Evernight Publishing

www.evernightpublishing.com

Copyright© 2012 Sam Crescent

 ISBN: 978-1-77130-121-3

Cover Artist: Sour Cherry Designs

Editor: Karyn White

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal.  No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

DEDICATION

I would love to thank Evernight for giving my stories a home and being an amazing publisher. 

MINE TO KEEP

Cape Falls, 3

Sam Crescent

Copyright © 2012

Prologue

Gabriel Anderson stopped the woman from falling over the loose banana skin in the middle of the road. She carried a screaming child in her arms with another wrapped around her leg. No one offered to help her even as the bag of groceries toppled out of her other hand.

The child had stopped screaming in her arms, and Gabriel stared into the most expressive brown eyes he’d ever seen. The woman in his arms was young, and she looked scared.

“Mummy,” the boy said.

“I’m okay, Billy. I’m so sorry,” she said. Gabriel watched as she quickly put the girl in the car followed by Billy.

“Don’t worry about it.” Gabriel picked up her tumbling groceries. She bent down to help. He saw the red burn marks on her arm where her shirt rolled up. Before he could respond he caught her arm in his hand and watched as she recoiled from him. The terror in her eyes couldn’t be mistaken.

“I’m sorry. You have burn marks.”

She pulled her arm away from him. “They were an accident during cooking.” She pushed her shirt down.

“I don’t mean to pry. I’m Gabriel Anderson. I’m the new sheriff.” He put his hand out to her. She stared at his hand before shaking it. Her fingers were weak and cold.

“Welcome to CapeFalls,” she said.

“Do I get your name?” he asked. The electricity from his touch couldn’t be mistaken. The connection flowed between them. Her eyes widened.

“I-I-I’m Amy Grant.”

“Well, Amy Grant. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

“What the fuck are you doing touching my wife?” a man shouted, storming towards them. Amy pulled out of his touch. Gabriel watched her withdraw into herself. The guy came over, grabbed her arm, and pulled her to his side.

“I’m the new sheriff,” Gabriel said.

“Oh. Well, I’m Steven, and this is my wife, Amy. Talk to me from now on. She isn’t with it upstairs, if you know what I mean.” Steven yanked his wife into the front passenger seat of the car.

“Nice to meet you, Amy.” Gabriel watched as she looked back and nodded. Her door closed, and the car drove off. For the rest of the day, Gabriel did everything he could to find out about Amy Grant. By the end of the day when he went home, he knew he’d do everything in his power to protect her.

****

Six months later

Gabriel heard the call come in. The sound of Billy Grant’s scared little voice would stay with him for ten lifetimes. He’d been watching Amy’s husband for a while. For the past few months he’d been showing signs of flying off the deep end, and Gabriel knew it would only be a matter of time until he struck. He’d hoped to have Amy out of the house with her two children safe.

He broke the speed limit getting to their house. The lights were on. He got out of the car and heard the screams from the pavement. The ambulance had been called, along with several other members of the police.

Billy let him in, and Gabriel told him to go and get in his truck, to lock the doors and not open them until he saw him approaching with his mummy. Mia followed her brother outside.

Gabriel walked into the kitchen and saw red. Amy lay on the floor, howling in pain while Steven punched, kicked, and hurled abuse at her. Gabriel reacted by taking Steven down and bloodying the bastard up within seconds. When there was no chance of the other man getting up and he heard the sirens of the ambulance and police, he walked over to Amy.

Her face was a mess, and he saw she was shaking.

“It’s me, Amy. Gabriel. I’m here to take you away.”

“Are Mia and Billy okay?” she asked.

“They’re fine. Don’t worry about them. Worry about getting better. I’m going to pick you up. This may hurt a little.” He lifted her in his arms. She whimpered before wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Don’t drop me,” she croaked.

“Not on your life.”

He carried her to his truck. Billy opened the door, and he settled her down. Gabriel looked into her face and knew he would die a thousand deaths before he let any more pain come to her.

“Is she going to be all right?” Billy asked. The boy was far too scared for a boy his age. He should be playing with toy cars or watching come cartoons, not seated in the back of a truck wondering about the safety of his mum.

“We’re going to take care of her, all right? I need you two to help me out, and I promise you, nothing bad will happen to her.”

Mia and Bill did everything he asked while Gabriel took care of his woman. Over the months he’d come to view the small woman as his. She had a kind smile and caring nature. She was everything he didn’t deserve and yet craved. The dominant man inside him was appalled at the treatment she’d had at the hands of her husband.

He would spend the rest of his life caring for her. Even if he could never have her to himself.

Chapter One

“She’s the one I was telling you about. The woman who blamed her husband and sent him to prison. I can’t believe a woman would lie like that about her own husband,” the middle-aged woman whispered to her friend.

Amy Grant kept her back to them as she stacked the shelves with the used books that had been donated that morning. She was used to the cruel words, even if they did hurt. CapeFalls was her home, and yet people felt more comfortable treating her like an outsider than a local.

Biting her lip to contain her tears, Amy continued to stack the shelf in front of her.

“What is this town coming to? First there was Laura and Dean Riley. That scandal had my mommy rolling in her grave. Then those two Steer brothers sharing sweet Anna Myers. What is this town coming to?”

Their voices had risen, and they were no longer whispering. Amy felt like laughing. Anna was a happy woman married to two men who adored her, while Laura and Dean were expecting their second child. She didn’t see what the problem with was with CapeFalls. Where most towns and cities were moving into the twenty-first century, the townsfolk seemed to be content to go backwards.

“She’s probably sleeping with that Sheriff. You know, the new one who moved here a few years back. I heard he was the one who put Steven away.”

The gossip went on and on. She hated it when they mentioned Gabriel Anderson. The new Sheriff had been nothing but nice to her since he moved here. He was forty-five and one of the kindest men she knew. At the time, during Steven’s arrest, he’d been the only man who’d stood by her. She was now friends with Dean Riley and the two Steer brothers. The women placed some pictures on the counter along with a few items of clothing but refused to look her in the face.

The bell on the door rang letting her know someone had entered. She looked up, and her smile froze on her face. Gabriel stood in the doorway, looking her way. He always stopped by to see her. After the way these women had been talking she wished he hadn’t.

One of the women sniggered as Amy rang up their purchases. Her hand was shaking, and she heard him walking closer to the counter.

“He’s the one she’s having an affair with,” one of them whispered. Amy felt the heat fill her cheeks at their rudeness.

“Ladies, I know I’m not considered a proper member of CapeFalls, so I don’t see a need to be polite. Talking about someone while they’re standing right in front of you is fucking rude.”

Amy gasped at his cursing. None of the men talked down to these women in the community. They were respected members.

“How dare you?”

“I dare because, the way I see it, two respected women condone domestic violence, and I’ve seen one too many cases where the woman has been beaten to death because of her husband. It’s so nice to see two women like yourselves who believe a man should raise his fist.”

The women paled, and Amy wanted to curl up in a ball. She hated people talking about what happened with Steven. Her life with him had ended a year and a half ago. No one had a right to question her. She handed them their bags.

“Get the fuck out,” Gabriel said.

Amy watched them disappear with their heads held high. 

“You know you’re going to be the main subject of afternoon lunch. They’ll be talking about that awful new Sheriff who doesn’t know how to control his language.” She picked up a cardboard box filled with clean clothes and moved to one of the stands.

“I couldn’t help it. Women like that piss me off and have done for a long time.”

“Then why did you move to capeFalls? Everyone here is like that,” she said. Gabriel was a contradiction to her. In one moment he made her feel safe, and in the next he made her feel a little uncomfortable. He was over six feet tall and made of muscles. There was not an ounce of fat on his profile. His arms were as thick as one of her legs. She knew he was strong as she remembered him carrying her out to his truck on the night that Steven almost killed her.

Her hand trembled as she placed it on a hook and then on the stand. His blond hair fell down in waves to his neck. She never thought she’d like a man with long hair, but on Gabriel it looked right. His blue eyes were always filled with kindness for her. She’d seen the hatred he held for the other women.

“The city is not a place to settle down.”

“And you think here is?” She looked over her shoulder and gave a startled cry at how close he was.

“If you hate it so much why do you stay?” he asked.

“I’ve nowhere else to go.”

He reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear. The act was so touching she felt like she was going to cry.

“You should never feel you have nowhere to go.” He cupped her cheek, and the spark inside her body scared her. She’d never experienced anything like it when Steven touched her. “Where are your kids today?” he asked.

She needed to focus, which was hard to do when he was touching her.

“They’re at playschool. My parents won’t have anything to do with me, and Steven’s won’t talk to me. I’m picking the kids up at five.”

He ran his thumb along her lip, and she could do nothing but stare into his eyes.

“I’ll pick you up at four-thirty from here, and we’ll go together to get some pizza,” he said.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I know. I want to spend some time with you, Amy. I think your children like me, and I know they love pizza.”

Amy smiled thinking about her two children. They were twins, and they liked Gabriel more than they liked their own father.

“Okay. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

Gabriel pulled away leaving behind the heat of his touch.

Amy watched his walk out of the shop. Her hear pounded inside her chest. She should not be having feelings for an older man. Her life was already messed up. One failed marriage and two kids were more than enough for her. She wasn’t twenty-four yet, and her life had gone from shit to worse since she’d started dating Steven.

****

Gabriel walked out of the shop. There was a chill in the air, and he pulled the collar of his jacket up as he walked down the street. Amy always bought out the protective instincts inside him. She was so fragile, and he knew she would break if left alone. If it hadn’t been for the few people who were now outcasts in the town befriending her then she would have folded months ago.

On his walk back to the station, he gained a few cold hard stares, which he didn’t care about. The city may have given him the anonymity that he craved, but CapeFalls gave him the peace and quiet he wanted. He disliked the fact people knew who he was, but at least he got to live a quiet life. In his forty-five years, he’d seen too much death and destruction for his liking. He didn’t want to think about the number of women he’d seen on cold hard slabs in the morgue. If it hadn’t been for her little boy calling the Sheriff’s department and his answering the call when he did, Amy would have become another statistic.

What sickened him the most was the number of people who thought Amy had been lying. He’d carried her out to his truck with her little kids following after she’d been beaten to a bloody pulp.

She’d weighed nothing in his arms, her body nothing but skin and bones. When he’d gone back to the house, he’d discovered the locks on the doors and fridge where the food was stored. Gabriel had asked Steven about the locks. The other guy had smirked and said he didn’t want to fuck a fatty. Her husband had been under the impression he was going home. The fucker had been in for a surprise when Gabriel bought charges against him and locked his ass up. The guy was serving five years in prison.

From the moment he met her, Gabriel had felt something for the younger woman. Over the last year he’d seen her bloom and open up to him. She needed someone in this world who wanted to care about her. Gabriel wanted to love her. He knew she wasn’t ready for the way he felt. The fact that she let him touch her was an improvement. In the early days of them knowing each other, she spent most of her time trying to put distance between them.

He got into the station and ignored the stares of his employees. They had no idea who he was and what he was capable of. In the city he’d turned into a violent man in order to protect the people in his area. If the need arose, he would kill someone.

Gabriel sat at his desk and opened the file on Amy. She’d been seventeen when she first fell pregnant with the twins. He couldn’t believe Steven hadn’t been arrested at the time. Instead, she’d been married off, and nothing else appeared. She spent a great deal of her time indoors looking after twins. In her high school photo she looked happy. A plump, teenage girl on the verge of womanhood. He turned the page over coming to the next picture, which was taken a few months after Steven’s arrest. The bruises were gone, but the woman looked sad to her very core. There was nothing happy or joyful about her. She was a single mother of two with nothing in the world.

He would gladly beat the shit out of her ex-husband again. Steven had refused to divorce her, and Gabriel had gone to one of his friends who happened to be a judge who’d granted the divorce. Slamming the file closed, he locked it away in his desk for safe keeping. Seeing her today in the shop had been good, even though the women had darkened the moment for him.

Her long dark black hair fascinated him with the colour. He knew she didn’t dye her hair, and he loved the way it looked silky cascading down her back. Her brown eyes held a world of pain and fear, which for a woman as young as her was wrong. Where she was once skin and bones, with the food he’d gotten her to eat, she’d filled out her figure. Her hips were round and full with a small waist. Her breasts were large as well. Gabriel loved her fuller figure as it showed, to him, how far she’d come since she’d gotten rid of that bastard of a husband. He knew how her weight used to be controlled through starvation. The thought of any man starving a woman made him sick to his stomach.  He finished his work, filing paper work and making calls to lawyers for the rest of the afternoon. When four came, he closed up his office and made his way back to her shop. The shop’s light shone on the sidewalk. He watched her close up. The cold made him shiver. Winter was almost upon them, and he knew it wouldn’t be long until the whole town was alight for Christmas. The festive season always crept up on him when he least expected it.

Amy came out, and the light turned out. She locked the door and turned to him.

“Shall we, Miss Grant?” He offered her arm. She chuckled as she took his arm. Gabriel liked the sound. They walked towards the nursery where her two children spent the days while she was working. He wanted to care for them all and give them a home. The house he lived in was cold and left nothing for him to come home to. 

“It will be Christmas soon,” he said, trying to find something to fill the time. He liked hearing her talk. Her voice soothed in a way classical music couldn’t.

“I’ve got my Christmas cake maturing in the pantry. I can’t wait. I love Christmas, always have, ever since I was a little girl.” She sounded happy when she talked about the festive season. For Gabriel the festive season meant more calls from the dispatch unit. Drunks, accidents, and killings were the things that had taken up his time. “It will be nice to spend Christmas with the kids without Steven telling us what we can and can’t do.”

Gabriel stopped in the middle of the path and cupped her cheek. “I’ll never let anything happen to you,” he said.

“I know. Steven is behind bars. There is no way he can hurt me.”

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. Her lips were too tempting for him to ignore. He’d imagined kissing her since the moment he met her.

“Gabriel,” she said. He heard the hesitation in her voice and pulled away. “I’m not ready.”

He brushed her lips with his. “Don’t worry about it.”

They walked the last few yards to the nursery in quiet. Gabriel knew he shouldn’t be sniffing around Amy. She was younger than he, and he was too dark for a woman who’d experienced so much pain. He couldn’t stop thinking about her.

Laura and Dean Riley were walking out of the nursery as he walked up to the front door. Dean held his son in his arms, laughing and smiling. Laura was rubbing her tummy. Gabriel noted the round curve and knew they had news to share.

“Hi,” Amy said.

Dean looked at him with a frown. “Your twins are causing some chaos in there, Amy,” Laura said.

“Great. They’ll be starting school in a few weeks. They’re both five, but huge pains in the butt.” Amy pulled away and made her way inside.

“She’s going to have a hard life here with the way the community are with her,” Dean said.

“I know. Two women were talking shit to her earlier.”

Laura tutted and grabbed her son. “I’ll go and get him settled. I’ll leave you men to have your little talk.”

Gabriel watched the other woman go.

“She’s concerned that you’ll hurt Amy,” Dean said.

“I care about Amy, and I would never hurt her.”

“She doesn’t mean that kind of hurt. Look, I don’t know what she’s gone through, but from what I hear that girl has never known true happiness. If you’re sniffing around her for a good time, then I’m warning you to back off.” Dean moved closer. The threat was not lost on Gabriel.

“I don’t respond well to threats.”

“Amy is Laura’s best friend and Anna’s. I’m sure the Steer brothers would have no problem helping me kick your ass. I know you’re not a country bumpkin sheriff, but I’m warning you. If you hurt Amy, you’ll pay.”

Gabriel tapped him on the back. “It’s good to know you care for her. Don’t worry about me. I care about her.”

“Good. Laura was starting to worry about your presence in her life.”

“How is your life with Laura? You know, with the age gap?” Gabriel had always been with women his own age or older. Amy was the first woman he’d ever felt anything for who was younger than he.

He hated the fact he was asking.

“I love Laura and couldn’t imagine my life without her, but I do get concerned. She’s a lot younger than I, and I know she’ll have to cope with life when I go. I try not to let it worry me too much. I love her, and she loves me. And that is all that matters.”

Dean shook his hand, and Gabriel watched the other man leave. Amy walked out looking stressed with two children who had red faces and tears streaming down their faces.

Chapter Two

Amy walked with Gabriel as they made their way towards the pizza place. Her children had started fights, and they were no longer accepted at the nursery. Two weeks were all that remained until they would be starting school full time. The nursery was more of a play-group that acted as a nursery for beginners.

Gabriel held the door for her, and she thanked him. She gasped as her arm brushed his, the electric shooting straight through her body. Steven had never made her feel like this. She knew her attraction to Gabriel was wrong. He was older and the man who’d rescued her from her husband. Is that why she was attracted to him?

They found a table in the back. She looked at Billy and Mia. Her two children had seen more violence in their life than she cared to think about. What would she do with them? Her parents had disowned her, and she didn’t want to ask the two friends she’d made in case they felt she were using them.

She’d become a parent too young, and she knew she couldn’t do it on her own. The stress of trying to raise them was too much. Staring down at the menu, she tried to read, but it became blurry as the tears filled her eyes and dripped down her face. For many years she’d learnt how to cry without making a sound.

Glancing around the pizza place, she noted the sniggers and the pointing of other townspeople. She hated this. The judgement and pain. A woman came to their table.

“What do you want?” The treatment was appalling compared to the times she’d gone with Steven. Those times with Steven had been few and far between. He didn’t like to spend money. The only thing Steven liked was to cause pain on those people he claimed to love. She shook the thought of her ex out of her mind. Steven was her past, and she refused to be held by his actions a moment longer. Gabriel stared at the waitress.

“A better attitude,” he said.

The waitress stared at him. Amy watched him take a stand. Eventually the woman stared at the floor with a red flush.

“You know what? I make better pizzas than this shit-hole. How about we go and have some quality food rather than eat here.” Gabriel threw the menu on the table and stood. He grabbed Billy and Mia before turning to leave. She saw Tim the owner standing in his way.

“We don’t take kindly to that kind of language,” Tim said.

Amy didn’t want to cause any trouble, and she knew Gabriel would be spoiling for a fight. In the short time she’d known him, she had learned he didn’t like the judgement of others.

“Get out of my way.”

“You may be the Sheriff in town, but folk don’t take kindly to you spending your time with trash.”

What?

She couldn’t believe the way people were talking about her. Her husband abused her and almost killed her, and yet she was the one in the wrong? No fucking way.

