Always My Babygirl A Billionaire Romance - Jane Henry Page 0,66
open the door and run straight into his arms.
Chapter Nineteen
Gabriel
I hold her to me, and it’s hard to believe she’s here, in the flesh, holding onto me like she finally really accepted those words I wrote to her. Her shuttered gaze and cool detachment have fled.
I breathe her in, the subtle scent of flowers and spice.
God, I’ve missed this.
I cradle her to me and we stand there on the sidewalk as buses pass and pedestrians walk past, a crisp wind making her blonde hair fly. I tuck her against me, shielding her from the wind, on instinct. I want to hold her even tighter, but I can’t push too hard.
“What is it, baby?”
She’s trembling a little, and I don’t know if it’s from the cold or something else.
“Mom just… Mom said she… she knew you loved me,” she says hesitantly, and I don’t know if she’s scared I’ll deny the truth or if it’s something else.
“Of course I do.” I kiss her cheek, then pull her tightly to me again before I hold her at arm’s length so I can look into her eyes.
“I love you, Miranda Montague. I love everything about you. And I’m sorry I ever gave you reason to doubt that or reason to fear me.”
She swallows and nods, but doesn’t speak at first. She opens her mouth and then closes it again. Finally, she draws a shuddering breath and continues.
“And I know I love you, Gabriel. I feel like there’s so much we still have to get to know about each other. But… well, there’s time, isn’t there?”
My chest warms and my heart soars. I’ve wanted this so badly. So fucking badly.
“Yeah, baby,” I say softly. “Of course there’s time. I fucked things up, and I’m sorry.”
“And I have to admit I overreacted,” she says with a sigh. “I’m just scared. There are so many unknowns, so many variables, you know?”
“I do know, baby. I get it. And I don’t blame you, not at all.”
She nods, looking up at me. “Now that I know you had a wife that cheated on you, I can almost understand where you’re coming from?”
My car drives up, ready to take me back to the airport. To leave her.
I need her alone for a little while. I need her to remember who we are. I need to show her she’s mine, that she’s my babygirl.
“Come with me, for a little while?” I ask her like it’s a question, but I’m pulling her along with insistence. Now that she’s back, I don’t ever want to let her go.
She nods. “Yes, Gabriel.” She ducks her head shyly. “Yes, daddy.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. God, it’s good to hear her say that. I didn’t know how badly I needed that.
I open the door and usher her in, joining her a moment later. I shut the door.
“Where to, sir?”
She looks at me, all wide-eyed and wondrous.
“I need to get back,” I tell her. “Will you join me?”
“As soon as I can. I’ll get Mom situated.”
I nod. “Of course. But you’ll call me, won’t you?”
It seems unfair that just when we get back together, we have to be separated. The car begins to drive me back to the jet. By the time I get to the airport, it will be prepared and fueled up. Ready to take me back to Vegas.
Her voice is soft when she asks, “Are you sure you have to go?”
I pull her to me and kiss her, the instant connection making me groan. Her hands are around my neck, and mine around her waist, and it feels so good to taste her again, my eyes close in bliss. God, this is good. So damn good.
I push a button and a dark, soundproof screen rolls up between us and the driver. We have total privacy back here and the ride to takeoff’s long enough. I lay her back on the seat, kissing my way down the column of her neck to her full, beautiful breasts. She closes her eyes and sighs.
“Daddy.”
I lean in and whisper in her ear. “I love you, Miranda. I love you so much.”
“And I love you,” she says, making my heart beat faster and my need to claim her even more insistent. Her eyes hold mine as I shimmy her dress up her thighs. I feel cotton panties covering her, my low growl of disapproval filling the leather interior.
“Who gave you permission to wear those?”
She bites her lip—oh God, to see her do that again—and gives me