Conquest of the Heart (34 page)

“Are you okay with this?” he asked, making
sure she wasn’t uncomfortable.

She gazed into his eyes and nodded, smiling
as she pulled him back down to kiss him. She was happy they were
lying down because every time they kissed she felt weak and got
butterflies. He was gently rubbing her mound, and their breathing
was intensifying. Gavin’s lips made their way back down her body.
He removed her underwear, exposing her womanhood. He positioned
himself between her legs and began to pleasure her orally. Faith
clutched at the blankets, moaning and groaning with excitement.
Gavin took his time, wanting her to enjoy every moment. His arousal
grew with each sound that she made, so aroused in fact, that he
found himself approaching a peak. Reading her body, he continued
until she climaxed. Feeling his own climax, he quickly moved to her
lips, where she kissed and held him tightly as he did so, without
physical stimulation. This was a first for him.

They slowed their kisses as their bodies
calmed down.

Faith smiled at him, “Are you alright?”

He continued to kiss her. “That’s never
happened to me before. You didn’t even touch me. Your pleasure got
me there.” He lowered himself to slip Faith’s underwear back on
her, kissing her gently on her thighs, stomach, chest, and neck as
he made his way back to her lips. He reached up, grabbed a pillow
from one of the chairs and lied on his back next to her. She rested
her head high on his chest, with one leg resting across his.

“I’m glad you were satisfied, too,” she said
as they kissed some more.

Gavin stroked her arm softly as he stared at
the stars and listened to the song the waves played. They were
quiet for a few moments when he asked her a question.

“Why do you like that song so much?”

“The Celine song? It makes me think of you,
and how I feel about you.”

Gavin smiled. “I enjoyed our dance. You’re
quite fiery when you’re dancing.”

“You chose the rumba, of all things.
Why?”

“Because it’s the sexiest dance there is,” he
explained.

“Which sparked all of this.”

“Again, the reason why I chose it.”

Faith sat up a little bit to look him in his
eyes. “Happy birthday.”

“Thank you,” he said pulling her in to kiss
her. “It was the best birthday I’ve ever had.”

CHAPTER
THIRTEEN

The following morning, Gavin woke up to the
sun rising over the water. He gently awakened Faith so she could
witness it. As she looked out sleepily, she cuddled closer to him
underneath the blanket, enjoying the show.

“It’s beautiful,” she said.

“Not as beautiful as you,” he said, kissing
her softly.

They watched a little longer and then decided
to go back to the house. Faith pulled on her pants and buttoned up
her shirt while Gavin folded the blankets. When he finished, he
drew her into him, hugging her. He was still amazed at what
happened the night before. His feelings were starting to get out of
hand.

“My parents are probably getting breakfast
started. Shall we join them?”

“Sure,” she smiled and took his hand as he
held it out for her.

When they got to the house, Adrian was in the
kitchen. He was surprised to see them.

“What are you two still doing here? Where
were you hiding out?” he grinned.

Faith looked at Gavin and said, “I’m going to
go wash up.”

“Okay,” he said as she kissed his cheek. “We
were in the secluded spot you set up years ago,” he said, answering
Adrian’s question.

The two men were now alone. Adrian was still
grinning.

“What have you been doing?”

Gavin smirked and said, “Are you sure you
want me to answer that question?”

“Absolutely,” Adrian teased.

“Well, if I’m going to share how my evening
went, then you’ll have to share how yours went. Don’t think I
didn’t see you and Mom sneak out of here last night.”

Adrian stood up straight, “Well, maybe we
don’t need to talk about it.”

Gavin nodded. “That’s what I thought.”

“Though, I will say that the two of you
caused quite a stir. In all of my life, I’ve never seen two people
have so much passion for each other. You must really love each
other.”

Gavin just shrugged his shoulders. “My
feelings are very strong.” He opened the refrigerator to get the
orange juice.

“Ah, I see. You’re still not willing to say
you love her. But you do. We could see that last night.”

Gavin kept rummaging around to help with
breakfast. He didn’t respond to his father.