“You ought to be ashamed of yourself, Tim. I’ve known you my whole life, and I went to school with your son. This used to be a place to come for fun. You’ve lost your way, and the whole town has lost their way. Come on, Gabriel. They don’t need our money, and I certainly don’t need them.” Amy grabbed his shoulder and brushed past the owner, holding her head high. She was done being the scapegoat. Steven had almost killed her, and she wouldn’t let a backwards town make her feel small for sticking up for herself.

“My truck is parked over there. Come on. Let’s go and have some real fun.”

She followed behind Gabriel. Her heart pounded inside her chest. Her pulse was beating rapidly, and she felt like she was going to throw up. Standing up to the people in there had felt good. She never dreamed of speaking back to the people who’d been her friends. Amy knew she had to get past her thoughts. CapeFalls was her town, but the people were no longer there for her.

Gabriel had two booster seats in the back of his truck, and she found herself touched by him thinking about her. Billy and Mia travelled to his home without a hitch. Her hands were shaking from the anger inside her. She couldn’t believe she’d never fought back. Steven had kept her trapped from the moment he put the ring on her finger. She’d been too young and stupid to see what an asshole he was. Gabriel was a different man. She saw the goodness inside him even though he tried to keep it contained. The way he looked and treated her touched a part deep inside her heart that she’d thought had died. Steven hadn’t taken every part of her and to know it made her so happy.

Twenty minutes later, Gabriel pulled up outside his house. She’d never been there before. There was a light on in the front. The garden was large and open. She saw a couple of trees in the garden with a swing hanging from one of the branches. Amy felt instantly at home. Her gaze kept going to the swing. It had been ages since she’d let go on one.

“Your house is beautiful,” she said.

“I see you’re eyeing up my swing. Come on.” He took her hand, leading her over to where the swing hung. Gabriel helped her on. She didn’t think about protesting. Amy held the onto the rope handles. She wasn’t ready to let go. All she did was sit and take in her surroundings. “You can let go and fly. I’ll be here to catch you.”

Gabriel smiled at her. She knew he would catch her no matter what. The trust she felt towards him scared her, as she’d never trusted anyone else in her life. “I’m not ready.”

He cupped her cheek, his thumb grazing her cheek in an action filled with so much tenderness that she thought she’d cry. “One day soon, Amy Grant, you’re going to be ready for everything.”

She hoped he was right. Her world seemed to be full of so much fear at times that she never saw beyond her problems. 

“Come on. You haven’t seen inside. I’ve not got ‘round to unpacking everything. I’m decorating a room at a time.”

He helped her grab the kids. He opened the door, and they all entered his home. From the view at the front of his house, she saw how much he loved his home. There were several boxes placed along walls, but underneath all that, she saw the care he’d taken. Gabriel took pride in his home. She smiled thinking about him holding a feather duster and cleaning down shelves. A smile broke out on her face, and when she turned to Gabriel, she noticed he was looking at her funny.

“Follow me. I’m going to show you the next best thing to proper pizzas.” Gabriel led them through to his kitchen, which was at the back of the house.

There was a counter in the centre of the kitchen with stools for them to sit on. She helped her children into the stools and sat in between them, watching as he grabbed some bits from the fridge. He turned on the grill and came back to face them on the opposite end of the counter.

“How are you kids doing? Are you hungry?”

“Starving,” they both said.

Gabriel pulled out a loaf and cut two squares of bread. She watched as he pulled faces at her children and spread tomato sauce on the base of the bread.

“Pick your topping of choice.” He pushed over three containers for them to pick their toppings. Billy picked out the sausage slices and Mia some ham pieces. Amy picked out the chorizo. She loved spicy food.

“Bread pizza coming right up.” Amy hadn’t heard her children laugh in ages. Gabriel pulled faces and began singing a tune as he made the pizzas. Mia and Billy joined in, laughing with him. “Come here, guys.” He gestured for them to stand with him. He placed the pizzas under the grill. “You’ve got to watch the cheese melting in case it burns. We don’t want burnt cheese, do we?”

Mia and Billy shook their heads. She watched them at the grill. Gabriel had an arm wrapped around the shoulders of each of her children. They never got so close to their father. Steven would lash out or shout. He was under the impression that children were to be seen and not heard. The life they’d lived had been awful, and she’d been too weak to see beyond him.

They pulled the pizzas out, and Gabriel served them up. They sat at the counter, eating their food and drinking milk. Her kids were enjoying themselves, and she didn’t want to pull them away from the fun. She couldn’t help but laugh when he made a puppet out of his oven glove. He relaxed, and she started to see the Gabriel Anderson not many people had seen. Amy felt herself relaxing at his easy manner. He captured her attention and held it. She wanted to know everything about him. What did he like? What did he dislike? What types of hobbies was he into? The list of stuff was amazing. She watched him and knew her infatuation with him was growing with every minute she spent with him.

“Why don’t you two go and watch some television? Your mum and I will clear away the mess.” They were alone. The sound of the television could be heard.

“Thank you,” she said.

“They’re good kids.”

“They’ve never been like that. Steven wouldn’t go near them. He always shouted and sent them to their room. They’re young, and I can’t believe I wasn’t strong enough to leave when I should have.” The tears she tried to keep down, rose up and spilt down her cheeks. She couldn’t believe she was spoiling such a beautiful moment. Gabriel made her feel at home, and here she was ruining it by crying about stuff she couldn’t control.

“Hey. No more tears.” He wrapped his arms around her, comforting her, but his voice commanded her to stop. She hugged him tight. His warmth and strength provided a safety net she hadn’t felt for a long time. Gabriel made her feel safe. She listened to what he said, and the tears slowed down until they ceased.

“I’m happy. I can’t believe how long it has been since I’ve felt like this. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt like this. When I’m with you, I feel happy.” She closed her eyes and pressed her head to his chest. He stroked her hair, and the heat of him surrounded her making her feel like all of her fears could disappear.

She glanced up into his eyes. Her heart raced as her body was flooded with heat. The intensity of his gaze had her immobile. Underneath her hands, she felt the strength and couldn’t help but tighten her hold. He leaned down and instead of pulling away from him, Amy leaned up. One kiss wouldn’t hurt. She knew it was only an hour ago when she’d asked for him to wait, but she wanted to know what it felt like. The only lips she’d kissed had been Steven’s.

Gabriel pressed his lips against hers, and the current that passed between them startled her. He moved her back until she was pressed against the wall. The only sound she could hear was her own heavy breathing. He was older than she, but no matter how many times she tried, she couldn’t find a reason not to be with him. The people of CapeFalls already hated her. Their opinion didn’t matter. For once in her life she wanted to make a decision that suited her for a change. Gabriel was the only man who’d made her feel like she could be someone and do something with her life. She refused to back down. Her mind was filled with nothing but him. He moved the hair off her neck and tilted her head back. She stared up into his blue eyes and lost all sense of reasoning.

****

Gabriel stared down into her eyes and felt himself sink. She was too young for a man like him. He’d seen death and caused a great deal of pain.

“Kiss me,” she said. He couldn’t refuse her. They way he felt for her was wrong.

“Don’t ask this of me.”

“Please. Just once I want to know what it’s like to kiss someone without being afraid. I’ve spent most of my life being afraid.”

He thought about her ex, and his anger came back in full force. Amy deserved love, tenderness, and time. He could only imagine what her asshole husband had given her. Every woman should have at least one good experience with a man. He wanted Amy more than he liked, but he would take any excuse he could to be near her.

“Close your eyes,” he said. She did as he asked, and he stared at her lips. The need inside him to take her and make her his was strong. Instead, he brushed his lips across hers. She didn’t respond to him at first. Slowly, so he wouldn’t scare her, he made love to her lips until she began to kiss him back. Her response to him was clumsy, and he knew in that moment her inexperience would be a pleasure to enjoy. If she gave herself to him, he could show her the many different ways to pleasure her body. She gripped the hair at the back of his neck as he pressed against her, deepening the kiss. Her moans made his cock thicken, and he thrust his hips against her.

She gasped, and he used her vulnerability to his advantage. He pushed his tongue between her lips and forced her head back to receive him. She moved with him, her body attuned to his.

Gabriel tasted her sweetness on his tongue. He was addicted to her in every way. He couldn’t begin to describe how he felt. Never in his life had a woman left him so shocked by the emotion Amy filled him with.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said, kissing down her cheek to her neck.

“I’m not beautiful.”

“Yes. You are. Feel that.” Gabriel pressed his pelvis to her stomach. The rigid length of his arousal would be hard for her to miss. “I’m hard for you. I don’t understand what you’re doing to me. I know I want you.”

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she said with a moan.

“Why? We both want to.” He glanced down her body and saw her nipples pushing against the fabric of her shirt. 

“No. I’m a mother with no husband who has an entire town hating her.” Gabriel stared into her brown eyes and saw the pain. She was always feeling pain. He hated seeing it and wanted to rid all memory of her pain from her mind.

“I don’t hate you.”

She whimpered, and she cupped his face. “This is so hard. I’ve never felt this way with anyone.”

Gabriel placed his hands over hers. “I’m sorry. Your kids seem settled for the night. I’ve got a spare room. Stay here, and then I’ll take you back home tomorrow.”

“And risk more gossip?”

“They already have issues with you, Amy. I don’t think it matters what you do or don’t do. They’re going to hate you.”

She nodded her head. “I’ll stay for tonight. I can’t get home without you driving anyway.”

Gabriel pulled away from her with reluctance. He wanted her in his arms. When she was there he knew he could protect her. They cleaned up the kitchen and went into the living room to finish watching some television with the children. He settled on the far side of the couch with Mia resting her head in his lap. Amy sat on the other. He glanced her way several times and noted her shirt sleeve had ridden up. The round red dots of cigarette burns glared back at him. She’d left the bastard for over a year, and the scars from the burns would stay with her for some time. Eventually, the scars would fade, but unless he did something she would remain Steven’s wife for the rest of her life. She wouldn’t let anyone inside. He knew the pain of trusting someone. Trust didn’t come easily to him. Staring at her arm and thinking about her response, Gabriel came up with a solution. She needed to realise she was a woman. His feelings for her were not weakening like he hoped they would. His feelings were only getting stronger. He sipped at his beer, watching the television.

At some point, Amy left to put the children to bed. Gabriel had told her to put them in the room at the end of the hall. In a spell of inspiration, he’d decorated the room in order for her children to have a place to stay. He didn’t want to tell her that he’d decorated the bedroom with the intention of her children staying with him.

He waited for her downstairs thinking about how far she’d come since he’d met her. No longer did she cower away from people in the street or turn the other way. She held a conversation without looking to bail at a moment’s notice.

Amy was a strong woman, and he needed her to see the strength inside her. Whether she’d gotten over what Steven did to her because of the kids or for some other reason, the fact was, she’d gotten over it. He knew there were times she hurt, but that was to be expected. Gabriel knew he would never abandon her. He cared about her too much to let her go. In his heart, he knew he wanted Amy to be his. For her, he could be a better man.

Putting the beer down, he went to see how she was doing. He wanted to help her wherever he could. His feelings for her were not something he took lightly. He knew how he felt, and it scared him with its intensity.

Mine.

She walked out of the bedroom door leaving it ajar. “I want to be able to hear them,” she said with a smile. Her smile made him want to fall to his knees and beg her to be his. 

He nodded and followed her down the stairs, the kiss they’d shared playing in his mind.

Mine.

That one word kept whispering through his mind like a mantra. Amy wasn’t a thing for him to possess. She was a person to make her own choices.

For a forty-five year old man, he was behaving like an adolescent.

“Amy,” he said. She stopped and turned around. “When you said you wanted to feel what it was like to be kissed without being afraid, did you mean anything else?”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Have there been other things that you’ve only experienced fear?” He’d read her file and knew the type of man her husband was.

Chapter Three

Amy didn’t know how to respond to him. How did you tell the man you had intense feelings for that there was nothing about your marriage that you hadn’t been afraid of? Steven got off on the fear he instilled in others. When would she be rid of that bastard? He’d controlled her while he’d been married to her, and he was controlling her from prison.

“You don’t want to know the answer.”

“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want to know.”

She licked her lips and stared past his shoulder while thinking about her life with Steven. From the moment they had started dating to when Gabriel had carried her out of hell, she’d been afraid of Steven. “There was never a moment when I wasn’t afraid. He dominated every part of me.” Why hadn’t she seen what her life had become?

“Why did you marry him?”

“I got pregnant and didn’t have a choice. I was seventeen, scared, and my parents organised everything.”

“Did you ever love him?”

She sucked in her lips and shook her head. “No, I never loved him. I couldn’t stand his guts.” Amy broke down allowing the tears and her pain to fall away. She went to her knees, but Gabriel caught her and carried her to the couch in his sitting room. The television was playing to itself, and she let go. For six years she’d been living a nightmare. Six years of being under a man who did nothing but scare her.

“Have you ever talked about it with anyone?” he asked.

“Who is there to talk to? Most of CapeFalls doesn’t believe me, and I’ve spent most of my life thinking I should just live with it.”

“I don’t think like that.”

“You’re the only person I know who believed me. In CapeFalls, there seems to be this old written rule that we stick together as a town. What I don’t get is when I first told someone, I was laughed at. My mother told me that what a man does with his wife is his own business, and CapeFalls says to stay out of other people’s business or something like that. I think our precious little town needs to rethink the rules.” She rubbed the tears from her eyes even though more fell afterwards. “I sometimes relive that night in my head, over and over again. I don’t know what would have happened if Billy hadn’t known how to dial your number.”

He rubbed her arm and lifted her legs over his lap. They were so close, and she wanted to do nothing more than bury her head against his chest and forget about her life before she met him.

“Why don’t you tell me about him? Tell me about your life and what led you to marrying him and not throwing his ass in jail.”

She stared into his eyes. The magnetic blue always managed to soothe her. He was hard but gentle with her. Anna had offered to be her sounding board, but Amy had been afraid to talk to anyone about her time with Steven. Gabriel was different. He didn’t judge her or look down on her. In his own way, he cared about her.

“My parents liked him. Whatever I did in high school or anything, they never approved. I was always disappointing them, and then Steven came knocking on the door. He was a nerd but nice to me. At least in the beginning he was.”

“He was trying to impress your parents?” he asked.

“I don’t know. We went on a few dates at my parents’ insistence. We became a couple. Once you’re seen with the same person more than once, you’re a guaranteed couple. That’s what I mean about staying here. People will think we’re a couple, now.”

“We’ll deal with that when it comes.”

She liked that he didn’t appear disgusted. “He took me to the movies one night. It was one of those movies where you sit in the car. I was bored and wanted to go home. We had sex in the back of the car. He kept kissing me, and one thing led to another and bam. Virginity gone.” She remembered the pain of that night. He hadn’t been gentle. She’d tried to stop him, but in the end she’d let it happen.

“Did you want to be with him that night?” Gabriel asked. The tears fell harder than ever. No one had ever asked what she’d wanted. They always expected her to want everything that had come to her. The kids and Steven.

“No.” She sobbed the word out. For six years she’d kept her thoughts to herself. Six years where she gave herself to a man she couldn’t stand.

“Let it out.” He held her close as she let loose all of her emotions she’d kept bottled up for years. The pain and heartache from her predicament.

After some time, she managed to calm down. Her head hurt from the constant crying. Gabriel passed her a tissue, which she was grateful for.

“What happened next?” he asked.

“I got pregnant. He told my parents he wanted to marry me. Two months later I was Mrs. Grant, and I knew I had twins on the way. His parents moved us into a home, and he got a job. Everything was going fine.”

“You weren’t happy?”

“I was doing what everyone expected of me.” She looked down at her clasped hands. Her left hand no longer had the small gold band on her finger. How many times had she looked down at that gold band in the six years she’d been married and felt trapped? Too many to count. She remembered the fights and the pain from his fist along with the constant waiting for him to go to sleep so she could clean up the mess he’d created.

“Were you happy?” he asked.

“No.”

“Do you love your kids?”

She gasped, her hand covering her mouth. “Of course. They were the only thing good to come from my life with Steven. I would give me whole life for them.”

“You’d be surprised the number of women who’d wish otherwise.”

“No. Not me. I hated my life with Steven but never with them. Seeing their faces in the morning is what helped to get by.”

“When was the first time he hit you?”

****

Gabriel knew he was asking a lot of questions, but he wanted to get to know the woman inside. Amy was damaged by what her ex-husband had done to her. He knew she hadn’t talked with anyone about her life. From the moment he kicked the door down to this instant of her sitting with her legs in his lap, she’d been constantly fighting.

She probably didn’t know what a break was. She licked her lips, and he noticed she did that a lot when she wasn’t happy with her life.

“A week after Mia and Billy were born. He’d been out at work. For his dad I think. In the early days the twins wouldn’t sleep. I had to take what rest I could. My parents weren’t interested. A woman’s role was in the home, and she needed to take care of her own family. He came home. The twins were asleep, and I hadn’t done anything. There were dishes over the side. The clothes hadn’t been washed.”

She stopped in her explanation, and Gabriel knew she was gaining herself.

“His food wasn’t on the table. I hadn’t eaten. I came downstairs wrapped in a robe. I’d taken a shower, and he was looking round, inside the cupboards. I went to give him a hug, and with the back of his hand, he slapped me. I don’t want to go into more. Let’s just say after that day, I always had dinner on the table, the pots cleaned, and the washing done.”

“What about the chains on the fridge and cupboards?”

“I gained a lot of weight with the twins. He didn’t want to sleep in the bed with a fatty, and so he weighed me daily and left out rations for me to eat. If I didn’t use the required food in his dinner, he’d know.”

He wanted to go to the prison and kill the bastard. Gabriel cupped her face and forced her to look at him. “You’re a beautiful woman, and what that bastard did to you was wrong.”

“I should have got out. I should never have let it get that far. Mia and Billy deserve better than what they grew up in.”

“You’ve changed that now. You’ve got me, baby. I won’t let anything happen to you.” He promised himself that with every breath in his body, Amy Grant would never know a single moment of pain if he could help it.

“You’re the only person I can trust. Anna and Laura mean well, but they’ve got their own lives to live. Without you, I’ve got no one.”

He held her close, his feelings in turmoil inside him. The need to protect her and claim her as his own filled him to his very core.

