“I’ll go to your apartment to get her here, but please, don’t run from Nevaeh, big brother. She could be so good for you if you just let her, even if it’ll take some time for the both of you to get there. She won’t be forbidden from dating you forever,” Val says, pressing a swift kiss to my cheek and disappearing into the bathroom too.
I’m a fucking idiot for being here instead of with Nevaeh right now, aren’t I?
“I’ve never seen you so motivated to work out,” Gabriel teases as we make our way down the same trail I’ve taken a thousand times in my life.
“I’m leading the championship at the moment. I have to be on the top of my game,” I reply with a breathless laugh.
“Yeah and that goddamn Lincoln Nash is right behind us in the points, too,” Gabriel complains, and anger boils inside of me. Not because the rookie threatens me. I’m going to beat him, but I hate him. I hate him for being such a spoiled little asshole. For upsetting Nevaeh. For upsetting Nevaeh.
Wait, I listed that twice.
Whatever, it should be there twice. Once is not enough to describe how much it pisses me off that he’s hurt her feelings, over and over. That he thinks he has some weird claim on her. God, I hate him.
“So, you told her you’d wait for her, huh?” Gabriel says, throwing a smug smile my way.
“Fuck off.” I’m even more out of breath now than before and it’s definitely not because I’m thinking about Nevaeh.
“I think it’s nice. I’m proud of you for taking such a big step,” Gabriel goes on as we make our way down the slope leading toward one of Val’s favorite cafés.
“Don’t be proud of me. It feels like I’m going to spontaneously combust any second.” That makes him laugh.
“Whether you realize it or not, you’ve taken a million steps toward Nevaeh already. You may have taken a thousand backward, too, but I want you to acknowledge the forward ones. You hug her, protect her, seek out her affection, andlether give it to you. You took her to your place and she spent the night. You brought herhomewhen you’ve never brought anyone to your grandfather’s house. You fight for her, even if you don’t see it.”
Gabriel stops in front of the café my sister loves, slipping his hand into his pocket to retrieve his wallet.
“Sometimes, it’s all about the little things,” Gabriel adds before walking inside and ordering my sister's favorite drink, clearly making his point.
Once we bought coffee for all of us and an iced chocolate drink I got for Nevaeh, my future brother-in-law and I make our way back home. The sun is burning my skin, making sweat trickle down my spine. My t-shirt sticks uncomfortably to my body, so I take it off and shove it into my pocket.
When we get back to the house, my sister’s voice comes from the pool area.
“Gabriel is…” Val trails off for a moment, and I almost hear the smile in her voice. “He’s one of the best Formula One drivers to ever walk this Earth, but he’s humble and sweet, too. Don’t let his angry game-face intimidate you. He’s a big softie on the inside.”
“You make me sound too nice,ma chérie.” We join them by the pool when my breathing catches in my throat at the sight of Nevaeh.
In a bikini.
In. A. Fucking. Bikini.
I might have to sit down or take a cold shower or both.
What I definitely need is to stop staring at her where she’s lying on one of the lounge chairs with her arms and legs stretched out to show off her curves. Her body is barely covered by the bikini, and she’s so, so gorgeous, I don’t even know what to do with myself. All the blood rushes south and my heart hammers as I study the swell of her breasts, her thick thighs, her generous hips, her wavy hair all over the place, and finally, the warm smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
Her eyes trail over my bare chest in the same way I was ogling her, waking me up. No matter how distracted I am by the fact that I very much want to move between her legs and pull her bikini bottoms to the side to get a taste right now, I owe her an apology for leaving this morning.
“Hi,” she says, grinning up at me like seeing me brings her the most joy in the world.
“Hi,déesse,” I reply, handing her the drink I got her. She thanks me and smiles before remembering what I just said.
“What is it with all the French nicknames? I don’t even know what this one means,” she complains, forcing a low chuckle out of me.
“Trust me, the nickname I used just now expresses exactly what I thought when I saw you lying over there.” Because she is a goddess. At least in my eyes.
The goddess of heaven, perhaps, just like her name claimed her to be.
She sits up and crosses her arms under her chest, pouting playfully at me, but I’m hanging on to the thinnest of threads of my self-control because her breasts are almost spilling out of her little top. I’m not gentleman enough to keep my gaze averted entirely, and she knows it, which is probably why she laughs at me.
“Then again,démonwould probably be more accurate,” I tease, entranced by the way she runs her tongue over her bottom lip. “Alright, that’s enough,” I say and take her drink away, placing it beside her lounge chair before lifting her into a standing position.
