Chapter 5
Gavin cursed when he saw the traffic on the interstate leading towards Chris' house. The line seemed never ending.
Sighing, he turned the music on and prepared to wait. As he watched the car in front of him, thoughts of Cassie filled his mind.
He couldn't quite explain it, but he had suddenly begun to look at her differently. That night, when he had seen her at her reception, something had changed drastically. It was not just the way she looked, Gavin already knew exactly how beautiful she was, but rather the way she carried herself. Cassie had been awkward and stiff while talking to some people, but in the moments that she was with Chris, looking up at him with that wicked glitter in her eyes, smiling at him and just responding to his proximity with animation...all that had caught his attention, and kept it. She seemed free-spirited, and powerful. She had also seemed vulnerable. The strange combination had enthralled Gavin, and he could not quite understand it. He had known Cassie for years, and this was the first time that he noticed these things about her. It seemed as though this social reception was simply a background against which, for the first time, he could see Cassie stand out from in stark relief, and the picture she made was absolutely riveting. Gavin had been aware of the fact that at least half the men in the room were following her with their eyes. There were definitely more beautiful women in the room, but Cassie had glowed. Seeing her standing next to Chris had awakened feelings he had not known he even had; rage, jealousy, possessiveness. She looked so good standing next to him, and Gavin could not help but wish it was him instead of Chris.
But now, things were different. Now he knew the truth behind their marriage; there was nothing stopping him from getting her to see him in a new light.
He just had to get her to see him differently. His happiness, his entire wellbeing, depended on it.
He was shocked out of is reverie when the car behind him honked. He looked in front to see that the cars were moving. Quickly snapping back, he pressed down on the accelerator and moved forward.
"Just you wait Cassie," he thought to himself. "I'm coming to get you, whether you like it or not."
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Chris yawned and rolled over, reaching over to hug Cassie to him. Instead of a warm body, he felt warm sheets. He opened his eyes sleepily and groaned. He had so wanted to sleep for a while longer, but it seemed that he would have to get up now. He rubbed his fantasies of curving himself around Cassie's warm little body away from his eyes and tried not to think of the other things that they could possibly do in his vast, comfortable bed. Things that involved much more than the occasional spooning that they did.
He sat up, the sheets pooling at his waist, and stretched. He rubbed his eyes and got off the bed, his lean body unfolding gracefully, like a cat's. He had not been this relaxed for a while. He padded to the bathroom to have a quick wash, and after that, he decided that he would talk to Cassie. Last night had shown him just how much she meant to him and that he had been a fool for ignoring the sparks of attraction between them. He was not about to let her go now, and he decided that she would be his, one way or the other. No stranger to empty relationships, Christ instantly recognized substance when he saw it, and the deepest part of him wanted to possess it. Cassie was the thing that had been missing from his life, and he hoped she was the answer, whatever the answer could be. After about fifteen minutes, he had dressed and went to the kitchen to help himself to some breakfast.
He saw Cassie at the table, wearing his T-shirt and a pair of old denim shorts that were stretched taut across her thighs. She was frowning into her plate of toast, and he wished he knew what she was thinking about. He realized she was skittish, and he had to tread carefully around her. He knew that with Cassie, flirting wouldn't work, but blatant seduction might. He smiled inwardly and sat down at the table. Cassie raised her big eyes to his when he sat down and lowered them again, but he had been able to see the uncertainty.
"Good Morning," he said with a smile as he grabbed toast from the pile that Ann had probably left on the table for them.
" G'morning," Cassie mumbled, her hair falling over her face and covering her eyes.
Chris had been right. She didn't say much during breakfast, and ate with her head down. Chris tried talking, but was rewarded with monosyllabic answers.
"This is going to be harder than I imagined," Chris thought to himself as he watched her.
Finally, when they had finished eating, Cassie collected both plates and began to wash them in the sink. Chris came up behind her and slid his hands around her waist, pulling her back against him. He felt her stiffen, but he did not let go. She squirmed in his embrace, but stiffened immediately when his hands shaped the contours of her hips to hold her in place.
