Cowboy After Dark (8 page)

She gasped at the sudden jolt of pleasure.
“Yes.”

“Then the barn’s as good a place as any. And it so happens I have a condom in my back pocket.”

8

L
IAM
HAD
NO
intention of frolicking through a week of mindless sex with Hope and then saying goodbye, but he hadn’t lied to her. If, after days of intense interaction, she could turn her back on him, he’d honor his promise and let her go without a fight. He put Ringo the barn cat into the tack room for the night while grabbing the blanket he’d left there earlier.

Then he walked back to the empty stall where Hope was waiting for him. Despite their agreement, he doubted this was the beginning of a one-week affair. His experiences with nature had given him a reverence for all connections, and he didn’t make or break them carelessly. She was an artist whether she admitted it or not, and he knew from living with Grady how much emotional depth creativity required.

But if she wanted to tell herself this was all about sex, he wouldn’t argue the point. Sex was a great way to connect, and he was in favor of having a lot of it. He’d wanted a king-size bed underneath them the first time they had the full-on experience. But he’d thrown down some straw before going to fetch the blanket, and that would have to do. He’d wanted the lights on, too, and all he had was ambient light from small lamps placed along the aisle between stalls.

The glow was enough for him to see her sitting on the floor taking off her boots, but not enough to gauge her expression when she glanced up. He felt a rush of tenderness that had nothing to do with lust. There were so many things he wanted to share with her. A week wouldn’t even scratch the surface.

Setting her boots aside, she stood and padded over to him in her sock feet. “Give me the blanket while you take off your boots.” She stood on tiptoe and gave him a quick open-mouthed kiss.

“Okay.” One little kiss and lust came roaring back. He was all about efficiency. He’d just taken off his second boot when she returned and plucked his hat from his head.

“You won’t be needing this, either.” She hung it on the stall door.

“Are you sure? I’ve heard tell that some women prefer a naked cowboy who leaves his hat on for the duration.” He reached for her, but she backed away.

“I’ll consider that for another time. Right now I just want you naked, period.”

“That can be arranged. Right now I desperately need to kiss you.” He advanced toward her.

She stepped out of reach again. “How about arranging it now?”

It took him a moment to figure out what she was going for, but eventually he did. “You want me to strip?”

“Yes, I do, while I watch. I’ve been mentally undressing you from the first day I saw you and now—”

“What the hell? From the first day? And yet you were planning to turn me down flat?”

“Just because I fantasized about you naked doesn’t mean I was ready to risk getting involved.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “You’ve imagined me naked from day one.” He couldn’t get over it.

“Why are you surprised? You’d walk into the hotel all sweaty, your damp T-shirt stretched over all those beautiful muscles you’ve developed from paddling a raft for hours on end. I’m sure I wasn’t the only woman imagining a beefcake show right there in the lobby.”

He was flattered. He’d wondered if showing up grubby and smelly might have been a turnoff for her. Apparently not. “Are you going to strip for me, too?”

She shook her head. “I promise to return the favor eventually, but tonight I’d rather have you take my clothes off after you’re finished with yours.”

“But—”

“It’ll go faster that way.”

“Good point.” By the time he was naked, he probably wouldn’t want to dawdle. He popped the snaps on his cuffs. “I suppose this is when I should confess that I pictured you naked from day one, too.”

“I know.”

“You do not.” Taking off his shirt, he hung it on the stall door near his hat.

“Yes, I do. I saw that gleam in your eyes. Women can tell what guys are thinking. You tried to be subtle about it, but you obviously liked my breasts.”

“I like them even better now. You feel like satin and taste like raspberries.”

She drew in a shaky breath. “And you...you are even more gorgeous than I imagined you’d be. I want to lick you all over.”

A jolt of desire sent him in her direction. “And I want to kiss every sexy inch of you. Let’s forget this little striptease and—”

“Not yet.” She backed away and held up her hand. “Take off the rest. There’s something incredibly sensual about watching a man unbuckle his belt and unzip his fly when he’s got sex on his mind. I’ll get to watch you do it a lot in the next week, but...this time is special.”

There, she’d admitted it. She was making memories, but he wasn’t going to point that out to her. Not now, anyway. And if she wanted a memory of him taking off his jeans, he’d do his best to make it a moment she wouldn’t soon forget.

