Cowboy 12 Pack

by Cynthia D’Alba, Paige Tyler, Elle James, Donna Michaels, Shoshanna Evers, Randi Alexander, Cora Seton, Beth Williamson, Sabrina York, Sable Hunter, Lexi Post, Becky McGraw

  She reached down and undid his belt, unbuttoned his jeans, and pushed them down his legs, trapping him. The thought of him touching her breasts and squeezing—with wet results—gave her another idea. She pulled his T-shirt off him and wrapped it around his wrists, pulling them over his head.

  “You know…” His eyes narrowed. “This isn’t exactly how I pictured our make-up sex going.”

  She giggled. “Me either, but there’s a reason for it, and…” She grimaced, too horny to try to explain without telling him everything. She changed tactics. “You got a problem with this, cowboy?” She lifted a brow and grabbed his hard cock. God, it felt amazing to touch him again, his hot, pulsing flesh burning her fingers.

  He jerked and groaned. “No, no problem at all. Do what you want with me, baby.”

  She found a condom in his jeans pocket and slipped it on him, running her hand up and down his hard shaft while holding his balls in her palm. She was in control, powerful, and the sensation heated her blood and stole her breath.

  “Slow down there, cowgirl.” His voice came out gravely and his irises darkened. “You’re gonna waste this nice hard-on if you keep that up.” A sexy grin curled one side of his mouth. “I need to be buried inside your sweet pussy when I come.”

  It had been so long, and so much had happened to her body since the last time they made love. Would he notice the changes?

  She raised her body over him, and the skirt of her dress billowed out over his chest as she used her hips to glide his shaft over her clit. Each pass of the ridge on his head sent ripples of ecstasy through her cunt.

  He groaned. “You’re not gonna take that off?”

  “No.” It’s all she was going to say, and to keep him from talking, she shifted her hips until his cock was at the entrance to her pussy. She slowly sunk onto his hard, thick rod.

  His eyes rolled upward and his lids fluttered shut. “So hot. Tight. I’ve missed this, baby.”

  The stretching fullness in her canal made her stop for a second, letting her body adjust to him, taking inventory of each exquisite sensation. Pressing her palms to his pecs, she set her pace, rotating her hips so she slipped up and down on his shaft. The motion was hypnotizing and she writhed slowly until his body tensed under her, and he freed a hand to sneak between their bodies and touch her mound.

  His fingers pinched and tweaked her clit, and every nerve in her body responded. Scalding pleasure engulfed her as she spiraled toward climax.

  His body convulsed. “Come with me.”

  They reached orgasm together and she kept her eyes open to watch his gorgeous face contort with pleasure, his heavy-lidded eyes staring back into hers.

  Her orgasm spread over her like a warm blanket, shaking her from the inside, and clutching around her heart. “I love you, Chase.” Her thoughts clicked off as her climax whirred through her brain, sending flashes of heat through her body. She collapsed on him, lying with her face pressed to his neck as a thousand shivers tickled her skin.

  “I love you, Reno.” His chest rumbled with the low words. He breathed heavily, and in less than a minute, he was snoring softly.

  Slowly she let herself return to reality as she kissed his neck. Poor guy must have missed a lot of sleep in the last eight months. She would keep him here for as long as she could and let him recharge. His nap gave her a little more time to figure out how to break everything to him.

  Joy had her own idea, though. A loud squeal sounded from the back bedroom. Reno slowly moved off Chase.

  He blinked awake. “What’s happening?”

  Joy let out a short cry.

  Reno froze then forced her mouth open. “Chase, there’s something you need to know. And I meant to tell you—”

  He laughed as he stood up. “You have a puppy?” He looked around, holding the used condom in his hand. “Where’s the bathroom?”

  Pointing to the far side of the kitchen, she watched him walk away, bare-chested, holding up his jeans with one hand.

  She frowned. Lord, he was tired if their daughter sounded like a puppy to him. “Fine.” She’d just have to show him.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  ‡

  JOY COOED WHEN Reno leaned over her crib and smiled, talking to the baby with silly words spoken in a sweet tone. She changed her diaper and wriggled her into a yellow dress with white ruffle-bottom tights, and a little white headband with a pumpkin on it.

