Something I Need (xoxo Nashville Book 1) (14 page)

For the past five minutes, they’d kissed their way up the steps, with him throwing her against the porch post and grinding into her, desperately wanting to take her then and there, regardless of how inappropriate it was. All the way home she’d taken the opportunity to make him even crazier. With her left hand apparently in a wandering mood, it had spent a good chunk of the ride down his pants, so now his balls were literally aching for release.

Upstairs.

They needed to be there.

Now.

Twenty minutes ago.

He snatched her hand and tugged her up the stairs as quickly as possible.

“You. Bathroom.” He pointed at the door, kissed her quickly, likely too roughly, and dashed to the bedroom in pursuit of those damn condoms.

The fan was on and the water already running when he entered the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Where in the fuck was Jonte?

“Hey,” he called out before he spied her pile of clothes on the sink and boots on the floor. Christ, she was already naked, wet, and waiting for him in the shower.

At light speed, Cash kicked off his boots and shrugged out of his clothes. He rested the box of condoms on the bath ledge – save for the one in his hand – and pulled back the floral blue shower curtain.

There were no words. He lunged at her primitively, crushing his lips against hers and lifting her up, her legs eagerly wrapping around him. He couldn’t wait any longer. He pushed her back against the cream tiles, holding her up with one arm, and handed her the condom. She deftly slid it on and he plunged into her. Hard. Ramming her against the tiles, her wet hair splaying out and sticking to them. Jonte screamed and he worked on getting even deeper into her. She raked her hands through his hair, pulling at it, the water washing over them making their bodies all slick and slippery.

Over and over, he pounded into her, moans and screams of delight escaping her pretty pink lips. There was no time for her perfect breasts; he’d savor them later and make her come in his mouth. Right now it was too late for anything else. He was there. On the edge. On the brink. Jonte was the answer to every question in the universe and he was coming. Coming hard. Filling her up. Again. Finally.

J
onte woke
up all entwined with a naked Cash. Not a bad way to start the day. Before last night, she’d never had shower sex. Now she was a huge fan. Wet, slippery bodies were super sexy. And when things got sticky, clean up was easy. Of course, the clean up invariably led to more mess and sex. Yep, definitely the longest shower of her life.

“Are you awake?” He moved in closer, lazily drawing circles on her back with his finger.

“Mmmm,” she murmured, her eyes still shut.

Good morning Mr. Angsty Pants Sex Genius.

“Nice to see you’re not running out on me this morning,” he whispered and nibbled at her ear.

She peeked out of one eye and rolled off her back and onto her side so she could see him. “I haven’t gotten my morning sex yet.”

“Oh, I can remedy that.” He pushed his hard-on into her thigh. “I thought you might be sore? Things got a bit crazy in the shower.”

Indeed. The man liked to be in control in the bedroom, or shower. He wasn’t aggressive or some out-of-control dominator like you read in all those sexy books, no, but he was definitely vigorous and could be very compelling. He had skills, and her initial assessment that his eyes would make any woman say yes to anything had been proven correct. For the rest of her life, whenever she closed her eyes, she was certain she’d see his.

“I’m okay,” she said against his lips. Truthfully, she was feeling a little raw down below, but she suspected his lips could help cure that.

“Good.”

He gripped her face and sucked on her bottom lip, giving it a little nip before his tongue sought out hers. Ready to play, he hooked his leg over her hip and rolled her onto her back, crushing his body up against hers.

“Knock, knock,” a melodic voice rang out from the other side of the door at the same time gentle taps rapped against it.

“Nannie?” Cash halted his attack and Jonte froze too.

“Everything okay? You’re sleepin’ awful late.”

“Everything’s fine. I’ll be out in a –”

Oh, the horror.

An older woman with silver hair and the most piercing green eyes – a carbon copy of Cash’s – peeked through the door. “Oh, my apologies,” she said, her hand flying up to her chest. “I didn’t realize you had company.” Nannie’s cheeks went rosy and she immediately shut the door.

