Cowboy Creed (Cooper's Hawke Landing Book 1)

by Rhonda Lee Carver

  “I used to be positive, saw the good in everyone and anything. I came back to Cooper’s Hawk to find that girl again, or at least a sliver of her. I don’t know what tomorrow brings, Creed, but I do know that I’ve learned a valuable lesson in never letting things slip through my fingers. I’m not sure I’m good for anyone right now though. Does that make any sense?”

  He touched his finger to her chin. “You’re saying you haven’t found yourself again, right?”

  “Right. When I say I’m not the same person, I’m not only speaking physically,” she said. She needed to get the boulder off her chest. “I have baggage. Branch did a number on me, but I was in the wrong too.”

  “Do you still care about him?”

  She shook her head. “No, I don’t but shouldn’t I feel a little jealous that he’s married and having a child? I’m not. I’m only hurt because I didn’t recognize the signs that he and I just weren’t in it for the long haul.” She blinked back unshed tears.

  “Sweetheart, you have to let the past go so you can live in the future. You wouldn’t be the first who overlooked the obvious.”

  “I care for you, Creed. I don’t think I ever stopped, but you don’t know everything about me—” She lowered her face.

  He hooked a finger under her chin and lifted her face, catching her gaze in his. “Listen, Mindy. I like you just the way you are. Neither one of us is free of baggage, kid. If this is too much for you—”

  “No.” She sat up, palming his cheek, feeling the whiskers scrape her skin. “That’s not the path I wanted this to head. I just, well, I just…I don’t know. I’m sorry that things went as they did when we were eighteen. If I could go back and fix some things I would. I need you to understand that.”

  “Listen, I regret the past too, but maturity tells me that maybe things happened for a reason. I was a kid, immature, and needed to do some growing. If you’d ask Mel, I’m sure she’d tell you that I wasn’t an award-winning husband. Was it because I was with her? Or because I was still too wrapped up in myself? Livvy taught me a lot about caring for someone other than myself. I’m not saying I didn’t care for you, I told you that I loved you, but life rotated around me. What if we would have married and you started hating me because I was an idiot? Hell, maybe you were the only one who could have kicked me into shape. Problem is, we’ll never know, will we? All we can do is head into the future with an open mind.”

  Why did the valiancy in his gaze make her want to cry? To cuddle up in his arms and confess all her sins? “It appears since I’ve been gone you’ve grown compassion.”

  He swept a piece of her hair off her cheek. “If it helps, I wasn’t unscathed when you left. You were the one and only woman who ever got close enough to break my heart. I don’t think all the cracks ever did fill in.”

  A powerful man like Creed admitting weakness touched her deeply. He could come across as a tough guy, but he’d always been caring.

  She’d always had an emptiness within her—a void inside her heart. Slowly that vast emptiness was being crammed with love. Things weren’t that easy though. They had children. And she had a secret. Would he ever understand why she moved on?

  “Will you ever forgive me for being stupid? For not chasing after you?” The emotion in his voice sent tears rolling down her cheeks.

  He used the callused pad of his thumb to swipe the moisture away. So gentle. So powerful. So Creed. He’d always wiped her tears away, her hurt, and been the shoulder she’d leaned on when she didn’t even know how much she needed him. “I forgave you a long time ago. I just now acknowledged it.”

  “I still love you, Mindy. Not the girl you were, but the person you are now. I see how kind, loving, caring and beautiful, inside and out, that you are.”

  Lifting herself, she kissed him lightly on the lips, his cheeks, his eyelids, then pulled back slightly. His eyes reflected an emotion she’d never witnessed before. “I like you a little.” She held up her fingers with an inch between them.

  “Is that so?” He tickled her, causing her to erupt into giggles.

  When the laughter faded, his lips were back on hers, soft, inviting, amazing. He dragged her in close, pressing their bodies together, igniting more internal flames. This wasn’t your run of the mill kiss shared between two horny people, but a kiss filled with emotion, desire and appreciation. He flicked his tongue inside, then tugged and nipped with his teeth…so gentle and yet so needful. She didn’t have the desire to fight the all-consuming feeling any longer. She sunk against his chest in an invitation to take her.

