A/N: Okay I'm sorry this update is so horrendously late. My finals really did some damage to my ability to write, I guess. And of course, I really have to thank all of you for wishing me good luck and giving me amazing feedback, and especially to those who push me to update. Big thank you to the reviewers, byLunaA, ShipsRoyale, jvbbh12, [ESPECIALLY wowyounoticed for reaching out to me like you have! It makes me weep, seriously], nrdhrd3, TearsInTheDust, USNeshama, evincis, Blue Obsidian Butterfly, purpledolphin1, Guest (1), SpeakFabulously, gaia janvier, Guest (2), person, kwisteria, Guest (3), Guest (4), Guest (5), and thewalkingdeadislife. I really thank you for your time and patience.
Just to clear things up, NO, I'm NOT going to stop writing Intelligence fanfictions just because the show got cancelled. I love this fandom too much for that.
Disclaimer: Maybe they would hand over the rights to the show to me now, because you know, I'd actually continue it.
Rating: T
Chapter 13 – Whispering
When Lillian had first made her presence known to her agents, a deafening silence came over the cabin. Neither Riley nor Gabriel quite knew what to say, so they both started babbling to explain what was actually going on. Their boss had listened impatiently as they explained they were only having wine with their dinner and Gabriel was just clumsy enough to knock it over on himself.
That's all they'd told her.
They didn't bother elaborating on how the wine had accompanied an unexpectedly romantic and delicious fire-lit dinner. They didn't even mention that the wine had spilled only because they'd both been leaning a bit too close to each other. Both chose not to think about the fact that if Lillian hadn't walked through the door right when she did, a whole lot more clothing that Gabriel's shirt might have ended up on the floor.
Lillian had lessened her glare by a miniscule upon hearing an explanation, and started wheeling her luggage down the hall soon after. She walked tiredly but not ungracefully in her heels and work suit, and Riley could only be glad that at least one resident of the cabin was maintaining professionalism. After peaking briefly into the two open rooms down the hall, her boss asked wearily, "Where's the bathroom?"
"Right through ou-," Gabriel paused to clear his throat, "Uh, through this bedroom, Ma'am." He pointed to the door inside the master bedroom. He let out a breath as soon as Lillian stepped inside, but was soon tugged backwards into the hallway by a hand pulling on his still-bare shoulder.
Gabriel was whirled around until his back hit the side of the wall next to the bedroom, grunting as his head thumped against it hard. His partner was before him with flashing eyes and a clenched jaw. "What were you thinking? Did you just nearly say our bedroom?"
He held his hands up in defense, trying to inch backwards even further from Riley's livid expression. "It was a slip of the tongue," he said. "Although it's not exactly untrue, I thought I covered it up pretty well."
"Well, I heard it," she jabbed a finger into his chest. Riley backed off slightly though, and started pacing the hallway in front of him. The second worst thing she was afraid of happening had happened – Lillian had come somewhat unannounced and suspected Riley and her partner of doing, well, whatever it was that Lillian suspected them of doing. She had to admit, their boss had quite the timing interrupting the two when she had.
If Cyber Com had actually decided to send their sensitive information via the internet like the agents had counted on them doing (instead of sending a live person), Riley shuddered to think what might have happened. That was the first worst thing she was afraid of. But damn it all if she didn't want to keep having Gabriel take off the rest of his clothing.
While Riley found herself lost in those sorts of thoughts for a while, she stopped in her tracks in front of Gabriel. Realizing something crucial to maintaining their jobs, she walked over to her partner with a look of desperation, whispering urgently, "Quick, take your bag out of here and put it in Ivy's room!"
Gabriel didn't share her urgency; he only smirked annoyingly. "So you admit we don't even use the other bedroom," his eyebrows wiggled.
She gave him a tired look and a shove towards the bigger room, keeping her eyes focused on the shut door behind which Lillian resided in case she were to come out. He finally relented but took his sweet time, barely entering the door of the smaller bedroom with the luggage as his boss exited the lavatory.
