Chapter
Three
The earthy-sweet scent of horses reached
Jessi
e
before she could even see the corral.
The
smell instantly triggered memories of when she
’
d ridden at the stable as a little girl. The thought made her smile. She was on a dude ranch after all. What better way to spend the morning than with a trail ride? It
’
d been years since she
’
d been on horseback
, and after the little sleep she
’
d gotten last night, a relaxing ride was just what she needed
.
Maybe that would make her stop thinking about the way Deke had kissed her, the
incredible
feel of his hard body against hers.
With luck it
might even
distract her from the empty ache between her thighs for a little while.
But how could he kiss her like he was dying to get inside her
one moment
and then
suddenly slam a wall
up
between them the next
?
Bridgette traipsed along behind her, chattering excitedly
to her and Shannon
, Bridgette
’
s cousin
.
“
I can
’
t wait for this
.
The closest I
’
ve ever been to a horse was a pony at the petting zoo
when I took
my nephew.
”
Jessie liked her enthusiasm.
“
It
’
ll be fun. Just make sure you stay calm
,
and don
’
t let the horse
sense
you
’
re nervous.
”
“
Right.
”
They rounded the corner of the stone building, and Jessie drew up short. Bent over inspecting a stirrup
hanging off
one of the
saddled
horses, Deacon raised his head and looked at her from beneath the brim of his black Stetson.
His blue eyes held her captive for a moment
, sending a tingling rush
of heat
to her breasts
.
Oh God, he was
mouth-
watering.
Muscles flexed across his back and shoulders as he hunkered next to the horse, a bead of sweat trickling down to his jaw. He wiped it away with
the shoulder of
his
blue plaid button-down
, still watching her.
Her hormones spiked despite
the lingering hurt and awkwardness leftover from last night
.
“
Mornin
’
,
”
he drawled.
The heated look in his eyes made her nipples peak.
“
Morn
ing,
”
she replied and quickly looked away
.
Damned if she
’
d let him know how self-conscious she felt now.
H
e
strode
across the corral
leading
a tall, dun-colored horse
, and handed the reins to someone
waiting there
. Jess
ie
belatedly realized Dustin had been standing there all along, and waved a greeting.
Dustin waved back.
“
Where
’
s
Charissa
?
”
“
She
’
s, ah
…
indisposed,
”
Shannon
answered
.
“
With your eldest brother
,
we
’
re hoping
,
”
Bridgette supplied helpfully, grinning from ear to ear.
Dustin
’
s eyes widened.
“
Okay
,
then. The rest of y
’
all ready for your ride?
”
He spoke to all of them
,
but he was staring
at Shannon
.
“
Yes, but I need something gentle,
”
Bridgette
answered
,
apparently
oblivious to the sparks flying between him and Shannon
.
“
I
’
m a riding virgin.
”
He
grinned and patted the dun
’
s neck.
“
This is Diesel, and he
’
s a sweetheart. You
’
ll have no trouble with him.
”
“
What about you?
”
Deacon asked Jessie.
She looked over at
him, trying to pretend she wasn
’
t still thinking about those seductive kisses or the feel of his hand fisting in her hair as he
’
d licked at her lower lip
and
into her mouth
.
That hard wall of muscle pressed against her breasts.
The
inner walls
of her pussy
clenched at the memory.
“
I
’
ve ridden some, but it
’
s been a while.
”
He considered her a moment before
choosing a bay and
leading
it over
.
“
This is Lightning.
He
’
s fast, but as lon
g as you keep him in line he
’
ll
…
behave himself.
”
Be
have himself. Like the
sexy
cowboy holding its reins
obviously wished he
’
d done last night?
“
Don
’
t worry,
I
’
ll keep him in line.
”
Deke
’
s lips twitched
at her barbed words
.
“
Good.
”
The horse watched her with curious brown eyes as she approached and stroked his nose.
“
Hi
,
Lightning. You going to be a good boy for me?
”
“
Need any help mounting?
”
Was he saying suggestive things on purpose, or was she just thinking about sex because she
’
d been awake half the night fantasizing about
burning up the sheets
with
him
?
