Here Comes Trouble (10 page)

"Stay with me, baby..." he pleaded and lowered
his mouth toward hers again.

Her response wasn't verbal. She slid her hand
from his shoulder, across his chest and down his abs before
covering his throbbing erection.

Joel sucked in a breath and kissed the corner
of her sweet mouth, her cheek then licked a spot behind her ear.
"Stay, sugar," he pleaded again softly.

Terri cupped him through his jeans and
flattened her palm against him, then stroked as she turned her face
to find his lips. Leaning into him again, she pulled him closer and
kissed him senseless. A hot, needy kiss that set every nerve ending
in his body on fire.

Joel growled and put his hands on her ass to
lift her against him then pressed her into the wall. Her hat fell
off, and he ground his mouth against hers. In his kiss he released
all the pent-up frustration he'd been holding inside for the last
week. He was hot and hard and he wanted to be inside of her
now.

Terri turned her face to the side, breathing
hard she panted, "Put me down."

It took a minute for his dazed brain to
comprehend what she'd said around the buzzing in his ears and
pounding of his heart. Joel took a shuddering breath then looked
down into her eyes and saw anger there instead of
passion.

Confusion mixed with the adrenaline and desire
pouring through him, and his grip loosened and she slid down his
body until her feet touched the ground. With a groan, Joel took a
step back from her and shoved a hand through his hair.

"What the hell?" he asked with anger of his
own replacing his blatant need.

"You had your chance, cowboy, you blew
it...I'm not interested," she told him with a smirk, then leaned
down and picked up her hat, before hefting her bag back onto her
shoulder and opening the door.

"You're a tease is what you are," he
grated.

"You're the one that kissed me, so you got
what you deserved. I told you to keep your hands off of me, I meant
it," she said without turning toward him. "I'm not
that
kind
of girl, especially with someone who
thinks
I
am."

With her heart pounding, and other body parts
throbbing, Terri walked out and quickly shut the door behind her.
She held her chin high and walked to her car then tossed the heavy
duffle bag on the passenger seat. It took up most of the room in
the small car.

After she wedged herself into the small space
left, she cranked the motor and decided to head to the car
dealership. She'd never realized how tiny her car was, how little
room she had to move around. When she looked up at the porch, Joel
was standing there staring at her, his hands on his hips and his
face red.

Lesson one learned, she thought and jammed the
car into first, then put her foot to the gas. Maybe she'd learned a
lesson too though. Don't play with fire. She'd been as turned on as
he was, and it wouldn't have taken much for her to drag his ass to
the bedroom and give him another kind of lesson. Terri had no idea
where her fortitude had come from, where she'd found the will to
stop when her body was saying go, go, go.

Terri wasn't a tease, never had been, but she
wasn't a doormat either, and it was time Joel Rhodes learned that.
God, she needed a drink, but first things first, a new truck, or
one new to her. She couldn't afford a brand new one right now, but
the trade in on her Miata was still pretty high. She could probably
trade for a late model truck in good shape, or she hoped she could.
It was just now five o'clock, so she had a couple of hours to blow
before she had to meet the boys at Smack Daddy's.

They'd told her that was the go to place for
dancing in the area. And damn she needed to dance to let off the
steam leftover from her lesson to Joel.

According to the boys, Joel had run them
ragged this week too, so they needed a break too. They'd all booked
rooms at the hotel next door for the night, so they could drink
without worrying about driving back.

It took a little over an hour for her to
negotiate a deal on her new truck. Terri thought she'd done well,
considering she knew next to nothing about trucks. The lot she'd
went to only had one salesman, and one pickup on the lot. That made
things a little easier, but damn the thing was huge.

Driving the big red pickup she'd traded for
was like driving a tank to her. It was shiny, and pretty, had a
good sound system and leather seats. The only things missing were a
step ladder and a phone book. The ladder so she could get inside
without help, and a phonebook so she could see better over the
steering wheel.

She'd manage though, already it was feeling
more comfortable to her as she pulled into the parking lot of Smack
Daddy's. There were cowboys leaning on their trucks shooting the
breeze with their friends all around the brightly lit
lot.

Maneuvering into a parking spot proved a
little more difficult. She backed up and pulled forward three times
trying like hell to avoid making one of the cowboys milling around
a new hood ornament. Finally, she straightened up and pulled it
into the spot and killed the engine.

Terri looked around the lot for the boys, and
found Dylan standing by his truck near the front door talking with
a group of men. It wasn't hard, his head was about three-inches
above the other cowboys he was standing with. Opening her door, she
stood on the door frame and waved and yelled his name.

He looked up and shock registered on his face,
before it split with a big grin. With a whistle a wave, he elbowed
Matt and Sheedy then jogged across the lot to the truck.

Walking around the door, he stopped in front
of her and whistled again. "Jesus, sugar, you give Cowgirl Up, new
meaning," he told her as his eyes traveled over her, then he threw
back his head and laughed, holding his stomach.

Her confidence faltered a little and she asked
him, "What's so damned funny?"

"You, you're a mess...but so damned cute you
make me wanna squeeze you," he said and lifted her down from the
truck, and that's exactly what he did, spinning her in a couple
circles.

She put her hands on his shoulders. "Hey, put
me down...you're gonna break me before we get to dance," she told
him with a soft laugh.

"I definitely don't wanna do that," he said
then eased her to the ground. "But I have a feeling I'm gonna have
to fight to be the one you're dancing with," he told her with a
shake of his head. "You look beautiful."

