One Night with the Wealthy Rancher

by Brenda Jackson

  Summer’s throat tightened as she stared up at him. She wished she could go anywhere but home with him. Being in such close quarters when she was feeling so vulnerable would be temptation she wasn’t sure she could handle.

  “Go on and pack an overnight bag for now, at least until I find out a few things tomorrow. If I get information indicating Whitman is in Houston behaving himself under the watchful eye of a parole officer, then I’ll bring you back here tomorrow. Until then, you’re going to be with me, Summer.”

  Summer breathed in deeply. A part of her wanted to scream out that this had all been a mistake, a nasty nightmare, and she would wake up any minute snuggled in Darius’s arms for another reason, one that didn’t have anything to do with Tyrone.

  Darius released her, dropping his arms. “Get your bag so we can go. I’ll wait here.”

  Summer looked at Darius, knowing his mind was set about her going home with him. There was nothing she could say to make him consider leaving her here tonight. But a part of her didn’t want to be here tonight, the part that vividly recalled Tyrone’s threats. She was well aware of what the man was capable of.

  Because she hadn’t lived in town for long, she hadn’t gotten to know her neighbors. There were elderly couples that lived on either side of her that she would see on occasion. But other than the staff at the shelter, Darius was the only person she knew in Somerset. She had planned to join some community organizations but hadn’t gotten around to doing so.

  Making a decision, she said, “All right. It won’t take me long to get my things.”

  A faint smile touched his eyes. “Take your time. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Her heart felt full. Some things had changed, but Darius was Darius, the man who’d always been and forever would be her knight in shining armor. The one person she could always depend on to be there for her.

  Without saying anything else, she rushed off to her bedroom to pack.

  Eight

  Summer fell in love with Darius’s home the moment she walked through the door. Although it was too dark outside for her to see everything, she knew he had taken her to a sprawling two-story ranch house. When she stepped into his living room, she felt a sense of comfort. She knew it was strange for her to feel that way, but she couldn’t help it. During the short drive he had made her feel safe, assuring her that he would find out everything he could about Tyrone’s whereabouts and that until he did, she would stay with him.

  She glanced around and wondered if he’d hired an interior designer to decorate his home. Everything was color coordinated perfectly, and the furniture complemented the decor. A huge brick fireplace took up one entire wall and a bevy of windows guaranteed sunshine deep in the house during the daylight hours.

  To shield the foyer from the interior rooms, a glass-blocked wall was erected between the main living area and the front door. The furniture in the living room was dark, rich leather and looked comfortable as well as sturdy.

  “You have a beautiful home, Darius,” she said when he followed her inside, carrying her overnight case.

  “Thanks. Come on and let me get you settled in the guest room. It’s past midnight and you have to be tired.”

  She was, and couldn’t wait to get a good night’s sleep, or at least try, she thought. But then she figured that he had to be tired, as well. He had spent the day at both the shelter and the refinery.

  Moments later, after following him up a flight of stairs, she stepped into the guest bedroom. She glanced around in total awe. The spacious room had a high roof beam with Old Hickory decor. The king-size bed appeared massive, and the bedspread was a colorful patchwork that matched the country curtains.

  “Evidently, your security company is doing well,” she said.

  When he didn’t respond, she glanced over at him and saw a hardness that had formed around his mouth. What had she said to irritate him?

  “Darius?”

  “Yes, it’s doing well,” he finally replied in a somewhat biting tone. “There’s a guest bath over there with a Jacuzzi tub,” he said, pointing across the room. “My bedroom is at the end of the hall if you need anything. Good night.”

  Summer held her composure as she watched him quickly leave, closing the door behind him. Again she wondered what she had said that had hit a nerve with him. Why had commenting on his success bothered him?

  She moved toward the bed and decided that when she saw him in the morning, she would find out.

  Darius lay in bed wide awake, staring up at the ceiling. After he’d left Summer, he had made his rounds, making sure everything was locked and secured before going to his bedroom. There he had continued to stew over her comment, which had reminded him that a man’s wealth was all she cared about.

  He rubbed a hand down his face, not wanting to think that, but what else was he supposed to think? Now that she knew he had a little money, would her attitude toward him change?

  He had brought her to his home to protect her, but that didn’t mean he had to forgive her for all her past deeds. He wasn’t sure that he could. His hands tightened into fists. He heard a sound and glanced over at the illuminated clock on the nightstand. It was almost two in the morning. Since his state-of-the-art security system hadn’t sounded to alert him of an intruder, he guessed that Summer was up and moving around in his home. Evidently, she couldn’t sleep, either.

  Easing out of the bed, he slipped on a pair of jeans. He walked out of his bedroom and immediately saw a light shining downstairs.

  When he reached the living room, he didn’t see her anywhere. He gently pushed open the kitchen door. She was sitting at the kitchen table drinking what appeared to be a cup of tea, wearing a silk bathrobe belted around the waist. And although he had a feeling she was fighting hard not to do so, he could tell by the trembling of her shoulders that she was crying. Tears from any woman were his downfall—and when they came from Summer, doubly so.

