by Penny Wylder
Slowly, she puts her hand in mine, and I draw her close. It’s not the way I imagined her approaching me, but I’m still glad to be in her proximity.
I move with her, pulling her in front of me into the stall. She shies away from Bean, leaning against me hard to try to put more distance between herself and the horse. But I’m not moved that easily. Bean hardly notices Melena’s nervousness, or cares.
Grabbing the brush off the wall, I fit her fingers into it, and move her hand, brushing the horse down. The smooth, easy motion slowly allows her to relax. “This is Bean,” I say low in her ear.
“Bean?”
I laugh softly, and she doesn’t resist when I slip my arm around her waist to steady her. The horse in front of us is white with brown speckles. “She reminded me of a vanilla bean,” I say. “Or the way that fresh vanilla ice cream looks. But Vanilla Bean is no name for a horse. So it’s simply Bean.”
Melena lets out a shuddering breath. “Hi, Bean.”
“I think she likes you,” I say, seeing the way Bean is leaning into the brushing.
“I doubt that.”
Our hands keep moving together, and we stand there until Melena’s breathing is smooth and steady. I don’t want to move away from her body, enjoying the way she’s resting against me. She’s entirely forgotten that she’s using me for comfort, and I like that. Because it feels natural. But I need to get Bean’s saddle.
“I’m going to step away from you,” I say, “so I can saddle her. You okay?”
She nods but doesn’t say anything, which will have to be good enough.
Melena doesn’t move as I step around her and make quick work of saddling Bean. Saddling a horse is second nature to me, and it doesn’t take long. And Melena is stiff when I’m finished. I take the brush from her hand and put it away before swinging up into the saddle and reaching for her hand.
She doesn’t move.
“You comin’ up?” I can see the hesitation on her face, and I smile. “Unless you want to ride by yourself.”
That gets her moving, and she takes my hand. I help her up and settle her in front of me.
Christ.
Her ass is flush against my cock, and there’s no way I’ll be able to hide my arousal from her. But then again, I don’t want to. She already knows that I want her, there’s no point in being shy about it.
Settling one hand around her waist again, I can feel how fast she’s breathing. Probably because she’s terrified, but I’m still hoping that it has a little to do with me. “Okay?”
“Sure,” she says.
I guide us out of the stable at a slow pace, and every muscle in Melena’s body is taut. She’s gripping the saddle horn with both hands, white knuckled. Out of the stable and into the sun, I don’t say anything as I head along the edge of the property. She’ll have some time to relax.
Her fear surprises me. Melena seems unstoppable, impossible to intimidate. Fiery. Sassy. But everyone has something, and the fact that she’s on this horse with me, despite her obvious fear, speaks to her strength and courage.
After a couple of minutes, I notice that she’s not holding on as tightly anymore, and she’s easing back against my body, not sitting rigidly as she did when we first left the barn.
Predictably it makes me stiffer in my pants as I feel more of her soft curves and the way her hips sway as the horse walks, but she says nothing. We ride together around the edge of the property, and I point out where the new pool will be dug and where the guest cottages will be built. There’s a natural spring well that will be the ranch’s source of water, some rolling fields perfect for the grazing horses or other livestock, and even a little copse of trees on my property near a portion of the spring-fed lake.
Melena is quiet as she takes everything in, and still quiet as we complete the circuit of the property. I guide us back into the stable, and into Bean’s stall. We didn’t gallop too hard, but she deserves a good brush-down.
I get off the horse, and help Melena too, pulling her out of the saddle. The motion brings us face to face, her body flush to mine as she slides to the ground. It’s the look on her face that makes me stop. Desire and determination.
Her hands wrap around my neck and pull my face to hers, pressing her lips to mine. It shocks me still for a moment, and then heat races through my bones.