"Surely you won't mind if I use one of your bedrooms tonight?" the redhead wearily pleaded. She kicked off her shoes and sat on the bed. "There's no way I'm going back home in that wind, and my back is killing me from the drive."
She had never seen her boss act in such an informal way, no matter how normal the actions seemed to Riley herself. She was used to Lillian's strong, non-nonsense, uptight attitude that she was so famous for. It really must have been quite a drive for her to be acting like this. "Lillian, if you're that tired, the information you were going to give us can wait until the morning," Riley offered.
"I suppose it's not the most pertinent information," Lillian started, trying to convince herself. "After all, I don't know how much longer I'll be able to stay awake. I left early to avoid the storm, but caught it anyways because of a damn traffic jam halfway here." Both women glanced at their watches. As Lillian yawned, Riley tried to cover the surprise in her features after finding that she and Gabriel had talked until nearly ten o'clock.
"The weather certainly is unpredictably in this part of the state," Riley spoke up, trying to make light conversation. What was taking her partner so long to return, anyway?
"So, this bed looks nice and comfy." Lillian looked longingly at the enormous bed that would be sure to sooth her aching bones. "I'm sorry to be kicking one of you out of a bed," she explained.
"It's alright. We have a big couch to use as well," Riley smiled. She was hoping Lillian wouldn't prod further about her agents' sleeping habits, but of course, she wouldn't be so lucky as to evade her boss's curiosity.
"Who normally sleeps in this room, Riley?" Lillian asked innocently, sitting down on the bed.
Riley was about to open her mouth, but the now shirt-clad Gabriel swooped in for her. "I do. Why do you ask?"
Riley was never so glad for her partner's interruption, despite the fact that he'd obviously lied to her about which bag he transferred to the smaller room. She now spotted his bag laying near the end of the bed instead of hers, the lying devil. He must have taken only a shirt from his bag and snatched hers up to bring to the other room instead. Apparently, he was still trying to sneak around her back and steal the bigger room. Oh, he was so asking for it.
"She was wondering because Lillian's going to be sleeping here tonight," Riley grinned smugly at him, ready to deliver some payback. "You, Gabriel, get the couch."
"Oh?" Gabriel said with a subtle look of irritation at his partner. Lillian probably couldn't hear it, but Riley detected a hint of crossness in his voice because his clever plan to deceive her hadn't gone as planned. He put on a face for his boss, though, saying, "It's all yours, Lillian."
Lillian smiled her thanks at the two and started unpacking a few things from her luggage to use before she went to sleep. Gabriel and Riley exited the room and went out to the hall to see if there were extra blankets in the hall closet. Gabriel heard a snicker coming from his partner and turned on her with a grouchy expression.
"What're you so happy about?" he grumbled. Setting down his bag that he'd managed to take out of the bedroom before he left the second time, he opened up the spacious closet to reach up to the top shelf for some pillows.
"Karma," she smiled at him, serving only to deepen his frown. "You totally moved my stuff into the small bedroom instead, and this is what you get. Enjoy the couch, Gabriel."
"Enjoy your bed," he grouched. He grabbed some more blankets and handed them to Riley. "I don't see why she had to take the biggest room."
Ah. So maybe that's what he was really upset about.
"She's our boss, Gabriel," Riley said. Her partner could be so trivial sometimes. "We can't just force her to take the couch."
"I'm not saying that. She could still have the smaller bedroom at least," Gabriel uncharacteristically pouted, crossing his arms. "That way no one would have to take the couch."
"What?" Riley stopped and gave him a wide-eyed look. "She'd go ballistic if she knew we were sleeping in the same-" Riley paused then, finally realizing his pout had turned into a sarcastic look. She hated how long it sometimes took her to get his jokes. "Oh. Shut up."
"Took you long enough, jeez." They walked into the living room and set the blankets and pillow on the couch. Gabriel noticed the cold dishes left on the floor from their picnic and started bending down to pick them up while Riley moved the table back to its rightful spot in front of the fireplace.
