Wannabe in Wyoming (Antelope Rock Book 1)

by J. B. Havens

  “It doesn’t explain why my mother never wanted to talk about him and why he never came back for her. She never married, although she did get engaged once when I was around seven, but it ended a few months later when she found out he was cheating on her. She didn’t go to college either, even though she got her GED after I was born.”

  “Hm. I wonder why she didn’t go to college. I mean, I know there was a time when teenage pregnancy was something to be hidden and only talked about in hushed tones. But obviously your grandparents didn’t make her give you up for adoption even though she was sixteen when she had you. If they were helping her out, she could’ve easily gone to school at night, right?”

  “I don’t know.” Willow shrugged. “Hell, I didn’t even know she’d wanted to be a teacher when she was younger.”

  “What were your grandparents like? Did they help her care for you or was she on her own?”

  “They didn’t kick her out or make her give me up, but I know they resented me—especially my grandfather. We were never close. My grandmother grew to love me, I guess, in her own way, but I think she was always disappointed my mother had to give up her dreams for me—although she never said that around me. My grandfather was the complete opposite—he reminded my mother quite often of all she could’ve had and done if she hadn’t kept me. He worked in the city’s sewer system—far from a glorious job. If my mom had actually gone to college, she would’ve been the first one in the family.”

  “Did you go to college?” he asked before taking a sip from his beer bottle.

  “I went to the community college and got my associates in liberal arts, not that I really did anything with it, but it made my mom happy.”

  “What about your grandparents? Were they happy you went to college?”

  “At that point, they’d already passed. My grandfather died of a heart attack when I was thirteen, and my grandmother passed away two years later from a stroke. After that, it was just me and my mom. She didn’t have any siblings and hadn’t stayed close with any of her cousins or aunts and uncles.”

  “And after she passed away, you were on your own. Just like me. Maybe that’s why Fate brought us together.”

  She lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him. “You believe in Fate?”

  He paused a moment, rubbing his free hand over his short hair, as if gathering his thoughts. “Yeah, I do. We may not always be happy with what Fate sends our way, but a lot of good comes out of it. Think of all the ‘what ifs’ that had to happen before we got to this moment. What if your father decided you were better off never knowing who he was? What if you’d just told the lawyer to sell the place and send you the money because you wanted to stay in Philadelphia? What if you got here and decided it wasn’t for you and still ended up selling it and moving on? What if you never spotted that flyer and sent a letter to Any Soldier. What if, out of all the units your letter could’ve gone to, it ended up in a different soldier’s hand instead of mine? And it’s gotta be Fate, don’t you think? I know some people say there’s no such thing as a coincidence, but I wouldn’t have found you without a whole lot of them.”

  He leaned down and brushed his lips across hers. Willow couldn’t help the whimper that escaped her as Nathan deepened the kiss. Fate. Coincidence. God. A being from another universe telepathically manipulating the strange humans on Earth. It didn’t matter to her how she’d ended up in Nathan’s arms, she was just grateful she had.

  Pushing gently on his chest, she withdrew from him and stood, holding out a hand to him. When he took it, she silently led him into the house and down the hall to her bedroom, knowing she’d fallen completely and irrevocably in love with her soul mate.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Willow shut her bedroom door behind them with a soft click. She loved this man, even if she wasn’t willing to say the words yet, she was ready to show him. The talk of Fate had made her realize she was no longer willing to wait. If Fate had brought them here, then she was going to take everything Nathan had to offer and give it in return.

  Urging him toward the bed, she pulled off her boots and socks, throwing them aside. “I want you,” she said before reaching for his belt.

  “Hang on.” Gripping her fingers, he halted her attempt at undressing him, although he did toe off his sneakers and pull off his socks. “I told you, for our first time together, I was going to take my time with you. That I was going to kiss and lick every inch of your skin. That starts now.” He dipped his index finger into the open vee of her shirt and pulled on the material. “Take off your clothes.”

