Wild Wyoming Nights (21 page)

“Chase,” she whispered before she opened her eyes. The concentration on his face fascinated her. She could tell he held himself in tight check, doing his best to not finish this too quickly, but she wanted him to lose control.

She traced his chest with her hands, finding his nipples with her fingers, twirling the hard tip. He shuddered above her and growled, “Leave those alone.”

“Nope.” She found one with her lips, licking and nipping until he groaned, and his hips began to pound against her. He grabbed her buttocks and lifted her hips higher, hammering into her with almost frantic movements. The heat built from her toes, curling up her legs to center between her thighs, and she climaxed again, screaming his name in abandon.

“Abby,” he groaned as she felt him swell and push against her when he came with a violent shudder.

He rested his weight on her chest, his face buried in her neck while she stroked his back with her hands. His lips grazed along her skin, sending shivers down her spine. He shifted slightly, but she held him in place, not wanting to let him go—not yet.

“If you don’t let me up, I’m going to squish you.” His warm chuckle brought a smile to her lips.

“I don’t mind.” This time they didn’t seem to have the uncomfortable air around them as they did in the barn until he sighed and pulled away. He slipped the used condom off and tossed it in the trashcan next to her bed.

He stood up, all proud male in his naked glory, while she rose up on her elbows, admiring his form. A frown rippled across his face when he looked into her eyes.

She stood up in front of him, her hands sliding up his chest to reach around his neck and pressed her lips to his shoulder. Her sensitive nipples rasped against the soft hair sprinkled across the expanse and they both groaned. Her tongue slid along his shoulder, tasting the salt of his skin, and his hands came up to rest on her hips.

She pulled far enough away that she could look into his eyes. “I’m not expecting promises you can’t give. I don’t even know if I can promise anything, but I know one thing—I want you, I want this between us for however long it lasts.”

She stepped back, taking his hand in hers as she led him into the bathroom with a smile and the expectation of more. Turning on the warm water, she stepped inside the shower, bringing him with her.

“I don’t have another condom with me.”

Smiling, she said, “I trust you, unless you’ve slept with half the town since Krista died.”

“I haven’t been with anyone,” he whispered.

“Good—neither have I.”

Tipping her head back so the liquid cascaded over her in rivulets, she offered herself to him in the most primal way. “Touch me,” she whispered.

A tortured groan rumbled in his chest as his hand cupped her, sliding his calloused palms across her nipple, bringing it to a harden bud under his touch.

He grabbed the bar of soap and lathered it in his hands before he murmured, “Turn around.”

She smiled before she turned and presented him with her back. He hissed behind her and a soft groan spilled from his mouth.

“What?”

“Nothing. I’m just surprised, that’s all. I guess I didn’t expect this.” His fingers traced the butterfly on her shoulder blade.

She flashed him a smile over her shoulder. “Just one more facet of my personality you didn’t know.”

His ran his tongue over the tattoo and over the top of her shoulder, reaching her neck before he murmured in her ear, “I want to know more.”

She sighed when she felt his warm breath move away from her ear. Lifting her wet hair over her shoulder, he ran his soapy hands over her skin, sliding them along the muscles while he kneaded the ridges beneath his palms.

“You have no idea how good that feels.”

His warm chuckle met her ear before his lips returned to nibble the lobe between his teeth. His hands worked their way down her back, over her hips, sliding along her buttocks to knead and lift the soft globes, parting them as he stepped closer. Her head rolled back, and she leaned against his chest. He softly cupped her breasts, sliding his hands around them before he rolled her nipples between his fingers.

“Mmm.”

“You are so beautiful.”

“I bet you say that to all the girls.”

“Nope.” His hands continued their exploration while the water sluiced over them, washing away the soap. Down her flat belly, across her hips, around her buttocks his hands moved before coming back to the front and slipping between her thighs. One finger slid across her clit, eliciting a groan from her mouth the moment before he slipped it inside her pussy. She lifted her leg and propped her foot on the side of the shower, giving him more access.

Her hips shifted and wiggled against the erection pushing against her buttocks while his groan matched hers. The feeling of his fingers inside her and his hard cock behind her sent her senses into overdrive. Shuddering as she felt liquid heat spill from her folds, she whimpered when he removed his fingers and bent her over at the waist before nibbling down her spine with his lips.

She couldn’t believe the sounds coming from her own mouth when he pounded into her from behind; surprised they weren’t setting the house on fire with their passion.

Holding her hips in place, he pushed against her. She could feel her climax building as he hammered against her backside. His tongue licked up her spine while he rocked his hips until they both exploded, their mixed roar of completion loud in the bathroom silence.

He finally pulled himself out of her warmth with a soft moan before he grabbed the soap again and gave her a sinful smile.

“Uh-uh. My turn.” Taking the soap from his hands, she ran the slippery substance over his chest, loving the feel of his muscles under her palms.

Chapter Fourteen

The water had long since turned cold when Abby and Chase finally left the shower. He took his time drying her off, taking full advantage of running the fluffy blue towel over her curves. Her nipples begged for his touch as they stood proud and hard, tantalizing him to caress them with his mouth with every rise and fall of her chest. She moaned softly and tipped her head back when his tongue slid over her pert nub. By the time they reached her room, they were both panting with every breath as they fell across the bed in a tangle of arms and legs.

