| |
Virginia
––––––––
After Gabriel left, Virginia rolled up her yoga mat and went back to her room. What was Gregory thinking, lying about something like that?
Clearly, Gregory either overestimated his own bullshitting skills or underestimated the commander’s intelligence. Gabriel wouldn’t have confronted Gregory with something so specific unless he had reliable information Darius’s men were headed here or had already arrived.
No wonder Gregory had been so out of sorts earlier. Estate manager he might be, but anyone sent directly by Darius would outrank him. She wasn’t sure what that meant, though. Had Chris been expecting them? Or did their sudden appearance have something to do with Chris’s sudden disappearance?
Virginia took a quick shower, dressed in comfortable, dark clothes, then slipped out to do a bit of snooping. Gabriel did have an ally, whether he wanted one or not.
~ * ~
Several hours later, Virginia clutched the small piece of paper in one hand, poised uncertainly at Gabe’s door. Was the little something she’d found important enough to warrant the intrusion? Or was she simply using it as an excuse to see him again?
Yes, there was something about the man that intrigued her, but he had said to let him know if she saw or heard something that might be useful, hadn’t he?
She took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and lifted her hand, knocking softly in case he’d already retired for the night. Unbidden, visions of a sleeping Gabriel Michaels hijacked her overactive imagination, of moonlight streaming through the window, draping his bare upper body in silvery highlights while his lower half remained beneath sheets that barely covered a finely-toned backside.
Virginia shook her head to dispel the image and knocked again, slightly harder this time. In the quiet of the evening, the sound of canine nails clicking over the hardwood was audible, followed by the half-snort, half-sniff of a doggie nose at the bottom of the door.
She pressed her ear to the door, listening for any indication that Gabriel was still awake, hearing none. She was just about to turn and walk away when Fred started to whine.
“Sh,” she shushed against the door, not wanting to wake Gabriel. The man probably slept with a gun—or a knife—or both under his pillow, and was definitely the type to strike first and ask questions later. Even if he didn’t, the last thing she needed was an image of a half-naked, messy-haired Gabriel to add to the mental album she’d already started.
Unless he slept completely in the nude. That would be even worse.
Unfortunately, her soft shushes only made the hound whine louder.
Placing her hand on the knob, she held her breath and turned, surprised when it moved easily. She opened the door slowly and peeked in. Moonlight was streaming through the window, just like in her vision, but thankfully, the bed was empty.
A quick perusal around the room revealed a light shining from beneath the bathroom door.
Letting out the breath she’d been holding, she attempted to quiet Fred before Gabe heard him fussing. “Sh.” Fred pushed his nose toward her pocket, his acute sense of smell zeroing in on the small treats she’d slipped into her pockets for Sander’s guard dogs. Fred’s powerful tail swung back and forth excitedly, thumping loudly against the door and the frame.
“Okay, one treat,” she whispered sternly, “but you have to sit and be quiet.”
Fred dutifully dropped his back end to the floor and looked at her expectantly. She reached into her pocket and extracted the beef-basted doggie cookie, smiling as Fred’s furry lips and tongue brushed over her outstretched hand.
“Good boy,” she praised when the room suddenly grew brighter. Virginia’s gaze snapped up to find Fred’s master in the open doorway, towel-drying his hair.
A backlit, well-defined, very naked master.
He stilled almost immediately, his green eyes practically glowing, or was that glowering?
Embarrassed, she dropped her gaze, but that didn’t help at all. Her eyes traveled downward, over the powerful chest dusted with dark brown and silver and along the ridges of defined, toned abs to a sharply cut V that set off a series of tingles deep in her core. Knowing she shouldn’t, but unable to stop herself, they continued their happy journey, skimming over a dark patch of hair to—
Virginia inhaled sharply, then stopped breathing altogether.
Holy hellfire. The man was hung.
“Was there something you wanted?” he rumbled, his deep voice resonating along nerves she didn’t even know she had. Her eyes snapped back up to his as heat rushed to her face. She licked her dry lips—clearly, all the moisture had fled southward—and tried to remember why she had come to his room.