  Willow’s heart was beating like a drum and her panties were soaked, and he hadn’t even done more than kiss her. She took a step closer to him and ran a finger down his sternum, wishing there wasn’t a shirt between his flesh and hers. “Bossy, much?”

  “Oh, baby, you have no idea. I’ve wanted you for a long time. I have a list.” He sat on the queen-size bed, reclining on his elbows. His feet sticking out from the legs of his faded blue jeans drew her gaze. Why did she suddenly think a man’s bare feet were sexy? It made no sense—they were just feet, and as a rule, they weren’t supposed to be sexy, but somehow, he managed it. “A man on deployment has a lot of time to think about his woman back home, and I thought of little else.”

  “A-a list?” she stuttered, fiddling with the hem of her blouse. Why was she suddenly so on edge? She wanted this—she wanted him, more than she could express with words. She’d been the one to pull him down the hall and now she was hesitating. Why? Maybe because her feelings for him had hit her all at once and making love with him mattered. It really mattered to her, and it meant more than just connecting with another human connection and getting off. It felt momentous and precious, and she didn’t want to screw it up.

  “Yes, but we’ll come back to that. It’s long, and I don’t plan on checking off all the items tonight. Why are you nervous?”

  “I don’t know.” She shrugged, looking at her feet, wiggling her bare toes into the rug. “I was just trying to figure that out myself. I mean, it’s not like I’ve never had sex before.” But even though she wasn’t a virgin by any means, in this moment, he made her feel like one. It was the first time intimacy had meant so much more than just the physical aspect, but she wasn’t sure she was brave enough to tell him that. Sex was easy, emotions were not.

  He growled. “Rule number one—I don’t want to hear about any other man who’s been with you. As far as I’m concerned, I’m the first.”

  She laughed, and some of her anxiety eased. “Come on. Really?”

  “Really.” Standing, he closed the distance between them and cupped her face in his big, warm, calloused hands. “Logic says, of course you’ve been with others, but even the thought of another man having the pleasure of touching you . . .” His right hand trailed down her face to her throat, before going further and clasping her breast. He squeezed gently then flicked his thumb across her nipple. “Tasting you . . .” Bending his head, he kissed her throat, making her moan, before licking a stripe up to her ear, where he bit on the lobe. She cried out as shivers wracked her body. “Or sliding deep inside you makes me crazy. I’ve never been a jealous man, but you make me feel things I never have before.”

  “Oh God . . .” She ran her hands over his soft, cropped hair, as his mouth left her ear and found her lips. His kissed her like a starving man, and she was a buffet. His mouth was hot and his lips soft. His tongue slid along hers, seeking and stroking. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, pulling her closer, grabbing her ass, and hauling her up against his hardness. “Nathan . . .” Gasping, she tilted her head to the side as he nuzzled her neck. “What are you doing to me?”

  “I have a list, remember? The first thing is to see you naked.” Gripping her shirt, he pulled it up and over her head, tossing it over his shoulder. He stared down at her black lace bra for a long moment, before raising his head and meeting her gaze. His blue eyes blazed with desire and need. “You’re so beautiful,” he
whispered, before cupping both hands under her full breasts, hefting their weight in his palms. His thumbs found her nipples again, and she gasped as pleasure zinged straight to her clit. He froze, and his eyes grew wide at his discovery. “Willow? Are these what I think they are?”

  Confusion mixed with lust in her muddled brain. “Breasts? Um, yes. They’re boobs. I’m sure you’ve seen some before.”

  He jerked both bra cups down, tumbling her breasts free and revealing her to the light. “No, smart ass. These.” He tugged gently on both her tiny nipple rings, forcing another desperate moan and gasp from her. “You have your nipples pierced.”

  “Y-yes.” Please don’t let that be a turn-off for him, she thought to herself.

