Forever Summer (13 page)

“You look very serious again, Summer.  May I join you?”

“Of course, Gabe.  These are your gardens, after all.”  She smiled shyly, and he sat next to her on the bench and reached for her hand, lacing his fingers through hers.  “Is Marisol asleep?”

“Yes.  She didn’t even make it through the story tonight.  What are you thinking about out here all alone?”

She shrugged.  “You mean aside from being worried we’re making a monumental mistake by ‘exploring possibilities'?”  She smiled at his scolding expression.  “I guess our talk earlier has made me introspective.  I’m realizing some things about myself that I don’t really like and I hope to change.  I was thinking that maybe you’re a good influence.”

“Don’t tell the paparazzi.  They’ve built an entirely fictional life for me, complete with playboy antics and bad boy reputation.  Wouldn’t people be surprised to see the real Gabriel Rodrigo?  Staying home at night, reading bedtime stories to his daughter, unsure of himself in his own garden with a beautiful woman he very much wants to impress?”  He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her palm, never looking away from her eyes.

She smiled at him.  “You, unsure?  I don’t believe it.  You forget I’ve had to sneak into back entrances and avoid being plowed over by all your fans.  You could have your pick of virtually any woman on earth.”

“I hope that includes the beautiful woman in my gardens I’m trying to impress.”  Gabe smiled.

“You have a great smile.  Those dimples …
oo la la
.  It’s no wonder girls of all ages chase you wherever you go.  You even had my grandmother blowing you a kiss.”

“She did, didn’t she?  Your grandmother aside, all those women you speak of … they don’t even know me.  They want the image, the entertainer.  It’s all shallow, meaningless.  In the beginning, it was fun, but now it’s more of a nuisance than anything else.  I have to be careful where I go.  I have to hire bodyguards for my family.  It’s a loss of freedom, and after awhile, it becomes boring.  I haven’t been interested in taking those women up on their offers since … since Margarita, I guess.  Now there was a lesson learned the hard way.”

“And yet, you’ve moved past it.  You’re more hopeful than I am.  You’re right, I’m very serious, but I wasn’t always.  When my mother was living, I took nothing seriously.  I laughed all the time, just like she did.  She raised me to be carefree and happy, but somewhere along the way I lost that.  I’d like to get it back, but I don’t know how.  You’re so much more open than I am and much more positive.”

Gabe scooted closer and put his arm around her.  “It’s funny you should say that, Summer.  You bring those things out in me.  Think back to that first week you starting working.  I accused you of sneaking into my hotel room, I told you I didn’t want you buying Marisol any presents, I assumed you were having an affair with your cousin. 
Diós
, if I wasn’t accusing you of something, I was apologizing for my words or actions.  It’s a wonder you didn’t quit.  After I got to know you though, you made me want more.  You made me more hopeful and positive when I saw the kind of person you were.  Before I met you, nobody would have agreed with your assessment, believe me.  You’ve made me question myself and who I have become.  You’ve made me want to find the person I was before I was famous.”

“Tell me about that person, Gabe.  What was Gabriel Rodrigo like before he became a household name?”

“Very different in most ways, other than his love of music.  I’ve loved music always.  My grandmother, my mother’s mother, taught me all the old Mexican ballads and love songs and I would sing them for her whenever she took care of me, which was often.”

“My parents owned a restaurant in the touristy part of Mexico City, and it took both of them to run it.  They left me with my grandmother every day while they went to work until I was old enough to help.  I hated bussing tables and washing dishes.  It was my grandmother’s idea for me to start singing during dinner hours.  I was only about twelve, and once I was up on stage, from the very first time I performed, I knew it was what I wanted to do.”

“At first, my parents indulged me, because singing made me happy and it was good for business.  It wasn’t until a few years later when I started writing and performing my own songs that they took me seriously and began to look into the possibilities.”

“Do you have pictures, Gabe?  I’d love to see you singing as a kid.”

“Of course.  Between my parents and my grandparents, I could fill a room with all the photo albums.  I’ll show them to you when we get to Mexico if you’d like, assuming, of course, that you don’t take off on any more motorcycles.”

Summer started laughing.  “I can’t believe you thought Carlos was my boyfriend.  That is so funny.”

“Believe me, I found nothing funny about it at the time.  And why wouldn’t I think he was your boyfriend?  If Marisol hadn’t told me he was your cousin I’d probably still be sulking.”

“It’s funny, because not only is Carlos my cousin, he’s also gay.  Marcos and he have been partners for years, and they’re very happy together.  That’s probably why we’re still so close.  When he came out, most of the family disowned him.  We’re both the forgotten children in the family, except for our grandmother.  She’s always loved us and supported us, and Carlos and I have always supported each other.  Isolation makes for very strong binding.”

 He leaned closer and gently touched his lips to hers, tracing her face with his fingers, sliding his hands to her back and neck, pulling her closer.

“I love how you kiss me, Gabe.  You’re very good at it, you know.”

“I’m glad you think so, because I love kissing you.  Come closer,
querida
.  Let me have more of you.”  He covered her mouth once again, but this time it wasn’t gentle at all.  This time it gained heat and urgency as he chased her tongue with his own, charging and retreating, teasing with shorter kisses then delivering with longer, deeper ones.  Within minutes, kissing was not enough.  Gabe pulled her onto his lap, running his hands up and down her back, gripping her waist, holding her body against his own.

