagne flutes, then handed me one as he approached the wall of windows.
“You seem a little jumpy.”
“A little nervous,” I admitted after taking a sip from my glass. The sparkling liquid popped and coated my tongue with its sweetness.
Gabriel studied me with an intense expression that sent my butterflies into overdrive. “Don’t be nervous.”
I took another swallow from the crystal flute. “Because you said so?” I teased.
His eyes narrowed. “Because you have no reason to be nervous.”
I shook my head from side to side. “And yet...here I am. Sucking down champagne like it's soda. I’m nervous, Gabriel. This isn’t my normal Saturday night.”
He put his glass on the table. “This isn’t my normal Saturday night either, Suzanne.”
“Are you going to convince me you’re nervous, too?”
He took my glass out of my hand and set it next to his on the table. His jaw tightened, but our gazes held as he grabbed my hand and placed it on his chest. I swallowed, lifting my chin. With his other hand, Gabriel slowly unbuttoned the next three buttons of his shirt. He pressed my hand until my palm flattened against his chest. Until I could feel his heart beating erratically beneath my jittery fingers.
I stretched my fingers across his skin, fighting the urge to let them roam. He tried to hold back his groan, but he failed and I heard it, the faint growl urging me to glide the tip of my fingers across his chest. He sucked in his breath and rested his forehead against the top of my head.
“Now, do you believe me?”
I kept my hand where it was and tipped my head back to look into his eyes.
“Are you trying to seduce me, Mr.-”
And then I realized how much I didn’t know about this man. My attraction to him had been so instant, so overwhelming, that I overlooked some very basic information.
“I don’t even know your full name.”
