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She clung to him. “You didn’t know.”
“Yeah, but what I did know, what I’ve always known, is that you’re strong and courageous. You work harder than most people I know. You’re creative and loving. You’ve given my daughter the maternal affection she’s craved, honoring her real mother while you do it. Do you have any idea what that means to me, Hope? What you mean to me?”
Her insides burst at the words coming out of Gabe’s mouth. They sounded so much like all of her dreams coming true. She snuggled closer, looping her arms around his waist, keeping her arms beneath his suit jacket. She felt so good right there in that moment. Safe, free from all the secrets she’d carried, and, most of all, loved. Even though he hadn’t said it, she sensed it flowing out of him and straight into her. She never wanted to be apart from him and the life they had.
And then she remembered. Detroit. She curled her fingers into the fabric of his shirt and pressed her forehead against his chest.
“What’s wrong?” Gabe asked, rubbing his hand reassuringly along her back.
“I did something,” she groaned. Regret and uncertainty snaked through her.
Gabe gently lifted her chin so her gaze met his. His green eyes glinted in the moonlight. “You took a job in Detroit.”
“How did you—?” She stopped when she suddenly realized the answer. “Ivy. Hasn’t she just become the regular blabbermouth?”
“She’s worried about you. She loves you,” Gabe murmured. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
She sighed and once again turned away from him to face the balcony railing. “I wasn’t going to say anything at first, because the opportunity came so fast, and I wasn’t really considering it. When I didn’t hear anything back, I assumed it wasn’t going anywhere. But then we argued. And when I got home, there was a message offering me the job to manage the art gallery—where I could also show my paintings. So I accepted it.”
Gabe’s arm brushed hers as he took his place beside her. When she looked up at him, he was staring straight ahead out at the ocean.
“Do you want the job?” he asked, his voice giving no hint of what emotion he might be feeling.
“I came to Portland to distance myself from the heartbreak and betrayal I felt my family caused me. I wanted to find independence and the knowledge that I could make it on my own.” She turned to Gabe, her heart awash with agony. “After our argument, it hurt so much when you left me standing there. You just left, Gabe. It felt like someone tore my heart out. Again. And in that moment, I realized I hadn’t achieved independence. I had just given my heart to another family who broke it.”
A tortured sound ripped from Gabe’s throat. “If I made you feel that way, I’m so sorry. I lost sight of what was most important for one fucking second and I’ll never forgive myself for walking away from you. But you’re wrong. You are independent and strong, and you don’t have to be alone to be those things. You can have the life you want, the life you dream of. You do have it. It’s right here.” The crack in his voice echoed in her heart. “With me. Not De-fucking-troit. But in Portland with me—and Ruby.”
Gabe reached for her, cradling her face in his palms. “Hope, you are a brilliant, talented artist. If you want to show your work in the world like it deserves to be shown then I’ll do everything in my power to make sure your paintings are in every fucking gallery in Oregon. In the whole world. Just stay. Stay. This is your home Hope, right fucking here.” He thumped his fist against his heart.
She choked back a cry, because he was saying everything she needed to hear, and the weight that had settled in her heart suddenly released and flew away like a balloon. Needing to be close, she curled her fingers into the lapels of his suit jacket and pressed against him. Gabe’s arms came around her instantly, holding her tight.
The soft and luxurious material of his suit reminded her of something she’d wondered when she’d first laid eyes on him that evening.
“How did you know to bring a suit?” she asked, her fingers brushing the smooth fabric.
Gabe leaned back an inch and grinned down at her, his green eyes twinkling with mischief. “Ivy gave me your parents’ number, and I called them before I hopped on the first flight I could get. I figured they should know who I was before I came to convince their daughter that she was meant to be in Portland with me and Ruby.”
She gasped at his presumptuousness, even knowing her father probably respected his boldness and her mother appreciated his candor. “What did they say to that?”
When Gabe drew her up against his chest, lifting her off her feet, she gave into the shiver that rolled through her, not of cold, but of electric heat. Heat and lust and love for this man. She could admit it easily now. She loved him.
“They told me that if I wanted to convince you to forgive me and take me back, I should arrive wearing my best suit.” He rained soft kisses along her jaw. “Will you, Hope?” His voice was husky with emotion.
“Will I what?” she asked, distracted by the feel of his firm muscles under her fingertips as she ran them across his chest.
Without taking his mouth off her skin, he murmured, “Forgive me.” Then he leaned back so his gaze bore into hers earnestly. “I need you. My daughter needs you. You’re our home now. I love you, Hope.”
A gasp escaped as his words registered and fell into place inside her heart, like Scrabble pieces on a board. “I love you, too.” On a wave of relief, her own words freed themselves from her soul. “I love you and Ruby so much. And I need you both, too.”
The words were barely out of her mouth when his lips descended on hers. Their kiss was deep and heated. Familiar.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, her body melting under his embrace, eager for the future. “Take me home,” she managed when his lips released hers.
Gabe’s answering chuckle vibrated between them.
“Trust me, I am counting down the minutes until I can peel this dress off you.” He kissed her again, until she was all longing and need and desperation. “But I believe you still have many more millions to raise tonight, and I don’t think your parents will view me favorably if I drag you out of here right now—just so I can have my wicked way with you.”
She rubbed her body against his and purred into his ear, “But what ifI’mthe one who drags you out of here?”
