A Bargain with the Enemy

He frowned darkly as he slowly released her. ‘You’re working today?’

‘Of course I’m working today,’ she dismissed impatiently as she stepped away from him, finally able to breathe again now that she wasn’t pressed up against the disturbing length of his body. ‘I haven’t sold any of my paintings yet, and I still have my rent to pay at the end of the month,’ she added ruefully.

Gabriel moved to lean back against the front of his desk. ‘As of this morning, one of your paintings has a reserved sticker on it.’

Her gaze sharpened. ‘It does?’

Gabriel nodded. ‘Michael wants it.’

Her eyes widened. ‘He does?’

Gabriel smiled ruefully. ‘Hmm.’

‘Which one?’

‘The rose.’

The dying red rose, Bryn’s representation of the death of hopes and dreams rather than just the flower itself.

Did the austere Michael D’Angelo, a man who gave the appearance of being so totally self-contained, a man who surely had no hopes and dreams to die, appreciate the full meaning of her painting?

‘That’s— I’m flattered,’ Bryn murmured softly.

Gabriel nodded grimly. ‘You should be. Michael’s private art collection is very exclusive. I have every reason to believe that Lord Simmons is very interested in purchasing one too.’

‘That’s...amazing.’ Bryn’s eyes glowed excitedly as she reached out and grasped his hands impulsively. ‘This is really going to happen, isn’t it, Gabriel? I’m really going to sell some of my paintings, maybe even be able to paint full-time!’

‘It’s as real as it gets, yes,’ Gabriel confirmed huskily as he pulled her in between his parted thighs before placing her hands against his chest. ‘Tonight is your night, Bryn.’ His hands cupped either side of her face as he gave in to the hunger and kissed her gently on the lips that had haunted and tormented him for the past five years. ‘And I want you to enjoy it. Every single moment of it,’ he encouraged.

‘Oh, I will,’ she assured him happily, her hands warm against his chest. ‘I— Thank you, Gabriel, for giving me this chance. I really— I know I’ve been difficult on occasion—’ she grimaced ‘—but I—I really do appreciate everything you’ve done for me.’

Gabriel could only hope that Bryn still felt that way after tonight.

The past two weeks of being close to Bryn, but never quite close enough, had been enough of a hell for Gabriel to know that the two of them couldn’t go on like this indefinitely, that something had to change, and that it wasn’t going to be the way he felt about Bryn.

So he had made his arrangements accordingly. Carefully and quietly. Arrangements that would come to full fruition later this evening.

And he wasn’t sure Bryn would ever forgive him.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

‘IS IT EVERYTHING you hoped it would be?’

Bryn turned to smile warmly at Eric as he came to stand beside her. ‘It’s so much more!’ Her smile widened as he handed her one of the glasses of champagne he carried.

There were over two hundred people crowded into the west gallery for this invitation-only showing, the men all wearing evening suits, the women chic and glittering in their evening gowns and expensive jewellery. Two dozen waiters circulated amongst them carrying trays of finger food and glasses of champagne and half a dozen huge arrangements of flowers perfumed the brightly lit room, all adding to Bryn’s light-headed euphoria.

Bryn had chosen to wear a simple black sheath of an above-the-knee length, her only jewellery a simple silver bracelet about one of her wrists and a silver locket at her throat, both of them presents from her mother.

Her smile faded a little at thoughts of her mother, knowing how much Mary would have loved all of this, how proud she would have been of Bryn’s success. Instead, Bryn still hadn’t so much as dared to tell her mother about the exhibition; how could she when that exhibition was being held at the Archangel Gallery?

As might be expected, the D’Angelo brothers all looked amazingly handsome in their evening suits as they stood head, and sometimes shoulders, above the other guests, the darkness of their different lengths of hair becoming a sable sheen below the glittering lights of the chandeliers above them. Michael was as remotely austere as ever when he gave her a brief nod of acknowledgement earlier, Rafe as rakishly devil-may-care as he shot her another wink.

