Please note the change in rating from 'T' to 'M' in reflection of this chapter. This chapter contains explicit content not suitable for young readers. However, for ease of reading this chapter has been separated from the rest of the story and contains absolutely nothing important to the plotline. If you wish to skip directly over this portion please feel free to hit the 'next chapter' button because you won't be missing anything.

16

Firsts

March 15, 2006 - 0 days until 'Patient Zero' is discovered

Gabriel stumbled backward into the table with the weight of Claire in his arms, her legs wrapped around his waist and hands threaded through his hair as she enthusiastically coerced strangled groans of excitement from his lips. "Are you sure about this?" he asked breathlessly, attempting to focus through the daze she had left him in. "Because I don't want to do anything that you don't -"

A finger found its way to his blissfully surprised mouth to beg silence of his modest denial. She leaned forward, touching her forehead to his, whispering, "I've never been so sure about anything in my life." He allowed her to slip from his grasp, smoothing her hair away from her face and gazing into her eyes. She knew that he wanted to see through the next step of progression in their relationship as much as she did, but watching him turn over worried thoughts as he studied her intentions caused her to realize that he was somehow just as terrified of the prospect or possibly more. "And I won't leave you afterwards." That earned her a shy smile. He brought a calloused hand up to cup her chin, allowing his thumb to move over the silk of her bottom lip before depositing a kiss there.

Gabriel stood quietly looking toward the bed with his arms around Claire's waist, resting his chin on her shoulder for several long minutes. She was reluctant to move from her position, mentally citing an incredible amount of comfort in the simple stance. The arms holding her were protective and safe, laden with a surprising amount of tensile strength. His body heat enveloped her like a warm blanket and his calm, steady breathing was an odd assurance that he would not leave her side so long as she wanted him there.

It was still a strange thought in a way - wanting him there. Wanting him to talk to, to share her secrets with, to laugh with, and to hold her like that. Wanting him at all, let alone in such intimate ways.

But this was not the same man that she had sought out to destroy. He was not the suave, cunning, and cruel feature of her fears. He wasn't full of malicious intent to cause her or her loved ones harm. No, this man that gently sighed in her ear could never hurt her or anyone else. He was Gabriel Gray, the sweet, intelligent, and all too often overlooked watchmaker from Queens. He came with a colorful assortment of eccentricities, nervous habits, and crippling emotional scars, but she accepted them all. Wounded though he may have been, Gabriel made her heart swell.

Goosebumps prickled over her skin as he turned his head slightly and inhaled a deep, slow breath of the scent at her neck. Claire would have been lying to herself if she tried to deny that it gave her a little thrill. She could feel him inch his face just a little closer to her and lightly touched his lips to the space above her collar bone. She could see him on her peripheral view looking up from where he rested, searching for confirmation in her face whether what he had done was accepted or not, whether he should try again. She closed her eyes and stood her ground, letting the complete lack of resistance be her answer.

Sensing that his action was not unapproved of, he shifted enough to allow himself to continue dotting light kisses up her neck until he reached the space just behind her ear. His hands drifted from their sheltering position, smoothing her hair away from her shoulders, and coming to rest on her hips. He hesitated again, always looking for reassurance that he would not be in the wrong. She let herself relax into him until her back lay flush with his chest and stomach. His warm breath was so close to her ear that it tickled a bit and a slow smile crept over her mouth.

Gabriel tightened the grip of one hand on her hip slightly and moved the other, tracing his fingers up her side and over her arm until he reached her shoulder and held it towards him while he pulled her shirt far enough down to cover the area with more kisses. His lips trailed their way back up to the space above her collar bone where he nuzzled her neck tenderly and planted another lingering kiss at the base of her jaw. He held a soft hand up to turn her face towards him, allowing a small playful flick of his tongue at her ear before running more kisses over the line of her mandible. Claire shivered even though she could feel her own body heating up as well as his.

She turned, loosening his grasp on her until she stood facing him. He had drawn back to his full height when she moved and then towered over her. Once upon a time it would have frightened her to see his intense calculating eyes blazing down on her with the light of hungry desire behind them, but at that moment the view just filled her stomach with fluttering butterflies and sent her heart into a frenzy.

Claire placed her hands on either side of his face and balanced on the tips of her toes to meet his mouth. She met another moment of hesitation before he allowed his body to relax into hers, giving ground to the more primal side of his nature. His hands found their way into her hair, massaging her scalp and the space behind her ears as his kisses became more aggressive. She parted her lips to lightly trace her tongue over the top of his and grinned wickedly at the sharp inhale of air that he took.

He was pushed a step farther when she moved her hands to the hem of his shirt and slipped them under the garment to explore. He shivered a little, smiling in between kisses. Claire ran her hands over the expanse of his back, across the flexing muscles of his stomach and up to his sculpted chest, trailing her fingers back down to his hips and tracing the top of his pants. His jaw tightened during her caress and his mouth collided with hers at a fevered pitch. He tilted her face up and dipped to lead more hungry kisses down her neck, swirling his tongue around the fleshy spot that met her shoulders and nibbling gently. Claire had to bite her bottom lip to hold back the little gasp that wanted to work its way out of her.

