Mister Cowboy, page 12
“Were you counting just now in the elevator?”
The grin on her face slipped as she practically ran into Brecken. He was standing so close she could feel his shallow breathing. He dipped his head and ran his hands up over her arms as he spoke. “Either it was that or rip your clothes off in an elevator.”
So many questions ran through her mind, but the words died on her lips. She didn’t care why he was counting or even why he felt the need to pull out a relaxation technique. His feather light touch wasn’t enough. She wanted more. She wanted rough. She wanted everything he could give, which judging by the dark look in his eyes might be more than she could take.
Instead of the frenzied pace she expected, he moved in slowly. Each touch made her ache for more, but she didn’t rush him. She took whatever he gave and let the sensations consume her.
“I missed you.” His hands slipped under her shirt and the contact of his rough hands against her warm skin moved up her sides, pushing her shirt with it until he slipped it over her head.
“Your skin,” he crooned as he slid each index finger under her bra straps and pulled them down off her shoulders. “It’s so soft.”
His mouth dropped to her cleavage as he tugged the front of her bra until her nipples popped free. “Your taste.” He licked a trail from one peak to the other. “So fucking sweet.”
He stepped forward, forcing her to walk backward as he unbuttoned her jeans and wrenched the zipper down. Stopping in the doorway of the bedroom and crouching in front of her, he pressed his mouth to the apex of her thigh and kissed her through the denim. She moaned loudly and grasped the frame on each side to keep herself upright.
Without warning, he stood and swooped her up. January wasn’t accustomed to being carried, much less swooped up. Being a tall girl, it was hard to imagine feeling small or fragile, but Brecken made her feel both as he easily lifted her and walked to the bed.
Her feet had barely settled on the ground when his thumbs hooked into the loops of her jeans. She stepped out of the material as he slid each pant leg to the ground.
She stood in front of him with only her panties and bra, which wasn’t doing anything to cover her breasts, and he stepped back, saying, “Lie on the bed.” His voice was quiet, but there was no denying the authoritative tone.
January did as he asked. She would have set herself on fire if he requested it, which wouldn’t have been too difficult considering she was already burning with desire.
He undressed, never taking his eyes off her. Noticing the foil wrapper in his hand, she shook her head rapidly. “I’m on the pill. Please, I want to feel you.”
Her words seemed to make him happy, and he tossed the condom over his head before he descended on top of her. Thick and hard, he pressed against her as he feathered kisses all over her bare skin. She willed herself to relax and enjoy the slow assault, but she was impatient to feel him inside her. She moved her hands down to tempt him, but he stopped her, pinning her wrists above her head. “I’ve been going crazy without you the last two days. It’s my turn to show you how that feels.”
She held back a plea, certain she had already fully moved into crazy town as his mouth found a nipple and his fingers pushed aside her panties and found her slick core.
“You’re so wet. Fuck.” His hair fell forward into his face and tickled her skin as his words had her muscles clenching.
Broad shoulders pushed her thighs apart, and he dipped his head, inhaling deeply. The calm demeanor he had been holding on to shattered, and in one smooth motion, her panties were off and his tongue caressed the spot they vacated.
Crying out, she lifted her hips, giving him full access to the very center of her need.
When she was certain she could take no more and cried out in anticipation of the ecstasy she knew was coming, he moved up and centered his cock against her opening.
“Frustrated, baby?” he asked, but his voice was gruff and tight.
She answered by wrapping a hand around him, pumping his cock. His jaw flexed. Brushing her hand away, he worked himself in slowly. The look on his face was a mixture of agony and pleasure as he filled her completely.
“Perfect. We fit together perfectly,” he whispered against her lips and swept his tongue inside. He kissed her hard and moved his hips slow, the contradiction making her wild.
She whimpered against him, craving release and yet not wanting it to end, either. His body collided with hers in the most magnificent way. They did fit together perfectly. Body and soul. It was destiny, it was the stars aligning, it was the inspiration for every love song ever written.
He picked up speed, pushing harder, deeper, until sweat slicked over them both and her orgasm was a tight knot of heat twisting inside her. It rushed to the surface, arching her back off the bed and stealing the breath from her lungs as she screamed his name. She was still high, reeling from the force of it, when his movements turned jerky and he found his own release, muttering, “Fucking perfect.”
Seconds or maybe minutes passed while she floated in ecstasy and reeled from the best orgasm of her life. When she opened her eyes, he was leaning over her, studying her face with such intensity and emotion that it was impossible to read his thoughts.
“Fucking perfect.”
Yes, it was. Yes, he was. She couldn’t find her voice to give him the praise he deserved, but it didn’t matter because he wasn’t done with her. Brecken’s mouth was on hers, taking and demanding, and then his arm snaked under her, and in one swift motion, he rolled, pulling her on top of him.
With his hands guiding her hips, he moved her down over his long shaft. Her body jolted to attention as he filled her fully and every nerve in her body responded in kind.
She was helpless as he lifted her until she was almost completely empty, and then pulled her down slowly so she could feel every inch sliding deep inside her.