With a
scathing
glare
aimed at herself as much as him,
she brushed past him, put her left foot in the stirrup, grabbed the horn
,
and swung up. The leather creaked as she settled into the saddle and took hold of the reins.
When she looked down
with a triumphant grin
, Deacon was fighting a smile.
“
You
seem
pretty comfy up there.
”
“
Feels good,
”
she said, firming her
legs
around the animal. She
’
d mostly ridden English, but the Western saddle was comfortable enough.
“
Looks good
,
too,
”
he said softly, eyeing the way her
butt and
thighs molded to the saddle
, instantly making her think of having them wrapped around his waist while he plunged in and out of her
.
Sensual heat swept over her body
and
made her panties grow damp
.
She wrenched her head up
.
God, the nerve of the man
.
First to kiss her
,
then apologize and make it clear he regretted it, then—
“
All right, ready to go?
”
Dustin called.
“
I
’
ll lead,
Shannon will follow, Bridgette behind her
, then Jessica
.
Deke
’
ll ride drag.
”
Jessie stole a glance at Deke over her shoulder as he grabbed his saddle horn and swung
effortlessly
onto his black gelding without using
a
stirrup.
The
easy,
fluid athleticism of the movement made her breath catch.
God
, she shouldn
’
t find that so damn sexy, but she did. Gathering the reins, he gave her a
playful
wink
and rode away
, leaving her to imagine all that
masculine
power braced over her as he surged in and out of her
aching pussy
.
Trying to erase the image, Jessie
nudged
her horse
and set out behind Bridgette. Dustin led the way up the first hill
, chattering amiably,
telling jokes
,
and flirting with Shannon
. Bridgette
’
s trilling laugh
floated
back to
Jessie
and made her smile. She was glad the bride was having a good time
.
“
Watch yourself on this bit,
”
Deacon
called
behind her
.
Leaning forward in the saddle, she raised up in the stirrups to help the horse over the rocky trail on a steep part of the hill. She was acutely
aware
of Deacon behind her and
certain he was
staring at her butt.
Not that she minded
. The thought actually aroused her. She might not be able to live them
out
in real life, but she could sure as hell
daydream
about what it would be like to feel that long, hard body
pin
her in place
and
hear
that deep voice whispering naughty
things in her ear as h
e
showed her exactly what
her sex life had been missing
all along
.
If his kisses were any indication, he
’
d give her one hell of a ride.
She shifted in the saddle, uncomfortably aware of
how
wet
her panties were getting
.
The rocking motion didn
’
t help either.
A blush worked its way into her cheeks
,
and s
he was glad Deke could
n
’
t see her face
.
By the time they made it back to the corral, the sun was burning off the haze and the temperature was climbing fast. Deke
dismounted and strode over to take her horse by the bridle so she could swing down.
The muscles in her inner thighs protested when she hit the ground, and she
bit back a grimace
.
Deke grabbed her shoulder.
“
Stiff?
”
His touch burned through her
T
-shirt and made heat lick low in her belly
and
between her thighs
.
“
A bit. I
’
m sure I
’
ll feel
it
tomorrow.
”
She wished she
’
d be sore for a different reason, but Deke obviously wasn
’
t interested in helping her out.
“
A soak in the hot tub
later
might do you some good.
”
“
I didn
’
t bring a suit.
”
A positively wicked smile curved his mouth.
“
That
’
s okay with me
.
”
She snorted
, hating that she couldn
’
t stay mad at him
for baiting her when he
’
d clearly regretted their kiss
.
“
I
’
ll bet.
”
Unbidden, an image of her sliding naked into the hot water came to mind, him walking out of the shadows, h
is dark gaze sweeping over her bare
breasts bobbing in the water. He
’
d hunker down so he was at eye level with her and thread his long fingers into her hair to kiss her. Then
, while his tongue danced in her mouth,
he
’
d slide a hand into the water
to
cup her breast
and rub
his thumb across her hard nipple
…
Mentally slapping herself, she watched while he unbuckled the girth beneath
her
horse
’
s belly and
took
off the saddle. The instant he
lifted it and
swiveled
around
, she cou
ld see the strain in his face. Frowning, s
he
followed him into the tack room, surrounded by the scents of leather and ha
y
.