  “Mommy has someone for you to meet.” She picked up her bundle, inhaling deeply of the soft baby scent that surrounded Joy. Reno squared her shoulders, and marched out to the great room. This was it. In a few moments, she’d see a look on his face that would either melt her heart…or break it.

  Chase sat on his heels by the fire, a beer in one hand, a log in the other.

  “Chase?”

  After he settled the log on the fire, he turned. He grinned and stood. “Well, who’s this?” He strolled toward her, taking a sip of beer.

  Reno’s lungs wouldn’t work right, and she ended up puffing breaths in and out for about five seconds.

  He snuggled his big finger in Joy’s palm, wrapping her tiny fingers around his and smoothing them with his thumb. “Hi, baby girl.”

  When he looked into Reno’s eyes, his face drained of color. “Reno, are you babysitting?”

  “No.” She glanced down at Joy’s wavy, auburn hair and dark blue eyes. “I was going to tell you, Chase. Truly, I was.” She met his gaze. “But I’m not a brave person. I’m sorry I didn’t contact you sooner.”

  He stared at the tiny face. Could he see how much like his own Joy’s was?

  A sound came from his mouth. “Yubaaa.”

  Reno took the beer out of his hand before he dropped it, set it down, then grabbed onto his arm in case he passed out. She estimated how hard she’d have to shove him to get him to land on the pillows instead of the wood floor if he collapsed.

  “Our baby?” His voice sounded clearer now, and red spots highlighted his pale cheeks. “We have a child?”

  Biting her lip, she whispered, “Yes. This is Joy.”

  He grabbed his left shoulder and winced. “Reno. My God!”

  “Chase? Are you okay?” Where was her phone? Should she call for help?

  He nodded, his eyes looking unfocused, and he dropped his arm to his side.

  She couldn’t tell—was he angry or elated?

  “Why didn’t I…?” He stabbed his hands through his hair. “All these months I’ve wasted. I could have been with you. I should have been with you.” His voice quavered. “Aw Reno.”

  He looked at her, gulping in air. His eyes gleamed with unshed tears.

  “Chase, no recriminations. You’re here now, and we have our whole life ahead of us.”

  His gaze slid to his daughter, and he held out his palms. “May I hold her?”

  She smiled, and her heart leapt. “Mmm hmm.” She tenderly set Joy in Chase’s arms. Baby squirmed, and Reno adjusted Chase’s grip so she’d feel more secure.

  He cleared his throat. “Hi there, Joy.” His voice sounded choked. “I’m your daddy.”

  Baby chose that moment to scrunch up her face and toot.

  Chase laughed quietly. “Reno. She’s amazing.” He looked at her. “I can’t believe it. We’ve got a daughter.”

  She smiled. “I know. And she’ll be the smartest child on the planet.” When she blinked, tears skittered down her cheeks.

  He nodded. “And the most loved.” He wrapped his free arm around Reno and pulled her close, sandwiching Joy between them. “Our child. Reno. This is a miracle.” He wiped away her tears with his thumb.

  “It is.” She shrugged. “A miracle caused by birth control failure.”

  He looked down at Joy, his brows furrowing. “But you were on the pill, and I used condoms.”

  Her eyes opened wide. “On the pill? I was never…Why did you think I was on the pill?”

  His face twisted. “I saw the pills in your hotel room in LA.”

  Reno sighed.
“I filled the prescription, but I was waiting to have my period before I started on them.” She brushed a tiny lock of hair from Joy’s forehead. “But it never came.”

  His lips thinned and he sucked a breath in through his nose. “Reno, I think it might be my fault that you got pregnant.”

  A startled laugh bubbled out of her. “I know it is!”

  He shook his head. “No, I mean, I think those condoms we used that first weekend failed. They were old.”

  “Old?” What would she have done ten months ago if she’d known? The precious little cherub he held so carefully was truly a gift. In hindsight, she would never have taken the morning-after pill, but it would’ve been nice to have been told. “Why didn’t you say something?”

  “I was going to, but you were out cold. I saw the pills, and thought we were covered.” He let out a long breath. “I’m sorry. One of the first classes I’m signing up for is Communication 101.”