He trailed kisses down to her neck, and she moved her head to the side to give him better access.  He kissed, licked, and nibbled his way down to the skin above the neckline of her t-shirt and finally moved his hand up to cup her breast in his hand.  Summer moaned as he squeezed and massaged her through her shirt, pulling in a sharp breath when he slipped his hand underneath to feel her skin and tease her nipple into a hard, aching point.  She arched up into his hand wanting closer, harder contact.

“
Diós
, Summer, I want you.  Come into the house with me. Let me make love to you.”  They were both breathing hard.

“Your parents?  Marisol?”

“Asleep, all of them.  There is a small guestroom downstairs, away from everyone.  Let me take you there, Summer.”

“God, yes, Gabe.”  She stood and reached for his hand, and he pulled her into his arms again, kissing her with such promise she felt the sting of tears.  He pulled her towards the house, stopping every few steps to kiss her some more.  They practically ran inside.  The house was dark except for the stove light turned on in the kitchen.  Gabe backed her up against the counter and ground his hips against hers, both of them moaning as they rubbed against each other.  He cupped her face in one hand and smiled.  Summer smiled back for all she was worth.  He put his fingers to his lips signaling her to be quiet as he led her down a hallway to a corner bedroom off by itself.  Everyone else was asleep upstairs.

They tiptoed inside, and Gabe shut the door quietly and locked it.  He hadn’t turned all the way back around before Summer was in his arms again, pulling his t-shirt out of his jeans so she could touch his skin, feel his warmth.  He pulled the bottom of her t-shirt up and over her head and then did the same with his own, since she was too short to pull it off by herself.  Then he pulled her back into his arms and savored how it felt to be skin to skin.  He unsnapped her bra and jerked it off of her quickly then pulled her against his chest again, groaning at how good she felt against him.

Summer reached for the button on his jeans and started working it open and unzipping while he toed off his shoes and reached for her jeans.  No finesse, no seduction, just stripping each other as fast as they could.  As they both kicked off their jeans, they almost lost their balance, catching themselves and each other and laughing at being in such a hurry. 

Then they were naked and falling onto the bed together, breathless and eager, touching and learning each other.  Gabe licked his way down to her breast, circled her nipple with his tongue and finally taking it into his mouth as she held his head to her and moaned his name.  After giving equal treatment to its twin, he lifted his head and stroked her cheek with his fingertips.

“My God, you’re beautiful, Summer.  I’ve dreamt of you like this, underneath me, wanting me like I want you.  I want to learn what you like, I want to be what you crave.  Do you want hard and fast, or do you want slow and sexy?  Tell me how you want me.”

“Yes.  Just yes.  I want it all.  Right now, I don’t think I can wait for slow and sexy.  How about hard and fast first and slow and sexy second?”

“What a great idea.  Hold that thought.”  Gabe reached into the bedside drawer and pulled out a box of condoms.  “Thank God.  As I said, I don’t generally bring anyone home with me, but this is Pablo’s room when he stays here.  Remind me to give him a raise for making sure I have everything I need.”  They both laughed, as he opened up one of the packets and covered himself.

He went back to her mouth, kissing her deeply while he cupped her breast, teasing her nipple with his fingers, making her gasp.  Then he trailed his fingers lower until he reached the triangle of brown curls after he parted her thighs with his knee, and she could feel the hard length of his erection against her hip as he rubbed against her impatiently.  He parted her folds with agile fingers that knew exactly where to touch to make her moan.  He reached lower and dipped a finger into her wet warmth making her gasp with desire.

“Gabe, now, please.  I can’t wait any longer to feel you inside of me.”

He positioned himself at her opening and pushed inside her all at once, knowing she was ready for him.  They both moaned at the depth of feeling, both physical and emotional.

He lifted up his head to see her face and rubbed his thumb over her swollen lips.  He kissed her cheeks, her eyes, then her lips, then began to move inside her.

“Summer, open your eyes, baby.  Let me see you while we make love.  Look at me.”  Summer opened her eyes, and he saw the wonder there as she stroked up and down his back, touching not only his hot skin but his soul.  He began kissing her again and started moving faster.  Summer wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him harder against her.  He left her mouth for her breasts once more and sucked her nipples then teased them with his teeth just short of pain, making her catch her breath and arch her back for more.

“Faster, Gabe.”

“Yes,
querida
, faster.”  Feeling her climax building, he kept moving, tilting her hips up to meet his, moving against her until she was frantic with need.  He knew the exact moment she shattered with pleasure, exactly when she came apart in his arms.  He kept moving slowly, extending her pleasure, then picked up the pace once more before she’d had a chance to catch her breath, and she found herself building toward a second release, hard and fast just as she’d requested.  When he felt her clench and quiver around him for the second time, Gabe allowed himself to find his own climax, burying himself as deeply as he could, feeling Summer’s arms and legs wrap around him to keep him inside her.

“Incredible, Summer. 
Diós
, you’re incredible.”  He rolled to his back and took her with him, trying to catch his breath.  He kissed the top of her head and hugged her closer to him, trying to think of some way to put his feelings into words, but he just couldn’t.  He didn’t know exactly what he was feeling, but he knew he’d never felt this way before.  It wasn’t just the sex, though that had been mind blowing.  He’d just had her, and he already wanted her again.  It was the … connection, for lack of a better word, he felt with Summer.