He couldn’t see her expression very well as he slowly unbuckled his belt, but he could hear the steady sound of her breathing. He pitched his voice low. “You’re right. This shouldn’t be rushed.”

“Exactly.”

He unfastened the metal button at his waist and drew the zipper down. “No matter how much I want you, no matter how desperate I am to slide my cock into your hot body and make you come, we need to take it slow and easy. Let’s draw out the pleasure. Let’s make it last.”

“Mmm.” Her breathing wasn’t steady anymore.

He distinctly heard her gulp, and although he couldn’t be sure in the dim light, he thought she was trembling. He located the condom in his back pocket. “I need you to take care of this until we’re ready for it.” He tossed the packet in her direction, and she caught it with both hands. Obviously she wasn’t about to let it go missing.

After stepping out of his jeans, he shoved down his briefs and managed to swallow a groan of relief. He’d aroused himself as much as he seemed to have aroused her. All he wanted was to take the condom back and get enough of her clothes off to do the deed.

But this time was special and he intended to make sure that she’d remember having sex with Liam Magee in the barn. “My turn,” he murmured as he moved toward her.

She was definitely trembling. “I feel as if I could come right this minute.”

“That would be okay.” He dipped his head and gave her a kiss with a little bit of tongue as he unbuttoned her shirt and slipped it off her shoulders. Then he lifted his mouth from hers. “I’m sure that won’t be the one and only climax you’ll have.”

“You’re very good at this.”

“Undressing you?”

“Driving me insane.”

“Glad to hear it.” He moved away and draped her shirt next to his clothes. By the time he turned back, she was dangling her bra on the tip of her finger.

“I thought I’d speed things up.”

“Excellent idea.” He grabbed her bra and flung it away, not caring where it landed. She was topless, and her perfection claimed all his attention. He was through playing games. “Hope, I need...you.”

“Then let’s cut to the chase. Put this on.” She handed him the condom packet.

While he ripped it open and rolled on the condom, she shimmied out of her jeans and panties. He lowered her to the blanket and moved between her creamy thighs, but then she wrapped her legs around his and he felt her soft socks pressed against his calf muscles.

Despite the intensity of the moment, the notion made him smile. Braced above her, his cock touching the moist entrance to paradise, he looked into her eyes. “You’re still wearing socks.”

“Want to stop so I can take them off?”

“Hell, no.” And he pushed deep into the most welcoming spot his happy Johnson had ever known.

She pressed her fingers into his back and moaned. “Good,” she crooned. “So good.”

“Heck, yeah.” At sometime in the near future, he’d actually be able to see her face while he loved her, but it wasn’t in the cards tonight. The faint glow from the lights along the aisle allowed only a shadowed view as he began pumping.

But he could hear her just fine, and she was panting and calling his name. He could feel her body clench around his cock and knew that the rhythm he’d created was going to make her come. It could make him come, too, but he decided to hold off.

This connection between them was brand-new, but it didn’t seem that way. He’d known in his heart that it would be familiar. Although he couldn’t explain how he was linked with Hope, he accepted that the link existed. He was supposed to be with her now, and maybe longer. She’d be the one to decide when their story would end.

For now, every stroke of his cock brought her pleasure, and in a few seconds she’d surrender to an orgasm they’d created together with the sweet friction of their bodies. He was greedy enough to want another chance to do that for her. As he’d sensed tonight in the meadow, she needed that release. The more times she allowed herself to let go, the greater her chance of overcoming her grief.

There.
Her body arched upward and he bore down. Pressing her hand over her mouth to smother her cries, she abandoned herself to the sweet convulsions of her climax. And all the while he continued his steady thrusting as he coaxed her toward a second release.

She moaned. “I can’t.”

“You can. Stay with me.”

She gripped his shoulders. “You’re asking for...more than I can give.”

“No, I’m not.” He chuckled. “You’re filled with passion. Dive into it. Wallow in it. You’re safe with me.” Even in the absence of strong light, he knew her gaze was focused on him.

“I believe you, Liam.”

