Chapter Fifteen
The horse ambled along down the dirt path on a cool Sunday morning, pulling the buggy with Willow and Heath. Cumulous clouds moving slowly east with the breeze shadowed the sun in brief intervals.
“I haven’t been to this spot in some time,” Heath said. “I hope it’s as pretty as I remember.”
Willow smoothed her hands down the front of her new dress. It was her very first time being properly courted, and she wasn’t sure how to behave. But somehow, by wearing the dress, she felt more like a lady. She naturally sat up straight with her knees locked.
“It won’t be as pretty as you, though,” Heath said, casting a smile her way. “You’re looking comely in your new dress.”
“Thank you, Heath. You look handsome yourself, wearing your best bib and tucker.”
He’d donned new-fangled denim trousers and a black button-up shirt. It fit so well that with every movement to guide the horse, the ripple of his arm muscles would bulge conspicuously. He’d shaved his face and shined his boots.
Willow thought it strange that Heath had turned his sights to her, when every unattached woman in Thorndale would have gladly spent this Sunday in Willow’s shoes. She wanted to ask him why he was attracted to her, but she worried that if she did so, he might come to his senses and change his mind about courting her.
It grew darker when they entered a dense thicket of live oaks. Long, full-leafed branches arched over the pathway, giving the effect of entering a tunnel.
“Not too much farther now,” Heath said. The horse slowed as the path ahead grew darker, and Heath slapped her rump with a rein to move her along.
After a short time under the darkness of the thicket, the number of trees thinned. A few strides later there were no trees at all, and the horse pulled the buggy into a bright clearing.
“Lordy,” Willow said, awed as she looked around. What struck her first were the monarch butterflies, flapping their wings in a tilted dance over the buttercups and primroses. Grass around the wildflowers rolled like waves with the breeze.
Heath pulled the horse to a stop. There was near-total silence, broken only by the tweeting of sparrows in the trees behind them.
“Good spot for a picnic?” Heath asked, hopping down from the buggy.
“I’ll say.” She allowed him to take her hand and assist with her descent. “What a peaceful place this is.”
When she reached the ground, he didn’t release her. Instead, he took her other hand and smiled down at her. She couldn’t help but smile back. “I’m glad you’re pleased with it,” he said. “I want very much to make you happy, Willow.”
“Why is that, Heath?”
He looked surprised by the question. “I don’t know. I swear from the first day you came to live with me and the children, I’ve wanted to impress you. You’re not at all what I expected.”
“You thought you were bringing trouble home, based on the talk around town, and you were surprised that I have some good qualities.”
He smiled his response and released her hands. As he spread the material that was to act as a tablecloth over the grass, Willow took down the basket she’d used to pack their midday meal.
Later, after they had finished their sandwiches and were munching on grapes, he said, “There was plenty of talk around town about your troublesome behavior. I didn’t give that much mind, but I did listen to the marshal. Clyde told me you used to steal from the mercantile and run around drunk at night. I thought you would try some of the same shenanigans at the ranch and I’d have to tan your hide a few times. But when you arrived, you put all your effort toward doing your best. That astonished me, I must admit.”
“I suppose I surprised myself too. But I knew from the moment I arrived that I wanted to do everything I could to keep the job. I’ve never had my own room or slept in such a comfortable bed. Plus, I liked the children right away.”
Heath reclined on the blanket, facing her. He propped up on an elbow. “They like you too, better than I could have hoped.”
“You’re not what I expected either, you know,” she said. “You were kind to me when I ruined supper on the first day. I thought you would be a mean and humorless tyrant.”
He chuckled. “You can credit yourself for some of that. I don’t think I’ve ever been a tyrant, but I was fairly dull before you came to the ranch.” He looked beyond her, staring at something in the distance. “You made me laugh for the first time in a long while.”
Willow saw sorrow in his gaze. Compassion filling her, she reached out and touched his cheek. “You miss your wife. I’m sorry.”
