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Leaning his forehead against hers, he took her chin in his hand and brushed the pad of his thumb across her lips. “There’s no way you couldn’t make me happy. It’s impossible.”

Gavin rolled to the side, taking Emily with him. With that, they made love—unrelenting and sweet—through the night into the early morning hours.

Chapter Sixteen

The Opening of Floodgates

The lustrous sunlight spilling in through the window shades stirred Emily from one of the best nights of sleep she had experienced in months. With a long lazy stretch and a smile on her face, she pulled the mountain of tangled blankets tight around her chest, sat up, and leaned against the headboard. Her eyes scanned the expansive room for Gavin. The sound of the shower running in the bathroom echoed through her ears as her senses soaked in just how incredibly awesome her body felt.

Normally, she was never one to worry about the way she looked upon rising; however, this morning was different—very different. Knowing that her hair must’ve looked like a rat’s nest and her face was most definitely sporting last night’s smudged makeup, she promptly slid from the bed, dragging the blankets along with her, in an attempt to study her reflection in the mirror. When her bare feet hit the cold marble floor, so did something else. Looking down, she found a large box with a red bow tied around it. Picking it up, she sat back down on the bed. It was addressed to her—well, not her, but Molly.

“Such a wiseass,” she laughed.

Shaking her head, she started to open it, only to see movement in her peripheral vision. Lifting her gaze to its source, she was rewarded by the sight of Gavin coming out of the bathroom—a white cotton towel wrapped around his waist. Swallowing hard, Emily clutched the blankets around her chest and slid back against the headboard. Running his hand over his dampened hair, Gavin smiled at her from across the bedroom, his tendons rippling in his abdomen as he stretched. Sheepishly smiling back, Emily took in the sight before her. He was magnificent to say the least. She couldn’t help but let her eyes roam over him; it was simply impossible not to. He was beauteous, not just his amazing stature but also his face. That strong angular jaw that complemented his high cheekbones, and the light stubble on his chin only added to his masculinity—and further added to her quickened breath.

And. God. Bless. That. Tattoo.

“You found your gift,” he said, smiling.

Emily cocked a brow and smirked. “Well, I found a gift for Molly. But yes, I found a gift.”

Chuckling, he padded over to the bed and took a seat next to her. “If I recall correctly, you’re the one who said I’d never let you live that one down, so I’m just holding up my end of the bargain.” Shaking her head, she playfully smacked his arm. He laughed and slowly tucked her hair behind her ear. “Mmm, I knew you woke up pretty.”

Biting her lip, noticeably embarrassed, she averted her gaze away from his.

Mesmerized by the look in her eyes, Gavin felt captivated by the fact that she clearly didn’t realize how beautiful she was. Her lips, the hue of a deep ruddy wine, alluring green eyes, and the subtle curves of her body—all tantalized his senses. Staring at her, his heart beat as her devotee while his eyes mapped out every inch of her face. It wasn’t just her physical beauty. It was everything about her, right down to the smell of her flesh—the things he would do just to obtain her scent. She brought him warmth the entire night like an autumn’s day sweater, and there wasn’t anything he wasn’t willing to sacrifice in order to keep her for himself. His long drawn-out thoughts and daydreams of this very moment—when he would share with her his cravings and she would do the same, trusting as only lovers could—unfolded with such vibrancy as she brought her gaze back to his.

High.

Gavin felt completely fucking high. No amount of money could buy this feeling, and he knew it.

Placing his hand under her chin, he stared into her eyes. “You look beautiful,” he whispered, gently coaxing her face toward his.

Slowly, he brushed his lips over hers—gentle, passionate, and soft. Emily’s fingers instantly delved into his hair, tugging just hard enough to make him groan into her mouth. They sat there making out like two teenagers on a date—both content in just that…nothing more…just kissing.

After a few minutes of reveling in the minty taste of his lips, Emily pulled back. Gavin looked at her, his eyes essentially making love to her in the process.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, a boyish grin tipping the corners of his mouth.

“I, uh…need to brush my teeth,” she said, tightening the blankets to her chest.

Letting out a light laugh, he reached for the unopened gift and handed it to her. He placed another luscious kiss on her lips. “You taste delicious to me, but here. Open it.”

She smirked. “That’s a pretty big box for a toothbrush.”

He laughed and stroked his knuckles along her jaw. “It is, isn’t it?”

With furrowed brows and a smile, she stared at him suspiciously.

“What?” he asked.

“When did you have time to go out and get me anything?”

“Well, sleepy head, it’s not that early,” he said, motioning to a clock highlighting that it was nearly eleven in the morning. “But, to answer your question, I had my assistant run out to pick up a few things for you from a list that I gave her.”

“Ah, your assistant.”

“Yes, my assistant,” he laughed. “But I’d be willing to replace her for this stunning brunette who’s sitting in my bed right now.”

“Oh, you’d hire me as your assistant, huh?”

“Without hesitation,” he whispered, the words spoken into the crease of her neck as he grazed his teeth down her shoulder. Emily’s body nearly went lax under his touch. “Though, I’m not quite sure we’d get much work done.” Pulling back, he smiled. “Now open your gift.”

With one hand holding the blankets against her chest, Emily attempted to open the box with the other. Gavin laughed, realizing she was trying to keep her naked body covered. This he found insanely cute and sexy at the same time. Without saying a word, he smiled and helped her.

Upon opening it, she found two medium-sized boxes and one thinner box. With a huge grin on his face, Gavin opened one of the medium boxes for her, pulling out and holding up a hooded New York Yankees sweatshirt and sweatpants outfit.

“You’ve completely lost it,” she laughed, plucking it from his hands. She shook her head and tried to give him a disapproving glare, but she was inwardly approving too much at his cute gesture of attempting to turn her into a fan. “If you think I’m going out in public wearing this, you’re wrong.”

