A Billionaire's Redemption (12 page)

“A little liquid relaxation first, Mr. Dawson?”

“Something like that.” She was so damned open and forthright. She would talk about anything, apparently. It was disconcerting. Most women were so busy maneuvering into his pants by this point, they weren’t stopping to talk about his tactics to achieve the same.

She gazed up at him artlessly. He’d swear she was a virgin if he didn’t know better. “Ward wasn’t your first, was he?” Gabe asked carefully.

She made a face. “Thankfully, no. But truth be told, no guy has ever impressed me tremendously.”

“I’m supposed to impress you?” He laughed. “A tall order.”

“I have faith in you, Gabe.”

And there it was. That damned trust of hers. What if he let her down? If she freaked out in the middle of sex and he did the wrong thing? Fear gripped his chest in sharp talons.

“Now what?” she asked.

Now what, indeed.

Chapter 10

D
eal struck, sex forthcoming. All of a sudden, Willa was more scared than the first time she’d done the deed with a sweaty frat boy in college whose face she could barely remember and name she couldn’t recall. But this was Gabe Dawson. The object of her lustful desires for most of her sexually aware life.

Thankfully, it wasn’t the kind of scarred-and-damaged scared she’d feared would wreck the rest of her sex life. It was the butterflies-of-anticipation, so-nervous-she-could-barf, please-God-let-her-not-embarrass-herself kind of scared.

“How are we going to do this?” she asked nervously. “Do you want me to take off my dress?”

Gabe smiled. “No, Willa. Breathe. I’m not going to fall on you like some ravenous beast. We’ve got all night. And frankly, if the vibe’s not right tonight, we can get around to it some other time. Relax, already.”

“Relax? I’m not sure I know what that is.”

His smile widened. “Hungry? Thirsty?”

“Umm, no.” What was he doing? He led her over to the couch and eased her down onto it. He took off his tuxedo jacket, tossed it over the back of a chair and sprawled casually beside her. He kicked off his shoes and propped his feet up on the stone hearth. His right arm stretched out across the back of the sofa toward her, and with his left hand, he nursed his whiskey.

Perplexed, she propped her bare feet up beside his.

“Nice toes,” he commented.

She wiggled the digits in question, enjoying the little flowers painted on her freshly manicured toes. They even had a tiny crystal glued in the center of each flower. They
were
cute. “Foot fetish?” she asked conversationally.

He laughed quietly. “Not especially. But I confess to enjoying every part of a woman. Fascinating creatures, you are.”

The fire hissed quietly, and the dance of flames between the logs soothed her.

“So how did your first day as a senator go?” he asked.

“Not too bad, considering. No one has tried to kill me yet, and I was only partially flayed alive at that party.”

“I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have left you alone. I knew they’d jump you, but I didn’t think they’d go for the jugular so fast. Vicious bunch of hyenas.”

“Can I quote you on that?”

“Absolutely. What’s on your agenda for tomorrow?”

She studied him quizzically. “Why do you ask?”

“Far be it for me to tell you what to do...” he trailed off.

“Go ahead.”

“You might want to take a look at the candidates to fill your father’s slot in the upcoming election.”

“Do you have a favorite?”

He shrugged evasively.

She turned to face him. “Who do you like?”

“Your father’s opponent. I’ve donated a fair bit of money to his campaign.”

She laughed, genuinely amused. “I should’ve known.”

“You’re not mad at me?”

It was her turn to shrug. “It’s just politics. For all I know, I may endorse the guy, too.”

Gabe stared, shocked. “You’d turn on your father’s political party?”

“If I don’t like their platform, I will.”

“And I thought I was a rebel. Your father created a monster when he gave you his job.”

“I’ve spent my whole life living in his shadow. I’m sick and tired of it. I’m stepping out into the light.”

He reached up to smooth a strand of hair back from her cheek. “Just be careful, okay? Life in the spotlight can get rough.”

“What do you mean?”

“Not only does everyone see the good things you do, but your mistakes are out there for the whole world to see. It takes a tough hide to deal with the negative stuff that comes with fame.”

“You mean like crazy stalkers breaking into your home?” she asked soberly.

“Among other things. The press delights in crucifying public figures.”

“I believe I got that memo already,” she replied drily.