“Then let me give you joy.” Sliding his hands under her backside, he lifted her so that he had a slightly different angle. Then he increased the pace, his thighs slapping hers until they breathed in ragged gasps.

Her soft wail came a moment before he felt the undulations of her climax. Closing his eyes in gratitude, he slipped the leash on his response and drove into her with a guttural cry. His cock seemed to pulse endlessly, but at last his body quieted.

Without realizing it, he’d let his head fall on her shoulder and had drifted into a semiconscious state. Her soft caresses and murmured words brought him back to reality. Startled, he lifted his head. “Damn. Did I fall asleep?”

“Not completely, but I think you were headed in that direction.”

“We can’t fall asleep here. We don’t want Herb or Cade to come in tomorrow and find us like this.”

“Considering Cade provided the condom, it would serve him right.”

That made Liam chuckle. “So true, but chances are good that Herb would be the first one down here.”

“That would embarrass me.”

“Me, too.”

“You? A big strong cowboy?”

“Actually, it would embarrass Herb, which would embarrass me. I could live with Cade finding us here, but not Herb. He’s the dad I never had, which means we have to make our way back to our beds before daybreak comes.”

“I get that.” She pulled his head down for a soft kiss. “Let’s erase the evidence.”

“In a minute.” He smoothed a strand of hair from her cheek. “We need a little pillow talk.”

“Just our luck we don’t have any pillows.”

“You are the most literal woman I’ve ever come across.”

“I know. I drove my folks crazy.”

“But you loved
Ladyhawke.
You must have known that couldn’t be literally true.”

“This is really complicated pillow talk, Liam. Isn’t this the time we’re supposed to say how much we enjoyed the sex?”

He chuckled loud enough to startle a whinny out of one of the horses. “Whoops.”

“I’m glad I make you laugh.”

“You do. I didn’t realize you were such a kick when I used to talk to you at the hotel. You always seemed serious and quiet.”

“So it really was all about my breasts. Otherwise I was kind of dull.”

“
No.
I like serious and quiet, too. But laughing with you is a bonus I didn’t expect.”

“And the sex is pretty good, don’t you think?”

“The sex is world-class. It’s so good that I’m trying to imagine how I’ll stay away from you for the next couple of days.”

“Well...” She traced his lower lip with the tip of her finger. “I’ve been thinking about that, too, and I’ll bet Rosie’s hearing isn’t quite as sharp as you remember it. Back then she was riding herd on a bunch of horny teenage boys. She might be rusty.”

“She might, but I doubt it. Thinking of sneaking out and meeting me at the barn tomorrow night?”

“Only if you’re willing to let Grady know what’s going on. I’m sure his hearing is excellent.”

“I was planning to tell him about us, if that’s okay.”

“Absolutely okay.”

“Then midnight tomorrow night, same stall?”

“I’ll be here.” She touched the corner of his mouth. “When did you get this scar?”

“That, my sweet lady, is a story for another time.” He gave her a quick kiss and eased away from her warmth. He would have been sadder about leaving her if they hadn’t promised to revisit this spot tomorrow night.

“Then it had better be a really good story, if you’re going to make me wait for it.” She picked up her jeans and panties.

“It’s an embarrassing story, and I want you to have a good opinion of me.” He struggled into his briefs and jeans and zipped up. Too bad he didn’t have a better view of her as she dressed, although a better view might get him hot and bothered again. If only they had...lanterns. He groaned.

“What’s the matter?”

“We’ve been fumbling around in the dark, not able to see each other, and all I had to do was bring our two
lanterns
into the stall. I can’t believe I didn’t think of it. What an idiot.”

“All your blood had drained south. You couldn’t be expected to think of anything.”

“Sure, but...did you?”

“Yes, but when you didn’t bring them with the blanket, I was mostly glad. It meant I couldn’t see you quite as well for the stripping part, but overall, having dim light for this first time was better. Kinder.”

He stopped fastening his shirt and walked over to her. Bracketing her cheeks with both hands, he looked into her shadowed face. “Hope, are you shy?”

“I didn’t used to be, and I won’t be next time. But it’s been a while, and like I said, my last relationship was...unpleasant. You’re my first lover since then. I’ve discovered that I still love sex, especially with you, but being allowed to ease into intimacy really helped me relax.”