Heather Rainier (10 page)

“Never again, Seth.” The words were barely a whisper, but the relief was apparent in her eyes when her gaze met his in the mirror.

Her breathing was rapid as he trapped her nipples between his fingers and tugged while stroking her flesh. Her head fell back against his shoulder, in the little dip that her head fit into perfectly, and she stroked his forearms before raising her hands to his shoulders, letting him have his way. He breathed in the scent of her hair and pressed kisses along the column of her throat. A soft growl emitted from his throat when she rubbed her ass against his aching cock.

He released the satiny warmth of her breasts and trailed his hands down her quivering abdomen, making slow, tantalizing progress. The strands covering her mound in a neat, trimmed fashion were pure, silken seduction as his fingertips strayed downward to her cleft. His breath left him in a hiss, and his cock nearly exploded in his jeans as his fingers were bathed in the slippery-hot juices pooling from her cunt. To be able to slide his cock into that wealth of lush, hot flesh was nearly more temptation than he could bear. He slid a finger over her swollen clit, and she tensed suddenly in his arms, gulping in air and sinking her fingernails into his shoulders. Her cunt clenched spasmodically on his fingertip, and he knew she was very close to climax.

“Please don’t stop,” she whimpered softly, moving against his hand.

She turned her face to his, and he laid his lips on hers and stroked the silken recesses of her mouth. His tongue mirrored what his fingers were doing as he slid his other hand to her pussy and then trapped her clit between two fingers and caressed around and around it until she trembled on the verge. His cock burned to be inside her, and he broke out into a sweat as he fought for control. He sank one fingertip in just a tiny bit and pumped in and out as he rubbed up and down on her clit. Triumph filled him when she arched and tilted her head, cries of ecstasy coming from deep inside her as her tight little cunt rippled in orgasm around his stroking fingers, bathing his hand in her hot juices.

* * * *

“Seth!” Jayne panted hard as the orgasm whipped into a whirlwind and exploded deep within her, rendering her incapable of speech beyond wailing his name. His strong arms held her close and kept her from collapsing to the floor at his feet. Every inch of her pulsed with a vibrating sensation and her heart pounded in her chest. Had she really considered being with any other man but Seth?

Gazing at their reflection in the mirror, she thought for a fleeting instant that Seth looked like a strong, dominating sex god, driving her body to the heights of ecstasy with only his fingertips. He made possessive eye contact with her in the reflection and sucked the copious evidence of her orgasm from his fingers as though it was an exotic delicacy. He caressed her abdomen and wrapped her body in his arms, and tears prickled behind her eyelids as she closed them. She felt cherished. Her heart clenched at the thought of her earlier foolishness at The Dancing Pony. No matter how nice or sexy they were, no man but this one would do. That wasn’t her first orgasm, but it was the first involving contact with a man.

And had he just said she was his?

He squeezed her and pressed his warm lips to her shoulder and coaxed her over to her bed. He pulled the covers back and helped her to lie down on her side and then said, “I’m going to get you another glass of water. Stay put.”

Seth returned a couple of minutes later with a full glass of water, and Jayne wondered if she’d even have room for that much more, but she took it from him and drank most of it. He put her bottle of ibuprofen from the kitchen on her bedside table and placed the glass next to it when she handed it back to him. For some reason, he didn’t offer her any of the pain relievers yet.

“Buck and Seth just dropped off your car and your key. I put it and your key ring on the kitchen counter. You look like you feel a little better. But if you drank enough to pass out, you really shouldn’t be alone tonight. I’m staying with you.”

“Okay. I’m sorry. It was an idiotic idea. My mom used to say that once I got a notion in my head I wouldn’t let go, like a bulldog.”

Seth smirked. “Tenacious. I like that about you. But I’m glad Buck called me.”

“He called you! Why that—”
Ratfink!
Seth smirked at her again and raised an eyebrow. “Sweetheart of a guy.”