“You know,” Adrian continued, “there are a
lot of people who are excited that you’ve finally found someone who
can make you happy. They’ve waited almost as long as you for this
to happen.”

Gavin finally stopped. “Seriously? I wouldn’t
think that anyone really cared.”

“You’d be surprised how many people really do
care about you, Gavin. Most of the people who were here yesterday
do.”

“Hmm. I never would have thought.” He
continued to pull things out for breakfast. Gavin being the cook
that he is, simply took over.

“Be careful with her, though. She’s got a
very sensitive heart, as you already know.”

“I do. It’s not my intention to ever hurt
her, Dad. I am human, however, so I’m bound to make a few
mistakes.” Gavin pulled out a skillet for the eggs, and another for
the French toast.

“She’s feisty if you make her angry. You
might want to limit how often you do that. She can hold a grudge
for an eternity.”

“Now I have seen that firsthand. Chandler is
not her friend,” he chuckled. “It took one time for Chandler to get
underneath Faith’s skin and there was no turning back.”

“I can’t say I’m sorry that you’re done with
her. She’s a great employee, but on a personal level, she’s got
issues.” Adrian cracked a few eggs in a bowl, added milk, cinnamon,
and a pinch of sugar. He whipped the ingredients around until they
were blended together. He grabbed a loaf of French bread and cut it
into several slices. After dipping a couple of slices into the
mixture, he laid them into one of the skillets. The two of them
were now preparing a feast.

Gavin was looking in the refrigerator.
“Sausage or bacon, Dad?”

“Let’s have sausage today,” said Adrian as he
flipped the slices over.

Gavin took the Italian sausage out and sat it
on the counter. He opened the package and cut it in small slices.
He added the meat to the skillet that the eggs were going to be
scrambled in. The leftover oils from the sausage would add more
flavor to the eggs.

Faith walked back in as the two men were busy
cooking. “It smells great in here. Can I come over for breakfast
every morning?” She smiled and sat on a stool at the island.

“Faith, you can come over any time you like,”
smiled Adrian. “You know how much Juliet and I love you. You’re
family.”

“Oh, family, huh?” Faith looked at Gavin and
teased, “You’ve been a very naughty brother.”

Gavin wiped his hands and walked over to her.
He leaned down and kissed her gently. “I prefer very distant
cousin,” he smiled. Adrian enjoyed watching them. He continued to
dip and fry slices of French bread until they were all cooked.
Gavin walked back to the sausage and emptied them onto a plate.
Then he started scrambling the eggs.

Juliet finally joined the three of them. She
was smiling from ear to ear like she had just gotten the best
present in the world.

“Good morning, Juliet,” smiled Faith with a
curious look on her face. “Are you okay?”

“I’m just fine dear.” Juliet walked over to
Adrian and grabbed his butt. He jumped, surprised at her
behavior.

“Mom! Behave,” Gavin shrieked.

“Don’t you tell me what to do, young man.
Would you like to discuss why you’re still here?” She glared at him
waiting for an answer. Gavin couldn’t reply. “That’s what I
thought. Besides, it’s your fault I’m so frisky this morning. Your
father and I - ”

“Oh, la la la la. Not listening,” said Gavin,
plugging his ears.

Faith was turning red from laughing so hard,
and tears were streaming down her face. When Gavin saw her, he
shook the spatula at her.

“You think this is funny? The last thing I
want to hear about is my parents’ sex life,” he said, turning back
to the eggs. He poured them into a big bowl.

Mid giggle, Faith said, “Trust me. My parents
are worse.” She continued to laugh as Adrian and Juliet embraced
each other.

“Are you going to stop hugging long enough to
make the orange sauce?” Gavin asked Adrian.

Adrian kissed Juliet on the forehead. “Okay,
okay,” he smiled and whipped the sauce together in seconds.

They took all of the bowls and platters
outside and sat them on the patio table. Gavin tried to give Faith
her own plate, but she waved it off.

“I’ll share with you. That way I won’t eat
too much.”