  “Fuck, that’s so sexy.” He latched his mouth on to her right nipple, tugging at the jewelry with his teeth before switching sides and doing the same on the left. Every pull, every suck coursed through her nervous system, and down her belly until they reached her throbbing clit. A whimper escaped her, and he released the piercing. “Does it hurt when I do that?” He didn’t give her a chance to answer before he pressed her breasts together and buried his face in her cleavage. “Goddamn woman, I’m about to come in my jeans.”

  “No, no, it doesn’t hurt. It feels really good.” Wrapping both arms around his head, she held him to her chest, threw her head back, and reveled in the pleasure he gave her. “So good.”

  “Yeah?” He lifted his head, keeping his eyes locked onto hers as he slid his palm down her side, gathering her skirt into his fist. He raised it and slipped his hand underneath. Pressing his palm between her legs, over the material of her underwear, he groaned. “Holy shit, your panties are soaked.”

  “Uh-huh.” Pushing his hand out of the way, she tugged on his shirt. “Take this off.”

  Reaching behind his head, he dragged the garment up and off, letting it fall to the floor at their feet. Willow kissed the tattoo over his heart, once then twice, while tracing her index finger down his cock where it was straining against the confines of his jeans. He canted his hips forward, but she reversed the direction of her finger and ran it up the dark swathe of hair covering his abdomen. When he snaked his arms out to grab her around her waist, she sidestepped him, and he groaned. “Tease.”

  Sometime during the last few minutes, her nerves had fled—his evident need and desire for her made her feel sexy and powerful. There wasn’t room for doubts or second-guessing, not with this heat flaring between them. And fuck, she wanted to burn with him. She unceremoniously unclasped her bra, throwing it aside, before unzipping her skirt, pushing it down, and stepping free of the billowy, white fabric. She stood before him in nothing but flesh-colored cotton panties. His hands twitched at his sides as his hungry gaze roamed every inch of her exposed skin.

  “Who’s teasing, soldier?” Stepping closer to him, she slowly dropped to her knees at his feet. His hands immediately went to her hair, tilting her head back and meeting her gaze with his own.

  “What are you doing?” His voice was gruff and rumbling, low and intense—carnal.

  “Don’t you know better than to question a woman when she’s on her knees in front of you?” She scratched her nails up the denim covering his sinewy thighs, causing the muscles to quiver under her touch. Unclasping his belt, she popped the button on his jeans free and carefully lowered the zipper before tugging his pants down to his ankles. He wore black boxer briefs, the tight material clinging to every inch and ridge of his impressive length. Placing her palm over him, she rubbed up and down firmly, learning his shape. His cock with thick and hard, the broad head pushing out against his boxers as if seeking her touch.

  “Willow . . . I don’t know . . . shit.” He gasped and moaned as she fitted her mouth over his cock, wetting the fabric of his underwear. She could taste the salty essence of his precum where it’d leaked through the material. Resting her face against his thigh, she glanced up at him while rubbing her cheek against his coarse leg hair. His cheeks were flushed, and his chest rose and fell with rapid breaths. Smiling, she kissed his groin again, inhaling deeply and loving the smell of him—a little musky, but warm and all male.

  “If you keep putting your mouth on me like that, this is going to be over much sooner than I’d like. I haven’t . . .” He paused to gulp, and Willow watched in odd fascination as his Adam’s apple moved up and down. “I haven’t been with anyone since before my deployment.”

  “Then you’ll have more than one in you.” Smirking, she pulled his boxers down, pushing them down to join his pants at his ankles. Once released from its confines, his cock slapped against his lower belly. She gripped his length and pumped a few times, loving the feel of the silky-smooth hardness of his flesh under her hand. Meeting his gaze, she licked him from root to tip, before humming as she softly sucked the wide head between her lips.

  “Willow . . . baby, please.” His head fell back as she held his cock by the base and drew him into her mouth as far as she could. Her lips stretched around him, and she worked him deeper into her mouth. When the head of his cock hit the back of her throat, she breathed through her nose and swallowed, letting the muscles of her throat close around the tip. Nathan spat out a reverent curse, and his hand in her hair tightened almost to the point of pain. All that did was spur her on.