“Oh my god.” Jonte threw the comforter over her head. Had that really just happened? How embarrassing. Holy crapballs. That was so not the introduction to Dolly and Cash’s famous Nannie she’d had in mind. How was anyone supposed to recover from that?

Cash snaked his arms around her waist. “I’m sorry.” He burrowed his way under the comforter, searching for her. “She’s not normally home. It’ll be fine,” he added, kissing her forehead. “She won’t care.”

“I care. And I thought you never brought women home?”

“I don’t.”

“Then how do you know she won’t care?”

“Fair point.” He kissed her hair. “Put some clothes on. We’d better get down there.”

* * *

C
ash took
the stairs two at a time, with Jonte following behind, mumbling to herself. He stifled his chuckle – did she even know she was saying stuff out loud? It would be a real dick move to laugh at her right now. She was completely mortified and he felt like a shit for having put her in this situation.

The biggest problem, though, was he was about to be subjected to the Spanish Inquisition from Nannie on all things Jonte, and he wasn’t sure what he was going to tell her. Things were too new and too undefined. Jonte had pulled away yesterday morning, but he’d been able to win her back. What that all meant, he had no idea.

Christ, was he supposed to grab Jonte’s hand and walk her into the kitchen? Put his hand on her back? Around her waist?

He waited for her to reach the last step. She looked so cute padding barefoot down the stairs in those short, ripped denim cut-offs she’d worn last night and the clean lemon tank top she’d pulled out of her bag.

“This is all your fault,” she whispered and flushed beet red again.

Maybe it had been a bad idea bringing her back here again last night, but it wasn’t exactly like he could’ve stayed with her at Dolly’s. Besides, it would have been worse if Dolly had walked in this morning. Although, Dolly had already witnessed the whole pool table incident.

Shit, what was with his family? Were they collectively going for the cock blocker of the year award or something? Crazy.

Cash grabbed Jonte’s hand and towed her into the kitchen where Nannie was fussing about at the stove.

“Mornin’, Nannie,” he said.

Nannie turned away from her frying pan. She ignored him and settled her gaze on Jonte. “I’m so terribly sorry about before.”

“No, I’m so sorry.” Somehow Jonte’s blush deepened even more.

“Dear, you have nothing to apologize for. I was concerned Cash wasn’t up and thought he may be unwell.” Nannie smiled and then returned to her frying pan, flipping the small pancakes that were bubbling away.

“What are you doin’ home at this time of day?” Cash made his way over to the sink and filled up the kettle.

“For someone so young, you have a mind like a sieve. I got Lola to cover my shift today so I could take Pop in to get his eyes checked.” Nannie removed the pancakes from the pan and rested them on the plate next to the stove. The pan sizzled when she dropped some more batter in.

“Oh,” Cash replied and turned the kettle on to boil. “Did you want a cup of tea?”

“I’d like for you to introduce me to your friend,” she scolded and shot him a deathly glare.

“Right. Nannie, this is Jonte. Jonte, Nannie.” He gestured between the two women.

Nannie pulled Jonte into a welcoming embrace. “It’s lovely to officially meet you, Jonte. Between my two grandchildren, I’ve heard so much about you and feel as if I already know you.”

Jonte smiled meekly and hugged Nannie back. “Hopefully it’s all been good.”

“Of course.” Nannie laughed, all sunshine and light and full of warmth. “Your accent is darling,” she added and held Jonte’s hand between the two of hers.

Nannie shut her eyes and inhaled deeply.

Oh shit. Hell no
.

She still had Jonte’s hand.

Now was definitely not the time for one of Nannie’s impromptu
insight
sessions. “Nannie, don’t you think you should check on those pancakes?”

Nannie ignored him. Jonte shot him a confused please-explain-why-your-cute-as-a-button-Nannie-has-my-hand look. Spying the smoke, he rushed over to the stove and flipped the pancakes before they set the damn house on fire.