He sighed, his fingers trailing through the ends of her hair. “I suppose you’re more prepared than most for the storm that’s headed your way. You’ve watched your father live in it for years.” He laid his palm at the base of her neck as if contemplating the pulse fluttering there beneath his touch. He added reflectively, “Although I suppose you’ve been caught in the edges of that storm long enough to know what you’re getting into, don’t you? You’re so much stronger than you look.”

She tilted her head. “Do I come across as weak? A victim?”

He frowned, his hand going still on her skin. “Why do you ask that?”

“I read online that women who are raped often give off signals that they’re weak and would make easy victims.”

“Christ, Will. The bastard wouldn’t even let you talk to a live counselor?” Gabe’s voice was abruptly harsh. Furious. She didn’t need to ask which bastard he was referring to. That would be John Merris.

“It’s okay. I read up on it. I understand how I feel and why I feel that way. And I know what I have to do to put it behind me. I’ll be okay, no problem.”

Gabe’s jaw rippled, and there was abruptly a faint tremor in the hand on her neck. “It’s not that easy, Willa. This is going to take time. I swear, I’d kill him myself if he was still alive.”

She put a soothing hand on his cheek, forcing him to open his tightly shut eyes and look at her. “Gabe. I appreciate your protective urges. But I’m a grown-up. I can take care of myself.”

“Like when that guy broke in to your mom’s house? Or when the police wouldn’t come to your place last night?” he snapped.

Her hand fell into her lap. Was he right? Was she doomed to be taken advantage of and picked on for the rest of her life because she was too wimpy and afraid to stand up for herself? Would she always have to depend on other people to charge in to her rescue when she got in over her head?

Big hands came up to either side of her face. Tilted her unwilling gaze up to meet the color of the deepest, most mysterious forest. “I’m sorry. I just worry about you. I want everything in your life to be safe and wonderful and perfect.”

A frown knit her brows. “But why? I’m nothing to you.”

He leaned forward slowly, his gaze never leaving hers. His voice was a bare whisper of sound across her skin. “Because I’ve wanted to make love to you since you were a teenager.”

She inhaled in sharp surprise, but the gasp was cut off by his lips touching hers. His mouth was warm and resilient, featherlight against hers, a mere brush of sensation.

“Really?” she whispered.

“I thought I was a pervert for lusting after you, barely legal.” His lips brushed across hers again. “You were like a newborn colt, all long legs and the promise of elegance to come. The beauty you have now was all there, but just starting to unfold. It was mesmerizing.”

“But you always called me those stupid kid names.”

He laughed against her lips, a warm breath of whiskey into her mouth that tasted so good she went weak at the knees. “I did that to remind myself that you were way too young for me.”

“I wanted you, too,” she confessed softly.

“I know. That’s why I had to work so hard to stay away from you. I was the adult. It was my responsibility to do the right thing by you.”

She drew back slightly to stare up at him. He’d been looking out for her all those years ago? “I had no idea....”

“Of course not. I didn’t want you to know.”

She tilted her head forward, resting her forehead against his chin. “If only I’d known.”

“What would you have done? Defied your father? Run away from home to sleep with me? Ruined your reputation and your life for me? I couldn’t let you do that, Will. You were destined for bigger things than a kid from the wrong side of the tracks.”

“Do you really think I’m such a snob?”

He kissed her forehead, her temple, her cheekbone. “I think you’re a miracle.”

How could she not melt a little at that? Her arms went around his neck and she scooted forward until she was practically sitting in his lap. His hand plunged into her hair, drawing her up against him as he really kissed her then.

His lips were firm and confident, possessing her mouth completely. He surged up over her, drawing
her the rest of the way into his lap. His hand slid under her hair and started a long, slow journey down her bare back. Shivers radiated outward from his palm as it counted her vertebrae one by one.

He reached the small of her back, but his hand didn’t stop. Lower, and lower still, his fingers moved, easing inside the seam of her dress. She moaned a little as his finger hooked in the edge of the skimpy thong the sales lady had sworn was the only lingerie she could wear under this gown. A single finger slipped into the upper cleft of her buttocks, and she all but came undone then and there.

Her entire body went languid and warm, flowing against him like sun-drenched honey. She kissed the side of his neck, groaning as his finger retreated and then advanced once more.

“Are you okay?” he asked carefully.

“Mmm-hmm,” she murmured against his collarbone.

“Need more time?”

She blinked her eyes open, struggling to focus on his face through the haze of lust enveloping her. He looked...worried. Cautious.
Crap.
She didn’t want cautious.