“Look at me, baby,” he commanded as he urged her hips faster. “I want to watch you come.”
Licking her lips and nodding slightly, she fixed her stare directly into his. It was intimate that way, and she realized this was him ruining all other sex for her like she predicted, but in a completely different way than she had expected. It wasn’t the domineering and forceful fuck she’d pictured. It was more. It was two people getting off while gazing into the other’s souls. She’d never had this, but she knew she’d never want it any other way again.
23
Brecken
“You have quite the collection.” He played with the dark red gemstone lying on her chest and traced hearts on her skin with it.
“It’s the gemstone for January.”
“Mmm,” he murmured, watching the gold chain hit the light of the morning sun.
She shifted onto her elbows, and the necklace fell from his fingers and settled back between her cleavage. “I should get up and shower. Edward will be here in thirty minutes.”
“How’s everything at the ranch coming along?”
She stood before him completely nude, and he made no attempt to hide his appreciation of her fine figure.
“Starting on the bedrooms today. Which one was yours?” she asked huskily as her eyes washed over the full-frontal view he was providing.
“The one next to the office that overlooks the barn,” he responded, clasping his hands together behind his head.
“Any trace of your childhood left in there?”
The question was innocent enough and reasonable, but it caught him off guard and made him fight to push down the nostalgia that nearly two decades couldn’t erase. “I don’t know. I haven’t been in that room in over eighteen years.”
“Seriously? You never went back for Christmas or summer vacation?”
“No. My mother visited me when she came to the city. What about you? Is there a pink explosion room in Chicago with dolls and horse figurines scattered about?”
A girlish smile transformed her face. “Close. It’s purple not pink, and no dolls or horse figurines.” She bit her lip, and he knew she was considering telling him more.
“I thought all little girls collected dolls or horse figurines.”
“Dogs.”
“You had dogs? Real dogs?”
She shook her head. “No. I desperately wanted a real dog, but we lived in the city and my father traveled too much for it to be practical.”
He tried to picture her with a dog, a small teacup one in her purse or a well-groomed poodle, but he couldn’t. “What kind?”
“A golden retriever or a lab, maybe—something big and playful.”
“We had labs at the farm. They’re good dogs and very spirited.”
She sighed and turned away from him, pulling clothes from her closet and taking them with her to the bathroom. She left the door open, which was the only invitation he needed.
“Ah.” The water seared his skin as he stepped into the shower. Her hair was piled high on her head as she massaged her scalp, causing the shampoo to suds up into a thick foam.
“Let me.” Moving in behind her, he ran his fingers through the soapy mixture, and she leaned her head back. Little moans escaped her lips, and he had to remind himself—and his dick—that they didn’t have time to get too excited this morning.
“I could get use to this.”
“Me, too. Although, perhaps next time we can stay at my apartment. I’m going to smell like fruit and flowers all day.” His words sounded like a complaint, but in reality, not only did he love the idea of smelling like her throughout the day, but he was certain he’d be rock hard for as long as the smell lingered.
Poised at the whiteboard, Tina dictated as they brainstormed.
“Who can we get that’s already connected in the farming market?” she asked, holding the dry erase marker below her chin. “Dan is the best there is, but I don’t know how open he’ll be to hearing from you after you told him to go fuck himself on the merger.”
“I didn’t really tell him to go fuck himself,” Brecken chuckled. “But he’s not going to be on board unless we can show that we have all the other pieces. We still need someone with more connections.”
He ran a hand over his chin. His brain had turned to mush. “Let’s break for lunch. I’ll give Martin a call—he knows everyone, maybe he has a lead for us.”
Tina placed the cap on the marker and tossed it on the table. “All right. I’m going to head out to the ranch and check in.”
“No need. I’m heading out there later, so I’ll make sure everything is running smoothly.”
Tina raised her eyebrows and smirked but didn’t say anything as she left the room.
He’d barely had time to let out a deep breath and enjoy the silence of his empty office when Nadia appeared in the doorway. She closed the door behind her and moved toward to his desk with a flirty sway in her hips.
“Nadia,” he said curtly, turning his attention to his computer.
“What time are you picking me up tonight?”
“Excuse me?”
“Don’t tell me you forgot,” she said, sticking her bottom lip out in an exaggerated pout. “It’s the opening for A La Mode.”
In the past, he’d let Nadia dictate their social outings. She shuffled through the many invitations that came in, picked her favorites, and they’d attended together.
“I completely forgot about the gallery opening. I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it.”
“Well, that’s okay,” she said, her tone saying she wasn’t going to be easily deterred. “I can order us dinner in. A quiet night with just the two of us sounds divine.”
Christ. She wasn’t going to make this easy. “I’m sorry, Nadia. I can’t have dinner with you. I have a date.” It was only partly true. He and January hadn’t made plans, but they’d been spending every night together so it was a fair assumption that he’d see her tonight.
“Perhaps a quiet night with the three of us then,” she said, and his stomach jumped to his throat.