He took hold of her wrist and planted a light kiss on her palm. “Thank you, darlin’, but you don’t need to concern yourself with my grief. You have plenty of your own, don’t you?”
“True enough,” she agreed. “As the marshal’s daughter Sadie said to me, we all got a sad story.”
“That’s why we never should take anyone special for granted.” He sat up. “Come here,” he said, tugging her toward him.
She scooted over, and he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her flush against his body. A filament of heat traveled up her spine, as she drank in his closeness. He smelled delicious, like soap and the sweet grapes they’d just eaten. She could almost feel his hot gaze on the profile of her face from the way the flesh of her neck and cheeks warmed.
When she turned to look at him, he tilted his head down and kissed her. Her belly quivered as her thoughts scattered into thin air. Though she had never before kissed a man and wasn’t sure what she should do, she closed her eyes and allowed her lips to soften against his. He teased her mouth open, and she was thrilled at his love play with her tongue, swirling and tasting him as though it would be her last time.
When he released her lips, her mouth felt swollen. She stared into his smoldering eyes until he kissed her again, this time crushing his mouth against hers and burrowing his hand in her hair. Her body ached for his touch, so when he began to fiddle with the ties of her dress, she shivered with pleasure, knowing her skin would soon feel him. He gently pushed her to the soft ground so that she was on her back. When he inched the fabric of her dress down, he exposed her naked breasts.
“Nothing under your dress, sweetheart?” he asked rhetorically, in between kisses that seared a path down her neck to the mounds of her breasts. “That’s very naughty, you know.”
A comment about him not buying her a shift to go under the dress formed disjointed words in her mind that did not pass her lips. The thought was lost in a gasp as he swirled his tongue around her peaked nipple, causing an undercurrent of sexual awareness to rip through her. He pulled the dress down further, exposing her belly button and finally the inverted V at the apex of her legs. She shivered with pleasure as the path of his kisses traveled across her stomach.
He removed the dress, leaving her fully nude, and she expected him then to remove his clothes. Instead, he spread her legs apart and dipped his head between them. He sought her center with his tongue.
“Oh, Heath!” she cried, embarrassed to be tasted so intimately. He did not respond except to drag his tongue through her slit to the little nub that caused her such pleasure. She threaded her fingers through his hair, frantic with the sensations coursing through her body. The slow penetration of his tongue inside of her made her whimper and arch her back, lifting her bottom clear off the ground.
With a hand on each hip, he pulled her back down to earth. “Relax, Willow,” he said. From between her legs, he looked up and caught her eye with a stern look that held great promise of naughty delight. She collapsed in defeat.
His fingers splayed across her flesh, keeping her fixed as he continued the ministrations he’d started. Languid tongue strokes with no perceivable pattern touched every inch of her soft lips and focused with some quickness at her little nub of pleasure. She tilted her head back and moaned, reveling in the sensations that made her feel helpless. Staring at a slowly moving cloud, she tried to relax even as her body tense
d.
His appetite for her seemed ravenous, with no sign of ending. Even as his tongue was urging her to climax, his patience in getting her there came through. His labor of love was steadfast, unhurried.
She suddenly had to know what he was thinking. She grasped his hair in her fingers and tugged. “Heath!”
His tongue stopped swirling, and he looked up at her. “Yes, darlin’?” he asked, with a lightness in his tone.
“Do you… like doing this?”
“Very much so,” he responded in a growl. “I like it even more when I’m not interrupted.”
“Oh,” she said, loosening her grip. “You may continue then.” She rested her head on the ground again, looking up at the fluffy white cloud against the blue sky. She licked her lips, waiting for the wonderful sensations to resume.
He chuckled darkly, causing her heart to flutter. “Just for that, I’m going to fuck you hard with my cock when I’m through fucking you with my tongue.”
She gasped, shocked for the second time by his crude language. When she was able to speak, she said, “Everyone thinks you’re such a gentleman, Heath Wolfe.”
