Chapter Twenty-Four

 

 

Thomas stared at the phone, contemplating. He’d already tried so many times to see her, and so far, she’d refused. The first week, he’d agreed that she needed some time and had accepted her requests not bother her, but the last seven days had grown unbearable until he’d decided come hell or high water that damn woman would talk to him this weekend.

He’d discovered, to his own surprise, that he couldn’t even sleep in his bed without her. Hell, he didn’t want to. Even David had moved back to his old room while Thomas had taken to the couch. When he could sleep. Most nights, he prowled the rooms seeing Gabrielle everywhere.

Now, she wouldn’t come out of her house. David had described her broken, and all Thomas could see was history repeating itself. He scrubbed his face, wishing the memories would die. He needed to be whole.

No more waiting. One way or another, her time was up. Tonight after the ceremony, he’d drag David with him to her place, and they weren’t leaving until she heard him out, until she told him to his face whether or not she would still wear his collar. His feelings had gone far beyond a simple training collar. He wanted forever.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

“I don’t want to be disturbed before the ceremony,” he answered gruffly.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you,” a familiar voice sounded from the doorway.

No.

Thomas whipped his chair around to confirm that, yes, Gabrielle had come to him. His beauty.

He tried to form words, to keep things light, but holy hell, she was a vision. Beautiful curls surrounded her face. Her eyes were cast downward, drawing his focus to her clothing. His mouth went dry, and he fought not to swallow his tongue. She wore a pink corset cinched so tight her waist nipped-in several inches and her breasts swelled from the cups, threatening to spill out. A small flared skirt made of delicate pink lace covered her hips, stopping at mid-thigh. The outfit highlighted her shapely legs showcased in the highest fuck-me heels he’d ever seen her wear.

In the time it had taken to appraise her outfit, his dick had gotten half hard and his heart had tripled its beat.

“You are not disturbing me. On the contrary, I’ve never seen a more beautiful sight.”

He stood and walked around his desk, barely controlling the urge to gather her in his arms and thank her for returning. He needed to play this cool, not scare her away. As grateful as he was to see her, his dominant side still wanted to turn her over his knee and spank the fire out of her. Under normal circumstances, he would have demanded her attention before now, but these weren’t exactly normal circumstances. He’d not been particularly forthcoming about his past, and the fact that it came wrapped up in her best friend’s betrayal made it even worse.

He didn’t blame her for not talking to anyone. But nobody said he had to be rational at all times. And seeing her like this, standing innocently in his doorway with his collar around her neck, he wanted nothing more than to assert his ownership once again.

“I wasn’t planning to come.”

“I’m really glad you did, although David hasn’t arrived yet.”

“I know. I came early on purpose.”

“Oh?”

“I’m afraid.”

“Why?” He held back, letting her wander into the room. He needed to keep some space between them so she could ask what she’d come to find out. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

“No, I don’t believe you want to, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen. Seeing you here, standing so close to where you and An—”

She stopped, and it dawned on him that confronting him here in his office was making it worse.

“Would you like to come outside on the balcony? I promise I’ll be good and let you say what you need to before I try to ravish you.”

“Not funny.”

“Wasn’t meant to be.”

Her gaze drilled into him, watching him like a hawk. So far, she wasn’t giving an inch, and that thought filled him with pride. He didn’t want her to be a doormat. She needed to be able to stand up for herself and demand what she wanted when the time was right.

The standoff continued. He rigidly held his place, and her back stiffened with each passing second. The tension in the room mounted until he thought she might turn and run. To his surprise, she relented and headed toward the balcony doors and out into the night air.

Thomas sucked in a few deep breaths and exhaled slowly. He would contain himself. He had to. He suspected if he pushed she would succumb to him, but that would not be the true submission he wanted. It had to come from her.

When he exited his office and out into the starless night, he realized he’d not turned on the fountain lights yet. He could still make out her faint silhouette against the railing, but not being able to see the expressions on her face or the way her gaze devoured everything around her would never be acceptable. He walked to the switches on the wall and made some adjustments until the soft lighting accompanied by the whispered tinkling of the water filled the air around them.

For a brief moment, a smile upturned the corners of her mouth as she realized what he’d done then she quickly schooled it away.

His little girl wasn’t giving in without her answers.

He stepped to the railing, keeping a respectable distance between them. He followed the direction of her gaze into the gardens below where the landscaper had been instructed to hang new white lights in many of the trees to light a path that wove around the house and into a few private and not so private alcoves for outdoor scenes.