“He may have foiled your plan, baby, but he was looking out for your safety and your best interests. Turns out the cowboy you were dancing with…”

“Julián?”

“Yes. Turns out he’s a decent guy. He asked Buck to make sure you were okay. I told him you were fine.”

Heat filled her cheeks as she thought back to what had happened just a few minutes before. She gave him a crooked grin and giggled. “Yup. I was doing just fine.”

Seth chuckled as he tucked the covers around her. “Feel better?”

“Not so loopy. Those margaritas packed a punch.”

She reclined against the pillows and closed her eyes as her body throbbed and quivered with remembrance of all the sensations she’d experienced. She felt floaty and smiled when the room spun just a bit. “Will you stay with me, in my bed, tonight?”

“You don’t make it easy, do you?”

She sat up and looked at him. “I didn’t do anything for you. I can, if you’d—”

Seth laid his hand on her shoulder and directed her back down onto her side on the mattress. “Not on your life, baby. I’d love it, but I don’t take advantage of women under the influence. It’s against my rules.”

“Rules?”

“Yes, rules. It’s a long story. I’ll tell it to you when you’re sober.”

“But I know it hurts if you don’t get relief.”

“It does. But not near as much as guilt for taking advantage of an inebriated woman. Lie down and we’ll iron all this out later.”

She smiled when she felt him press a kiss against her spine, between her shoulder blades.

“You scared me tonight, Jayne.”

“Why?”

“When I think of how things could’ve turned out if Buck hadn’t called me. I’ve seen things while traveling that would curl your hair.”

She lay there with her eyes closed and was about to ask him what he meant when the room began to spin above her and around her. She opened her eyes to steady herself, but it did no good. She took a deep breath, hoping the spinning would slow down, but it only got worse. She wasn’t even sure she could stand on her own.

“Um, Seth?”

“Yeah?”

She reached out and gripped the edge of the bed, willing her brain to stop spinning. “Seth?” The bed jostled, and her stomach lurched wildly. “I don’t feel so good.”

Seth grabbed her and practically carried her into the bathroom as nausea sank its claws deep in her gut. She’d thought that she’d already lived through her most embarrassing moment with Seth when that sex toy purchase receipt had fallen from her notebook and she’d realized that he knew what was in her “toy box.”

This moment
far
surpassed that one as he gathered her long hair back from her face and directed her so that she could throw up in the toilet. She kneeled there naked as wave after wave of nausea had its wicked way with her, and all he did was whisper encouragement and comfort to her as she wept and apologized.

Just when she thought there was no way it could continue, the nausea renewed itself and her body purged so violently she felt sure that she’d suffer permanent injury because of it. He stroked her hair and held her steady as weakness overcame her and even wiped her face with a cool washcloth when it was over.

She rested her forehead against a solid, warm surface as the toilet flushed and realized when muscles flexed under her cheek that it was Seth’s chest.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so,
so
sorry.”

“Stop apologizing. As much as you had to drink, Jayne, I’m glad I was here to look after you. The thought of you going through that alone, or worse, passing out and never waking up again…it’s just not something I want to think about. I take it that’s never happened to you before. Getting sick after drinking?”

“Never.”
And never again.

Seth helped her back to the bed and piled the pillows behind her so she was partially reclined and refilled the glass of water for her. He encouraged her to sip it slowly to replace the fluids she’d lost. When her stomach had settled sufficiently he coaxed her to take two ibuprofens and tucked her back into the bed. That must’ve been why he’d waited to give them to her.

Jayne felt as weak as a kitten, and when he climbed into the bed and pulled her to him so that she was snuggled back to his chest, she felt disgusted with herself.

“Seth?” Her voice sounded weak in her own ears.

“Yeah?”

“I’m dropping the subject completely. I know I could’ve found myself in dire straits tonight. I’m done chasing sex. I got impatient. Even if I didn’t want it right now, I’m so incapacitated you could do whatever you wanted to me and I couldn’t stop you.”

