Billi Jean (19 page)

“Russell? How long have you lived here?”

He tightened his hand on hers. She was flushed and pink from the cold and looked beautiful. And happy.

“A while. Will you let your hair go blonde again?” He wanted her blonde. She looked like a blonde, but with dark hair. He would never be able to let her out of his sight as a blonde, but he was beginning to realise he wasn’t letting her out of his sight anyway. He was already plotting how to get her up to the ranch so he wouldn’t have to leave her alone while he went and did a roundup in a few days. Maybe she’d even like to come with him. Crushing that thought, he frowned. No way was he taking her out on a roundup with all those hired hands. They’d have no privacy, and, worse, all those bastards would be checking her cute ass out as much as that little bastard had at Dave’s Hardware.

He tried to hold down all his jealousy without much success. Susan was beautiful. She’d climaxed at least eight times, but still his gut was tied in knots. He’d been her first, yet he still felt like she wasn’t as head over heels as he was feeling. He was so off his normal, calm and cool game that he could barely walk next to her. Where was the Ace Man? He’d aced the sex, but had she been as blown away as he had?

She laughed softly and tugged his hand. “Ouch.”

Had he hurt her? She was smiling up at him, so he hoped not.

“You’d like me better as a blonde?”

He snorted at such silliness. He couldn’t possibly like her better. God, he hoped he couldn’t, he thought, with a suddenly sinking stomach at the possibility. Already he was a walking mess around her. Maybe she should stay with the dark hair. But yeah, he could admit it, he wanted to see her blonde. He could see a little bit of it around her temples, a softening there that made him want to see her how she
should
look, not how the dark hair hid her.

“Not possible,” he assured her, pulling her closer to kiss her silky hair. “You look like a blonde. You shouldn’t hide it with that colour. Besides,” he tugged one long braid, wondering if she knew how sexy she looked like that. Sexy kitten, the look said. “You’d have to keep colouring it, right? Not good for all that silky hair.” He tried to keep from smiling, but her look was so cute—pure Susan, a little indignant mixed with a twinkle in her blue eyes.

“Huh, how would you know? Do you dye that hair of yours, Major?”

Major. He frowned, seeing that teasing mischief in her blue eyes. She was jerking his chain. He bent and hauled her into his arms and kissed her past her happy little squeal. He didn’t care if they were outside her home and the whole of Troy drove by and saw him. Actually, he hoped they all would. He was staking his claim on her and he wanted to warn everyone off. Not that there were many to warn off. But there were a few. Ranch hands, hardware store boys, old men, anyone that even thought to look at her with any interest at all. He felt such an overwhelming panic to wrap this up, but hadn’t he done that? Why was he a nervous wreck with a desperate need to fuck her, still? And, more, to hold her tight, keep her close?

“Not a chance, Sunshine. But you look like a blonde.”

She laughed softly, cupping his jaw and rubbing her fingers over his stubble. He needed to shave and go get some things from up at the ranch. He was staying here tonight, no question about it. He wanted to move some stuff down. Maybe that would ease this panicky feeling that he was in over his head with a woman who wasn’t. He wasn’t sure why he felt it, but he did. It was a huge drive to claim and take, mark her as his. Possessiveness to the extreme. Something he had no idea how to handle. Except to hold her tighter. His instincts were demanding it. He’d never been wrong with them before, and he didn’t want to start now.

“You’re so cute. Come on. Let’s go inside—it’s getting cold and you promised a movie.”

Cute? He grinned at that. Was she being funny again? He was many things, but cute? He wasn’t a fancy boy, one of those cover model guys. He had too many scars. A knife fight in the Balkans, a few too many fire-fights, and a few broken noses from bar fights had all left his looks a bit damaged. Oh, he got laid whenever he wanted. But he wasn’t fooled that it was because of his looks. It was his size and manner. He was tough, hardcore and serious. Wasn’t he? He’d been sporting a smile now for longer than he ever had in his life.

And she wanted him to play nice. Watch a movie. Like he was going to last through a movie with Susan in the room. He’d be lucky to last through the doorway.

“How about a trip up to my place? I want to grab some clothes…” He paused at her small frown. His stomach bottomed out, and his first thought was that she didn’t want him to stay. Pathetic. “You don’t want to see my spread?” he asked instead, waiting to see her soft smile. She did, but it was also a bit—he didn’t know, exactly. Maybe sad?

