Chapter 614: Devious
Autumn jumped at the sound of Gabe’s voice, turning wide-eyed to face him. "I’m changing the light bulb," she replied, her tone slightly defensive.
Gabe nodded, averting his gaze. Her eyes—startlingly intense so early in the morning—had caught him off guard. Shaking off his distraction, he turned back to see Autumn still struggling to reach the bulb holder, even standing on a chair.
"Why don’t I help you?" he offered, stepping closer. Before Autumn could accept or reject his offer, his hands went around her knees and he lifted her higher.
Autumn gasped, instinctively wrapping her arms around his neck for support as she almost dropped the light bulb. "Gabe!" she exclaimed, caught off guard by his sudden move. "What are you doing?"
"Saving you from hanging onto that holder like Tarzan!" Gabe grinned as Autumn tried to catch the light fixture which was now swinging back and forth due to Autumn having hit it when she was picked up by Gabe.
With one hand on his shoulder, Autumn caught the fixture with the other, and once it had stopped moving, carefully fixed the light bulb inside, letting out a breath of relief. Finally, it was inside and she would have light again in the kitchen.
The job done, Autumn looked down to tell Gabe to let her down. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked at him though... Holding her gaze, he slowly buried his face near her belly and slid her down the chair. She tightened her hands on his shoulders, as she looked at him with hear in her eyes. As she reached level with his face, his hands slid to her back. With a sharp move, he pushed her towards him and caught her lips.
The movement was sharp, almost hopeful, but it ignited a passion within her. She closed her eyes and kissed him back, forgetting they were in the kitchen.... She wanted more of him. Autumn tapped with her fist onto his biceps, wanting more. But before she could speak the words, a startled scream woke her up, breaking the two apart as they immediately realized it was Arabelle who was screaming.
Carefully, Gabe placed Autumn down and the two people hurried towards the room, only to find Arabelle screaming again, her eyes closed. Gabe breathed a sigh of relief as he moved to gently awaken the little girl.