Hard Loving Cowboy--Includes a bonus novella

by A. J. Pine

  “I didn’t mean to overstep.” He inched closer, his gaze settling on her mouth. “But I think, if you want something, you should go after it.”

  “Mmm-hmmm.” Kate carefully set the plate back in the sink before she dropped it. This was happening. Even with the warning lights of panic flashing behind her eyes, her body was moving closer to him.

  Jaden’s hand reached for her, fingers gentle against her cheek as he turned her face to his. The touch melted into her, softening her hesitations right along with her knees. Jay looked at her for a moment, and all she saw was a man. Not J.J. Alexander, or a snowboarding champion, or a die-hard athlete who’d taken out his competition.

  He was a man as caught up in the currents of seduction as she was.

  This is a terrible idea. The thought flitted through her mind but found no place to land before Jay’s lips came for hers and everything fell silent. The power of him overtook her senses. In the darkness of her closed eyes, she saw sparks of red. She smelled a subtle hint of aftershave—scents of rosemary’s spiciness.

  A sound come from his throat, an utterance of want, need, hunger.

  She answered with a moan when the stubble of his jaw scraped against her cheek as his lips fused with hers.

  And the taste of his tongue…It was wine and notes of chocolate, ecstasy in the hotness of her mouth. A helpless sigh brought her body against his, and he held her close in those strong arms as though he wanted to keep her right there. “This is even better than dinner,” he breathed, lips grazing her cheek before teasing their way down her neck.

  “Better than dessert too.” Her whisper got lost in another moan. His lips left a burning mark on every spot they kissed—between her jaw and her ear, the base of her throat, the very center of her collarbone.

  “Even better than dessert,” he agreed, his voice low and gruff. He raised his face to hers, and that rare smile hiked up one corner of his seductive mouth before he kissed her again, deeper this time, leaving no question that he was taking his own advice and going after what he wanted.

  She wanted it, too, so much she was lost in it—the rush of passion and emotion he brought rising to the surface. She could kiss this man forever. Every morning and every night. Every time he offered her the gift of his smile. Except…the word clawed its way through the exhilaration of a first kiss, a potential new love.

  Except.

  He had no idea who she really was, what she was really supposed to be doing here. The thought rushed in as cold as the mountain air outside, forcing her to break away from him.

  Holding her fingers to her lips, she stepped out of his reach, struggling in vain to catch her breath. “I have to go.”

  “Go?” Jay looked as dazed as she’d been ten seconds ago.

  “Yes.” She rushed past him before he could touch her again. She couldn’t think when he touched her. “I’m late.”

  “For what?” he asked, following behind her.

  “For…book club.” She hastily packed up the cloth market bags Naomi had loaned her. There were other things too—the apron she’d taken off outside, the corkscrew for the wine. But she would have to get those later. “Everly and her friends invited me,” she said. “It’s at Darla’s place. I totally lost track of time. I’m so sorry.” Before she could make it to the front door, Jay slipped in front of it, blocking her escape.

  “I’m the one who’s sorry. I think I misread something.”

  “No. You didn’t.” He definitely hadn’t misread her attraction to him. “This just…caught me off guard.” She’d made him dinner to get him to talk to her. Instead she’d ended up seducing herself.

  “Yeah, it was pretty unexpected.” He seemed to search her eyes. “But I don’t mind being surprised once in a while. Do you?”

  “No. I don’t mind being surprised.” Not normally. She loved surprises. But she liked them better when they came without a dagger of guilt stabbed right into her chest.

  “Good.” He stepped aside and even opened the door for her. “Thanks for making me dinner, Kate. It’s been a long time since anyone’s done something like that for me.”

  The words twisted the knife. “You’re welcome,” she murmured before she slipped out into the night.

  “See you tomorrow morning?” he called behind her.

  No. She should say no and walk away from this right now. But what would that look like? Her going back to search for her tent and resume her week on the trail? She’d already told Gregor about the detour, and he’d told her to get an interview with J.J. Besides, maybe it would help Jaden too. From what she’d seen in the short time she’d spent with him, he had some unresolved issues surrounding the accident. Maybe talking about them would help.

