Lone Star Rancher (5 page)

“Okay. Well, I'm off for the back forty.” Miles stood, yawned and stretched, shook his head and started for the back door. “See ya in about three days,” he said to Jessica, then was gone.

After the sounds of Miles's pickup faded, the room echoed with silence.

Jessica got out an egg and one piece of toast.

“Is that all you eat?” Clyde finally said, now holding a paper towel around his injured finger. At her nod, he muttered, “No wonder you stay so skinny.”

“I'm not skinny,” she corrected coolly. “My weight is just right for my bone structure.”

“Huh.”

She made a face at his back. “Do you want some breakfast? I'm going to scramble an egg with cheese.”

He hesitated, then nodded.

When he gave a low curse, Jessica sighed, but bravely went over to see what was the problem. He was having trouble getting a bandage on his finger, she saw.

“Here, let me.” She removed a square of gauze from the first-aid kit, folded it into fourths, then held it in place over the wound to help stop the bleeding while she dried his hand with another paper towel. She wrapped the end of his finger with tape, securing the gauze in place tightly. “There, that should do it. Keep your hand above your heart for a few minutes to help stop the bleeding.”

“I suppose you've had medical training,” he said.

She broke four eggs into a bowl and, with a fork, beat them as hard as she could. Upon realizing what she was doing, she eased up. “Don't subject me to your waspish humor this morning,” she told him. “Last night wasn't my fault.”

“Whose the hell was it?” he asked with a snarl and a black scowl in her direction.

She popped three pieces of toast into the toaster slots. “Yours.”

A muscle in his strong jaw flexed a couple of times.

She relented. “Well, both of ours, I suppose.”

“But I made the first move.”

A major concession. She smiled slightly. “It was something we both wanted. I had a terrible crush on you years ago, you know. I once heard a couple of local girls at Emma's Café discussing the Fortune triplets' kissing technique. I was jealous that I'd never experienced it for myself. Now I have.”

He loomed very close all of a sudden. “And?”

She studied his expression as she poured the eggs into
the hot skillet. “Pretty devastating. I'd rate you a nine and a half.”

“Why not a ten?” he demanded.

She rolled her eyes at this show of male arrogance. “Because you regretted it afterward. Because you acted as if the whole situation was my fault. Because you're acting like a bone-headed mule this morning. I had to take off a half point for attitude.”

That seemed to set him back on his heels. She let him simmer while she finished preparing their meal. While they ate, he kept tossing little scowls her way as if he really wanted to say something nasty to her, but couldn't decide if he should or not. She hid her laughter and gave him several bland smiles each time she caught his eye.

“That was very good,” he said politely when he finished. He put his plate in the dishwasher, then poured coffee in an insulated travel mug. “I'll probably be working late today. I won't be in for lunch.”

He left by the back door, and she watched his progress across the yard to the barn, his long legs making quick work of the distance. He loaded strands of fencing and the tools he would need, then drove off after telling Smoky to stay at the house when the dog started to leap into the truck.

Jessica cleaned the kitchen, got her book and went to the creek to hide. Today was Monday and the housekeeper was due. Smoky joined her and flopped down in the shade beside her with a loud sigh. She scratched his ears and proceeded to read.

 

At six, Jessica peered out the back windows and wondered when her host was going to call it a day. She could see the front bumper of his truck gleaming in the late afternoon sun where it was parked among the trees next to the creek.

Earlier, big trucks had arrived and Clyde had directed the loading of the cattle that would go to auction. That had taken over two hours. He'd worked through lunch, then headed for the creek below the dam to repair the fence. He'd been there for the remainder of the day.

Restless, she looked in the fully stocked refrigerator and spotted some deli-sliced roast beef, whole-wheat buns with sesame seeds on top and kosher dill pickles. Her favorite.

On an impulse, she made up three sandwiches, put pickles and chips in plastic bags and used a decorative basket on top of the fridge to carry the food. She added two cans of soda and two straws.

