His Hometown Cowgirl (15 page)

"Damn," she said. "I never did
that
before."

Pete smiled a very satisfied, masculine
smile. He bent to place a tender kiss on her other breast. "And we
aren't even close to being finished."

He knelt above her and unzipped her jeans,
pealing them down her long legs along with her little scrap of
satin panties. His stomach cratered as he gazed at the golden curls
at the apex of her thighs.

Holy shit. It just kept getting better and
better.

"Hey, you," Kelsey said with a sultry smile.
"One of us has too many clothes on."

Pete grinned. "I'm guessing that would be
me."

"Take 'em off, buster."

"Yes, ma'am."

Kelsey watched as Pete climbed off the bed
and stood before her, all masculine power and strength. His bare
chest gleamed in the twilight. He unbuckled his belt, and with his
eyes locked on hers, he slowly unfastened his fly, pushing his
jeans and boxers down his legs and off in one swift fluid
motion.

She swallowed hard. In all his naked glory,
Pete took her breath away. He'd always stolen her breath, just as
he'd stolen a part of her heart so long ago.

Before she could change her mind about all of
this, she held out her arms and like a flash, he was lying beside
her, taking her in his arms and kissing her again. She loved his
hot kisses, how he tasted, how he made her forget . . .

She needed to forget and just feel, lose
herself in physical sensation and pleasure. She was so tired of the
loneliness, the numbness, the sorrow.

Pete would keep her safe. He'd promised. She
trusted him with her life, so she should be able to trust him with
her body as well.

"You still with me, Kels?" His voice was soft
and gentle, yet the tendons in his neck strained against the banked
passion threatening to be unleashed.

She blinked. "Yes, I'm with you."
More
than you know.

He pulled back and searched her face, concern
mixed with the fiery desire burning in the depths of his brown
eyes. Kelsey couldn't believe he wanted her as much as she wanted
him.

Just for today, she thought. Just for
tonight. It would be enough. For now.

"Listen, honey. You don't have to do this . .
.
we
don't have to do this. If you've changed your mind, we
can stop if you like."

"Oh, Pete." He was a good man, kind,
considerate, and sexy as hell. "I don't want to stop. Kiss me. Make
love to me."
Love me, as I now love you.
But she couldn't
say that, not yet. She wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and
offered her mouth for another kiss.

"Yes, ma'am." His smile ignited the flame
deep down inside of her, and his lips tasted like heaven. She would
enjoy this time with Pete Lafferty, however fleeting. All too soon,
she'd have to return to reality and deal with the consequences. But
right now, with the rain pouring down and the house shrouded in
darkness, they were the only man and woman in the world.

Pete felt Kelsey's sweet surrender beneath
his lips and down the entire length of their bodies. His groin
throbbed painfully. "God, I want you so bad, I'm not going to last
two seconds."

Kelsey's sapphire blue eyes glittered in the
darkness of the room. "It doesn't matter. I need you inside of me
now
." She bumped against him suggestively, and Pete clenched
his jaws, willing his body to slow down.

Kissing her hard on her already swollen lips,
he reached toward the bedside table, opened the drawer, and fished
out a small square packet. He tore it open with his teeth and
quickly sheathed himself, all the while burning up from Kelsey's
fingers racing frantically over his body.

He straddled her, nudging her legs apart; she
opened immediately for him, wrapping her legs around him, pulling
him close. Locking gazes with the beautiful woman lying in his bed,
her glorious hair spread out like spun gold on the pillow, Pete
positioned himself, probing, searching, then pushing inside her hot
damp body.

Goddamn
. He fought for control so he
wouldn't explode before he could help it.

Kelsey closed her eyes on a moan and
immediately, they found a rhythm uniquely their own. Pete lost
himself in the sensual tactile sensations, the likes of which he'd
never experienced in all his twenty-nine years on this earth. As
the pressure collected and gathered in his groin, he reared up and
Kelsey's eyes fluttered open. She looked at him, smiling as she met
thrust for thrust.

Pete licked the pad of his thumb and touched
the sweet spot between her legs. Kelsey's eyes widened, and he felt
the tremors of her orgasm consume her. And then the dam burst and
Pete pumped harder until her tremors became his tremors, and they
met ecstasy head on . . .
together.