“I see lots of men around you,” Nannie said, her eyes still shut. “You have brothers, correct?”

“Three.” Jonte nodded and looked over to Cash, her eyes searching his for answers, but he didn’t have any right now. He didn’t know she had brothers. Did Dolly?

“They love you and miss you. You really should call the oldest one, James?”

Nannie asked tentatively, testing out the name.

“Jack,” Jonte corrected.

“Yes, Jack. Call Jack, he’s worried about you.”

“I probably should.” Jonte nodded again.

“Your mother loves you and misses you too. Like all mothers, she only wants what is best for you, even though she has a funny way of showing it sometimes.”

Cash flinched, his belly clenching at Nannie’s description of mothers. Did she truly believe what she was saying? How could she, given his own mother and her actions?

“You are very talented, but Dolly already told me that. I see big things for you.”

“I think that’s enough,” Cash whispered. Surely this was freaking the fuck out of Jonte? He turned back to the pan, slipped the spatula under the pancakes, removed them from the pan, and turned the stove off.

“One day, you will marry Cash.”

“Nannie!” Cash spun back around to face them. Jonte’s shock echoed in her sharp intake of breath, and their eyes met again, a million questions floating in the thick as mud air between them.

Nannie opened her eyes. She leaned in and kissed Jonte on the cheek. “I really must be off. Enjoy breakfast and I hope to see you around here more often.”

With that, Nannie picked her bag up off the counter and left the kitchen.

Unfuckingbelievable. Cash shook his head and tossed the pan into the sink. Well, that right there definitely topped the list of crazy shit his family did. Could this morning be any more awkward? How was it possible Jonte was still standing here?

“Pancakes?” He offered up the piled high plate.

“Sure.”

“What do ya want on them? Butter, sugar, lemon, jelly, maple syrup?”

“Lemon, butter, and sugar.” Jonte ducked down to retrieve two plates from the cupboard.

Cash busied himself grabbing the pancake toppings and making coffee.

“So how long are we gonna ignore this elephant for?” Jonte asked when he set her coffee down on the counter in front of her.

He let out an awkward-did-you-really-need-to-ask chuckle and ran his hand through his hair. “Forever?”

He didn’t want to have this conversation. Not now. Not ever.

“I don’t think so. What’s the deal with your nannie?” She wore what he bet was a fake super-sweet smile and reached for the coffee.

“She’s sometimes psychic.” He shrugged, trying not to draw attention to the whole fiasco, and started buttering the pancakes.

“Sometimes? She was pretty spot on about my brothers.”

“She can be hit and miss.” He piled four of the small pancakes onto a plate and pushed them towards her.

“Thanks.” Jonte pulled off part of one pancake and stuffed it into her mouth. She moaned and tore off some more, dipping it into the sugary butter that had oozed off onto the plate. “What you mean when you say hit and miss?”

“Sometimes she gets it right. I think there is a lot of power of suggestion happening.”

“Right.” Jonte nodded and continued eating. She took a sip of her coffee and cocked her head. “So, ball park figure, what’s her hit rate like?”

“I’d say a little over fifty percent,” Cash replied with a wink.

Damn, why’d he go and wink? Now he was more confused than ever.

“
Y
ou still curious
about the river?” Cash asked after the finished doing the dishes, flicking the damp dish towel against her ass.

“Hey!” she yelped and grabbed for the towel, fully intent on flicking him back, but not quite quick enough. Cash ducked out of her reach and she chased him around the island bench like they were a pair of crazy kids. On the second lap, Cash turned on her, scooped her up, and threw her over his shoulder.

“Put me down,” she screamed, pounding on his back as he walked them out the front door and down the steps. “I don’t have any shoes on.”

“You have stinky feet.” Cash tilted her farther back so her feet were pointing up to the sky.

“I’m gonna fall!” she screeched and dug her hands into the back pockets of his jeans, a tactic that didn’t really help.

The ratbag let her slide farther back and she screamed again. “Stop it!”