  Crossing the room, he fought the tightening of his heart. Hearing his movement, she whipped her head around and met his gaze. But she hadn’t been quick enough to wipe away her tears. Without asking what the tears were for, he reached out his arms. “Come here, Summer.”

  She stared at him for a moment and he wasn’t sure exactly what she would do. Then she rose to her feet and crossed the distance separating them. He pulled her into his arms and when he did so, she buried her face in his chest.

  “Shh. It’s okay, sweetheart. Things are going to be okay.”

  She shook her head and wiped her eyes, pulling back slightly to look up at him. “No, they’re not. I’ve gotten you upset with me and I don’t know why.”

  At that moment, he felt like a total ass and wished there was a way he could take back his earlier behavior, but he couldn’t. So he stood there and held her in his arms, remembering times past when he would hold her the same way just moments before he would claim her mouth with his.

  He knew at that moment that his desire for her was just as keen as it had ever been and, unable to fight what he was feeling, he gazed into her face just seconds before using the tip of his tongue to trace a line across her lips.

  He heard the catch in her breath and tried to ignore it. He eased closer, unable to stop his body from responding to it. His hard erection pressed against her, warming him in a way he hadn’t been warmed in a long time. His tongue left the corners of her mouth to glide over her bottom lip before pulling it into his mouth to suck on it a little. And then there was the feel of her nipples pressing into his bare chest like hardened tips.

  He released her botto
m lip, but only long enough to press his mouth fully onto hers, needing this taste of her, liking how she trembled in his arms not from fear but from his safekeeping. He had thought about this part of their relationship many times, the moments when he would capture her mouth and take them both to another level. Then one night their kissing had driven them to lose control and they had made love. He continued to kiss her deeply, wanting to lose himself in the kiss again like he had that night. And wanting to lose himself inside of her. He couldn’t for the life of him remember connecting to any woman and feeling this way.

  “Darius.”

  The sound of his name sent shudders of arousal through him. It was spoken in a breathless tone, a voice barely able to do anything but purr out a sexy timbre. It made the heat within him rise to a temperature that could easily cause him to boil over.

  He shifted his hips and thighs to plaster them closer to the juncture of hers. Every cell within his body felt vibrantly alive, sensitized to her. His mind was finally in sync with what the rest of his body already knew. He wanted her.

  He had to have her.

  There was no question about his wants and his needs, only about how long he could last without having them satisfied. He pulled back, separating their mouths, but his gaze held hers and he knew she saw in his features the desire he could not hide. His entire being was ruled by an urge to mate with her, to share a physical intimacy to a degree he hadn’t had since the last time they’d been together.

  While her eyes continued to hold his, she brushed the back of her hand across his cheek and the caress sent shivers through him. He let out the breath he’d been holding, and his hands dropped from her waist to cup her backside, bringing her snug against him.

  He could feel the fluttering in her stomach stirring against his erection, making it throb. His nostrils picked up her scent and blood pounded through his veins. He felt himself losing what little control he had and fought to rein it back in. Then she did something he hadn’t expected. She made a move he couldn’t combat.

  She reached out and eased down his zipper before inserting her hands through the opening to cup him, as if she needed to touch, stroke and massage his aroused body part, getting reacquainted with its size and thickness. She didn’t break eye contact with him, and he grew even more aroused with her bold mini-strations. The more she stroked, the more his body vibrated, making blood rush through his veins, all going directly to that throbbing part of his body.

  Minutes ticked by as he continued to stand there and stare at her while she literally drove him over the edge with her hand. He studied her face, saw the intent look in her eyes, the need to touch him this way. There was a feminine glow in her gaze that stirred everything male within him, and then once again, catching him off guard, she leaned in closer, stood on tiptoes and slid her tongue all around his lips, leaving a wet path in its wake. She caressed his mouth with the tip of her tongue the same way her fingertips were now stroking his aroused shaft.

  He heard himself groan at the pleasure easing up his spine and he knew if he didn’t stop her now, he would embarrass himself in her hands when he preferred being inside of her body.

  Now it was his turn to catch her off guard. He gently pushed her hand away seconds before sweeping her into his arms. He leaned down and kissed her with a voraciousness that had her moaning in his mouth.

  When he finally pulled away, he took in a deep breath and knew he had to get completely submerged inside her body before he lost it. He stared down at her kiss-swollen lips as he held her in his arms.

  “Do you know what you’ve asked for?” He wanted to make sure they were on the same page.

  She held his gaze. “Yes. I know.”

  “You sure it’s what you want?” He had to make doubly sure.

  She shifted in his arms and ran her wet, warm tongue across his bare chest. The muscles in his stomach tightened and he knew, without her uttering a single word, he had gotten his answer.

  Without saying anything else, he carried her upstairs to his bedroom.

  Summer felt hot.

