Take Me Home, Cowboy Read online

  “No, I’ll tell you what it’s about. This is about you. You can’t stand that he hired someone you don’t approve of and know nothing about.” His brow wrinkled, and he threw back his shoulders. ”So you have to stoop to listening in on other people’s conversations. Well, let me tell you something, dear princess, my past is just that, mine. Your father has no problem with it, therefore it’s not a problem.” He rested his hands on his lean hips. “If you’re curious, next time maybe you should ask. If I want you to know something, I’ll tell you. Got it?”

  Nice. Open mouth, insert foot. She could only stare, ashamed she’d done exactly what he’d accused her of doing. She didn’t know what to say for once. His eyes bulged from his reddened face while he paced around the room shaking his head.

  “Look Matt, I’m sorry. You’re right. It was a rotten thing to do, and I wasn’t at your door by the way.”

  He’d raised his eyebrows, as though he didn’t believe she hadn’t been outside in the hallway.

  “Honest, our rooms are next door to each other, and with the windows open, I guess sound travels pretty well.”

  “Fine, next time I wanna call someone, I’ll remember to shut my window. Or better yet, I’ll stay in the barn, so I don’t bother anybody about who I may or may not be talking to.”

  The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and the butterflies battered around in her stomach, making her uneasy. There was something he wasn’t telling her, and the defensive attitude he emitted was driving her a little bit crazy. At this point, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to ask. She’d already caused enough trouble. But curiosity ate at her, and gritting her teeth, she said, “So?”

  He glared at her. “What?”

  “Are you married?”

  He stared at her, not moving a muscle. She could have sworn, though, his eyes looked like they wanted to devour her.

  “No.” He took a step toward her. “I’m not married.”

  Her stomach eased a little, and she sighed a breath of relief but she was still no closer to finding out who he’d been talking to the night before.

  “Okay…a fiancée or a girlfriend?”

  He progressed another step or two.

  “No, no fiancée and no girlfriend. Are you jealous maybe?”

  “No.” Yes. Maybe. There went her stomach churning again at the reality of being envious of whoever might be in his life.

  “Well then my little princess, let me enlighten you.” He stood mere inches from her. Near enough she could feel the testosterone seeping out of him. He came close enough to back her into his desk in the middle of the room. “If you really wanna know, the honey I was talking to last night was my four-year-old niece, Mallory. She lives in New York with my brother, and I’m pretty sure I miss her the most.”

  He placed both of his hands on his desk on either side of her, invading her personal space.

  “So let me just say, those jealousy vibes you’re throwing off are making me hotter than hell, and I’m having a whole lot of trouble keeping my hands off you right about now.”

  Dipping his head, he planted a lip lock like she’d never felt before. His hands roamed over her body and up into her hair.

  She was too busy feeling, sizzling with every touch to her hot skin. Every kiss he landed along the side of her neck and jaw made her legs go weak, unable to hold her upright. The amount of sensual tension roiling inside her forced her to suck in a breath then let out a groan of pleasure. His magic fingers found its way down her pants again and brushed against her most sensitive spot.

  When he slowly removed his hand from her jeans for the second time, she melted in a puddle of disappointment. He kicked the door shut and gripped her shoulders, surprising her at the intense passion and need his eyes could reveal when he wanted. It probably wasn’t so much he’d decided to show the turmoil roiling inside—because he portrayed himself as a “hold it all in” type of guy—but more like he was helpless to control it when the desire was so strong. His jaw muscles tightened.

  Ally was relieved to know the details of the phone call she’d overheard the night before. Still didn’t mean she knew anything more about his secretive background. No clue where he’d really come from or what he’d done in his life, but by God, the man knew sex. Unless she put a stop to their current predicament, that was precisely where they were headed. Keeping her cool would be the hard part. He didn’t seem like a man who gave up control willingly. This is probably a really bad idea. She pushed the thought away. She wanted to live in the moment with this man, control or no control. Yikes!

