by Sable Hunter
Awed, he kissed her, communicating with every touch, every caress of his lips how thankful he was to have her in his arms. Nuzzling her neck, he sucked at her flesh, wanting to leave visible proof of his possession.
“This isn’t what I expected,” she whispered.
Heath could tell she was as confused as he was, so he sought to lose them both in the oblivion of pleasure. He worshiped her body, the lush, magical landscape of feminine dips and curves, suckling, licking, swirling his tongue around her nipples until she was breathless and desperate.
“Please, please…” She tugged at his arms, bidding him to move back up. “I need to kiss you. I need you.”
Kissing a path back up, he held up, staring into her eyes as he sank into her creamy softness. “You’ve got me, baby.” This, this was the way it was meant to be. Heath shook his head from side to side, the heaven of her pussy milking his cock almost more than he could handle. Cato clasped him around the neck, pushing her hips up, every move a parry to his. A powerful, desperate need enflamed him and Heath sought to assuage the greedy longing. Placing his hands under her knees, he pulled her legs up until she was exposed. He looked down at where they were joined, the pink flower of her sex flushed and swollen. The sight of his cock sliding in and out of her pussy only escalated the hunger rising in him.
“Now, now!” she urged. Cato was quaking with unbearable excitement.
Her desperation incited him. Heath rose over her and began to jack hammer into her, his hips driving and pounding, giving her what they both wanted. The pleasure was excruciating and their release came fast, furious and complete. Her pussy fisted around him as he jetted his cum deep within her.
Aftershocks sparkled through her as Cato cradled him close, stroking his back, his neck, kissing the beads of sweat from his shoulders. “You are a generous lover.” Heath was collapsed on top of her and she bore his weight gladly, loving the feel of him pressing her into the mattress.
Heath could have stayed where he was forever, still intimately connected with this woman who was proving to be exactly what he feared she would be—a threat to his heart. Steeling himself to put distance between them, he pulled out and rolled to his back and even though his mind was telling him no, his body ignored him and he held her close, kissing the damp tendrils of hair on her forehead.
She raised her head so she could see him. “Is it always like this?”
Heath weighed his words. If they were to continue—and God knows he wanted to—he needed to set some boundaries and draw some lines. The lie stuck in his throat, but he fought to say the words. “Yea, I always enjoy a good romp in the morning. Keeps the blood flowing.” Giving her a carefree grin, he eased out from under her and bounded from the bed.
Okay, then. Inaudibly, Cato heard a crackling sound of something shattering. She knew what it was—the delicate dreams she had already started building in her heart. She’d wanted to say more, tell him how she was feeling—the tenderness, the hope—but now she was glad she hadn’t. Heath’s off-hand, light-hearted take on their lovemaking effectively brought her back down to earth, like a sharp tug on a kite string. This was temporary. They had an agreement and she couldn’t let herself forget it.
“Let’s get dressed. I’ve got some things to do this morning.” Heath kissed her, he couldn’t stop himself.
Reaching for her wrap, she covered herself. “Sure. I’ll go back to my room.”
“Can we meet up later?”
He was acting strange. Cato got the feeling he was pulling her closer with one hand and pushing her away with the other. Talk about mixed signals. “Of course.” She almost let it go, but she couldn’t. It just wasn’t her way. “Heath, do you regret this? Do you want to forget our plans?”
An out. Now that it was offered, he didn’t want it. “No regrets.” He touched her face. “I enjoyed being with you more than I could ever tell you. I want our time together. I think it will be the experience of a lifetime. Don’t you?”
She let out a long breath. “Yes.”
“Good.” He’d jerked on underwear, a pair of jeans and a blue western shirt, the same color of his eyes. “I’ll see you at lunch, if not before. And you’re sleeping in here with me again tonight, just in case you were wondering.”
She had been—wondering. “Okay.” She gave him a tremulous smile.
“And turn off the monitors in your room, just in case the maid wanders in there while we’re playing here.”
