Acres, Natalie - Cowboy Boots and Unsettled Debts [Cowboy Boots 3] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever) (16 page)

Kit snorted at that. “One of us will eventually have to take him out. Better you than her.”

“Agreed,” Judson whispered, tilting his head and wondering if he could lie down next to her and not touch her. Could he sleep beside the woman he’d always loved and not make love to her the way he’d longed to do since they’d parted ways?

He cut his gaze toward Kit. “I still love her.”

“Of course you do. You’re like me. You were yanked out of training, dropped into another position, and told to survive without her. That love you had for her the day you were reassigned, it’s still there. Maybe it’s not as strong. Perhaps it’s ten times stronger, but the emotion exists.”

“Do you still love her, too?”

Kit slowly nodded. “I would lay down my life for her. I would beg an enemy to spare her and take me. I’d grovel for her happiness, beg for her salvation. I’d go to the end of this world to protect her, and somewhere down deep inside of that stubborn shell of a woman, Abby still feels something for me, too.”

Judson related to those same sentiments. Only he carried some remorse, a smidgen of shame. There was a huge difference between him and Kit. Judson handled his grief a little differently than Kit apparently chose to deal with his own.

Judson hadn’t been loyal to their memory. After he and Abby parted ways, he’d pursued other women in hopes of finding a replacement for Abby. Kit never did.

“How’d you do it?” Judson asked.

“How’d I do what?”

“I’ve lived with you for the last four years. You haven’t touched another woman that I know of.”

Kit cleared his throat. He looked at Abby, and his nose twitched as he apparently tried to fight off a grin. “I love her. I just love her, man.”

* * * *

Abby awoke with a start a few hours later. She lay there listening to the sounds around her—the comforting tone of Kit’s heavy breathing, Judson’s light and occasional snoring, and the clickety-click sound of the heating-and-cooling unit switching to auto mode.

She quietly left the bed and stood in front of the coffee table. She felt a smile tug at her lips as she replayed the conversation she’d overheard. Kit had been without sex since the day they’d said good-bye. Judson, on the other hand, apparently had himself a grand old time.

In many ways, she looked at the information as insight she didn’t need. From the moment she’d spotted them on the front porch, her mind was already made up for her. She was going to love them both again—at least once—and then let them go forever.

They each chose to hurt her. They each made a conscious decision to walk away from the special connection they’d shared. What kind of man chose his career over love?

Turning to face the mirror behind her, she quickly answered her own question—the kind of person who took an oath to guard and protect those who needed someone to save them, someone loyal to depend upon. She’d been that person. They were those kinds of men.

How then, she wondered, could she fault them?

She entered the bathroom and turned on the shower. Sliding her shirt over her head, she unhooked her bra and wiggled out of her pants and panties. She hadn’t bothered undressing when she stretched out on the bed. In fact, the last thing she remembered was taunting them, pushing them for answers they refused to give her. Then, she’d fallen asleep.

She stepped into the shower and held her head under the hot spray. Closing her eyes, she thought of that sweet confession. Kit’s deep voice admitting he’d never taken another to bed.

The thought of him saving himself for her—that big, hard body remaining untouched all these years—was enough to make her long for him. She ran her fingers through her wet strands, tilting her face toward the water. The droplets stung her cheeks as she contemplated her future, a future that could go on as it had been in the past—without Kit, without Judson, or could they somehow meet in the middle? Could they be together again?

Ace came to mind then, and she smiled. He’d have a fit if she chose one of these guys over the other. Then she had to think of Casey. Sweet Casey had given her more than she’d had in at least a year, and he’d never hesitated. He wanted her satisfied even though he’d surely realized she wouldn’t have time to return the favor.

Her mind spun with possibilities—Fowler, Porter, and Brantley. Casey, Ace, Kit, and Judson. No. This couldn’t be happening to her. Was it possible? Could she have feelings for so many men?

Reaching for the soap, her hands propelled over her body. She moved the bar over her breasts, rubbing the tight points as she thought of what she’d witnessed at the Donovan farm.

The most exquisite sight had unfolded before her. Several men. One woman. Artful fucking. That’s what she’d observed.

And in that moment, the truth set her completely free.

That’s what she wanted.

Chapter Seventeen

Kit jerked. He awoke the same way he always started his day. Hard and rigid, he was as horny as all hell.

He stared at the empty bed and rose. Frantic, he stomped toward the bathroom and pressed his ear to the door. He heard the shower water running and placed his hand on the fancy silver lever.

The reason behind his erection was within his reach, and he wanted to go to her, hold and caress her. He wanted to love her.

Using his forearm, he pushed the door back and was shocked by what he saw. Behind the foggy glass, Abby’s body was pressed against the wall. Her foot rested against the soap dish, and she was fucking herself. Her small hand bumped against her body as her fingers reached, searched out that satisfying release.

He listened to her soft whimpers and let her tease him. His thick erection pressed against his denim. His balls were heavy and sore.

Ah yes, he’d known pain. He’d known heartache.

Stepping away from his jeans, he ripped open his shirt and quickly disrobed. He opened the shower door and was completely alarmed to find Abby was not only working for her release, but she was crying. Her tears ran down her face quicker than the water rolled off her back.

“Shh, Abby,” Kit said, kissing the top of her head and drawing her to him.

Her hand dropped to her side, and she allowed him to hold her. He rocked her back and forth, stroking her back, and caressing her shoulders.

Then, something changed in an instant.

The broken woman became a seductress. With her small hands cupping his face, she reached up and kissed him.

