Chapter 12

CHAPTER TWELVE

Gage was killing her. All the little teasing swipes were setting her body on fire. She thought for sure after he ran out of the library that it set them back several steps.

She was horribly wrong. And it started with the delivery of groceries. There were only so many times he could “accidentally” brush against her before she called bullshit. He wasn't fooling anybody.

Then there was the incident in the hallway. The two of them crashing into each other. Actually, that one was probably an accident, but still. She was forced to come in contact with his toned chest, and his arms had wrapped around her.

Now they were making lunch together and this was the second time Gage had to “conveniently” lean across her to grab something.

Again, she was calling bullshit on that.

"I know what you're doing." She finally set the knife on the counter and looked at him. The cucumber she was cutting up could wait a minute or two.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She wasn't buying his innocent act for a second.

"Yeah, okay. You were always a handsy fellow."

She never needed to worry about public displays of affection when it came to Gage. Most boys their age didn't want to demonstrate how they felt. That wasn't Gage. In high school, if they were together, then some part of him was always touching her.

Holding hands? Always.

Arm over the shoulder? More often than not.

Hand on the lower back? Sometimes.

Snuggled into his side? Most definitely. Especially when it was cold. If he wasn’t holding her, then he made sure a piece of his clothing was keeping her warm.

But these touches were different. They were brushes rather than flat-out touching like she was used to, but it was contact all the same.

"Handsy fellow?" Gage laughed. "Who uses those kinds of words?"

She too laughed. "Don't change the subject. You've been finding reasons to touch me all morning."

"You're overthinking things. I was just leaning over to grab the mustard for the sandwiches."

"And the mayo," she reminded him. "Plus let's not forget you were the one to take those bottles out of the fridge. Why didn't you put them where you knew you planned to make the sandwiches?"

Gage was doing a poor job hiding his cheeky grin. "You stood in the spot I planned to use?"

He formed it like a question even though they both knew it was a complete lie. She was already standing in the very same spot when he pulled the stuff he needed out of the refrigerator.

"Fine," Gage huffed. "Maybe I've missed your touch."

Dani melted on the spot at his confession.

"Really?" She didn't want to get her hopes up but that was a huge step in the right direction. She had missed his touch as well, but didn't want to appear needy.

"Would that be so hard to believe?"

She rotated so that her back was against the island and she didn't have to strain her neck by looking over her shoulder to have this conversation.

"I mean a little. You've been all over the place with your feelings toward me since picking me up yesterday."

It was hard to believe he had been back in her life for just a little over twenty-four hours. It felt like it should've been closer to a month.

"I was hurt and holding on to a grudge."

"And now?"

Gage let out a dramatic sigh. "Now I realize it's time to move on. To keep the past where it belongs."

Dani let instinct take over. She pushed away from the island and raced the short distance to him. Throwing her arms around his neck, she fully soaked in the feel of his body against hers.

Gage responded by cupping her ass in his large palms and hauling her up until her legs wrapped around his lean waist and her feet hooked together in the back.

"It's been so long since I've held you like this. Your ass feels right in my hands."

She chuckled into his neck. "It's grown a bit since the last time you held it."

"It's fucking perfect."

Her ass wasn't the only thing she grew into. At sixteen she resembled a baby giraffe trying to walk for the first time. She’d been flat as a board, front and back. How Gage ever found her attractive was beyond her. But now she had an ass that she was proud of. Just the right amount of curves to make her clothes look good. Her boobs could've been a bit bigger but no one was perfect. She was just happy not to look like a strung-out drug addict anymore.

"I wouldn't go that far. Perfection is a hard thing to live up to. I'm happy with it just looking good."

Gage forced her to lean back just enough that he could look her directly in the eyes. "You're right. Perfection is overrated."

Dani swiveled her hips. His rock-hard erection was hitting her in the perfect spot. And looking him in the eyes as she did it only made the moment that much hotter.

"I don't have any condoms here."

She pouted. Condoms were a must. Birth control failed them once, she refused to take that risk again.

"What are the chances we can have them delivered like we did the groceries?"

Gage threw his head back and laughed. It was the best sound she’d heard in a long time, and the way his body shook because of it only further turned her on.

It had been a long two and a half years since she had sex, and for someone with a healthy sexual appetite, that was practically an eternity.

"I'm sure we can make that happen."

"Phew." She wiped the pretend sweat from her forehead. "It was either that or we were going for a ride."

Gage set her ass down on the island, but they didn't lose their connection. His arms were wrapped around her waist and she was hanging on to him like she was afraid he would disappear.

"Are you sure jumping straight into sex is the best idea?” Gage asked hesitantly. “I mean, that was never one of our problems."

She tried to put distance between them, but Gage wasn't having any of it. When she uncrossed her legs and let them dangle down, he reached back and re-crossed them. When she tried to drop her arms, he was right there putting them back around his neck.

"Nope, don't do that. I didn't ask so that you could pull away from me. I want to talk about this. The only way this works between us is if we communicate."

Why did he have to be so rational all the time?

Oh that's right. It was one of the many qualities I loved about him.

Dani kept her arms and legs firmly around him but did lean back just enough so that she could look in his eyes when she answered. “You’re right. We do need to communicate, and as much as I hate to agree with you . . .” She really didn’t want to because again, it had been too damn long. “Maybe sex right now isn’t the best idea.”

God that was hard for her to admit. She was pretty sure the words were forced out by sheer will alone.

“You don’t need to pout when you say it,” Gage grumbled, making her laugh. There was no denying there was one hundred percent a pout in her tone.

“Sorry, it’s just been a while.” Gage’s stormy look had her quickly clarifying her statement. “I’m not just trying to scratch an itch or something.” That sounded worse. She blew out a frustrated breath. “I’m screwing this up. Yes, it has been a long time since I’ve had sex, but no, I wouldn’t want it with just anyone. I’m turned on because it’s you. It’s just intensified since it has been so long for me.”

Real smooth.

If the floor could open up and swallow her whole right about now, that would be great.

“I don’t want to hear about other men. Not while I have you in my arms,” Gage growled.

Yes, growled. He did it as a teenager as well and she thought it was hot back then but it had nothing on mature Gage. This was ten times sexier.

“Ohhh.”

Here she was assuming what upset him but she couldn’t have been further from the truth. Good to know he still had a jealous streak.

“Yeah, oh . I know you had a past while we were separated and so did I, but that’s done now. You are mine and I’m yours.”

Well, when he put it like that, who was she to argue? This was what she wanted. She just didn’t expect it to happen so quickly.

“What changed your mind?”

She was still wrapped around him and it didn’t appear that he planned to change that anytime soon. She liked that they fell back into old routines. There had been nothing wrong with the relationship they had as teenagers. It was just a matter of it being the wrong time in their lives.

“I listened to the people in my life. Not just you but my mom and my co-workers. Everyone was saying the same thing. I needed to let the past go. I figured if enough people were saying it, then it had to be sound advice.”

It was a step in the right direction. She would’ve preferred he called them his friends , but the fact that he was listening to them was a good start. Maybe if he could forgive her, then he could find it in himself to trust others in his life and let them in as well.

She was the reason he was hurting, so she wanted to be the reason he could find those relationships as well.