Beauty and the Bull Rider

by Victoria Vane

  “Me? Are you saying you expect me to . . .”

  “Help collect it?” he supplied. “Since you’re the one who’s insisting on all this, I think it’s only right you should help. And given that I need to get to Vegas by tomorrow, I’d say we’d better go now.”

  “Now?” She gaped at him.

  “Yep. There’s no time like the present.”

  “B-but my cows.”

  “Your cows are fine, Delaney.” He checked his watch. “We only have a couple hours until the place closes so we’d better get a move on.”

  “But . . . but . . .”

  Zac took her by the shoulders. “It’s decision time, darlin.’ I’m not playing around anymore. Do you want to do this or not?”

  She swallowed hard. “Yes, Zac. I do. I’m just a little nervous about this.”

  “That’s somethin’ you’re just gonna have to get over. C’mon. Let’s just go and get it done.”

  Zac and Delaney got to the clinic in record time, arriving twenty minutes before closing. Zac approached the desk, where a different nurse was typing into her computer. This one was a lot older and wore a sour expression that made him wonder if ol’ Bart had a twin sister.

  “’Scuse me, ma’am. I’m Zachary McDaniel. I was here earlier today to . . . ah . . .”

  “Give us a specimen?” she finished, gazing up over her glasses.

  “Yeah. That’s right. Something came up and I had to leave before I could get it done so I’m back to try again. Brought my . . . er . . . significant other this time.” He nodded to Delaney, who hid her face behind a magazine.

  The unsmiling nurse glanced up the clock. “We close in twenty minutes.”

  “I know it’s late,” Zac said. “But I’m going out of town and I promised her we’d get this done first.”

  The nurse cast him a disapproving look. “You’ll have to be quick about it.” She retrieved a plastic specimen cup from the drawer beside her.

  Zac leaned in close, asking in a low voice. “I’d be much obliged if you could maybe give us one of those . . .”

  “Collection condoms?” she said, loud enough to make Delaney slide deeper into her chair.

  “Yeah, that’s it,” Zac said. “Nurse Wanda was kind enough to tell me about those earlier.”

  “Did she give you one?”

  “No ma’am. I live too far away, but since I’m back with my significant other, I figured . . .”

  She glanced at the clock again. “I’m sorry, Mr. McDaniel. I’m afraid we’ve just run out of those. Perhaps you’d like to come back tomorrow?”

  “No, ma’am. I would not like to come back tomorrow. Told you I’m going out of town.”

  She handed him the container with a tight smile. “Then I guess you’ll just have to use this.” Her gaze darted back to the clock. “You can use exam room number three.” She pointed across the room. “You have fifteen minutes, Mr. McDaniel.”

  “Thank you so very much, Nurse Ratched, for your kind assistance.” Zac snatched up the container from the counter and strode over to Delaney. “Gonna need a little help, sugar pie. We don’t have much time to get this done.”

  “Is that what she said?”

  “The nurse?” He jerked his head toward the desk. “Yeah. She implied none too subtly they’re gonna kick us out at closing time.”

  “All right, Zac.” Delaney dropped the magazine and stood with a smirk. “It’s a dirty job, but I s’pose somebody’s gotta do it.”

  “C’mon, wiseass.” He steered her to the exam room. “We’re booked for room number three. Unfortunately they only rent by the quarter hour.” He kept the tone light even as his gut tightened. He sure as hell didn’t need this kind of pressure right now. He’d never once failed to get it up before, but trepidation was creeping in, fucking with his mojo. Shit. He shoulda had a drink or two. He’d insisted that he didn’t have performance issues. Was he about to make a liar of himself?

  Delaney preceded him into the room. She turned to face him when he closed the door, eyeing him nervously and twisting a lock of her blond hair. “So what now?” she asked, looking around the room. This one was just like the other had been. Small and sterile.

  “If you strip down and put your feet in the stirrups we could play doctor,” he joked to break the ice. “I always wanted to see how those things worked.”

  “Very funny, Zac.”

