The Fate Date (Glengarry Curse #1)

21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Sabrina

“ M mmmm.” The sound travelled through her back to make her insides vibrate. She pulled the claw of her snuggle bear around her, enveloped by his embrace. She felt his breath hot at her neck, his chest molded against her, his grip reassuring.

“Mmmmm,” she responded, wiggling her bottom back closer into their little forest den.

He stiffened.

She gasped.

“Sorry,” they stammered out simultaneously and shot to opposite sides of the bed.

“I don’t usually…I’m not a snuggler,” Gavin said, abject panic barrelling out of his eyeballs.

“I thought you were a bear,” she tried to explain. That did not help things.

Gavin shot out of bed and bolted to the bathroom. He angled his hips away from her, a fact she should not have noticed.

Sabrina let out a sigh, sinking back into the bed that was still warm from Gavin’s presence. Damn, the man could cuddle. She had one objective: keep her horny hands off of Gavin Glengarry until Sunday night. She couldn’t believe her subconscious would subject her to this aching sabotage .

They danced around each other as they got ready for the day; the whole cohabiting thing, rather than deflating the fantasy of the man that existed in her head, only increased her desire for the horizontal tango.

She fiddled with the top button of her collar as Gavin’s reflection appeared behind her in the floor-length gilded mirror. “Can I say something?” He was applying deodorant. The bottom of his t-shirt lifted, revealing the muscles on his lower abdomen. Then he pulled on his turtleneck sweater, flexing above his head before he dragged it over his body; essentially lingerie for her lust-filled brain. “You seem tense.”

“I’m not tense,” she squeaked out. She couldn’t get this stupid collar to work with her jitters. She felt like an impostor. Likely because she was an impostor.

“The dress code is listed as casual. You seem uncomfortable. You should wear something you feel good in.”

“I’m trying to keep up the pretense.”

“Just be yourself.”

“Yeah, that went super well for me yesterday,” she muttered under her breath.

He laced his sneakers by the door with deft hands. Why was everything he did so sexual?

“You don’t want to be distracted by your clothes instead of reading people and making friends. It’s entirely self-serving.”

She hated that he had a point. She looked over at the clock on the side table. “I’ll meet you at breakfast.”

“You sure?” He glanced at his watch. You’d think getting a bagel in the next ten minutes was a matter of life or death.

She dug through her closet. “Save me something good.”

Twenty minutes later, clad in her oversized Dirty Dancing sweatshirt, hair scarf, hot-pink leggings and Blundstones, she traipsed across the grass feeling a lot more comfy and ready to take on the day .

Entering the main lodge breakfast area, she regretted it immediately. The buffet line looked like a funeral procession—for the death of her dignity. She popped in line behind Malcolm, who gave her outfit a very judgmental perusal.

She beamed at him. “Good morning, Malcolm.”

He grunted, then turned his head back towards the people in front of him.

Sabrina gripped her plate, wondering if she should run back and change, but trapped between the scrambled eggs and smoked salmon there was no immediate way out. She filled her plate, lamenting at missing out on the pastries because of her tardiness, and turned to seek Gavin. He was sitting at a two-person table near the windows that looked out on the forested hills. The lake, visible off in the distance to the right, was mysteriously opaque on such an overcast day. He had The Globe and Mail lifted high in front of him, which she knew communicated to the rest of the retreat participants that they should fuck off. She wanted to throw her bacon at him. Did she need to drag him by the scruff of his turtleneck to join another table?

She marched over. “Gavin…”

He flipped down the top corner of his paper, and his eyes took in her outfit. Then he lowered the paper, his eyes lowering along with it, coming to rest on her ass. He leaned back to get a better vantage. “You look nice.”

It was amazing how traitorous her body was. One look. One gravelly word from Gavin’s mouth and she was plagued with inappropriate desire. Her breasts felt heavy. Her face heated and was probably as pink as her pants. She had the ridiculous urge to slather herself in the maple syrup from her plate and have him lick it off her.

“Yeah?” she asked.

His eyes didn’t move. “Yes.” He gestured to the rest of the participants. “You’d think they didn’t read the itinerary. ”

Considering Sabrina hadn’t either, she decided to change tack. “Why are you sitting here alone?” she hissed.

He shrugged and lifted his libidinous gaze to hers. “The view is nicer,” and his eyes drifted to her butt again. Was Gavin Glengarry an ass man?

She knew she should be encouraging him to interact with the other retreat-goers. But at least here in the breakfast room they could pretend. She could lap up all his sexy looks and drink in his compliments. Was it so selfish to indulge in one breakfast date with the man? They were supposed to be a couple.

