Hot for You (26 page)

“Are you going to be good?” His expression
was dark and intent as he reached between them and unfastened her
belt. “You know what I’ll do if you aren’t.”

She swallowed. She could fight him and she
knew he’d catch her and punish her all over again. That thought
sent another thrill through her and she was tempted to struggle
just to be manhandled by him. But at the same time she didn’t want
to fight him anymore. She wanted whatever he would give her.

He brushed his lips over hers. “Are you going
to fight me?”

She shook her head. “No.”

His smile was slow and sensual and he eased
down her body. He knelt at the foot of the blanket and watched her
as he took one of her boots in his hands and slipped it off before
setting it aside. He took off the other boot before removing her
socks and stuffing them into the boots.

He moved closer again and pulled her belt out
of the loops and unbuttoned her jeans. As soon as her zipper was
down, he tugged off her jeans and stripped them away, leaving her
only in her black panties. It only took a moment for him to slip
those off, too. He put her panties and jeans on top of her other
clothing.

He tugged at her nipple. “I want to eat you
up like you ate that ice cream in Scottsdale. It was so damn hot
watching you.”

She swallowed, feeling suddenly shy and
nervous. She started to put her arms over her breasts but he
stopped her by catching her wrists in one hand.

“Oh, no you don’t.” He shook his head. “I
want to see you.”

He released her then tossed his Stetson onto
her clothing before unbuttoning his western work shirt, all the
while keeping his gaze fixed on her. The air felt cool on her body
and her nipples were impossibly tight. She swallowed as she watched
him remove his clothing, piece by piece, from his boots and socks
to his belt.

***

Cheyenne McCray

Butterflies traveled through Jo’s belly as
she and Tate headed back to her house. What was she doing, inviting
him over for dinner? It was one thing to go out with him, another
to have him over for dinner.

She let them into the house. It was a large
home that she’d fallen in love with when she moved back to the
town. She set her purse on the table in the foyer and he set his
ball cap there, too, before she led him to the kitchen.

Hair had escaped her braid and she pushed it
out of her face as she turned to face him. “What sounds good?”

He hitched his shoulder up against the
archway into the kitchen and hooked his thumbs in the front pockets
of his Wranglers. His T-shirt was pulled taut against his muscular
chest and his hair was mussed from being under the ball cap.
“Anything easy.”

She rummaged around in the pantry and pulled
out a package of angel hair pasta and a jar of three-cheese
spaghetti sauce. “How about spaghetti? That’s fast.”

“Great.” He watched her with an intense look
that made her feel a little unnerved. “What can I do to help?”

“Stand there and keep looking sexy,” she said
without thinking.

He grinned. “Sexy, huh?”

She shrugged and tried to hide a smile. “You
have your moments.” She grabbed the large stockpot she used to boil
water in for pasta and filled it with water.

While the water heated, she washed up then
cut thick slices of the French bread she had just bought and made
several pieces of garlic bread with fresh garlic and olive oil.
When the water was boiling, she put the angel hair pasta in then
grabbed a package of pre-made salad from the fridge and put it into
a bowl.

They talked as she put together the simple
dinner and he set the table with dishes she got out of the cabinet
and silverware from a drawer. He also set out the wine glasses and
opened a bottle of Merlot from her wine rack. She kept wine on hand
even though she only drank if she had company.

She was glad he was so easy to talk with and
there weren’t any lulls in conversation.

When dinner was ready and on the table, they
both slid into their chairs. They sat at the small table in the
kitchen rather than the large one in the dining room.

She served a huge pile of spaghetti in his
pasta bowl before serving herself a much smaller amount. She was
hungry, but she couldn’t help feeling like she was overdoing it
today. She forced herself to shove aside thoughts of the chilidog,
and bites of curly fries, and chocolate cake she’d had earlier.
Spaghetti and a high-calorie day wasn’t going to hurt her. It was
something she had to remind herself all the time. Counselors had
told her that her fear of eating too much was something she’d
probably have to work through for the rest of her life, and she’d
found that to be true.

