Slow Burn (17 page)

Natasha handed Christie the wildflower cascade bridal bouquet with silk Shasta daisies, pink mini lilies, blue lupine, lavender accents, and goldenrod. Natasha and Belle each carried similar but smaller bouquets.

Madelyn opened the door and Natasha and Belle went ahead of them. A few moments later, the first strains of the wedding march began. Christie’s belly did a major flip-flop. Shaking, Christie stepped through the doorway and met up with her grandfather, who held out the crook of his arm. She took it and they started down the aisle.

Trace couldn’t breathe as Christie stepped out of the darker recesses of the back of the church and started to proceed down the aisle with her grandfather.

He almost forgot his two best men, Brooks and Dylan, standing beside him. They’d been giving him a hard time for being the first of their friends to get married after accidentally catching the bouquet at Dylan’s wedding. The razzing faded to nothing as Christie walked toward him.

He did forget the reverend’s name in that moment. He almost forgot his own name.

Christie was a beautiful woman to begin with, but right now she positively glowed. Her smile was brilliant and she looked only at him as she came closer and closer. She couldn’t reach him soon enough, couldn’t become his wife fast enough.

His throat grew dry and he wondered if he’d be able to say his vows, much less remember them.

When her grandfather released her to give her away, he said something, but Trace’s ears were buzzing. He had eyes only for Christie. She clung to her bridal bouquet, which trembled in her hands. He wanted to reach for her, comfort her, hold her in his arms, something that would calm his own nerves.

He had no second thoughts. He’d wanted to spend the rest of his life with this woman for what seemed like forever. Maybe since the first time he’d met her.

Christie handed her bouquet to Belle to hold. They stood at the altar and faced each other, Christie’s fingers in Trace’s hands, in front of Reverend Jones.

Trace thought he’d get lost in Christie’s blue eyes. He wanted to reach out and touch the red strands of hair that curved against her cheek, skim his fingertips along her cheekbone, and slide his fingers into her hair. He wanted to draw her into a kiss, take her away from the church to a private hideaway, and make love to her for hours.

“Trace?” Her sweet lips formed his name and her soft voice brought him back to reality. A slow heat traveled through his body and he hoped to hell he wasn’t blushing.

She smiled and then nothing else mattered.

The moments seemed to crawl by while at the same time passing in a blur. He wasn’t even sure he’d said the vows he’d memorized correctly. But he did remember her smile, the glitter of tears in her eyes as he told her how much he loved her.

Before he knew it, he was sliding the ring on her finger and she slid a ring on his. The ring felt good, like a promise that became reality as the reverend told him he could kiss his new wife.

The kiss was long and filled with a meaning that only the two of them understood. When they broke the kiss to the sound of applause, he started to lead her away from the altar.

She held his hands, drawing him back to her so that they were still facing each other. “There’s something I have to tell you, husband. A wedding gift I want to give you now.” Her smile was beyond glowing.

“Go on.” He wasn’t sure if he should be worried or excited.

“You are going to be a daddy.” She lit up even more as she spoke, her smile broadening. “In about eight months.”

Trace understood then what it meant to have one’s knees go weak. He’d always thought it as something dramatic used in books. But for one moment he thought he was going to drop to his knees on the platform in front of the altar.

“We’re pregnant?” The words barely made it out through his lips. “We’re going to have a baby?”

She squeezed his hands. “Yes.”

He grabbed her by the waist and whirled her around in a circle and knew his grin spread ear to ear. She giggled as he spun her and then set her on her feet. She clung to his arms as if to steady herself.

Trace placed his hand on her belly, where soon a baby bump would start to appear. He turned and looked at everyone in the church. “We’re having a baby!”

The applause was explosive, even louder now than it had been after their first kiss as husband and wife.

As they ran down the aisle, guests beamed or shouted congratulations. He saw that Christie’s grandmother was crying, as were several other women.

They made it out into the June sunshine, only to have guests follow them and toss birdseed at them in lieu of rice. He swept Christie up into his arms. She let out a happy squeal of surprise and wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him. Her laugh was as joyous as his heart felt as they entered a future bright with everything he’d ever wanted since falling in love with the woman of his dreams.

He jogged down the church’s stairs to his waiting SUV, a “Just Married” sign on the back with tin cans tied to the trailer hitch with twine. Obviously his friends had been at work since he’d gone into the church.

Christie giggled as he deposited her in the passenger seat, closed the door, then ran to his side of the SUV. He closed the door as he was pelted with more birdseed.

He started the vehicle and took her hand in his. He ignored the crowd of onlookers as he held Christie’s hand.

“I love you, Christie.” He kissed her tenderly before drawing back. “You are my everything.”

“God, I love you, Trace.” She squeezed his hand. “I can’t imagine ever being happier in my life.”

“We’ll make more memories.” He cupped her face with his hand. “Lots more memories just as special as this one. I promise.”

She stroked his cheek. “Yes. Many, many more.”

Trace put the SUV into gear, took Christie’s hand again, and they drove to a future filled with each other. Filled with love.