“I grabbed you the last apple fritter.” He pointed to the bread plate across from him, which resulted in her quick capitulation as she took her spot.

She sighed and picked up her donut, but stopped before she bit into it. Gavin was staring at her mouth. She took a bite and watched his jaw tic. Like last night, Sabrina distinctly felt that the craving she had for him wasn’t one-sided. You’d swear Hungry Eyes was playing in the background, only it wasn’t Baby doing a graceful merengue that was the object of his Swayze vibes, it was her tongue tangling with an apple fritter.

“What?” she asked.

He smoothed the napkin on his lap. Was he turned on?

She was supposed to be convincing him that she was the perfect corporate girlfriend. Not someone who stimulated erotic fantasies with baked goods. But she couldn’t help herself.

“Did you want some?” she asked huskily and sucked the icing off a finger.

His throat moved in a swallow. “Stop it.” It felt like a warning. She was having too much fun to heed it. At last, he’d acknowledged the weird chemistry between them, and she wanted to see how far she could push it.

“Stop what?” She licked her fingers clean .

“You know exactly what.”

She held his piercing gaze as she opened her mouth wide and took the deepest bite of donut she could.

His eyes turned icy, and he looked almost angry as he said, “Tempting me.”

The veracity of his words shot straight to her core. Unfortunately, the shock caused her to choke on the vast quantities of fritter in her mouth. She tried to keep the spray of crumbs from hitting him as she coughed up the rest, still struggling to chew.

“Smooth.” A devilish smile tracked across his lips as he turned his attention back to his scrambled eggs and paper as if nothing had happened.

An odd screeching sound broke up the tension and her hacking. The hollering grew louder until Effie rampaged into the dining hall and stole Sabrina’s worst-dressed prize. Sabrina bit down on the sides of her cheeks, hard, to keep a straight face. Effie’s entire side and bottom, from her shapely legs to her leopard print dress, were caked in mud. Bits of the Leadership Fern dangled from her head, caught in her hair like a sad, droopy fascinator.

“Who did this?” she shrieked at the room. Alfred trailed after her, trying to calm her down. “No! It took me an hour to do my hair, my dress is ruined.”

Sue walked over in a white matching tracksuit to investigate the matter. Sabrina stared down at her plate, unable to chew the food in her mouth.

“Morning, Effie,” Sue said.

Effie threw a bit of fern leaf to the ground, but it landed on her shoe. This elicited further growls. “Someone rigged up a bucket of dirt and leaves to fall on me as I left the cabin.”

An architectural masterpiece, would have been Sabrina’s description.

“We’re lucky she wasn’t seriously injured,” Alfred said .

Sabrina had helped Gavin string it up. It would have caused a light sprinkling at most.

Effie’s narrowed eyes searched the room for the guilty party. Sabrina squeezed her fork, trying to maintain composure. However, under the pressure of Effie’s scrutiny, she had to avoid her eyes, looking down again at her plate, her silent confession.

Effie strutted towards her, scraping a handful of mud from the side of her dress as she advanced. Sabrina tried to force her feet to stand, to flee, but she was frozen to her chair. Effie cranked her arm backwards, and Sabrina closed her eyes, bracing herself for the fling of mud. But it never came.

She squinted open her eyes to see Gavin standing in front of her, shielding her from the impact. “Effie,” he said, voice pitched lower than usual. He shook his head.

They glared at each other like duelling Western film stars. She had to hand it to Effie, Gavin’s classic scowl would have sent a lesser person cowering.

Alfred came up behind her. “A harmless prank, my dear.” He forced a fake chuckle. “We’ll have to come up with something diabolical to retaliate.” After another beat, Effie admitted defeat, and stomped out of the breakfast area.

Sabrina looked down at her plate but her appetite was replaced with regret. She preferred to avoid confrontation, but could a simple conversation have been a more mature solution to the issues she’d been having with Effie?

Making her excuses to Gavin, she followed the gravel path out of the main dining hall to the first cabin on her right, which she knew was Alfred and Effie’s. She didn’t have time for her usual panicked histrionics when it came to challenging conversations. She bolstered her resolve with the knowledge that her soul demanded she make amends .

Effie cracked open the door. It looked like she’d removed her dress and she held a blanket to her front to shield her undergarments. Her eyes were puffed.

“I’m sorry, Effie,” Sabrina said.

Effie opened the door and turned to rummage through her closet, offering no other acknowledgment.

Taking a deep breath before she could psych herself out, Sabrina crossed the threshold and closed the door. “This is a challenging environment and we’re all nervous about the board’s decision. I know you want the best for Alfred. The prank was immature.”

