The Cowboy's Temptation (18 page)

His eyes were hooded as he looked at her, not revealing his thoughts. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back here?” he asked.

The elevator doors opened before she could answer so he guided her out the door and through the lobby. Once out on the street, he raised his hand and whistled, hailing a cab as if he’d lived in New York City his whole life. The cab pulled up and he directed them to the airport.

“Wait, I have to get my bags,” she said and gave the cabbie her address.

 

“You’re coming back with me, Elissa,” he growled.

She turned to face him, wondering why he was still angry. She saw the look in his eyes and the question as well. Her heart tripped into double time and she smiled softly. “Of course I am,” she said and reached up a hand to touch his cheek. She kissed him softly but he was having none of that. At the first touch of her lips to his, he pulled her onto his lap and kissed her thoroughly. “You still haven’t answered my question,” he said when he was through.

Elissa leaned back in his arms and smiled. “What question was that?” she asked, not sure about anything after that kiss.

 

“What are you doing here in New York? You’re supposed to be safe and sound back at my house.”

Elissa laughed delightedly. “I’m packing up,” she explained. Looking out the window, she slid off his lap. “We’re here,” she said and stepped out of the cab. She knew he was following right behind her and she led him up to her condo. “I just need this and I’m ready,” she said, and picked up her small bag. “My flight isn’t for another two hours though,” she said.

“You’re coming back with me,” he growled and took her arm in his.

They hailed another cab which took them to the airport. Elissa assumed that he’d booked another flight and made reservations for her as well. She didn’t mind, she had missed him over the past few days and she liked the way he made her feel. She felt feminine and cared for when he put his strong arm around her waist. Elissa leaned into his strong body whenever they were standing still or sitting in the cab. She loved this man. She loved everything about him; his physical strength, his intelligence, the way he cared for all the people on his ranch and knew every one of their family members. Living in Texas would definitely be a different way of life, she told herself.

The cab took them to a different section of the airport than she was used to. She hadn’t been paying attention to the instructions Jake had given the driver so she was surprised to be stepping out onto the tarmac instead of into the airport terminal. “What are we doing here?” she asked.

Jake guided her over to a sleek jet. “We’re going home,” he said and dropped her luggage into a seat. “Want to ride up front with me?” he asked.

 

“What do you mean?” she asked

 

“I’m flying us home,” he said and showed her into the cockpit.

 

“You know how to fly regular planes as well as helicopters? Is there anything you don’t know how to do?” she laughed.

 

“I’ve loved flying all my life. I own the helicopter but this is borrowed from a friend. And yes, I know how to fly,” he chuckled.

He put on the headphones and flicked some of the switches on the board. Elissa kept quiet while he spoke with the air traffic controllers and requested permission to take off.

Three hours later, Jake landed the plane perfectly at the small airport in Texas. “Wow! That was very exciting,” she said as he taxied to the small building that would protect the plane from the elements.

“You liked it?” he asked, pulling her to her feet and kissing her. “I liked you sitting beside me,” he said. “Now we’re heading back to the house and we’re going to talk. I’ve been trying to have this conversation with you for the past two weeks, but you’re not getting out of it this time by using that lovely body of yours to distract me,” he said and patted her on the bottom to get her moving.

Elissa just laughed and silently accepted the challenge. “Talk, huh?” she said but stepped down the stairs to the tarmac.

 

Jake drove quickly to the house then guided her to the main house. “Go up to the house and pull on some jeans. We’re going for a ride,” he explained.

Once Elissa came back downstairs, he had already changed into jeans himself. He guided her out into the barn. “Get on,” he said and waved to a beautiful black stallion that nickered at their approach.

“Um, Jake,” she said, not moving any further towards the huge beast once she saw where he was taking her. “I don’t think I’ve had enough lessons yet. I really don’t think I’m ready for that animal.”

Jake wasn’t having any of that. “Trust me?” he said and lifted her up onto the stallion. He immediately followed, settling her exactly where he wanted her in the saddle. With a flick of the reigns and a nudge on the flanks, the three of them were galloping across the fields. Elissa loved the feeling of riding with Jake. He took command of the horse with the reigns in one hand and wrapped his other arm around her waist, ensuring that she would stay on the large animal.

Jake guided the stallion to a quiet area surrounded by trees, complete with a babbling brook and large rocks to sit down on.

 

He dismounted, then turned to lift her off the horse, letting her slide down his body as he kissed her soundly.

After a few moments, he stopped and held her at arms length, taking a deep breath. “We are going to talk,” he said and took a step back. But he grabbed her hand and guided her over to one of the large rocks. He lifted her up and put her gently on the top of the rock so she was looking down at him slightly.

He looked at her, then gritted his teeth as he searched for the right words. “Elissa, I want….” He paced back and forth several times. Elissa waited patiently for him to continue, her hands folded on her lap, her expression attentive.