****

Pete lay on top of Kelsey, his body spent,
his heart pounding loudly in his ears. He gasped for breath, his
head resting on the pillow beside Kelsey's, her feminine scent
infusing his nostrils, their bodies still joined as one.

Holy crap! Sex had never been this good!

The thought scared the shit out of him. This
was Kelsey McCade. The one woman he'd sworn never to take to bed.
The one woman he should never even have kissed. So much for good
intentions.

A sniffle beside him made him inwardly groan.
Damn it! Was she crying?

With super-human effort, Pete raised up on
his elbows and looked down at Kelsey, lying beneath him with her
eyes tight shut, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Aw, honey. Please, don't cry."

"I can't help it." She sniffed and with
trembling fingers swiped at her tears, to no avail.

He pressed his lips tenderly to her forehead,
pushed a lock of golden hair away from her damp cheek, and kissed
her gently on the lips. "Can you tell me what's wrong?"

She shook her head and cried all the
harder.

Pete inhaled deeply, then blew it out. He
gently withdrew from the hot feminine channel gloving him so
perfectly it made him weak with joy. As soon as he rolled over on
his back, Kelsey jumped out of bed.

"I have to leave." She gathered her scattered
clothes from the floor, clasped them to her breasts and dashed to
the bathroom.

"Wait!" Pete called, rolling out of bed.

"I can't!" The door slammed behind her.

Pete quickly disposed of the condom and
pulled on his jeans. Plowing his fingers through his hair, he
waited for Kelsey to return. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he let
out another deep breath. His body felt wonderfully drained and
totally relaxed.

If only Kelsey felt the same. He'd promised
to keep her safe; obviously, he'd failed in his objective.

Way to go, Lafferty. Not thinking with your
brain, were you?

The door opened, and Kelsey stepped into the
bedroom. Her eyes were tear-drenched. Seemed like he was always
making her cry lately.

"I really need to go." Her voice was soft and
filled with regrets.

"Don't you think we should talk?"
Damn.
Had he actually said that?

"I don't want to talk. I need to leave. I
need to be alone." She stood in the middle of the room holding her
arms tightly across her chest. "I . . . I thought I could do this.
I thought I was ready, but I can't . . . I'm not. Goodbye,
Pete."

She started past him, but he grabbed her arm.
"I can't let you go like this; you're too upset. It can't be that
bad, Kels. We were good together, weren't we?"

Kelsey chewed on her bottom lip and nodded.
"Yes, we were good together. Better than good. That's why I have to
leave."

Pete couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"You have to leave because we were good together?"

A tear slipped down her cheek. "I know it
makes no sense . . . but yes, that's exactly why I have to leave."
She jerked her arm from his grasp, and Pete felt the emptiness all
the way to his bare toes.

"I'm sorry, Pete. I'm
so
very sorry."
She was gone on the words.

The rain had finally stopped, but the roads
were still slick with mud. Kelsey pulled her pickup into the
parking lot of the Farmtime Trails' office and turned off the
engine. She sat for a moment in the gathering darkness, gripping
the steering wheel, holding on as if to a lifeline.

What in God's name had she done? How could
she have betrayed Chris's memory like that?

Sure, she wanted to get on with her life, but
instead of dipping a toe in the water, she'd canon-balled into the
deep end.

Kelsey swallowed hard. It was late and
everyone had gone home. Even though it wasn't raining at the
moment, the full heavy clouds hung low in the evening sky. Well,
she couldn't sit here forever. She jerked the keys from the
ignition, opened the truck door and ran to the barn.

Flipping on the lights, she made her way to
Jasmine's stall. The mare whinnied softly and whooshed out a warm
breath in greeting.

Kelsey lifted the bridle from the pegboard
and let herself into the stall. "Whoa, girl. We're going for a
little ride, just you and me."

After she'd saddled the horse, Kelsey led her
from the barn, mounted and headed for the canyon and the dugout.
She'd told Pete she wanted to be alone, and the dugout was the best
place in the world for quiet solitude. She needed to think and sort
out her conflicting emotions.