  He caressed her face, lowered his lips to hers, and gave her the softest, sweetest, bone-melting kiss she’d ever had the pleasure of experiencing. No way had she expected something so passionate and thoughtful after the heated lip lock they’d shared earlier. It primed her senses, sent her hormones shooting through the roof and demanding more.

  Matt leaned away and waited. When she opened her eyes, he let her go and reached for the bottom of her wrinkled T-shirt, bunching it in his fists. Slowly, he smoothed his hands up her bare sides, pushing the shirt up and over her head as he went, leaving her vulnerable in soft yellow lace.

  Her thick, blonde hair tumbled loosely over her shoulders, and he growled his delight. He palmed her full, lush, lace-covered breasts, his thumbs rubbed her nipples to tight peaks. He bent over to run his tongue along the crest of her bra. She tilted her head back while her hands moved right to his jeans to work on the zipper. He gripped her wrists, stopping her just as she’d started. She looked at him, surprised.

  “Sweetheart, I want you in a bad way, but if you touch me any more, we might as well call it a day.” He breathed heavily.

  She beamed him the most beautiful smile, and at that moment, he would have done anything she asked. He forced himself to push her slender fingers away while he continued with the opening, causing a moan of pleasurable pain when he edged the zipper down the length of his bulging penis. Once free of the confines, she pushed his pants off his hips for him while he made fast work of hers.

  God she was beautiful, even with her jeans gathered at her ankles, stopped by her boots. He had to take a deep breath to steady himself. He spanned her tiny waist and planted her butt on his desk.

  “I think we have a slight problem” he said, grinning at her as he picked up her feet, pulling off first one boot then the other, so he could take her pants off the rest of the way.

  “Problem solved, huh?” She was surprisingly a little nervous. Twenty-four hours ago, she never imagined being mostly naked, holed up in the barn office with this drop dead sexy cowboy—the same cowboy she’d thought was the biggest ass she’d ever talked to. Lord, what would her daddy say?

  “You’re sure we won’t be interrupted?” she questioned him.

  Matt stepped closer, moving his hands up her thighs, around her waist, and up her back to unfasten her favorite bra.

  “Afraid we’ll get caught, ma’am?”

  He always drawled out the last word to piss her off, she suspected. However, at this point in the game, she couldn’t have cared less. She was more focused on anticipating his welcome touch. Finally.

  “Yeah, a little. I’d die if my daddy saw me this way, and he’d probably shoot you.”

  “Trust me, Ally. Your father and most all the other hands are out roaming the land, looking for strays. They shouldn’t be back for a little while yet. And the few hands still on the property know better than to walk in this office when the door’s shut, at least without knocking.”

  She eyed him speculatively, not really sure she felt better about what they were doing. Okay, revise that, she was okay with what they were doing, but maybe not where they were doing it.

  “Sweetheart, forget about your dad and everyone else. Concentrate on me.” He finally unhooked her bra, and before she could protest, he was on her, sucking a hard nipple into his warm, wet mouth, his tongue making playful circles and his teeth nipping softly at the sensitive flesh.

 
; “Oh God, Matt….” What madness! Damn was he good.

  Ally braced her hands when he released her breast only to move directly to the other, forcing a deep groan from the depths of her soul. His hands focused on another region entirely, and he pulled her to the edge of the desk, hooked his fingers into her matching yellow panties, and tugged until she lifted herself enough to take them off her hips and down her legs.

  Where he threw them, however, she had no clue. She gasped for air as he moved to her mound, separating her swollen lips, testing her wetness on his eager fingers. “Oh baby, you’re so hot for me.”

  She moved her palms over the dusting of hair on his chiseled chest and gripped his shoulders. He pushed one finger in. “Ahhh, Matt!”

  A tightness grew inside her, strengthening as he withdrew the one, only to replace it with two. His thumb found her sensitive nub, rubbing softly, heightening her pleasure. She squirmed as his digits moved more swiftly, in and out, mimicking exactly what she wanted him to do to her when his swollen cock was buried deep. He continued, his thumb teasing, pushing her to the brink, the very edge of her sanity until she couldn’t stand anymore.