  With that in mind, she forced herself to turn around and even dredged up a smile. “See you tomorrow.”

  Chapter Six

  Kate drove straight to the Chocolate Therapist. Yes, indeed, she needed some serious therapy.

  Once again, she’d mostly told the truth. She happened to know her new friends were having their book club meeting tonight, and book club meetings were a great place to talk, right? To get advice on what to do when the subject of what could be the biggest, career-defining story of your entire career ambushes your plans for an interview with a sexy kiss that could’ve easily led to more. So. Much. More.

  With a screech of tires, Kate swerved to the curb in front of Darla’s wine bar and hit the brakes, scrambling to get out of the car. The effect of Jay’s very capable lips had yet to wear off. Her hands hadn’t trembled like this since she’d once mistaken her Uber driver for Zac Efron. He was a dead ringer.

  The restaurant sat empty and dark except for a glow coming from a back hallway.

  Kate rapped her fist against the glass. This was a disaster. Jay had gone from being distant and unreadable to kissing her in the span of one dinner. And that kiss…it was unforgettable. She couldn’t pretend like it didn’t happen. The memory of his smile, his lips—softer than she’d imagined they would be—had already burrowed into the section of her heart where her favorite moments lived on forever.

  After another hearty knock, Darla finally came jogging out from the back room. The woman happened to be knockout gorgeous. A few years older than Kate maybe, with jet-black hair streaked with red and cut into a stylish pixie. Her skin had that youthful glow women paid good money to achieve, but Kate had a feeling Darla didn’t care that much. Her clothes were stylish but subtle, too, as demonstrated by the chic tunic she wore over black leggings and fabulous leather boots. Where did she find those in Topaz Falls anyway?

  Kate shook her head. She could not get distracted by a pair of boots right now.

  On her way to the door, Darla waved as though they’d known each other for years instead of two days and quickly unlatched the lock. “So glad you could make it!” She waved Kate inside. “Naomi said you couldn’t come because you had other plans.”

  “I did.” And they’d been thwarted by a shunned snowboarder who apparently was not the monster everyone wanted him to be. “But my dinner got a little out of hand and I need some advice.”

  “Then you’re definitely in the right place.” Darla linked their arms together as they walked down the back hallway. “You don’t know how happy I am to see you.” She leaned closer. “We were supposed to discuss Mind-Blowing Intimacy tonight. Can you believe it?” They paused outside an open door. “Things have really gone downhill around here since Jessa and Naomi both married.”

  “We can hear you,” Jessa called from inside the room.

  “It might be good for you to discuss a book on healthy relationships,” Naomi added as Kate and Darla walked in.

  The coziness of the space instantly put Kate at ease. It was set up like a living room that could’ve been featured in an HGTV episode. Jessa and Naomi sat on a sagging old Victorian couch while Everly occupied one of two overstuffed chairs on the other side of a rectangular coffee table that looked like it had been made from an old door. The pops of col
or in the bright paintings on the walls and the polka-dotted pillows had as much personality as the women in the room.

  “I’m not interested in a relationship that lasts more than twenty-four hours,” Darla informed Kate with a wicked smile. “I’m all for simple, uncomplicated sex.”

  “Hear, hear,” Everly agreed.

  “Does that exist?” Kate couldn’t help but ask. Because in her world, even a simple kiss came with complications.

  “No. It does not,” Jessa insisted. “In chapter eight of Mind-Blowing Intimacy, it says, and I quote, ‘Every act of sexual intimacy leaves its mark on the human soul. Sex does more than bring two bodies together. It also unites their hearts and spirits and intellects, bringing the two into one.’”

  “Good Lord,” Darla muttered. “She’s got the whole damn book memorized.”

  “It’s a very insightful book,” Jessa shot back. “Even Lance thinks so. We read it together. He really enjoyed it.”