Gabriel momentarily became a living statue of silent shock when she started tugging at the buttons of his shirt. She dotted kisses along his collar bone as she slipped her hand inside the top part of his shirt that had been undone and swiped downward, undoing half and sending the remaining buttons bouncing to the floor. She reawakened him as she slipped the shirt from his shoulders, dropping it unceremoniously onto the floor and dived in for another round of increasingly fervent kisses.

His hands also became curiously adventurous, sneaking just under her blouse to rub soothing downward circles over the silky soft skin covering her hip bones. Claire was rapidly losing control over her bodily urges and she pulled away from him long enough to lift her own shirt over her head. She jumped on him, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. Strong hands met her thighs, gripping them tight as he stumbled toward the bed and fell forward so that she was pinned in that same position beneath him. Claire gasped again as their bodies meshed and the evidence of her partner's arousal brushed against her.

"Please tell me you remembered to bring -"

"Top drawer. Just in case."

He absentmindedly kicked off his shoes, and tossed hers away as well before lifting her up to the head of the bed so that he could climb on top more comfortably. She lifted herself to free the clasp of her bra and fell back onto the fluffy pillows as his kisses returned to her neck, moving slowly downward with optimal tongue and teeth rotations. A hand gingerly massaged her breast before tugging the supportive undergarment away and flinging it across the room. His kisses paused at the space between her breasts and turned toward one while his hand continued attention on the other. Claire let another sharp gasp escape as his tongue twirled around her nipple a few times before gently pulling at it with his teeth. He repeated the procedure to the other breast while his fingers teased the one his mouth had just left.

The oral adventure continued down her stomach to the dips of her pelvis, which he nibbled at, pressing his thumbs in downward circular motions to a point just below the barrier of her jeans. He grasped the back of her thighs as he swirled his tongue around her belly button, trailed upward along the center of her stomach and back again before blowing lightly. The cool stream of air caused her to shudder and arch her back into him.

Claire made quick work of undoing the brass fastenings of her jeans and he assisted in pulling the clothing down to her ankles and then to the floor. His eyes widened in surprise for a moment, taking in the sight of the white lace panties that she had changed into, before darkening again with ravenous intentions. "I hoped you would wear those." Gabriel lifted a leg and kissed along the inside of her thigh and down her calf, massaging the smooth skin as he went. He flipped her socks off and rubbed her feet, placing a kiss on each one and causing her to giggle.

A wide dopey grin spread over his features when she playfully wagged a finger at him to come back and he slid his body over hers to meet her mouth again. She ferociously attacked the button and zipper of his jeans causing him to laugh wholeheartedly at her persistence for the pants to be removed from the equation. Gabriel stood to discard the jeans and pulled the covers down on the bed, scooped Claire up in his arms, and deposited her under the sheets before sliding in beside her and pulling the blanket back over him. Her legs eagerly parted for him as his fingers crept down her underwear.

"Oh, Claire," he whispered into her kiss, elating in her excitement for him. The tip of a finger slipped inside of her and her hips seemed to shift of their own accord. He dipped just a bit further with a little flair that made her shudder against him. But then he stopped abruptly and pulled away, furrowing his eyebrows at her.

"What? What's wrong?" she asked, filling with concern that she had somehow done something wrong or unattractive.

"Claire, have you ever done this before?" There was an insulting amount of surprise in the accusatory tone of his voice.

"No." Embarrassment flushed her cheeks a rosy shade of red.

He shook his head in confusion and sat up away from her, motioning to remove himself from the bed. She was quick to snatch his wrist before he could make his getaway. He wouldn't look at her so she climbed to her knees and moved her arms around his neck.

"Claire, we can't do this. I can't do this…" he mumbled, still refusing to return her gaze.

"Why? You don't… want me?" Her voice cracked a little under the strain of his rejection.

"That's the problem. I do want you. I want you more than anything I've ever wanted before."

"But?"

"Claire," he turned solemn eyes on her and clasped the hands draping over his chest, "your first… time should be with someone special." His head sunk slightly with the weight of his own words.

"You are special, Gabriel. You're special to me." Hope flickered in the back of his dimmed eyes but he shook his head again and turned his face away from her.

"Gabriel, look at me," she demanded, capturing his jaw and forcing him to look her in the eyes again. "I want you, not someone else. I want you to be the one… I need you. Please?" She pressed her bare chest against his back and nibbled at his ear, provoking another sharp intake of breath. "Please," she whispered into his ear with an impish smile as her hand found itself creeping down his stomach to the fly of his boxer shorts. "Please," she whispered to him one more time as she released him from the constriction of the underwear and gave him an experimental stroke. His head fell back and he groaned at her erotic touch.