“Good idea,” she agreed. With that, he was gone, leaving Cato alone to assimilate how she was feeling and how she was going to get through the next month without having her heart broken in a million pieces. Oh well, she had no one to blame but herself. She had made her bed and now she had to lie in it.
At least she wouldn’t be lying in it alone, she would be sharing the space with a man capable of gifting her with multiple orgasms.
As Cato gathered her things to head back to her room, she walked by the wall of photos and stopped to look at them, hunting hints of what made Heath tick and what she could do to make their time together more meaningful. Several things stood out. Heath and his family on a boat, it looked like they were fishing. There was also a beautiful shot of them all at what appeared to be a hot-air balloon race. A few showed prize winning livestock and Heath’s old truck seemed to play a starring role. She let her imagination flow free and was glad when a few ideas took root. Maybe this wouldn’t be so hard.
Turning to leave, she walked by his desk and something caught her eye. Lying on top of the mammoth mahogany surface was a well-worn copy of Heart of Texas. Her hand went out slowly to touch it. How odd, she thought. She ran her finger over the tattered cover, remembering her childhood hero. Just like she’d promised herself, Cato had read the book and a favorite point came to mind, one that seemed applicable to her situation with Heath—if you want something too much, you’ll probably end up being disappointed. Perhaps she should take the wisdom of Laurence Culhane to heart. As she closed the door behind her, an odd feeling came over her, like she’d just missed something important. Oh well, she shrugged her shoulders – she’d think more clearly after her morning coffee.
* * *
“What did you find out about where Arness was headed to yesterday?” Heath asked Jaxson as they stood around the coffee pot in the bunk house. He didn’t know why everyone gravitated out here for breakfast. The same food was served in the house. Helena just made sure there was enough for everybody. Hot trays of food were carted across the brick patio and down to the big dining hall. Some people might think it was odd seeing Gruff, their old blacksmith, talking shop with celebrities and famous athletes, but they all seemed to be enjoying it.
Jaxson joined him. Heath noticed he was only using a cane this morning. “Funny thing,” Jaxson pointed to their foreman. “Cameron went after them, met them coming back from the whitewater area of Sandy Creek, not far from Longhorn Caverns.”
“What did they say?” Heath felt his ire rise.
“Said they were just ‘browsing,’ was the word they used.” Seeing his brother looking like he was in pain, Heath pulled a chair around. He took the hint and sat down. “Cameron said he couldn’t be sure, but it looked like the fellow with him had one of those fancy portable surveying tools with him, the ones with a built-in GPS and lasers.”
“That son-of-a-bitch is up to something, I just don’t know what it is.” Heath took a sip of hot coffee. “I don’t know what he expects to achieve surveying my land, there’s no way in hell he’ll get his hands on a grain of Highland soil as long as I’m alive.”
“Speaking of being up to something,” Jaxson spoke slyly, “what’s up with you and Cato?”
Heath had the good grace to chuckle. “We’ve come to an…arrangement.”
Jaxson stood up to slap Heath’s back. “Good for you! When did this happen, exactly?”
Heath didn’t understand what his sibling was getting at, but he answered, “Yesterday, right after lunch we had a little talk.”
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“Ha! I knew you two couldn’t stay away from one another, you just had that natural chemistry. We’ll have to have her over for a family dinner so we can really get to know her without all of these people around.”
“Just slow down, this is a casual affair.” Heath frowned, trying to get his point across.
Tennessee joined them. “What are you grinning about, Jaxson?”
Heath snorted. “Your brother likes to play cupid.”
“No.” Jaxson tipped his hat back on his head. “I’m happy because I won the Heath Hook-up Love Pool, one thousand dollars!”
“Well, shit.” Heath shook his head and walked off.
Back in the kitchen, Cato sat down across from Ryder, who was staring out the window as if she’d seen a ghost. “What’s wrong?” she asked her new friend.