She thought back on their fire-lit dinner for a moment and felt a flood of memories warm her cheeks. "Need any help cleaning up?"
"No, thanks. I got it," Gabriel said, disappearing into the kitchen to drop off the dishes.
When he came back into the living room, he saw Riley leaning against the back of the couch, waiting. Was she waiting to say goodnight to him? She never waited.
"This shouldn't be too bad. We both know how easy it is to fall asleep on this sofa," he told her with a smirk. Not bothering to hide the faint pink that tinged her cheeks, she just rolled her eyes and silently watched him create a makeshift bed on the couch with the supplies from the closet.
Gabriel wasn't very quick to finish, and he only got about halfway through unfolding the blankets before Riley started to turn towards the hall. Quietly, she turned over her shoulder to wish him goodnight, much to her partner's chagrin. No way was she getting off that easily, Gabriel thought and went over to catch up to her side.
"I'm just walking you to your door," he explained. Riley had turned to him with a furrow of her brows, but allowed him to continue walking with her anyways.
"How gentlemanly of you," she commented. It was only a short walk to her door. With one hand on the doorknob, she placed her other hand on his forearm in a gesture of gratitude for his nice behavior. "Thanks, Gabriel."
"For what?" he cocked his head to the side, genuinely perplexed at her sudden display of gratefulness.
"I never did get to thank you for that delicious meal you cooked," she gave him a small smile. "I don't know how you did it, but you've made your steak my most favorite meal of all time now." She gave him a look that told Gabriel she was equally pleased and annoyed by the idea.
"I told you I'm a great cook," he insisted. "You should come down to my loft more often. Home-cooked food of this quality every night – What's not to like?" he offered.
"Don't tempt me," she hummed. Riley realized her hand hadn't actually moved from its spot and that Gabriel might have moved closer to her without her realizing it. It was high time she actually twisted the doorknob instead of just clamping onto it.
"Goodnight, Riley." He seemed to have lessened his smile by a fraction of an inch when she moved away. Before she disappeared completely into her room, he reached for the same hand that had rested on his arm and caught her delicate fingers in his. She looked back at him with a question in her eyes, but he only whispered, "Sweet dreams."
"You too," she answered almost shyly. The warm feeling of her hand in his shot through her arm and went straight to her heart, and then flowed through the rest of her body. She slipped her hand through his fingertips and watched the funny expression on his face as she closed the door. What was that look he was giving her? It seemed as though she'd seen that look on him before, but couldn't quite pin just exactly what it was.
Riley turned around just in time to avoid tripping on Ivy. That solved the mystery of where the dog went for the night, at least. That was just one thing she had figured out though.
What she would've like to have known was what Gabriel's intentions were when he'd decided to cook her food. He'd mentioned it was their last night in the cabin, hinting that they should make the most of that, but what exactly was he expecting that it would entail? Probably a bit more than it actually had. Riley really did wonder what would've happened if Lillian hadn't come.
She didn't want to dwell on it though, especially when her boss was right across the hall. Riley sighed and looked at the dark room that was just barely lit by moonlight. The wind was still whipping fast outside her window, and she couldn't help but feel strangely lonely.
After she'd changed into shorts and gotten into bed, she couldn't stop thinking about how empty the small room was. Even with Ivy sleeping on the floor, she felt incredibly companion-less. With her being the only occupant of the bed, she felt cold and, strangely, uncomfortable.
It was ridiculous, of course. Although she didn't like to admit it, she spent most of her nights back home completely by herself, and it wasn't like she needed a man in her bed to fall asleep. However, after the last few nights of sharing a bed, she'd sort of gotten used to it. Sleeping without Gabriel was just plain different. Oh, no way was she ever going to say that out loud. Really, she shouldn't even have been thinking about it.
Once again, she tried and failed to put the thoughts out of her mind and fall asleep.