He set the saddle on its pegs and turned but stopped when he saw her standing there
.
There were lines of
tension
around his eyes that hadn
’
t been there before.
He looked tired, too.
“
Is it your back?
”
He stilled at her words for an instant, then quickly bent and scooped up a few brushes.
“
It
’
s fine.
”
H
is curt tone made it clear he didn
’
t want to talk about it, regardless of the ground she thought they
’
d
initially
gained the night before.
Feeling stupid for having said anything at all, she
spun
on her heel
.
“
Jess
ica
.
”
She stopped and glanced back at him
, l
ift
ing
her brows.
If he wanted to be an asshole, he could do it without her for an audience.
He looked down at the brushes in his hands.
“
Sorry. You don
’
t have to leave.
”
Did he really want her to stay? Or was he just feeling guilty? Taking a step toward him, she held out a hand
,
and he gave her a brush
.
“
My back both
ers me sometimes if I overdo it,
”
he finally explained.
Nodding, she tried to gauge his mood.
They could be civil
and mature
at least.
“
That
’
s understandable.
”
“
I worked out a little too hard this morning, that
’
s all. The ride just exacerbated it.
”
He must work out a lot to keep himself in that kind of shape.
“
How bad is it?
”
she finally asked
.
He shrugged his broad shoulders.
“
It
’
ll never be the same as it was, but at least I
’
m not crippled.
”
Crippled. She hid a flinch.
“
Can they operate?
”
“
They
already
did, twice. This is as good as it
’
s gonna get.
”
Her heart went out to him. For a man
who
had once been a
S
pecial
O
ps
soldier, being sidelined because of his injuries had to have taken its toll on him, both psychologically and emotionally.
No wonder he was having a hard time adjusting
to being on the ranch again
.
Reaching for a bucket of grooming supplies, she
noticed
a cot at the back of the room, its sheets and comforter stripped as
though
waiting to be washed. Deke
followed her gaze
and
strode
over to stuff
the bedding into a duffel bag.
The duffel bag she
’
d seen in his truck
yesterday.
She faced him.
“
You slept out here last night?
”
He nodded
tightly
.
She eyed the cot. No wonder his back was bothering him—he
’
d probably been in pain all night on that thing.
And cold.
“
Why?
”
“
Didn
’
t want you staying out here alone,
”
he said as he
finished packing
the bag and zipped it shut.
Something twisted in her chest. He
’
d stayed out here to guard her even though she
’
d slammed the door in his face
and taken off
.
“
You didn
’
t have to do that.
”
“
Yeah
,
I did. I couldn
’
t have slept
if
I
’
d left you out here
all
by yourself.
”
The sweet and chivalrous gesture filled her with warmth.
She might not be sure where things stood between them, but she definitely wasn
’
t
annoyed
anymore.
Offering
a smile, she reached out
and took his strong hand, tugged
on it.
“
Come on, I
’
ll help
you groom the horses
.
”
“
You don
’
t have to—
”
“
I want to. I
’
ve missed being around horses. Besides, if you
’
re
nice to me the whole time
, I might rub your back afterward.
”
The flirtatious line came out before she could stop herself
.
Something
hot
flashed in his eyes, but then he smiled
.
Her belly flippe
d in response.
“
Maybe you can sm
ooth out some of my rough edges while you
’
re at it
.
”
“
Maybe I can.
”
And oh, she
’
d l
ove every second of stroking his muscled body
.
Instinct told her he
’
d feel even better than he did in her imagination.
His eyes darkened as h
e stared down at her. When his gaze settled on
her lips, she felt
its
touch like a caress and licked them in anticipation.
With a low sound of need,
Deke
placed
a hand on her nape as he
leaned in and settle
d his mouth over hers. Gently. So c
arefully
it turned her inside out
.