Ryder put a hand over her face, for a moment Cato thought she was about to cry. Then she realized Ryder was laughing. “I can’t believe he came.”
“Who?” Cato watched, realizing her first assessment had been fairly close. She got the feeling Ryder was laughing to keep from crying. Cato leaned forward to gaze out the window and saw a man riding up on a huge snow white horse. He was dressed in buckskin and had long blond hair to his shoulders. “My God, he looks like—”
“A Greek god, a conquering hero, a rock star?” Cato couldn’t hear Ryder’s voice, but her face looked like every word she said caused her pain.
“Well yeah, he’s gorgeous.” Heath was her first choice, but she wasn’t blind.
“His name is Samson Duke.” She threw a dishrag on the table that she’d been using to polish silverware. “I swore I’d never say his name aloud again, but I didn’t expect him to come riding up to my door either. I told him I never wanted to see him again.”
Putting two and two together and coming up with ten, Cato figured this was someone important to Ryder. “Do you want me to go get Heath for you?” Ryder didn’t appear to be afraid, but she didn’t want to take a chance.
“No, I can’t bear to involve my brothers. I’ll handle this my own way.” She stood up, giving Cato a quick hug. “I’m happy you and Heath are getting closer.” She smiled a sad smile and walked out the back door and straight toward the man who dismounted as soon as he saw Ryder approaching. Cato wanted to watch, but she realized this was a private moment. She didn’t know what was going on, but it wasn’t her affair.
Speaking of an affair, her thoughts turned to Heath. She didn’t know where he was. In fact, there was no one in the house. In a few minutes she’d go look for everyone, but right now she needed caffeine and a clear head. Heading to the counter, she poured a cup and stirred in cream and sugar. Taking a sip, she walked around the room admiring the copper accessories, the marble floor and the granite countertops. The big sideboard drew her, she could just imagine it laden with pies at Christmas or a huge Thanksgiving turkey. Being a part of this family would be amazing. Cato had never really known what it was like to be a part of something so grand. Her mother fed and clothed her, but there was really no pretense of holiday celebrations or conversation around the dinner table.
She ran a hand over a huge soup tureen made from bisque pottery. Cato could imagine serving a seafood gumbo from it. In some ways she missed Louisiana. As she drank her coffee and walked around the kitchen, her eyes fell on a large family portrait hanging over the table. She hadn’t noticed it before. Stepping nearer, she saw it was the whole family, standing on the porch of a beautiful home which was a larger version of this one, painted yellow and graced with large pillars and a wide gallery. There was a woman in the center and Cato knew it was Heath’s mother. They had lost her in a storm, she remembered Ryder saying. Moving her finger lightly over the glass, she looked from one face to the other. They were certainly recognizable. Pepper looked so young and pretty, she couldn’t be any more than twelve or thirteen. Cato smiled. Ryder appeared to be a tomboy, her hair up in a ponytail and wearing pants. And there was Tennessee, looking like he had the world’s biggest secret. Jaxson had his hand on the head of a golden retriever and Philip stood next to his father, looking more like him than any of the others. Savoring the moment, she prepared to gaze at Heath, knowing he would be next. At last, she moved her finger and stepped closer and what she saw stole her breath. My God! Why hadn’t she seen it before? It was Heath, obviously a young Heath McCoy.
Cato was shaken to her core. No wonder she had felt a connection.
Heath was her savior, her champion, the one who had stood up for her all those years ago in the St. Martinville library.
CHAPTER NINE
Everything was the same, yet everything was different. After she’d discovered who Heath was, Cato went in search of him, finding him down by the huge gazebo which overlooked the pool. This was Sunday, she would be going home in the morning. Today was her last day with Heath…until the first date of their four week affair.
Now that she knew he was the young man from her past, the one who had stood up to her attacker and saved her from rape, Cato couldn’t help but entertain the fanciful idea that meeting Heath again, feeling as if their destinies were intertwined, finding out that their joining was the most perfect, incredible moment of her life—all of this was meant to be.
