Wrangled and Tangled (34 page)

“You give me a lot to smile about.” She pointed at his food. “Eat up. I have a teacher and student fantasy to fulfill tonight. You never should’ve used that paddle on me.” Janie gifted him with a coquettish look. “Oh, and I’m playing the teacher role, just in case you were curious.”

“You’re gonna torture me about this, aren’t you?”

“Mercilessly.”

Late Saturday morning Abe checked his reflection in the bathroom mirror and felt ridiculous. Mostly he felt stupid because he was so damn nervous, and he shouldn’t be. Wasn’t like he was giving a speech. He adjusted the square hat for the tenth time and the gold tassel swung into his face.

Janie yelled down the hallway, “Abe. Come
on
. I want to get some pictures of you in your cap and gown before we leave.”

Pictures. Like he was ten years old or something.

Quit pretending to complain. You are thrilled Janie’s excited about sharing this milestone in your life.

Abe tried not to walk like a cowboy as he crossed the floor. But college degree or not, he was a cowboy. He’d been walking this way his whole damn life. He pushed open the door, grumbling, “Make it fast because I . . .” He stopped in the middle of the deck.

Hank, Lainie and Celia stood beside Janie. His little sister yelled, “Surprise!” and launched herself at him, knocking his damn hat off again.

As soon as Celia was done hugging him, she smacked him on the arm. “You big jerk. I can’t believe you didn’t tell us.” She whapped him again. “And I can’t believe I ever felt guilty about keeping barrel racing from you when you were keeping this from us.” Then she hugged him. “But damn, bro. A college degree? I’m so freakin’ proud of you I could bust.”

“Me too,” Hank said.

“And to think I was worried that you’d gotten addicted to porn because of your tendency to disappear into your room for hours on end.” Lainie gave him a one-armed hug because baby Lawson had grown mightily in the last few weeks.

Abe started to ask, “How did you know?” but realized Janie must’ve told them, so he amended, “I can’t believe you guys came.”

“Like we’d miss something so important to you,” Hank scoffed.

“To all of us,” Lainie said. “I’m just glad
someone
let us know about it.”

“Yeah, Janie, we owe you big-time,” Celia said.

Janie bowed to Abe. “You’re welcome. Now you guys stand together. I want a picture of you with your family.”

Three hours later when Abe walked across the stage for his diploma, he knew when he thought of this day, it wouldn’t be receiving the piece of paper he’d remember. He’d remember how Janie had known what would really mark the occasion and make it perfect.

Janie cried during the ceremony. Twice. She’d practically bawled on the deck step when she truly grasped how much it meant to Abe that she’d told his family of his accomplishment.

They’d had a celebratory steak supper before Celia had to take off. Hank and Lainie headed home with a whispered promise from Hank he’d handle the morning cattle check.

No one was around in the main area of the lodge. She said, “Hang on, I need to check this room,” and motioned Abe inside.

When he saw his duffel bag on the bed, he said, “What the hell?”

“I’m not working tonight. I booked us a room to celebrate.”

Then Abe got the strangest expression. His gaze moved from the separate alcove for the hot tub, to the sandstone fireplace, to the seating area, to the king-sized bed.

Not that she’d expected he’d whoop and holler, but his stillness bothered her. “If you’d rather go home, that’s all right too.”

He smiled almost shyly. “No. I wanna spend the night here. You just caught me by surprise. To be honest, I’ve never stayed anyplace this nice.”

“We have billed the Split Rock as a luxury resort. I’m glad you like it. With all the times you’ve been around you haven’t checked out the rooms?”

“No.” He wandered to the window. “Are they all like this?”

“This is the only room with a hot tub.” Janie smoothed her hands up his broad back and inhaled his familiar scent—starched cotton, warm skin and always, a hint of the outdoors.

“No one has ever done anything like this for me, Janie. Not only renting us a fancy room, but inviting my family . . . I can’t believe . . .” He paused and cleared his throat. “Thank you. This is a day I’ll never forget.”

Janie ducked under his arm to press against the front of his body. “This will be a night you’ll never forget either.”

Heat flared in his eyes, turning them molten silver. “Yeah?”

“Uh-huh. You know how you always like to be in charge in the bedroom? Well, there’s a new kink master in town and her name is Mistress Janie.”

“Got big plans for me, Mistress Janie?”

“Mmm-hmm. I even brought a bag of tricks along.” She snaked her hand around the back of his neck, pulling his mouth to hers for a kiss. A sweet, slow, wet kiss that she dragged out as long as possible. Then she whispered, “Lose the clothes, cowboy,” and slithered out of his grasp.

Abe kept his hot gaze on hers as he kicked off his boots and toed off his socks. Unbuttoned his shirt and carefully draped it across the back of the plush easy chair. Shucked his jeans and underwear, placing them alongside his shirt. He stood in front of her, totally naked, totally hard, and totally at her whim.

She smirked. Circling slowly, she randomly touched him. Tracing the line of his spine down to the cleft of his butt cheeks. Her fingers mapped the dips and grooves of the muscles in his forearms and biceps. She used the back of her knuckles to follow that sexy cut of muscle from his hip to his abdomen. While brushing her thumbs across his nipples, she kissed his chest. One time. Then she challenged, “Suck or fuck?”