He inched her back up over his shoulder and then cradled her in his arms.
Oh thank God.
She could see the river now and wondered how she’d missed it the first two times she’d been here.

The murky water seemed to hug the banks, which were dotted with pebbles and larger rocks. Cash walked them up to the small break in the trees and then set her down on the edge of the water, her toes squishing in the muddy soil.

“Tanner and I fish right here.” His lips curled into a half-smile.

“Do you catch anything?”

“Sometimes.”

“Do you two have a fifty-percent hit rate too?” she mocked and giggled.

Cash leaned down and picked up one of the bigger pebbles. He swung his arm out and let go of the rock. It skimmed the surface of the river, bounced a couple of times, and then sank down below. Jonte did the same and did a little victory dance in the mud when hers went farther than Cash’s.

“Impressive. Most girls can’t skip rocks.”

“Three brothers, remember?”

“Are you close?”

She shook her head. “Not like you and Dolly are. They’re all older.”

“Overprotective?”

“Sometimes. Especially Jack.”

They had been when they were all younger, although they always included her in their games and antics. But now Josh and Justin were pretty wrapped up in their own lives and liked to stay as far away from their mum as possible, so she didn’t see them as much as she used to.

“So there’s Jack. What are the names of the other two?”

“Josh and Justin. But Jack’s the oldest.”

“Right. So your family really likes J names.”

Jonte chuckled and grabbed another pebble. “Yeah, my mum teaches literature and wanted to break from tradition and call me Bronte. Dad said no and they settled on Jonte as a compromise.”

“It suits you.”

“Thanks.” She grinned up at him and then released her pebble. The minute she let it go, she knew she’d botched it up. The pebble shattered the surface of the river, sinking down straight away.

“It’s a delicate balance.” Cash curled an arm around her waist, pulling her closer. “And kinda beautiful how for a few seconds, the rock and the water can create something more perfect than its parts.”

She looked up at him. “That’s very philosophical of you.”

“I’ve told you before, sweetheart, I’m an enigma.”

They spent what was left of the morning chatting and skimming rocks down by the river.

“
Y
ou hungry
?” Cash asked and pulled out his cell.

“A little.”

He typed on the screen, and thirty seconds later a message came through.

“All set.” Cash grinned and tucked the phone back into his pocket.

“What’s set?”

“I just bought us a couple hours.”

Cash scooped Jonte up and carried her back to the house. He left her waiting on the porch while he rushed back inside to ‘get supplies,’ whatever that meant.

A few minutes later, he returned with her boots, a thick pair of black socks, and one of those reusable shopping bags that appeared to be full – of what exactly, Jonte couldn’t see, as a blanket was sitting on the top.

After pulling on the socks and boots, she followed Cash over to the huge red and white barn.

“What are we doing?” The smell of what she presumed was chaff and manure assaulted her nose. Yuck. She tried not to breathe too deeply.

“Do you know how to ride a horse?”

She shook her head. Why on earth would she know how to do that? It wasn’t exactly an everyday skill that one learned, like reading or writing or riding a bike.

Yes, Mr. Angsty Pants, I know how to ride a horse. Really?

Cash handed her the striped bag, which was actually rather heavy, and motioned for her to follow him into the barn.

The inside of the barn had been converted into stables, with saddles, bridles, and other horse gear hanging off hooks and shelves. Cash threw a thick rectangular blanket and something else Jonte didn’t recognize over his shoulder before effortlessly grabbing a brown leather saddle off the rack.

“This way.” He nodded.

Oh, wow. Despite his protests, Cash is a cowboy.

Jonte shook her head and followed him, side stepping several piles of horse muck on the way.

“Meet Casper,” Cash said and slung the saddle onto the floor, next to a gate that held in the most beautiful white horse.

“Casper?” Jonte giggled, unable to contain her amusement at the childish name.