A peck here and there turned into a heated kiss as her tongue worked through the seam of his mouth and spun pure magic all the way to his soul. Her lips groveled for something he’d never imagined giving her. He wanted this moment to last forever, and at the same time, he was a man. A man who’d waited. A man who’d longed for a woman he hadn’t held in almost half a dozen years.

Kit hoisted her into his arms and locked her legs behind him. “Baby, oh fucking baby, how I’ve missed you.”

“Kit…”

“Shh,” he whispered across her lips. “Give me this. Please, Abby. I need you. We need this.”

Her eyes searched his, and she stretched her neck, granting him full access to that sweet long trunk. His lips traveled over her wet skin, met her chest, and latched onto a nipple. As he drew the point between his lips, he entered her.

She gasped as his cock traveled, as he thrust his dick inside her. “There you go, doll.”

“Hmm,” she cooed. “Harder, Kit. Fuck me like you’ve waited for me. Show me. Please, Kit! Convince me.”

They kissed as he filled her with his size. His cock stroked. Her lips fed. And they came together like two lovers meeting for the first time.

“Higher,” she demanded, her nails raking across his shoulders while she climbed him, rode him. “Deeper, Kit. Oh God, you have to go deeper.”

He stared down at their connecting bodies and completely lost his pent-up control. He slammed her body against the tile and fucked her, screwing himself higher inside her channel as their bodies found their perfect time and took advantage of their fated place.

“Take what you need, lover,” he whispered at her ear. “Fuck me like you’ll never fuck another.”

“Kit!” she screamed, her cunt naturally milking him. Her pussy clenched around his dick as he barricaded his cock inside her walls, driving into her with more force than he’d used in the past.

He wanted to stamp her with his seed. He didn’t care about the consequences. He realized where he’d been. He knew where he hadn’t. They were safe. They were healthy. And she was his.

By the time he finished with her, she’d know who’d loved her. She’d understand who’d never forgotten her.

She would want him back. She would want to hold him forever, cherish this moment for eternity.

* * * *

He carried her to bed and lay down beside her. Caressing her cheek, he pulled her against him, wrapping his arms around her small frame.

“I’ve missed you,” she admitted, smiling against his chest.

“I know, doll,” he said, kissing the top of her head.

She rose over him. Her mouth was moist as she shoved her fingers through his hair and stared at the strands dreamily. What was going through her mind? What questions would she need answered before they could return to the way things should’ve been, should’ve always remained?

“How long will you stay?” she asked, tears in her eyes.

He forced a smile but didn’t offer a reply.

“That long, huh?”

“You know better than to ask these things, Abby. Remember how we parted.”

She rubbed her lips together and fell to the bed, staring at the ceiling. “I’ve never known hurt like that before, and I never will again.”

“I hope that’s true,” he said, rising to his left elbow as he turned to his side. “Don’t ever give me or anyone else the power to destroy you.”

“I was completely destroyed, all right,” she said softly, a touch of anger in her voice. “I was devastated. I don’t think I ever fully recovered.”

“You did,” Kit assured her, tilting his head toward Judson who was still snoring behind them. “I saw how you handled your grief.”

“You watched me?”

“I’ve seen you with him. I’ve seen you with that other guy—the nerd you date whenever you need a little nooky. What’s his name?”

“Nate,” she stated flatly.

“The two of you don’t have chemistry.”

She arched a brow. “And what about Judson?”

He winked. “I’d rather not comment.”

“Did it…I mean I know you broke things off, but did it hurt you to see me with other men?”

“At first, yeah,” he readily admitted, taking a deep breath and revisiting the familiar pain. “Then I realized this was the life we both chose. If Conrad had asked you to leave without giving me an explanation, the roles might have been reversed. See, I let you go. I knew the reasons. I came to terms with the facts. You didn’t. You had the right to move on. I didn’t. I still loved you.”

Her eyes softened, and she towered over him again. “And you love me now.”

“Yes,” he said, gripping her hips and allowing her body to envelop his. “I do love you now. And I always will.”

Chapter Eighteen

“He wants to what?” Porter asked, trying to get a good grip on what Brantley was saying.

“Kit said he and Abby reached a decision. Kit and Judson will take her to Juraz’s grand opening. We’ll reserve cabins together so our huts will be nearby.”

“She must’ve forgiven him for dumping her five years ago,” Fowler said sourly.

“Judson can’t go in as her Dom. He won’t pass. You’ll have to do it,” Ace said, looking at Brantley. When Brantley didn’t respond, he added, “I’m the likely choice, but Juraz caught a good look at me when we were at Club Sex. He’d know me anywhere. He worked all of us over. He studied everything about us. You should go. Not Judson.”

“How about you all go?” Casey suggested.

Brantley’s lips twitched. “That’s a thought.”

“I’d feel better about it.”

“Casey, as a reminder, Abby doesn’t belong to you,” Fowler said.

“Fowler is feeling froggy this morning,” Porter remarked, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him.

Fowler frowned. “She doesn’t belong to any of us. That’s the problem.”

“She belongs to him again,” Ace said, rubbing his forehead. “I’d bet money on it.”

Casey shook his head vehemently. “No, that’s not possible. I know she had feelings for me. I could see it in her eyes.”

“Shit!” Ace exclaimed. “The only thing you saw was about a year of relief working its way into that spicy pussy of hers.”

“Ace is right. Kit didn’t waste a second getting back in her pants. I believe that after talking to him this morning. He’s one hundred percent convinced Abby will do whatever he tells her to do.”

“Then he doesn’t know Abby like I do,” Ace said.

Porter noticed the tight strain of distress marking its place in Ace’s face. Who would’ve thought? Ace must’ve spent years hiding how he felt for Abby and then
bam!
His emotions got the best of him.