The Edge of Hope

Chapter 6

Gabe lived in a modest apartment. The university had paid him well, but he was a man on his own so it didn’t make sense to waste money on real estate. It was in a good area, so a small place like this had still cost a fortune.

Still, it was home. And something about having Hope sitting on his couch, a giant slice of pizza in her hand, made it even more so.

“Pineapple on pizza. Yay or nay?” Hope asked in between bites.

“Pineapple belongs in alcohol, that’s it.”

“Oh, come on. Have you ever even tried it?”

“No, and I don’t need to. I know that it’s not right,” Gabe protested, throwing a piece of pepper from his pizza, landing on Hope’s lap.

“Weren’t you ever told it’s rude to play with your food?” She picked up the piece and threw it back but completely missed, flying past Gabe onto the floor.

He turned to look at it then back to Hope. “Seems you need to be taught the same lesson.”

A playful expression crossed her face. “I retaliated. There’s a difference.”

Gabe placed his pizza down in the box and wiped his hands on a serviette. He looked at Hope and smirked.

“What are you…” Hope started but couldn’t finish as the ball of paper hit her square in the face. Her shocked expression made Gabe chuckle, making her even more flustered.

The next hour they spent joking with each other, discussing what else shouldn’t go on pizzas and sharing a creamy chocolate dessert.

Hope leaned back and let out a groan. “Jesus, I’m full.” Without thinking, she reached down and unbuttoned her jeans.

“Feeling better?” Gabe asked.

“Mm-hm.” Hope turned her head to him and gave him a thoughtful look for a few seconds.

Gabe could see a million thoughts flying through her head. “Something in my teeth?”

“Why me?”

“What?”

“Why choose me? You could probably have any woman you want, but you decide to choose a broken and complicated one.”

Gabe gave her a confused look. He had thought it would be obvious. She was beautiful, smart and probably one of the strongest women he had ever met. “Does it matter why?”

“To me, yes,” she whispered. She hadn’t looked him in the eyes at all, and he knew this was a serious question.

He moved closer to her, taking her face in both his hands and forcing her to look at him. “Hope, listen to me carefully, ok? You have been faced with a lot of tragedy and heartbreak in your life. I know it still affects you. I see the sadness in your eyes, the doubts you have. I can’t blame you for that. Yet, you show unconditional kindness, you light up a room when you smile and you make an effort to be a better person.” Tears were streaming down her cheeks and Gabe tried to wipe some of them with his thumbs. “You are an incredible woman with a bright future ahead of her. So, why not you?”

She let out a choked sob and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing so tightly, that Gabe couldn’t take a full breath in. But he didn’t mind. He hugged her back, placing his head in the crook of her neck and placed soft kisses there.

After a few seconds, she pulled back and wiped her face. “I’m sorry, I can’t imagine I look too attractive right now,” she gave a humourless laugh.

“You look beautiful.” Gabe pulled her face and didn’t hold his kiss back. He wanted her to know that she was it. She was the only one that would ever matter to him. If it couldn’t be her, then he would remain alone for the remainder of his days.

Hope returned his kiss with desperate passion. He felt her body release all of its tension, but he could still taste fresh tears falling down. He pulled back, not letting go of her. “Why are you still crying?”

“It’s happy tears, I promise,” she responded with a shaky smile. The sparkle in her eye told Gabe she was telling the truth.

He manoeuvred her so she was on top of him and he knew that tonight, things would change forever.

Hope was so overwhelmed with emotion that it took her a good few minutes to stop crying. Eventually, she was overcome with a different, more intense sensation that had her feeling like their clothes were just a constriction.

Once she had managed to remove his shirt with shaky hands, she took his appearance in, and the reality of the situation set in. She knew she was going to take the leap tonight.

“See something you like?” Gabe said with a breath. Even he was struggling to keep himself under control.

“I think I need to see more before I answer that.”

“I’m sure that can be arranged.” Gabe picked Hope up, her legs wrapped around his waist and carried her to his room.

The rest of their clothes were shed in seconds, and Gabe took his time, making sure Hope experienced every sensation so intensely that it would imprint itself in her memory for eternity.

The feelings she had, both emotional and physical, would resonate in her body and mind until she drifted off into a deep sleep, cuddled closely to Gabe’s warm body.

The night was perfect.

*****

The next morning, Hope woke up to the sound of classic rock music and the smell of something sweet in the air.

She stretched and immediately felt the effects of the night before. All the memories came flooding in, making her cheeks flush and a smile spread across her face. She sighed in contentment and got up, going to Gabe’s cupboard and pulling out a t-shirt.