“You know otherwise, don’t you, Willow McAllister?” he responded, and kissed her pussy lips lightly.
“Oh, yes,” she said, feeling like she would burst from joy or pleasure. “Heath?”
He took her clit between his lips and suckled. “Hmm?”
“Weren’t you going to fuck me with your cock anyway?”
Releasing her clit, he said, “Smart girl, aren’t you?” before returning his attention to the task at hand.
She grinned up at the cloud. How lucky she felt to know this man so intimately, and for him to know her as well. As her arousal grew, so did her love. When the orgasm burst inside of her, she was filled with such a powerful adoration for the man giving her such pleasure that she almost said how she felt out loud. Before she could say she loved him, however, Heath distracted her by rising to his feet.
From where she lie on her back, she watched as he unbuttoned his shirt and tore it off his shoulders. Seeing for the first time the masculine slopes of his bristled chest and the muscled plane of his stomach left her without words. When he hooked his thumb in the waistband of his trousers and pushed them down, his cock sprang free. It was much larger than she’d thought possible. It looked hard and angry, pointing at her with such intent she swallowed nervously. It didn’t seem likely that he would fit inside of her.
Heath didn’t seem to have the same concern. Now as naked as she, he positioned himself with a knee on either side of her legs. He leaned over her and captured her lips with his. She kissed him back eagerly as the wisps of his chest hair scraped along her pebbled nipples. Reaching around, she clutched his back, feeling his shoulder blades under the warm skin.
His hands traveled along her torso, the phantom warmth of his touch remaining even as his hand moved to caress her thighs. He kissed along her jaw up to her ear. “Spread those beautiful legs for me, darlin’,” he whispered.
A wave of primal heat surged through her at his words, which sounded equal parts dominating and affectionate. “I’m yours,” she whispered back as she obeyed, and knew that she’d never spoken truer words. She was his, completely and forever. He had won her heart and her body, and nothing would give her greater pleasure than surrendering to him fully.
He guided his cock to the origin of her wetness and pressed against her. Though slow and gentle in entering her, he was also relentless. She hissed and clenched around his cock, which did not cause him to slow. If anything, it spurred him to delve deeper. Pain blinded her for a moment, but she did not cry out, determined to accept his claim over her body.
He let out a raw groan and with a final push seated himself fully inside of her. She could feel his erection pulsing against the walls of her channel as he paused a moment. The pain gone, she relished how their bodies fused together, and soon her need for him returned.
“You feel so good, baby,” he said through clenched teeth. “You alright?”
“Yes, Heath,” she said, staring up at him in total adoration. She loved the sight of him—his tousled hair and the way his roped muscles cascaded when he moved.
The wicked gleam was in his eyes again as he slid his cock back through her channel and thrust into her again with force.
She squeaked with surprise and watched, mesmerized, as his greedy gaze wandered to her breasts and back up to her eyes. Their lips locked as he thrust into her again, and she opened her mouth and legs wider, surrendering the intimate depths of herself to his tongue and cock.
As much as she had enjoyed orgasming as a result of Heath’s touch before, this joining of their bodies felt much more intense and meaningful. His desire for her had never been clearer as when he held on to her and sought his own pleasure with every hard thrust. She could tell that his body was as saturated with lust and desperate for relief as hers, and she wanted nothing more than to give him what he needed.
Her toes curled against his legs as his thrusts became even harder and faster, hurling her toward another orgasm. She found herself grinding her pelvis against his groin, urged forward by the sounds of their flesh smacking together.
He groaned when her participation increased. “You really are trouble,” he ground out, emphasizing his point with another thrust. “I know what to do with you.”
She moaned and arched up against him, desperate for him to continue. “What, Heath?”
“Give you a good fucking every day,” he said. “Would you like that, darlin’?”
“Yes!” she cried out.
“I would too.” He pinched one of her tender nipples, causing white-hot pleasure to overtake her.