Slipping on comfortable clogs, she whistled for Smoky and the two of them strolled down to the creek, following the path past the dam and to the section where the creek made a sharp turn around a stand of trees. She didn't see anyone working on the fence.

Smoky startled a rabbit and the two set off in a run across the pasture. Several cows stared after them as if wondering what all the fuss was about.

“Clyde?” she called, stopping at the higher elevation next to the dam. Several feet below that point she could see the shiny new section of fence attached to two new posts. The hair stood up on her neck at the lack of sound or the presence of the man.

The sound of splashing water caused her to jerk. She whirled in time to see broad shoulders emerge from the depths of the small lake. Her host stood and shook his head, sending water in a rainbow spray about his muscular body.

She realized he was nude.

The water level reached the midpoint of his hips. Below that, she could clearly discern the taut outline of his thighs. At her gasp, he turned abruptly.

They stared at each other, frozen in time and place for
an eternity. His chest rose as he took a deep breath, then sank into the water up to his neck.

“Good timing,” he said, his smile as challenging as it was unfriendly. Well, not exactly unfriendly…

She indicated the basket. “You missed lunch. I thought you might enjoy a picnic.”

“Yeah, I would.”

But his eyes told her his mind wasn't on food.

Neither was hers. She felt as if she'd been sucked into a blast furnace as heat spread all over her, through her and down her bare legs, where his gaze was now taking a leisurely inventory. He took in her tummy, visible between the white shorts and the red knit crop top.

“I'm coming out,” he said.

A warning she didn't heed. They perused each other as the distance between them closed. She noted the movement of his muscles, the breadth of his shoulders, the smooth tan to a point just below his waist, then the pale strip of skin from there to his legs, which, like hers, were tan from wearing shorts.

She swallowed, her breath coming out harshly as her lips parted to admit more air. He was undeniably male.
Aroused
male.

The picnic basket slipped from her numb fingers and brushed the side of her foot as it hit the ground.

Then he was there, directly in front of her. He stared into her eyes for five seconds, then his big hand closed around the back of her head and brought her into the kiss.

She stepped forward and his wet body was plastered against her, soaking her shorts and top with coolness, then warmth, incredible warmth.

He made a sound deep in his throat, a groan that echoed the need raging through her. She clung to him in shameless hunger.

“Jessica?” he questioned.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, yes, yes.”

He swung her up into his powerful embrace and walked down the incline to a sandy spot in the shade of the trees. He set her down and murmured, “Wait.”

She watched as he retrieved a tarp and a long towel from the pickup. These he spread over the sandy bed, then held out a hand to her. She went to him without hesitation.

When he dropped to his knees on the makeshift pallet, she did, too. He ran his fingertips along her cheeks, then down her neck to her breasts. He cupped each one in his palms and brushed the tight nipples with his thumbs.

With a low sound, he pulled her into his arms. She closed her eyes and gave herself to the kiss and the moment, knowing there would be no going back.

Clyde felt the sweet yielding as Jessica leaned into him, not caring that he'd gotten her wet. “I've got to have more,” he whispered. “I have to see you, feel you.”

When he hooked his fingers on the damp material of her top, she lifted her arms and let him pull it over her head. He tossed it onto a tree branch, then followed it with the white lace-trimmed bra. When he nudged her backward, she lay on the towel and helped him slip the rest of her clothing away from her smooth, slender body.

He let his gaze move slowly over her, from one perfect point to another, taking in the shape and curve and texture of her. “One more thing,” he said.

He removed the band from her hair, laid it on the clogs she'd left beside the tarp and ran his fingers along the glossy locks so that it covered her breasts. The pink nipples peeked between the honey-golden strands in an impudent way that made him smile.

“You're right,” he said. “You're not skinny. You're
beautiful. Beautiful,” he repeated firmly as if she'd argued with him.