Walking slowly to the kitchen, she took in the simple décor. It was clear only a man had ever lived here. Suddenly she thought about his previous lovers or girlfriends. How many were there? Were they serious?

She shook her head. It wasn’t necessary to think about that. He made it extremely clear last night that she was all he wanted, especially when he…

“Morning, sunshine,” Gabe said.

Hope froze and tried to hide the embarrassed smile on her face. “Hi,” she croaked. Realising how strained it sounded, she added, “I was just lost in thought, sorry.”

Gabe took the bread out of the toaster and looked at her with a knowing smile.

Crap, she thought. Caught red-handed.

“Care to share?” He poured two cups of coffee and motioned for Hope to sit.

“Smells amazing, thank you,” she said, digging in immediately to avoid answering his question.

Gabe let her enjoy two mouthfuls before he asked her again. “Want to tell me what you were thinking that had you as red as a tomato?”

Hope looked at him for a second and glanced down at her plate. “Oh, you know, I think we might have a hot summer considering how cold this winter’s been.”

“Really?” Gabe tilted his head and licked the side of his lip.

Hope knew he was doing it on purpose, which made her blush all over again. The memory of what he did with his mouth the night before hit her like a freight train. She cleared her throat and looked at him head-on.

“Ok, no, not really.” He carried on staring at her, daring her to say something else. She looked at his lips and backed up. She would not be the only one blushing here. “I was thinking about what that quick mouth of yours did to me last night.”

Hope felt a sense of accomplishment when she saw his cheeks redden slightly. They both took a few more bites of their food and Gabe spoke up again.

“I have a few more tricks up my sleeve if you’re willing to find out.”

Hope didn’t think twice about agreeing and she didn’t regret a thing. This man knew what he was doing. He was skilled and knew exactly all the right spots.

Afterwards, they lay in his bed and a thought kept occurring in Hope’s mind.

“Where did you learn all that?”

“All what?”

Hope turned onto her stomach and studied him. It was obvious he was playing dumb and it annoyed her a little for some reason.

“Literally everything. You’re really good, like…” she paused. “I don’t know, like you’ve done this a lot.”

Gabe’s eyes snapped to hers, and they hardened slightly. “What are you saying?” He was on the defensive and it really started annoying Hope.

“I’m not implying anything. I’m complimenting you. I just want to know how you know all of that. I doubt Google taught you everything.” She tried to lighten the mood but Gabe shut himself down even more.

“I just know. I responded to your cues. Simple.”

Hot anger started flaring through her and she sat up completely. ‘Why are you taking this like I’m accusing you of something?”

“Because it sounds like you are.” He sat up abruptly and put his knees over the edge of the bed. Hope could see the muscles in his back tensing.

She reached out to touch his shoulder, but as soon as she did, he flinched and stood up.

And like that first night at the bar, she shrunk back. Hurt and disbelief overtook any lingering feelings from the night before.

Gabe just stood there, his shoulders rising and falling with his deep breaths. Hope didn’t know what else to say. She could see there was an internal battle going on in his head.

She waited another minute and when he hadn’t said anything, she nodded to herself and got up, putting her clothes back on.

Once dressed, she looked to Gabe who was now sitting on a chair he kept in the corner of the room. His face was like stone and resting in his hands.

Hope cleared her throat but he still didn’t look at her. She swore under her breath and headed for the door. “I’ll show myself out, then.”

She had hoped he would come after her, stop her from leaving and tell her that he didn’t want her to go, ever. But it was all in vain.

Gabe had picked her up so she had to take the bus home. While she waited, she couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. They flowed out and she had wanted Gabe to wipe them away again like she needed air to breathe.

After what had felt like ages, the bus finally arrived. She found a window seat and rested her head against the cool glass. Movement caught her attention in her peripheral vision, and as the bus moved, she looked back and her heart broke.

Gabe stood at the bus stop, his hands in his hair. He let his arms down and watched the bus leave. Hope had wanted to climb off, but she was in no right mind to deal with him now.

Silently, tears continued flowing. She cursed herself for crying so easily.

“Are you alright, dear?”

Hope lifted her head and saw an old lady looking at her with concern. She simply nodded her head.

The lady gave her a sad smile and said, “No man is worth your tears.”

Hope was about to ask how she knew but she had already started walking to the front of the bus to get off.

She understood the sentiment but disagreed wholeheartedly.

Gabe was worth everything.