There was no way he could love her. He’d given up on love many years ago. Staring past her head to the television, he couldn’t help but think about life with her. In his mind he saw coming home to her. The two children seated at the table, laughing over something Amy said, a pot of stew bubbling on the stove while she pulled bread out of the oven. There was once a time he craved a normal life with vanilla sex and a loving relationship. With the many years he’d spent in the big city solving murder cases, his heart had grown hard and his loving even harder. Gabriel was a dominant man. In the past he’d gotten through his life by using that control to bring women pleasure through the combination of dominance and pain.  When it came to the woman in his arms, the feelings she evoked startled him. A part of him wanted to tie her up and spank her ass. The need to hear her screaming out his name in pleasure called to him more than a cold beer on a hot summer’s day, did. Another part of him wanted to lay her on his bed and make love to her for the rest of his life. The two parts of his soul were wrestling with each other. More often than not, he wanted to lay her down and love her body. He knew no other man would give her the kind of devotion that he could.

Amy deserved some gentle loving. Could he be the man for the job? He shouldn’t be thinking about her like this. He was over twenty years her senior. His best friend, William Johnson, owned an exclusive BDSM club in the city. When Gabriel found life to hard to bear, he had visited the club owned by William and had embraced being a dom. His life at the time had been so different from what it was now. Did he even need the dominant lifestyle? Closing his eyes, Gabriel forced down the need to order Amy to forget about her ex-husband. He wanted to be able to take the pain away from her. Usually with a simple instruction his requests were obeyed, but with Amy everything was different. He didn’t want to assert his control or make her do anything she didn’t want to. Gabriel wanted her to come to him and show him what she wanted.  What had happened to his dominant part? When Tim had been disrespectful in the pizza place, Gabriel had wanted to make the man show his woman some respect.

Cape Falls would be horrified if they knew the real man behind their new Sheriff—but he was a man that was changing with the right woman in his life.

“Thank you for listening to me,” she said. He allowed her to move away from him because he needed to gain control of his arousal. Having her in his arms had brought his cock to full attention. He was pleased he’d picked a long shirt.

“I’m here whenever you need me. I’ll always be here.”

She nodded her head. “Thank you, Gabriel. You’ve been an angel. I’m going to head up and get some sleep. It’s going to be a long day tomorrow.”

He watched her leave the room, her generous ass swaying in the jeans she wore. Fucking hell, he wanted to tear the jeans from her body and kiss her full, rounded ass. He was going insane. Gabriel turned back to the television. He put on the football and went to grab himself another beer.

His mobile rang, and he answered it quickly, checking the stairs to make sure the noise hadn’t woken the kids up.

“Hello,” he whispered.

“You’re whispering now. Seriously, Gabriel, you’re starting to worry me,” William said on the other end.

Gabriel smiled. William was a true dominant, but he could moan like any woman. “Why are you calling me this late?”

“I’m bored, and I’m thinking of moving. You’re right. The city no longer holds any appeal to me.”

He heard some commotion, and Gabriel knew something bad had happened.

“What’s going on?”

“I’m being closed down. It would seem when politicians start visiting the local fuck scene, the need to fuck over a person’s livelihood is the ideal solution,” William said.

“So have you lost your license for owning a BDSM club and for selling alcohol?” Gabriel asked. He knew how much the club and bar meant to his friend.

“No. I was given a stern warning. I either close up the club and move, or they’ll ruin my reputation and get rid of everything.”

Gabriel had warned William that the force was hoping to close him down. It had only been a matter of time until they went through with it.

“What are you going to do?”

“That town you’ve moved to. Cape Falls. Do you think they’ll accept a club like mine?”

Gabriel burst out laughing. He could already see the outrage through the town if William brought such a club near their area. “Let me just fill you in. You know that girl Amy I was telling you about?” He waited for confirmation before continuing. “Well, she was abused by her husband, and the residents here believe she cheated on him by not standing by his side.”

“Shit. This is the girl you don’t have feelings for but talk about her every moment we talk on the phone?” Gabriel heard the teasing from his friend on the other end of the phone.

“Shut the fuck up.”

“How do the residents cope with your language?”

“They spend most of their time in shock, but I take care of them, so it all works in my favour.”

They both laughed and caught up. Gabriel had missed talking to his friend. William was the only man who understood him.

“I’m going to come and visit you in your little backwards town. Would that be all right?” William asked.

“It would certainly be entertaining. This place doesn’t own a tattoo parlour.”

“This could be fun. We could show CapeFalls what they’ve been missing.”

Gabriel chuckled. “You can stay here as long as you promise to leave Amy alone.”

“Are you claiming her?”

He ran his fingers through his hair. Claiming Amy would be a dream come true. The age gap between kept getting in the way. His passions were also extreme, and he knew she’d only experienced pain with Steven.

“She doesn’t know who I am. I don’t want to scare her off.” Gabriel didn’t want to tell his friend that his needs were slowly changing.

“Gabriel, you need to be open with her. I’ll come and visit and leave your little Amy to you.”

He shut his mobile phone and stared at the match playing on the screen. William visiting CapeFalls would be entertaining, but with him so close, it would only be a matter of time before Amy found out the truth about him. He shut off the television and made his way up the stairs. His mind was on his situation with Amy. The man he’d been for the last twenty years wouldn’t be able to change overnight. When a submissive put her whole trust in him, it helped a part of him. Through the control of her pleasure, he was able to find the man he once was. The city had done something to him. From the crime and the crap he’d witnessed, a part of him had been lost. Amy was different. After everything Amy had gone through, all the trust she put in him meant more to Gabriel than anything from some other random sub. Their trust was only limited to what he did to their bodies. Amy trusted him with so much more, and that could never be replaced in his heart.

Gabriel settled down into bed, staring at the ceiling for the longest time. He wanted Amy so badly. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten her. How could a woman who’d been physically abused be able to come to him?

Tears filled his eyes from the pain of his answer. There was no way Amy would ever be able to come to him. He would never hurt her. All he wanted to see in her eyes when he gazed at her was the beauty of her laughter.

He turned over and closed his eyes. No further answers came to him.

Chapter Four

Amy spent the weekend trying to figure out who could look after her children before they went to school full time. They were due to start in late September. The schools ran a little differently in CapeFalls with their term times. The holiday break was during the summer instead of running through summer into autumn.

They couldn’t stay at the shop with her. She wasn’t the full time manager. On Monday morning Anna came to see her carrying a foil package. David and Paul followed behind her.

“We come bringing offerings of food and candy,” Anna said. Billy and Mia ran out from the back room and hurled themselves at David and Paul.

“Thanks for this,” Amy said. She hadn’t been able to make herself some food that day. Between the kids and the meeting she had with Debbie this afternoon, she was as tense as a tightly wrapped wire.

“We heard about the day-care problem.”

“Did you also hear about Debbie coming to talk to me?” Amy asked.

“I thought you owned this shop?” Anna said.

“No. I’ve been running it while Debbie deals with her sister’s wedding. I’ve heard she’s been getting complaints about me.” Amy hated it. She speared some chicken onto her fork and took a bite. The complaints about her were getting tiresome. She was a single mother trying to make ends meet. If she lost this job she wouldn’t be able to make the rent. The problems were piling up, not to mention the sneers had increased with the rumours of her being a slut on the rise. Spending the night with Gabriel had been a big mistake. No one would help her now.

“If she upsets you send her to me. I’ll give Debbie a bitch-slap. She needs one. How dare she judge anyone? Her husband ran off with the babysitter a few months back.”

“At least they were the clever ones. They got out of CapeFalls. I’m starting to wonder if I’m sane. I think I should take Mia and Billy and move away from here.”

Anna took her hand and gave her a squeeze. “Don’t let these people run you out of this town.”

“Why do we stay here, Anna?”

“Because leaving would be too easy. The people aside, CapeFalls is a beautiful place to live. Besides, I have a feeling this town is going to be turned upside down, and I wouldn’t miss that for the world.”

Amy sat with her friend through lunch while the Steer brothers played with her kids. When it was time for them to go she saw Mia and Billy didn’t want to go back into her office. There was no room for them to play. They were nearly six years old, and they didn’t have enough time to play.

Debbie came in around two in the afternoon. From the look on the woman’s face, Amy knew she was about to be out of a job. By three she’d taken her few belongings and taken her children home. She knew Debbie hadn’t wanted to fire her, but with over two hundred complaints from the locals she’d had no choice. Over two hundred complaints. Amy didn’t serve two hundred clients in a day.

She shook her head and sat down with the paper at the table. Mia and Billy were colouring in the sitting room. She phoned through ten applications and came up with nothing. Life was about to get difficult.

****

Gabriel was filing away some paperwork when he heard the word about Amy. He couldn’t believe she’d been fired. The gossip stopped the moment he entered the main reception area. There were times he really hated living in CapeFalls. The moment his shift ended, he got in his truck and drove to her house. He knocked on her door and noticed her neighbours giving him funny looks. Amy answered, and he saw she’d been crying.

“What’s the matter?” she asked.

“I heard.”

“From the sounds of everything the whole world knows.” She moved aside for him to enter.

“I want to help.” She put her finger to her lips and pointed in the sitting room. Mia and Billy were fast asleep on the couch.

“They haven’t been sleeping well. You can’t help. The only job I can get is over fifty miles away. I think it is time for me and my kids to move out of CapeFalls.”

“No.” He stared at the two children, hoping his raised voice hadn’t woken them. They were both fast asleep. Gabriel followed her down the short hall into her dining room. He saw the papers spread out with red circles and crosses all over.

“I’ve got no choice, Gabriel. I can’t live here with no job and a town that ridicules me. This has gone too far.”

Gabriel knew he couldn’t let her go. It was selfish of him, but he refused to live without her. CapeFalls was only his home because of Amy. She was the person who made him get up in a morning and work as hard as he did, which was ridiculous considering he’d only known her for a year and a half. His mind was working quickly, trying to find a reason for her to stay.

“Do you like CapeFalls?” he asked. He wouldn’t dream of forcing her to stay in a town she didn’t even like.

“When the people are not being complete bitches to me, yes, I like CapeFalls. It’s a beautiful place to stay.”

“Then come and stay with me. I’ve got the room, and I’d love for you to keep me company,” he said. His heart was racing at the possibility of her coming to live with him.

“I can’t do that,” she said.

“Yes. You can. I want you around, Amy. I like you.” He more than liked her.

She stared at the floor, her head bowed. In another woman he would have appreciated her submissive gesture. With Amy, Gabriel wanted to see her face and her eyes. She had such expressive eyes. Her pose couldn’t take away the fact he wanted to reach out and run his fingers through her dark black hair. Would the strands be as silky as they looked? He’d touched her days ago, but still he wanted more.

“What would the town think?”

“Who gives a fuck what the town thinks? I don’t. Come and live with me, and I promise you won’t have to worry about a thing.”

She stared at him, her eyes filled with tears. “Why are you so nice to me?” she asked.

Because I want you to be mine.

“Are we going to stay with Gabriel?” Billy asked.

He turned round and saw her two children in the doorway. Here was his chance to get them on his side. He would do anything to protect Amy and these two angels. In his mind they were already his to love and care for.

“Would you like to live with me?” he asked. He went to them and knelt down on their level.

They stared back at him. Their eyes large, their mouths slightly parted.

“Would you cook pizza?” Billy asked.

“Yep.”

“What about ice-cream?” Mia asked.

“I can’t cook ice-cream, but I’ll make sure to have a regular supply of chocolate.”

“What about playing?” Billy asked.

“I’ve got a yard where I was going to put a slide and doll house. I’ve got my eye on some toys. You could help me pick if you liked.”

Mia and Billy stared at each other. “You won’t hit mummy?” they asked. Gabriel ground his teeth together at the anger inside him. Steven got off too lightly. He would love to castrate the bastard for the damage he’d done. Gabriel shook off his temper and smiled. He could give them a life they deserved. The money he’d made with William was more than sufficient for them to live a good life.

“I’d never touch your mummy. She’ll only get love and hugs off me.”

They both giggled and nodded their heads. “Can we, mummy? It would be fun.”

He turned back to Amy. She was wiping the tears from her cheeks, her smile wobbly.

“I promise.” He mouthed the words for her.

“Are you sure? I don’t want to impose.”

“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want you to impose,” he said.

“How can I refuse? There is ice-cream on the menu.” Mia and Billy yelled their excitement. Amy stood, and Gabriel pulled her into his arms. She felt so fragile.

“You won’t regret it.”

“I’m more worried that you’ll regret opening up your home for me.”

That was never going to happen. Gabriel helped them to pack a few things. He wanted to get them settled into his home as soon as possible. Amy phoned Laura and Anna to tell them while he helped the other two pack their clothes. He piled three suitcases and several pillows into his truck.

This was the start of his new life. With Amy close to him, he could start to work on changing her feelings for him.

Chapter Five

Amy grabbed the last of their boxes and took it outside to where Gabriel was stood with her children. Anna and Laura were with her, and they heaved another box onto the truck. She’d sent all of her furniture to the second hand store. She no longer worked there, but other people shopped and would need it.

“I think the good Sheriff has a thing for you,” Anna said the moment Amy walked back inside.

“No, he doesn’t. He’s just being nice.”

“You’re so blind,” Laura said. “That guy has got it bad. If only Peter would find a woman to settle down with. I hate seeing him on his own.”

Peter Miller had become Laura’s best friend during the scandal that had broken out with Dean. He lived in town but spent most of his time at Laura and Dean’s house.

“He’ll find someone.” She stared out the window and saw Gabriel making her two children laugh. Even inside she could see the effect he had on her family. They adored him, and she saw why. There was something about him that called to her. His age didn’t bother her, even if she tried to make an issue about it inside her head.

“You’re smitten, too,” Anna said.

“No. I’m not. How can I be smitten? He’s older than me.”

“Dean has twenty years on me, and boy does it show.” Laura smiled and gave a wiggle which made Amy laugh.

“Please. Not only do I have an older guy, but I have two older men—and that is what you call a party. I’ve got the best situation in the whole of CapeFalls. Also, my men can shut them down if I want.” The Steer brothers provided plenty of job opportunities, and a couple of businesses had been shut down recently because of their attitude towards Anna.

“Do you really think he has feelings for me?”

“I imagine he’d be on all fours howling like a dog and marking his territory if he could. That man has ‘Amy is mine’ written all over him,” Laura said.

“How can you be sure?” Amy didn’t want to get her hopes up. The last thing she needed was another bad relationship under her belt. Her feelings for Gabriel had been growing since the moment he’d said hello to her. Then for him to help and protect her—she was smitten over him. She spent most of her time in his company trying to fight her feelings for him.

Anna stood by her left while Laura stood by her right. “Let’s see, one, he was the one who put Steven away. Two, he loves your kids and spends most of his time with you. Three, he’s getting you to live with him ... do you really need me to go on?” Laura asked.

“Are you sure that isn’t what guys do for a girl in trouble?” she asked. She was starting to show her age with her lack of experience with men.

“Nope. Guys who care just give you a job and leave you to it. Look at Laura. Peter let her live in his apartment and was even willing to marry her I bet when she discovered she was pregnant.”

“Leave Peter out of this.”

“See. Gabriel has the hots for you, and I bet he’s been wanting you to move in with him for a while now. He’s got the hotties for you,” Anna said.

Amy laughed and grabbed her bag. Anna and Laura walked out, and she took a moment to look around her house. She would be twenty-four in a few months. Her life had turned out different from how she imagined it. In her dream world she hadn’t been married or pregnant with twins. Pulling the strap of her bag on her shoulder, she closed her eyes and sent a little prayer to whoever was listening.

“Hey, baby. Are you ready to go?” Gabriel asked as he entered the kitchen. Amy opened her eyes. Gabriel, God’s angel. She shook her head at her silly thoughts.

“I’m ready to go.”

“You’re not upset to be leaving this behind are you?” he asked.

“No. I just wanted to take stock of everything. This has been my life for some time. I guess I’m shocked by how quickly life can change.” She smiled at him. Did he have feelings for her? He reached out and took her bag. Whenever guys came close to her, she found herself flinching away. With Gabriel it was different.

“This change will be for the better.” He tucked her arm through his, and they walked out of the house together. She handed the key over to the landlord. He gave her a frown but nodded.

“I hope you have a better life, Amy.”

She smiled. It was the nicest thing one of the townfolk had ever said.

“Thank you, Doug.” She moved towards Gabriel’s truck.

“Mummy, we’re going to a grilling,” Billy said from the backseat. She frowned and glanced over at Gabriel.

“Anna has invited us over for a barbeque before the last of the summer dies away.”

“When?”

“Tonight. I was thinking we could go to my house and drop this stuff off and then head over. It would be fun.”

“I like that.”

“Great.” Gabriel put the truck into gear and drove along to his house. Amy played with her kids in the mirror to make sure they were okay. They never suffered with car sickness, and she wanted to keep it that way. She saw the excitement inside them. Their eyes were wide, and the smallest thing made them burst into giggles. Their feet were wiggling in the back of the car.

When they pulled up outside his house, Billy and Mia were already out of their seats and waiting to be let out. Gabriel had a big garden, which would be ideal to let them out and play.

They jumped out of the backseat and ran towards the rear of the truck. Gabriel unloaded their sacks and told them to go and put it in their room.

“How come you have a novelty bedroom decorated in your house?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“The room you let Mia and Billy stay in. Do you have children of your own?” She wanted to know more about him.

“No. I don’t have children, and I decorated it because I thought I might have some one day.”

“Well, if you ever find the woman for you, let me know. She’ll be one special lady.” Amy grabbed her bag and made her way inside. She felt his stare at her back. The sound of childish laughter filled the house when she walked inside. She went to the kitchen and began to unpack the food she’d had left. Never before in her life had she felt as at home as she did the moment she walked through his door. When the food was unpacked, she went to help Gabriel unpack the truck.

****

Gabriel took a shower to rid his body of the sweat from moving all the boxes Amy had packed. His arms ached from the workout, but it felt good to see her presence inside his home. The sounds of Mia, Billy, and Amy filled his house and brought him peace where he’d once been filled with nothing but chaos. He grabbed a towel and walked back to his bedroom. He heard Amy getting the kids ready to go out. When she’d asked him why he’d decorated a bedroom for children, he’d felt nervous. How do you tell the woman who has moved in with you that you decorated the house with her in mind? Gabriel knew every time he picked up a paint brush, he’d been thinking of Amy. The way he felt about her was turning into his secret obsession. Never had he thought he’d consider putting pictures of fairies and fire trucks in a room before.

William was due to visit him in a couple of weeks, and he’d have to warn Amy about his friend. Shaking his head at the image of him in the mirror, he wondered how that conversation would go. “Hi. My best friend from the city is coming to visit. He owns a BDSM club, but don’t worry. You’re mine, and he won’t spank your ass.”