“Hey, I was ten years old when he was born.” Cash smirked and jumped the fence, effortlessly landing inside the small stable. He grabbed the blue rope thingy around the horse’s head and pulled Casper closer to Jonte. “Hey, buddy, this is Miss Jonte,” he said, patting the horse on the neck, almost pulling him in for a hug.

She hadn’t seen this affectionate side of him before. It was a nice surprise.

Jonte leaned over the rail and rubbed Casper in the same spot Cash had patted. Casper neighed and bobbed his head up and down.

“He likes you.” Cash plucked a flat brush the size of his palm off the fence railing and brushed Casper’s back and sides down. Once he was finished with the brush, he maneuvered the thingy she didn’t know the name of over Casper’s head and pushed the metal into his mouth.

“Doesn’t that hurt him?”

“Nah, I’m real gentle,” Cash replied and threw the thick plaid blanket onto Casper’s back.

“I don’t know about that,” she teased.

“Shit. Tell me the truth, did I hurt you last night?”

“No, I was just playing.” She shook her head, her girlish giggles returning.

Cash half-climbed the railing and leaned over to lift up the saddle, easily tossing it up onto Casper’s back and then reaching under to grab the strap that dangled. When Casper was all ready to go, Cash flipped open the latch on the gate and walked him out. Jonte shifted on her feet, kind of nervous now the huge horse was out here with her.

“You okay?”

“Mmmm,” she muttered.

“You’re not scared, are you?”

“Not exactly. Just a small case of nerves.”

“How many people did you perform in front of last night, sweetheart?”

“Point taken.” She huffed and rolled her eyes.

People weren’t horses. What if the horse charged at her? What if it knocked her to the ground and stomped on her over and over? Ugh. She was being ridiculous again.

“Follow me.” Cash walked Casper down the narrow laneway, past a few other horses that neighed to acknowledge their presence.

Jonte smiled and waved at the horses and then realized how stupid that probably was. Thank goodness Cash couldn’t see her.

When they were back outside, Cash halted and Casper stopped at his side.

“Okay, up you go, gorgeous.”

“Up?” Jonte gulped, fear resurfacing. What if the horse bucked her off? What if she landed on her spine and never walked again?

“Put the bag down for a sec.”

Okay. Yeah, she could do that. Down the bag went and she took a tentative step closer.

“It’s a western saddle, so just hold on to that horn there.” He pointed at the short, stumpy, almost penis-looking knob sticking up. “And stick your left foot into the stirrup,” he added, nodding at the metal-hole-looking thing. “Do you need a boost?” he asked, his eyes gleaming cheekily, as if he’d like nothing more than getting his hands back on her ass.

“How does it not slip off?”

“Look.” Cash reached for the horn, slipped his boot into the metal hole and pulled himself up. Neither the saddle nor Casper moved. “It’s real tight, see,” he added, jiggling his weight.

Jonte blushed at his inflection, and he lowered himself back down, keeping hold of the reins.

“Come on.” He held out his hand.

She could do this. Of course she could.

Jonte took Cash’s hand and he gave her a quick peck on the forehead. She reached up for the horn and slid her foot into the stirrup, exactly like he’d done. He gave her a bit of a boost under her ass, and she swung her right leg up and over the saddle.

“Perfect.” He smiled proudly up at her.

Okay. This was a different way to look at the world. There were paddocks as far as she could see. Smaller ones here, closer to the house, and much larger ones dotted with cows farther into the distance. She still had no idea where Cash was taking her or why there was only one horse.

“Grab the bag, babe,” Cash said, bringing her back to reality.

She wasn’t sure how she was supposed to hold the horn and the bag at the same time, and said as much to him.

“Put it over the horn for the minute,” he replied and then walked forwards.

“Sssshit,” she screeched when Casper walked with him.

“Stop freakin’ out. You’ll be fine.”

Don’t fall off. Don’t fall off. Don’t fall off.

She clung desperately to the horn and her whole body rocked back and forth as Cash walked Casper up to a metal gate.

“Slip your left foot out of the stirrup,” Cash said once they’d walked into the open paddock.

