Not Looking for Love: A Cowboy Romance (11 page)

“Shit,” Richie said more to himself. He changed directions and led her up the stairs and over to the table.

Simone scooped up her purse as she turned to Poppy, who was the only one at the table. His head was down as if watching something on his lap and quickly picked it up when he felt movement by his side.

He seem
s
happy,
Simone thought as she told Poppy she was going home and Richie was taking her.

Richie saw a lady’s foot under the table. He quickly looked to Poppy and all Poppy was doing was nodding his head. He dragged Simone away and when they walked downstairs, they saw Poppy’s wife dancing with the rest of the cast. They left the club without saying goodbye to them.

Simone didn’t even remember the ride home to her house but there she was, standing by her front door and trying to locate her keys in her purse without success as she swayed. Richie took her purse and looked through it, quickly finding her keys and opened the door and ushered her in.

When Poppy called Richie a couple of days before to tell him the movie he financed was coming along, he invited him to the wrap party for his latest flick. He declined at first but flew in that morning still unsure about showing up, but by the early evening he decided to go. He called Simone’s cell phone. She didn’t answer it, and he didn’t blame her. He knew he’d been distant without an explanation. So he decided to just show up at the club, and as he walked around the dance floor, looking for her, he spotted her being led into the men’s room. It took some maneuvering as he navigated the large crowd and when he finally got to the bathroom, he went ballistic at seeing Simone against the wall and struggling to get loose. He pushed anyone who was in his way. One of the guys he pushed banged into the stall where the two sets of shoes were boinking away, and a moment later they flew out of the stall and the bathroom with the guy trying to zip up as he went. He ripped off the guy who was pinning her, by his collar, and shoved him into the sink’s counter, and he elbowed the guy who tried to stop him. The back of Kenny Bang, Bang’s head hit the mirror above the sinks and blood oozed out. In essence, Richie cleared the place out in no time.

Her new home was immaculate. It was clean and airy, a huge difference from where she lived before.

She just stood by the front door, watching him as he walked around the open floor plan which was comprised of a living room, dining room, and kitchen with high ceilings. “You have a nice home. Your designs?” he asked as he walked back to her.

She nodded then walked past him, to the kitchen area and set her purse on the counter.

Elegantly done, but not over the top, her home had a warm, cohesive feel to it. Everything, down to the littlest detail was perfectly thought out in this traditionally decorated house.

He walked over to her, determined to take her in his arms and kiss her, but she put her head down and turned. He stopped, feeling awkward.

“Why are you here, Richie?”

He gave a nervous snort. “I wanted to see you. It’s been a while, you know?”

She turned her head and met his eyes. “I know.” Her head was aching and she reached for the bottle of Tylenol she kept in one of the cabinets. She downed two as she opened the fridge to pull out a water bottle.

Richie moved over to her coffee maker and picked up a K-cup from the carousel that sat next to it and plopped it in the machine. A coffee mug already sat under the spout, and he picked it up to see if it was clean and put it back under. After hitting the brew button he turned to her. “I’m sorry I didn’t call you soon—”

“Do you want to get laid? Is that why you’re here?” She spun around as she shut the refrigerator door and cut him off. She took a sip of water as she leaned against the counter.

He got in front of her and she had to lift her head to look into his eyes. “No. Yes.” He let out a breath. “I miss you.” He placed a hand on the counter beside her, and when she began to walk away, he dropped his other hand on her other side, trapping her. He clicked the roof of his mouth. “Come on.”

“Come on what, Richie? I haven’t seen or heard from you in weeks. Try as I might, I just can’t figure out what I did wrong in Pebble Beach. I mean, I had a blast and I thought you did too, but—”

“I did. Simone, I’m sorry. I really am. I needed to think things out. That was my father who called me that afternoon in the hotel room. That picture of us the photographer snapped the night before was in the morning paper, with a caption that read something like bad boy, trust fund baby at it again with another blonde bombshell.”

“And daddy ordered you to stay away from me.” She began to turn around again.

“No.” He stopped her. “I mean, he questioned if I knew what I was doing.”

She let out a cynical laugh. “And do you?”

His lips slowly curled up. “Totally.” He kissed her. Just a little peck then he pulled back to see her expression and caught her biting her lower lip so he went back for more. This time he pried her mouth open and snaked his tongue in, searching and finding hers.

Before things got too heated, he broke the kiss. He needed to clear things up first.

She looked at him as she felt her cheeks pink out on her. She was supposed to be mad at him, but just his touch had her forgetting why.

With another little smile, he removed the now full coffee cup from the machine then looked around. “Another cup?”

She opened the cabinet overhead, reached in, and handed him a cup. And as if they had done it a thousand times before, she moved to the fridge to get the milk and he popped another cup into the coffee machine. Neither said a word. She was still embarrassed and he was thinking about what to say as well as trying to comprehend her failed attempt at being angry at him.

“What’s your real name?” Richie asked her. They were seated across from each other at her small kitchen table, a coffee cup in front of each of them.

She rolled her eyes and made to get up.

He grabbed her hand and she sat back down. “You put yourself in danger back at that club tonight.” He shook his head. “Don’t do that again.”

She was about to say ‘sorry’. She opened her mouth, shut it and when she opened it again, she said. “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”

He stared at her. God, she was beautiful. He let it go. He wasn’t here to start a fight with her. He watched her take a sip of coffee and took one of his own. “I don’t want to be known as a trust fund baby,” he said as he put the cup down. His finger lightly tapped the ear of the cup.

She tilted her head to the side.

