Josh's Justice, Cowboy Romance (Bad in Boots, Book 4) (9 page)

“Put your hands on my thighs,” he suddenly said, the gruffness in his voice telling her he wasn’t as calm as he let on.

Sabrina’s eyes flew open. “No,” she breathed out, jerking a panicked gaze to the ground as she clung to the saddle horn even more.

He twisted the front of her bra, popping it open. As his fingers gently traced her nipples, warm air kissed them, adding an unexpected layer of titillation that made them so sensitive she wanted to scream.

“Trust me, Sabrina,” he seduced, then pinched the hard nubs.

The slight pain heightened her arousal, eliciting an unbidden moan before she could hold it back. He applied a bit more pressure and even though it only aroused her further, she got it. He wanted her to trust him. Slowly, she released her “lifeline”, setting her hands on his thighs.

“That’s my girl.” Satisfaction laced his tone and he gently slid his thumbs back and forth over her nipples to ease the earlier sting. “Now lean your body fully against mine, close your eyes and feel.”

She did as he requested, sinking into his warmth and closing her eyes.

When Josh’s lips touched her neck, nuzzling her at the same time his hands cupped her breasts fully, she inhaled deeply, loving how he made her body respond to his every touch.

“Do you feel the horse moving under you, Brina? Feel his movements? Anticipate with your body and move with him, instead of against him.” As he spoke, he traced a hand down her bare belly.

He was going to kill her with this slow sexual torture. She could only nod her answer. The tactile sensations of the horse swaying beneath her and his tender touch, combined with the scent of fresh outdoors, faint aftershave and leather melded into a provocative, arousing experience.

“I can feel how you’re moving with Ace now.” He sounded pleased, making her want to follow his next instruction. Slowly her body began to fully relax, moving with the horse’s motion.

When she started to put her hands back on the saddle horn, he gripped her breast and belly tight, his body tensing behind her. “No, keep your hands on my thighs.” His voice had lowered, turning darker as he moved his hand to her knee.

Her eyes opened once more. “What are you planning—” She sucked in an excited breath when he began to slowly massage her inner thigh.

“There’s a lot I’m planning to do to you, darlin’,” he drawled. Feathering his lips down her throat once more, he cupped the inside of her other thigh as well and applied pressure to both, pushing her legs further apart.

“Josh,” she hissed out. Gripping his hard thighs, she tried to tighten her own thighs against the horse, but Josh’s firm hold wouldn’t let her. Instead he lifted her thighs and moved his muscular ones under hers, giving her the secure seat she sought.

“I would never let you fall, Brina. I’ll always keep you safe.”

He wanted her to fully put her trust in him. The only hold she had now was to depend on his thighs to keep her balanced. The throbbing anticipation was almost her undoing.

She let out a low moan while jolts of desire radiated from the center of her body. Her moan turned into a loud gasp when Josh’s hold on her inner thigh tightened and this thumb slid along the seam of her jeans, straight across her throbbing center.

“When I touch you for the first time,” he whispered in her ear. “I want to see your expression and the color of your eyes change.” His grip on her breast tightened as he continued, “Do you want to know what I thought about last night while I lay on that damned couch?”

She could only nod while he leisurely brushed his thumb back and forth across her nipple, sending waves of desire curling from her breast straight down her body.

“I thought about pulling all your clothes off, taking my time so I could discover every inch of your sweet flesh,” he said as the palm of his hand slid higher.

She bit her lip, anticipating, wanting him to touch her. The wait was agonizing.

Josh didn’t skimp in the seduction department. She was completely under his spell, her body a quivering, molten mass of nerves.

“I’d lay you down and run my hands all over your body. I’d touch you
everywhere
. Gentle you, nice and slow, then rev you up with each stroke across your soft skin. You’d arch your back, silently begging me to make my way to your breasts, then you’d lose control and tell me exactly what you wanted.”

Gentle her?
Holy shit. She felt anything but gentle. He made her feel wild and untamed. “You ah, really are the best riding instructor ever,” she managed to get out.

A low, sexy laugh rumbled, then he continued in a seductive voice, “But I’d want to taste those rosy peaks instead.” His breath warmed her ear as he slid both hands up her body to cup her breasts fully, his grip firm and possessive.