It’s not begging, but I’ll take it. I deepen the kiss, pulling her close and spinning her so she’s pressed against the stall. The need for her is so strong, I have to force my hands to be still. Not to rush. But even with that thought, my hands drag down her shoulders and to her ass, pulling her closer. I can feel the heat between her legs, and I grind my hips into her, seeking some release from the pressure building in my cock. I feel her shift up against me in a silent agreement, and she makes a small, throaty noise as she grinds against me again. I want to taste her skin.
I tilt her head to the side moving my mouth to kiss her pulse, and she moans before pressing her hands to my chest. Even after riding in the hot sun and the sheen of sweat covering her, I love her smell. Floral and rich. I could bottle that and be a god-damn millionaire.
Dragging her lips back to mine, I breathe her in again, tracing her lips with my tongue. Her fingers dig into my shirt, and I love the bite, but then she’s pushing harder. “Wait,” she says against my mouth. “Wait.”
“You taste amazing.”
Melena pulls back and looks at me. Her eyes are so green, and so full of want that it robs me of breath. But a second later there’s regret in those perfect eyes. “I can’t.”
She slips through my fingers and out the stable before I can say anything. And I’m left alone with Bean, wondering what the hell just happened?
5
Melena
I’m fucking exhausted. Working outside on the ranch with Harlan is just as hard, if not harder than I expected. And it’s not made any easier by the fact that I’m so fucking attracted to him that I can’t breathe.
It’s been two days since I kissed him, and I haven’t been able to get him out of my head. That kiss was so perfect—more than I could have ever imagined. I might be a virgin, but I’ve kissed people before. However none of the kisses I had even came close to that one. It had been all-consuming, and if I had let it go any longer, I would have let him do whatever he wanted.
Hell, exactly what he wanted and what I wanted, horse and stable be damned. That he was so gentle in helping me with my fear, I couldn’t not kiss him. It felt like a total impossibility. And after that ride…
When we first rode out of the barn, I didn’t dare move a muscle in that saddle. Bean looked cute enough, but honestly, I don’t trust an animal that weighs over a thousand pounds, can run forty miles an hour and has a mind of its own. But as Harlan led me around the property, I loosened my grip a bit, I started to trust Bean. Trevor sure did pick a beautiful piece of land. And the longer we rode, the more comfortable I became, and my body fell into an easy rhythm with the horse. The whole time I was aware of Harlan’s arm around my waist, and even though I know his feelings about me, I could tell his arm was there to make me feel safe, not to tempt me or flirt with me.
I listened to him as he explained where the different buildings would go up, and I relaxed into his body. Maybe a little too much. After riding for a while I couldn’t deny the growing warmth between my legs. My denim shorts paired with the hard saddle created a relentless and not unpleasant friction. I tried to ignore it at first, that swelling and hot feeling growing down there, but with each sway of my hips against the saddle, it grew. Luckily Harlan did all the talking, because I could hardly control my breath to speak. No matter how hard I tried to keep my hips still, to stop this feeling from spreading, my body made me move, made me find just the spot where I needed the pressure the most, and before I knew it, an orgasm was rushing over me. I clenched my thighs to the saddle, raising my hips for a moment to take the pressure off my sensitive clit, and hid my reaction by coughing a few times, pretending to shoo away a fly that
wasn’t really there. What. The. Fuck? That was not me. Having a sneaky orgasm with a stranger’s arm wrapped around me?
I could have chalked the orgasm up to an accident. A happy accident, admittedly. I mean, I can’t be the first woman who’s had that happen riding a horse, but it was no accident when we got back into the barn and I grabbed him. That’s when I knew that I was in trouble.
And now I’m frustrated. In the evenings when I try to sit down and write, nothing comes because I’m plagued with thoughts of Harlan. Just…nothing but him. I’ve even tried forming him into a romantic hero, but that only leads to me thinking about the romantic things that I want him to do with me.