~Romantic Suspense~

"Lawmen" series

Hidden Prey

No Mercy

Slow Burn

“Riding Tall” Series

Branded For You

Roping Your Heart

Fencing You In

Tying You Down

Playing With You

Crazy For You

Hot For You

Made For You

Held By You

Belong To You

“Rough and Ready” Series

Silk and Spurs

Lace and Lassos

Champagne and Chaps

Satin and Saddles

Roses and Rodeo

Lingerie and Lariats

Lipstick and Leather

~Paranormal~

Dark Seduction

Night’s Captive

Future Knight

“Tattoos and Leather” ménage

Inked

Branded

Marked

Stranded

“Hearts in Chains” BDSM Series

Wounded

“The Auction” Series

Sold

Bought

Claimed
(with bonus novella
Taken
)

“Taboo” Series

Wicked Nights: three Erotic Tales

Taboo Desires: three Tales of Lust and Passion

Playing Rough: three Stories of Sensual Submission

Paranormal

The Touch

“Lawmen” series

By Cheyenne McCray

Almost absently, he rubbed his thumb along Tori’s delicate jawline while they both remained quiet. He liked the way she fit in his arms. It felt…right.

It was the right time to tell her about what happened with Brian. Landon knew he should do it now.

And then every good intention vanished as she tipped her face up to look at him. Her eyelashes glittered from the remainder of her tears and her brown eyes seemed even darker than normal. As their gazes met and held, he didn’t think he’d ever be able to look away from her again. She drew him to her in so many ways and he was helpless to stop himself from wanting to get closer to her.

The other agents were downstairs and he was upstairs, alone. With Tori.

This wasn’t smart.

Hell, it was a long, long way from smart.

He held his breath, then let out a slow exhale as he lowered his mouth to hers.

The moment their lips met, she gave a sigh, surrendering herself to his kiss. That sense of surrender fueled him, somehow making him desire her even more than he already did.

He moved his lips over hers, hungry for the taste of her, the feel of her. Her scent filled him, as if a part of her was now inside him. Her lips were so soft, her taste exquisite on his tongue. God, he knew he could never get enough of her.

She leaned into him as their body heat melded, fusing them together in a way that defied explanation. Her sighs turned into a soft moan as he moved his hands over her shoulders, down her arms, and to her waist. She was wearing one of her new T-shirts and he pushed the hem up just enough that he could feel her soft skin along the waistband. He gripped her slender waist in his hands, his fingers brushing the base of her spine where she’d been tattooed.

Her hunger and his grew in matching intensity. She moved her palms up his chest to his shoulders and gripped them like she was afraid she would slide away if she didn’t hold on tightly.

He slipped his palms from her waist to her ass, feeling the perfection of it as he squeezed her closer to him. His cock was impossibly hard, pressing against her, straining to get free from behind the tough denim of his jeans.

Their clothes—too much cloth was between them. He wanted to feel her warm silky skin against his, nothing keeping them apart. He wanted only to slide between her thighs and drive his cock deep inside her heat.

The rumble that rose up in his chest was like a lion staking a claim on his territory, and she made an answering purr, giving herself completely to him. Not just surrendering, but offering herself for his pleasure. She asked for nothing, just gave him everything she had.

She sighed again as he slid his lips along her jawline to her ear. She gasped when he nipped at her earlobe and shivered in a delicate way that told him he’d just found one of her erogenous zones. He sucked the soft flesh into his mouth and nipped at it again. He felt another shiver run through her body.

He moved his lips down the column of her neck to the hollow at the base of her throat. The soft purring sounds she made caused his cock to grow even harder and he rubbed himself against her in a slow deliberate movement, like what he’d do when he was inside her.

A gasp escaped her as he cupped her breasts and flicked his thumbs over her taut nipples that pressed against the fabric of her T-shirt. She slid her fingers into his hair and encouraged him to lower his head so his mouth was even with her breasts. His body was close to shaking from the power of his need for her as he circled her nipple with his tongue, wetting the T-shirt and causing her to suck in her breath. She gave a small cry and gripped his hair tighter as he moved his mouth to her other nipple.

He had to taste the salt on her skin, feel its softness in his mouth. He pushed her T-shirt over her perfectly sized breasts and licked each of her nipples through her satin bra. She caught her breath as he pulled her bra beneath her breasts so they were bared for him.

She pushed his head down again, guiding him so that his mouth was directly over her nipple. He skimmed his lips over the hard nub and she moaned as he sucked it and flicked it with his tongue. Her nipples were hard peaks as he nipped at each one. God, but he loved the way she tasted. He loved that she wasn’t afraid to show him what she wanted. He loved everything about her.

~Rough and Ready Series~

By Cheyenne McCray

Silk and Spurs e
book available FREE at all major ebook retailers

“Can I help you?”

A deep, masculine drawl from behind her send a shiver down her spine and she lowered her camera and let it hang around her neck. She turned to face one hell of a fine cowboy, easily one of the sexiest she’d seen in all of her twenty-nine years.

At least six-three with broad shoulders and a cowboy’s build, he had blue flame eyes and black hair that curled slightly beneath his cowboy hat. His skin was well tanned and his arms roped with muscle.

“Sure.” She smiled. “You can help me anytime.” He raised an eyebrow and she grinned as she held out her hand. “Jessica Porter,” she said. “But please call me Jessie. I’m here to photograph the ranch and the upcoming wedding.”

“You’re my kid sister’s friend.” The cowboy took her hand in a firm grip. “Welcome to the Bar C.”

Jessie’s heart started to pound like crazy as the cowboy’s warm touch sent fire through her body. Her mouth grew dry and she bit the inside of her lower lip. It was the most enticing reaction that she’d ever had to a man.

Before he released it, he said, “I’m Zane Cameron.”

The disappointment that swept through her was a surprise. She didn’t even know Zane, so what difference did it make that he was getting married in just weeks?

What a shame. All of that hot man flesh would soon belong to some other woman.