He arched a perfect brow. “Who said we’re leaving my place today?”

“Hmm, we’re not?”

“No, we’re not. I’m holding you hostage here,” he replied, his voice low, as he leaned in to kiss her. “The outfit’s purely for my own personal entertainment.”

“Sounds interesting,” she replied and kissed him back. “And what do you have planned for us today?”

Nipping at her bottom lip, he smiled. “I figured we’d order in all day.”

“Uh huh, food is a necessity,” she half moaned as he continued to ghost his mouth over hers.

“Sleep a little since we were up so late.”

“Yes, we do need to keep our strength up.” She ran her hand across the back of his neck.

Still kissing her, he lifted her other arm around his neck, the blanket falling from her chest. “Curl up on my couch and watch scary movies.”

“I like scary movies,” she said, massaging her fingers into his hair while sexual heat pulsed through her system.

Catching her bottom lip between his teeth, he slowly smoothed his hands across her now exposed breasts. He smiled when she moaned, loving the way she responded to him. “In between all of the food eating and movie watching, I’d like to reenact last night’s events play by play.” He pulled her onto his lap, her hair cascading over his shoulders as their kiss deepened. “Over…and over…and over again,” he added.

Right about the same time Emily started peeling away the annoying barrier of the towel wrapped around his waist, his cell phone rang. Gavin showed no intentions of retrieving the call.

With quickened breathing, Emily pulled back and looked at him. “You really should answer that, Mr. Blake.”

He threaded his fingers in her hair and guided her back down to his mouth. “No way,” he groaned as he leaned back against the headboard, his kiss becoming harder. “Whoever it is can wait.”

“Uh, uh, uh.” She pulled back again with a teasing smile on her face. Though it took massive efforts, she figured she’d play a little game—one that
he
thought he was the master of. “It could be your mother calling.”

He ran his palm over his face and let out another groan. His lips curled into a sensual smile. “You’re killing me, Emily—literally killing me.”

She smirked, reveling in the fact that she could make such a powerful man crumble. Rolling off him, she started to laugh. “Hmm, who’s
begging
now?”

Shaking his head, he swung his legs over the side of bed and laughed. “Oh, you
will
pay for that one, I promise.”

As she listened to him speak with whoever was on the other end, she smiled and ran her fingers across his back, hoping he would make good on his threat.

“Can’t it wait?” he asked the caller.

Emily sat up on her knees and feathered kisses along his shoulders.

Loving the way she felt, Gavin rolled his neck to the side, inviting her into his mouth. She smiled and kissed him for a few seconds before he spoke again.

“Alright, give me a minute,” he groaned into his cell. Cupping his hand over it, he turned to face her. “It’s Colton. I have a few things I need to go over with him about some bullshit at work. I might be a while.”

Emily nodded.

He touched her cheek with the back of his hand, stroking the curve of her chin. Settling his lips over hers, he kissed her tenderly. “Open the rest of your gifts, go take a shower, and I’ll make us some breakfast when I’m done talking with him.”

Again she nodded, her eyes following him as he made his way out of the room. Trying to tame her heated senses, she drew in a deep breath and started going through the rest of the items. Along with a pair of pink-and-gray Nike Shox sneakers, she also found the necessities needed for her to take a shower. From shampoo to an array of body wash and razors, he seemed to have covered all the bases. There was also a bottle of Jimmy Choo perfume. Emily figured he must have spoken with Olivia because that was her favorite kind. Opening the thinnest box, she smiled when she found a pair of black lace panties and a matching bra.

After gathering everything together, Emily slipped from the bed and padded into the bathroom where she indulged in a hot, soothing shower. Though her body felt physically at ease in complete bliss, her thoughts were anything but. Overwhelmed would have been an understatement. She had a lot that she knew she had to face when Dillon got back. Frankly, it terrified her right down to her bones. She ran over the things she would tell him. However, she still couldn’t push away the feeling that somehow the whole scenario was about to go up in flames—torching her, Gavin, and Dillon in the process. Stepping out from the shower, she grabbed a towel off the rack and tried to push away the festering negative thoughts that were taking residence in her head.

Once dressed in her less-than-appealing Yankees attire, she made her way into the living room, her eyes sweeping over Gavin’s collage of black-and-white photos; most were massive in size. Unlike the time before when she was there, this time she actually studied them. It was then that she noticed every picture hanging on the wall was a building or famous structure of some sort. She recognized one as the Pantheon located in Rome. Another was a French portrait of the Palace of Versailles. Her eyes scanned over the Taj Mahal, the Eiffel Tower, and the Gateway Arch. She wondered if these were places Gavin already visited or if they were on his list of places to see.

With that thought, she followed the voice of the man she wanted to know more about. She found him in his office, sitting at a large mahogany desk with Manhattan’s skyline just beyond the floor-to-ceiling window behind him. Although the structures of the most powerful city in the world towered over his frame, in her eyes, he looked like a king seated on his throne.

And now that king was hers.

With his eyes downcast, staring at his laptop, still in business mode with his Bluetooth receiver in his ear, Gavin didn’t notice her observing him while she leaned against the doorframe. To her disappointment, he’d already gotten himself dressed. However—as casual and relaxed as he appeared in a pair of black sweatpants, a white V-neck T-shirt, and reading glasses—in that moment, she felt drawn to him. Quietly, she moved across the room, bridging their distance. It wasn’t until she was within an arm’s length of him that his head snapped up, a contagious smile washing over his face.

He held his finger up, signaling her another minute—but she didn’t want to wait. No. Instead, she found herself slowly sliding the sweatpants off her body, her gaze intent on his.