  “Matt!” She orgasmed, splintering apart, squeezing him with her inner muscles while he muffled her scream with his lips, consuming her with another of his bone-melting kisses.

  As her tremors subsided, he slowed his ministrations and withdrew.

  “God, you’re beautiful.”

  She smiled up at him, a sleepy, sexy-as-hell grin, which made him even harder than he already was, if that were possible. With this woman, even the impossible seemed possible.

  He couldn’t wait any longer. More than his next breath, he needed to be buried deep in her warmth.

  “I need you so bad—”

  She wrapped her soft fingers around his throbbing erection.

  “Ahhh,” he ground out through clenched teeth. “Please, Ally. Guide me in, darlin’.”

  Chapter Seven

  She was simply in Heaven. She’d never had any man bring her to an orgasm that fast or hard. Anticipation clutched her, while he prepared to take her there again. She wasn’t about to turn him down.

  She had a fairly small frame atop long legs—which made up the most of her five-foot-seven-inches—and she reached for him, encasing the generously endowed man in her grip, she couldn’t help but be concerned whether he would fit her. While she held him, she realized they hadn’t discussed any protection. “Do you have a condom?”

  She looked up into his smiling face and he reached down to his pants and retrieved his wallet. He fished a small blue foil package from an inner pocket and threw his billfold on the desk chair. Ally released him long enough for Matt to slide the shiny rubber sheath over his hard cock.

  Gripping him once again, she moved the head of his solid erection to her opening, and a shiver raced up her spine at the intimate contact. She nudged forward while he pulled her as close to the desk’s edge as possible, nestling slightly into her tight center. He groaned and took her mouth hungrily.

  She snaked her arms around his neck, bringing her hard nipples flush against the coarse hairs of his chest, making her shiver and ache with need, her legs wrapping around his waist then, giving him total control. She couldn’t have made it any more obvious for him. Pulling his mouth away, she trembled when he gripped her hips more tightly and in one thrust, had himself buried deep inside her core. Pleasure sucked her under, and her eyelids fluttered shut.

  “Damn, you’re tight. No, keep your eyes open, sweetheart. I want to see the gold flecks of those beautiful eyes shine when you come for me.”

  Their lips were a whisper apart, their breaths colliding. He slowly pulled out, which caused her head to drop back at the intense pleasure the friction created.

  “Oh God, I think I’ve died and gone to Heaven,” she moaned.

  “Mmm, trust me, sweetheart,” he whispered against her neck and nuzzled the sensitive spot where her pulse beat out of control. “You’re definitely alive. Right here with me where I can feel every delicious inch of you. But I do plan to take you straight…to…Heaven,” he said, punctuating each word solidly with a quick in and out thrust.

  “Oh Lord, please, do it again,” Ally pleaded while Matt continued his intense grinding. “Oh yes, that, ooh….”

  Her breathing raced and a blush tinted her skin a delicious shade of pink. She was getting closer and closer to climax with each stroke, and truth be told, he was struggling to keep control of himself. He wanted this first time with her, in case it was his only time with her, to stick in her memory forever. He was already sure he’d never forget. So, he slowed his motion, readying himself for her wrath. She didn’t disappoint. She let out an unhappy groan and moved her fingers from where they had been wreaking havoc on his shoulders and into his hairline, down to his hips, trying to coax him into moving faster.

  Her gaze met his, pleading. “What’s wrong?” she’d whispered softly.

  “Not a damn thing, I just wanna take my time. Savor this.”

  Relief flooded her eyes, and she sighed. Her inner muscles constricted, causing him to clench his teeth and dig his fingers into her hips.

  He groaned with intense agony. “Woman, you’re gonna be the death of me.”

  “All right…cowboy,” she whispered in his ear. “Finish what you started.” She nibbled on his earlobe and wiggled herself forward, forcing him a bit deeper.

  “Oh, it’d be my pleasure, ma’am, but you better hold on tight.” He gave her only seconds before he withdrew and re-entered her, hard and fast, over and over. A droplet of sweat trickled down her chest, between her breasts where he followed with his tongue, tasting the slight saltiness of her skin.