  “Ha!” Darla led Kate to the open chair and then wedged herself between Jessa and Naomi on the couch. “I don’t think it was the reading he enjoyed. How many times did you and Lance have mind-blowing sex after reading a chapter in Mind-Blowing Intimacy? Hmmm?”

  Jessa’s face turned red. Kate didn’t know a woman could blush that much. “That’s not the point.”

  “Lance is no idiot,” Everly commented, helping herself to a cookie from a platter that sat on the coffee table. “A chapter in some boring book is a small price to pay for good sex.”

  “What do you think?” Jessa directed the question to Kate like she’d decided to give up on Darla and Everly. “In your experience, are sex and intimacy mutually exclusive?”

  Kate considered the question. Not that she had a ton of experience with either. In fact, her most recent kiss would rank right up there with the most intimate experiences of her life, and she’d only met the man yesterday. How sad was that? “It’s probably different for everyone. I’m sure when you’re married to the person you love the most in the world, sex feels a lot more intimate.” She smiled at Darla to show she meant no offense. “Some people don’t want that, but I wouldn’t mind having it someday.”

  “Oh, speaking of sex…how was your dinner?” Naomi asked with an interested smirk.

  “Dinner? Who’d you have dinner with?” Everly demanded.

  “She made dinner for J.J. Alexander tonight,” Naomi informed the room. An echo of girlish excitement went around.

  “I heard he was back in town,” Darla murmured. “Or at least back near town. Working at the resort. How the hell did you score dinner with him?”

  “It’s a long story.” And it didn’t show Kate in the best light. “I’m watching Bella for him while he’s working on the mountain.”

  “Smart move,” Jessa said with admiration. “The way to every man’s heart is through his dog.”

  “So did you two enjoy more than dinner?” Darla scooted to the edge of the couch as if the suspense were killing her.

  “No.” A sweltering blush contradicted her. Yes, yes, yes. “Well, kind of. He kissed me.”

  More cheering ensued, but she muted it with a shake of her head. “It’s not good.”

  “The kiss wasn’t good?” Everly asked.

  “The kiss was good.” So tender and meaningful. Something told her J.J. didn’t kiss just anyone. She let her head fall back to the cushion with a sigh. “But I was only having dinner with him so I could get an interview. Except he doesn’t know that yet. I was too afraid to tell him I worked for Adrenaline Junkie. I wanted to get to know him first. So I wouldn’t scare him off…”

  “Sounds to me like you got to know him.” Darla elbowed Jessa and Naomi with an amused smile.

  “So what’s he like?” Everly reached over and handed Kate a cookie.

  She ate the chocolate chip goodness, still trying to process the last two hours of her life. “He’s…different than I thought.” She wasn’t expecting a snowboarder to have so much depth. Sure that was a stereotype, but in her experience, stereotypes existed for a reason. “And he’s definitely a different person than the media made him out to be.” Kinder. More thoughtful.

  “The media made him look like a bona fide asshole,” Darla said.

  “Only he’s not.” Kate was pretty sure her eyes had gotten all dreamy and pathetic but it couldn’t be helped. “He’s actually a really good person.” A little surly maybe, but he’d been through a lot.

  “Oh boy,” Naomi muttered. “I’ve seen that look before.”

  “She’s smitten,” Jessa confirmed.

  Smitten? Despite her current predicament, Kate laughed. She definitely wasn’t in L.A. anymore. “I like him,” she admitted. “But I also have to get this story.”

  Her four new friends traded around perplexed glances.

  “All right,” Darla finally said. “Here’s what you should do. Spend more time with him so he’ll know you’re not a threat.”

  “But don’t wait too long to tell him the truth,” Everly added. “And when you do tell him, make sure he knows you have his best interests in mind. That you want to help him repair his image in the media.”

  “That sounds like a good plan.” She had a whole week here, so she could spend a couple more days with Bella. Maybe hang out with J.J. too—on the condition that there was no more kissing until he knew the truth.

  * * *

  “What do you think, Bella?”

  Jaden rearranged the orange gerbera daisies in a vase he’d found stashed in the pantry. The flowers reminded him of Kate. Bright and cheerful, but delicate too. They definitely made a statement on the patio table, much like her. She’d left an impression on him last night with that dinner, and now he intended to do the same by making her breakfast.