Wanting to observe, she hung back, needing to look at Heath with fresh eyes. At first glimpse, she had seen only his physical beauty and perfection. After the years of her isolation and longing for human contact, the overpowering need to be like everyone else, Cato had taken one look at Heath and known he could fill in all the blanks, answer all the questions, bring vibrancy into a world which had for her been so colorless and bland.
And he had done those things.
Heath had been drawn to her and Cato had greedily accepted and encouraged his attention, being willing to forego any traditional romantic trappings, such as dating or courting to learn the delight of a man’s hands on her body—his hands, no one else’s would do.
Oh, she hadn’t been completely foolish. Before issuing her erotic proposal, Cato had quickly learned Heath was from a good family. He was kind, upright and honest as the day was long. The fact that he had money, property and possibly gold on his land meant absolutely nothing. No, she wasn’t interested in Heath’s money. She would’ve wanted him if he hadn’t had two plug nickels to rub together.
Cato wouldn’t deny that she wanted to settle down eventually. And Heath McCoy was definitely husband material. He could be the ultimate prize in one of those reality TV shows where a desirable eligible bachelor is put forth so women can compete for his attention. But Cato wasn’t hearing wedding bells. She smiled at her own self-deprecating humor. She’d wanted to give herself time to enjoy all the things women of her age took for granted—romance, dating, and yes, sex. Since Heath was adverse to commitment but sexy as hell, she’d thought he was perfect to give her a taste of all she had missed.
Well, not quite perfect.
Due to his own bad experience, romance wasn’t a part of the deal. Plus, he was either unwilling or too busy to plan their dates, so she’d had to volunteer to do that. Yea she was a modern woman, because what Heath offered in the bedroom made up for what was lacking in the other two areas. Heath wasn’t giving her just a taste of what she’d missed between the sheets, he was laying out a veritable banquet and she intended to sample everything on the table.
Well, all of that had changed.
Cato watched him refill his coffee cup, his eyes slowly scanning the yard until they locked with hers. An arc of electronic awareness seemed to shoot between them. Cato felt sparks sizzle through her body. What she’d felt in his arms, the pleasure he had given her surpassed anything she’d ever dreamed.
She enjoyed him. She admired him. She craved him.
It had confused her why she’d felt so compelled to make him notice her. It was more than just attraction. He wasn’t the first man who’d caught her eye since she’d initiated her ‘Cato Catch-up’ campaign.
Now, she knew why.
Heath was the man she’d built her fantasies around, the one she considered to be the epitome of courage, gallantry and compassion.
He was her dream man.
As he walked slowly toward her, their gazes still locked, Cato had to admit she was falling for him. How could she not?
He walked right up into her space. Cato could feel the heat, not only the heat that emanated from him but also the instant response of her own body. She had become addicted to him and what he could give her. For a brief second, she imagined he would lean forward and kiss her, but he didn’t. A wave of longing rose within her to confess that she was the girl in the library, to thank him for what he’d done for her all of those years before. Would he remember? She had to tell him, this was just too important. “Heath, I need to tell you something.”
“I need to tell you something too.”
He took her by the elbow and led her down a secluded path, away from his family and friends as they milled about getting ready to start their day. Pepper had said there was a trail ride and a picnic on the agenda today so she’d worn jeans and a pink western shirt with embroidery on the bodice. Tonight she planned to wear the little black dress with no back. Hopefully she could entice Heath into another bout of toe-curling sex. “Okay, you first,” she urged him.
Heath compressed his lips together and seemed to be considering his words. She waited. Finally he began, giving her a smile which seemed forced and a bit sardonic. “You’re a hell of a woman and the sex we shared was out of this world and I can’t wait to fuck you again.”
“Me neither,” she agreed with a smile. His rather raw way of putting it excited her, but she looked around cautiously. “Shhh, someone might hear you.”