Effie looked her up and down, like she was expecting Sabrina to throw in an excuse. “Thanks,” she said. “In fairness, I haven’t been the most welcoming to you. I…I’m sorry as well.”

“Thanks. If there’s any dry-cleaning costs for your dress, please let me know.” She gave Effie a little nod and turned to reach for the doorknob.

“Alfred lost a stupid bet when you decided to come to the retreat. We’re stressed about money. I didn’t mean to take that out on you,” Effie continued, putting on the dress she’d picked out.

“Oh?” Sabrina wasn’t expecting Effie to forgive her, let alone want to keep talking. But she wasn’t going to question it. Sabrina sat on the edge of the bed.

Effie sat next to her, legs bare as she stretched her pantyhose over her toes. “Alfred is getting concerned about the budget for the wedding,” she admitted.

“Oh, I see.”

“I keep reassuring him that my aunt will pay for everything, but he keeps insisting that he wants to provide for our family. It’s sweet, if misguided.”

“I can understand that,” Sabrina said with a laugh. Gavin’s own web of financial obligations seemed quite similar. “I hope it all works out. ”

Effie scoffed and crossed to her mirror, though her eyes were locked on Sabrina. “It’s annoying you’re so nice. It’s hard to hate you. You and Gavin seem to be a perfect match.”

“He’s so supportive,” Sabrina said, returning the candid confessions. “It’s this odd feeling.” She leaned back onto her arms, trying to put into words what made Gavin so special. “He makes me want to be my best self. But I know he loves me no matter what.” She sucked in a breath. That word had popped into her mouth alarmingly without her consent. She supposed it would be appropriate if they’d been dating for over a year. But what if the connection between them was more than something fleeting? What if it was something as layered and enthralling as love? “You and Alfred seem to be the same,” she said, trying not to get lost in her delusional imagination.

“He’s great.” Effie’s smile was tight. Sabrina could sense more behind it, so she stayed silent. “It’s…sometimes I wonder…we met at a corporate picnic a few years ago…” She attacked her face with her bronzer brush. “I worry sometimes that he cares more about his work image than he does me,” she rushed out.

“Oh.” Sabrina didn’t know the couple well enough to form an opinion on the matter. And there was a part of her that worried she might be in a similar predicament.

“Never mind.” Effie attached the back of her earring in the mirror and adjusted the underwire of her bra. “I’m sure it’s nerves about this weekend.”

“Yeah,” Sabrina said, “don’t underestimate your intuition though.”

Effie’s eyes shot to hers in the mirror. “Right. By the way, Mel and I are planning on getting ready together this afternoon. I guess there’s a corporate session before the event tonight. She used to be a hairstylist and I love makeup. You should join us.”

“Thanks,” Sabrina said, shooting off the bed as Effie gathered the last of her things .

The two of them joined the group of people walking out to the field for the first activity. It had been a nerve-wracking conversation—but look at the results. Like she preached to Gavin: sometimes the fear of something was more detrimental than tackling it head on. And if she could do this with Effie, maybe she could be brave enough to talk to Gavin about her feelings too. Maybe she—

“He can’t take his eyes off you,” Effie said. Sure enough, Gavin was hastening towards them. “You are magical together. Almost like it was written in the stars.” A predatory smile stretched across her face. Sabrina felt sick, like she’d eaten too much Halloween candy. What if Effie knew about Sabrina’s shop? Her Instagram and TikTok had exploded all over the witchy corner of social media in the past week, but she hadn’t considered that might affect her this weekend. Not only would the board judge her true career, but Gavin would have to admit lying as well. What if this was yet another misstep?

Gavin came over, taking Sabrina’s hand and kissing her forehead. Effie scowled at him in greeting and then marched off towards Alfred. Maybe now wasn’t the time to admit her Jupiterian-size crush on the man. Maybe right now she needed to channel Saturn’s restraint, or else Effie and the cosmos might ruin all their plans.

***

G avin huddled with his rag-tag team on the field, their breaths mingling in a white cloud of condensation as they attempted to formulate a plan for what Sue was calling a ‘rousing display of teamwork’. Capture the flag, in layman’s terms.

“I’d like to lead the offensive,” Mariana said.

Omar, Jonathan, and Ashley indicated their interest in offense as well.

“We’ll stick to the forested area on the sidelines,” Mariana added. The trees glittered back at them, the frost melting in the sun’s sluggish rays .

“I can be your decoy,” Ian said. It was a good role. He was athletic, and given his position as CEO, very conspicuous. “I’ll draw their attention with my best version of Old MacDonald .”