  And when Darius placed her on his bed and joined her there, she felt passion that had been bottled up inside of her, ready to boldly claim its freedom. Every bone in her body seemed to vibrate, needing a release.

  Her head began spinning when Darius removed her clothes with a swiftness that sent pieces flying everywhere. Then he stood and in record time, dropped his jeans and put on a condom he’d taken out of the nightstand drawer. Moments later, when she lay flat on her back, naked, he towered over her and she felt her thighs quiver with a yearning she hadn’t felt in years.

  He leaned back to slowly peruse her body and she felt heat every place his eyes touched, especially around her feminine core where his gaze seemed to linger, making sensations stir deep within her. The look in his eyes gave her more than an inkling of what he was thinking, and when he reached out and lifted her hips, placing her legs across his shoulders, she literally cried out before his mouth had a chance to touch her.

  She cried out again when his mouth did touch her. He pushed his tongue inside, working it around in her with a greed that sent sparks shooting off in her, scorching everywhere it touched and weakening every bone in her body, turning her muscles to mush.

  He spread her legs wider as his mouth continued to inflict upon her torment that was unyielding. What he was doing had captured her senses, totally wrecked her brain cells and fractured all rational thought. Physically, she was beginning to feel herself break into pieces and she grasped the strong arms on each side of her, trying to let him know there was no way she could take any more.

  As if determined to prove to her that she could, he continued his torment on her body, tightening his grip on her thighs as his tongue dived deeper inside of her. When he flicked across a sensitive part of her, she shattered, and helplessly screamed his name as an onslaught of sensations ripped into her.

  It was only then that he pulled back and straddled her, and before her lungs could fill with more air, he entered her in one deep thrust as he captured one of her breasts into his mouth, sucking deeply on a nipple.

  The joining had been so perfect it nearly brought tears to her eyes. She grabbed hold of his head to hold him to her breast and wrapped her legs around him to keep him inside of her. But the movement of his body told her he wasn’t going anywhere.

  He began moving, retreating and then pushing back in. Over and over again. Harder. Deeper. Faster. She felt every hard inch of him, felt the strong veins of his erection throb deep inside of her and push her over an edge that had her moaning yet again.

  And when he shifted his mouth to her other breast and began the same mind-wrecking torment, her moan turned into another scream. She felt every nerve in her body explode, and she began riding a wave that took her across the top of anything and everything. When his body stiffened and bucked mercilessly while he tightly gripped her hips, she knew this was the fusing of not only their bodies, but their minds and souls.

  And at that moment, nothing else existed in her world but the man who continued to push in and out of her while screaming her name. This was the same man who’d first shown her how beautiful the joining of a man and woman could be. The same man who moments later slumped down on the bed beside her and pulled her into his arms, holding her as if he never, ever wanted to let her go.

  Summer awoke with the sunlight shining on her face and a strong, hard body plastered to her own. She shifted slightly and looked over at the man sleeping beside her, the man whose strong masculine leg was thrown over hers and whose arms, even in sleep, were wrapped around her.

  Memories of last night flowed through h
er mind. It was the first time she had made love in seven years and it had been everything that she had remembered and more. Same man. Same passion. Same love.

  She closed her eyes thinking that by rights, she should be upset with herself for still loving him and for the weakness that allowed her to tumble back into bed with him, especially after the way he had cheapened their first night together. But then she couldn’t feel remorse when every part of her body was rejuvenated, like it had been awakened from a long sleep by pure pleasure. It had been making love with Darius the last time that had made her appreciate the fact she’d been born a woman, and it was his lovemaking now that was deepening that appreciation.

  But still…memories of her pain, her humiliation wouldn’t completely go away. How could a man who was so caring when it came to her so easily dishonor her the way he had? She had fallen in love with him completely and when he had made love to her that night, that love had intensified to a point that totally overwhelmed her.

  He hadn’t said the word love to her, but she had been certain of his feelings and had felt he’d displayed with his actions what he hadn’t spoken. But she’d discovered her assumptions had been wrong. She did not intend to make the same mistake twice. All she and Darius had just shared was a sexual release. For her, it was a long time coming. She would not assume anything about their relationship ever again. She would accept it for what it was.

  He shifted in bed and she tilted her head to look over at him. Before she could say a word, he leaned over and kissed her with a tenderness that made her groan. She didn’t have to mull over what they were about to do again, this time in the brightness of the sunlight. And when he eased his body over hers, she wrapped her arms around his neck and eagerly gave him the mouth he seemed so intent to claim.

  Summer stood at the window in her office. She kept replaying in her mind what had transpired last night and this morning. Although Darius had made love to her with an intensity and passion that nearly brought tears to her eyes, on the drive back over to her place this morning, she could sense him withdrawing. Why? Was he afraid she might assume just because they had slept together that she would think he wanted her back in his life? If that was the case, then he didn’t know how wrong he was about it. She knew better than to think that way. She had learned her lesson well.