Jessie's Jewels [Submissive Sirens 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) by Charlotte Smith

Gabriel suddenly pinched her side, causing her to jump toward him from the ticklish sensation he’d left just above her hip. She squirmed against him, wanting to rub her side where he’d pinched it, but unable to because of the spoon and bowl she now juggled. Gabriel rubbed her side soothingly just before picking up a bowl of the chocolate-cayenne pepper ice, and Jessie looked at him incredulously once more. He smiled guilelessly at her as he lifted the spoon to his mouth, and Jessie tore her eyes away. Watching that tiny spoon disappear between his lips had done interesting things to her libido, and she could feel a warm sensation start to spread outward from her core.
    “How’s the ice, love?” Gabriel’s voice washed over Jessie like warm chocolate.
    “It’s delicious.” Jessie spooned up another mouthful of the ice, loving the vivid pink color and sweet-tart taste.
    Edward snorted. “Of course, that flavor is perfect for you.”
    Jessie felt her face begin to flame, and she felt Gabriel go very still beside her. She didn’t know where Edward was going with this, but she didn’t think it would be somewhere pleasant.
    “And what does that mean?” Gabriel’s voice was deceptively mild, but Jessie could hear the steel underneath. Edward, evidently, could not.
    “Well, you know the old saying ‘you are what you eat.’ I was just thinking that Jessie chose well for herself.” Edward’s eyes bored into Jessie’s.
    “It’s interesting if we apply the same theory to you and your wife.” Gabriel deliberately ate another mouthful of his ice, letting the full impact of his words sink in. Unfortunately, Edward seemed to be incredibly dense when it came to this sort of repartee, and Jessie almost felt sorry for him. Almost, but not quite.
    “Why on earth would we be ashamed of our gelato? Vanilla is a perfectly respectable flavor. It’s refined, elegant, and universally liked.” Edward looked at his wife and smiled smugly at Jessie and Gabriel, puffing himself up like he’d scored an incontrovertible point in his favor.
    “Vanilla is bland.” Gabriel calmly continued eating. “That’s the only universal thing about it. It’s plain, and it often needs something to spice it up.”
    Edward began to laugh, although to Jessie, his laughter rang hollow. “Well, then, I must say you two are perfectly well matched.”
    Gabriel raised an eyebrow. “And why is that?”
    Jessie was afraid she knew where this was going, and she felt powerless to stop it, like she was caught in the path of a speeding locomotive.
    Edward smiled triumphantly. “Well, as I said, it’s perfect that Lady Jessamy’s flavor is...tart. It really suits her.”
    Jessie decided Edward really was an idiot, because even he didn’t understand the precariousness of his position. Either an idiot, or incredibly brave.
    “And it’s well known,” Edward continued, blissfully unaware of the pissed-off MI6 agent ready to tear his head off, “it’s well known that Your Grace’s tastes run to the...ah...exotic.” With that, Edward smiled primly at them as if he’d scored a major coup, and he lifted his gelato—his boring, plain gelato—to his mouth once more.
    Gabriel was nonplussed. Jessie could tell he was fighting an internal war with himself as to whether or not to break Edward’s nose, but as awesome as that move might be, Jessie didn’t want to give the gossips the satisfaction of a scene.
    The tinkling sound of Jessie’s laughter brought all eyes to her, and she reached out and deliberately stroked Gabriel’s cheek. “And here I thought my flavor was perfectly matched to you because I know how much you love cherries.”
    Gabriel stared at her a moment, seemingly stunned, then he threw his head back and laughed. He leaned down and nuzzled the top of her head, still chuckling.
    Jessie tilted her head coquettishly, looking up at Gabriel. “And what does chocolate-cayenne pepper say about you, Your Grace?” Jessie heard Gabriel