  She crawled into his lap, her knees on either side of his hips, the apex of her moist thighs pressed against the proof of his desire, and yet he didn’t move too fast.

  He tangled his fingers in her hair, deepening the kiss, while a deep moan escaped his throat. She rocked against him, gyrating her hips against his, turning the simmer to boiling point. They spent the next few moments kissing and re-learning each other.

  Creed lowered his hands, wrapping his arms tight around her, pressing his cheek against hers. “There’s something wrong with this picture,” the gruffness of his voice made her body tremble.

  “Yeah?”

  “You’ve had too much to drink.”

  “I’m not drunk.” He narrowed his gaze accusingly. “Okay. Maybe I am, but the whiskey hasn’t lessened or changed my desire for you.”

  “I want that. Damn do I want that, but I’m afraid to move too fast. Afraid to screw up things between us again. I want you to trust me. I certainly don’t want to take you when you’ve had too much to drink and then you regret it.”

  She pulled back, looking down at him with a narrowed eye. “You don’t want me?” Rejection filled her chest.

  “No, sweetheart—I mean, yes, I want you more than my life.” He kissed her chin. “Yet, wanting you isn’t enough. I need to prove to you that I’m more than a hard dick. You deserve more.”

  “Uh…have you noticed that I’m not complaining?” She lifted a brow. “Or are you playing hard to get?”

  He chuckled and she felt the rumble low in his chest. “No.” He brushed the backs of his knuckles down her cheek. “When it happens it’s going to be amazing. Monumental. There will be no doubts left in us.”

  “You have doubts?” Mindy swallowed hard.

  “Sorry, sweetheart. Yes. Not in you. But doubts in the fact that sex complicates things.”

  Confusion flickered inside her. “Sex complicates things. Hmm. Really?” Was she hearing right?

  “Do you ever stop arguing?”

  “Sometimes.”

  “Here. Take this off.” He reached down and grabbed the hem of the shirt, lifting it over her head. He smoothed his gaze over her breasts, his eyes reflecting a desire that she hadn’t seen in a long time. He made her feel beautiful, although she knew she shouldn’t need any man to do that for her.

  “My God. You’re like heaven on earth.” He blew out a breath. “It’s going to take every sliver of control that I have to be a gentleman, but I want to hold your naked body.”

  “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

  “No.”

  She laughed. “We had sex while I was drunk before,” she said.

  “Yeah, and you see where that got us?” He cocked a thick brow.

  She could see his point. Although, she didn’t feel like she was being illogical because of the alcohol but she respected that Creed was a pure gentleman.

  He laid her back onto the bed and shifted beside her, wrapping a beefy arm around her and pulling her into the hard curve of his body. “If I can’t find relief in one way, this is the next best thing. I like this. A lot.” He nuzzled his face in her hair.

  She smiled, falling into the cloud of warmth surrounding them. He was so warm she didn’t need a blanket. “I hear what you're saying but something else didn’t get the memo.” She wriggled her hip against his bulging erection.

  “Yeah, it’s a bit stubborn, and painful.”

  “I could eas
e some of the tension,” she teased.

  “And there’d be no stopping. It’ll come, Mindy. Trust me, it’ll come.”

  “What an ironic choice of words.”

  He swatted her bottom playfully. “Quit teasing me. Go to sleep.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  CREED OPENED ONE eye and stared up at the top bunk. Hearing soft snoring next to him, he turned his cheek and saw the face of an angel. Mindy still slept and had her cheek pressed against her palm. Tendrils of her hair had fallen over her forehead. He gently lifted the silken strands away.

  A soft purr came from her throat a second before her eyes fluttered open. Her big, smoky-brown eyes were surrounded with smeared mascara. She looked damn sexy. She blinked several times, staring back at him. Her plump lips curved into a sweet smile.

  A smile meant they woke up with no regrets.