The grounds were protected from the view of outsiders, but here inside the house, a couple balconies as well as many of the upstairs bedroom windows served as viewing areas. He could envision he, David and Gabrielle in one of the alcoves. She loved the garden, and it suited her so well. What better place to spend a beautiful Carolina evening such as this.

“It’s beautiful out here.”

“It makes me think of you.”

She eyed him suspiciously.

“Seriously. Ever since that night in your backyard, just about any garden in the city reminds me of that night and how much you love your outdoor space. I may not have handled these new landscape changes myself because, let’s face it, I probably have a black thumb, but everything new you see down there was direct inspiration from you.”

He angled his body to hers and held out his hand, hoping she’d take it. She looked at his hand then raised her gaze to his before finally sliding her small hand into his. He needed some contact. He ached for it. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to pinpoint the moment he’d fallen in love with her, but his subconscious had probably known from the beginning that he wouldn’t be handing her over to David.

“Why do you only train submissives for others?”

The sudden question kicked him in the gut and knocked the wind out of him. She’d skipped everything he’d thought she’d ask and had gone straight for the jugular. His mouth opened on instinct to disagree to deny that it was all he did, but dammit, she’d been torn down by the scene with Angel and they both deserved the truth.

“Because I’m afraid.” He turned away and settled his gaze into a vacant spot in the darkness. He couldn’t see her response, didn’t want to see the hurt in her eyes.

“Of what?”

She wasn’t going to back down until he’d ripped open the wound and revealed it all. He owed her.

“I let myself get too involved when I knew better. I was brought in as a trainer.” God, if he closed his eyes, he’d still see that young, innocent face of his past. A beautiful blonde who’d been new to the scene.

“She was a new submissive with no training, but she was so young, too young. I was thirty at the time and knew, I mean my gut screamed at me that she was just a child. So much so that I’d asked for I.D. from the man who’d brought her in. Her license said twenty-one, which I didn’t believe, but she convinced me she was of age and I wanted to believe her. Something about her touched me, and I wanted to train her. The man who would be her Dom had to leave the country for a month, and he wanted someone to help her learn while he was gone. Back then, I’d already developed the reputation as someone to go to for that kind of help.”

He paused for a moment, gathering the memories a little at a time. From the corner of his eye, he saw she watched him carefully and waited for him to continue.

“I was up front with her about everything that would happen, specifically explaining things about D/s in great detail. We took the month, and I taught her as much as I could, even including some of the aspects of the lifestyle that were favored by the man who would be her Dom.”

“Did he not come back for her?”

“Oh he did, and when he’d taken her, I felt like a piece of me had gone with her. She had cried and told me that she had fallen in love with me. I understood how she felt. She had come to mean as much to me as well.”

“Did you tell her?”

He shook his head, the shame of it welling fresh inside him. “She wasn’t mine.”

“What happened?”

“She acted out, went crazy wild a few times with her Dom until he finally released her. By that time, I’d gone out of town. I needed to get away for a while, get my head on straight.”

He’d played the “if only” game so many times with himself. If only he’d been here, if only he’d told her the truth, if only he’d not let himself get attached…

“By the time, I got home she’d disappeared and had become a part of one of the biggest manhunts this county had seen in a long time. Everyone wanted to know what had happened to her.”

“She just disappeared?”

“Without a trace. And the moment, I set foot off the plane I was hauled into questioning and interrogated for hours. Her parents believed I had kidnapped and brainwashed her, and if it had been possible, I’d have been charged with statutory rape and thrown in a dark cell never to be seen again.”

A soft gasp sounded next to him. “Statutory rape?”

Thomas hung his head, unable to say the words. The nightmares had kept him from sleep for what seemed like years. He’d turned away from the lifestyle, unable to trust his judgment, and he’d let his life crumble around him.

“Oh God, Thomas, I had no idea.”

“Of course, you didn’t. That’s a part of my life I wished I never had to share.”

“But it wasn’t your fault.”

“Wasn’t it? I’d known. On some level, deep down, I’d known she was too young.”

“Was she ever found?”

He shook his head. He doubted they ever would.

“For five years, I searched for her. I existed only for that. For two years after I gave up, I hid in the bottom of a bottle of Jack until Jeff looked me up when he’d passed through town. He dragged my ass here and put me to work. He owned one of the bars uptown back then, and eventually, I worked my way out of my fear and became his manager. When this place came onto the market, I bought it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with it, but it called to me and I came. One thing led to another, and here we are today.”

“I’m sorry, Thomas.”