“No, that’d be great. So, clothes…” Bright blue eyes met his with a speculative little look. “Why?”

Well if she was going to ask, he’d let her know. “Because when I wake up tomorrow, I’ll need them,” he told her firmly. He wasn’t going to lie about it. Or candy-coat it.

Her eyes widened a bit at his gruff tone, but she tilted her head, considering him for long enough to make him want to squirm. He never squirmed. He had nerves of steel, right?
Ace Man, here.
Why did he need that reminder?

“Are you sure you want to do that?”

Now,
that
question was easy to answer. She’d have trouble kicking him out now. “Fuck, yeah.” Some things needed to be clear. He was here and had no plans to leave. If she wasn’t as on board with that, she had now to tell him. And, fuck, he was holding his breath like some teenager waiting to kiss his first girl.

“Huh, well, your ranch? Might be fun.”

He could have sworn he broke out in a sweat with relief. And his dick was straining against his zipper, making it uncomfortable. Bending at the waist, he hauled her up in his arms and carried her into the house, more than ready to kiss her senseless for such torture. She laughed so hard he had to set her down, but he pulled her close by her ass, letting her feel exactly how serious he was, only to have his phone interrupt his plans for the rest of the night. He had a gym bag with a change of clothes in the truck. He could use those until he drove her up to the ranch tomorrow. And tomorrow was Saturday and no one would be around. The ranch hands all went off for the weekend, especially before a roundup. He was right where he wanted to be. His plans were set; now all he had to do was get her clothes off.

“Phone, Russell,” she murmured against his mouth, still laughing up at him. Smiling blue eyes met his and he held her tighter, but dug his phone out of his pocket.

“Yeah?”

“Ace Man. What’s hanging?” Mac ‘the Wolf’ Maddock asked above the deep bass of rap music blaring in the background.

Susan giggled and hid her head, shaking it back and forth against his chest. And damn if that wasn’t cute as heck.
Fuck.
She had him in knots. She grinned up and mouthed ‘hanging’, and rubbed a hand over his cock.
Hell.

He grabbed hold of her busy little hand and pulled her close so her head was pressed to his chest. He could feel her laughing in his arms, and grinned to himself at how incredible it felt to hold her.

“Not too much. What’s up with you?”

“Aww, isn’t that nice? Not much, huh? I heard a different story from Eagle, but, hey, who am I to judge? How about a few thousand?”

Shit, a job? He’d just got back, and he didn’t want to leave Susan for some screwed up security mission right now, or any time in the near future, either. Keeping an arm around her waist, he manoeuvred her to the couch and sat, pulling her down to straddle him before easing back on the seat. Once there, she eyed him with a blank look that said she was silently laughing at him. He didn’t care if she was—she was spread open across his thighs, her breasts a breath away. She could laugh all she wanted. Hell, he loved her laughter.

“So? What do you think? Game?”

He blinked and Susan’s grin widened. She leant forward and trailed a hand down the neck of his shirt playfully.

“Not so sure. What’s the departure?”

Susan’s blue eyes darkened, and she leant forward so she was a breath away, then tipped her head and started kissing his neck, threading soft, wet kisses down his jaw to his shirt. Then, with a soft sound, she rose up and tugged at his jacket, mouthing the word ‘off’ to him and wiggling her ass on his thighs.
Damn.

“Ah, departure? About five days, and then about five days down south, a few more if things aren’t as good as we hope, then back up. Less than two weeks, total.”

So that meant more like six weeks. Without Susan. He didn’t think he could do that. “Sorry, Wolf, tied up for a while. Let me know if you get in a bind.”

Silence met that, then a soft grunt. “Sure, no problem. Let you know. Sure, sounds… Sure. No problemo, Ace.”

 Obviously, there
was
a problem. He was always ready to go and, with a southern departure, the money was always good. But he didn’t want to go anywhere when he had this in his arms. And on his lap. And tugging at his tee to get him out of that, too. Her little nails scratched him on the chest when he didn’t move fast enough, and she nipped him. Immediately he felt on the verge of spilling in his jeans.