  She stretched her arms over her head and he skirted his gaze down her naked curves, feeling himself grow by leaps and bounds. He hesitated at her perky breasts and his mouth salivated. He’d been a perfect gentleman last night but this morning the wolf in him was rearing its head.

  “Mornin’,” he said in a husky voice.

  “What time is it?”

  He lifted himself on his elbow. Just over her shoulder, he saw the half full bottle of apple whiskey. He reached for his phone and read the time. “Six.”

  “How long have you been awake? You should have woken me.” She grabbed the T-shirt from the bottom of the bed and held it against her nakedness. Disappointed, he groaned.

  “I just woke up.” He rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

  She swept her gaze down to where his excitement was visible. He reached over, ready to kiss her when she dodged his touch. “Sorry. I have to go.”

  “You what?”

  Mindy climbed over him, more confident in her naked body which made him want her even more. He flashed her his best smile and squinted when he felt the overwhelming neglected pressure in his groin.

  “I have to go,” she repeated.

  “Come on. Come back to bed.”

  “Your people will be getting here soon.”

  He watched her prance across the room, her firm bottom jiggling slightly. “Not for at least another hour. You know what we could do in that hour.”

  She picked up her shirt and shook it out, looking back at him. “You had your chance last night but remember…you’re not wanting to make any mistakes.”

  Damn. He should have known those words would come back to haunt him. “I’m not drunk. You drunk?” He grinned.

  “You go on and flash that sexy smile at me, but it’ll do no good, Creed Hawke. I don’t plan on getting caught here with you. And I have an early morning lesson and I won’t miss it.” She grabbed her clothes and sat down at the end of the bed, pulling on her bra and then wrinkled shirt with a frown.

  He stretched across the bed and walked his fingers down her bare hip and paused at the dip where the crease of her leg met groomed apex. “Ten minutes more?”

  “No.”

  “How about five minutes?”

  “Not even five.”

  “You’re killing me, you know that?” He pointed to his erection.

  “No one has ever died from a hard on.”

  “Are you punishing me?” he scoffed

  “Not at all.”

  He sat up and leaned against the headboard. “Fine. I don’t want you to stay anyway.”

  “Good. We’re on the same page. Behave yourself.”

  He reached out, snagged her arm and gently hauled her back into bed on top of him. “How can you expect me to behave myself when I have you here with me?”

  “You’ll just have to pull yourself together.” She giggled. “By the way, you shouldn’t want me here either when people start arriving.”

  “Who cares. I don’t,” he growled as he kissed her forehead, her cheeks, the tip of her nose.

  His cell vibrated.

  “Oh, and there’s your phone.”

  “Again, don’t care.” He swept his hand upward on the back of her thigh and squeezed her tight bottom.

  “What if it’s important? What if it’s Livvy or your mom?”

  “Neither text me. They call.”

  Mindy pushed up on his chest. “It doesn’t change the fact that I have a lesson in an hour. I need to shower,” she whimpered and rolled out of bed again and reached for the scrap of red that had fallen on the floor. He watched her wriggle the sexy silk up her long legs and he grew three times the size that should be legal. He’d never wanted a woman as badly as he wanted Mindy Sage.

  He pushed up, easing his lower body against the torment of an erection. If only he had another hour with her. Hell, he’d take fifteen minutes. Quick and sweet would work too. “I had other plans for today. I wanted to take you to breakfast.”

  “I don’t eat breakfast.”

  “Then lunch.”

  “Don’t worry. You don’t have to do this. I still respect you.” She winked playfully then grabbed her shorts.

  It almost did him in to watch her climb into the cut offs and drag them up her lush thighs, buttoning the material that fit her slender curves like they were made specifically for her.

  “I really am leaving.” She came around the side of the bed, gave him a quick kiss on the lips and she stopped at the closed door. “Oh shit!”

  “Forget something?”

  “Oh, just that I don’t have a ride.” She pivoted and gave him a smile.

  “Does that mean you can stay?”