The inner animal flared to life inside of him again and his worries were forgotten as he turned against her, kicking the boxers away before wrapping her in his arms and laying her back down on the pillows. A hand tightened around the section of her underwear protecting her from him and almost violently ripped them away. His hands and mouth glided over her body again until he rested at the very foot of the bed. Strong hands grasped her thighs and parted them, lifting them over his shoulders as he fervently kissed every inch of her legs moving upward. He continued to massage her skin as his kisses found their way to her most sensitive areas. Claire viciously bit into her bottom lip as her back arched. The waves of good feelings that he was invoking washed over her body, steadily increasing in pace and intensity until her nerves were worn raw with tightly coiled tension. And then he slipped away from her, closing her shaking knees together and grinning wickedly when she cried out for the loss of his manipulations.

Gabriel stretched himself out over her, brushing the palm of his hand against her cheek as he gazed deep into her eyes. "Are you absolutely sure about this?" he asked leaning in to place his lips on hers.

"I'm sure."

Nervous butterflies returned to her stomach as he retrieved a condom from the top drawer and moved between her legs. He ran a finger down her side as he studied her body below him, drinking in every detail of her figure. "If it doesn't feel… good and you need me to stop, please tell me. I don't want you to let me hurt you."

She pulled him close to her, threading her fingers through his hair and tried to ignore the trembling in his shoulders. Gabriel could put on a brave face but she knew him well enough to know when he was losing his bravado. "You can't hurt me," she assured him between fervent kisses.

"Tell me again," he whispered to her, positioning himself at her entrance.

"I want you, Gabriel," she answered earnestly with breathless anticipation as she smoothed a rogue lock of hair away from his eyes. He pushed himself a small way inside of her and then paused to lean down next to her ear.

"I love you, Claire." Finding her hands to lace their fingers together, he gently thrust forward, penetrating her innocence.

Claire's eyes burst open and her lungs filled with more air than they should have been able to hold. He gave her a moment to acclimate to the sensation of having him rest inside of her, occupying himself with doting kisses to her cheek and neck. "Are you okay?" he inquired while making a tight-jawed grimace.

She nodded wordlessly. There wasn't any physical pain but her body was reluctant to accept the amount of stretching occurring, so it did what it did best and attempted to heal around the damage. Unfortunately, what was responsible for the damaging fullness was Gabriel whom she knew felt her ability at work too from his revolving series of strange facial expressions between pleasant surprise and tongue-biting concentration. He gave off a full-body shudder that rippled back through her before braving another movement.

Claire breathed deeply again, feeling a strange thrumming sensation as blood rushed to where their bodies joined, their heartbeats creating a slight pulsating effect together in the tight constriction. She shifted to align herself with him better, and he backed away before burying himself within her core again. Claire felt all of her senses popping with the stimulation, making her more alive than she could ever remember being before. A fire was burning its way through her and she wanted more.

Gabriel hiked a leg over his waist and dipped to hit an even deeper spot making her moan. His eyes twinkled with delight at having found the magic button and he strived to touch it again and again. She roamed her hands over the shifting muscles of his back and pulled him down closer to her. She kissed and nibbled at his neck and ear as he hoisted her other leg around him. Her moans and gasps came with every thrust, growing louder as his movements quickened and strengthened.

"Wait," he pled, stopping. She squirmed a little, searching for more of the delicious friction that she craved. "Wait," he asked again, gripping her hips so that she couldn't move anymore. A hand moved down her stomach to reach between them. Gabriel dropped his head to the crook of her neck, hitching his ragged pants for breath and desperately trying to think about anything but the way she moved around him as his fingers worked her sensitivities into the same frenzy that he was feeling. Content with his work in her broken moans, he proceeded to push her over the edge of oblivion.

One last hard thrust and her vision went snowy white. The force of her orgasm reverberated throughout her entire body, seizing every muscle uncontrollably, turning her toes backwards and sending her head swimming aimlessly as she momentarily forgot how to breathe. The shudder that wracked her with a silent scream also sent him reeling, choking on her name as he couldn't hold back any longer. Gabriel collapsed, exhausted onto her breast.

Claire raked her fingers through his sweaty hair, hugging him close to her, feeling absolutely sated. When their erratic hearts slowed and heavy breathing subsided, their lips met again for a few sloppy post-coital kisses. He withdrew from her, leaving her feeling empty but too spent to argue until her body finished snapping itself back in to place. They tangled around one another as they had become accustomed to being, her head drowsily finding its place on his chest and his arms twining securely about her middle, a large hand splaying long possessive fingers over her stomach.

"I love you, Gabriel," she mumbled from the fringes of consciousness.

"Thank you," he whispered back to her. Together they fell into a deep, dreamless, and wonderfully worry-free sleep.

To be continued...