He pulled a shirt on and then a pair of jeans before looping his belt through the hoops. Running his fingers through his hair, he walked out of his room and down the stairs. Amy was on her knees, brushing Mia’s hair. He liked the way she looked on her knees. In his mind he saw her on her knees pleasing his cock. He shook his head to rid the image from his mind. She looked so damned tempting all the time. He was a man, and he could only resist so much. It had been two years since he’d been with a woman. The only relationship he’d had was with his hand. And his hand was growing less and less desirable with every passing day.

“Are you guys ready?” he asked.

“Yes.” They jumped up and down, and he heard Amy laugh, a real, lovely sound. He stopped in his tracks and stared at her. She looked younger from where he stood. Her hair hung in long waves down her back. She wore a yellow summer dress with a white cardigan over her arms. He knew she had burn marks and never wore anything to reveal them.

“You look pretty,” he said, walking towards her. She turned towards him, her smile lighting up her whole face.

“Thank you. You look handsome, too.”

He couldn’t look away from her. She held his attention completely.

“Come on. I want to go,” Billy said.

Mia took his hand and pulled while her brother pulled his mother. “I guess we’ve got to go,” he said.

They settled Mia and Billy into his truck before he helped Amy into her seat. “You look really pretty.” Gabriel said the words again in the hope she would begin to realise her own worth. He placed a hand on her thigh and heard her gasp. The heat of her thigh travelled up his palm and through his body. She was soft, warm, and everything he wanted.

“Thank you.” He smiled back at her and moved to his side of the truck. “Who’s hungry?”

“Me,” they both said in unison. Amy laughed, which made his dick hard. He’d need to get used to the sound. He drove to the Steer mansion and saw several cars parked in the main driveway.

“I thought it was a small gathering?” she said.

“It could still be a small get-together.” He pulled up at the back so he could leave whenever he wanted.

They walked round the back. Anna was in a bikini, and Laura was in a full swimsuit. There were several other couples talking.

“You made it,” Anna said with a squeal. She walked over to them and embraced Amy. “I’m so pleased you could make it. I’m giving David and Paul a heart attack in my bikini, but this is going to be the last of the sunshine. I just know it. Billy and Mia, we’ve got some friends for you to play with.”

Amy followed Anna. Gabriel went to where most of the men were standing. Dean shook his hand, while David and Paul Steer nodded their heads in his direction. “Gabriel Anderson, I want to introduce you to some CapeFalls residents. These are like us, outcasts because we refuse to conform. That’s Adam and his boyfriend Anthony. Then there is Natalie, who hopes to open up a bar and a tattoo parlour, and did you know a certain CapeFalls resident is providing the funding for all of this?” Paul said with a smirk.

“You’re going to have all of the CapeFalls residents fainting when they hear the news.” Gabriel smirked.

“You haven’t heard the best news yet.” David chuckled and handed Gabriel a beer. “There has been an application for a BDSM gentlemen’s club, and we’ve approved it.”

“Do you know the name of the person who’s requested an application?” Gabriel asked, even though he knew the man already.

“Someone by the name of William Johnson. Is he a friend of yours?” Paul asked.

Gabriel smiled and stared at Amy. She was sitting by the pool with her feet over the edge. Her black hair cascaded down, and he pictured the dark length wrapped around his fist as he pounded inside her. The thoughts he kept having about Amy were not always about her being tied up or restrained. With other women, he saw them only in a completely submissive way whereas Amy was driving him crazy because he wanted to do much more with her. She was a young woman with so much going on in her life. He didn’t yearn to bring that part of him to her. His biggest fear was if he couldn’t let that side of himself go. 

The conversation went on around him about the changes coming to CapeFalls. All the time he kept his eye on his woman. She looked so happy and refreshed. He wanted to see her smiling face more often.

“How do you think Amy will like living with you?” Dean asked, pulling him away from his thoughts.

“Mia and Billy like my place, and I’ve got a lot of plans in place. I hope she’ll enjoy living with me.” He declined any more beer. He wanted to be sober when he took them back home.

“I wanted to apologise for my behaviour outside the nursery. Laura has told me that your feelings for Amy are the real deal.”

“Then she’s the only one who knows. I don’t think Amy has a clue how I feel about her.” Gabriel stared at the woman in question. How could he begin to tell her how he felt? What would he do if she rejected him?

The confusion with his emotions was really starting to piss him off. He was a man who took control. He was not the type of man to wait for things to happen. He made them happen.

“I don’t know. I bet Laura and Anna are telling her how you can’t stop staring in her direction. Just so you know, the age gap means nothing when you’re in love with someone. I still worry about Laura being on her own when I’m gone. Time doesn’t change the way we feel. I know I’d rather be with her than away from her.”

Amy made her way over to him with Anna and Laura in tow. Mia and Billy were playing on the swings. David and Paul joined the other adults.

“So these changes to CapeFalls, are they going to happen, or will they fall through?” Gabriel asked.

“They’re going to happen whether the residents like it or not. Something needs to change in this town. I’ve lived here my whole life where they refuse to move forwards. I think a little gentle push is in order,” Paul said. Amy stood next to Gabriel, and he felt her presence against his body, the heat from her pulling him closer.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and brought her close. The only way he would move out of the rut was to show her how he felt. She smiled at him and settled back.

Dean raised his bottle to him. Time for change was round the corner, and he intended to make Amy his woman.

Chapter Six

In no time at all, Amy was taking her children to school for their first day. She waved them inside where she stood at the gate. Gabriel was by her side, and she appreciated his presence. He held her hand as they both saw her children off to school. The strength he gave with his touch meant so much to her. She noticed a few parents were whispering behind their hands and pointing in their direction but not as many as she thought. Life with Gabriel had been an exciting one. They’d spent the last few weeks redecorating some of the rooms. Mia now had her own bedroom, and Billy had his own room, too.

Amy had the room next to Gabriel. There was a door connecting to the two rooms. He explained the house was very old, and it was designed for the husband to visit his wife during night-time hours. She’d felt her cheeks heat and thought about him entering her room for sex. When she had been with Steven, the sex had repulsed her. His touch as a man had repulsed everything about her. Gabriel made her feel differently. Instead of being disgusted, she lay in bed at night wondering what it would be like to lie beneath him as he had his wicked way with her.

She got wet at the thought and found herself praying for him to enter her room. During the days, she walked the children to school or Gabriel drove them in his truck on his way to work. She made him lunch and walked into town. The walk did her good as it helped to clear her head. When she was at home, she found herself cleaning every room she could get her hands on. The jobs available at CapeFalls were filled when she phoned. Gabriel told her to stop looking for work. She didn’t need to work. He was more than happy to support her. Anna and Laura visited regularly, helping her to settle in. In her spare time she found herself baking fresh bread and cookies.

Two months after moving in, every room was clean, and she’d baked enough cookies to sink a ship. There was one room she couldn’t get inside. The room was locked, and all the keys Gabriel gave her wouldn’t open the door.

One night after putting the children to bed, she sat down with a glass of fresh orange juice and asked him about it.

“I can’t open the door off the kitchen to clean.”

“That’s the basement. You don’t need to clean it. Leave it alone,” he said.

“Are you sure? You know I don’t mind cleaning. I’d rather have something to do with my spare time.” She tucked her hair behind her ears, staring at the floor.

“Do you really want to spend the rest of your life cleaning for me?” he asked.

Amy stayed quiet and kept her gaze on the floor. She heard movement, and seconds later he was kneeling in front of her.

“Look at me, Amy.”

There was no way she could deny him. She lifted her gaze to his. “Do you want to clean for the rest of your life?”

She shook her head unable to voice her opinion.

“What did you want to become before you became a mother?” he asked.

“I never wanted to be anything,” she said. Motherhood had come to her, and any thoughts of a future disappeared the moment she got a ring on her finger.

“You didn’t want to go to college?”

“In case you hadn’t noticed, not many women from CapeFalls end up in college.” Amy never thought of what her life could have been like if she hadn’t gotten pregnant. 

“Laura went to college. She told me so.”

“I wanted to go. I remember thinking about college, but my parents said I couldn’t, so I stopped thinking about it.”

“This town has a shit-load to answer for,” he said.

Amy giggled. “We sure are a fucked-up bunch. I do know that Mia and Billy can make their own choices. If they want to go to college when they’re older, then I’ll let them. I’d do anything I could for my babies.”

“And I’ll do anything for you.”

Her heart melted when he said sweet stuff. He made her feel cherished.

“I want to take you out Friday night. I’ve talked with Laura, and they’re happy to have the kids. Will you go on a date with me?” he asked.

“You’ve already arranged it. How could I refuse?”

“You can refuse, Amy. I’m just hoping you’ll give this old man a yes and make him happy.”

She chuckled. “You’re not an old man, Gabriel Anderson. Far from it.”

“Is that a yes?”

“Yes. I’d really love to go on a date with you.”

“Good. Because I got you a little something for the occasion.” He got off his knees and left the room.

Amy stood smiling like a love-sick fool. Gabriel had asked her out on a date.

 Don’t get too excited. It could just be between two friends.

She shut down the negativity. He’d asked her out, and she was going to remember the moment for the rest of her life. Steven had asked her parents. She’d never been asked out before.

Gabriel came in carrying a large gift box. “I went into the city the other day to see a friend, and I saw this in the shop and knew it would look good on you.”

He laid the box on her lap. She ran her hand over the surface, relishing the sheen of the gift box.

“Open it,” he said.

“All in good time. I want to enjoy this moment.”

He laughed, and the sound was magical to her ears. Smiling, she cupped his cheek. “You’re a good man, Gabriel.”

“You don’t know all of me.” He made it sound like a warning.

“I’ve seen enough to know you’re a good man.” She ran her thumb along his bottom lip. His tongue peeked out and licked her thumb, making her gasp at the contact.

“You haven’t seen everything. Open your present.”

She pulled away and untied the bow at the top. Gabriel took it off her, throwing the bow to the floor. Laughing, she removed the top and the tissue paper.

Red fabric lay before her. Holding it by the straps, she lifted it out of the box.

“Gabriel.” She stood up and held the full length red dress against her body. “It’s beautiful.” There was a long slit up the outside leg. From the feel of the fabric she knew it had to have cost a pretty penny.

“There are some under-things to go with it, and I found some shoes.” He handed her the bag. “Would you try it on for me?”

“I’d love to.” She made to leave the room, but he stopped her.

“I’ll go and make us a drink. I’ll give you some privacy.” He walked out of the room leaving her staring after him.

She pulled her shirt over her head and tore off her sweat pants. In the box lay a sheer lace bra and matching red thong. The entire outfit screamed sex siren and expense. She put on the underwear and liked the way they felt on her body. The moment the thong settled into place, she felt the instant flare of heat inside her. The dress settled into place like a dream.

****

Gabriel paced outside the door. He’d gone into the city to see William about his decision to move to CapeFalls. His friend had already closed down the club he ran and was finalising all of his debts. Gabriel needed to tell Amy that William would be staying with them for a while. The dress in the store called to him the moment he saw it in the shop window. The mannequin hadn’t done the dress justice. When he’d gone inside, a petite blonde accosted him and offered to try the dress on. He had refused and had gotten it in Amy’s size. The underwear was a bigger indulgence. He felt women deserved to feel nice and appreciated.

For fuck’s sake. He was a forty-five-year-old man having feelings about a twenty-three year old woman. He should be taken into the woods and shot for his wicked thoughts. The door to the sitting room opened, and there stood a vision in red. Her hair fell around her in waves. She must have taken the clip that held the locks in place out of her hair. The dress fit her every curve. Her tits looked full and round, and her figure went in to her small waist then expanded out for her hips. She was a short woman to begin with, but in the red heels he’d found, she stood tall and proud. Her ass curved nicely out.

“Give me a twirl,” he said.

She held her hands out to the side and turned slowly. Her ass looked so tempting. The slit in the side of the dress made him want to reach out and feel the softness of her panties. He could finger her pussy easily under a table, and no one would notice. “You look like a vision of beauty.”

“Thank you. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said about me.”

He moved closer to her. The lemony scent he associated with her flooded his senses. She made his mouth water for a taste of her.

“I’ve got a friend coming to dinner to visit in the next few days. He’s only going to be staying the one night to meet you and the kids.”

“Is he your brother?” she asked.

“No, I don’t have any relatives. He’s a friend, but he’ll be staying with here soon until he finds a place of his own.” He hoped William could keep his desires to himself. Amy was his, and he would hate to fight a friend he’d known most of his life.

“Have you told him about CapeFalls?” Gabriel noticed her smile and couldn’t help but smile himself.

“Yes. He knows about this place. I think he’ll find it more of a challenge than a problem. Let’s just say William is not the type of man to be put off by a little derision.” He ran a hand down her back, bringing her closer to him. “Dance with me.”

She stumbled. “I’m sorry. I’m not used to these heels.”

He held her tighter against his body. “How long has it been since your wore a pair of heels?”

“Never. My parents didn’t like anything improper, and with the kids I never got a chance to.”

She looked sad. Gabriel knew he was going to spoil her with so many different pairs for her to look forward to. “You’ve got pretty feet, and you’d better get use to wearing heels. I like seeing them on you.”

He wrapped her in his arms, inhaling her scent as she rested her head against his shoulder.

“Thank you, Gabriel.”

“For what, honey?” he asked.

Amy pulled away. He saw the intensity of her gaze. She kept flowering before him, and he was seeing the true woman within.

“For everything. You’re an amazing man, and I’m so pleased to know you. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

He thought she was going to say those three magical words. Most of his life he’d avoided women spilling out their feelings for him. The one woman he wanted to hear say the words “I love you” kept the words back.  

Gabriel knew his feelings for her were not fickle, nor would they change. She could ask him anything, and he would give it to her without question. The feelings inside him had progressed quickly over the last few months. He knew the reason he had kept visiting her at work was not only to make sure she was okay but to see her. He loved her company. She was a woman who’d suffered at the hands of a mad-man, and he’d seen her fight to be the woman who now danced in his arms.

No woman held anything to her. She really was the one for him. Her fingers curled in his hair, stroking the length.

“I love the fact you keep your hair long,” she said.

“You don’t think I should cut it?” He used to keep his hair short and out of the way. Like with most things, time had turned him lazy, and he liked the length of his hair. He didn’t leave it to go greasy, and when he fucked a woman, he enjoyed her fingers sinking in and pulling. Gabriel imagined Amy pulling on his hair as he made her scream in pleasure.

“No. I like your hair. It’s lovely and long. I could run my fingers through it all day.” She did what she said and ran her fingers over his hair. If he was a cat he’d be purring in bliss. Her stare held him in place. There was no better feeling in the world than when she put her hands on him. No words were spoken for the longest time. Words were not necessary. The heat of their bodies touching was the only important thing.

He leaned down and brushed her lips with his. Gabriel pulled away for a split second to see her reaction before taking her lips once again. She responded on the second kiss, her grip tightening in his hair as he held her in his arms. He moved his touch down her back to her ass, squeezing the delightful globes. She was all woman, and she made him hard as rock.

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” she said, pulling away from him.

“Why?” he asked, missing the contact.

She stopped, her gaze going from his eyes to his lips.

“I don’t know.”

“I’m not your ex. I’m not like Steven.” He cupped her cheek and tilted her head back. “I would never hurt you.”

“I know. I guess I’m just scared.” She stared at his chest, and his heart ached for her.

“I’m older than you, and I’m new around here,” he said.

“No. Not any of that. I don’t care about your age at all or the fact that you’re new around here.” She stopped talking. He wanted to take her in his arms so badly. The desire he felt for her threatened to consume him. Instead, he stood and listened. “I’ve never felt anything like this in my whole life.”

She took his hand and pressed it against her rapidly beating heart. “When I’m around you I’m always aching to feel your touch or to see you. I tried to ignore the happiness I felt when you came into the shop to see me. I want to give myself to you in a way I’ve never given myself to another man.”

“You’re scared of being hurt again?” he asked.

“I wasn’t hurt with Steven. He was a bully and a bastard, but I never loved him.”

Gabriel felt his stomach turn over. “Do you love me?”

“I feel like I could love you with time. I never felt anything for Steven at all. With you I feel so much, and I don’t want to be hurt by it.”

“We’ll take it easy.” He wrapped his arms around her and brought her close to him. The dom inside him was put to rest. Amy wasn’t sending him away. She needed the time, and the one thing he’d learnt over the years, was he could be a patient man to get what he wanted.

“Do you want me to cook dinner for your friend? I wouldn’t mind,” she said.

“I’m sure it would be lovely.”

“I’ll make it a late dinner. The kids will be in bed.”

Gabriel saw her to her room. He laid a kiss on her head before going to his own room.

Chapter Seven

Amy touched her lips and smiled. Gabriel had kissed her. The sensation was such a heady one she didn’t know how to stop herself from giggling like a little school-girl. She collapsed against the door. Her heart pounded inside her chest. This is what she thought love with a guy could be like. The movies she had watched over the years had left her feeling bitter about life and love. What Gabriel made her feel was nothing to be bitter about.

She felt so happy she could burst. Her children adored Gabriel, and she knew she was half in love with him already. His kiss had made her feel faint, and her toes had tingled when he held her close. The magical experience would stay with her for the rest of her life. She went and stood in the mirror and stared at her reflection. For the first time in her life she saw a woman reflecting back at her. A happy woman with a future ahead of her that was filled with love.

The dress meant more to her because Gabriel had picked it out himself. She ran her hand down her body feeling the expense of the fabric and the wonderful sensation of it gliding against her skin. She removed the dress and her underwear and stood looking at her reflection. The last time she’d viewed her body in the mirror she’d seen nothing but skin and bones. The starvation she’d undergone at Steven’s hands had left nothing of her. Now, she was on the plump side. Her hips were thick and her tummy rounded. Her breasts were large and fit with the shape of her body.

There would have been a time in her life where she would have hated seeing her body in any kind of mirror. She stared at her body and saw a survivor.

Twirling her hair around a finger she lost herself in her own fantasy of life with Gabriel. He was so masculine. His tone of voice and presence made her aware that he didn’t take any bullshit. He was a man who went after what he wanted. Did he want her? From the kiss she thought he did.

She pulled on a nightshirt and lay down on her bed. Being Gabriel’s would be a heady experience.

“Amy is my woman, and I love her with all my heart.” She imagined what he would say. Maybe one day she would hear him say the words.