  She gave him a shame-on-you smirk. “No, that means you’re going to be kind and sweet and give me a ride back to my car.”

  Slumping his shoulders, he realized all the bitchin’ and moanin’ wouldn’t change the fact that this wasn’t going to happen. “Fine.” He climbed from bed, swiped his jeans off the floor and stuck his feet into the legs. As he dragged them up over his “problem” he squinted in pain. He looked over at Mindy who didn’t have any sympathy for his predicament. From his locker he grabbed a clean shirt and pair of socks and sat down on the bed. “How about I see you later?”

  “I’m sure you will. Cooper’s Hawk is pretty small.”

  “Ouch. This rejection is hurting.”

  “I’ll let you keep the whiskey. It should help.”

  He spotted her smile before she turned. Once he was dressed, he grabbed his keys and phone and he set the security system.

  Chapter Seventeen

  CREED STOOD ALONG the pockmarked rail looking out onto the ice rink as Mindy showed Livvy a move that involved turning. He had no clue what the name of it was, but Mindy looked beautiful as she performed the step that sent her body twirling in one spot.

  Livvy attempted the same move.

  She didn’t quite hit the target, but he liked seeing her smile at the failed attempt instead of stomping off angrily. She’d come a long way in the last three lessons. Seeing Mindy and his daughter on the ice together made Creed fully aware how much he cared for them both.

  He patted his pocket where he’d shoved the velvet box that morning. He’d kept it with him for the last two days, waiting for the best possible moment when he could prove to Mindy that he wanted her and planned to never let her go—if she’d have him. The diamond ring would change their lives. For the better. Livvy liked her. He loved Mindy. And he hoped her daughter would approve too.

  They came off the ice, laughing, and took a seat on the long bench to remove their skates. He joined them. Livvy looked up at him, smiling and his heart tugged.

  “How’s she doing?” he asked Mindy.

  “Wonderful. She’s a natural. At the rate she’s going she’ll be doing single loops in the next few months,” Mindy said. Her hair was pulled up showing off her diamond earrings and long neck. She became more beautiful each day. “Remember, Liv, it takes confidence. Fear becomes concrete in our skates.”

  Creed stared. He couldn’t wait to have Mindy alone so he could kiss her again.

  “Dad? D
id you hear me?” Livvy laughed.

  “Sorry.” He cleared his throat and dragged himself out of his musing.

  “Can we pick up pizza?”

  “Sure.” He turned his attention to Mindy. “You want to come along?”

  “Well, I don’t know—”

  “Come on, Mindy,” Livvy pleaded.

  “How could I possibly say no to that?” Mindy slipped on her jacket and then her boots. “I have my car. How about I grab my things, lock up the rink, and meet you both at the farm?”

  “Sounds good.” He was glad Mindy agreed. He would have hated to start pleading too. “You ready?” he asked Livvy.

  She grabbed her bag, lifted it over her shoulder and nodded. “See you later, Mindy.”

  Creed and Livvy walked outside together. “You like her, don’t you?” he asked.

  “Yes. She’s great.”

  “Yeah, I think so too,” he admitted.

  “That’s obvious,” Livvy said and opened the passenger door and climbed into the truck.

  He went around to the driver’s door and lifted himself in the driver’s seat. “Obvious, huh?”

  “Dad, I’m not a child. I can see the way you look at her.”

  “How would you feel, you know, if Mindy and I…well—”

  “Dated?”

  He was leaning more toward marriage. “Okay, dated.”

  She gave a quick shrug. “Dad, you’re too old to be asking for permission.” She unwrapped a piece of gum and pushed the strip into her mouth.

  “I’m not asking for permission.”

  “You’re not?”

  “I guess I am at least to some extent. I want you to be happy.”

  “I think she likes you too.” Livvy dug her phone out of her bag.

  “Why do you say that?” The hair on his neck lifted. He hadn’t been this excited in a long time.

  “Because she talks about you a lot.”

  He liked hearing that. “Are you wearing a new perfume? It smells familiar.”