“Gabe, there is something I do need.”

His hands retreated from her body instantly. “Anything.”

“I need you to forget for a while what’s happened to me in my recent past. If you treat me like I’m psychologically damaged and am going to break if you take the slightest misstep, how am I going to put that out of my mind?”

He started to open his mouth, but she talked quickly to get out what she had to say before she lost her courage. “I need you to make love to me like I’m a real woman. Like you want me. I need you not to hold back. Ravish me. Take everything you want from me. Show me what it means to be your woman.”

He looked positively thunderstruck. “Are you sure?” he choked out.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.” She’d also never been more scared. This was it. She was going for everything she’d ever imagined getting from him. Reaching for her dream.
Please, please, let him not freak out and run screaming from me.

By infinitesimally slow degrees, a smile formed on his lovely mouth and spread until it encompassed his entire face. His eyes glowed hotly, and his jaw rippled with sudden tension. “All right, then,” he breathed.

Her heart leaped into her throat. She had no idea what she’d just unleashed, and she was a little intimidated at the notion of finding out, but she’d already jumped off the cliff and was in free fall now. She might as well enjoy the flight.

“Now, where were we?” she said softly. She leaned forward to kiss the taut muscles of his neck, and let her palms slide up the contours of his chest under the fine linen of his shirt. She raised up to nibble his earlobe and swirl her tongue around his ear while she got to work on the collar studs of his shirt.

Cuff links and studs fell with metallic clinks to the floor and she peeled his shirt away with reverence as she unveiled a gorgeous display of pecs and abs. The man was in stellar shape. He must work out for hours and hours each week to have built a physique like that.

“Good grief, you’re amazing,” she mumbled against his collarbone as she leaned forward to taste all that delicious brawn.

“You ain’t seen nothin’ yet,” he muttered.

She laughed against his skin, pushing him back onto the cushions so she could explore him more thoroughly. To his credit, he was in no rush and let her take her time learning the feel of his smooth, tanned skin and hard muscles. The man had no body fat. A network of veins lay just beneath his skin, testament to how fit he was. He might not have the bulk of a hardcore body builder, but he certainly had the definition of one.

“Talk to me, Willa. What are you thinking and feeling right now?”

Surprised by the question, she chuckled ruefully. “I’m trying hard not to think about how unworthy I am of a man like you. You’re a freaking god.”

That brought him up off the cushions, reversing their positions quickly until she was pressed deep into the leather sofa and he loomed over her. “I hate to be the one to break the news, but you’re breathtaking. You may have hidden behind those old lady suits and drab makeup all these years, but the butterfly has broken free of her cocoon, baby.”

She smiled up at him skeptically. If lavishly complimenting the women he was making love to was part of his arsenal, far be it for her to disagree with him. She had told him not to hold back, after all. And he did make her feel kind of pretty.

He slid off the sofa, kneeling beside her as his hands and mouth wandered over smooth copper satin. His mouth closed on the peak of her breast through the skimpy fabric. She arched up into him, shocked at how violently aroused she was when he nipped at her flesh through the gown. It teetered right on the edge between pleasure and pain. For just a moment a bolt of fear pierced her desire, but then a single thought washed through her.
This is Gabe. I’m safe.
She relaxed once more and let the lust he provoked rage through her, unchecked.

She reached for him to return the favor, but his fingers snagged hers and he pulled her hands high up over her head, her arms outstretched. “Lay the backs of your hands on the arm of the couch, baby. And don’t move them. Keep them there. Understand?”

She nodded, too aroused to trust her voice. And as his hands skimmed down her body to cup her privates, she began to understand. The slit in her skirt gave his hot hand convenient access to the juncture of her thighs. He simultaneously kissed her into oblivion and slipped his hand between her legs, which were too weak with desire to do anything but give way beneath his touch.

Slipping under the skimpy lace thong, his fingers played upon her raging desire like a concert piano, and then she fully understood his order not to move her hands. She writhed beneath his touch, trapped by
her promise, helpless to stop the need ripping through her and possessing no will to stop it, anyway.

He lifted her hips briefly to push her satin skirt up and out of the way, baring her entire lower body to him. Self-conscious, she squirmed, but he merely pushed her thighs apart and leaned forward to kiss her more intimately than anyone ever had before. His mouth was warm and wet and drove her completely out of her mind. Whatever embarrassment she’d felt was incinerated by the heat he generated deep within her desperately clenching body.