In the darkness of night, I dare to let my hand slip between my legs and steal some of the pleasure that I crave from him. I keep myself quiet, terrified that he’ll hear me and know what I’m doing barely a foot away from him on the other side of the wall. But more, I wonder if he’s doing the same thing. As my fingers slide over my wet clit, is his hard cock in his hand, imagining it’s me, imagining I’m the one bringing him so much pleasure?
Everywhere we go together, I can feel his eyes on me, full of heat and desire, though he’s said nothing since the kiss. He’s made it clear what he wants, and he’s never apologized for it. But it’s something that I’m constantly aware of. To have him. To fulfill these fantasies, all I need to do is ask, and it will all be mine.
Harlan is out showering now, and it’s a breath of relief even though I crave his presence like a drug. While he’s gone, I need to make a call. The signal is weak, but I dial my brother anyway. He answers on the first ring.
“Hey sis, how’s the ranch?”
His cheery attitude grates on my nerves. For three days now, I’ve been fixing fences and showering outdoors, and I know that he has grand plans for this place but we’re nowhere close to realizing those plans. Right now it’s so run down that it’s hard to imagine that it will ever be a vacation destination.
“What the hell are you doing here, Trevor? Are you out of your damn mind?”
His tone changes immediately. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I snap. “Except for the fact that there is nothing here. The shower is literally a stall outside, and when there’s a wind that’s stronger than the breeze, I think that this house might topple over. Do you have any idea how much work this place needs? How much money it’s going to take to turn it into a resort that anyone wants to come to?”
“Woah, Melena, slow down. Yes, I know. I’ve been to the property.”
“What the fuck would possess you to buy this place?”
I can almost hear him shrug. “I’ve always wanted one. For a long time. I want a place that’s mine, that I can make into what I want. And share it with other people. I’m tired of the city, and I have more money than I know what to do with.”
“How come you aren’t here?” I throw the accusation at him. “I assumed that you’d be here and we’d be doing this together, not with some stranger.”
“Is Harlan causing you problems?”
“No,” I grumble. “He’s fine.” More than fine. Gorgeous. Tempting. Infuriating.
“Good, because I need him,” he says, sounding relieved. “He’s really good at what he does, and he’s in it for the long haul with me. I’ll be there at the end of the summer—I can’t get away earlier with my current contracts but after that I’m done.
“I’m bringing in some contractors at the end of the summer to frame out the houses and Harlan is going to manage them. I have a good plan, I promise. I know what I’m getting into.”
I take a deep breath, trying not to bite my brother’s head off. It’s not entirely his fault that I’m in a bad mood, and I shouldn’t take it out on him even if I want to. “I still think you should have told me a little more about this. Why am I even here?”
His voice is soft. “Because you needed to get away, Mel. Even if you couldn’t see it, we all could. You needed a break from being here.”
My chest tightens. “It wasn’t that bad.”
“It was,” he says. “You’re better now that you’re not working there anymore, but I don’t think you realized how bad it was. And I don’t think that you’re out of it yet. In a couple of months, I’m hoping that you’ll be able to see it. And I thought doing this would be something so completely different that it would help.”
I swallow. He’s right, maybe I don’t see it right now. And I don’t really want to think about it. “You didn’t buy this place just for me, right?”
“Hell no. I love you loads, kiddo, but that would be one heck of an extravagant gift. The ranch is for me. You being there, that was just good timing,” he laughs. “But seriously, Mel. If you really hate it there, you don’t have to stay. Would I love your help? Yes. Do I trust you to help Harlan, absolutely, and do I think it will be good for you? Yeah. So if you think you can live with Harlan and make it work, then do it. But you know everyone would love you at home too.”
I understand where he’s coming from, but I also can’t imagine staying here three months alone with Harlan. Not when every second I want to grab him and do dirty, dirty things. I’ve seen how he works, and there’s no doubt that he knows what he’s doing, but there has to be someone else, right? Literally anyone else. “Trevor—” I’m about to ask my brother that very question when the door opens and Harlan walks in.