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “All of a sudden there’s a world of difference between imagining something like this and actually doing it. This just feels so . . . awkward.”

  “I guess we could start by getting more comfortable,” he suggested. He set the specimen container on a nearby tray and then lifted Delaney onto the table. He stepped in close to her, nudging her knees apart. “Lean back a little,” he said. “Try to relax.”

  She rested back on her elbows. “Shouldn’t I be saying that to you?”

  “I’m fine,” Zac lied. “Comfortable?”

  “Not really.” She grimaced. “I hate these rooms. They always remind me of unpleasant things. It’s too bright in here. I hate fluorescent lights. Could you maybe turn them off?”

  Zac blew out a breath. “All right.” He took two steps to the wall switch, flicked it off, and cast them into total darkness. He took a step back toward Delaney and rammed his knee into something solid . . . and painful. He swore under his breath. “Damn it. Now I can’t even see you.” He felt for the wall and found the switch again. The lights flickered and sputtered and finally came back on. “Could you just shut your eyes?” he asked.

  “How is that gonna help you?” she asked.

  “If you relax, I’ll relax,” he said.

  He leaned in to cup her head. Taking his cue, she upturned her face, offering her lips. She shut her eyes. He did the same. He moved in for the kiss. Their lips brushed just as someone in the next room flushed a toilet.

  Zac recoiled with an exhaled curse. Couldn’t they at least have soundproofed these rooms? He glanced at the clock. The minutes were ticking down. So much for foreplay. It was time to get down to business. “Could we swap positions?” he suggested.

  “You want the table?” she asked.

  “Yeah. I want you on top of me.” He wished he could have said, “on his face,” but they didn’t have time for that. A bump-and-grind lap dance would have to do.

  Delaney stood. Zac sat and then helped her up to straddle him, but the table was too narrow to accommodate her knees and her feet were too far off the floor to get any purchase. So much for the bump-and-grind plan. “This place sucks,” he muttered.

  “You’re overthinking it, Zac,” Delaney said, climbing off his lap and moving between his legs. “Let’s just keep it simple.” She rested her hands lightly on his knees. Her gaze sought his. “How ’bout if I just kiss you?”

  “I’m sorry, but we don’t have time for that,” he said.

  She licked her lips and slid her hands up his thighs. “That’s not exactly the kind of kiss I meant.”

  Holy shit. He sucked in a breath on the instant surge of heat to his groin. He sure as hell hadn’t seen that coming. He glanced down at his dick. Nothing wrong down there. That was for damn sure. He was already hard as a post. All he’d needed was the right stimulus, but he feared too much of a good thing could be equally fatal. Just the thought of Delaney’s mouth on his dick made his balls contract. He shut his eyes as her fingers worked his zipper. He wasn’t worried about shooting a load anymore, just afraid he wouldn’t be able to hold it back long enough even to unscrew the damned lid.

  Delaney was filled with guilt from the moment they walked into the clinic. Until now, she’d never given a second thought as to how awkward and invasive all this would feel to Zac, but he’d taken it all with surprising good humor. In truth, he’d bent over backwards to accommodate her desires—postponing his trip, driving twice to the clinic when it was over two hours away. Now, the pressure of time only poured insult on injury. She was amazed that he hadn’t
complained about any of it, but bore it all with his cowboy stoicism.

  He’d done so much for her. It was past time she reciprocated, not that she minded it a lick—or minded licking it. She reached inside and took him in hand, closing her fingers slowly around his hard, hot, exquisitely smooth shaft. She took a few seconds to revel in the pulsing sensation before she began stroking. She glanced up to find his brows drawn in concentration. He stole a look at her through slit lids as she worked his flesh. “Harder,” he urged and brought his hand on top of hers. There was something incredibly erotic about their joined hands pumping his flesh. She leaned in to him, pressing an openmouthed kiss to the exposed part of his chest.

  “Unbutton your shirt,” she murmured. In seconds he’d popped the buttons. She pressed him back onto the paper-covered table, working over his torso with her mouth, kissing and licking a downward trail while steadily pumping her hand. Releasing his shaft, she laved his navel with her tongue as she tugged on his jeans. “Lift your hips.”