“I didn’t tell you so you’d feel sorry. You asked and I needed to be honest.”

“Fine. If you want to be honest, then what about Angel? What about me? Were you just going to hand me over to David like you did Angel to Jeff?” Anger sparked from her eyes. He’d definitely lit her fire on that one.

He yanked on her hand and pulled her against him. “Angel knew the deal going in, and Jeff reaffirmed it every step of the way. He has owned her from the beginning. She hid her feelings from us all, not giving any of us a clue of what went on in that head of hers. I cared for her as any friend would, but I never felt love.”

She struggled against him, trying to push him away with her hands on his chest. Thomas tightened his arms around her until she quit struggling. He’d given her what she’d come for, now, he needed something.

“Look at me, Gabrielle.”

Ever so slowly, she tilted up her head.

“I won’t lie. I did weigh my options and considered whether or not you and David would work better without me.”

“Let me go. I don’t want to hear any more.”

“No, that’s just it. I’m not letting you go. I need you more than anything I’ve ever needed in my life. You’re wearing our collar, for cripes sake. If you wanted out, you would have taken it off.”

“Don’t presume to know my thoughts,” she whispered between clenched teeth.

Her anger turned him on. He’d pretty much been hard from the moment he spied her in his doorway, but here, like this, fighting what they both knew to be inevitable made him so hard it hurt. He dipped his head and nipped her lips at the same time he flexed his hips and pressed his dick against her cleft. He’d bet, despite her protests, if he slipped his hand under her skirt, she’d be soaking wet.

“What makes this time different than all the other times you’ve done this? How can I believe you?”

God, what did he have to do to convince her? She looked at him through dark inky lashes, her lips slightly parted and her warm breath blowing little puffs of warm, sweet air across his skin with every pant.

She tried to hide desire, but he wasn’t buying it. His teeth gently grabbed at her bottom lip and suck it into his mouth. When he let it go, he leaned into her, his forehead resting against hers.

“I need you, Gabrielle. Of all the things I’ve tried to teach you these weeks, nothing is more important to me than you knowing how much I need you. You and David together have brought something to my life that I’d forgotten was missing.”

He released her arms and stepped back. He’d said what she needed to know and now it would be up to her.

“I need you, Gabrielle.”

Tears hovered at the edges of her eyes, wetness she valiantly fought back.

“I don’t know, Thomas. I just don’t know.” She backed up a few steps toward the door.

“Quit running away.”

She paused. “I’m not running. I promised Diane I’d help her get ready when she called me this afternoon, and I don’t want to be late. In fact, I don’t suppose you know anything about that phone call do you?”

Yeah, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to admit it out loud. He’d conspired every which way to get her in here tonight, and he wasn’t a damn bit sorry.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought. So, I’m going to help Diane.” She turned and took a few steps before stopping again. “Oh and Thomas, thank you for being honest. I know that wasn’t easy.”

He nodded. What else was there to say? He’d laid it on the line, and now, it would be her decision whether she would stay with them or not. God help them all if she took off her collar and walked away.

He watched her stride through his office and out the door. Letting her go would be the hardest moment of his life. He turned back to the gardens and breathed deep, marveling at the different scents wafting up from the newly redesigned outdoor space. A few couples had wandered outside with one already taking up a scene in one of the more public alcoves. A large breasted, big-hipped woman had been bent over the bench, and her Dom used his crop to mark her ass. The breeze carried sexy screams up to him on the particularly hard strikes.

He smiled. He wanted Gabrielle like that. Open and willing…

“Was that Gabrielle I saw rushing out of here?” David appeared beside him.

“Yeah.”

“What happened?”

“She walked out obviously.”

“What the hell did you do? I thought you were going to open up, to tell her the truth.”

“I did.”

“What did you say?”

He turned to David. Why he’d never told one of his best friends the truth escaped him now. Shame probably. Jeff had found out on his own, but for David to know, he would have had to confess and he’d never wanted to talk about it. He still didn’t. The look of horror on Gabrielle’s face when he’d explained it all would be something that would likely haunt him for a while.

He had eventually come to realize that while he’d fallen for the inappropriate girl, her disappearance and revelation of age was not his fault. He’d done what he could to ascertain the truth from her, and she’d managed to fool him. And now Angel. Thomas sighed. Was he doomed to keep repeating the mistakes of his past no matter how hard he fought against them?

Now, he’d have to tell the story to David and take the risk that he might not understand. Might not be willing to forgive.

“Take a seat. I have a story to tell you.”