A few hours of restless sleep later, Riley decided to get up for a drink of water. She thought maybe it would be good enough to calm her busy mind. Maybe walking by her partner and seeing that he was fine in the living room would also do her good. With these thought in mind, she convinced herself to get up and head to the kitchen.
Wary of the sleeping lion across the hall, Riley opened the door as slowly and as quietly as possible without as much as a sound escaping her room. Ivy hadn't stirred, so the agent figured her boss wouldn't.
The cool air that rushed into her bedroom from the hallway caused goosebumps to rise on her scantily-clad thighs, but she didn't dare turn around for a blanket at the risk of stepping on Ivy somehow. Her sock-clad feet padded gently out of the door before she shut it behind her, and she successfully made it to the end of the hall before she had to suppress a sudden sneeze into her elbow.
That was close, she thought after standing still for a full minute to make sure no one had woken up. Looking down, she noticed that the light from the fireplace was dancing around her toes. She almost sighed. Didn't Gabriel know it was dangerous to keep a fire going all night while sleeping? But at least the light guided her way to the kitchen.
She snuck into the kitchen, lightly opening up a cupboard to pull a glass out. She gulped down water from the sink and sat against the counter for a moment, feeling the cold temperature from the drink spread from her stomach. She suddenly wanted nothing more than to curl up in her bed again and go to sleep.
Glad her plan was working, she grinned and tiptoed out of the kitchen towards the hall. She stopped however, when she saw the firelight again, reminding her of something. One peak over the couch surely wouldn't wake her partner up, she convinced herself, so she altered the direction she was walking in. She saw him covered up by the sheets, but thought something didn't feel right.
Riley frowned upon looking closer and seeing that the form on the couch was actually just a blanket draped over a couple of pillows. A sudden fear overtook her, and stepped back, about to turn around to look behind her so she could make sure no one had broken open the front door. She nearly screamed when the man secretly standing behind her clamped a hand over her mouth.
"Shh. Don't wake up the boss," he whispered. Gabriel had his right hand over her mouth and his left hand wrapped around her body, making sure she couldn't take him out with some form of self-defense. Her back was pressed firmly against his front, and she could feel the tight grip of his hands on her stomach through the thin fabric of her shirt. She nodded and wiggled slightly, telling him silently to release her.
She turned around to face him, seeing that he was flustered as well."What the hell, Gabriel?" she whispered, amused.
He tried and failed to suppress a chuckle. "I could ask you the same thing. I didn't hear you come past me until the water ran in the sink, so I got up to make sure the door was locked. You were already at the couch by the time I returned, so…here we are," he explained.
"You could've got my attention without scaring the crap out of me, you know," she shoved at his chest, backing him up so she could walk around the other side of the couch. "The way your blanket is lying over your pillows makes the lump look very Gabriel-like."
"First of all, I doubt I could've gotten your attention easier," he said, receiving a glare. "Second of all, I thought that I should make a dummy-body on the couch in case anyone was looking to kill me in my sleep, so I worked with the materials I had." He scratched at the stubble on his face and joined her by sitting on the edge of the couch.
It was then that Riley noticed the wine glasses still on the table. He'd apparently decided not to take care of them earlier. Hers was left untouched, but Gabriel was already refilling his using the wine bottle that he'd apparently never put away, either. "Couldn't sleep?"
"Sort of," he answered. He didn't give any reason in particular, leaving Riley wondering if he was having the same trouble she was. "We never did get to finish the wine," he continued in a hushed tone. "Care to have a drink?"
He drawled the last sentence with a scorching glance up at her. She didn't realize her hand was moving to accept the glass, and she somehow found herself sitting down on the couch next to him to drink it. She held it up to her lips and downed it as quickly as acceptably possible.