  She pulled his jeans down, exposing the full glory of his manhood for the first time. The feel of him had thrilled her, but the sight stole her breath away. Ty had been extremely well endowed, maybe too much for her comfort. Zac was perfect in every way.

  Hoping to send him to the same heaven he’d taken her to only a few days ago, she wet her lips and lowered her head. Gripping his shaft with one hand and cupping his sac with the other, she licked him slowly upward from base to tip. Shutting her eyes, she inhaled his musky male scent, savoring the silky feel and tangy taste of him. Curling her tongue, she taunted and teased with flicks and darts until she finally wrapped her lips around his broad, smooth crown.

  He sucked in a breath, his body tensing beneath her as he murmured huskily, “You’re killing me, you know that?”

  Releasing him briefly from her mouth, she answered with a smug smile. “Then I hope you’ll die a happy man.”

  His green, passion-filled eyes held hers with a look that both thrilled and terrified her. He replied softly, “I will if I can call you mine.”

  “Zac, I—” Delaney startled at the sound of a sharp rap on the exam room door.

  “Mr. McDaniel?” came a shrill voice from the other side.

  “What the fuck?” Zac bolted up to a sitting position.

  Another knock sounded. This one harder. “Mr. McDaniel? The clinic is closing now. You need to give me your specimen or come back tomorrow.”

  “Goddammit,” Zac muttered. “She must be related to Bart.”

  “Pardon me?” Delaney asked.

  “It’s nothin’,” Zac replied. He stood with a groan, shoved himself back into his jeans, and zipped.

  “I’m so sorry about all this, Zac,” Delaney said tearfully. “I hate that your whole day was wasted. This is not how I envisioned any of it.”

  “You’ve got no reason to apologize,” he said gruffly. “None of this was your fault.”

  “Yes, it was,” she sniffed. “I’m the one who made you come.”

  “Not quite, sweetheart,” he quipped, “but I was awfully damned close.”

  “How can you joke? This whole experience has just been awful.”

  He cupped her face and kissed her softly. “Wrong again. Only some parts were. Others were pretty damned incredible.”

  “Incredible?” Her gaze darted to his. “Really?”

  “Yeah. Really.”

  “Thanks for saying it, Zac.”

  He smiled. “Anytime.”

  A third rap sounded on the door. Nurse Ratched called through it, “Hello in there. Are you coming out or must I call security?”

  Zac flung the door open. “Yeah, we’re coming out. And no, we won’t be coming back tomorrow. Or any other day.” She gaped when he shoved the empty container into her hands. “Feel free to put this where the sun don’t shine.”

  “Zac!” Delaney protested as he dragged her out the door. “I have to deal with those people.”

  “No, you don’t,” he said. “I meant it. I ain’t comin’ back here again.”

  She halted in her tracks. “So you’ve changed your mind?”

  He shook his head. “Nope. I told you I always stay the course.”

  “So what now?” she asked.

  “We’ll just have to find a better way,” Zac said.

  “How?” she asked. “The only other clinic that does this is in Oklahoma City.”

  “That’s not what I mean by a better way.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying let’s just skip all this bullshit and take a chance. I understand that you wanted to be sure I’m not gonna shoot blanks, but I’m asking you to just have a little faith in me.” He added softly, “Don’t I deserve that much?”

  “Yes, Zac. You do,” she agreed. After all he’d been through, she didn’t know if he deserved a medal or a straitjacket.

  “People have been making babies for eons,” Zac said. “I just don’t see how it can be all that hard. Your time is coming this weekend, right?”

  “Yes,” she said. “My peak fertility window starts on Friday, not that it matters since you’ll be in Vegas.”

  “Come with me,” he said. “There’s not a damned thing now to stop you.”

  “There’s still my cows to think of.”

  He squelched her argument with a raised hand. “Now you know as well as I do that you can’t do anything with them until you’ve preg checked the herd, and you can’t even do that for a whole week. That frees you up to take care of more personal business.”