“No.” He gave her his full attention now.
Her eyes narrowed for a second before the sultry look returned to her face. “Is this about that frumpy brunette you’ve been seeing?”
“Careful, Nadia,” he warned, wanting nothing more than to remind her that she had agreed to the boundaries of their arrangement and was currently close to crossing them.
He stood and gave her an indifferent glance. “I appreciate that you’ve accompanied me in the past, but I think it’s best if I find my own plus one from now on. I’m going to lunch.”
Grabbing his coat, he left her standing in his office and hoped like hell she didn’t make this harder than it needed to be.
24
January
“Here are some additional boxes. Let me know if you need more.” Timothy dropped the large cardboard boxes on the floor and leaned against the door with one thumb tucked into the front of his jeans. “Place is starting to look great.”
“Thank you.” Wiping the back of a dusty hand across her forehead, she surveyed the room, pleased with the progress. He hesitated at the door, standing straight and filling the space with his tall and lanky frame. “Have you seen Tina today?” She tried for casual but was sure he could read through the innocent-sounding question.
“No, but she does have a way of steering plum clear of me.”
“Why is that?”
He smoothed his beard down with a hand, and one side of his mouth turned up. “I’d like to think she hasn’t come around to my charms yet, but the truth is I might have come on a little strong when we first met.” He dropped his hand and shrugged. “What can I say, it isn’t often a beautiful woman like that walks onto my ranch.”
“Maybe you should tell her that.”
He looked down at his boots and tipped back on his heels. “Eh, I’m not sure what a girl like that would see in someone like me.”
“Don’t sell yourself short,” she said to his back as he stepped out into the hall. “Thanks for the boxes.”
Sitting on the bed, she took a deep breath and tried to picture what Brecken’s room might have looked like when he was a child. She had found no trace of him as she’d cleaned out the closet and dressers. Not an old yearbook or even a ratty teddy bear. The walls looked as if they had been repainted in recent years, so not even the scratches or holes in the walls left any indication of where he might have hung posters or pictures of friends.
She snapped a picture of herself sitting on the bed in his old room and sent it to him, hoping to break through whatever barrier he had up that wouldn’t allow him to tell her why he’d left home and never returned.
His response was immediate.
Brecken: All my wet dreams just came true.
Laughing at his candid reply she stood, picked up the boxes Timothy had left, and headed to the master. The wooden door was closed, making it feel like an eerie museum exhibit that had been roped off to preserve. She pushed it open with a creak. The heavy scents of cigar smoke and musk hung in the air as she walked to the center of the room.
Much like the living room of Brecken’s apartment, this room appeared to have been Mr. Blackstone’s haven. Framed pictures of a woman, presumably Brecken’s mom, were set neatly on the nightstand, along with a Bible and a paperback copy of Lonesome Dove.
Moving to the nightstand on the other side of the bed, she picked up a dusty silver frame. The same woman in the other pictures smiled back with a man on either side. Brecken was easily recognizable, even with his youthful face and skinny body, and his jet-black hair stuck out wildly around his head. His smile was large and met his eyes, which sparkled with mischief as if he had said something funny and they all had a good laugh. The smile on the elder Blackstone’s face wasn’t as big, but his face was filled with love and pride, his arm wrapped tightly around the back of his wife.
January’s heart ached, not for Brecken’s loss, but for her own as she stared down at the picture-perfect family that she’d never had. Placing the frame back, she stood and walked to the closet. Starting there seemed far less emotionally draining than dealing with the photos and books that made her long to know more about the Blackstone family. A pair of scuffed boots sat on the floor underneath a rack of men’s clothes. Her heart plummeted at the sad image she was sure would haunt her for days to come.
So much for the closet being less personal.
Pushing aside her emotions, she took a calming breath and began taking flannel shirts off the hangers, folding them, and placing them neatly in the box. As her hands moved in autopilot, she ran through every scenario she could come up with, trying to figure out what might have created a rift between the man that had lived here and the one she’d shared a bed with last night. She had imagined Brecken’s father as disapproving and unloving, but his room spoke to none of that. Was it possible that a family as happy as the one in the picture beside the bed was a total façade? She was no stranger to the lies of perception, but nothing about the house or the rooms inside had hinted at anything but love and comfort.
“Hey.” Brecken’s gruff voice interrupted her thoughts.
Jumping, she let out a small screech. “You scared me.”
He lingered in the doorway, and his eyes darted around the room before settling on her. “I’ve been calling you.”
Taking her phone from her back pocket, she noted the time and call notifications. Three missed calls in the hour since she’d started working in the late Mr. Blackstone’s bedroom. “Weird, I guess I blocked everything else out while I was working. The closet is nearly done.” She motioned to the bare clothing racks in front of her.
His Adam’s apple bobbed, and as he scanned what was left of his parents’ belongings, his face became an unreadable mask. “Ready to go?”
“Sure. First, though, what do you want me to do with the personal items in here—books, photos—want me to put those in a separate box for you?”
“No,” he said a bit too sharply.
