Justice Inked (Cowboy Justice Association 7) (36 page)

“I love you too, you big grouchy bear. In fact, I think I love your growly moods the most.”

“That’s good because I’ve got a bunch of those.” His nose caressed the side of hers before his lips captured hers in a kiss that sent electricity surging through his veins. “I love dancing in the rain with you. When your feet heal that is.”

“Next rainstorm we’ll do a waltz on the front lawn.” Her arms looped around his neck as she smiled up at him as if he was something special. The warmth that suffused every pore of his body reveled in the feeling…of being loved. He’d make sure she didn’t ever regret it. “Now kiss me, big bear.”

Those were the kind of orders he was glad to follow.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

R
ayne opened her eyes and kicked off the bedcovers. Dreams she couldn’t remember and frankly didn’t want to had invaded her peace and she lay there for several minutes listening to the sounds around her. The rustle of branches against the windows. The even breathing of the gorgeous man lying next to her. The hum of the heating system as it kicked on and off. All strangely comforting as she slowly woke up, leaving sleep behind. She must have moved or made a noise because Dare was beginning to stir.

“Baby, are you okay?” Dare rolled over and blinked up at her sleepily. “Are you sick?”

“I’m fine,” she whispered, checking the digital clock on the bedside table. Six in the morning. “Can’t sleep. I think I’m awake for the day.”

Stretching and yawning, Dare laid on his back and pulled her into his arms, her head tucked under his chin. “Are you upset or scared? Do you want to talk about it?”

“I thought I would be but I’m not. I feel safe with you.”

She did feel safe lying next to Dare. His mere presence had made it possible to fall asleep in the first place.

His hand stroked up and down her spine, relaxing her entire body until she was almost boneless against him. “I’ll protect you from the monsters under the bed.”

She adored this little seen playful side. Giggling, she pressed a soft kiss to his collarbone. “Great, now I think there are monsters under the bed. That should be good for a nightmare or two.”

“Our monsters mind their own business. They’re more afraid of you than you are of them.”

“I’ve heard that before and I never believe it. I’m going to hide so they’ll never find me.”

Pulling the covers over her head, she curled up in a ball and scooted down the mattress.

“Uh oh, I think there’s a monster down here. What ever shall I do?”

The comforter lifted slightly, letting in a shaft of light. “What are you up to? Or do I even want to know?”

He’d growled the words, but there was a happiness in his tone that hadn’t been there in the past. “I think you’ll like the surprise, my grouchy bear. I’m going to vanquish this giant monster.”

Dare had woken up with morning wood – the monster – and today she was going to take complete advantage of it. Both of them liked to sleep in the nude so there were no boxers or pajamas to strip off and keep her from her goal. Her fingers wrapped around his cock and she clearly heard his hiss of pleasure as she began to move her hand up and down, using the precum to ease her way.

Allowing herself the luxury she explored him from root to tip, tracing every ridge and vein, loving the steely feel of him under her fingertips. “This monster isn’t so scary. I think I can tame him.”

Her tongue extended and swiped at the tip, his salty flavor exploding on her tastebuds. Dare moaned his approval as she engulfed the head in her mouth, tracing the slit and the underside until he was moving restlessly on the sheets.

She straddled his body, part of his cock fisted in her hand while she sucked up and down, licking around the head, her lips wet and tight around his ample girth. In the warm cocoon of the bedcovers, his manly scent was strong and intoxicating, amping up her arousal and dampening her thighs.

Not sure how it happened, she was suddenly lying on her back and Dare hovering above her. The blankets were still pulled over their heads, creating a sort of play fort that blocked out the rest of the world. When they left this room there would be interrogations, autopsies, and forensics, but right now there was only the two of them.

“You woke the monster, baby, and you’ll have to deal with the consequences.”

Yes, please.

His wet and nimble tongue found her nipples, flicking at them until they were diamond hard and aching. He suckled at first one pink bud and then the other making her writhe underneath his muscled frame. Kissing a wet trail down her abdomen, he pressed two fingers inside of her drenched pussy, drawing a groan of satisfaction as those thick digits found her g-spot.

Her hips arched up off the mattress as his mouth wrapped around her swollen clit, sucking softly and scraping his teeth on the sides while his busy fingers thrust in and out of her slick channel. Her toes curled as pleasure fizzed through her veins like the champagne she drank on New Year’s Eve.

“Fuck me, Dare.”

This man – her man – didn’t make her beg or wait. He positioned himself between her quivering thighs and entered her in one mighty stroke. Crying out with the exquisite pleasure of being so thoroughly filled, Rayne wrapped her legs around his middle, digging her heels into his muscular backside.

In the darkness, she couldn’t see his face but she could feel his warm breath on her neck. He nuzzled her ear as he buried his cock in her pussy again and again, faster and hard with each thrust. Rayne swiveled her hips so that his groin rubbed her clit with each stroke. Her orgasm built swiftly and she found herself teetering at the edge but needing something extra to push her over.

Raking her nails down his back, she panted and moaned, her pussy clenching around his cock. So close. “Faster. Harder. Please, Dare. I need more.”

She didn’t understand what she needed more of but thankfully, her sweet lover did. His thrusts became deeper with an extra grind against her clit to give her the push she desperately needed. Her legs shook as her climax hovered, and her fingers dug into his muscled shoulders as he bit down on the sensitive flesh where shoulder met neck, laving the hurt he’d inflicted.