Jonte did, and then suddenly he was sitting behind her. “Scoot forward as much as you can. And slip your other foot out of the stirrups.”

She did what he asked and Cash wiggled closer so he was pressed hard against her back. “Relax, it’ll be fine,” he whispered in her ear. She felt his legs push against Casper, and then Casper was walking. Well, not exactly walking, more like jogging.

Don’t fall. Don’t fall. Don’t fall.

For fifteen minutes, they rode through expansive paddocks, weaved around what felt like miles of tall trees, and finally stopped in a small clearing.

“Can I hear water?” she turned and asked.

“The river is just behind there.” Cash nodded. “Hold on.” He jumped down from Casper and walked them over to a railing, which he proceeded to wrap the reins around. “Let me help you.”

Once she was down, he unhooked the striped bag and retrieved a carrot. “Good work, boy.” After patting Casper’s neck, Cash lay the carrot flat in his palm. Casper wasted no time and scarfed it down, crunching and snorting away.

Cash laced his fingers through Jonte’s and led her through the trees and over to the banks of the river.

Jonte breathed out a soft gasp. It was beautiful here; the river was strewn with the same tall, dense trees and scattered cream, brown, and blue pebbles. And much more secluded than down by the house. Another plus, there was no mud as the area was undisturbed.

“Do you fish here too?”

“Rarely. Tanner’s not a fan of horses, and Pop won’t let us ride trail bikes out here. Says it stresses the animals.” Cash leaned in to stifle her chuckle with a slow, sweet kiss. He took his time, leisurely running his tongue along her lips, cupping her face with his rough hands and stroking his thumb along her cheek.

A girl could get used to those kisses. Mmmm…they were better than chocolate, sweeter than candy and totally addictive.

“I’ll be gentle this time,” he promised when he pulled away. He planted a kiss in her hair, lifted a picnic blanket out of the bag, and lay it down on the yellow-tinged grass, not too close to the water. He also grabbed two bottles of water and a few containers out of the bag. Wow, he must have cut up an assortment of fruit for lunch when he’d ducked inside before.

Jonte lay on her side, propped up on an elbow. She chewed on her watermelon and watched Cash eat a handful of grapes.

Perfect. Today was absolutely perfect.

Lunch wasn’t rushed. Instead they savored the quiet, stole kisses and sucked on each other’s fingers suggestively as they fed each other pieces of fruit.

“Why this spot?” Jonte sat up to take a gulp of her water.

“Thought we could try making love down by the river like you wanted to that night.” Cash slyly pulled a condom out of his pocket, holding it up for her to see. “You can be as loud as you want and no one will hear you,” he added with a devilish I’m-going-to-make-you-scream grin.

Yes, please.

“You’re a little presumptuous.”

Cash danced his fingers up her leg, not stopping at her shorts, moving up and straight into her panties. “Oh, you’re so up for this.” Slowly and gently, he moved his fingers inside her, smiling smugly, like the know-it-all he was. He lay her down, hovering on top of her. “I’m going to take my time,” he warned, removing his fingers and unbuttoning her shorts.

But he didn’t take them off. Instead, he nuzzled into her neck and sucked on her ear lobe, gently grazing it with his teeth. He licked down her neck and nipped at the base, causing her to shiver and wriggle.

Jonte’s hands disappeared under his shirt and she tugged at it, wanting it gone. Cash complied and threw it over his head. His finger skimmed her shoulders and slipped under the strap of her bra and tank top. Impatient, she yanked off her top. Cash unclasped her bra and discarded it. He pushed her back down onto the blanket and licked along her shoulders all the way down to her raised nipples. She moaned and thrust her hips up to him. He lapped at her nipple with his tongue, alternating between soft sucks and frantic flicks, driving her out of her mind with want and need.

“Take me, now.” She wrapped her legs around his waist in an attempt to get him as close as possible. He was hard. He wanted this. Why wouldn’t he just do her already?