But to Bryn’s biased gaze Gabriel was far and away the most distinguished man in the room, and she once again found her gaze shifting to the other side of the gallery where he stood in conversation with David Simmons. His mesmerising and dark good looks drew Bryn’s gaze to him again and again as if pulled by a magnet, her heart now skipping a beat as Gabriel laughed easily at something the older man had just said to him.

A heart that ached. To be with Gabriel. To make love with him, just once.

* * *

Gabriel stilled as he felt a prickle of awareness, of being watched, at his nape and down his spine. Allowing his gaze to move unhurriedly about the room, he sought the source of that awareness even as he continued his conversation with the enthusiastic David Simmons.

Bryn.

Standing beside Eric on the other side of the crowded gallery, her eyes a deep and misty grey as they looked directly into his, the fullness of her lips curving into an enigmatic smile.

Gabriel raised his champagne glass to her in a silent toast; the exhibition was only an hour old but already Bryn’s paintings were noticeably attracting the most attention.

Her smile widened as she accepted his silent toast, her eyes glowing. With happiness? Or something else?

‘—keep you any longer when I can see I’m keeping you from where you really want to be,’ David drawled dryly.

Gabriel drew his gaze reluctantly from Bryn’s as he turned back to the other man. ‘Sorry?’

The older man chuckled good-naturedly. ‘I advise you go to her, man!’

Gabriel gave a rueful smile. ‘Is it that obvious?’

David continued to smile indulgently. ‘Lovely-looking girl. Beautiful as well as talented. Deadly combination, hmm?’

‘Deadly,’ Gabriel accepted heavily.

‘Then go to it, man.’ David gave him an encouraging slap on the shoulder. ‘Before that rascal of a brother of yours beats you to it,’ he added with a pointed look at Rafe making his way determinedly in Bryn’s direction.

‘Damn you, Rafe,’ Gabriel muttered impatiently even as he placed his empty champagne glass on the tray of one of the passing waiters before striding forcefully across the room to intercept his brother. ‘This isn’t what we agreed your role would be this evening, Rafe!’ He glowered in warning.

Rafe raised mocking brows. ‘I just thought I would keep Bryn company while I’m waiting. She looks absolutely stunning this evening, by the way.’

‘Hands off, Rafe,’ he growled.

His brother grinned unrepentantly. ‘Does Bryn know how damned possessive you are over her?’

‘Yes.’ He frowned grimly, not sure that Bryn wasn’t actually going to hate him by the end of this evening.

Rafe chuckled. ‘And have you told her how you feel about her yet?’

‘Go to hell, Rafe.’

Rafe looked comfortably unconcerned. ‘Of course. Why do things the easy way when you can so easily complicate the hell out of them?’ He gave a rueful shake of his head. ‘At this rate you’re going to end up as cold and remote as Michael!’

Gabriel glanced across to where their older brother managed to remain withdrawn even while mingling with their guests. ‘He likes his life that way.’ He shrugged.

‘But you don’t, not anymore. Which is why—’ Rafe turned back to Gabriel, brows raised ‘—complicated or not, you should just grab your woman and to hell with everything else!’

‘We both know it isn’t that simple where Bryn is concerned.’ Gabriel grimaced.

‘Then I suggest you make it that simple and put the rest of us out of our misery.’

‘Your turn will come, Rafe,’ Gabriel warned impatiently. ‘And when it does we’ll see just how well you deal with it. And her.’

Rafe gave a scornful snort. ‘There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that I’m going to let some woman—any woman!—come between me and my bachelor lifestyle.’

‘Oh, it will come, Rafe, take my word for it, and when it does I’m going to enjoy seeing you have to eat your words.’ Gabriel chuckled with satisfaction. ‘In the meantime, keep your lethal charms away from Bryn,’ he added firmly.

‘Just can’t stand the competition, hmm?’

‘You’re too irritating for me to consider you serious competition,’ Gabriel drawled dismissively, his gaze once again returning to, and remaining on, Bryn as she chatted with Eric. ‘If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go and talk to “my woman”.’ But before he could even begin to cross the room to Bryn’s side he saw her face pale, her eyes widening in distress as she stared across at the entrance to the gallery.