As she and the horse wended their way through
the pasture, Kelsey wiggled her butt on the saddle. Her body felt
tender and sore in her most intimate places. And no wonder,
considering what she'd been doing with Pete not so very long
ago.

Tears threatened to fall again, but Kelsey
resolutely banished them. She wouldn't cry until she made it to the
dugout. It had been her refuge for many years. Ever since she and
Pete had discovered it during that magical summer of their
youth.

She choked back a sob and determinedly guided
Jasmine over the wet trails, careful to avoid the treacherous
slopes that were soggy with rain. She would have to leave the mare
outdoors, but Kelsey had brought a blanket and a few carrots, and
she thought Jasmine wouldn't mind standing for an hour or so. Just
long enough to give Kelsey time to think. She
needed
to
think. To come to grips with what she'd done.

Through the hanging mesquite branches, Kelsey
could make out the landmarks she'd noted as a child leading along
the path to the dugout. When she emerged into the clearing, she
dismounted, her boots sloshing noisily and sticking in the muddy
ground.

It had really rained hard today. Water ran
across the trails, but she couldn't complain. They'd been suffering
from drought for months. Rain was good. Rain was essential to
life.

Kelsey looped Jasmine's reins over the lowest
branch of the old soapberry tree on the leeward side of the dugout.
The mare would be mostly out of the wind and somewhat protected
from the elements if it should happen to rain again. Spreading the
blanket across the mare's flanks, Kelsey fed her the carrots and
leaned against the smooth damp neck, the silky hide soft and warm
beneath her cheek.

"Okay, girl. I won't be that long. You'll be
safe here."

Pushing away from the horse, Kelsey fished in
her saddlebags and found the small flashlight she always kept
there. Walking to the front of the dugout, she opened the door. It
was dark and dank inside, the air stale and musty.

How long had it been since she'd last visited
her special hideout? Kelsey shook her head. She couldn't remember.
The last year and a half had passed in a blur of work and sorrow,
sadness and more work. During that time, she'd visited the dugout
once, maybe twice. No matter. She was here now, and already she
felt a little better.

Clicking on the flashlight, she pointed it
around the interior of the small cabin that had been built into the
side of a cliff. No sign of critters, thank God. She moved to the
counter where she kept her lighter and matches safe inside a
watertight jar sitting next to an old kerosene lamp that had been
left by those early pioneers who'd first settled this land.

Kelsey had claimed the old lantern for her
own, using it on her visits throughout the years since her
childhood. She lifted the glass chimney and lit the wick, then
replaced it. She tucked the lighter back into the jar, securing the
lid tightly so it would be ready for the next time.

Taking the lamp across to the table near the
old rocking chair, Kelsey lifted it and examined the chair and
vicinity for any six- or eight-legged creatures that might be
seeking refuge from the storm. When all was clear and safe to her
satisfaction, she set the lamp on the table and plopped down on the
rocker. Shrugging her shoulders deeper into her jacket, she hugged
her arms across her stomach and rocked back and forth, finally
releasing the thoughts and emotions she'd kept at bay for so
long.

How could she have thrown caution to the
winds like that? Her heart and emotions were still too fragile to
embark on a sexual relationship with Pete. It didn't matter that
she loved him. How could she have so easily forgotten about
Chris?

Tears burned her eyes, but they didn't fall.
She'd cried seemed like forever. Since that fateful day when Chris
had died, she'd cried an ocean of tears. They'd helped at first,
easing her broken heart. But lately, they just seemed to cripple
her, preventing her from moving on with her life.

Kelsey stopped rocking for a minute.

Funny thing, she'd thought she
was
moving on when she'd given in to the desire and made love with
Pete. She'd known the dangers and risks, but she'd resolutely
shoved them aside. And now the guilt was killing her.

With the toe of her boot, Kelsey pushed
against the hard dirt-packed floor, making the rocker rock again.
The wind outside rustled the branches of the trees. A loud thump on
the roof made her jump, and dirt sprinkled down on her from the
ceiling. Probably a dead limb that had broken off in the storm.