The Fall Of Jacob Del Garda (24 page)

Tobin knew every single inch of this woman.

Slowly, he slid his hands over her body, taking his pleasure in her warm, soft and naked flesh, murmuring in approval as he explored. The scent of her drove him crazy. He tasted the heavenly scented skin between her firm breasts, tasted that taut nipple. And when he sucked it into his mouth, her back arched under him. Then his mouth was on hers as he pressed her back against feather pillows.

Immersed in him, Sophie found she didn't want to rush. She'd thought they'd come together in a blazing passion. But that passion was banked, a smoldering fire that burned deep in her belly. Together, they moved with a lazy deliberation, whispering pleas to touch, to taste while they lay skin to skin beneath the comforter.

Who would believe a man like him could have so much compassion in him? Or that she had so much compassion within herself for him. She was desperate to please him, to soothe away the hurt of what they'd lost. His hands touched her so softly, but even softness invoked flames of need. As his leisurely stroking continued, she seemed to become more and more aware of her bones going lax, of the pulse between her legs beating strong with a demand she could not deny. With a long, quiet moan of pleasure, Sophie surrendered.

He recognised the change in her breathing, the heat in her body as she arched to press her pelvis into his. Her demands hastened his own. Dear God, his head was spinning with the scent of her, mixed with the wispy touch of wood from the log-burner tucked in the corner of their bedroom. The cotton sheets, smooth and cool, slipped over his hot skin as her hands pulled him closer. Then her arousal deepened, the taste of her seemed to become even sweeter, darker. He couldn't stop tasting her, playing with her tongue, nipping her lips as her fingers clutched his hair.

Without warning, he slipped into her. Taking her inch by tortuous inch, aroused by the breath hitch of surprise that turned into a low moan of need. Again she arched in demand. A demand for him to go faster, but he kept the pace nice and smooth and easy, muttering wild promises against her mouth even as she trembled for more. Pleasure consumed him, made his brain hazy with need, but he battled to keep control. Battled to make it good for her. This time felt like the first time. Waves of passion rippled down his spine to pool in his groin. He couldn't help the cry that escaped his throat. Her climax caught him by surprise as her body fisted too tight as it undulated around his, yet he took her up once more.

Drenched in desire, Sophie murmured his name again and again until he quieted her with an endless, breathless kiss. He was sure he could feel her bones melt as her whole body went limp in a way that told him she'd given him everything. And it was then that he let himself go.

His hard body pounded into hers, filling her so full and so fast that she gasped his name out loud. It was like being shot out of a cannon as her body went from nothing to eighty in three seconds. All Sophie could do was hold on tight to her man as his breath shuddered into her ear. As his big body trembled under her hands. As his breath hitched, as his body bowed, as his hot release pumped into her and as they flew over the edge together.

Gabriella sat under a vast cream umbrella sipping peppermint tea in the over abundant garden of The Dower House. Today she wore a simple sleeveless sheath in fine linen the colour of toffee that matched her flat leather pumps. She wore no jewelry except the white-gold watch on her slim wrist.

Meeting new people had never unnerved her before, and she wondered why she was unnerved now. Joshua Erichsen sat next to her with one of the Ferranti twins, a dark-haired little boy, snoozing in the crook of his strong, muscular arm. He'd been regaling her with outrageous stories of how he'd "creamed Jacob's ass" during their daily morning run. And how he could bench-press a good twenty pounds more than Jacob could, too.

The sparkle dancing in his laughing eyes told her he was feeding her a line.

"So, since I'm obviously the better man, why don't we run away together?"

Joshua's blue eyes twinkled into hers and a dimple kicked at the corner of his mouth. The man was not only funny and friendly, he was drop-dead gorgeous, too.

"I'm spoken for," she said, her eyes casting around the garden, searching for Jacob.

She found him sitting on a love seat. He was nursing the cutest baby girl she'd ever seen and was deep in conversation with a beautiful girl with cropped, dark blonde hair. She wore a sleeveless shift dress in ivory silk, the colour enhancing the light tan of her toned arms and endless legs. The baby stirred and the way Jacob pressed a kiss to the dark curls of the baby's head made her breath hitch. Something sharp twisted in Ella's heart as she took in the touching scene. Dear God, they looked so good together, so right. A spear of something like jealousy shocked her by its intensity.

"They're just friends," Josh said in her ear. "That's Janine Faulkner, my future wife, and her daughter, Daisy Boo."

She turned to him. "You're engaged? Congratulations," she said.

The way Joshua blushed was so cute, she couldn't help but give him big eyes.

"Well, I wouldn't say we're engaged. Let's just say I'm working on it."

His blue eyes watched Janine and Jacob, and Gabriella recognised a longing and a desire that went core deep.

"Is she divorced?" she asked.

Joshua shook his head, turned to look at her.