“I’d suck long and hard on each nipple, giving them equal time until you twisted and whimpered and pushed my head between your gorgeous thighs.”

Sabrina’s pulse thrummed. She missed the warmth of his hand so close to touching her. God, this man was the
best
at word foreplay. When his thumbs just barely brushed across her nipples, she squirmed, trying to assuage the painful ache that had settled between her legs, but he barely let her touch the saddle. Damn him!

“Then I’d move to your thighs and spread them wide, while my thumbs massaged your pink flesh. It’d turn me on to see just how wet you were for me. My mouth would start to water and I’d be unable to resist taking a long, leisurely taste with my tongue.”

Sabrina dug her fingers deep into the side of his thighs underneath hers.
He’s trying to kill me
.

“Easy, baby,” he rasped, then slowly slid the flat of his warm palm down her stomach to cup her mound through her jeans.

Sabrina let out a whimper and his voice turned to velvet. “Like that, do you?” He applied slight pressure and continued in an aroused tone, “But one taste wouldn’t be enough and I’d go back for more and more.” His voice took on a relentless edge. “I’d trace every soft fold, every bit of your sensitive skin, making you so horny you’d beg me to make you come.”

Sabrina’s breathing turned choppy and her heart felt like it might beat right out of her chest. Wanton…that’s how Josh made her feel.

Perched atop a horse, holding onto this sexy man’s rock-hard thighs, his muscular chest and hard-as-marble erection pressed against her backside—all while his words and teasing touches built a fire burning inside her—she’d never been more turned on in her life.

“You’re panting,” he continued, his voice gruff. “I hope that’s because you want this too. Tell me you want this,” he demanded. His grip tightened on her sex at the same time he plucked at one of her nipples as if he wanted to make sure of her answer.

“Yes, I want this!” she breathed out in a hiss.

A rumble of male satisfaction sounded in his throat. “I can’t wait to hear you scream when you come. I know you’re a screamer, Brina, and fucking hell, all I thought of last night was hearing it.”

Sabrina closed her eyes and moaned. His sudden intensity turned her on even more. The need for physical release engulfed her body, causing a sensual burn to rage and spiral inside her.

She didn’t realize that she was rocking against his hand, until she felt the counter pressure of his palm and his pleased comment bleed through her consciousness, “That’s it, baby. Damn, I can’t wait to feel your sweet body wrapped around me.”

When he suddenly folded his arms around her waist and set his chin on her shoulder, saying, “We’re here,” she realized his horse had stopped walking. Sabrina blinked her eyes open to try to regain some kind of control.

With her body still quaking, she managed a shaky smile as she took in the quaint house. His two-story wood-sided home with a bench swing off to the left of the front door and a couple of pale wood rocking chairs to the right created a homey look that surprised her considering he was a bachelor.

She noted that there wasn’t a big front yard and about the same sized backyard with stables set on the far left corner. Woods stretched beyond the stables. Nodding to indicate the front yard that blended right into the woods, she said, “Now I know why you didn’t drive me up here. Is there even a road to get to your place?”

Josh slid off the horse and retrieved his hat. Sliding his hat back on his head, he smiled. “Yeah, I guess the grass driveway you see appears to lead nowhere. We only used the road to bring up the materials to build my house, and then on the day I moved my stuff in. I prefer riding my horse, so the driveway has grown over by forest underbrush over time, but it’s there.” He pointed to the back yard. “There are open pastures beyond the woods behind my house. I just haven’t cut a path to them yet.”

Once he finished speaking, he reached up and clasped her around the waist. When he effortlessly lifted her off of Ace and set her on the ground, a gust of cool wind blew Sabrina’s shirt open, pebbling her nipples. Heat suffused her face at the reminder she was standing there all brazen and bare breasted.

When she quickly re-snapped her bra, then pulled her shirt closed, Josh tilted her chin so he could see her face. “Are you blushing?”

She glanced away and fumbled with the buttons on her shirt in an effort to close it as quickly as possible. “I’m not usually so—”

“Free?” He clasped her arms and he pulled her against his chest so her hands were trapped between them. “I love that you can be your true self around me.”