She screamed and dug her nails into his back in a frenzy of desire. A sound emerged from deep and low in his throat as he slammed once more into her and then stiffened. Jets of his essence spurted into her, and she knew he had filled her with his seed, completing his raw act of possession.
Her body went limp as her orgasm faded, and Heath rolled to his back, pulling her along with him and enclosing her in his arms. Neither spoke as they breathed hard. Willow snuggled her head against his heaving chest and listened to the beat of his heart.
The scent of their lovemaking hung in the air. A butterfly landed on a wildflower next to them, and they studied it together in a comfortable daze.
Heath squeezed her tight. “You know I love you, don’t you, Willow?
“I do now,” she replied, pulling away enough to smile at him. “I love you too, Heath.”
He smiled back at her. “Do you think you can be happy with me on the ranch, or will you miss your old life?”
She sat up and retrieved her dress, feeling like she wanted to be clothed while having this conversation. Heath took her cue and dressed himself as well. When finished, he stretched his long, muscled legs out and leaned back on his hands.
She faced him, crossing her legs in front of her. “I love you and the children, and I’m happier now than I’ve ever been in my life.”
“But…”
She looked down and traced her fingers around the checkered design of the tablecloth. “But I suppose I know myself well enough to know that I’ll get restless being at home all the time. I get the itch to go a little wild… as you know.”
He nodded. “I understand that, darlin’. I really do. You’re like a half-tamed filly. I doubt I could tame you fully, even if I wanted to.”
“But don’t you want to? You punished me severely for drinking and carrying on.”
“No, I punished you for putting yourself in danger.”
“So then you wouldn’t mind if I went to town and drank whiskey and played cards, so long as I don’t put myself in danger?”
“That’s right. Look, Willow, living on the ranch was supposed to be an alternative to jail, not the same thing. I don’t want you to feel locked up, and I like that you’re not the same as every other woman. You’re different, and that’s why I love you.”
She smiled at him. Heath always managed to surprise her. He rose in her esteem in nearly every interaction they had.
“Of course, marriage is a bit like a ball and chain,” he said, his voice teasing, “but you can decide whether it’ll be worth it when I ask you to be my wife.”
Her heart leapt with joy to hear him say that marriage was in their future. He hadn’t said ‘if,’ he’d said ‘when’. Her mother had warned her that some men bed a woman without having serious intentions, but Willow was certain Heath was not one of them. Now that he’d mentioned marriage, she was doubly sure.
She reached out and touched his arm. “You’re so very good to me, Heath. I don’t know why you love me, but I’m glad you do.”
“Hush, now. I haven’t done anything easier than loving you.”
Chapter Sixteen
The bay mare pulled the buggy as Willow sat perched on the bouncing seat, passing the wooden Thorndale sign that appeared a half-mile before the first building on Main Street.
Once Ashton stopped in front of the livery, Willow climbed down, grasping the skirt of her green dress in one hand. She had convinced herself during the journey to town that it wouldn’t be too difficult to swallow her pride and thank the marshal for arranging her job at the ranch, but now that the chore was in her immediate future, her courage waned.
She tied the mare loosely to the hitching post and looked across the street. She saw the marshal through the jailhouse’s window, and her heart sank. She’d been hoping he wasn’t around so that she could delay the chore.
Since that wasn’t the case, she drew a deep breath and strode to the building, determined to get the task over with. She grasped the handle of the heavy door, pulled it open, and entered. The smell of the room—dust and metal—caused a queasiness in her stomach, as memories of the times she’d recovered from hangovers in the backroom cell flooded her mind.
Marshal Clyde Shaw looked up from the papers on his desk as she neared him. He set his pencil down and leaned back, his eyes widening. “I’ll be danged,” he said. “I didn’t know Willow McAllister had a pretty twin sister. Where have you been hiding?”
Bringing Trouble Home (Lost and Found in Thorndale Book 1) Page 10
