in her mouth and savored the sweetness on her tongue.
“Don’t you want to help with the gumdrop picket fence?” she teased.
“It’ll be better if you do it.” Gabe stood close, supervising but not touching the candy. He always wanted things to be perfect and that’s what she intended to do. Gabe’s grandmother would only ever see her being perfectly happy and content. The ideal fiancée.
The host—one of the head staff members—called time on the contest a few minutes later. Gabe took their house to the judging table. The winners would be announced the next day.
He returned with their coats and a relieved smile just as Chase and Tana approached.
“Dinner at grandmother’s?” Chase asked.
“We wouldn’t miss it.” Gabe nodded. “What time?”
“As soon as everybody’s there.” Chase took Tana’s hand and she took Lindsey’s, and the three of them headed for the exit.
Elin left on Jonas’ arm right after them, leaving Anna and Gabe. They made their way to the elevator and rode up, but outside the door to Elin’s apartment, Gabe hesitated. He put his hand in hers, and Anna straightened. Obviously, they needed to make a convincing entrance.
However, she was surprised when instead of going into his grandmother’s suite, he tugged her down the hall. They stopped at a shadowy alcove with a round window overlooking the ski slopes and abandoned their coats on a low table nearby.
“Did you want to show me the view?” she asked as he led her into the deeper shadows.
“No.” And then his mouth was on hers, answering the need in her. She sucked in a gasp as the kiss deepened and Gabe’s tongue found hers. Oh—there was the wall, coming up against her back and holding her upright. His hands worked down her sides before one came back up to cup her face. Anna was almost sure her knees would buckle. She stayed standing, arms around his neck, pulling him in tighter than she’d expected. Gabe nipped at her bottom lip, and a tiny moan escaped her. They shouldn’t be doing this—not in the hall outside his grandmother’s suite, not where someone might come across them—
And what? See that they were all over each other, the way an engaged couple might be? She sank into the kiss, losing herself a little bit more. It wasn’t right that they were wearing so many clothes. It wasn’t right at all. Anna ran one hand down the front of Gabe’s shirt, feeling the hard plane of his chest and the ridges of his abs underneath. Tear off the buttons, shrug it down his shoulders—
His grasp tightened on her hips, and he brought her close, so close, and then let go. In the dim light from the hall she could see the fire in his eyes.
That wasn’t for show. None of this was for show.
It had been for the two of them, and only the two of them.
The line between acting and reality blurred, becoming hard to see. What was she going to do about the thudding in her heart and the desire burning hot in her belly? Because there was nothing acted about her reaction.
Gabe took her hand. “I had to.” It sounded like a confession. “Let’s go to dinner.”
8
When dinner was over, Gabe’s grandmother led them to the sitting room and pulled a familiar book from the shelves. A photo album—a scrapbook really, one that she’d been keeping for years. She patted the sofa next to her. “Whenever someone new comes to the family, we go through the old memories.” That was his cue, along with Anna, to sit with her so they could have the best view.
Anna tucked in next to him, and he put an arm around her. It was getting harder to resist stroking her skin or playing with her hair or planting quick kisses on her cheeks. A lot harder. And yes, he’d given in to the desire to haul her into his arms and kiss her senseless—but he hadn’t known how to get through dinner otherwise. His reward was the satisfied smile she wore for the entire meal.
Just enough to help him stay in control.
Everything was different with Anna. Gabe had never had to focus on keeping his hands off a woman before. And he’d never craved the softness of a woman’s skin or the sensation of her curves under his palms like he did with her.
“Now,” his grandmother began, “this is Chase and Gabe.” The two boys had carefree smiles in the photographs as if they didn’t have a care