He started again, looking at the almost cloudless sky. “What I mean is that…” he looked around and ran his hands through his hair, slapping his hat against his thigh. “Elissa… I know this is…” he looked up at her and she smiled.

“What are you trying to say?” she asked, raising her eyebrows questioningly.

He looked at her for a long moment, his eyes showing his frustration. Finally, he put his hands on his hips and took several steps towards her. “What I want to know is, could you ever learn to like living out here? Is there anything in New York holding you there besides your job? If that’s the case, I can give you all the money you’d want to invest. I can keep you challenged enough right here, that is if you think you could be happy. I know some people like the hustle and bustle of city life, but…” he hesitated, “Dammit, well, you seem to be happy here too.”

He stopped, his back facing her as he searched for the right words to convince her to stay here. He sighed heavily. “What I mean is…Elissa….Hell, I love you. You love me. I know you do. So just say you’ll marry me and we can get on with this,” he said, his frustration finally taking over.

Elissa laughed at his proposal but the happiness was welling up inside her, threatening to overwhelm her with its intensity. “Okay,” she said and laughed at his stricken expression.

The frustration left his face and it took on a shocked expression. “Okay?” he asked cautiously.

 

“Yes, okay,” she repeated, laughing at his face.

 

Jake just stared at her for a long moment. “You’ll marry me?” he asked, his face lighting up with a wide smile.

 

Elissa laughed again. “Yes. With stipulations,” she said.

 

The grin disappeared with her words. Jake shook his head. “No, it has to be unconditional,” he said and walked away from her.

She ignored his comment and explained. “First of all, you have to tell me you love me again. Then you have to promise to give me a house full of kids as soon as possible,” she said, gasping with delight when he rushed over and pulled her off the rock and into his arms. When he’d finished kissing her, she continued, “And I want you to tell me what your favorite meal is so I can prepare it once in a while. I’ve been trying to guess for the longest time and I obviously haven’t hit upon it yet.”

“Darlin’, if you keep cooking like you do, I’m going to become so fat I won’t be able to sit on old Charlie over there,” he said, indicating the black horse a moment before he bent his head to kiss her again.

Eleven months later Elissa was propped up on the sofa, a pile of pillows behind her back and her wedding album on her swollen stomach. She laughed silently as she looked at the pictures of Jake in his tuxedo, dancing with her full wedding dress under a white tent that had been set up in the backyard. They’d been married a month after he’d proposed to her and one month later, she’d gotten pregnant. She lifted a hand to soothe the contraction that moved across her stomach and glanced at her watch. time to call Jake and tell him to get the three of them to the hospital. anticipation of their forthcoming baby. She knew it would be difficult for Jake. She wondered if they should just drive to the hospital. It would probably be safer. It was almost

She smiled in

She was being silly, she knew. Jake was nervous, but he wouldn’t let that override his ability to get them to the hospital safely. But there was also the issue of parking the chopper. She decided that it would be best if they drove so she pulled herself off the couch and picked up the keys to the SUV on the way out the door to get her husband.

It had been an incredible eleven months, she thought. It was filled with laughter and more love than she’d ever thought was possible.

 

Elissa glanced up at the gorgeous spring afternoon as another contraction tore across her stomach. Five minutes apart, she noted. Time to get moving.

She waddled out to the barn where Jake was overseeing the cattle in the yard. As soon as he saw her, he jumped down from the back of the truck and walked over to her quickly, a big grin on her face. “How are you doing?” he asked, putting one hand to her stomach tenderly. Elissa wanted to pull his hand away since another contraction was taking over. Jake’s hands were too sensitive and she didn’t need to tell him anything. He could feel it and his eyes snapped down to hers. “Elissa?” he growled. She smiled brightly up to him and nodded her head.

With a yell, he was racing across the yard to the house, intending to get the keys to the helicopter. Elissa had to call him twice before he heard her and she held up the keys in her right hand.

Jake then raced back to her, kissed her soundly and tried to lift her into his arms. With a groan, he hefted his pregnant wife into the truck he’d just left. “Good grief, woman!” he sighed as he placed her gently on the seat. “You’re going to break my back if this baby doesn’t come soon,” he joked.

Elissa just laughed and punched him in the stomach. “Get moving, cowboy,” she said. She couldn’t say anything else as another contraction started. “We have a long drive to the hospital and I need a pain killer soon.”

Jake didn’t waste anymore time. He stopped only long enough to toss her suitcase into the back of the truck, then they were off.

They made it to the hospital less than an hour later and Jake was by her side during the whole labor and delivery. He kept knocking the monitor off her stomach that was supposed to gauge the contractions. But it didn’t matter to Elissa. His hand was more sensitive and he helped her through the contractions better than any machine could ever do. Elissa couldn’t have asked for a stronger and more sensitive man throughout the whole delivery.

Unfortunately, as soon as the doctor offered the scissors to him so he could cut the umbilical cord, Jake fainted onto the floor.