  She laughed. “Sign me up for that one, too. The thought of telling you about the baby gave me heart palpitations.”

  His jaw worked for a few seconds. “Is that what you were about to tell me in Chicago in June?”

  “Yes, and I almost did, but I don’t think either of us was ready to take this on.”

  “I don’t think you had much of a choice. What you’re trying to say is, I wasn’t ready.” He looked down at his daughter who stared at him with big, fascinated eyes. “But I’m ready now, Joy. I’ve fallen in love with you, Little Button.”

  Deep inside Reno’s chest, warmth flared and spread. He already had a nickname for his daughter.

  “And we’re gonna spend a lot of time together.” He spoke to their baby, glancing briefly at Reno before returning his attention to Joy. “Because Mommy has very important jobs as a writer and a teacher, and we want her to follow her dream and reach her full potential.”

  “Chase.” Reno’s love for him overflowed from her heart, making her dizzy with euphoria.

  He gazed intently into her eyes. “I want to be the man behind the scenes for you. You’ll have the spotlight and Joy and I will be damn proud of you…” He squinted at his daughter. “Sorry, Daddy’s gonna stop cussin’ so much.”

  What was he saying? He sounded like… “You’re not giving up your career!” The panic in her voice surprised her as much as it jolted him.

  “No. I’m saying your work is as important as mine, and it’ll be a challenge, but we’ll work it out. I don’t have to tour every year, now that I’m a mega-star.” He wiggled his eyebrows and grinned. “And I know my song writing is gonna be easy as rollin’ off a log with two beautiful ladies to inspire me.” He lifted Joy and pressed his lips to her forehead then kissed Reno.

  A giggle formed deep in her chest and bubbled over. “You make me so damn happy, Chase Tanner. I’m thinking we’re going to be the perfect family.”

  “We’re. A. Family. An hour ago, I was alone. Ten minutes ago we were just a couple. Now we’re a family.” The look in his eyes was pure happiness. “I’m a lucky man.” Chase brushed his finger over Joy’s pudgy cheek, and she started rooting at his finger and fussing. “What’s she doing?”

  “She’s hungry.” Reno used her baby-talk voice. “Aren’t you, sweet Joy?” She took her daughter from her daddy’s arms, sat on the couch, and slid out of her dress top. She opened her nursing bra and pressed Joy’s cheek to her breast.

  Chase sat next to her watching, his eyes wide. Over the next half hour, he asked a hundred questions. Reno promised to let him see the video the nurse took in the delivery room.

  “Uh…” He grimaced. “Let me think about that for a while, okay?”

  She laughed as Joy finished feeding. Reno showed Chase how to burp her, and Joy’s tiny head lolled against his shoulder, asleep again.

  He breathed in her scent, deeply and with a loving expression in his eyes. “My baby girl,” he whispered. “How has she stolen my heart already?”

  Reno bit her cheek to keep her happiness from flooding over into her eyes. “I knew she would.” How had she ever doubted that Chase would fall in love with his daughter? Reno swallowed. She had a lot of work to do on her own insecurities, and having Chase here with her would be the perfect therapy for her.

  Chase carried Joy to her room and together they changed her into soft, pink, footed pajamas and tucked her in bed, setting her bunny and lamb mobile turning and playing a lullaby.

  He took Reno’s hand and they walked out to settle on the couch and talk.

  As they sat, Chase’s phone buzzed on the couch table. “Let me turn this off.” He picked it up. “Oh damn.”

  Reno tried to sneak a peek.

  “A nine-one-one text. From Steele.”

  “What does that mean?”

  He gave her a questioning look. “Okay if I just check this?”

  “Of course.” She stood and headed to the kitchen to get him a beer. “I hope everything’s okay.”

  As she walked back toward him, Chase held his phone sideways, and voices came through the speaker. “You’ve gotta see this, baby.”

  She sat close to him, he put an arm around her, and pressed play on the video. It played from an online site. The video looked like amateur footage shot from behind the scenes at the music video Steele was filming. Tracy stood a few feet from Steele, who was talking on the phone.

