GABRIEL DALTON
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"Come in, Gabriel. I promise I'm not making moves on your girl. She's hurt." Zane's voice is lazy. As if to tell me I'm stupid for thinking anything could possibly be going on.
So I push back whatever ridiculous thoughts have invaded my brain and I focus on what he said. She's hurt. I step forward, letting the door shut behind me as Poppy's wide green eyes follow me as I inch closer.
"What happened?" My voice booms across Zane's office.
He's hunched over her, pressing an ice pack to her ankle. I flick my gaze between them both and when Poppy realises that Zane isn't going to say a word she releases a long sigh, dragging those eyes back to mine. "I slipped."
"You slipped?" I raise my eyebrows and fold my arms across my chest.
"Yes," she glances down. "It's fine. I'll be fine."
I open my mouth to speak but Zane's phone begins to ring. He clears his throat and places Poppy's hand on the pack and gives her a supportive smile. "You don't come back to work until it's healed. Not a day before. Alright? You need to give yourself time to rest. I trust Gabriel will get you home okay."
Zane stands from where he has been perching, digging into his jacket pocket to fish for his phone. His eyes cut to mine and he gives me a little nod before answering the call. I twist my head, watching as he shuts the door behind him, leaving us alone.
When I turn back to Poppy she has her thumb nail in her mouth, staring blankly at the wall. I perch on the arm of the chair she's sitting in but she doesn't even look up at me. I've wanted to speak to her all night, caress her flushed cheeks but duty with Zane's business calls.
"You need to be more careful. You could have broken something." My eyes cut across to her ankle as she raises the ice for a split moment. Her skin is deep pink but that could be from the coldness of the ice or the fact it's deeply sprained.
Poppy's lips twitch into a sarcastic smile. "Yeah, sure. Great advice." She dumps the pack onto the table and presses her hands onto the arm, attempting to push herself up.
She places her foot on the floor, her entire weight on her weak ankle. A hiss escapes her lips, there is no way she's making her way out of here without injuring herself further. Before she can topple over backwards I snap my hand out and grab her wrist, stabilising her for a moment. "Sit down, Red."
The way her nostrils flare tell me that she doesn't like being bossed around but I couldn't care less. Her head tilts up to find my stare but hers is just as intense. A glimmer of something I can't put my finger on rests there.
I narrow my eyes, watching how her lashes brush her cheek every so often. After realising that I'm not going to back down she huffs out a breath of defeat and pulls out of my grip so she can sit back down.
She's expecting me to say something smug in response because she's staring at me out of the corner of her eye but I don't give her that benefit. Instead I sit down beside her, grab the ice pack and hoist her leg back up onto the table again.
I'm aware that she's watching my every move as I replace Zane's spot and begin to ice her tender skin. I can feel her gaze burn into the side of my head as I finally give in and focus on her eyes. We stay like this for what feels like an eternity.
Her lips are painted a deep red, almost brown. It accentuates the fairness of her pretty skin. Gold specks of glitter coat her eyelids and framed with dark lashes that almost touch her perfectly arched eyebrows.
I study her neck when her throat tenses and she's the first to look away. My lips form a small smirk. Even though there was heavy fire and heat in her eyes, she couldn't keep up with the close proximity.
My hand rearranges the ice and she winces but covers it by shuffling back in the chair. Her lips pull apart slowly and I wait for her to say something witty because I can tell what sort of mood she's in but instead she says, "Doing business deals tonight, huh?"
I tilt my head at her question but she avoids my eyes altogether. "As always."
"That include women?" Her words are short and she chews on the inside of her mouth as soon as they're out in the open.
Women. That blonde woman I had to entertain tonight.
I press my finger under her chin and tilt, not bothering to cover the smug smile that covers my lips. "Are you jealous, Red?"
"No," she scrunches up her face and pulls away from my touch.
"Uh huhhh," I raise my eyebrows.
Poppy scowls at Zane's desk and my lips continue to tug. "I'm not. It was a question. Nothing more."
I can hear the venom in her words. I don't want to be that asshole to make her realise that she does in fact have it bad for me but I can't help it. After weeks of chasing her, I want her to take control of how she truly feels. Even if she's in denial to herself.
My thumb and finger find her chin again, this time I keep her still. Her eyes flare in my direction, I notice how her chest begins to move faster than before. "And what if I told you it didn't include those women?"
Something rushes past her gaze but it's gone in a blink. "I still don't care." She bites and I want to tut at her attitude but I let it slide.
I raise my thumb and brush them across her pouting lips. Her lipstick doesn't budge and my goodness, her skin feels divine against my own. I can't stop. I'm captivated by the sight. "Insufferable," I mutter under my breath.