  He was right. It would be a total waste of time to do anything until she knew which cows were pregnant. Delaney bit her lip. “Even so, they still need to be cared for.”

  “That’s an easy fix.” Zac whipped out his mobile phone and hit speed dial. “Hey, Bart. Zac here. I need you to send one of the hands over to Delaney’s to keep an eye on the place for a few days.... Yeah, I said a few days.... Don’t care what you think about that. You can spare one guy ’til I get back. Keep a civil tongue in your head ol’ man, or I’ll can your sorry ass.” He flipped the phone shut. “Got it all arranged. Bart said he’d be delighted to help you out.”

  “I’ll bet he was very eloquent about it,” she replied dryly.

  “That he was,” Zac replied with a broad grin. “How about if we get something to eat and then I drop you off at home? Think you can throw some things together? It’s too late to leave tonight. So we’ll need to head out real early in the morning.”

  “You’re not planning to drive straight through, are you?” Delaney asked.

  “I was,” he replied. “But I’m not in such a big hurry anymore if you’re coming along. Ty and Monica are flying out Monday morning. If we leave early tomorrow, we can be there Saturday afternoon, even if we stop overnight.”

  She took a breath and figuratively cast the dice. “All right, Zac, I’ll take a chance. I’ll go with you to Vegas.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Delaney was on the front porch, suitcase in hand, when Zac’s dually came up the drive. Hopping out of the truck, he surprised her with a kiss on the lips before tossing her bag into the backseat of his truck.

  “What was that for?” she asked.

  He cocked his head. “Felt like it. Do I need to have any other reason?”

  “No,” she said. “I guess not. I just didn’t expect it.”

  “You think and plan too much, Delaney. This trip aside, when was the last time you did anything spontaneous?”

  She couldn’t answer him because she didn’t remember. She jutted her chin. “Maybe I don’t want to be spontaneous. There’s nothing wrong with having a plan,” she argued. “I just want to have a modicum of control over my life.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with that,” he said. “But sometimes plans fail,” he added with a heavenward glance. “You gotta remember we’re not always the ones in control.” He opened her door and handed her up into the truck.

  She couldn’t argue that point. All of her plans s
eemed to have fallen apart lately. Until now, she’d held Zac to blame for most of it, but try as she might, she couldn’t seem to summon any more anger at him.

  “As for the kiss, I guess you’ll just have to get used to it.” He leaned in close and stole another one. He closed her door with a grin and then joined her in the cab.

  She still couldn’t believe he’d talked her into going to Vegas with him. The idea both thrilled and terrified her, but in the end it was the ultimate test. Was this real? Or was it just infatuation? Spending several days and nights together would surely give her the answer.

  The first couple hours of the trip passed companionably as Delaney and Zac talked about ranch work and common interests—mostly related to bulls. They were just about to leave the rolling hills of Oklahoma behind when Zac pointed out a herd of grazing bison in the distance.

  “Did you know that the bison is our state animal?” he asked.

  “No, I didn’t. It’s much more impressive than the animal Texas picked.”

  “And what’s that?” Zac asked.

  “The armadillo.”

  “Ever seen a trained buffalo?” Zac asked

  “No. I haven’t. Are they even trainable?” she asked.

  “According to Tom Brandt they are. Ty’s father trained one that he named Bill Cody. He even rode the damned thing.”

  “I don’t believe it,” Delaney said.

  “It’s true!” Zac insisted. “Tom and Will Morgan were rodeo stock contractors back in the day when the contractors put on the rodeos. Tom was mostly involved on the business side, whereas Wild Will was in charge of entertainment. The job was right up his alley, but Will was also a little too fond of the bottle and never met a wager he didn’t like. One day, he and Tom were in a bar down in El Paso where a group of Mexicans were bragging on the superiority of Mexican fighting bulls over American bulls. Overhearing this, Will said he had an American bull that could kick the ass of any Mexican bull and offered to lay his money down.