“And that’s kind of scary, isn’t it?” Jayne nodded and sighed when he squeezed her and planted a kiss on her shoulder. “When you collapsed on the dance floor it scared me. Not a good combination with being pissed off at seeing that cowboy’s hand on your ass.”

Jayne smiled at his possessive tone, vaguely remembering that she’d imagined that it had been Seth’s hand on her. “So, I’m yours, huh? I didn’t imagine that you said that?”

“Yes.” The single word was spoken without hesitation.

“Is that your way of asking if you can be my boyfriend?” What a lame word for such an intense, serious, quiet man.

“Yes, baby. Sleep.” His fingers gently sifting through her hair was the last thing she remembered.

Jayne woke the next morning to the sound of a buzz saw screaming. She put her hands to her head to determine if it was still attached and covered her eyes. Shielding them from the glare piercing the mini-blinds, she blinked and groaned in pain as even that simple action made a jarring noise inside her head.

“I’m dying.”

Looking up, she determined that the buzz saw was actually her alarm going off. She hit the Off button and gazed up at the fan whirling above her bed. She closed her eyes against the mesmerizing whirl of the fan blades when nausea quivered in her stomach, which felt a little sore.

What happened again? Oh, that’s right. One tequila, two tequila, three tequila…floor. That Señor Patrón is a son of a bitch. I’m dying. Wait! Seth was here, and he—did I dream that?

The seductive memory surfaced of watching him stroke her pussy, in front of the mirror—oh, the things he’d done to make her body sing. The heat that built inside her once more was dampened by the memory of the previous evening’s gastronomic tsunami.

Recalling that she been snuggled up with Seth when she’d fallen asleep, she groped but found only the bare, cold sheets. A little part of her was disappointed but, still needing to determine how close she actually was to death’s door, she was mostly glad that she was alone.

Her pulse pounded inside her brain, and she breathed carefully until the
tom-tom
beat subsided to a tolerable level before she stood. Her hair hung in her eyes and her limbs quaked as she shuffled into the bathroom
. I can’t believe I did this to myself.

She flipped the light on and just as quickly flipped it back off when she got a glimpse of herself under the lights.

“Oh, hell. It’s the zombie apocalypse. No wonder he’s not here.” She held her hands to the sides of her head.

Don’t talk so loud! I’m dying!

Squinting at herself in the mirror, Jayne groaned in horror. Dried drool crusted her cheek, and her tongue felt furry. She cringed as she used her hairbrush, every follicle throbbing in a symphony of pain. After she’d brushed her teeth, she felt moderately less zombie-ish.

Wondering what had become of Seth, and fearing that her early-morning grotesqueness had scared him off, she came to a standstill in the kitchen. Taped to the coffeepot was a note. Beside the coffeepot was a bottle of water, a coffee cup, spoon, and her bottle of ibuprofen. Positioned beside those items were three graceful origami swans. Two looked as though they were floating on a pond, their graceful necks extended. The third swan’s neck was bowed, with its beak touching the counter as though nibbling from the surface of the pond. She lifted one of the delicate paper creations into her palm and smiled.

So, maybe he didn’t run as fast as he could at the sight of me this morning.

She removed the note taped to the coffeepot and read it.

Good morning, Sweet Jayne,

I had a feeling you’d prefer to be alone this morning. I set your coffeepot up for you so all you have to do is hit “start.” Drink the whole bottle of water and take some ibuprofen. I know your stomach probably feels wobbly but try to eat breakfast. I wish you didn’t have to work in your condition and hope the day is an easy one for you. I’ll look forward to seeing you tonight after work.

-Seth

“Sweet Jayne,” Jayne whispered and hugged herself after she switched the coffeepot on and took the pain reliever like he’d suggested. While the coffee brewed, she started the shower and cringed until her head adjusted to the noise of the water cascading on the tiles.