****

The following day Amy went to the store to get some groceries. Gabriel had phoned her after she dropped Billy and Mia at school to warn her that William would be arriving that night and leaving on Friday. She ignored the stares of people and placed the ingredients she needed inside her trolley. No one would force her to go back into her shell any more. When she was at the till paying for her items she noticed the other people had stopped staring and were getting on with their own business. She smiled to herself. If she’d ignored them in the first place maybe she would have been happier a lot earlier. Deciding not to bother, she said goodbye to the woman who served her and made her way out the shop. Gabriel was leaning against his truck. Amy stopped, watching him. He was so tall, and his presence always caught her off guard.

His arms were folded over his chest. The muscles bulged, making her shiver inside. He would be so strong, and she wondered what he would look like naked. The thought caught her unawares, and she stumbled into his arms.

“Hey, baby. Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes. You know you can startle a woman just standing like that,” she said before she could stop herself. He chuckled, and the sound made her pussy get wetter.

“You’re blushing, Amy Grant. Why do I get the feeling you’re thinking nasty thoughts?” he said.

“Maybe because I am.” She lifted her gaze to his. The boldness inside her came out of nowhere.

The world fell away, and he and she were the only two who existed.

“I think I like this daring woman before me.” He cupped her cheek tilting her head back. She held the groceries in her hands, and she couldn’t touch him. The intensity of his stare kept her in the same spot waiting for him to make the first move.

“You know everyone is staring at us. We’ll be the talk at the tea table tonight.”

Amy smiled. “I’ve been the talk of the tea table for quite some time. You could kiss me and give them something fresh to talk about.”

Who was this woman?

“You’re tempting me, Amy. I think I should take you home and spank this hot little ass of yours.” He squeezed her left ass cheek, and she gasped.

What was happening to them?

“I think we should give them something to talk about,” Gabriel said. He took her bag of groceries and dumped them in the back of his truck. Next, she was in his arms, and his lips were on hers. She wrapped her arms around him and gave him everything in her kiss. Her heart raced, and the heat spilled from her pussy. All he had to do was kiss her, and she was wet for him. The power he held over her scared her at times, but in this instance she liked being his. The whole town would know she belonged to Gabriel Anderson, and they couldn’t do a thing about it.

With him at her side, she knew she would be able to achieve everything.

He pulled away. “I think that’ll keep them talking for the rest of the year.”

She giggled and kissed him back. “That was for me. I don’t care what the rest of the town think.”

“You’re going to be the death of me. I didn’t kiss you to put on a show, Amy. I kissed you because I couldn’t not kiss you.”

He opened the truck door and helped her into the passenger seat. “Shouldn’t you be working?” she asked.

“I am working. I’m helping my woman home.”

The thrill went through her at his words. “Am I your woman?”

“You’re no one else’s.”

Gabriel pulled away from the path, and they travelled out of the town. For a Wednesday there weren’t many people around. Amy said as much to Gabriel.

“They’re all in the town hall trying to protest several businesses from being sponsored in the town.”

“I hadn’t heard of anyone wanting to open up a new shop,” she said.

“Paul and David Steer are the ones who are sponsoring the new businesses.”

“Do I even want to know what will be opening up in CapeFalls?” She looked out of the window, and she saw the doors opened to the main town hall doors. She saw how busy it was.

“What makes you think they’ll succeed in getting them to open?” Gabriel asked.

“The Steer brothers know what they’re doing. I’m sure they’re only doing this for their own amusement. What’s opening up?”

“A tattoo parlour and a gentlemen’s club.”

“That’s it?” Two businesses didn’t sound all that troublesome.

“For now, but I think they have other plans for this little town. They want to create their own entertainment.” Gabriel pulled out of the town and drove along the road. “William called. He’s going to be in town this afternoon.”

“Are you bringing him home with you?” she asked.

“No. He’ll come straight to the house. Don’t be worried about him. I’ll be home at five the latest tonight.” He tapped her knee.

“Do you want me to leave him alone in your house while I pick up the kids?”

“Yes. He won’t steal the silver, Amy. He’s a friend.”

Amy chuckled as he pulled up outside his front door. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. William is a strange man, but you’ll see he’s very charming.” Gabriel got out of his truck and grabbed her groceries for her.

“I’ve got to get back to town. Take care, and I’ll see you later.”

Amy stood and watching him drive off before going inside. She went straight to the kitchen and put her cheese and milk in the fridge. When the rest of her food was unpacked she grabbed the chicken from the fridge and marinated it in lemon, garlic, chili, and olive oil to give it flavour.

Next she began making the crème brûlée for desert. She’d enjoyed it once when Laura had made it at one of her dinner parties, and she wanted to give it a try. She was on the final stages of stirring the custard when the doorbell rang.

“Hold on,” she called.

A quick beat and she poured the vanilla custard into the cold dish and placed it in the fridge.

The doorbell kept ringing as the person refused to hold on.

Red-faced and annoyed she stormed to the door.

“When I say hold on that means hold on.” She yelled the last part as she flung open the door. A man who was easily six foot six stood on her doorstep. His dark black hair was cut short with a hint of greys. He was large like Gabriel with thick arms, but that was where their likeness ended.  

“Well, hello. You must be Amy.” He leaned against the door frame. His whole body filled the doorway.

“Does that mean you’re William?” she asked.

“The one and only.” He bowed down low, and she chuckled. “I take it Gabriel told you about me.”

“He didn’t have much of a choice. You’ll be staying here, and so am I.”

“May I come in?” he asked.

“Of course. Sorry.”

She moved out of the way giving him plenty of room to enter.

“That smells heavenly. Is that vanilla?”

“You know your scents,” she said, leading him to the kitchen. “I was making crème brûlée.”

“I use vanilla often but not in cooking.” The saucepan was left on the side. She watched him dip his finger inside the pan of custard. He sucked on his custard covered finger with a moan. “Wow, that is tasty. I can’t wait for more.”

“I’ve got to go and get my children. Can I leave you here, or would you like to come for the walk?” she asked.

“I think walking would be such fun.”

Chapter Eight

Gabriel drove home feeling the weight of the whole town on his shoulders. He’d never heard so many complaints. Nearly every member of the town had stopped by the station to ask him if they could stop the Steers from sponsoring a new business.

The sun was setting, and when he walked in he heard William straight away. Amy was laughing, and the children were giggling. He moved to the dining room and found William fighting with a meatball and chip.

“I have to say your fights have gotten rather meaty since the last time,” Gabriel said.

His friend looked up and gave him a smile. “Well look at you. You’re the small town sheriff through and through.” William ate the meatball and chip. Mia and Billy were talking excitedly.

“Guys, this is Gabriel’s friend. Let them catch up. William will still be here after dinner.” Amy smiled and gave him a wave.

He went to the sitting room and closed the door.

“I have to say, Gabriel, you’re one lucky guy,” William said, taking a seat in front of the open fire.

“I know.”

“If you hadn’t claimed her as your own I’d have to make a play for her. Did you see those curves? Man, she’d fill my hands, and she’d take a nice hard fucking as well.”

Gabriel let him have his fantasy. There was no way he’d be touching Amy.

“You’re smitten with her.”

“Why do you ask?”

“Because she’s moved in with you, which you’ve never let a woman do. And secondly, you look happy and settled, and I’ve never seen you do both. Does she know who you are?”

Gabriel poured himself a shot of whisky from the bottle and poured another for William.

“No, she doesn’t know about me.” He knew she would find out about him eventually. Being a dominant wasn’t an easy secret to keep from the woman in your life. Are you really a dominant? Gabriel couldn’t help but feel as if his dominant side was leaving him. His instincts were changing where Amy was concerned. He wanted her for much more than being a submissive.

“She’s got fire, but she trusts you without completely knowing you. That’s rare. I envy you, Gabriel. I have yet to find a woman for myself who will give me everything I desire.” He heard the sadness in his friend’s voice.

“I heard you had already requested permission to set up your club in CapeFalls. How you managed to call it a gentlemen’s club baffles me,” Gabriel said.

“Do you really think I wouldn’t have joined you here eventually? CapeFalls is just the right town to cause a few problems. I think it will do the folk good. I walked ‘round the main town before I got a cab to here. Wow, some men need to loosen up, and the women look like they need a good fucking.”

Gabriel burst out laughing. William was a breath of fresh air when it came to blunt speech. If anything, his friend would provide enough entertainment, and the Steer brothers would love him.

They spent the next couple of hours catching up on lost time. William told him he already had a place for the new club to be located. It would be converted so the front was part of the club, while the back would be his own house. Gabriel heard Amy upstairs and couldn’t help but smile. Her presence in his home made him happy. When she came down, he noticed William watching her. She asked Gabriel if he needed anything. Gabriel declined and watched her walk away. Her ass was so tempting to him. The moment he no longer heard her feet on the stairs, he turned to William. His friend was staring at him.

“You really are living a good life.”

****

Amy pulled the chicken out of the oven, tossed the potatoes in butter and chives, and placed them on the table. Gabriel and William were in their seats, talking. She felt Gabriel’s eyes on her all the time. She got a thrill from knowing the power she held as a woman when it came to him.

“This smells delightful,” William said, making her smile.

“I’ll go and get the salad.” She quickly poured on the dressing and carried it out with her. Gabriel was serving her some food when she took the seat next to him. He sat at the head of the table while William took the seat on his right, and she sat on the left.

She handed William the salad, and he served for all three of them.

“Amy, your children are wonderful. You’re a brilliant mother,” William said.

“Thank you.” She felt a blush stain her cheeks.

“She blushes, Gabriel. She truly is a rare find.”

“Is there a woman in your life, William?” she asked, trying to distract him from all the questions he’d aimed at her.

“Nope.”

“What do you do with yourself?”

“She’s a bossy little thing. I hope you can tame her, Gabriel. Well, Ms. Grant, I’m a professional dominant, and I’m the man who will be opening an exclusive gentlemen’s club here in CapeFalls.”

Amy stared at him before returning her gaze to Gabriel. “Did I hear correctly?” she asked.

“Yes.” Gabriel forked some of his chicken and pressed it against her lips. “Eat.”

“How did you two meet?”

“Through my old job as a cop. We found we had a lot of other stuff in common, and I’ve been friends with him ever since.” Gabriel sent her a smile, and the conversation moved on. William kept staring at her, and she felt like she was being challenged.

When the dinner was finished, she cleaned away the dishes and went upstairs. Gabriel kissed her goodnight, and she waved at William. Sleep didn’t come to her straight away. She lay in bed thinking about Gabriel. Did his tastes go to the more extreme of the dominance she’d read about? Laura had let her read Dean’s books where BDSM played a huge part in the story. Her breasts tingled as she imagined Gabriel in a commanding role. She knew he would be the one in control. Amy knew he would never hurt her. His commands would come to bring her pleasure. Gabriel would not ridicule her or humiliate her. He would make sure she’d feel nothing but pleasure. She trusted him so completely that she shocked herself.

She placed her hand over her breasts and felt them in her palm. Her nipples were pointed, and she stifled a moan when she rubbed the pointed tips. Her breasts had always been sensitive. She moved down her body until she cupped her mound. The heat from her pussy went straight through her hand. She wore no panties, and the moisture soaked onto her fingers.

Masturbating had been the only thing to provide her with any sort of release. Steven in all the years they were together had never brought her to orgasm. She pressed a finger through her slit, feeling the wetness on her fingers. Her clit was swollen, and the smallest touch made her gasp. She coated herself with cum, opened her legs wide, and closed her eyes.

She imagined Gabriel entering her room. He wore no clothes. His cock was long, hard, and thick. In her mind, he was perfect. She applied more pressure to her clitoris as she imagined Gabriel pulling her to the edge of the bed, his gaze between her thighs. He would push her hand out of the way, sink to his knees, and suck on her pussy. She’d never experienced oral sex, and the fantasy alone was enough to bring her off.

Amy bit her lip to keep her screams inside. She would be mortified if William or Gabriel could hear her. She rolled over and looked at the alarm clock. Friday night she would be on a date with Gabriel. She was excited about it.

Smiling, she closed her eyes and fell to sleep, her dreams filled with Gabriel and the pleasure he could give her with so many parts of his anatomy.

Chapter Nine

Friday came around quickly. William left for the big city, and she walked her children to school. Laura had phoned to confirm she’d be picking up Mia and Billy from school. Gabriel had told her to be ready by four.  She gave Laura all the numbers before she relaxed and started to get ready.

Besides the first date with Steven this would be the first date she went on where she actually wanted to go. She took a long bath and made sure to pamper herself. Amy spent the whole day getting ready. Her tummy was in knots when the door went at four. Gabriel said he would change at the station. Her hands were sweaty, but the red dress felt good. The heels made her walk with her ass pushed out.

She opened the door, and Gabriel stood on the doorstep. He held a bouquet of red roses. His hair was slicked back on his head, and he wore a tux. She stared open-mouthed at the man before her. She’d seen him in his uniform and jeans but never a dashing suit.

“You look beautiful,” he said.

“I don’t think it’s fair. You saw me before I got a chance to see you.”

He moved the flowers away. “What do you think? Do I scrub up nicely?”

She nodded. “More than nice.”

“These are for you. I wanted you to have the whole experience. A guy asking you on a date, a dress, and flowers.” He handed the red roses to her.

“They’re beautiful.”

“I can wait while you put them in a vase.” Amy laughed and went to put them in a vase before going back to him. He stood at the door with his back to her.

“You know this is your house?”

“I know.” He held his arm out to her, and she took it. Gabriel led her to his truck. “In you go, my lady.”

She relaxed against the seat, putting her seat belt on while he got into the driver’s side.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“This is a surprise. All you need to do is sit back and enjoy.”

Amy did as he told her. He drove out of CapeFalls. The lights passed, and she looked back to see home disappearing with every mile he drove. They talked about their day. Gabriel told her he was handling the move for William.

“He is putting down roots here?” she asked.

“Yep. He finds the little town charming.”

They drove for an hour before he pulled up outside the restaurant. There was a man waiting to take the car from Gabriel. He helped her out of the truck and escorted her inside. She knew he’d taken her to a French restaurant. Her nerves picked up as she’d never been anywhere so grand.

The maitre d’ showed them to a private booth. Gabriel waved him away and seated her himself.

“This is a really nice place,” she said.

“I know. I hope the food is as good as the service.” He seated himself opposite and ordered her a wine. She didn’t have the heart to tell him she wasn’t a huge fan of French cuisine. She liked items like onion soup and crème brûlée, but everything else never sat well in her stomach. 

She took a bread stick and nibbled on it as the waiter poured their drinks before leaving.

“Did you order food?” she asked.

“Not yet. You look so nervous I wanted to make sure you’re happy here before I order.”

“Being truthful, I’m not keen on French food.”

“Neither am I, Amy. You’d be surprised how much we’re alike. I want you to be honest with me tonight, so I’m going to share something with you as well.” He took a sip of his water, and she waited for what he had to say. “I’ve been wanting to ask you out on a date since the moment I laid eyes on you.”

Amy reached across the table and held his hand. “I always looked forward to your company. The days you came to see me in the shop were my favourite. I’m going to say something now, and I don’t want you to get angry, promise?”

“Promise.” He gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

“I think Steven knew that I felt something for you, and that’s why his temper got the better of him that night.” She saw Gabriel tense the moment she said her ex-husband’s name. “I’d never felt anything for him they way I feel for you. In his own way, he was jealous that you could make me want in the short time you knew me whereas he couldn’t in all the years we were together.”

It was her admittance to herself as much as to him.

“I don’t like you talking about him. He hurt you, and I can’t stand to think of you in pain. I’m pleased it wasn’t just me having these feelings.”

The waitress came to take their order. Gabriel ordered steaks with potatoes and a garlic and pepper cream sauce. She sat back and watched him. The way he talked and sat said to anyone who knew him that he was in charge.

When the waitress left, Gabriel turned back to her. “Mia and Billy are settling in nicely.”

“They adore you. I know this is wrong, but I heard them the other night talking about you being their daddy. I know you’re not, but if they ask you to be, would you let them down gently?”

****

Gabriel felt his world fill up with more happiness than he could imagine. Mia and Billy wanted him to be their daddy. It would be the most amazing experience in the world to be their daddy. He saw Amy looked nervous, and he wanted to put her mind to rest.

“It would be an honour to be their daddy.”

“You don’t have to feel obliged.”

He gave her hand a squeeze. “When it comes to you, nothing I do is out of obligation.” Their meal came out, and Gabriel found it comical to watch her picking at her food, her fork pushing the steak and the sauce around the plate. In truth, he wasn’t a big fan of the food either. He liked the company. They talked about everything. It was the most wonderful meal he’d had in a while. He enjoyed making her laugh with jokes and the way her eyes flashed when he stroked her fingers. Any touch he gave her made her body flush. He saw her nipples budding under his onslaught. The pulse pounded in her neck. She was turned on, and he was responsible for it.

The waitress came back with dessert menus, which Amy declined. He requested the check and then chuckled as he saw Amy biting her lip.

“You didn’t touch your food,” he said.

“You didn’t touch yours either, and mine was a little undercooked for me. It’s nothing against the food. I’m just not a fan.”

Gabriel signed the check and left a tip. “Come on. Let’s go and get a burger.”

He grabbed her hand and led her out. His truck was parked outside. He gave the guy a tip before helping her inside the truck.

She put the belt on and watched him drive the car out of the parking lot.

“What are you in the mood for?” he asked.

“A juicy, cooked burger.” Gabriel burst out laughing. He drove further in the city until they found a burger bar. She stayed in the truck while he went in to order. Twenty minutes later he parked out by a reservoir near the joining rode to CapeFalls. 

“This is beautiful,” she said. He laid his jacket in the back of his truck for her to sit down on. They sat and stared out of the water. The sun had gone down hours ago. Gabriel opened up his paper bag, and she scented the food.

“Cheeseburger with extra onion relish.” He handed her the wrapped burger. He watched as she tore the paper off and sank her teeth into the food. Gabriel did the same, and the greasy cheese and meat exploded on his tongue. The hunger he’d been feeling evaporated. “Wow. I never thought watching a woman eat a burger could be so damn sexy.”

Amy chuckled and took another bite. “This is heaven.”

“We could bring Mia and Billy in a few weeks’ time. They’d love to play out here,” he said.

He fed her a fry. She took it from him. “I could get used to this.”

“What? Eating burgers in the back of my truck? This wasn’t the romance I had planned.” He rested his hand on her thigh. Gabriel stared at his sun-tanned flesh against her own. The slit of her dress exposed the length of her pale leg.

“To me, this is perfect,” she said. She was turned to him. He stared into Amy’s eyes, and he noticed her gaze fell to his lips. She closed the distance between them and kissed him. He responded, pulling her closer to him.