Riley was definitely feeling tired now, with the rush of adrenaline that Gabriel's scare had given her now fading. The wine was good, and especially the company, but she needed to go to bed soon before she ended up falling asleep on the couch or something. She could just imagine being woken by the angry screams of their boss, scowling at the agents that fell asleep together on the couch. No doubt she would end up inadvertently cuddling with Gabriel again, or doing something else embarrassing, and she'd probably be fired on the spot. She shuddered just thinking about it, and set her glass down while standing up.
"Going back to bed already?" Gabriel wondered, yawning himself. He stretched languidly where he was, showing off his biceps that had tanned in the sun the other day. Yup, it was most definitely bedtime, Riley thought to herself.
Gabriel stood up to accompany her once more. Thinking of nothing else to say, Riley remarked, "Walking me to my door again? What a nice date you are."
God, couldn't she have just kept her mouth shut? She refrained from slapping herself on the forehead, blaming the wine for the embarrassing words that had just escaped her.
He half-choked on a surprised laugh. "Who said that it was a date?"
"You know what I meant," she started, but was interrupted.
"No, you thought it was a date," he grinned at her. Gabriel could see the uncomfortable look on her face though, and tried to ease her embarrassment. "Well, I did cook you dinner and give you nice wine. I could see how that would be considered a date."
She smacked him in the arm. "Stop it. I didn't mean to call it…that."
"Call it a date?" he asked. She really felt ridiculous, but her flustered attitude only seemed to egg him on. "Getting a bit childish now, aren't we? Can't even admit to a date when you've just been on one."
She scoffed at him, a bit incredulous at the way he was behaving. "Now who thinks it was a date? And besides, you technically are walking me to my door." She saw his grin disappear.
"Would you be quieter?" Gabriel answered with a scowl. "You're going to end up waking Lillian."
"Now you're just trying to change the topic," she smiled. The wine was making her uncharacteristically flirty, if that.
And they were so close to parting ways. Only a few more paces until they reached her door.
As their luck would have it, they began to hear sounds behind Lillian's door as they neared it. They stopped walking and stilled their bodies, giving each other wide-eyed looks full of fear. If they were caught acting like they were, they'd be dead.
Looking to his left, Gabriel found a solution. He grabbed Riley's arm, pulling her along with him and whispered, "Quick!"
She was pulled into the darkness of the closet all of a sudden. She ended up crashing into Gabriel's chest before she found her balance and stepped back, listening for more sounds in the hallway. First, she could only hear the sound of the two breathing. Soon enough, though, they heard Lillian open up her door and pad very slowly down the hallway.
"Gabriel, she's-" Riley started, but found her lips stilled by Gabriel's fingers blindly reaching out to stop her. She smacked his hand away forcefully, hearing their boss trudge unhurriedly past the closet door. Once the sound of slippers scuffing the floors was far enough away, she tried again. "Are the pillows still under your blankets?"
He confirmed that they were quietly. Gabriel followed his partner's track of mind, knowing that his boss wouldn't suspect that he was out of his bed unless she looked closely at his fake form on the sofa. "Do you hear her in the kitchen?"
They waited in silence again, listening to each other's breaths. Soon they heard the sound of the fridge door opening.
Both took a deep breathe. Lillian was far enough away so that they could talk quietly without her hearing them. "Quite a spacious hideout, eh partner?"
Riley frowned at her partner through the darkness. The closet most certainly was not spacious now with the two of them in it. Before, it must have been the illusion of emptiness that made the closet seem so big. If Riley moved further even a little bit, she was sure she'd crash right back into Gabriel's chest.
Come to think of it, she wondered just how far away her partner really was.
"I don't understand how you can joke at a time like this," she whispered. She brought her arm up in front of her and noticed that it bumped into soft fabric not more than a foot away. She moved until she found his arm, giving him another solid punch.
"Ow," Riley heard her partner say. His head was looming very near above hers. "You really like giving me bruises. What was that one for?"
She pointed her face in the direction that she heard his voice come from. "For shoving us both into the closet." The frustration was evident in her voice. "Now we're stuck in here until she goes back into her room."
