“Oh, baby, I wasn’t looking for a wife back then. Nor have I ever wanted to keep a woman barefoot and pregnant in my kitchen. Your drive to succeed was, and still is, one of the most attractive things about you.” His heart ached for everything they’d missed out on because she hadn’t stuck around to talk about her fears.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t give you a chance. I just knew if you opened your mouth and tried to sweet-talk me into giving up everything I wouldn’t have been able to say no. I needed to experience success in my own right. I’ve paid the price for that choice every night and day since then.” She picked up their joined hands and rubbed her cheek against his knuckles.
He groaned, wanting desperately to be in her room, alone and naked.
“No man has measured up to my memory of you. It didn’t take me long to quit trying to date. Work became my sole focus and it paid off in that I have my own agency. But there’s still a big, huge gaping hole in my life.”
Chance felt his mouth go dry as the Chihuahuan Desert. He’d heard enough; it was time to pick up where they’d left off all those years ago. “Come on, baby. I think I’ve got just the thing to start filling that hole.” He stood up, pulled her chair out for her, and slung a possessive arm around her shoulders. She belonged to him and he wanted every man on the Golden Mustang Dude Ranch to know it. Hell, he wanted every man within a one-hundred-mile radius to know it.
Chapter Three
Beth opened the door to her cabin and gasped. On every available surface candles were strewn, casting a soft glow on the big open room.
He leaned over and whispered into her ear. “Do you like it, baby?”
“Oh, Chance, it’s amazing. When did you have this done?”
Taking off his Stetson, he slipped past her, set it on a chair, and pulled the champagne out of the ice bucket. “I had a signal set up with the waiter. When I ordered the wine he knew to get the wheels in motion and set this up.” He popped the cork and poured two glasses of effervescent wine. He glanced at her, unsure for a moment. “I wasn’t sure who I was going to meet here tonight and well, if we hadn’t clicked I wouldn’t have wanted to put any pressure on you or whoever else it might have been. But if there was a spark, I wanted to be prepared. I just could never have guessed that I would have walked in to find you.”
“I still can’t believe it. I mean I submitted my application just a few days ago.” She shook her head and then sipped the straw-colored liquid.
“A few days! I’ve been waiting for six months.” Chance sounded almost disgruntled.
Laughter bubbled up from deep within. “Let me guess, you basically described me on your application? Because I absolutely requested an exact replica of you, at least what I could remember.”
He laughed. “Yeah, I did the same thing. I wonder how Selena Markam knew to wait? How she knew you would eventually seek out her services?”
“I don’t know, but honestly at this moment I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth.”
“I agree.” He set his glass down and stalked toward her like a mountain lion hunting a deer. Cornering her against the bed, he pulled her flute from her suddenly nerveless fingers. “I want to taste your sweet lips again, Beth.”
A dull throbbing pulsed between her legs that matched the racing rhythm of her heart. Earlier she’d been so stunned at seeing him that their kiss floated like a light haze over her memory. His hands landed on her hips and pulled her in close. She slipped her tongue out to moisten her parched lips and slid her arms up around his neck. He stared directly into her eyes, leaving no question what he wanted from her. His tongue surged into her mouth, staking his claim. The dampness between her legs seeped into her lacy panties and her nipples hardened.
He touched, stroked, and tasted every crevice of her mouth in the most erotic kiss she had ever been party to. Had he gotten better at kissing? She would have sworn there was nothing to improve on before, but this… This assault could only be described as mind-blowing. Desperate for more, she pressed herself closer to him. His arms tightened around her and then they were falling.
With a little grunt from him, they landed on the bed and rolled so that his body pinned her beneath him. He broke the kiss and smiled down at her. “Now I’ve got you right where I want you.”
She giggled and pressed a kiss to his jaw, followed by another, and another. Craving the feel of his skin against hers, she began tugging his shirt out of his pants. “Shirt. Off.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He lifted up and knelt, straddling her hips. In short order his shirt disappeared, revealing a toned and sexy chest that cried out for her attention. Beth couldn’t help but lick her lips in anticipation of kissing every inch of his skin.
Before she could put into action her very lusty thoughts, he had the hem of her shirt in his hands, tugging it off. His eyes lit up when he spied her black lace bra. Warm masculine hands gently cupped her breasts on top of the lace and he flicked his thumbs over the distended nipples. Her breath caught in her throat, pleasure shooting from her puckered nubs to her pussy.
“I take it you have matching panties under that nothing of a skirt?” His voice sounded strained, almost a growl.
“Mmmm. I know one way you can find out.” Did she just purr at him? Something about this man made her feel ultra-sexy.
“So do I.” He slid off and stood her up at the side of the bed. With the flick of a wrist her skirt gapped open and slid down her legs. She stood before him in nothing but black lace and a pair of red cowgirl boots. “Dear Lord, give me strength,” he mumbled before suckling one lace-covered breast. Switching to the other side, he cupped her ass and kneaded. All the while, Beth fought the urge to shove him back and cover his torso with kisses. In the end she lost the battle.
With a little cry of frustration, she pushed him back on the bed and clambered over him. With his hips pinned securely under her, she ran her fingers over the flat, disk-like nipples that peeked out from under a light dusting of hair. “Sorry, I couldn’t wait my turn.” She waggled her eyebrows and bent over to trace the path her fingers took with her tongue.
“By all means.” He groaned and gripped her hips as she teased his nipples. His big hands slid around and gripped her ass, grinding her against his trapped erection. She moaned and swirled her hips. Moving down his torso, she found the impediment of his belt buckle. Dipping her tongue into his belly button, she worked the buckle loose and then opened his jeans.
Oh glory be! The man went commando. Eager now to fully unwrap her present, she yanked his pants down his legs and discovered that he still had his boots on. Double damn. For the moment she would work around it. Turning back to his exposed cock she licked her lips in anticipation. He was beautifully made-long enough to give her pause and thick enough that her fingers just missed connecting. And best of all, he was hers, at least for tonight.
She paused but pushed away the unwanted thought that maybe this could be a second chance at a future. For now she wanted a second chance at tasting the man himself. Leaning over, she slid her tongue over the head of his cock and dipped into the slit that leaked a drop of pre-come. The slight saltiness of the clear fluid teased her tongue and made her hungry for more.
Relaxing her throat and mouth, she sank down on his hard shaft, swallowing him whole. It was more than she’d ever taken like this, and she had to focus to let him slip into the back of her throat. But heaven help her, it was worth it to watch his eyes widen in shock and feel his hands thrust into her hair.