  “Oh, Matt, I don’t think I can take much more, please hurry…aahhh.”

  He wanted her feeling only the purest of pleasure, something he hoped she’d never felt before, white-hot heat. When he thought she was literally on the brink of explosion, he took one of her pert nipples into his mouth, suckling, and his hips picked up a quicker rhythm. He gasped when her muscles convulsed, pulsing around him. He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw as he succumbed, groaning out his own release and collapsing against her, their sweaty bodies melding together as one. Blissful oblivion.

  Many moments later, they lay speechless resting against his desk. He was still buried inside her and heavy above her, but she never complained once. Matt pushed himself to his elbows to look down into her flush face.

  “Baby, you are truly amazing and so beautiful.”

  A shy smile crept across her flushed face, embarrassed even after what they’d just been through together. She ran her hands through her tangled mane, the nervous gesture causing him to chuckle. Carefully, he lifted himself farther from her warm body, though he longed not to lose the heat they had created.

  He would never walk in this tack room and look at it the same way again. Damn but he could spend a lifetime dealing with all the complications this woman created. But that was precisely it—he didn’t have a lifetime. She had another life, far away from the new one he’d created for himself, and he’d be lucky to only see her for a few more weeks, or even days for that matter. He wouldn’t allow himself to get attached—although it would be so damn easy—only to have her walk away when she realized he didn’t have anything to offer, only a shell of a man with nothing left inside to love again. It would kill him to push her away.

  Ally smoothed her wrinkled T-shirt over her stomach, squirming to adjust her bra that just wouldn’t fit back in place right. She should have left the darn thing off. Her socks were filthy, but she slid her boots on anyway. She’d hide them until she could get to her room for a shower and a change of clothes. One look from her daddy and he’d see right through her.

  Matt had efficiently re-dressed and made for the office door. She couldn’t believe he hadn’t even locked it. Maybe she should just be thankful he’d bothered to close it.

  “Uh, Matt?” she said before he walked out of the room.


  A brief smile appeared on his face. “Don’t worry, darlin’, I don’t plan to tell your father a thing about this. I’ve grown quite accustomed to having my hide, and I’d like to keep it intact a few more years yet. Just don’t think this is a one time thing.”

  She blushed and lowered her head, shuffling her boots in the dirt on the tack room floor.

  He’d left the door hanging wide open to come back to her one last time, raising her chin to meet his lips for a tender “farewell” kiss. He then left her standing, alone in the wake of their unforgettable lovemaking. She exited the tack room in a daze, aimlessly passing by all the common noises in the barn to reach the doors at the same time a commotion of riders filed into the barnyard—whooping and hollering men and bawling calves.

  Oh my God. They must have gotten done sooner than they thought. What if all those ranch hands had been here just five minutes earlier? How humiliating that could have been. Well, she’d gotten what she’d wanted—the cowboy—and under her own terms. He’d kissed her and walked away as though what they’d done meant nothing. He’d clearly said it wasn’t a one-time thing, so it must have meant something. But what? Unless he simply wants a repeat performance or two before I leave. Did it matter to her, though? She was the one who wasn’t staying around long. Could she walk away unattached, unscathed, and him none the wiser? She would have to figure out how live with herself, knowing she’d given up an amazing, mysterious, once-in-a-lifetime man.

  ***

  He cursed himself over and over as he walked the stallion around the pen to get him familiar with being handled—more to get his mind off the boss’s daughter than to work the horse. How stupid could he be to get involved with her—even though that one experience had been better than anything he could remember from his past, ever. The cowboy stampede coming through the barnyard was loud enough to wake the dead, and he slowed Rogue to a walk. The old man was back, and he needed to play it cool—if only she hadn’t at that moment glided out of the barn, putting his thoughts smack dab in the middle of the tack room again. Man, the look of her, and the memory of her lush curves hit him square in the chest—just what the old man didn’t need to see. She was the only daughter of someone he admired and respected.