He handed plates to Adrian
and Juliet, then sat down next to Faith. They enjoyed all of the
great food, laughed and joked about the party and their morning
together. Gavin sat back and just watched how Faith interacted with
his parents.
‘So this is what it would be
like,’
he thought. He couldn’t remember the
last time that he spent a morning like this with his
parents.

When they finished breakfast, everyone helped
clear the dishes and clean up. Gavin and Faith said their goodbyes
and left.

In the car, Gavin was unusually quiet. Faith
let it go for a while, but then decided to say something.

“Are you okay?” she asked, gently stroking
his hand.

“I’m fine.”

“I know that. But how are you doing?” she
smiled.

Gavin chuckled. “I’m okay, beautiful.”

“Are you sure? You’re awfully quiet. That’s
not like you.”

“I’m just thinking,” he said, glancing at
her.

“Care to share?”

“Not right now. Just know I’m okay.”

Faith left it alone. When they got to her
house, Gavin parked his car for a moment. He reached over, pulled
her gently to him, and kissed her more passionately than he had all
weekend. It was so powerful, Faith thought she might faint.

“Thanks again for a great birthday,” he said,
slightly drawing away.

“You’re welcome.”

Faith turned to open the door, when Gavin
interrupted her.

“Faith,” he said, trying to say the words,
but couldn’t.

“Yes,” she said, turning back around.

“Do you have still have the painting you did
in Denver?” he asked, completely avoiding his feelings.

“Yes. Why?”

“Did you hang it up?”

“Not yet.”

“Do you mind if I take it? I have an idea for
it.”

Faith shrugged her shoulders, “Sure. I’ll go
get it.” She went into her house to get the painting.

Gavin sighed in relief.

“Here you go,” she said as she carefully
placed it in the front seat.

“Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Gavin watched as she went back to her house.
She waved goodbye as he drove off.

Faith arrived at work early the next morning
as usual. She needed to catch up on her presentations. Sitting on
her desk was a single red rose in a small vase. As she walked
around to her chair, she smiled, knowing exactly what this
meant.

Faith sat down and started working
immediately. It was going to be a short week with another trip
coming up. This time, they were going to Atlanta.

“Good morning, beautiful,” said Gavin, coming
in and closing the door behind him.

“Good morning.”

Gavin didn’t waste any time. He walked
around, sat her coffee down, pulled her out of her chair and kissed
her deeply. Faith wrapped her arms around his neck, receiving and
returning the kiss.

As they broke the kiss, still holding each
other, Faith looked at him and asked, “Is there something you want
to tell me?”

Gavin continued to caress her lips with his,
“What do you mean?”

“Don’t play with me, Gavin Carlisle. You know
exactly what I’m talking about.” The kisses continued.

“I think I already said it,” he smiled in
between a kiss.

“That rose didn’t say anything to me when I
came in this morning, so no, you haven’t.”

Gavin chuckled. “You know what I’m
saying.”

“You’re cheating.”

“No, I’m communicating with you through a
rose. You know what I’m saying.”

“That’s weak, Gavin. Just tell me,” she stood
back and crossed her arms.

“You first, because I think you feel the same
way.”

“You initiated this, so finish it.”

Gavin walked around the desk and sat down. He
sipped his coffee and just stared at her. Faith glared at him, sat
down herself, and began to work. She didn’t speak another word.
There was tension between the two of them as Gavin waited for her
to say something.

“Are you really upset with me? Talk to
me.”

Faith glanced up. “Have a good day,” she said
without smiling.

Gavin cocked his head to the right.
“Seriously? Because I won’t verbalize it?”

Faith kept working. “If you weren’t ready to
say it, you should have kept it to yourself. Shit, or get off the
pot.”

He stood up, irritated with her attitude, but
knew he needed to do exactly as she had said. He opted to go to his
office instead. Gavin walked to, and opened, the door and quietly
left.

So it went the rest of the week. Gavin and
Faith barely spoke, which drove him crazy. He delivered her coffee
every morning, with no response but “thank you” from her. He needed
to put a stop to this before the trip.

“We need to talk,” Gavin said. “Stop what
you’re pretending to do and listen to me.”

Faith stopped typing and looked up. “What?”
she snapped.