“I had a great time today.” She smiled at him
after she’d eaten some of the pasta and a piece of garlic toast. “I
don’t know if I’ve had that much fun in a long time, especially on
a date.”

He returned her smile. “There’s more where
that came from.”

She took a sip of her Merlot then set her
glass down. “Angling for another date?”

“Is it working?” he asked as he twirled the
pasta on his fork.

“Maybe.” She felt a warmth inside her that
she hadn’t felt in a long time. A sense of contentment that
probably should have scared her, but right now it didn’t.

She thought about Tate’s old girlfriend and
wondered how much time he’d spent with her at lunch and what he and
Daphne had talked about. But that wasn’t any of her business and if
she said anything it would make it sound like she was jealous. She
wasn’t, of course. She had nothing to be jealous of and no reason
to be.

As they ate, she would take him in from
beneath her lashes. He was so large and virile, an alpha male that
drew her for so many reasons. She enjoyed being around him and the
fact was she was incredibly attracted to him, both mentally and
physically.

If he was everything he seemed to be, he was
a good guy, too, like Charlee had said.

After they put the small amount of leftovers
away and loaded the dishes in the dishwasher, they walked out of
the kitchen into the living room.

He looked at her when they came to a halt. “I
had a great day, Jo. Thank you for saying yes.”

She slipped her hands into her back pockets
to keep herself from touching him. She wanted nothing more than to
feel his chest beneath her palms, his hair sliding through her
fingers, his body tight against hers. And the way he was looking at
her was enough to make her forget everything…forget every last
hesitation she might have.

He reached up and skimmed her cheek with his
fingertips, his green eyes studying her for a long moment. He
cupped her face in his palms and slowly began lowering his head
toward hers.

She caught her breath, a tangle of emotions
whirling through her. Fear, excitement, even a little bit of
shyness.

And then his lips were pressed against hers
and he was kissing her, gently exploring her mouth with his.

It was perhaps the sweetest kiss she’d ever
experienced. She found herself surprised that such a dominant man
could be so gentle.

She slipped her hands out of her pockets and
touched him like she’d been dying to. She ran her palms over his
hard biceps to his broad shoulders. Slowly she eased her hands down
the firm muscles of his chest before moving back to his
shoulders.

Wanting more and more of him, she clenched
her fingers in his T-shirt and pressed her mouth more firmly to
his. She became the aggressor, desiring him so much that her entire
body ached for him.

He answered her with a groan and matched the
strength of her kiss until he was dominating her. She loved a man
in control when it came to passion and sex and she had a feeling
that Tate could be everything she wanted and more.

She moaned as he grasped her hip with one of
his large hands and pulled her tight up against him as he slipped
his hand into her hair and cupped the back of her head.

His erection was large and rigid against her
and a thrill went through her from her belly to the place between
her thighs that now ached to have him fill her. Her nipples were
hard and tight as his chest pressed against her breasts.

She slid her arms to his neck, her hunger
fierce, unbridled. He grasped her ass in both hands and then she
wrapped her thighs around his hips and he was carrying her.

The next thing she knew, her back was up
against the wall, his jean-clad cock pressed against her hot
center. She wished her own jeans were gone as well as his and that
he was sliding into her now.

Her mind spun from the kiss and she could
barely breathe. He moved one of his hands beneath her top and his
palm cupped her breast through the satin of her bra. She gasped as
he fondled and pinched her nipple.

He broke the kiss and she tilted her head
back as he moved his lips down the column of her throat to the V of
her blouse. He shoved up the material and pulled down her bra,
exposing her breasts to his gaze.

Her nipples tightened ever more and she gave
a loud moan as he ran his tongue over each of the hard nubs. She
slid her hands into his hair, pressing him tighter to her breasts
as he sucked and licked one nipple and then the other.

He moved his hips, rubbing his cock against
her, mimicking what he would do when he took her. His cock was so
rigid and hard that it felt like it could bruise her if he pressed
any harder.