Gavin shuddered.

“I can guard the jail,” Nila said.

Gavin scanned the tree line at the back of their playing area. “Don’t all look at once, but there’s a series of woodpecker holes in one of the trees back there. We can tuck the flag in there?”

The others nodded their consensus, and Gavin scrutinized the other people left for the defensive squad. Leslie kicked at the crunchy grass and Min’s eyes shifted, like she was trying to come up with an excuse to sit on the sidelines. While they both seemed willing to participate, Gavin assumed he would take the lead on defense.

The team divide wasn’t ideal for either Alfred’s bet or Operation Woo Sabrina. After rebuffing his efforts last night, Sabrina clearly needed proof that he could be more than “Mr. Spreadsheet”. But the odds were not in his favour. The cows, sheep, and pigs were grouped together, while the cats, roosters, and horses, which included Sabrina and Alfred were similarly huddled on the other side of the playing field.

The Chair of the Board, Bojana, stood with her arms crossed on the sideline with her trademark look of perpetual boredom. Gavin had only seen the woman light up when studying spreadsheets and well, Gavin couldn’t really fault her for that. But Sabrina’s advice from the night before made him want to try a new strategy.

“Bojana—could you be our eyes? You can alert us to someone making a break for it.”

She nodded in agreement.

Gavin suppressed his inner cringe as their team gave a cheer, and Sue blew the whistle, announcing the start of the game. He wasn’t surprised to see Alfred bolt forwards to make a break for their team’s flag, and subsequently get captured. Like it was a family trait, Effie stood on the sidelines, staring at her phone, mirroring her aunt on the opposite side of the divide. Unlike Gavin’s team, whose defensive players were spread out, the other team’s defense clustered around a tree stump at the back of their playing field.

“You see how they’re grouped, Mariana?”

She nodded in acknowledgment, and they all waited for Ian’s spectacle to start.

The nasal twang was a nice touch. Voice cracking, the dulcet tones of the “ here a baa, there a baa, everywhere a baa-baa ” made it sound like the poor sheep was being murdered. Ian ran as fast as he could, trying to draw out the bulk of their defensive players. Mariana, Jonathan, and Omar made their first attempt for the flag, but Bethany spotted them, attuned to her partner’s movements. It was the same for Gavin with Sabrina, even if she hadn’t been wearing hot-pink leggings. Her smile had a magnetic pull on him and he could always sense her whereabouts. In this case, she was in a stare-down with Leslie at the boundary line between the two sides.

The offensive players did their best. Bethany went for Mariana first, escorting her to the jail. Omar was similarly compromised, but Jonathan was able to circle the tree stump before running back over to their side.

“The flag’s not in there,” he reported.

Leslie made a break for the teammates in jail, leaving Gavin to maintain a watchful gaze on his true opponent. His opposite. In hot-pink leggings that made her ass look incredible.

Bojana cleared her throat and pointed to the tree line. Her hand was apathetically limp—but her mesmerized gaze betrayed a modicum of interest.

But even without Bojana’s nudge, he still would have sensed her.

“Mine!” he yelled out to the team and began his stealthy approach. He noticed that Leslie, instead of freeing a teammate, had been captured. That left their numbers dwindling .

Effie continued to pace the sidelines, closer to the middle now, as she typed on her phone. Three weeks ago, Gavin might have done the exact same thing. But right now, the thrilling adrenaline surged through him as he mounted his defense.

Three of the other team hid in the trees, so he motioned for Min to help, leaving Bojana to keep watch. Their adversaries stood in a triangle formation where the woods cleared. The enemies stepped forwards, and Sabrina’s eyes blazed at him.

He bent his knees preparing for the chase.

She charged forwards, and her teammates followed her into battle.

Gavin caught Aidan first, passing him off to another player to bring to jail. Min captured Yves, leaving Gavin to chase Sabrina, who was surprisingly speedy for someone with such tiny legs. Her eyes searched for the flag while simultaneously dodging Bojana. “It’s here,” she called to her team and pointed at the woodpecker tree.

She booked it back towards safety, but Gavin gave chase. Her laughter caused him to race faster, her joy like an accelerant. He felt the burn of air in the back of his throat, pulling him into this stand-off. He tagged her and grabbed her slim arm. “To jail with you, Tink.”

“Never.” And the little rebel ripped herself out of his grip.

“That’s cheating,” he yelled at her retreating back, picking up his pace again. Just as she was about to cross to safety, Gavin spotted his chance. He scooped her up in his arms, grabbed her by the waist, and threw her over his shoulder.