Her true self?
This wasn’t how she’d acted with other men she’d been with. Not at all. Her gaze snapped to his, but before she could decide how to respond, he released her and slowly buttoned the last few buttons for her.

“Sabrina,” he began, resting his hands on her shoulders, where he rubbed his thumbs gently along her collarbone. “I want to get to know the real you. Don’t hold back.” His gaze held hers as he slid his hands down her back. Cupping her butt, he pulled her hips to his, a wicked smile crooking the corner of his mouth. “I certainly plan to share.”

His quick-witted, sexy humor soothed her embarrassment, making her laugh.

Josh took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair, his penetrating gaze searching her face. A long, sexually charged moment passed between them, sweeping away her ability to speak.

Handing her the backpack he’d pulled off the horse, he said, “Why don’t you go on inside and get comfortable while I put Ace away?”

Sabrina took her backpack and slipped it onto her shoulder. As she watched Josh walk Ace around the side of the house, she realized that she really did feel more comfortable riding Ace by the end of that ride. Smiling, she walked up the steps, then paused in the doorway before she walked inside.

The contemporary design showed her another side to Josh she wouldn’t have expected. “Aren’t you full of surprises, Josh Kelly,” she murmured as she took in the kitchen and dining room, which sat on a two-step, raised up “island” in the center of the room. Josh must put an emphasis on cooking for his eating space to be such a large focal point in his home.

Shutting the door, her stomach pitched. God, she sure hoped he didn’t expect her to cook. Eggs and toast were about all she’d learned to do. She’d always been in awe of her girlfriends who could just “whip up” a meal from practically nothing. Sabrina’s creativity came in the form of advertising slogans and understanding target markets.

Even though Josh’s choice for his kitchen placement seemed very modern and contemporary, he’d kept his place warm with rich leather and polished wood barstools against the tall wood and slate counters. Spindle back chairs graced the oval oak dining table. Wood floors spread across the entire house, giving it a welcoming feel.

To her left, the living room boasted a well-worn leather sofa and matching smaller two-seater sofa sitting on an Aztec design rug. Very few pictures graced the walls, but the ones that did depicted horses. Oils and watercolor pictures hung in the living room, while black and white photos of galloping horses decorated an office room off to her right.

Once again, Josh had added an Aztec rug in deep maroons and blues in the center of his office. A single mission style desk in a rich cherry wood and a tall black leather chair were the only pieces of furniture. A laptop, a printer/fax machine, and a telephone sat atop the desk.

Except for the few papers she’d seen on his desk, Sabrina just realized how utterly immaculate Josh’s place was. She’d take a “neat freak” over a slob any day.

The back side of the main room held a foosball table in one corner and a poker table in the other. Her gaze followed the wrought iron spiral staircase against the center of the far back wall of the house. The staircase led to a small sitting area that overlooked the living space downstairs. It had a huge picture window, which probably had a gorgeous view of the woods behind the house.

On the far wall of the main floor, two doors led off on either side of the room, presumably to Josh’s bedroom and a guest bedroom.

She bit her lip, wondering where she was supposed to freshen up. She felt sticky from the walk up the drive earlier. When her gaze landed on a door off to her immediate left, she saw a sink and smiled. Tugging her backpack strap higher, Sabrina walked into the bathroom to change clothes.

* * *

Josh’s body ached for release while anticipation coursed through him. Sabrina’s responsiveness set him on fire. The fact she let him take control revved him up, but he was the one who felt completely wrapped up in her. He couldn’t wait to get back to his house, but he had to dial his desire back some. He’d scare the hell out of her if he yanked her into his arms and carried her straight to bed the moment he entered his house. He forced himself to a slower pace as he walked Ace to the stables and opened the stall door.

After he pulled his horse inside and hung the saddle, he rifled through the saddle’s pouch and retrieved his cell phone. Dialing Renee’s direct line at the police department, he waited for her to answer.

“O’Hara speaking.”

“Renee, this is Josh. Just wondering how the interrogation went with the guy who was caught last night. Did he confess to attacking Sabrina?”