“Oh, uh, yes. I found something.”
Her eyes dropped down again of their own volition. When she forced them back up, one brow was raised, and she could have sworn she saw amusement ghosting over his features. He didn’t seem to be bothered at all by the fact that he was standing there in the nude while she ogled him. In fact, he seemed to be daring her to continue.
She, on the other hand, felt a tsunami-level hot flash coming on. She had to get out of there, pronto, preferably before her lust overpowered her logic.
“But it can wait till morning.”
She backed out of the room quickly and pulled the door shut, refusing to look back as she high-tailed it to her own room.
She locked the door for good measure, then flopped down on her bed and covered her face with her arm. Images of Gabriel in all his naked glory flashed behind her lids, making her groan. How many years had it been since she’d had sex? Ten? Twelve?
Way too long, her raging hormones answered. And never with a man who looked like that. Skin dusted with dark hair and lit by moonlight, stretched over powerful legs and arms and . . . other things.
A sharp knock sounded at the door. She bolted upright and held her breath, knowing exactly who it was. Maybe if she remained quiet, he’d think she’d gone somewhere else. Or maybe, her hormones suggested hopefully, you could go into your bathroom, strip, and then treat him to the same show he gave you.
“Ms. Miller, I know you’re in there.” A soft woof of confirmation followed the statement.
Damn it, Fred. She took a deep breath and willed her voice steady. “Yes? What is it?”
“You said you found something.”
Virginia realized she still clutched the slip of paper in her hand. “It’s probably nothing. I shouldn’t have bothered you.”
A weighted pause ticked off with beats from her pounding heart. “If you have something that might facilitate the investigation, I’d prefer to see it sooner rather than later.”
She exhaled, then pulled herself to standing and went to the door, opening it several inches. Thankfully, Gabe was now fully dressed in jeans and a white T-shirt. His hair was still damp, though, curling slightly at the ends, just above his collar. The scent of clean, masculine soap and shaving cream tickled her nose. It should have helped, but it didn’t, because that scent would now forever be associated with a clear mental image of what lay beneath the cotton and denim. In fact, she might never be able to look at him again without picturing him naked. Not exactly a hardship, but not particularly good for her sanity or self-control, either.
She slipped her hand through the crack and held the paper out to him, refusing to look into his face. “Here, I found this. I don’t know if it’s useful or not.”
Fred used the opening to push his big body through, bulldozing into her room. He made a beeline for her bed, leapt up onto it, then proceeded to circle twice before settling himself firmly in the midst of her pillows with a plop.
“Fred! Down!” Gabe commanded, reminding her unnecessarily that he was all alpha-male. That deep voice, when combined with his nearness and the recent images she’d acquired, brought on another wave of heat. She needed distance. The sooner, the better.
Fred, however, didn’t seem inclined to agree. The dog looked from her to Gabe and back again, but kept his head between his paws.
“He can stay,” she said quickly, making up her mind.
Gabe crossed his arms over his chest and leveled his gaze on hers. “If he stays, I stay.”
“Fred, get down.” Virginia whirled around and moved toward the bed making shooing motions with her hands. “Come on, you heard the man. You have to go.”
Fred looked at her with big eyes so soulful she almost reconsidered. Almost. She really wouldn’t have minded the company, but the price was just too high.
“No,” she said firmly, pointing her finger to the door. “Go.”
Fred slowly got to his feet and moved to the edge of the bed where he nuzzled her. That, she couldn’t completely resist. “Maybe another time,” she whispered softly, rubbing his ears, “but not tonight.”
“Sorry about that,” Gabe said as Fred dutifully jumped off the bed and sulked toward the door.
He didn’t look sorry. He looked amused. As if he knew he’d flustered her and was quite pleased with himself. Damn alpha males.
“Right, well,” she crossed her own arms over her chest, mimicking his earlier stance. “I’ll let you know if I come across anything else.”
One corner of his mouth quirked upward. “You do that.”
“Goodnight, Commander Michaels.”
“All things considered, I think you can call me Gabe now. Pleasant dreams, Ms. Miller.”