“Fuck.” Pause. “As long as I get to touch you.”

“You don’t get to set the parameters, Mr. Lawson. You’ll do it my way.”

“Oh, you are enjoying the hell outta this, aren’t you?”

“Yep. Now hop on in the hot tub and I’ll be right there.”

Abe removed the hot tub cover while Janie stripped. He turned on the jets and the water frothed as they immersed themselves.

For several minutes they relaxed in the bubbling water. Her foot connected with his and she inched her toes up his shin. “Do you like this?”

“I’d like it more if you weren’t so far away.”

She floated over to him, anchoring a knee on either side of his hips. “Is this better?”

“Much.” He placed his lips on the side of her neck and sucked, scattering kisses across the slope of her shoulder. Down her chest. Up to her ear. “I’m yours, Janie. Only yours. Do with me what you will.”

Even in their most passionate moments, Abe could bowl her over with his pure sweetness. She fisted his cock at the base and rolled back, aligning it so she could join their bodies with a single push.

He groaned. “So good. Every damn time.”

As frantic as they always were to get their hands on one another, this time there was no hurry. But there was passion. There was desire. This was the type of lovemaking they hadn’t indulged in. Sweet. Long, wet kisses perfectly matched to the leisurely glide of their bodies beneath the cocoon of water. They rocked and touched and tasted, not exchanging words. Letting kisses and caresses speak.

The climb to the peak of pleasure was as unhurried as the descent. When they finally released their tight hold on one another, Janie smooched Abe’s forehead. “I’m a little pruny.”

“No complaints from me.” He nuzzled her cheek. “You’ll still be a hot number fifty years from now when you’re permanently pruny.”

She tossed him a towel and slipped on one of the guest robes. “You want a beer? Or would you rather have champagne to celebrate this momentous occasion?”

“Beer. Definitely.”

Abe snagged the other robe and they moved to the sitting area. He raised his bottle to her. “A toast?”

“To what?”

“To you.”

That surprised her. “Me? Why?”

“Because you are the perfect woman.”

She stilled. “Really? Or are you just saying that because I fucked you and brought you a beer?”

He tipped up the bottle. Drank.

“Abe?”

“I never say something I don’t mean, even in jest, Janie. You know that about me.”

Ask him if he loves you. Ask him if you two have a future despite your past. Ask him if he wants you to stay in Muddy Gap with him.

But Janie wasn’t sure she wanted to hear his answer, especially not tonight when this was his celebration.

After he finished the beer, she grabbed his hand and led him into the sleeping area. She moved a bench a foot from the end of the bed. “Sit.”

“You givin’ me a lap dance?”

“No. This time it’s all about me.” Trailing her fingers down his chest, she let her breath whisper across his ear. “But I promise you’ll love it.”

“I don’t doubt that, cupcake.” He kissed the line of her jaw to the tip of her chin.

When his hands gripped her ass, she pushed his hands back by his sides. “No-touching rule is in effect.”

She crawled across the bed on all fours. She paused, widening her stance and canting her hips so he got an eyeful of the pink flesh between her legs.

Abe muttered something.

Which caused her to stop and peer over her shoulder. “Did you say something?”

“I said you’re killin’ me.”

“And just think. I haven’t even gotten to the real show yet.”

Grabbing a pillow and her small stash of supplies, she returned to the end of the bed. “I know how much you love to watch me get myself off. So I thought I’d oblige you.” The first item out of the bag was her vibrator. Not the small one she used strictly for clit stimulation, but the one with the rotating head and the vibrating tip. Janie flattened her heels on the mattress and shoved the pillow under her ass. “Got a good view?”

“Holy fuck.”

She laughed. “I take that as a yes.” Holding the vibrator in her left hand, she slowly dragged her middle finger from the entrance to her pussy up through her slippery folds to the top of her pubic bone. “Can you see how wet I am, Abe? I probably won’t need any lube when I fuck myself with this. It’ll just glide right in. Nice and deep. Do you want to watch me sliding this in?”

He nodded. Vigorously.

“I will. But I need to take the edge off.” She flicked on the vibrator and switched it to her right hand, positioning the vibrating head directly on her clit. “This won’t take long.” She swirled the vibrator head around, searching for the perfect position, every sensation coalesced and her clit spasmed beneath the tip. She gasped, clenching and unclenching her butt cheeks to the rhythm of the blood pulsing in her sex. After the short, intense orgasm ended, she slumped into the mattress and let the vibrator fall beside her. She sighed and propped herself on her elbows to look at Abe through her splayed legs.

His cheeks were high with color. His jaw rippled from clenching his teeth so hard. His hands were in fists at his sides. And his cock? Fully erect.

“Abe.”

He raised his eyes to hers.

“Put your mouth on me. Lick me clean.”

Then those big, callused hands were gripping the inside of her thighs. Then his hot, wet mouth was licking, lapping and slurping the juices from every inch of her pussy. His growls vibrated against her flesh, sending goose bumps flowing out. He zeroed in on her clit, driving her back to the ragged edge with the precise flicks of his sinful tongue.