"Well," he began, "If we'd tried to go into your room, we wouldn't have made it." His voice was picking up momentum, and Riley could soon feel his presence even nearer to her. He must have leaned down more, because Riley could almost feel his breathe on her lips when he angrily asked her, "What would Lillian have thought if she'd seen me going into your room in the dead of night then, Riley?"
She tried to suppress a shudder rolling through her at the mention what he was implying. He was only looking out for her best interests, as it turned out. She needn't have been so hard on him. Really, she should be thanking him for his quick thinking. Quietly, she told him, "You're right. I'm sorry."
"What?" he asked. A quiet intake of breath from her partner indicated that he may have realized just how close he'd gotten to Riley in the span of a few minutes. She didn't feel him move back though, only heard his smug voice when he remarked, "I can't believe you actually admitted I was right, for once."
"Would you be quieter?" Riley echoed his words from earlier.
"Now who's changing the subject?" Gabriel jibed her. "You're not being a very nice date." His words floated warmly upon her lips. If only there was room to step back in the small space.
"I thought we agreed it wasn't a date," Riley said, feeling tense again. She really, really didn't want to be stuck in this situation while her boss was somewhere on the other side of the door. Unfortunately, the whole possibility of getting caught at any moment somehow made the whole idea of being in an enclosed space with Gabriel, well, so much more thrilling.
"We didn't agree on anything," he whispered, quite aware of how what little space between them seemed to be dwindling. One of Gabriel's hands found her waist and traveled down until he was able to snag his thumb in one of her belt loops, tugging her slightly closer. "After all, it sure did seem date-like. There's only one thing missing of course."
"What?" she asked, suddenly incapable of breathing. She was asking both out of curiosity and because she was made absent-minded by the way he'd tugged her hips towards him, connecting the lower halves of their bodies. She realized his other hand was now reaching for her fingertips, trying to discreetly pull the top half of her body just as close.
"I walked you to your door," Gabriel whispered against her lips, not quite touching them. "But I never gave you the one thing you always get at the end of the first date."
"Flowers?" she helplessly joked. Riley was going to turn into a puddle right then and there, she was sure of it.
She was almost positive she could hear Gabriel roll his eyes, but his grip on her only tightened. After what seemed like an eternity, he answered quietly, "A goodnight kiss."
Riley inhaled sharply, willing her heartbeat to slow down. She was unable to speak, waiting powerlessly until he tugged her hand so that her momentum carried her straight into his embrace. The small distance between their mouths was brought to a close as he placed his lips lightly in the path of hers, catching her in a delicate, barely-there kiss.
The sweetness of the kiss was only just tolerable for Riley. The way in which he'd coerced her to kiss him made her more than willing to accept his usually urgent mouth, but she was unprepared for how light his touch actually was.
And it was going to kill her.
Gabriel took a step closer so that his foot was resting between hers, leaving no room between the two agents. He tilted his head at just such an angle so that he was able to capture her lower lip. Much to Riley's delight, he finally began to increase the pressure of his lips, eliciting a quiet moan from her.
She opened her eyes at that moment, trying to peel herself from him. "Are you crazy?" she asked against his mouth, noting with surprise how rough her voice had gotten so quickly. "Lillian's in the other room!"
"Exactly," he replied, literally not willing to give her an inch. "The other room." He leaned down to take her mouth once more, swallowing her moan and distracting her nervousness. She sighed against his mouth and wondered how it was that she let this lunatic romance her.
Her back hit the wall softly as Gabriel backed her up the extra step. He decided that her jaw needed attending too, so he placed a few kisses down the line of it. She gasped as he continued the trail and hit a soft spot behind her ear. "Really, she's going to hear us." Her voice lacked conviction with every passing moment.
"Only if you keep talking," Gabriel whispered. He heard the faint sound of Lillian in the kitchen still. He quickly tapped into the microphone of his cell that was laying on the kitchen counter, making sure that his boss was still there. It sounded like she was making herself a midnight snack, so Gabriel once again turned his attention back to the much more interesting task at hand.