She huffs out a breath of tension, nostrils flaring for a split second. I inspect her face once more and it's clear that she's about to burst with whatever she wants to say but she's holding back.
"Spit it out," I say, tugging at her bottom lip. "You want to say something? Say it, Red. Stop being so afraid."
Poppy's jaw clenches and she fires me down with those green eyes. "You want me to say what I'm thinking?" Her tone sharpens.
"Yes."
"How about the fact that when I looked at you tonight, you barely even acknowledged who I was. You literally stared at me with that cold gaze and the next thing I know you were preoccupied." Her hand flies around and she narrows her eyes.
I pull back slowly, keeping my fingers on her chin. "So you were jealous?"
She snaps her head in my direction. "Fine," she grits. "I was jealous. Is that what you wanted to hear?"
The room turns deathly silent after her confession. It's exactly what I wanted to hear. She looks furious at how satisfied I am right now but I won't let her live in her head for too long. I stroke the skin on her chin gently. "The reason I didn't pay you attention is because the two men we were with, they're men who I don't want knowing that I'm involved with you."
Her brows crease instantly. "Why?"
"Because I don't trust them. I don't trust anyone in this fucking building apart from Zane." I say carefully. "If they even got a whiff of the fact that I know you, they could manipulate this entire business deal which I am convinced is dodgy."
"Then why are you doing it?"
I drag my tongue across my lips, dropping my hand from her face. "It's for protection. There is a club killer going around and Zane is paranoid. They're working together to secure their clubs but I believe something else is going on."
"And the girls?" Her voice quietens.
My lips stretch into a smile. I tuck a piece of copper hair behind her ear, brushing my thumb across the shell. "Nothing for you to worry about, Red," I whisper, searching her green eyes for any lingering anxiety. "Only people we have to keep happy for the sake of ourselves."
Poppy sucks down a big breath and I watch as her shoulders relax. "Fair enough," she says, straightening her spine. I drop my head to her ear and listen as she gasps at the sudden proximity.
"I've always thought I had a thing for blondes," I caress her ear with a whisper and she freezes. "And then you walked into my life and fucked with my head with that long red hair. God, the amount of times I've wanted to tug on it and draw your head back to see your exposed neck."
Her eyelashes flutter shut, lips trembling. "Gabriel–"
I press a kiss to the corner of her pretty mouth. "I get ahead of myself when I'm with you. I'm sorry."
"Don't apologise," she shakes her head. "I like hearing it."
"Mmm," I hum against the curve of her jaw. "Let's get you home."
Poppy nods up at me and I help her down to the dressing room where she grabs her things, I wait by the open door. Her ankle is still swollen but the ice has definitely helped. It's going to be sore for a few days and I pray she listens to Zane and stays home until she's healed.
Although I already know that she's going to ignore him.
I watch Poppy as she bundles a few things into her bag and then grabs her phone. She glances at the screen and when I think she's about to tuck it away, she brings her face closer. Those green eyes grow bigger and her expression changes.
Her gaze flicks across the screen as if she's reading in record time and the way her cheeks drop and her brows raise in concern, I know something is wrong.
I push off the door and approach her, when she hears my footsteps she wraps her hands around the phone and presses it to her chest as quickly as possible. "Everything okay?" I ask gently.
She opens her mouth to protest and then she peeks at the screen again. To my surprise she shakes her head and presses a hand to her forehead. "No, not really."
"What's going on?"
Poppy chews on her lips for a moment and I watch the action, noticing how she's biting off her lipstick. "Things are kicking off at home," she says and I can hear her voice drop. "I hate it when it gets like this."
I wrap my hand around her waist, tugging her body into mine. "Come home with me."
She blinks those long lashes up at me, pulling her head back. "What?"
"Come home with me," I say again.
"Lonzo doesn't like me."
I shrug simply. "He's not the only person who lives there. If you don't feel safe at home, then come back with me. I'll drop you home when you feel comfortable."
My stomach churns when I remember the grazes and bruising on her face. When she passed it off as an altercation between her house mate. I definitely don't want her around any more danger if she doesn't have to be, not with a swollen ankle.
"Where will I sleep?" She asks, leaning into my touch.
"Wherever you want to."
Her eyes sparkle in my direction but I can tell she's putting on a front. "Okay," she whispers and that's when I know whatever is going on at home must be bad.
I'm relieved she can be honest with me. This is exactly what I want from her.
"Let's go, Red," I say, taking her bag from her dainty fingers. "Let's get you to bed."
✥
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Author's Note
Gabriel's protective side makes my heart flutter🥰
What did you guys think of this chapter?👉🏼
I love that Poppy spoke her mind instead of concealing her feelings. We're definitely moving forward!
Also did someone say sleepover? hehe🤭
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