of the floor. “Are you okay?”
My voice shook as I struggled to raise it above the sound of a saxophone solo. “I didn’t mean it.”
His smile faltered. “Didn’t mean what?”
I pressed a hand to my chest, trying to calm myself. “I’m not done. I don’t quit.” I took a deep breath. “I’ll never give up on you, either. Gabe, you’re worth fighting for.”
His eyes shone. “So you love me?”
I laughed tearfully and shrugged. “I never stopped.”
He pressed his face to my hair, drawing in a deep breath. “I’m so sorry, Vi. For everything.”
“So am I.” My hands snaked up his back, gripping the back of his neck. I never wanted to be out of these arms again. “I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember. I don’t think I could live without you, even if I tried.”
The band shifted to a slow song, and Gabe started to sway to the music. “Are you still going to Portland?”
I pressed my lips to his neck, every nerve ending in my body aching to make contact with his body. It was like the pull of a magnet, and I couldn’t fight it anymore. “Not unless you’re going with me.”
He leaned away from me enough to gaze down into my eyes. “My place is with you. I don’t care where that is. If you’re there, it’s my home, Vi.”
“I love you…so much.” My voice was wavering now.
He pressed his mouth to mine, and everything else in the room disappeared. The band, the people, the food, the tables, the chairs. It was all gone, and we were completely alone. His lips caressed mine, nudging them open, and then he teased me with his tongue. Flashes of color popped behind my closed eyelids when his hand slid into my hair, cradling my neck as he leaned me backward and deepened our kiss. I clung to his shoulders, digging my fingers into the cotton of his shirt, and clinging to the moment as if it could fleet away at any second.
Our mouths finally separated, swollen and buzzing with anticipation, and he pressed his forehead to mine. “I love you, too, Vi. Happy birthday.”
The music slowly started to return, as did the people and noise around us. I laughed, my heart hammering against my ribs. Both of us were bleary-eyed and ridiculously turned on in front of a crowd of about a hundred onlookers.
“What now?” I asked, as Gabe stroked a thumb along my lower lip.
“Come here.” He pulled me past the end of the stage and out an exit. We wound up in a hallway leading to the kitchen, where the muffled orders of a chef could be heard amongst the bang of pots and pans. There were stacks of chairs and some spare tables propped against the wall, and the sound of the jazz band nearly disappeared when the door shut behind us.
He backed me into the stack of tables, their cold metal legs pressing into my legs, sending a flurry of anticipation throughout my body. His mouth opened over mine, our faces crushing together amongst the sound of our breathing.
I’d nearly forgotten that there was nothing in the world better than kissing this man.
Nothing.
I threw my arms around his neck, digging my nails into his short hair. I was going to savor every single touch, every single jagged breath that escaped his mouth between our feverish kisses. His hands moved down to my middle, lifting me off the ground, making my heels fall to the floor. As he pressed us into the tables, and the plastic and metal groaned beneath our weight, I tilted my head back and let him kiss down my neck, my body trembling under his touch.
Pulling away, he looked at me. His breath was now coming in short pants, his heart racing against mine. “I want to go home.”
I nodded and kissed his neck, drawing an invisible dotted line with my mouth from his collarbone up to his earlobe.
“I want to go home now,” he growled, lowering me until my feet touched the floor. Gabe bent to pick up my shoes, his head brushing against my hip. My stomach hurtled. When he stood upright, I slid my hands up the front of his shirt, my fingers tracing every curve of every single muscle.
We made our way through the banquet hall, grabbing my purse and his jacket, ignoring a few of his coworkers who reminded Gabe that the CEO was about to make a speech. Walking a straight line toward