His mouth travelled down to Riley's neck then, lightly sucking at a spot near her shoulder. She noticed what he was doing, but refrained from calling him out on it because it just felt so surprisingly amazing. Gabriel's head lifted again, but instead of allowing him her lips, she decided to get payback on his actions.
She searched blindly with her lips until she found his Adam's apple, feeling him swallow as she kissed him. Pressing into him, she was able to shift their momentum so that his back hit the wall on the other side of the closet.
He needed a taste of his own medicine. And besides, if she was going to wear a hickey tomorrow, then he was too.
Riley shut out the voices in her head telling her it was a bad idea, and just finally allowed herself to enjoy whatever it was that they'd gotten themselves into. She leaned back and for a moment, they just shared the same space, foreheads resting against one another and noses touching. Gabriel smiled against her cheek, and she wasn't able to suppress her shudder this time when he dragged his fingertips slowly over the length of her spine. He whispered close to her ear, "See? Our date wouldn't be complete without this, right?"
Riley shook her head, not trusting her voice just yet as his hand at her hip came up to thread into her hair. His stubbled cheek grazed her smooth skin and found the corners of her mouth, searching with his lips. Her mouth had been caught by his again, and Gabriel was able to gain access when she'd parted her lips ever so slightly against his. He liked a challenge, and he soon was able to work her mouth open, using his tongue in an even hotter way of deepening the kiss. Though gentle, it was full of passion and suppressed longing that had built up over the past few days.
They broke apart once they heard the sound of footsteps down the hall again. Stilling, they grabbed each other's hands, preparing for the worst when they both could've sworn that Lillian slowed down in front of the closet door. Riley held her breath, which was hard considering Gabriel had just stolen it, and waited with high hopes that her boss wouldn't catch them.
Neither moved until they heard the click of the door shutting behind Lillian. Gabriel tapped his boss's cell and made sure he heard the sound her settling into bed again. His shoulders sagged and he turned the knob of the door open slowly, making sure not to expose themselves to further danger.
When the light once again reached their faces as it poured through the opening of the doorway, Riley saw her partner's flushed skin and smiled. She'd done that. He was pulling her out of the closet with his hand though, so she wasn't able to gaze too long at Gabriel without him noticing.
He tugged her along to get her moving towards her room again. With a glance through darkened eyes, he told her, "Like I said, we're going to have an early start tomorrow, so you really need to get some sleep."
She nodded somewhat glumly. Riley really wasn't all too eager to go back to the cold and lonely room all by herself. Noting a trace of disappointment in her expression, Gabriel said, "See? I'm a proper date. I get you into bed when I need to."
She couldn't stop the smile from spreading across her face at the suggestive comment. Riley was glad Gabriel knew how to lift her spirits in what ways he could. "Wow. Just because of one date, you think you could handle all of this?"
He chuckled at first, approaching her door and twisting the door handle. Gabriel's expression turned ever so slightly more serious as he told her, "You and I both know I could."
Riley scoffed at him, but she was never so confident that he was right. When he talked to her like that, it really made her want to shove him back in that closet and finish what they'd started. She had to remain resolute in her distance though. Right?
In warning, she told him, "Just you keep trying, Gabriel."
"Oh, I will," he answered, smiling with satisfaction beaming from his dimples when she blushed. It hadn't been intended as a challenge in the least, but Riley couldn't help but feel that he was certainly up to the task. With the hand that was still holding hers, he graced his thumb over top of her knuckles and whispered, "'Night, Riley."
"Goodnight." She turned around but heard him utter one last sentence under his breath as she was shutting the door.
"Sweet dreams," he'd mumbled.
And the sweetest of dreams she would surely have.
A/N: So…do you all still hate me?
EDIT: I just underwent wisdom teeth surgery so I'll update as soon as I'm lucid enough to write a senseable chapter. Fear not, it shouldn't take too long.