He’s wearing nothing but a towel that he’s holding closed around his waist, dripping wet from the shower. I can see the slightest outline of his cock pressing against the terrycloth. Seeing him soaking like that ironically makes my mouth go completely dry. As so does the way he’s staring at me, with his eyes dark. I can’t forget what’s underneath that towel—I’ll never be able to forget.
“Mel? You okay?” Trevor asks.
Harlan’s face slowly slides into a smirk as I watch him. He turns and goes up the stairs, dropping the towel halfway so I get a view of his absolutely perfect, sculpted ass as he disappears behind his bedroom door.
“Yeah,” I say weakly into the phone. “I’m fine. You’re right, I’ll try to make it work. I’ll talk to you later.”
I hang up before I can say something entirely stupid.
Walking to my room, I pause in front of Harlan’s door for a moment, and hear nothing. But knowing he’s in there is enough. It’s almost too much.
Slipping into my room, I try to take a breath. The arousal is too much, I can’t stop it. With my back against the wall, I slide my hand into my panties, my fingers seeking out my clit, finding myself completely wet from just the sight of him.
It’s never been like this for me. Masturbating to the thoughts of someone had always felt strange and wrong. But Harlan…with Harlan it almost feels wrong not to. I’ve seen everything and he’s so, so close. My door isn’t locked. He could open this door, kiss me, and we could fall into each other like it was meant to happen.
The thought of him appearing in the doorway, naked and wet and glorious has me gasping in pleasure in less than a minute. My fingers slide easily over my clit, at a furious pace. Fizzy ecstasy rushes through me and I try to hold in my moans, keep myself upright, but I fail. My knees buckle and I come with a loud moan.
This is impossible. It’s the opposite of what I had planned. I don’t even like Harlan Decker. He is rude and presumptuous and he’s everything that I don’t need. All this is, is a chemical reaction.
But sometimes I can see something different behind the bravado and the teasing. The gentleness and strength. The man that allows me space to learn and helps me face my fears and new challenges. A man that admires my skills and perseverance.
But no. I shake those thoughts from. my head. I’m reading too much into these simple courtesies. I don’t like him. At all. It’s only proximity. And the idea of being alone with him for this long, that’s the problem.
I hope.
6
Harlan
I could hear her. Those breathless moans through the wall as she
did to herself what I wanted to do for her—give her pleasure. There wasn’t a time in my life that I’d felt more alive than when I was around Melena, but I’d also never gotten less sleep.
Every night I was tossing and turning, being woken with dreams of us tangled together in increasingly sexy positions until even the brush of my sheets was arousing. I felt like a damn teenager again, and I couldn’t tell if I loved it or hated it.
The tension between us is so thick you can feel it, every encounter weaving another strand on the growing rope. And I’m helping it along.
We haven’t talked about the kiss. I’m not going to push her even if I am going out of my goddamn mind. If she doesn’t want me, I will never cross that line. If she won’t admit that she wants me, I can’t force her. But I remind her of the chemistry that we have every chance that I get. Little touches whenever I brush pass her while we’re working, or if I hand her tools, my fingers brush her wrist, or when I lean around her in the kitchen, I stand a little too close.
The little touches make me ache, but I know that I’m the only one who feels this. After I came in from the shower and I saw her face, and then heard her moaning, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind how I affected her. I just have to figure out what it is that’s holding her back.
I still want her to beg. I crave the rawness that I heard in that quiet orgasm, imagine what it would be like to hear her say my name, coming like that. It’s driving me to distraction, that little fantasy.
Now we’re working on a new section of the fencing, this one requires more construction, and Melena is beside me. Once I told her what was needed, we worked perfectly in tandem for hours. Usually when I work with others I’m aware of their work and what they’re doing, whether they’re making mistakes or working as efficiently as I am.
Melena isn’t making any mistakes.
The image floods my mind again: Melena sinking to her knees and asking for my cock. Opening her perfect mouth and taking me in her mouth, and closing her eyes in pleasure.