He knew he would have a hard time walking when he left her house.
I haven’t made love to a woman that many times in one day in a long time.
Not that I’m complaining.

A soft smile rippled across his mouth while his hand caressed her arm where it lay across his stomach. She slept contently on his chest, her soft breasts pressed against his side. He didn’t think he’d ever get enough of her, and that could prove to be a problem.

He wasn’t sure he was ready for another serious relationship and he knew she wasn’t. The diamond on her left hand twinkled in the dim light of her room, mocking him.

His heart whispered, “Then what do you call what happened between the two of you this afternoon?”
He frowned. “
Lust. Pure and simple,”
his head answered.

It sure hadn’t felt like only lust. She was able to get him hard and ready mere minutes after they had made love with only a simple look, but the softness in her eyes spoke of feelings she hadn’t expressed.

“It’s not only lust if you are calling it making love,”
his heart whispered and the frown deepened.

She was so responsive, so passionate, and he wasn’t quite sure what to do with her now. Their lovemaking took their relationship to a whole new level, one he wasn’t sure he wanted to explore yet.

Having sex with her on the table at my house didn’t change things—not really—so why should this?

He wasn’t aware she was awake until she said, “What’s the frown for?”

“I was just thinking, that’s all.”

“Obviously, it wasn’t something pleasant if the look was any indicator.”

He shook his head in denial. “Actually, my thoughts were about you.”

She propped herself up on her elbow and cocked her head to the side. “Oh, that makes me feel better. You had a scowl on your face.”

Her watchfulness made him uncomfortable, almost as if she could see into his soul and read the torment going on in his heart.

“We should probably talk about this,” he whispered trying to read her expression.

A scared look surfaced in her eyes when they met his. “I don’t think there is anything to talk about.” She rolled away from him, and grabbed her bathrobe off the end of the bed.

“Abby…Abby wait.”

“Don’t.” She wrapped the robe around her shoulders and stood on the side of the bed, pulling the belt tight, like a shield.

“We need to talk. We can’t just go on like this never happened.” He stood on the other side of the bed and slipped his jeans on.

She stiffened before she blurted out, “It was just physical need, Chase, nothing more. I haven’t been with anyone since Joshua died. I had a need, you fulfilled it. Nothing changed between us after you fucked me on your kitchen table—this shouldn’t change anything, either.”

How could she be so cold, so uncaring?

Wasn’t he supposed to be the one who shut down anything between them?

“You could have fulfilled that need with at least two other men I’m aware of.”

Her face tightened and her gaze snapped with rage. The pain that flashed across her eyes made him feel like an ass. He walked around the other side of the bed and pulled her against his chest. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.”

She pushed against him until he let her go. Her body trembled with anger and she spat, “Get out!”

* * * *

Chase slammed the door when he left. She managed to hold herself together until he was gone, but as soon as she heard his truck leave the yard, the tears came. Scalding rivulets rolled down her cheeks as she sank down on the bed.

Damn him! What we shared was special, or at least I thought it was.

She couldn’t talk about it, not right then anyway. The feelings were still too raw, too close to the surface to be explored, but having him throw it back in her face was just more than she could handle.

When the tears finally stopped, Abby sat on the bed with her legs folded under her. He had made such sweet love to her she couldn’t understand how he could be so cold. She dabbed at the tears on her cheeks with a tissue from the box next to her, and then dropped her hands in her lap.

Her wedding ring twinkled in the moonlight that filtered in through the window, and she groaned. No wonder he was so cold and uncaring. She made love with a man she really had only known for six months or so with her wedding ring from her dead husband on her hand.

“How could I be so stupid?”
What a mess I’ve made of this whole thing.
She hung her head as the tears threatening to fall again.
 

She hadn’t seen Josh in several weeks, but she wanted to now. Closing her eyes, she thought about his smiling face, the love in his eyes when he looked at her, and she realized the pain she carried for so long wasn’t there anymore.

I wonder if I call to him, if he’ll come.

“Joshua,” she whispered to the darkness around her.

Abby.

“Josh, I need you.” She opened her eyes and searched the room around her when she heard his soft voice whisper her name. Out of the shadows in the corner, she could see him and the tears caught in her throat.

It’s time, Abby. You need to move on.

A choking sob racked her body.

I’ll always be there in your heart, you know that. I love you, but he’s your future.

Her gaze found the diamond ring before her eyes met his again as he began to fade back into the darkness of the room. “I love you, Josh.”

I know, Abby. I’ll always love you.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she worked the ring off her finger, rose from the bed, and slipped it inside her jewelry box, softly closing the lid. The part of her life with Josh was over; the life she wanted with Chase had just begun. The hard part would be convincing Chase they belonged together.

Bright and early the next morning, she stood in his front yard. He would be up, he always was. She knocked on the door and then realized there were sounds coming from the barn. Walking briskly in the direction of the sound, she found him in the arena with the stallion, the same one who had kicked him and broke his leg. Climbing up on the split rail fencing, she sat to watch. His mastery of the animal, his confidence in his abilities, the commanding stance of his strong legs all took her breath away. She couldn’t tell if he knew she studied him. He never acknowledged her presence until he was finished and walked the big horse toward her.
 
Their eyes met across the arena and even from a distance, she could feel the heat of his gaze.

When he finally reached her side he said, “What are you doing here?”

“Nice to see you, too, Chase.”

Nothing like a warm welcome, but what did I expect after last night.