The kiss deepened. She thrust her tongue into his mouth, and he did the same. They tasted of cheese and meat, but he didn’t care. Her fingers sank into his hair, teasing the strands out of their slick hold.

Gabriel pushed her away with his hands on her arms. “Not like this. I’m not going to lose control in the back of my truck.”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

“No. I want you, Amy. I shouldn’t because I’m a fucking old man, but I do, and I’ll have you. But not like this. I want you in my house where it is warm, and I can remove all your clothes and make love to you without concern.”

She nodded. They sat and finished their food before getting inside the truck. She phoned Laura and told her she’d pick up her children for the night. He knew he’d spoilt the moment.

“I didn’t want to push you a way. I want you, Amy. More than you can begin to imagine.”

“I’m not upset, Gabriel. I know that you wanted me, and I appreciate it. I think I’d have come to hate us if we’d gone any further. A couple’s first time shouldn’t be in the back of a truck.”

He wasn’t happy with her explanation or the distance between them. When he found an available spot, he pulled in, turned the engine off and pulled her into his arms. He slammed his lips down on hers and sank his fingers into her hair. In the one kiss he showed her all the passion he possessed for her. The way he felt poured in the action. She moaned and held onto him until he was ready to let go.

Gabriel pulled away. “I want to, Amy. Don’t be mistaken by my refusal.”

“I’m not.” When he was happy that he’d gotten his point across, he started the truck back up. 

They drove to Laura and Dean’s house and then onto his house. Together they tucked in the children and spent the rest of the night making out on the couch. Gabriel touched her as much as possible without going past any limits. He wanted the date to end on a high. Gabriel wanted to do more but held himself back. It wasn’t going to be long until he couldn’t keep control over his rampant desire for her.

He hoped she would come to him when she was ready to take the next step.

Mine.

Whenever she was in his arms all he could think about was claiming her. It would take great strength on his part to not go any further.

Chapter Ten

A week went by, and Amy spent most of it in a state of erotic high. Gabriel always found an excuse to touch her when he passed. He would brush her hair aside and lay kisses against her neck. She found herself slowly losing her mind as she thought of nothing but sex. Every night he would leave her at her door. She would try to find a satisfaction in the release she brought by her hand, but nothing worked.

William phoned several times a week to see how she was, which she was touched by. No one left her heart pounding or made her want as Gabriel did. The gentleman in him was annoying her.

She knew he was preparing her for when he finally took her. The control he showed her by his restraint excited her. Gabriel was a man who knew what he wanted, and she was next on the menu. On Saturday night, she was reading another of Dean’s books. Mia and Billy were in bed, and Gabriel came home late. She knew he was finalising the purchase of the house for William. Most of CapeFalls were in uproar over the changes being made. The tattoo parlour was being decorated already. She’d seen the shop in town the other day. Plenty of town folk had been stood outside muttering. She’d spent the rest of the day smiling.

He walked into the sitting room. She had her feet on the couch.

“Where are Mia and Billy?” he asked.

“In bed. They were tired from school.” She got up and brushed past him. “Are you hungry?”

“Famished.”

She went to the kitchen and pulled out all the ingredients she’d need for an omelette. He stood behind her as she cracked the eggs into a bowl. She chopped up the spring onions, ham, and tomato while he stood moving her hair out of the way. He pushed her hair over one shoulder. She tried to concentrate while he kissed her neck. His hand rested on her stomach. She put the butter in the pan followed by the ingredients. He cupped her breasts, and she stilled as his fingers teased her nipple.

“I missed you.”

Her pussy was slick with arousal. She closed her eyes to gain her composure. When she got control of her body, she stirred the pan and then added the egg. She didn’t dream of telling him to back off. Her body was on fire for him.

He let her go when she put the omelette under the grill. They stared at each other across the room. She knew there was something different about him, an edge to his character that she’d never seen before. She put his food on a plate and sat down with him while he ate. The silence between them was filled with sexual tension. Her body was hot, and she wanted to beg him to make love to her.

While he ate, she got up and went to another room. She picked up her book and took it upstairs to her room. Her body was alive. There was no conversation, and she knew something was going to happen. How could she move the tension forward? What would he do to her body? Her imagination ran wild as she thought of everything she’d dreamt about Gabriel and the pleasure he could give her. Amy walked down the stairs and stopped. Gabriel stood waiting for her. She took the last few steps until she was in front of him. The distance closed between them.

He grabbed her waist and pulled her close.

Amy stared into his eyes. Her heart pounded, her tits ached, and the pulse between her legs was growing. His hands branded her where they were wrapped around her waist. Her legs parted, and he pressed a knee between her thighs. She felt the heat of him pushed up against her.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Do you want me to stop?”

“No. I like what you’re doing to me. I’ve never felt anything like this before.” Her whole body was on fire and felt like jelly at the same time. He turned her whole world inside out.

Gabriel pulled away, and she moaned at the loss of contact. “I care about you, Amy. I want you to trust me.”

“Out of everyone in my life, you’re the only person I trust.” It was the only thing she knew about herself. The trust she felt for Gabriel went bone deep.

“Your innocence makes me hard every time,” he said.

“I’m not innocent. I’ve had two children, remember?” She smiled at him.

“You’re not an innocent?” He took her hand and pressed it against his crotch. “Do you feel that? That’s what you do to me. I’m hard for you.”

Beneath her hand, his cock felt like stone, and she squeezed the length of him, letting out a gasp as she did. Steven had always made love to her in the dark. She’d never seen his cock or felt it in her palm.

“Can I see you?” she asked. Any fears she might have had melted away at the look of sheer lust on his face.

“I want you to think really hard, Amy. If we cross this line there is no going back for us. I won’t leave you alone. You’ll be my woman.”

You’ll be my woman. She liked the sound of that.

“I couldn’t leave?”

“Never. You’re staying here with me.”

“I’d be your woman. Completely?”

“Yes.”

“I like the sound of that,” she said.

“Take off your clothes.”

Amy went to the buttons of her shirt and slipped each button through the slit. She knew he would have to see a few of her scars eventually, and she’d rather get it over with.

Gabriel closed the door and walked towards her. She couldn’t stop herself from staring at him. This was the first time in her whole life that she wanted to get naked with a man and have sex. Her heart was pounding inside her chest. The wetness pooled in her panties. She wanted him so badly. 

She removed her shirt and went to her jeans. Gabriel stood in front of her and pulled his white shirt over his head. His muscles rippled with every movement. She reached out and touched him. He was warm and hard.

“You’re so big,” she said. His chest beneath her hand made her look so small and pale.

“I’m a lot bigger than you.” He pulled her closer, tilted her head back, and kissed her. He plunged his tongue into her mouth, making love to her with his lips. She accepted him, teasing him back with gentle strokes. Gabriel pulled the straps of her bra down her shoulders. Amy moved her hands free and wrapped herself around him.

With easy movements her bra was on the floor, and her jeans pushed down for her to step out of.  She wore a pair of white cotton panties and nothing else.

Gabriel released her and took a step back. She crossed her arms over her breasts. He held her hands away, exposing her body.

“You deserve to be in thongs and silks. Would you wear the underwear I buy you?” he asked.

Her nipples budded under his ardent gaze.

“I’d wear everything you bought me,” she said and meant every word.

“Good. Take your panties off.” His voice changed. He no longer asked her but ordered. The thrill that went down her spine shocked her. Staring into his blue eyes, she pushed her panties to the floor and stood out of them. “Go and lie down on the couch,” he said.

She walked to the couch without hesitation. The need to please him filled her body. Amy lay down and watched Gabriel as he removed the last of his clothes. She stared down his body, taking in every line and muscle. He was right. She’d been with a man and had borne two children, but she was an innocent. The only time she’d seen male anatomy like this was in a textbook or the Discovery Channel. Her lips parted on a gasp as her gaze moved down to what lay at the juncture of his thighs.

He was long and thick. The red tip was bulbous, and the slit at the top looked wet. He sat down next to her on the couch. They were both naked in his sitting room, and she’d never felt more alive than she did in that moment.

“Do you want to stop?” he asked.

“Never. I feel something for you, Gabriel. I’m not sure what it is, but I never want to stop.” She tried to explain everything to him. If she could voice all that she was feeling maybe she could make sense of it all.

“Tell me everything, Amy. This is what I want. For you to be open with me.”

Amy nodded and took his hand. She’d read many books and seen stuff in the movies. Nothing she had read or seen was anything like being part of it. Taking a deep breath, she dived into this new world Gabriel had opened up.

“I ache here,” she said, placing his hand on her breast. “It feels so tight and good. I want to feel you touching my breasts.”

“Tell me where else.”

Down her body, she moved his hand. Her tummy quivered with the touch. She went down until his hand covered her pussy. “It aches here. I’m so hot and wet.”

“You want me, baby. This is your body’s way of telling you you want me.” She looked at his hand and watched as he ran two fingers through her slit, her juice coating his fingers where he moved. When he touched her clit, tiny sparks shot out all over her body at the incredible feeling he was creating. “I want to touch you, baby. I want to know what your body likes, and I need you to trust me.”

“Will I like it?” she asked.

“You’ll be screaming for more by the time I’m done.”

She lay down and nodded her head. “Do what you want. I trust you.”

Gabriel moved over her. He lifted her legs to wrap round his waist and pulled her to sit on his lap. “First, I want to explore this mouth. Your lips are so plump and delicious. I want to sink my cock inside your mouth and watch you suck me.”

She cried out at the vision he created inside her mind. “Your cock is so big. Would I be able to fit something that big inside my mouth?” she asked.

“Yes. You’d like that wouldn’t you? To suck my cock.”

“Yes.”

“How does it make you feel?” he asked.

“Excited and frightened. I’ve never done anything like that before.”

“I’ll give you everything you’d ever want. All you have to do is ask, and you can have it,” he said. He pushed her hair off her shoulder, his fingers caressing her skin.

“What do I have to do in return?” she asked. Amy knew her feelings for Gabriel had been growing every day since the moment she met him. The thought of him being with someone else made her feel so much regret and jealousy. Most of her nights since Steven had been taken and locked up had been filled with Gabriel. Over the last few months he’d become more than her saviour. He’d become her best friend and the man she knew she could give her heart to.

She hadn’t told him how she felt for fear he’d laugh at her. What could she give him? She was a single mother with two children and an ex who used to beat her for the fun of it. He didn’t say anything for such a long time. Amy waited and gazed at him. His blue eyes held her captive in his arms. She could never be this open with anyone else. Gabriel made her feel like a woman, a real woman to be desired and loved. He saw the true woman underneath, and for that she would love him forever.

“You’ll be mine to keep for the rest of our lives. That’s what I want, Amy. I want you to be my woman in all things.”

“Why does that sound like a marriage proposal?” she asked as a joke.

“Because it is.”

The smile disappeared off her face. She stared at him, sure that she’d misheard him. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“Surely, marriage to me won’t be so bad.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” Her tummy was doing flip-flops.

He cupped her face in his hands. He stared, seeing down into her very soul. “You’re an amazing woman, and I want you to be my woman. My wife. I haven’t got a ring with me, but I’ll get you one. Will you marry me and make me the happiest man on this planet?”

“Yes.” There was no hesitation. The way he made her feel was more than enough for her to agree to be his wife.

He pulled her down and kissed her with so much passion he took her breath away. She wanted him to wrap his arms around her and never let go. The love she felt for him was more than she could explain. It didn’t matter that he didn’t love her. She had more than enough love for the pair of them.

Gabriel moved down her body, his tongue licking each of her nipples before going to her tummy. He spread her legs open and then buried his face in her pussy.

Amy cried out at the abruptness of the sensation. He was licking her clit. His tongue glided through her flesh and made her want to scream. No one had given her oral sex, and Gabriel was making her burst with the constant pleasure he was creating inside her. He pushed two fingers inside her.

“Fuck, you’re tight.” She blushed and watched his head move up and down her slit, his fingers opening her cunt. She knew her cum would be spilling out of her. She was so turned on by what he was doing.

****

Gabriel tasted her on his tongue, her exquisite flavour filling his mouth. He relished her cries of pleasure as her pussy tightened around his fingers. She would need to climax before he got any chance of fucking her. He sawed his fingers inside her, stretching her cunt to be able to fit his cock inside her.

She gripped his fingers tight, and he circled her clit feeling her release spill over her. His fingers were coated in her cum. He pulled out of her body and licked his digits. Her eyes drooped, and she gave him a small smile. Gabriel wished he could photograph her in that position. She looked perfect to him. He knew he should carry her upstairs to his bedroom, but he couldn’t wait that long to have her.

He settled between her thighs and aligned his cock with her cunt. She glistened in the low light. Reaching between them, he fed his cock into her hungry pussy and watched himself sink inside her glorious heat. She moaned, and when he was halfway inside her, he moved over her. He sealed his lips over hers and thrust his hips, pushing his cock deep inside her hot, hungry cunt. Her nails sank into the flesh of his arms.

“You’re big,” she said.

“You’re stroking my ego, honey.” He kissed her lips, her neck, and each breast before he pulled out of her and pressed back inside. She let out a little sigh and then began thrusting her hips up to meet him.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He wanted to fuck her hard and deep, but the couch wouldn’t give them the room. Holding her in his arms, he carried her to the carpet in the middle of the room. He pushed his cock back inside her soaking channel. Gabriel lifted up and watched his cock sink inside her flesh. Her slit was red and puffy and opened to accept his cock. The pleasure he got from seeing her open up for him was more than he could describe. She was his woman. His cum would be inside her cunt, and he would be claiming her as his own.

“Faster,” she said.

He gazed up into her eyes and slammed inside her, watching her expression. She looked close to orgasm, and he felt the flutters of her pussy around his cock. He swirled his hips pressing against the pleasure spot deep inside her body. The angle and the tightness of her around him set him off. He thrust inside her, spilling his seed. He thumbed her clit, and Amy cried out with her release. They lay wrapped together, their bodies slick with sweat.

Gabriel was in love with her. He knew it. The connection he felt with her was more than he’d felt with any other person. She was the woman for him, and soon she would be his wife. There would be nothing to come between them. The dominant inside remained dormant with Amy in his arms. Amy was the right woman; Gabriel was sure of it. He’d just claimed the woman meant for him.

Chapter Eleven

“Wow,” she said. Gabriel chuckled and lifted her hand out of the bubbles. He’d carried her upstairs to his personal bathroom and run a bubble bath. Amy lay against his back. His body felt like he was on cloud nine from the lovemaking he’d experienced.

“I take it you enjoyed yourself?” He locked their fingers together, lifting her hand to his lips and kissing her.

“I’ve never felt anything like that, Gabriel. I’ve never been so close to anyone as I feel close to you.” She turned, and he pressed kisses to her lips. Her instant response to him made him want to spend the whole night and day making love to her.

“You’re my woman now, Amy. To have and to hold in sickness and in health ‘til death do us part,” he said.

“Are you sure you still want to marry me?”

He laughed. “I’ve never been more sure about anything.”

She turned in his lap. Her arms looped around his neck, and her legs wrapped around his waist. His cock, already thick and hard, pressed against the front of her pussy. “You want to go again?”

“When it comes to you, I’ll always be hard.”

“I’m going to tell you something, and I don’t want you to say anything. I just want you to listen.”

Gabriel stared at her. He noticed how serious she looked, and he didn’t like it. “Am I going to like what you’re about to say?” he asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ve got to tell you. Otherwise I never will.”

“Okay.” He waited for her to speak.

“I’ve never said this to another living soul. Well, I’ve said it to my children. Not to a man.” She licked her lips, and the desire to kiss away her words made him tighten his hold around her.

“Tell me. I’m getting nervous.”

“I love you.”

He stared at her waiting for the rest. She spoke the three words he’d been waiting an eternity for. He had talked himself into believing he would never hear those words spoken by her.

“Could you repeat that?” he asked. She tapped him on the shoulder.

“I love you, Gabriel Anderson, and I look forward to becoming your wife. I know you don’t love me, and that’s fine. Just once I wanted to say the words and mean them.”

“You love me?”

“With my whole heart. I’ve never loved anyone. I love Mia and Billy, but I’m not in love with them.” He held her close and took her lips in a passionate kiss. Her words filled him with joy and hope. There was a future for them in her words that he never thought he could have.

He pulled away and rested his head against hers. She was playing with his hair, which he was starting to view as his favourite thing to have done.

“I love you, too,” he said.

“You don’t have to say the words if you don’t mean them.” He cupped her chin in his hands.

“Look at me.” The dominant in him came through. His word had been questioned, and he didn’t like it. But Gabriel felt no desire to punish her. In fact, his dominant wanted to make sure she understood his words were true. There was no need to hurt or punish her. Making sure she understood how he felt was more important to him. Again, Gabriel was shocked by his own reaction to her. With any other submissive, she would be on her knees waiting for her punishment. Amy was different, and she was changing him as well. His needs were changing all the time. Gabriel hoped he could keep up.

“Never question my words again. I love you, Amy. Make no mistake about the way I feel.”

“Okay,” she said.

He kissed her, holding her close. “How do you think Mia and Billy will react?” he asked.

“They’ll be excited. They love you already.”

“What about my age, Amy? Are you sure that won’t bother you in years to come?” He felt her nipples against his chest. Gabriel leaned back while she sat up. Her tits thrust together, and he couldn’t help but play with them.

“I don’t mind. It will mean that when I grow old you’ll love me even more,” she said. He chuckled and watched her above him.

“You know I didn’t use anything?”

“What?”

“I didn’t wear a condom. I don’t want anything between us.”

“I could get pregnant.”

“Would that be so bad?” he asked.

She hesitated, her gaze staring off his shoulder. “Do you want children?”

“With you, I’d want anything.”

****

They told Mia and Billy the following day. Her two children screamed with excitement. Gabriel threw a barbeque and invited around their friends. William drove down from the city for their quick engagement party. Amy was so happy. Gabriel hadn’t got her a ring, but everything was magical to her. He told her he’d buy her a ring at the earliest opportunity. She didn’t need one and told him so. Amy had him, and that was all she cared about. The moment couldn’t be ruined by anything. William stood with her soon-to-be-husband, the Steer brothers, Dean, and Peter.

She went into the kitchen to grab the chicken when a hand went over her mouth.

“Don’t say a fucking word,” Steven growled against her ear. She wouldn’t be able to scream even if she wanted to. His hand covered her mouth, and he held a knife at her throat. “So, you shacked up with the bastard outsider the moment my back was turned. You really are a disgusting slut. My kids will not spend the rest of their lives with that fucker.”