When she smiled up at him, his heart stopped, just stopped.

“Come to me,” she said. “Now!”

Jessica heard the entreaty in her voice and wondered if she was giving too much away. Her innermost feelings churned in a whirling ball of uncertainty and longing. She wanted this moment more than she'd ever wanted anything.

“Whatever tomorrow brings,” she murmured.

“Forget tomorrow,” he said with a smile but a serious undertone.

Lifting her arms, she urged him close and sought his lips for another of the spellbinding kisses that taunted her heart with things that would never be.

He explored every inch of her, making her aware of sensitive places she'd never encountered before. She did the same to him, touching him as she'd once wanted to all those many years ago when she'd been nineteen and in love.

As her hands moved slowly down his hips and then became more intimate, Clyde grasped at control, determined to make the moments last. But he was near the exploding point.

So was she. It pleased him deeply to know she was moist and ready for him, that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. The intensity of her gaze almost did him in when she opened those lovely blue eyes and followed the path of her hands over his taut body.

“You're making me crazy,” he warned.

He both heard and felt her soft laughter. “Good,” she said. “That's what you're doing to me.”

When she prodded, he shifted his weight over her. Those long, shapely legs wrapped around him. It was a dream come true, the torment of his nightly yearnings turning to
sweet bliss. Their bodies touched, then, without conscious effort on his part, merged.

“Oh,” she whispered, closing her eyes tightly.

He couldn't hold out any longer as he felt her seductive movements against him, driving him onward. He closed his eyes and kissed her, feeling the full impact of her with all his senses. It was the best thing he'd ever experienced. He wanted it to be the same for her.

Jessica nipped at Clyde's shoulder, then kissed each spot, then nipped some more as restless hunger seized her. She met his every thrust and felt a thousand sparkles of delight run over her senses at his gentle caresses.

She heard the sounds of their breathing as they moved in concert, each second building on the next until she was panting with wild exhilaration. Then, like a shaken champagne bottle, she was filled to the bursting point.

“Yes,” she cried softly when she finally came. “Oh, yes. Yes!”

She heard his groan of completion, then there was silence, except for the pounding of their hearts against each other, for long, delicious minutes.

The afternoon breeze gave the tree leaves a playful shake. Jessica felt the dappled sunlight like warm fingers on her face and half her body. Clyde had shifted to the side and rested with one leg and arm thrown protectively across her. She felt totally safe for the first time in months.

Sleep, deep and restful, crept over her. When she awoke, she was alone.

Sitting up, she spotted Clyde in the water, doing a lazy crawl along the length of the lake. That seemed like a good idea. She rose and waded in. At waist deep, she began swimming across the lake.

On the return, he joined her, swimming beside her and matching her stroke for stroke. After five laps, she stopped
and treaded water in the middle, where the lake was over her head. He swam close, then she felt his powerful legs lock around hers, and they both went under.

Before she could splutter indignantly at the dunking, his mouth found hers. The kiss was deeply satisfying.

Against her hip, she felt the return of his passion and turned instinctively toward it, surprised that she could want him again so soon.

With long swipes of his arms, he swam on his back, taking them to shallow water. There, in the lapping wavelets against the sand, they made love again, slower, more perfect than the first time.

A long time later, he rose and held out his hand to her. “It's time to go in,” he said.

She saw the sun had set. The sky was getting dark and the air cool. She heard the drone of a mosquito. “Yes.”

He gave her the towel to dry off. He dressed quickly, but she was finished first. When she glanced at him, she saw the brooding darkness had returned to his eyes. The magic moment was truly over.

He collected the picnic basket, the tarp and the towel and stored them in the pickup. “Ready?”

She nodded and climbed in the passenger side without help. He drove silently back to the house. There he paused before getting out after he turned off the engine, his eyes even darker in the twilight.

“I knew you were a temptation when I spotted you at the airport that first day. I just didn't realize how irresistible you would be. I should have been on guard.”