“Later, then,” he grunted as Susan’s body snuggled right over his cock and her eyes glittered with mischief. The little brat knew what she was doing. She looked primed and ready to go another round. Her pink tongue swept along her lips, and he felt his cock jerk under her. She did, too. Her blue eyes narrowed to slits, and she leant forward and licked his nipple while watching him with a feminine demand that had his arousal threatening to break. Then she started heading south. He could probably break a wall with how stiff his cock swelled.

“Later, man, got to go,” he told Maddock, not waiting for an answer. Instead, he threw the phone and practically jumped Susan, tipping her down on the couch, already working her blue sweater off, and, yes, she had on a pink bra that barely covered creamy breasts he couldn’t wait to taste. Heaven.

“Russell, I wanted to—” He covered her mouth with his before she said something that almost had him coming in his jeans. She struggled a bit, but was also giggling at him, swatting his hands, and that little bit of defiance had his cock sweating pre-cum. Goddamn, he wanted to do things to her that were not going to happen. At least not yet. She’d been a virgin this morning.

Slow the hell down, big boy, because the sudden urge to tie her down and make her scream through a dozen orgasms just might be too soon for both of us.

“Russell!” She cupped her warm hands over his face, pulling him up with that hold while she ran a leg up his, to drive him crazy, he was certain.

“You’d better be primed, baby, because that was not nice,” he told her, watching her eyes light up. God, she was gorgeous.

“Not nice? I was seeing how you were hanging.”

He liked that about her—her teasing ways. He wanted her on some kind of primitive level. His mind filled with images of things he wanted to do to her; things he’d never considered before. One of them was to hear her scream her head off, begging for him to make her come. And he’d be damned if he’d ever thought of something like that before. He hadn’t. He’d always been on top, inside a woman, fucking repeatedly for hours. That had been his style, not this playful torment.

“Get those damn jeans off.” He was only half kidding her with the growl.

“I thought we were going for a drive.”

“No drive. I have clothes in the truck. No movie. No dinner. Sex. Now.” He unbuttoned her jeans with a twist of his fingers and she laughed.

“Susan, you’re pushing me, baby.”

She grinned but, thank God, lifted her ass up so he could rip her jeans off with a rough tug that earned him a frown.

“Ouch!”

He leant down, pressing in between her pretty thighs as he did, forcing her legs up around his hips. Her ass fit his hands perfectly. What would she do if he gave her a little spank? Would she glare, the way she was now? He hid his grin by dipping his head down and kissing the side of her hip, rubbing his stubble over it afterwards. She made a happy little sound.

“I’ll kiss it better, baby. Let me ditch my clothes.”

“Mmm, promise?” She pulled his head up to her mouth with a soft sigh. “I want you again, Russell. Now.”

“Ah, fuck, baby. Get on your knees,” he ordered, pulling her legs off his hips and unbuttoning so his cock jerked free of the too-tight denim. His breath hissed between his teeth at how good the cool air felt whispering along the length of his cock. Still, he was aching. Every inch hurt. He needed his cock inside Susan like he’d never needed anything else in his life.

She hesitated, clearly unsure of that last order.

“Trust me,” he managed, lifting her and gently turning her so she rested her stomach on the couch with her beautiful, heart-shaped ass facing him. She stunned him with how gorgeous she was. Her ass was perfect—firm, rounded and with a little rise along the top he wanted to cup while he drove into her. He rubbed his cock against one cheek and gritted his teeth at how good that simple stroke felt.

She made a soft sound and peeked back at him, looking nervous and ready to turn around. “Russell, I don’t know—”

“Trust me, baby. God, you have no idea how beautiful your ass is. So fucking perfect…” He watched her nibble her lip, but she didn’t move. He ran his hands from the curve of her ass up her slender back to her delicate shoulder blades. She moaned softly and lifted for his caress, but she was still tense and unsure.

“Russell, I’m not—”

“Shush, baby. Let me show you how good this can be. You’re going to love it. Damn, I’m close with just the sight of your perfect ass.” He rubbed his cock along the swell of her curves, wanting her ass so badly he was panting. He’d never wanted to claim a woman’s ass. Never. But with Susan, he was learning he wanted everything. He wanted her like this, all of her, completely, totally his. He wanted to claim her. The thought shook him on a level he couldn’t name. It was elemental, this need. But she was so tiny and, fuck, she might not want that kind of kinkiness. He let his cock head notch against her tiny rosebud, and she gasped.