"No. She's a widow."

An easy sympathy rose up in Gabriella's heart.

"Poor thing. And with a baby, that must be doubly hard."

She turned to watch Jacob and Janine, and saw for herself that there was nothing more than friendship between the pair. A friendship that made her ashamed for the brief moment of jealousy that had gripped her heart. She thought she'd lost all her dreams. But Janine had lost the man she loved and was bringing up her baby on her own. Now that took a special type of bravery. Jacob carefully returned the baby to her mother and then guided them over to where Gabriella and Joshua sat.

"She's a fighter, that's for sure," Joshua murmured.

Nico Ferranti strolled up to pluck his son from his friend's arms. "He needs a nap," he said with a wink for Gabriella. He settled the little boy's head on his shoulder before he strolled away again.

"Ella," Jacob said as he and his companion approached. "I want you to meet Janine and her baby Daisy Boo."

Gabriella stood, held out her hand in greeting, and couldn't help but grin at the baby's name.

Janine was staring at her with slightly narrowed eyes, but took her hand and returned the smile. "How do you do? I didn't recognise you at Coco's engagement party."

"It was my first big event. I was a nervous wreck," Gabriella admitted, as her finger touched the soft silky skin of the baby's arm. "She's beautiful, Janine."

"Not as beautiful as her mama," Josh said, and earned himself a darkly annoyed look from the baby's mama for his trouble. Then he turned his attention to the baby in her arms, and frowned. "She's a bit flushed, Jan."

"Teething." Janine stroked her finger down her daughter's hot cheek. "Awake all night and sleeping most of the day."

Joshua held out his arms. "Let me take her. And you can get to know Gabriella. I've already asked her to run away with me, but she's stuck on Jacob. Can't think why."

With a reluctance that made Gabriella bite down hard on her bottom lip, Janine handed her daughter over to Joshua, then she sat and accepted the cup of coffee Jacob held out to her.

"I can think of plenty of reasons why," Janine muttered under her breath to Joshua's back as he strolled away with her daughter.

"He seems very nice," Gabriella said, trying to pour oil on troubled water. And, casting a professional eye over Janine, decided that the girl was a stunning woman.

"Yep, he grows on you after a while... like fungus," Janine said in a tone that made Jacob laugh.

"One day, you will need to cut him a break," he told her.

Janine's blue eyes went wide as she stared up at him. "Why would I do that? He thinks persistence pays. If it wasn't for the fact my baby girl adores him, I'd kick him into touch."

"He is a good guy," Jacob said, loyally defending his pal to the death.

Janine turned to Gabriella and gave her big eyes.

And she received the message loud and clear that the girl was ticked-off.

"Do you see what I have to put up with? It's bad enough with Bronte and Rosie giving me earache about Josh. Now I've got Jacob giving me a hard time, too."

"Would it be too much to ask for you to give him a chance?" Jacob persisted, seemingly oblivious to danger, then he caught Gabriella's wide eyes and winked. Jacob Del Garda was now a matchmaker? Seriously? This was a side of him she'd never seen before.

Janine sat back in the plush garden chair, crossed her arms and legs in a defensive pose, obviously not seeing the humour in the situation.

"I don't need a man, thank you very much. Been there, done that, got the scars to prove it."

Whoa.

What on earth did that mean?

Gabriella stared at the girl who had a dark look in her eye, a look that was a clear message for Jacob to,
Back Off
.

It was obvious to her that a bitterness and anger within Janine was too near the surface.

"You know that Josh would never hurt you,
querida
," Jacob's voice went soft and deep, the Spanish accent rising to the fore.

Gabriella felt really uncomfortable. She wasn't following the thread here. There was something else going on. Something that was absolutely none of her business.

She opened her mouth to say so, when Janine responded.

"I trusted a smooth talking charmer once before. He was a man that everyone loved and adored, too. Everyone, even my own father, still believes Connor was wonderful, a caring and doting husband." She rose, eyes flashing, chest heaving. "He beat me, tortured me, and raped me. Why won't all of you just leave me the hell alone?"

Gabriella stood, too, to reach out to her.

But then she saw Janine's eyes grow huge with horror. As it hit Janine that she'd said such things out loud at her friend's party. The girl slapped her hand over her mouth, turned and fled.

Jacob went to follow her, but saw Joshua hand Daisy Boo to Sophie and race after her.

Gabriella sat down, hard.

"Omigod. What on earth was all that about?"

Jacob sat next to her, took her hand.

"Janine was systematically abused by her late husband. She is in the middle of therapy, and it is very hard going. I did not realise how hard. I was only trying to help. Josh would never hurt her. He adores her. But now I think it will be better for her if everyone backs off, until she has worked through it."

Her hand squeezed his. "How awful. And I think you're right. The pressure is getting to her."

"Sorry about the drama." Bronte Ferranti perched her hip on the table.