She kicked the air. “Interference,” she hollered, but Sue allowed it, given her earlier infraction. He let her down when he got to the jail. Breathing hard, he took her wrists in one hand behind her back.

She tipped her head up at him defiantly.

“You shouldn’t have cheated, Tink,” he said next to her ear, unable to stop himself. He was desperate to know what his good little witch would do next .

Though he had her pinned, she didn’t cower; in fact, it seemed to excite her. Her chest rose and fell though Gavin doubted just from exertion. “And what are you going to do about it?” she whispered. Her tongue grazed her lower lip.

His grip on her wrists tightened. His mind warned that he was at a corporate retreat, with a promotion on the line. But his body moved closer, and she let out that telling gasp of hers.

He knew his colleagues looked on. He knew his remaining teammates needed him. He even registered that some board members were still undecided and may not be impressed by his depraved intentions. But in this moment, as his blood ran hot and her eyes sparkled up at him, he didn’t give two fucks. Until now, all of the kisses between them had been initiated by her. After her breakfast torture, it was his turn to show her what happened when she teased the beast inside him.

Holding her wrists in one hand, he brought the other to her jaw, tilting her closer. She groaned as his lips took hers. It wasn’t chaste, it wasn’t gentle. He was in control, the kiss deep and demanding. He kissed like he intended to wipe any thought of spreadsheets, checklists, or packing systems out of her mind forever. But he wasn’t prepared for her reaction. She pressed her breasts against him, trying to angle herself closer. Her tongue came forwards and she wasn’t shy about it this time. A satisfied hum escaped as she glided her tongue over his, the low vibrations shooting straight to his cock. He let go of her hands and cupped her ass, pulling her flush against him. Dazedly, he registered his colleagues hooting in the background. A unique voice scrambled his brain even further, causing him to halt the kiss, remove his hand from her butt, and listen.

Bojana was cheering. She jumped and pointed to…Effie.

Damn. In fairness, the woman deserved to win considering how fast she darted across the field in platform heels. Gavin’s teammates trailed behind, but like him, they’d all been fooled .

Effie crossed the midline of the field with their flag, and Sue blew her whistle, announcing their defeat. The roosters crowed, the horses whinnied, and cats meowed. At least, as the losers, they didn’t have to listen to Ian’s animal impressions again. Gavin watched as Sabrina retreated to her team, blowing a kiss over her shoulder at him, grinning.

They regrouped, and he felt a little sheepish when he saw the look on his teammates’ faces. Gavin hated PDA himself. He hadn’t only kissed Sabrina, he’d groped her for all to see, and let the others down.

“Sorry, team.” He scratched the back of his neck. “I got a bit distracted.”

Nila fanned herself. “Phew, did you ever.”

Gavin’s face heated.

Ian came to pat him on the back. “There isn’t a more noble cause for losing than true love.”

Ian was giving him an out with his team, so Gavin didn’t argue, but the word thudded around in his chest. His impulses had gotten the better of him again, that was all. Lust, desire, attraction—it couldn’t be love. He looked over to Sabrina. She was glowing, laughing with her team, earning accolades for her powers of diversion. He realized he was smiling too.

She wanted him. There had been no hesitation in her eyes when he’d kissed her. But was that…it? He wanted more. The stories from her day, her playful texts, her smile, her laughter. What if she just didn’t want the same from him?

“That was inappropriate,” Malcolm growled out at him. Gavin slowed his walk to keep pace with him. The group migrated back to the main lodge.

“Yeah. I know.” He needed to deal with this. He needed clarity. Once he had that, these impulsive decisions would cease. His instinct was to sit down with Sabrina for a renegotiation of the terms of their agreement. They could schedule dates on a shared calendar. Have a sub-section on sexual preferences. But most importantly, get rid of the stupid clause that all contact would cease between them after the retreat. He’d opt for an indefinite-term relationship.

“I’d advise you to keep your head on business this afternoon. Some of the board members are beginning to ask questions. I’ve championed your candidacy thus far, and you’re making me look the fool with these little stunts.”

Gavin swallowed down the reprimand.. He appreciated Malcolm’s blunt assessments, but typically it would be the two of them discussing other people’s poor decisions. Not his own. “Noted.”

He followed the group back to the main hall for lunch, watching as Sabrina flitted from person to person, amazed she’d met most of these people yesterday. The schedule had them separated for the rest of the afternoon, giving Gavin some much-needed space to plan. Sabrina wouldn’t want a formal discussion. He needed something daring. Something romantic. And something that wouldn’t have his career crashing down in the process.