"You needn't do that," he said, bending his head to whisper in her ear. He watched amused as she almost jumped a mile.
"Force of habit." She mumbled and finished washing. She tried to pull away, but he held her tight.
"Chris, let go," she said, tugging gently at his arms.
"Not until I have my good morning kiss," he whispered into her ear again, and felt her tremble.
"What's gotten into you this morning," she grumbled as she turned in his arms to look up into his face, her expression a mix of concern, nervousness and bafflement.
"Is wanting a kiss from your wife a crime?" he enquired, raising one sardonic eyebrow. His eyes twinkled with mischief and one other emotion she couldn't decipher.
"Let go Chris," Cassie said, annoyance and fright beginning to creep into her voice.
Chris sighed, and bent his head to hers. He knew that she would never kiss him now of her own volition. He felt her eyes widen briefly before his mouth claimed hers. Cassie stiffened even more and tried to tug away, but the minute his mouth settled over her, she lost all reasonable thought. He was tender and soft, his hands leaving her hips to softly cup her face. His tongue probed her lips, coaxing them open. Without being aware of what she was doing, Cassie felt herself letting him in, her hands settling around his neck.
Chris felt like he was in heaven. He had never felt quite like this before. He had kissed women numerous times, but never a kiss like this. Cassie's warm length against his, the gentle, uncertain way in which she was responding to his kiss and her hands around his neck felt wonderful. He felt her soften beneath him, and open her mouth. He explored the sweet depths of her mouth, tasting the sweetness of the honey she had put on her toast, and a taste that was uniquely Cassie.
Cassie didn't know what was happening anymore. She had had very few kisses, and certainly none like this. The heat, the passion and the desire that Chris managed to convey through that kiss made her feel dizzy, and she found her hands involuntarily threading themselves through his thick hair, and pulling his head down to hers in order to deepen the kiss. She had never felt so wanted. She let herself be taken in by that kiss, and let herself enjoy it. Chris pulled her to him even more tightly, until her body was pressed to his. He could feel her soft breasts against his chest, her rounded stomach against his. He buried his hands in her hair, enjoying the way she opened up for him. Although he wanted to prolong the kiss, he pulled back gently and rested his forehead against hers. She had her eyes closed, her hands now entwined around his neck.
"Now that was a good morning." He murmured, enjoying the way colour suffused her cheeks as she blushed.
A soft sound from the doorway made them both look up. Gavin stood there, with James and Ann standing beside him. Cassie yelped and moved away, and Chris let her go. He could read anger on the other man's face, but he didn't care. He wanted to tell him that Cassie was his, and that Gavin had better keep away. He had never felt particularly possessive over a woman before, but none of the women had ever been Cassie. With her, he felt himself experiencing a primal emotion that he was almost too afraid to label. All he knew was that he wanted her to be his, to hold and keep and protect, and that he could never let any other man have that honour.
Cassie was embarrassed, mortified and startled. What an awful morning it had been. First, waking up with Chris, then the kiss, and now Gavin. She wanted to tell him that there was nothing going on between her and Chris, but she couldn't.
Forcing a smile to her face, she said, "Hi Gavin. I didn't know you were coming."
"Yeah well," he mumbled, still angry. Beside him, James and Ann had identical smiles on their faces.
"We saw him on our way back," Ann said, trying to break the awkward silence, "so we just came in with him. Now that he's here, he'd better stay for lunch."
She trailed off when she saw the looks her brother was shooting her. A wicked idea began to form in her head.
"Yes, please do," James said, ever polite. But Chris thought he saw a gleam of something in his father's eyes, something that looked remarkably like mischief.
"In fact," Ann added, "Why don't you spend the weekend with us? The four of us were planning to drive down to the lake this afternoon and stay the night. We'd be back tomorrow evening."
Cassie, seeing that this was an excellent opportunity to explain things to Gavin, piped up, "Yeah, that would be good. You don't have anything important planned for the evening, do you?"
"Actually, I have," Gavin said, his gaze still on Chris's face, "But I can do it some other time."