  Suddenly, Tracy swung around to face him, yelled a few bleeped-out words, then she…

  “Holy crap!” Reno squinted to get a better view of the slow-motion replay of Tracy slugging Steele in the mouth. The man’s phone went flying as he took the punch. Reno looked at Chase.

  His eyes were wide but a half-smile curved his lips. “I’m not getting involved in this.” He turned off his phone, glanced at her, then lifted a brow. “But I know you’re dying to call her, so…”

  Before the last word left his mouth, Reno jumped up, grabbed her phone, and dialed. “Went right to voice mail.” She waited for the tone. “Tracy, it’s Reno. Call me.” She disconnected the call and sent the same message as a text.

  Setting down her phone, she walked to the fireplace where Chase was adding small logs. “I can’t wait to hear what that was all about.”

  “I can.” He stood and pulled her down onto the pillows piled in front of the hearth. “I’m just too dang happy about us right now to worry about them.”

  Snuggling her head into his shoulder, Reno closed her eyes and let the warmth of the fire and the security of Chase’s arms lull her. She tried to smother a yawn.

  “Sleep, Reno. Tomorrow’s a big day.”

  She lifted her head. “What’s tomorrow?”

  “We’re gettin’ married.” He grinned.

  “What?” She pushed back from him, suddenly wide awake. “You can’t throw something like that at me.”

  “The three of us will head to town and get my name on Joy’s birth certificate. Then we’ll buy a license and get hitched. Okay?”

  She touched his chest. “You’re a traditional guy, and I understand that. But there’s no reason for us to get married just because of Joy. Actually…” She took her hand back and sat up. “It’s probably a bad idea. Forced marriages—”

  “Forced? You think I feel forced to marry you?” He frowned.

  “Of course you do. You want to give Joy your name. And the publicity of having a child out of wedlock would ruin—”

  “Stop. Don’t say any more.” His lips thinned.

  She hated to say that last part, but it was true, and they had to face the reality of the country music world. Musicians had been blacklisted for less.

  He dug in the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a black velvet box. “I was saving this for the perfect moment, and it ain’t gonna get any better than this.” He took a deep breath and opened the box. “Reno Linden, will you be my wife?”

  Her eyes popped wide and her mouth formed a tight O. A beautiful two-carat square diamond sat on a band of Black Hills Gold, the pink, green and golden hues blending flawlessly into
a band with wheat sheaves engraved on the sides. Her fingers itched to reach for it, and her mind longed to say, Yes, but she needed a moment to absorb all this. She couldn’t stop staring at it. “Where did you find it? It’s amazing.”

  “After I booked my flight yesterday, I called a jeweler in Rapid City and told him what I wanted.” He took the ring out of the box. “When he said, ‘Two weeks,’ I told him who I was.” Chase smiled. “He was unimpressed, so I offered him double if he’d have it done by noon today.”

  “Oh Chase, this is too much.”

  Climbing to one knee, he took her left hand. “Marry me, Reno.”

  She would remember this moment forever. Smiling, she nodded and looked at his impossibly handsome face. “I will, Chase Tanner. Tomorrow can’t come soon enough.”

  He slipped the ring on. It fit a little tight, but in the next month, she’d lose the rest of her baby fat.

  She held out her hand, admiring the sparkling diamond in the firelight. “I adore the wheat sheaves.”

  He sat next to her, wrapped his arm around her, and kissed her temple. “You talk about the endless wheat fields in your book. And seeing at least a hundred miles of them today, I know why you love them.”

  The ring was the most thoughtful gift she’d ever received. Chase had come so far since she’d first met him. She had no doubt he would be an amazing husband and a committed father. And her biggest fan.

  She turned her head and kissed his lips. “I had no idea you were so romantic.”

  He eased her around to face the fire, and they lay back on the pillows, him spooning behind her. “Every day, Reno, for the rest of your life.”

  Reaching behind her, she grasped his ass. “Sometimes two or three times a day, Chase?”

  Their laughter echoed through the A-frame, and she rubbed her bottom against the bulging zipper of her fiancé’s jeans.

  He kissed her neck. “Three times a day, minimum.”

  The End

  Here’s a sneak peek at Steele and Tracy’s story, the second book in the Hot Country series. It’s available now. Head to my WEBSITE to find out where you can get your copy.