The bit of pain with her pleasure was exactly the “more” she’d been needing and she tumbled over the cliff, every fiber of her being flush with pleasure. She chanted his name as if it was an incantation and he buried himself in her one last time, his body tense and hard as he filled her with his hot seed.

The collapsed together in a twisted tangle of arms, legs, and blankets, their breathing ragged and their bodies sweaty. Pleasure still thrummed through her veins and she closed her eyes for a long moment to savor it.

Dare pulled the covers down below their chins and the cooler air hit her face, a welcome rush of fresh air. Dawn was starting to peek through the curtains and their pleasurable but brief respite from the real world was coming to an end.

Rayne sighed and laid her head on Dare’s shoulder. “It’s morning.”

He played with her hair, twisting the strands around his fingers. “There’s no way that I know of to keep morning from coming. But there’s always tonight.”

Emotion clogged her throat as she thought of spending every night in this bed. “I guess there is, if it’s okay with you. I’m not in danger anymore so I could go back to my place. You might have to help me with the new furniture, though.”

“Or you could just stay here.”

She couldn’t help but tease him. Just a little. “I don’t know. What would Sophie think? She’s so young and impressionable.”

Dare’s chuckle rumbled in his chest. “I think after what happened I should upgrade Sophie from a kid to a young woman. Besides, she adores you and would love it if you were here. Frankly, so would I.”

Rayne sat up so she could look Dare in the eye. He was completely serious but then he didn’t joke about much. “Do you think it’s too fast?”

That smile that made her heart flutter appeared and he caressed her cheek with his rough fingers. “Probably, but I don’t give a damn. Do you?”

No, she didn’t.

“People will talk.”

“I daresay they will,” he agreed, his grin growing wider. “They’ll pity a nice, pretty thing like you being stuck with a grouch like me. I bet you’ll play it up for all it’s worth too, but I don’t mind. I know I got lucky.”

She poked his chest with her finger, a naughty smile curving her lips. “I know how to make you happy.”

His expression sobered and his hand slid around to her back, pulling her close so their lips were millimeters apart. “You’re the only one who can.”

There it was. Love. She hadn’t even known she needed it and then it found her whether she liked it or not. He filled up all the empty spaces in her heart and she wanted to do the same for him.

Joy.

Glee.

Jubilation.

Elation.

She’d give him all of that and more.

And if he wanted to scowl that was just fine. He didn’t have to change.

As long as he danced with her in the rain.

*   *   *   *

Shivering, Dare locked his SUV before entering the old roadhouse, glad he’d worn his gloves today. It was a damp and cold Sunday morning and the parking lot was deserted except for the vehicles belonging to the other sheriffs. Dare counted six trucks, which meant that everyone had already arrived but him. He would take some shit for this but he’d had a hard time prying himself out of a warm bed with an even hotter woman in it. Rayne had been living at his home for a month now and they’d both had to rush around in the morning more than a few times to make it to their respective jobs on time.

He couldn’t get enough of her, and thankfully she felt the same way.

“Sorry I’m late.”

Might as well get the ribbing out of the way up front. He poured himself a cup of coffee from the drip maker on the bar and sat down in the only empty chair.

“Trouble getting out of bed this morning?” Reed laughed. “Now you know what it’s like, asshole.”

Knox snickered behind his coffee cup. “Stuck in bed with a sexy female? Doesn’t sound like a bad problem to have, if you ask me.”

Griffin stroked his chin and grinned. “Do you even remember the name of the woman you slept with last night?”

Knox waggled his brows and leaned back in his chair as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “Her name was Kate but you should be askin’ if she remembered my name. She kept calling me God.”

Tanner groaned and pounded his fist on the table to bring the meeting to order. “And on that note, let’s get started. I think we’ll start with Dare and me giving an update on the bank robbery and triple murder. We now have statements from both Duke and Tim Wallace so we have more details than we had before. Dare, do you want to start?”

Not particularly, but Tanner had been deferring a great deal of authority to Dare on this case. Technically they should have shared it, but the older lawman’s wife was having a terrible pregnancy and had been put in the hospital on bedrest so she could be monitored more closely. Tanner was now working half days only, which meant most of the case fell to Dare.

He didn’t mind, of course. His friend needed to take care of his wife and child. But it felt strange to lead Tanner, the most experienced of them all, when by all rights it should have been the other way.

One more step in this crazy road to adulthood. He’d been shoved into it reluctantly, coming to Valley Station to take care of his sister when his father died. Now he’d found himself embracing the role of partner with the woman of his dreams living with him.

“Not sure what everyone does or doesn’t know so I’ll start at the beginning. Duke Wallace planned the bank robbery. The original plan had several to be made in the area but that went to hell when they all turned on each other. Patrick Moulson was a friend of Earnest and Milo so he didn’t know Duke or Tim, which I guess turned out to be an issue. Anyway, they all suspected each other of greed and so on, so Patrick decided to have a tattoo designed on his arm that would let his girlfriend know where the money was if he ended up dead. Of course he did, but before he had a chance to get inked. When Moulson thought he had been followed, he slipped the drawing into Rayne’s gym bag for safekeeping. When he came back for it sometime later Duke was following him. They argued about the drawing and Duke shot Moulson, then ripped apart the shop looking for it.”