  The dog took a curious lap around the table, her neck stretching and nose sniffing at the very edge.

  “Sorry, pooch. The bacon’s for the humans.” Jaden pushed the platter of meat and pancakes farther to the center so they’d stay out of reach. After spending so much of her life hungry, Bella had a tendency to get wild about food. “But I promise you all of the leftovers if you behave.”

  Could he behave? That was the real question. Last night’s kiss had stoked something he hadn’t experienced in months. Emotion. It’d shocked him to feel something when Kate had looked at him all unsure and shy from across the fire. The flames had made her face lovely and soft. Then, when he’d gotten so close to her in the kitchen, desire had surged hot and fast, triggering him to act before he could think it through.

  Sometimes it was good not to think. He hadn’t thought about Kipp or the accident the whole evening. It’d been nice to focus on someone else’s problems for a change.

  After that, though, he couldn’t stay away from her. Kissing her had roughed him up on the inside, chipping away at layers of detachment he’d built until his heart felt raw and exposed and alive again. This morning, he’d woken with a craving for more. Which is why he’d hauled his ass out of bed early enough to make a grocery run so he could surprise her the way she’d surprised him.

  The doorbell rang at 7:59. Right on schedule. Bella went crazy, leaping and scratching at the door as though she somehow already knew her new best friend was there to play. “Easy, girl.” He gently nudged her out of the way and opened the door.

  Kate didn’t look as cheerful this morning, but she didn’t have to smile to hold his attention. The fireworks between them last night had already changed the way he saw her. She wasn’t just an attractive woman anymore. She was downright arousing, especially in a blue hiking skirt that hit midthigh and her white tank top. She’d left her black hair down, wavy and soft around her tanned shoulders. Jaden couldn’t look away. Yeah, he was at full attention. “Morning,” he finally managed.

  “Hi.” Her indifferent tone and focus on Bella instead of him dismissed his greeting. “Are you ready for a fun day, Bella? Come on, girl. Let’s go.”

  The dog started for the door.

  “Sit, Bel
la,” Jaden commanded in his I mean business voice. She did, but she definitely whined about it. “You can’t go yet,” he said to Kate. “I made you breakfast.”

  The woman glared at him the same way she had last night when he’d told her it had been eight years since he’d eaten mashed potatoes. “Is it Honey Nut Cheerios?”

  Oh yeah, he’d surprised her. “It’s pancakes, actually. And bacon. Fruit.” That used to be Gram’s special Sunday morning breakfast on the ranch. He hadn’t made it since she’d moved into assisted living, but what could he say? This was a special occasion. “Isn’t that what normal people have for breakfast?”

  Her lips tightened as though she was trying a little too hard to look annoyed. If you asked him, she looked spooked. “I wasn’t aware you were normal.”

  He wasn’t. Or at least he hadn’t felt normal until she’d pressed her body against his last night. “Have breakfast with me, and I’ll show you how normal I am.” She was the one who’d made him feel normal, who’d given him the chance to be someone other than J.J. Alexander, the Snowboarding Cowboy.

  Kate glanced back at her car. “I don’t think I can stay. I have a lot planned for Bella today, so we should probably get going.”

  “You have a lot planned for my dog?” he asked, making sure his skepticism didn’t go over her head. “Like what?”

  “Well…you know…” How could he know when she didn’t even seem to know? “I’m bringing her to the inn to meet Bogart,” Kate said, looking satisfied with herself. “That’s Naomi’s dog. He’s really sweet.”

  Jaden resisted the urge to smile. “Do you have reservations to meet Bogart?”

  “Um…not exactly, but I don’t know Naomi’s schedule.” Kate’s cheeks were pinker than they had been when he’d first opened the door. That was good, right? She didn’t seem to be hesitating because she couldn’t stand him. She just seemed to get nervous around him.

  He opened the door wider. “All the food is made. Table is set.” He’d even picked out flowers.