Her heart pounded inside her chest. How had Steven gotten out of prison? Why hadn’t anyone notified her? Her life was perfect without him, and he was back to take it away from her.

The tears spilled down her cheeks. She was in love with Gabriel, and he was in love with her. There was no way she could let Steven take that away from her.

He pulled her back, and she tried to fight him. If he led her out of the house, he would kill her.

She fought him, clawed at his hand, and the one with the knife left her throat. She saw the chicken in the glass dish, and she pushed it off the counter, hoping the sound would alert someone.

He loosened his grip on her mouth, and she pulled away from him; but he caught her by the hair. She screamed as he pulled her hair forcing her backwards.

“Shut the fuck up, you fucking whore.” He must have gone insane. There was no explanation for what was happening here. Her mind was all over the place. What the hell was he doing out of prison? Her head was burning from the grip he had over her. She tried to keep up with him, and in one last surge, she let out a loud scream. Amy cursed the large house. In any other house they would have been able to hear her cries.

The knife went to the floor, and he slapped her round the face. He grabbed her arm and pulled it behind her back. Her face stung, and her arm felt like he was pulling it out of the socket.

“You fucking bitch. I’ll kill you this time. You fucking slut.” He threw her to the floor and landed three kicks to the stomach. She curled into a ball waiting for the next hit, which didn’t come. Someone was tapping her on the shoulder. Tears fell from her eyes as the pain consumed her. Laura and Anna were around her. They helped her up from the floor. She glanced over and saw Paul and David holding onto Steven while Dean and William held Gabriel back from him. Steven had a split lip, and his face looked swollen.

“That’s police brutality,” Steven said.

“Fuck you. That’s a man protecting his woman. Amy is mine, you fucking bastard. You lay a finger on her, and I’ll take you out. She’s mine.”

“You can’t have her. She’s my wife.”

“Ex-wife. She’ll be mine, and I intend to keep her. You’ll never hurt her again.”

Amy moved away from Laura and Anna and went to Gabriel. Her body ached, but he needed to see her to make sure she was okay. She placed her hand on his shoulder, and he pulled her close.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m a little sore.”

“The ambulance and cops are on their way. I have a feeling they’ll be upping his fucking security around the prison.”

The commotion had zapped Amy of all her energy. Laura and Anna took care of her two children while a paramedic looked her over. Gabriel stayed by her side while the police apologised for the incident. Gabriel demanded more security for Steven. She learnt her ex-husband was unbalanced and was in a psychiatric unit at the local hospital, which was why he had been able to walk out. The paramedic wanted her to go to hospital for observation, which she refused. There was no way she would be spending any more time in a hospital.

Anna took her children home with her. Amy was thankful for the space, even though she didn’t think it was necessary. Mia and Billy were happy to go with their friends. William stayed in a spare bedroom.

Gabriel carried her up the stairs when the police and ambulance service left. The rest of her day had gone to shit because of her ex-asshole-husband.

“You got me worried there,” he said. He placed her on top of the toilet.

“I’m sorry. I’m just glad you heard me.”

“I heard, and I fucking went ballistic. I’m pleased you didn’t see me lose my cool.”

She chuckled, the tears falling freely down her cheeks.

“Hey. Come here.” He wrapped his arms around her. His warmth and strength surrounded her. She let loose all of her fear and pain.

“I wasn’t going to let him take me without a fight. I got so angry. I was the perfect wife to him, and he did nothing but treat me like shit.”

“He won’t be coming out of there anymore. He’ll be under strict guard, and you’ll never have to lay your eyes on him again.”

“I love you, Gabriel.”

“I love you, too.”

He took her clothes from her body and checked her bruises. Her face was red, and her ribs had a darkening bruise. “Fucking asshole,” she said.

Gabriel bathed her, being extra careful with her. When he was done, he dried her body and carried her to their bed. He laid her down, and she kissed him deeply, her hand going to his cock. He stopped her. “Tonight, I’ll hold you.”

She nodded her head and rested her head on his shoulder. With time, her eyes closed, and sleep claimed her. The day’s events were rushed, and she wanted to do nothing else but forget about it all.

Chapter Twelve

Nothing exciting happened after Steven’s escape. She found out he was in a maximum security prison being medicated for his condition.  Anna and Laura helped her to organise her wedding to Gabriel. She had no idea what to do, but the other two women steered her in the right directions. They were both married themselves. Amy felt so close to them, and Gabriel made her fall in love with him more and more. Her children adored him and called him daddy. She’d told them that they didn’t have to. They still called him daddy. William moved to CapeFalls and opened up his gentlemen’s club. She hadn’t been to visit, and Gabriel kept refusing to take her.

Their scandal died down, to be replaced by William and the tattoo parlour. She found it funny when residents talked to her in the supermarket about the chaos happening in the town. She was suddenly one of them when compared to the new businesses opening up.

Gabriel spent every available moment making love to her. She loved being with him, and the love she felt grew with every moment. But there was something he was holding back from her, and she had no clue what it was. The sex between them was steamy, and she wished he trusted her enough to tell her what was wrong.

Laura had taken Mia and Billy for the weekend. Their children were getting along, and she knew hers needed a break from all the chaos. Also, it gave her some alone time with Gabriel before they got married. She was cleaning through the house when she noted the key in the door of the room that wouldn’t open. Gabriel had told her to never go inside.

She stared at the key in the door and wondered if this is what Pandora felt about opening the box. For the longest time, she stood gazing at the key. What would she find behind the door?

Her curiosity got the better of her. She turned the key, and the door opened. Her hand shook as she pushed it open wider and walked inside. There was a flight of stairs, and she flicked the switch on the light. Amy held onto the railing and walked down the flight of stairs into the main room. And paused.

What she found was hard to describe.

Amy couldn’t believe what she was looking at. There were lengths of rope, handcuffs, and what looked like whips lined on the walls. She hesitated at what she saw. This room was not what she had expected to see. Soon, her hesitation went away, and she walked over to the far wall. She reached out, touching the leather between her fingers. They fascinated her. Why did Gabriel have whips, chains, and all the array of sex toys on the shelves? Then she remembered the conversation she’d had with William over dinner. He’d told her he was a dominant, but Gabriel had never told her he was one as well. Too much was happening too fast for her to process. She grabbed onto one of the leather whips and held it in front of her face. Her pulse raced as she thought of him hitting her with it. She didn’t like the thought of the pain. Reading about it inside books was different from seeing what lay in front of her. She accepted so much, but this was too much for her.  The whip fell from her fingers as tears sprang to her eyes. Did he want this with her? She would never be able to handle this. She needed to get out of the room. Air, she needed air. Her world seemed to be crashing around her. 

Her heart pounded in her chest, and she spun to get out of the room only to collide with a hard, muscular chest. She stared up into Gabriel’s beautiful eyes.

“This was the only room I said you couldn’t go in.”

She swallowed past the lump in her throat. Was this the same man she’d allowed near her body the other night? He looked intense and frightening. He stared at her, and she felt his gaze down to her core. The startling blue of his eyes flashed dangerously at her. She took a step back, and he followed her. Mia and Billy were with Laura. She’d offered to take care of her children, so she could have some alone time with Gabriel. She wished she’d turned down the gracious offer. The more she stepped back, the more he followed her until she had her back against the wall with nowhere to go.

“I’m sorry,” she said. Amy stared past his shoulder at the exit.

“Look at me, Amy,” he said. She frowned as the depth of his voice affected her body. His hands came out and rested on either side of her head. She didn’t flinch, and in that moment she knew she wasn’t afraid. Why wasn’t she scared of Gabriel? He had torture equipment, but her heart raced; she felt her stomach was trying to escape, and ... her pussy was flooded with warmth.

She stared into his eyes, her gaze caught by him. He moved, but she couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. His fingers moved her hair off her face, pushing the strands down her back.

“Why did you come in here?” he asked.

“I wanted to clean the room. I thought it would be a nice surprise for you,” she said.

“Do you know what this room is?”

She shook her head.

“This is my play room, Amy.”

“What does that mean?” she asked.

“I’m a dominant man, Amy. I like to be in control.”

The heat inside her spiralled out of control. Her nipples budded, making the tips ache as the blood pulsed. His voice was doing something to her. She didn’t know what to do. What was happening to her? Staring at him, she saw Gabriel, the man she had trusted with her body. But looking around her, she saw a different side to him. A side she knew she couldn’t be part of.

“Have you heard of BDSM?” he asked.

Laura had let her read some of Dean’s books. Her favourite was Surrendering to Her Master. That book had a dominant man who’d do anything for his female submissive. The tender relationship under the punishments couldn’t be mistaken.

“I see you know what I mean,” he said.

“I’ve read a few books. Dean writes stories about it, and Laura gave me a couple to read.”

“What did you think of those stories?” he asked.

She hesitated. Liking them in the privacy of her own bedroom was different from admitting it to a man you loved.     

“I liked them, but they’re stories. Not reality.” She refused to believe what she was seeing.

“I know they are. This was part of my life, Amy,” he said.

“You beat women for pleasure?”

“No, I don’t beat them. Punishment is so much more than that. This used to help me deal with my life when I was a cop in the city, Amy.”

“But you still have this room, Gabriel. This is part of who you are, and I can’t be part of that.” He cupped her cheek, the action so tender that she couldn’t stop the tears from falling down her cheeks. Gabriel wiped them away one by one.

“I can’t live without you, Amy.”

He held her captive in his gaze. The man she knew stared back at her. His voice held the note of command she associated with him. The fear she’d felt disappeared as it always did in his company. Steven had ruined any chance for her to be what Gabriel wanted. She hated her ex-husband more now than ever before. Amy had read the books and not been offended. She also knew she couldn’t be part of it. 

“Look at me.” He held her face in his hand. She stared into his eyes. “This was part of me. I’m a dominant man, Amy. I would never hurt you. BDSM is about trust. I’m not asking you to be part of this lifestyle, but I can see you’re scared of me. I don’t want you to be afraid of me. I want you to understand what this is about. I would never hurt you. Could you trust me with this and let me talk to you about it? I never want to hide the person I was from you.”

“Why? Gabriel, I can’t be this for you.”

“I’m not asking you to. Just let me explain.”

She glanced around the room before turning her gaze on his. Amy nodded her head. She wanted to understand the man she loved. 

“You’ve read the books, and they are true to a point. I’m not deeply in the scene like William. He can’t do anything vanilla. It is all about the control with him. I’m different. I like to mix. I can do vanilla, but I crave this as well. At least I used to. I’ve changed with you, Amy. I’m not saying I’m a saint and that I can live completely without this, but I’m saying this is not all that I am.” Gabriel moved away, walking round the room. She watched him caress some of the whips before he let out a sigh then moved away.

“I know you went through hell. All I’m asking for you is for you to give me time to show you the true man I am. The pleasure we can have together.” She listened to everything he said. Seeing the way he touched the instruments made her think of the way he touched her body. She was getting aroused by the man in the room.

Amy knew he was trying. She loved him too damn much to leave him over something like this.

He explained everything, his gaze pleading with her. Biting her lip, she knew this was the true test. Did she love and trust him enough to give herself to him completely? She knew that she loved him enough to not leave him over this. However, she didn’t know if she could be part of this world.

****

Gabriel saw the fight in her eyes. His heart burst with the love he felt for her. She sank to the floor and crossed her legs. He waited for what she was going to say.  He would do everything she wanted so long as he wouldn’t lose her. Seeing her inside this room did make his cock thicken with need. He also knew the need to dominate her hadn’t risen to the surface. Amy truly was changing the man inside him. 

“What are you doing, Amy?” he asked.

“I’m yours. I want to learn more.” She glanced up at him. “Promise me one thing.”

He went to his knees before her and cupped her face. “Anything.”

“Don’t leave me if I can’t be everything you need?”

He slammed his lips down on hers. In his mind there was no way he would leave such perfection. Amy was his perfect woman. She gave so much of herself to him that she made his heart ache with the love he felt for her. “I’d never hurt or leave you. You own me.” He placed her hand over his heart. “My heart beats for no one but you.”

“I love you, Gabriel.”

“I love you, too.” He gave her one final kiss before getting to his feet and walking away. Tears fell from his eyes, and he wiped them away. When he’d come to CapeFalls he’d been broken, and Amy had fixed him. Her beauty, love, and trust had changed the man inside him.

When he gained control over himself once again, he turned to face her. She wore a skirt and plain white blouse.

He took off his jacket and draped it over one of the chairs he kept down in his playroom. She sat in the room watching him. He felt her stare on him at all times. Gabriel gazed around the room taking everything in. He saw the bench he’d paid hundreds of dollars for and the array of whips and paddles. Every item he’d paid a lot of money for.

Running his fingers through his hair he let out a breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding. Gabriel remembered the peace this room had given him. All the time his gaze kept going to the woman sat on the floor. She wasn’t on her knees submitting to him. Amy sat waiting to hear him talk or to do something. He knew she would try to be the submissive he had once thought he craved.

Leaving this lifestyle was a hard choice to make, and yet the woman on the floor meant more to him than the pieces of unfeeling equipment dotted around the room.

He unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt to allow the air for him to breathe. Part of him knew he couldn’t get rid of this room yet. He wasn’t ready to say goodbye to this part of him. But he was ready for something else.

Gabriel took a long lingering look on everything. He stared at the bench, the chains, and all other pieces of equipment that had once meant so much to him in the past. Gabriel didn’t feel the sense of calm until he stared at his woman on the floor. Amy sat with her legs crossed waiting for him. The calmness came to him instantly, and he knew the choice he had to make.

He went to her, capturing her chin in his hands. “I only want you, Amy.”

“What do you mean?”

“This was part of me, but it’s not who I am anymore.” Gabriel took her hands and helped her to her feet. He wrapped his arms around her waist, bringing her flush against him. Her body moulded to him like it was the most natural thing in the world.

He kissed her on the lips, plunging his tongue inside to taste her. Her moans held him under her spell. All of his fears about this part of him disappeared.

“Come on,” he said.

She followed him out of the room. He switched the light off and locked the door. Staring at the key in his hand Gabriel couldn’t help but smile. He handed it to her.

“What are you doing?”

“I want you to have this key. It’s the only key. If you ever want to play in this room then you come to me, and we’ll try together. Or give me the key when I ask because I’ll be selling it.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I’m keeping the room in case we both decide we want more. That equipment is expensive, and I wouldn’t want to have to find it again in case we both want that.” He cupped her cheek. “I want you more than I ever want that.”

He would never hurt her. He loved being in control and knew down to his very soul, he wanted more from Amy than being her dominant. Gabriel couldn’t help but think about himself being her submissive. Amy would heal with being in control of him sometimes. He liked the thought of being at her beck and call. She would be everything to him.

Gabriel walked her up the stairs to their bedroom. He draped the jacket on the chair.

“I want you, Amy.”

“I want you, too.”

“Good. Strip. And do it slowly. I want to watch you reveal your body to me. I think you’re perfection.” He didn’t need the equipment, but he could still command her with his voice. He sat down in the chair where he’d draped his jacket.  His cock was hard against the tight confines of his trousers. He couldn’t wait to loosen his pants and take her.

Amy stood. Her hands, shaking, went to the buttons of her blouse. He watched as one by one the buttons opened until the blouse showed the top part of her body. Her creamy skin was exposed to his view. He licked his lip for the taste of her flesh. The blouse fell to the floor, and she went for her bra.

“Don’t. Remove your skirt.” He wanted to see her in the underwear he’d bought her. He recognised the pale pink underwear she wore. It had been the gift he’d given her a week ago. Every time he passed a shop, he found himself picking out items to watch her dress in.

The skirt fell in a heap on the floor. She stepped out, and he admired her full body. He didn’t like skinny women, and her hips and rounded stomach looked perfect to him. His perfect woman.

Gabriel wanted to see more of her. “Take your bra off.” She unclipped her bra, and her tits spilled free, her glorious nipples pink and begging for his touch.

His grip tightened on the chair as the desire to go to her and lavish those breasts overcame him.

“Turn round.”

Amy turned round and bent down to remove her panties. Her creamy red slit peeked at him. He saw how wet she was. Gabriel smiled.  He got up from his seat and went to her. Her head was bowed.

 She’s healed the man within, and the need for violence had lessened. Gabriel had never thought it was possible to be like this.

“What was your favourite scene in Dean’s book?” he asked out of curiosity. He wanted her to be open with him.  

“I like the scene where he bends her over his knee, spanks her bottom, and then makes love to her on the playroom floor.”

“There will be no spanking and no playroom floor, but I can give you the other desire,” he said.

Gabriel had never read any of Dean’s work, but the image she put in his mind was more than enough to leave him satisfied. He would have to buy Dean’s book. He was curious about the writing that had gotten his woman horny.

He went and sat down in the chair he had vacated.

“Amy, come and lie over my lap.”

She moved towards him, her tits swaying with every movement and her hips swinging. He’d gladly spend the rest of his days getting Amy to walk towards him. She was such a tempting morsel.

Gabriel felt his cock twitch as she lay over his knees. He ran a hand down the line of her back. The beautiful curvature of her body was something he would love to see brought to life in a painting. He was an ass and tit man.

He played her body like an instrument until she was squirming on his lap, her arousal soaking his trouser leg. He gazed down at her slit and saw her cunt leaking out her white cream.

Her ass was full and tempting. He cupped the flesh in his hands. Gabriel relished her moans. She trusted him. He’d told her he wouldn’t spank her, and she’d believed him. The trust she portrayed made the love he felt for her deeper. He would never betray her trust. Every desire she’d tell him, Gabriel would try to make a reality. 

Gabriel sank two fingers inside her cunt and felt her wetness. Her teased her clit with his thumb feeling how aroused she was. Her pussy clutched his fingers making his cock stand out to attention.

She pushed back against his hand.

“Get on the bed,” he ordered her. She went to the bed as he removed his clothes. He loved the feel of her eyes on him.

His cock sprang free, and he heard her moan. He knelt between her thighs and stared at her creamy pussy. Burying his head between her legs, he licked, sucked, and teased her clit. When she was screaming out in pleasure and on the verge of climax, he pulled away and sank inside her pussy to the hilt. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and he pushed inside her, getting as deep as he could.

Their moans mingled together, echoing off the walls of the bedroom. He fucked her hard and fast, desperate to hear her screaming his name.

Her first orgasm hit hard. Her nails sank into the skin at his back. Before she finished getting over her first release, he turned her onto her knees and thrust inside her from behind. He rode her hard. Gabriel reached to her clit, flicking the little bud. Her begging was a beauty to hear.