Terri felt blood rush up her throat to her
face. "Thanks, you clean up pretty well too...I like that shirt,"
she told him with a grin. It was black and fitted to his body, the
yolk was dotted with silver studs. His black hat with the silver
band set it off perfectly. Most cowgirls would probably trip over
themselves to get his attention.

Too bad there wasn't a single spark there for
her. Not one. She and Dylan would be friends and nothing more. She
was too damned hung up on Joel and what he did to her. That was
something she needed to get over fast, but Dylan wasn't the one to
help with that.

"You ever country danced before?" he asked her
with a lifted brow.

"Maybe a time or two, but I'm sure you can
show me how," she told him with a wink. Riding a horse was not in
her country repertoire, but country dancing was thanks to
Solly.

"My pleasure, sugar," He replied then leaned
down and kissed her cheek.

Terri shut the door, then clicked her key fob
and locked the door, before pocketing her keys. "Lead the way
then," she said and took his arm.

Two hours later, Terri realized she had been
mistaken thinking she could hold her own in here. These guys could
definitely teach Solly a move or ten, she thought with a giggle, as
her current partner, not any of the three amigos she was here with,
swung and flung her around the floor, but in perfect rhythm to the
music blaring from the sound system. Her feet hurt, her legs were
sore, but damn she was having more fun that she'd had in
years.

She was also drinking beer, which she hadn't
had in years. There were three longnecks her partners had bought
for her lined up on the wall behind the table where Dylan and
Sheedy were sitting. Dylan had been right, she'd only sat at the
table about ten minutes total, and her beers were probably
hot...and she'd only managed one dance with him so far.

The music faded and she grinned up at the cute
cowboy she'd been dancing with and tapped his chest with her hand.
"Thanks, sugar...that was fun," she said breathlessly.

"Wanna go another?" he asked
hopefully.

"Nah, I need to sit out a few," she replied
loudly as another fast song started. Terri fanned her shirt away
from her breasts to cool herself down.

"I'll come get you later then," he promised
and leaned down to kiss her cheek. With a nod, she turned toward
the table where the boy were sitting and bumped into a solid wall
of broad chest. She mumbled an apology and tried to move around the
guy, but the crowd was so think she was jostled into him
again.

Strong fingers closed around her upper arms
and a dark angry voice commanded, "Dance with me." She was dragged
to the edge of the floor where it was less crowded. When she
finally had space to look up, her heart somersaulted in her chest
when her eyes met Joel's heated dark blue eyes.

Her feet quit working and she stumbled. "What
are you doing here?" she asked and glanced over to Dylan who was
watching them with hooded eyes.

"Your boyfriend knows I'm here," he said
gruffly then put his hands on her ass and pulled her against his
hard body possessively. "We have unfinished business," he whispered
hotly near her ear and the unfinished business he referred to
became evident against her lower abdomen as he moved with her to
the slow music.

His hands skimmed up her sides to her breasts
and he cupped them then he moved his thumbs over her nipples and
she gasped. Electric pleasure shot to her center and a slow throb
started in time with the down beat of the music.

Joel leaned down near her ear, and whispered,
"You like that baby?"

Terri tried to see his eyes, but they were
shaded by the brim of his hat. She liked it entirely too much, she
thought as her hands slid up the smooth cotton of his shirt that
covered his firmly muscled chest to rest on his shoulders. He
kissed the side of her hair, then brushed it from her neck and put
a hot open mouthed kiss there, before licking her earlobe. Terri
stifled a moan and pulled back from him.

By the time the song ended, Terri knew she had
to get away from Joel, or she was going to do something really
stupid. Like beg him to make love to her. Another slow song started
and Terri tried to head to the table to get herself together, but
Joel wasn't having any of it. He grabbed her hand and pulled her to
the middle of the floor and held her so tightly, you couldn't have
put a piece of paper between their bodies. He put his hands on her
and pulled her high against him, so he fit perfectly at the vee of
her thighs. Terri did groan this time as heat zinged through her
body when he rocked against her.

"Still not interested, sugar?" he growled near
her ear and shifted his hips against hers again.

Breathlessly, she told him, "Still not that
kind of girl," as his taunt penetrated her passion fogged brain.
Her feet left the floor as Joel lifted her so her legs wrapped
around his waist, the his mouth slammed over hers in a kiss meant
to punish and incite.

Every nerve ending in her body went haywire,
when his tongue found hers and he deepened the kiss. Her breaths
shortened and Terri bathed in the slow languorous pleasure that
seeped into her veins and washed away any resistance she had. Terri
was in deep trouble and she knew it. Joel had stopped moving, he
was standing with her in his arms as if she weighed nothing,
kissing her silly in the middle of the dance floor.

A fist of desire punched her in the stomach
and her body caught fire. Terri rubbed her throbbing core against
him, and Joel moaned low in his throat, then his fingers gripped
her butt tighter. Sliding her arms around his neck, Terri kissed
him back with all the desire she'd been denying since she'd seen
him again.

Someone bumped into them and Joel finally
pulled his lips from hers and looked around. His eyes were glazed,
his breathing heavy. "We've got to get out of here," he said and
started walking toward the door. He pushed the bar on the front
door then shouldered it open and walked outside with her still in
his arms. The cooler air brushed against her skin and felt
wonderful, but it also cleared the sexual haze from her brain,
which wasn't so wonderful.

"Joel, put me down," she said softly and
patted his shoulder.

His arms tightened around her. "No, where are
you staying tonight?" he asked and walked down the two steps to the
parking lot.

"I have a hotel room over there," she said and
nodded toward the hotel next door. He staggered and she gripped his
shoulders, then his feet stopped.

"Were you expecting company over there
tonight?" he asked with an edge to his tone.