"It is my fault," Jacob admitted. "I was making a case for Joshua."

Bronte's green eyes softened as she looked at him.

"Don't worry about it. The fact Janine's opening up and talking about it is actually a very good thing. She's buried what happened to her too deep. Tried to block it out and forget what she went through. And as we all know, not facing up to things only makes it worse. She'll be fine. She's a survivor and Josh won't give up on her."

"I want to thank you for inviting us today, Bronte," Gabriella said.

The beautiful blonde wife of Nico Ferranti, leaned over to stroke a hand down her arm.

"My pleasure. It's wonderful to see Jacob with a smile on his face." Then she looked over Gabriella's shoulder and her face split in a wide smile. "At last, the surprise guests have arrived."

Jacob and Gabriella turned to look.

And Gabriella's heart fell.

Standing at the entrance to the gardens with Nico Ferranti was Don Norberto, Jacob's father. His brother Lucas Del Garda and his wife Rebecca. Each were holding a baby boy. Twins.

Bronte did a little skip as she raced over to greet them.

Jacob was out of his chair and striding across the lawn to greet them, too.

But Gabriella held back.

And then she felt Sophie standing at her side, still holding a Daisy Boo who was so sound asleep she lay limp in her arms.

"Wow. Look at the Del Garda gene pool. Those babies are gorgeous."

They were gorgeous.

But it wasn't the babies that held Gabriella's attention.

It was the tall and slim brunette whose eyes latched on hers and held.

The woman handed her son to Bronte and made her way towards her.

Omigod.

Rebecca Del Garda stood before Gabriella and simply stared into her eyes.

Then she stepped forward and hugged her tight. For such a slight woman, her arms were like steel.

"I am so thrilled to meet you at last," she whispered into Gabriella's ear. "And so sorry to hear you have been sick."

Don Norberto Juan Ortiz Conde Del Garda sat in the shade of the vast umbrella with a dozing grandson on his knee.

His dark eyes studied Gabriella carefully.

He'd been more than kind to her. His tight embrace had brought a lump to her throat. And she was more than relieved to see the deep affection he'd always had for her in those dark eyes. Becca sat to her right and Jacob sat to her left with Lucas next to him. She was trying desperately to relax. Since she was surrounded by Del Gardas, now might be the time to apologise to Don Norberto for the scene last night outside The Blue Lagoon.

"I'm sorry about what I said outside the nightclub, Don Norberto. I..." she stopped when he shook his head and raised a hand.

"You have nothing to apologise for, my dear. I thought you were amazingly brave." His voice was deep with a faint Spanish accent. Then his gaze lighted on his youngest son who had taken her hand in his, and a sheer wickedness glinted in his eyes. "There are times when my son needs to be put in his place."

"
Gracias
, papa," Jacob growled.

"You certainly stirred up the press, Ella. They want their pound of flesh," Lucas warned. "When you have a minute, we'll talk about interviews."

"They can talk to her next week," Jacob interrupted before Ella could respond. "We have an appointment with her doctors in two days. There will be no interviews until I say so."

Gabriella's jaw dropped.

Seriously?

Jacob truly believed that
he
could sit there and decide when and where she spoke to the press about
her
illness? Just because they'd made love that did not mean he had power over her decisions.

She turned to him.

"Excuse me?" The tone of her voice and the look on her face made the man she loved bite down hard on his bottom lip. "Who made you the boss of me?"

"
Querida
," he began in that gravelly voice that melted her from the inside out.

"Don't you
querida
me, Jacob Del Garda." She stood. And ignoring Rebecca's big wide eyes and Don Norberto's grin, she turned to Lucas. "I'm good with Thursday or Friday. Why don't we talk about it?"

Lucas rose to his feet, held out his hand to Gabriella and he sent his baby brother an evil grin.

"Why don't we?"

Together they strolled into the garden, their heads close together as they discussed options.

"Well, well, well," said Rebecca in a silky voice that made Jacob wince and his father's eyes twinkle. "She's certainly got your number. I like her. I like her a lot."

"Things are going well," Nico whispered into Bronte's ear, and slid his arms around her to rest his hands gently on top of their child.

They were standing at the open doors in their vast family room watching their guests.

The twins were down for their afternoon nap dreaming happy dreams.

"You think?" she shot back. "Janine's had a meltdown and is bawling her eyes out in the guest toilet. Josh is begging her to let him in and she's not having it. Gabriella's been looking as if she's swimming with sharks all afternoon. By the filthy look Jacob's giving his brother, Lucas has seriously pissed him off. Sophie's been left holding baby Boo and looks as if she's about to burst into tears at any moment. And Tobin is staring at Sophie and the baby as if he's about to cry a river, too. Don Norberto and Becca are sitting back loving every minute of it. I'm telling you, it's at times like this I miss Rosie."