He pressed inside her, his relentless lovemaking bringing her to orgasm two more times.

Gabriel knew he wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. He wanted to fill her up with his cum. The need to take her over and over again consumed him with a burning passion he couldn’t understand.

He held onto her hips, his grip tight, and fucked her. His orgasm went from his toes through him. He thrust inside her and growled as his cum shot out of the tip of his cock filling up her soaking cunt.

It was the most powerful orgasm of his life. He collapsed onto the bed, taking her with him. Her head lay on his chest, his heart beating rapidly. He waited for himself to cool down.

“You really don’t need it anymore,” she said after some time had passed.

“No. You’re more than enough for me. I want you to know that if there is anything you desire, you can come to me, and I’ll do everything to make sure your needs are met.”

She chuckled, and the sound reminded him how much she’d changed over the last few months.

Amy leaned up so she was staring down at him.

“I’m not afraid,” she said. He watched her tuck some hair behind her ear. The action reminded him of her innocence.

“I know. That was a part of me, and I would hate to scare you off like this. It is nice to know I don’t have to need it anymore.”

“I’ll enjoy everything when I’m with you,” she said. “You don’t have to worry about me. I won’t break. Not with you. I love you, Gabriel, with my whole heart. I’m yours.”

He caught her head and kissed her thoroughly. “Thank you for telling me. I’m never letting you go.”

“I don’t want to be let go. I want to be Mrs. Amy Anderson.” Gabriel chuckled and kissed her. “Is William opening up a BDSM club and disguising it as a gentlemen’s club?”

He laughed. He’d been wondering how long it would take for her to figure it out. She slapped him on the chest.

“I can’t believe that man. I’ve been talking to him for weeks, and he never let on about his club or the fact you were like him.”

“I’m not like him. William is a true dominant in all things. He wouldn’t want any woman speaking out to him. When he meets the right woman she’d have to give herself over to him. I’m not like William at all.”

“I know.”

He held her hand and stared into her eyes. She was his little slice of heaven, and he would move the world to get to her.

“You have no idea how much I love you,” he said.

“I’ve got an idea, but I know I love you more.”

Gabriel chuckled once again. She made him love life by merely being in her company. “Come on.” He got to his feet and lifted her in his arms. “We’re going to Vegas. I want to get married now. Not later.”

Chapter Thirteen

Amy couldn’t believe she got married in Vegas. The Steer brothers organised everything to have them all flown out there. Her rushed wedding was the most amazing moment of her life. The people she cared about the most were there. She walked down the aisle to where Gabriel stood, and all she could see was him. The moment was magical, and it was a dream come true when he put the ring on her finger.

Their honeymoon was even more a fantasy as he took her travelling around Europe. Mia and Billy were with them, which made her feel like a proper family. When they got home from their trip life went back to normal. CapeFalls was undergoing many changes. Most of the anger was now directed at William. She found her trips into town entertaining when he accompanied her. He liked to show the town-folk that he wasn’t scared of a little public sneering.  

About three months into married life Gabriel told her he had a present for her to celebrate their three month marriage anniversary. She didn’t argue with him. Gabriel tended to get his own way. He was insatiable and found making love to her the most exciting thing in his life. She knew he was shocked by his lack of need for the BDSM. She was shocked, too. Mia and Billy were spending another night with Laura. She had Gabriel all to herself, and she wanted to take advantage of their time together.

He’d organised the whole thing, and she went along with him. Gabriel had brought nothing but happiness into her life, and she wouldn’t question him now.  

That morning over breakfast while the children were watching television, Gabriel had whispered to her what he was going to do to her. She’d been in a state of bliss all day waiting and preparing for him.

Amy stared at the bedroom before her. Her heart pounded inside her chest. Her palms were sweaty, and she couldn’t tear her gaze away from the bed. It was so large and dominated the whole area of the room. There were four posts, and she thought about what Gabriel had told her. A few weeks ago she’d told him about a scene in one of Dean’s books about a woman being bound to a bed while another man watched. The scene had surprised her, but the thought of being lusted after by another man made her nipples ache and her clit pulse. Since then, Gabriel had used a couple of silk ties to see how she fared. He was patient with her. She liked the thought of being open for him. It was a strange sensation. The feel of the silk against her wrists turned her on. Would he tie her to the bed this weekend and have his wicked way with her? He’d told her he was different. The passions he possessed were not the most conventional, and she liked that about him.   She curled her fingers around the post at the bottom right hand side. The hard wood was sturdy.

She heard him enter through the front door, and she quickly rid the clothes from her body and put on the nightgown he’d picked out for her that morning. He was always buying her clothes or presents. The silk slid over her body, and she knew it was expensive by the way it fell around her, moulding to her shape. She gave her hair a brush before going downstairs.

Gabriel had given her a set of instructions for her to follow when he arrived home. She never wore any make-up, and he requested she didn’t wear any.

When she was on the stairs he called to her.

“Amy, baby. Come into the sitting room.” Her heart raced, and her desire flooded the panties she wore. She checked her hair as she passed a mirror, paying no notice to the few burn marks on her arms. Gabriel thought she was beautiful, and his opinion was the only one that mattered to her. 

She knocked on the sitting room door before she let herself in. The moment she entered Gabriel was the only man whom she saw. He was her whole world. She never thought she’d have a life with happiness after she’d married Steven. Gabriel had proven her wrong with everything.

“You look stunning, but I can see you’ve done something wrong, angel,” he said. She adored the pet names he called her.

“What did I do wrong?” she asked.

“You’re wearing panties. I don’t want you to wear panties.”

She pulled her panties off immediately, noticing William in the chair in the far corner of the room. He was seated, drinking some amber liquid from a whiskey glass.  Their conversation about Dean’s book had delved into a secret fantasy she had of being watched with Gabriel. She didn’t desire another man’s touch, but being watched was completely different.

Amy turned back to Gabriel sending him her questions with one look.

****

Gabriel had thought long and hard all day about inviting William back to his house. He wanted to show Amy there was nothing in this world he wouldn’t provide for her, and that included all of her sexual fantasies. Being the owner of a BDSM club William had participated in many scenes where his only role was to watch. Gabriel trusted him with Amy. What went on in the privacy of their own home would remain with the three people inside that room.

“William is going to watch you, but he’s not going to participate. Do you know why?” Gabriel asked. He saw the heat in William’s eyes and knew the other man desired his woman.

She shook her head. Gabriel walked over to where she stood. He picked up her panties off the floor and put them in his pocket. The wetness was clear on them. He captured her face in his hands and tilted her head back to face him.

“Because you’re my woman, and I don’t share.”

“I’ll always be yours.”

“Good. I want you to know that if anything happens that you don’t want, simply say the word ‘stop’, and I’ll stop. Do you understand?”

“I understand.”

He stared into her eyes several more moments before leaning down to whisper in her ear. “This is your fantasy, baby. If you don’t want me to go through with it, tell me.”

She nodded her head then kissed his cheek. “I trust you.”

He kissed her deeply, his tongue delving between her lips in a searing, mind-blowing kiss. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Gabriel rested his head against hers, inhaling her citrus scent. “Go upstairs on your knees before our bed. Don’t touch yourself or doing anything to give yourself pleasure.”

Amy had admitted she liked it when he gave her instructions. She kissed him and then left. They didn’t do anything more, but they did explore their fantasies with each other. Amy was flowering, and he loved her more every time she opened up to him.

After several minutes had passed he turned to William. “Are you sure you can just watch?”

“She’s incredibly sexy. I don’t watch anymore for the club, but I’ll watch you with Amy. She deserves every ounce of pleasure you can give her,” William said.

Gabriel tossed back his whiskey and then loosened his shirt. “Follow me.”

Gabriel made sure the doors were locked before making his way upstairs. William followed behind him, keeping his distance. He opened the door to his bedroom. Amy knelt in the position he had shown her, on her knees, head bowed low and her hands resting on her thighs. The night-shirt covered her, but was sheer enough for him to see her body through. He’d bought it with the intention of removing it from her body.

He gestured to the chair in the corner while he walked over to his woman. Gabriel stroked her head, her long black curls running through his fingers. He didn’t need the punishment anymore, but he still enjoyed this part.

“Give me your hand,” he said.

She raised her hand, which he took and pulled her to her feet. Her head remained down. Gabriel lifted her night gown over her body. William gasped in the background, but he drowned the noise out. This was their time together. He wanted Amy to have everything without fear. She deserved it, and he loved her so damn much. They’d experimented with the silk ties. He’d been shocked when she’d asked him to try them on her. It was a pleasure he wouldn’t deny himself. She kept her head down as he tied one wrist to one end of the bed with the silk ties he’d bought for the special occasion.  He took her other hand, laid a kiss on her pulse and tied her to the other end. Her arms spread wide, and her back was facing him.

He ran his hands down each side of her body, feeling every curve and quiver of her body where he touched. Her ass was gorgeously rounded and gained his attention. He dipped down to her pussy, feeling the wetness spilling out of her core.

She was aroused. He pushed two fingers inside her cunt, feeling her grip him tightly. In the last few months he’d done nothing but fuck her every second he got, and she was still tight. Her moans made his dick pulse in his pants. The need to bend her over and take her was strong. He knew he needed to hold onto his control to allow her time to enjoy her pleasure.

He moved away from her to gain control of himself. Amy had asked him to do this for her. She wanted to be with him as much as he wanted to be with her. He’d locked his playroom and given her the only key to the room. If she wanted more, Amy had control over when it happened. If she wanted to do more then he’d be more than happy to oblige, but he didn’t need it anymore. They were joining William’s BDSM club because she wanted to know more. He was willing to explore this with her. Running a hand down his face, he counted to ten, and then he was ready.  

Gabriel went back to his woman and saw her nipples were already hard and erect. He sucked on the tips before moving away from temptation. She moaned, her body jerking at the sudden contact. He soothed her with words, kissing her neck and touching her body.

When he was satisfied with her response, he moved away again. Her senses should be heightened by what he was doing. She would be listening and feeling everything he did to her. 

“I’m going to make love to you, Amy. William is going to watch as I give you pleasure. He is going to see you come apart in my arms. I want you to trust me. Will you do that? Give me your trust?” he asked.

“I trust you, sir.” The way she said “sir” made his cock twitch for more. Her voice made him as hard as rock. 

“I love you, Amy. You make me a better man. I don’t want to be anywhere in the world but here with you.” He’d talked knowing William heard every word he spoke. Gabriel wanted to show his friend that there could be a woman out there for him. He’d found Amy, and she had accepted him. There had to be a woman for William. 

“I love you, too, Gabriel.”

He loved hearing her talk. The sound of her voice always had the ability to soothe him.

Gabriel ran his hands up and down on either side of her body. She curves never failed to hold his attention. The dip of her waist and the flare of her hips made his cock ache to sink inside her tight pussy. Her creamy flesh tempted him. He spent hours running his hands up and down her body relishing the feel of her silky skin under his hand. He’d forbidden her from sunbathing naked for the very reason of how much he loved seeing her pale flesh reddened by his lips. There was nothing quite like seeing your mark on your woman to make the lust flow faster in your veins. He reached round to her front and captured her breasts in his hands. Her nipples were hard points. “Do you know what I’m going to do to you?” he asked.

“No, sir.”

“I’m going to play with your body and bring you close to orgasm, but I’m going to draw it out giving you more pleasure than you can imagine. Then, when you’re ready, I’m going to fuck you.”

 Gabriel wanted to give her as much of her scene as possible without crossing any lines. Her trust meant so much to him.

“Yes, sir.” He kissed her neck while thumbing her nipples. Gabriel took the nubs between his fingers and tweaked the tips. Her gasp filled the air. He knew how sensitive her nipples were. Her pussy would be wet by the time he got to finger her. Gabriel moved his hands down her body, touching circles over her stomach.  Her tummy quivered under his touch. He chuckled, kissing her neck as she tilted her head to the side to give him better access.

Happy with her response to him, he pushed his fingers through her creamy, wet slit. She cried out, her hips thrusting against his hand. Amy was always responsive to his touch. He knew she was close after moments of flicking her clit. At the peak, he moved away. Gabriel pushed two fingers inside her.

She was swimming with juice.

Gabriel continued to tease her, applying more pressure to her clit until she reached that point and then pulling away, denying her. All the time, he changed the strength of his grip and where he held her. At times he held her hips, tummy, or thighs. He never stopped talking to her and encouraging her. They’d agreed to always talk to each other.

“How are you feeling, Amy?” he asked. Perspiration coated her skin. She shook from head to toe. Her hips kept thrusting out to meet his touch. He knew he wouldn’t hold back much longer. He loved her so much.

“I want to come, sir.”

Gabriel gave her the orgasm she craved. Her cries echoed round the room as her release washed over her. He loved watching her orgasm. It was the highlight of his evening.

He smiled. “You’ve made me proud tonight, Amy. You’ve trusted me like I asked you to.” He kissed her neck, pulling his hands away from her body.

Her thighs were coated in her cum, and she was covered in a sheen of sweat. Gabriel knew that was enough for tonight. He didn’t care what William thought. They were two different men, and Gabriel knew she was ready to be released. His clothes were flung on the floor. He ripped the silk from her hands and turned her to face him. Tears fell from her eyes and down her cheeks. He held her close, kissing her lips.

“I love you, I love you, I love you,” he said over and over and over again. The words meant so much to him. All his life he’d wanted a woman he could devote his time to, and Amy was that woman. The love of his life.

“I love you, too, Gabriel. Fuck me, please.”

He laid her on the bed, her legs opening wide to accept him. Gabriel grabbed his cock and pushed inside her in one smooth thrust. She cried out, her cream coating his dick as he rode her hard and fast.  She screamed, and he sucked each nipple in turn, riding the pleasure with her.

“That’s it, baby. Come for me. Let me hear you scream for it.”

She held him inside her body as he pleasured her, teasing her clit until she shattered around him. Gabriel held her through her climax. He knew she’d have plenty more. She hadn’t come down from the first one before another was gripping her. He forced her to ride the pleasure. She raked his back with her nails, and he relished the feel of the burn from her passion. He pressed his thumb to her clit, his own release moments away.

“Come for me, Amy,” he said.

She screamed as another release crashed through her. Gabriel felt her cunt tighten around him in flutters, her cum soaking over his dick. He fucked her hard and growled when his sperm shot into her womb. Amy collapsed under him.

She had passed out from the pleasure. Gabriel kissed her on the lips, neck, and chest. She came ‘round a few minutes later, smiling at him.

“I love you, Gabriel Anderson,” she said.

“I love you, too, Amy Anderson.”

They smiled together, lost in their own little world.

Gabriel helped her up and covered her body before he turned to his friend. The pain on William’s face could be easily seen.

“I look forward to both of you visiting my club. I’ve still got to think of a name. Club is a little boring,” William said.

“Thank you.” Amy went to his friend and gave him a hug.

“I’ll see him out.”

“Are you sure we’re allowed in your club even though we’re not true members in the lifestyle?” Gabriel asked when he knew they were out of ear-shot.

“She would learn a great deal by watching people. I look forward to seeing both of you there. You know the lifestyle is not just about participation. You’re my friend, Gabriel.”

Gabriel led William down the stairs to the front door. “Keep a hold of her, Gabriel. A woman like Amy is hard to find.”

“You’ll find a woman for yourself, William. I know it.”

His friend tapped him on the shoulder and left. Amy was waiting for him in their bed. She smiled at him, opening her arms to receive him.

“That was amazing,” she said. “Way better than anything I’ve read.”

He chuckled. “You were amazing.”

“Did you enjoy it?”

He cupped her cheek. “Never doubt how much I enjoy being with you. By being my woman, you make me happy. No other woman would do, Amy. You’re mine to keep.”

She kissed him. The rest of the night he held her in his arms. They made love. He couldn’t believe how much he’d changed. The playroom never entered his head now, where at one point he would never have been able to live without it.  He knew it was only a matter of time before he got rid of the room. Everything he needed was in his arms. If she wanted to play they had each other and the club. For Amy, he knew there was nothing he wouldn’t do to make her happy.

Epilogue

William drove home thinking about Amy and Gabriel. His friends had found true love. In all of his years as a dominant, he’d never been able to find the right woman for him. No woman wanted to be his submissive permanently. He wanted a woman for the rest of his life, but he needed for her to be submissive all the time. 

When he walked into his club, he saw the girl Daisy seated at the bar. She’d been visiting his club for the past couple of weeks. She looked sad and lonely. He had known very little about her at the time and had had her investigated. She was the daughter of Tracey McAllister and had caused some trouble for the Steer brothers’ wife, Anna.

He walked over to the bar and took a seat next to her. She looked young. He glanced at the man serving at the bar. Peter Miller had signed up for a job inside his club as well as to practice the fine art of domination. William was training the younger man.

She kept glancing at William, her hand shaking when she picked up her glass.

“What brings you to my club?” he asked.

“I don’t know. It beats being at home with my mother. I fucking hate that woman.” William saw the tears fall down her cheeks.

“And you find this place more enjoyable?” Her hands looked soft, but when she turned her palm over, he saw how work-roughened they were.

“This place doesn’t have all that negative shit that comes with my mother. Every day it is the same curses and slander of everyone I know. Laura, Anna, and Amy are always on the tip of her tongue. I liked Anna in school, and because I listened to the crap spilling from my own parents’ lips, she won’t even talk to me.” She took another sip of her drink. “I deserve it. I was a bitch.”

She tossed the glass back. She passed the glass back to Peter. “Can I have a refill?”

“Daisy, I think you should be getting home.”

“No. Not after what that woman told me today. Please, I need another fucking refill.”

William was intrigued by the stirring in his blood. Her bad language could be curbed with the right amount of training. He nodded his head at Peter to refill her glass.

“Do you mind me asking what’s on your mind?” he asked her.

Daisy stared at him. Her eyes were glazed over. “You’re the new guy in town right? The man who is interested in beating women or whatever they’re calling this place?”

“Not entirely true, but I don’t expect people to understand what they refuse to learn.”

“That’s true. CapeFalls refuses to learn no matter what.”

Peter handed her the drink, which she took in one long gulp.

“Another.”

William stared at Peter.

“Look, guys, don’t you think I deserve it?” Daisy asked.

“Tell me why, and then I’ll consider letting my man here get you another drink,” William said turning to her.

“I need the drink because I just found out from my mother that I’m related to the Steer brothers.” William frowned. “I’m Paul and David Steer’s half fucking sister.”

“Get her a drink, and get me a phone,” William said to Peter.

The End

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Other Books by Sam Crescent:

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