“Yep. That’s what bothered me about the picture, the caption underneath it. Other than that, you should have seen it. We looked good. You looked so beautiful,” he said, purposely leaving out a part of the conversation he had with his father. No need to go there now.

She blew out a breath and he watched a ghost of a smile play upon her face.

“So, why no phone call, or text from you? Why didn’t you return my call?” Simone said.

Richie didn’t detect anger from her now, on the contrary, he detected he had hurt her. Leaning back in his chair, he took in a breath and let it out slowly through his nose. “I really am sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you…I kind of went off the grid for a while.” He leaned in and rested his elbows on the table. “I’ve worked all my life. I’ve worked hard all my life. My parents made sure. And I don’t resent them one iota. That’s who I am and they made me strong.”

Simone watched as he downed the rest of his coffee. He rose up and walked over to the sink and washed his cup out. After placing the cup on the dish rack he turned around and leaned against the counter and watched her. He wanted to go over to her and run his hands through her silky long tresses when she began twirling her hair around her finger. He’d bet she didn’t even know what she was doing to him.

“I don’t have any liquor here to offer you.” She didn’t know why she said that. She certainly didn’t want to drink anymore that night.

Richie smiled and snorted at the same time. “I’m not looking to drink.”

She bit her bottom lip and nodded.

“Oh, you gotta stop.” He couldn’t stop grinning now.

Her eyes grew wide. “What?”

He walked over to her and placed his hands on her arms and gently brought her up to him and kissed her.

She resisted at first, but her body betrayed her, she was so wet. There was no denying she wanted him.

Once again, Richie broke the kiss. He turned around and walked toward the living area “There are others like me that get a shitload of money each month and don’t do anything with their lives. They’re perpetual partiers. Those twin chicks whose grandfather owns a rival hotel.” He paused as he watched her acknowledge who he was talking about. “They’re always making the paper…for all the wrong reasons. I mean, how many times have they been photographed stoned, or drunk off their asses? Make-up smeared, short dresses disheveled you could see clear up their crotches, the cameramen getting a clear shot, but the newspaper blacking ‘em out with black strips across them. I’m tired of seeing their mugs at parties all over the world, they’re loud and obnoxious. I stopped traversing the globe and partying because it was getting old. And how many times are we going to be subjected to their sex videos. Gees, these girls have no sense of pride.” He stopped abruptly and swung around to look at her. “I don’t want that. That’s not who I am, but every time a photo appears in the paper, the journalist plays up the
bad boy
image.”

She made her way to the living room area and leaned against the table behind the couch, absently playing with one of the white knights from the glass chess set that was setup on its board.

Richie sat down on the couch, his back against the armrest, one leg on the floor the other hanging over the cushion. His massive frame took up most of the couch. He looked up to her. “You play?” he asked, referring to the chess game.

She nodded.

He stared at her for a long while then shook his head. “You know if you hadn’t let me see you filming, I never would have guessed you are a porn star. There is more to you than that…so much more.”

“I’m not a star.”

The corners of his lips curled up. “Come here,” his voice a bedroom whisper.

She set down the knight and walked around the couch, taking his outstretched hand and let him pull her down on top of him, she was so weak. Her body pressed against his hard body and her head rested on his chest where she subtly breathed in his heady scent.

“I just closed on a cattle ranch in Texas, near where I live. That’s where I was all this time. The place needed a lot of work…still does. I hardly went home, instead, I stayed in the bunk house on the property and threw myself into the thick of things.” He purposely left out the personal conflict he was having with himself in regard to her during that time. Again, no need to bring it up now.

“Congratulations, Richie. Lots of luck with it… Do you know anything about ranching?”

“Baby,” he said as he kept caressing her hair. “I’ve been helping out on a ranch since I was ten, eleven years old. My buddy, Logan and his family have a huge ranch in Wimberley. I’ve learned a great many skills and I’m looking forward to putting them to use. Wait’ll you see it.”

The butterflies in Simone’s stomach took flight. Did he really want her to visit him in Texas or was he just being polite? “I’d love to see it.” She smiled up at him and gave him a quick kiss then went back to resting her head on his chest. If she was supposed to be mad at him she didn’t show it. She was hopeless when it came to him. 

They sat in silence for a few moments with him caressing her arm then he moved in and kissed her and before long his hand began to roam her body. He couldn’t help it. He didn’t even realize he was doing it.

She wiggled into him then jumped up off of him. Slightly bent at the waist, finger twirling around a lock of hair, she flirtatiously giggled. Then she turned. She knew he didn’t take his eyes off of her.

He sat up and, with his eyes, followed her to the stairs off to the side of the front door. She turned back around and letting out another sexy laugh, she beckoned him with the crook of her finger. “You coming?”

His smile just melted her and she desperately needed him inside her.

“I didn’t come here for sex.” His smile now beaming bright.

“Apparently little Richie didn’t get the memo.” She dropped her eyes to the large bulge between his pants, the same bulge her pussy responded to while lying on top of him moments ago. Her eyes danced as her grin reached them.

Richie let out a short boisterous laugh. “Little? Darlin’, now you know he ain’t so little.”

“Oh, baby, how I know,” she said laughing and shaking her head as she stood on the platform leading up to the steps and reached behind her and dropped her skirt. She turned around and walked up the steps.

He caught up to her as she flung her blouse, and she giggled when she felt his warm hands on her ass.

Simone turned her head around, over her shoulder. “Lolita has a line of sex toys coming out and guess who she asked to test them?”

Richie looked up to her, a smile slowly forming.

“Let’s see what she has for us tonight, shall we?” she said.