***

Cheyenne McCray

“I don’t date playboys.” Tess Grady wiped
down the bar, shaking her head and trying not to smile as she
looked at Gage McBride sitting on the stool in front of her. “Once
again, the answer is no.”

“Playboy?” The cowboy raised a brow as he set
down his cold mug of beer. “Now I’m a playboy?”

“A cowboy with a girl in every town.” Tess
began polishing a glass. “I’ve heard the rumors.”

“You believe everything you hear?” An amused
smile curved the corner of his mouth. “Don’t tell me you judge a
man based on rumors.”

She shrugged one shoulder. “If the Stetson
fits…”

He leaned forward, folding his muscular arms
on the bar. Hell, every part of the man appeared muscular. She was
loath to admit it, but the thought of undressing such a hot package
made her mouth water. “Why don’t you get to know me?” he asked.
“Judge for yourself.”

As she polished another glass, she tried to
ignore the pull the cowboy had on her. Ever since Nectars had
opened, Gage had been coming into the bar and would flirt with her
when she wasn’t working in the Hummingbird, the restaurant side of
her family’s establishment. Most of the time, she was in the
restaurant so she didn’t see Gage often enough for him to corner
her like he had now.

When he was near, he set her senses on fire,
and she always tried to find a way to get away from the man as fast
as possible. Unfortunately, today wasn’t a day she could escape
because they were short-staffed in the bar.

She blew a blonde curl out of her eyes. “No
thanks,” she said despite the fact that she was so very
tempted.

Clear green eyes without a hint of hazel in
them studied her. His eyes held the kind of sensuality that caused
a woman’s belly to squirm. He had dark hair and just enough stubble
on his jaws to add to his rough, sexy appearance.

The tempting thing with Gage was that rough
and sexy was natural. He was not some guy trying to look like a
hardworking cowboy. She’d been told how successful his water well
drilling business was and that he might play hard but he worked
even harder. Of course, she’d never let him know she’d been
intrigued enough to learn more about him. She found it curious and
rather attractive that he never mentioned his business success to
lure her in.

“Come on, Tess.” Gage’s sexy drawl was enough
to make her toes curl. “One date.”

She opened her mouth to respond when she saw
a tall, gorgeous redhead making a beeline through the
establishment, headed straight for Gage. A flare of heat was in the
woman’s gaze and she looked like she could spit flames.

She came up behind Gage, so angry looking
that Tess could imagine the woman’s eyes glowing red. “Well hello,
Gage.” The redhead spat the words with venom.

A pained expression crossed his face and Tess
thought she might have seen him wince.

Slowly he turned toward the redhead and
smiled. “Hi, Nandra.”

“You—” Nandra raised her hand and slapped
Gage hard across his left cheek “—
bastard
.” The sound of her
hand contacting flesh was loud.

The few patrons in the bar went quiet.

The woman cut her gaze to Tess. “So you’re
his little squeeze now? Just don’t get too comfortable.” Nandra
spun around and marched out of the bar, her heels clicking on the
wood floor.

Gage watched Nandra walk out as he rubbed his
jaw while talking resumed. Fortunately, those in the bar all had
full drinks and Tess could enjoy Gage’s discomfort.

He looked back at Tess as she was trying to
hold back laughter. He picked up his cold beer mug and put it
against the side of his face. “She packs some power.”

“You have a way with the ladies.” Tess looked
at him with amusement.

“Second time this month.” He gave a rueful
smile as he lowered his mug to the bar. “I guess you might as well
just slap me now and get it over with.”

Tess did laugh then. “Assuming I’d be foolish
enough go out with you to begin with.” She gestured toward the
entrance. “And that was not the best endorsement.” She braced her
hands on the bar. “I suppose you didn’t deserve that.”

“No, I deserved it.” His admission surprised
Tess. “Long story.”

She leaned down and rested her elbow on the
bar, her chin in her hand. “The bar is nearly empty. I have
time.”