The slow stroke of his tongue into her mouth set off a shocking burst of heat between her legs
, centering in her clit
. Jessie moaned and grabbed his upper arms, needing more. Craving it
.
She answered the caress of his tongue and moved in close until she was flush against his hard body. His muscles felt like warm steel
beneath the
velvety
nap of the shirt. His thick erection pressed into her
belly
,
but his mouth was so
soft
as he
kissed
her, that powerful hand wrapped around the back of her neck
to anchor her.
To h
old her still
while he took her mouth
.
The
dominant gesture filled
her with
a startling
tenderness t
hat tore a ragged sigh from her
and
left her aching for more when he pulled away.
The
burning,
unfulfilled hunger in his gaze made her stomach flutter.
He wanted her. Whatever
his reasons
for pulling back, he wanted her as badly as she wanted him.
He swept a thumb over her flushed cheek
and shook his head slightly
.
“
You
’
re distracting me
from my job
, sugar
.
”
“
Am I?
”
Again,
he stared at
her lips. Then lower,
to
her breasts, bringing them to tingling wakefulness.
She wanted to feel his hands on her naked skin, have those long fingers
cradle
her breasts, roll her tender nipples.
She squeezed her thighs together to stem the
pounding ache
between them
.
“
You are,
”
he confirmed, looking
deep
into her eyes.
“
More than you realize.
”
With that cryptic comment, he left the tack room
.
Jessie
touched
her fingers to her tingling lips and closed her eyes. God, she couldn
’
t take much more of the sexual tension between them, but what was she supposed to do
about it
?
Reining in her rampant hormones, she regained her composure and followed him out to the corral.
Later in the shower, she couldn
’
t stop thinking about the
erotic
promise
she
’
d read in his face.
Her body was dying for his touch, so desperate for relief that she ached.
While the hot spray pounded down on her head and shoulders, she
gave in to her need. Bracing
one hand against the wall
, she
slid the other over her swelling breasts. She groaned as she tugged on a nipple, imagining his eyes holding
her captive while he pleasured her
.
The
fantasy was so vivid she could almost feel that big, muscular body
molded
against her spine and the brush of his lips against the side of her neck.
It was
Deke
’
s
hands sliding
over her wet skin, making her twist and shudder
. Hi
s mouth
sucking and
tugging on her
tender
nipples. H
is
velvety
tongue
trailing
across her inner thigh
to find
her
moist center and finally her
aching clit
. It swirled there
in slow
, lazy
circles
while his
long
fingers
stole
inside her
pussy
.
Rubbing over the exact place that
intensified the erotic sensations and
sent her over the edge.
Oh, God.
She could almost hear that low drawl, whispering hotly against her
body
.
Come for me, sugar.
Biting down on her lower lip
to hold back an agonized moan
, Jessica bowed back as the orgasm rushed through her, leaving her gasping and trembling.
Pushing his face from her mind
as the last waves faded
, s
he closed her eyes and
rested
her forehead against the slick fi
ber
glass
, her body shuddering in relief.
God, s
he
’
d needed that in the worst way.
Maybe now she could stop thinking about him for a while.
But even as she straightened and f
inished her shower, she couldn
’
t shake the
feeling she
’
d
just
made things
much
worse
.
****
Deke sat off to the side of the room as the
bridal
shower
wound down, watching Jessica
’
s reaction when
Ashley
brought out the penis-shaped cake
.
The women all cheered, except Jessica, who smiled a little and flushed
in her seat beside
to the bride-to-be.
She was totally out of place in that setting, with the condom balloons floating around the room and the female conversation taking a distinctly lewd turn.
What he could catch of it
,
anyway.
She smiled and laughed in all the right places, but she remained demure and reserved while the rest of the women seemed to be getting into
the swing of things
.
Everyone was well on their way to getting drunk
, but she
’
d barely touched her glass of wine
.
An
d while she didn
’
t do anything to draw attention to herself
, he couldn
’
t take his eyes off her.
S
he might as well have been the only woman in the room
.
Deke had found her talking to
Dane
when he
’
d arrived to help serve dinner. Stock market analysis and other things that made his brother light up like a Christmas tree. That was the thing about Jessica
. S
he had a
knack
for engaging people and putting them at ease
.
Him included, which was pretty much a miracle these days.
She was kind and smart and independent, and she fascinated him.
He wanted to
get into her head and find out
what made her tick
. Because he knew she was hiding her true nature from everyone. Maybe even from herself
,
and that
was
the worst crime
of all
.
Underneath that professional armor, she was soft and responsive and so feminine she made him ache.
She
’
d all but melted in his arms
,
and all he
’
d done was kiss her.
The
intriguing
,
secret parts
he
’
d
glimpsed
of her
over the past two days made him want
to see more.
“
Ready to go?
”
Dusty
called to him
from the doorway
.
Deke nodded to him.
“
Yeah.
”
They were all supposed to go
into town to the bar,
except for
Dillon
and
maybe
Charissa
.
They
seemed to have a lot of shit to straighten out between
them
, if his brother
’
s grim expression
and the sidelong looks he
’
d been
shooting
her way
at dinner
were
any indication
.
Sending his brothers out with the bridal party was
Dillon
’
s
idea of relaxing his rigid demands and being a nice guy. Ironic he wouldn
’
t even be there to keep them in line.
Everyone else was going dancing,
but
Deke
wasn
’
t sure
Jessica would
go.
She didn
’
t seem like the bar type, so it w
ouldn
’
t surprise
him if she opted to stay behind
in
favo
r
of getting
more work done. If she did, he
’
d be tempted to stay
with her
,
to
see if he could
interest her in more pleasurable things
.
He wanted more of what he
’
d sensed in that kiss earlier today. Breathless anticipation and a yearning so strong
he
’
d barely been able
to keep his hands off her the rest of the day. Her
unique
mix of independence and
sensual,
ultra-femininity
damn near killed him
.
It made him wonder what it would take to
make her let g
o and unleash the sexy siren inside
. What did she like in bed
? He hated to think it was straight mission
ary-with-the-lights-
off sex.
She had to want something more than that. She was too beautiful, too feminine not to enjoy her sexuality.
What got her off?
It
’
d be fun to find out what
forbidden
fantasies ran through that pretty head
when she was alone and aching
for release
in the middle of the night
.
‘
Course, it
’
d be a hell
of a lot more fun to make them come to life
with
her.
He
’
d love to have on
e night with her
alone
and
at his mercy. Then h
e
’
d find out exactly what it took to make those bi
g topaz eyes go hazy and blind
. W
hat made
that lush mouth part in a cry of ecstasy as she came
against
his
tongue
. Or around his cock
.
It
heated
his blood just thinking about it
.
Not that he would ever find out. Though seeing how besotted the rest of his brothers were this weekend, the company rules
about fraternizing with the guests
seemed to have been tossed out the window for the
time being
.
Thank God their parents were out of town.
But Jessica
should stay
off limits for him. He was a cynical ex-P
ararescue
J
umper
with
no fucking clue what to do with the rest of his life
and
a taste for hard-edged, kinky sex.
She deserved better than
getting
tangled up with him.
Tamping
down
the sexual hunger
roiling inside him
, he rose and snagged his
keys from the back office. When he came out, Jessica was setting her
cake
plate into the bin
of dirty dishes
. She looked up at him and
offered a smile
.
“
Coming to the bar?
”
he asked.
She glanced over at the others, already filing out the door
and heading for
the parking lot. She was going to say no. He could see it in her
face
. But then her gaze went to the keys in his hand and up to his
eyes
.
“
Are you going?
”
“
Was planning to. You can come with me.
”
The subconscious double entendre made his dick throb.
A pleased smile curved her soft mouth.
“
Okay then.
”
“
Right this way.
”
He set a hand against her
back and led her out the doors. When she flashed him a
nother
sweet smile, he tried
to ignore her
delicious
scent and the
protective
feeling rising up inside him
.
If she only knew what he wanted to do to her, she wouldn
’
t be nearly so
relaxed
at
be
ing
alone with him.