  Drawing back, she bobbed her head, matching the rhythm of her mouth with strokes of her hand. Moaning as his spiciness tantalized her taste buds, she popped her mouth free and licked a bead of precum from the tip. “You taste good.”

  “Come here.” He let out a sexy growl while tucking his hands under her arms and lifting her up to stand. Kicking free from the last of his clothes, he took two steps forward and pushed Willow onto the bed. She landed on her back and bounced, giggling. Her smile disappeared at his intense stare before he stripped her panties from her body, adding them to the pile of clothes on the floor. Nathan crawled over her, settling some of his weight against her. He rubbed his chest against her nipples, forcing a gasp from her lips. Reaching between them, he ran his fingers down her slit, testing her wetness before slipping one, then two fingers inside her. Her body naturally yielded to his invasion. While he stretched and finger-fucked her, he alternated between kissing her and sucking on her pierced nipples. “I love these. I could play with them all day,” he said, before tugging on one of the silver rings. “They’re so pretty. It’s all I can do to keep my hands off you.”

  “Ah! Please, Nathan, shit! They’re so sensitive.” Writhing beneath him, she didn’t know if she wanted to get closer to him or further away. He was driving her mad with his clever fingers and wicked tongue.

  Just as she was sure she was going to come, he retreated, propping himself up on his hands on either side of her head. She glared at him. “W-what? Why are you stopping?” Out of breath and out of her mind with want for him, she was two seconds from flipping him onto his back and taking matters into her own hands, so to speak.

  He brushed his mouth across hers. “I don’t have a condom on. We should have talked about this earlier.”

  Biting her lip, she looked down their bodies. Seeing the physical evidence of his desire heated her blood even more. “I’m . . . um . . . I’m on the shot, and I haven’t been with anyone since the last time I got tested—which was well over a year ago. I’m clean, if you don’t want to use them.”

  “Willow, are you sure?” His gaze searched her face for any sign of uncertainty, and she was touched he wasn’t tossing the important discussion aside after her disclosure. “The army tests us regularly, and I haven’t been with anyone since before my last physical, but this is a big deal.” He brushed a few strands of her hair away from her cheek before kissing her lips softly.

  “I’m sure. I’ve never been more sure about anything. I want to feel you—all of you.”

  Taking her at her word, he reached down, lined himself up with her entrance, he rubbed the head of his cock up and down her cleft, spreading her wetness over himself before easing inside her slowly, thrus
ting shallowly a few times, stopping before he was all the way inside her. “Oh fuck,” His body stilled. “You feel like heaven and I’m trying really hard not to embarrass myself here.” He drew a noticeably deep breath before continuing.

  When he was finally buried to the hilt, they clung to each other, marveling at the feeling of being joined in the most intimate way. It was more intense . . . more everything. Her brain overloaded on pleasure, to the point she couldn’t form coherent thoughts. He was thick and filled her to capacity, stretching her in the most delicious way. She clenched around him, and he hissed, resting his forehead against hers.

  “Nathan . . . please move. I need you.”

  “Holy shit, baby. You feel better than I ever imagined.” He withdrew and surged forward again, then began alternating between slow, long drags that made her beg and short shallow thrusts that made her gasp and dig her nails into his shoulders. His pace increased and became almost frantic. “I know I said I’d take my time with you, but I can’t. You’re just . . . too . . . shit. . . so . . .wet . . . and warm . . . fuck!”

  Tilting her hips, she met him thrust for thrust and after that, there were no more words. Their bodies did their talking for them. Together, they climbed higher and higher. Willow lost all perception of time. Her senses were full of Nathan.

  The heady, masculine smell of his skin.

  The zesty taste of him on her tongue.

  The sounds of pure pleasure erupting from him.

  The hedonistic expression she saw on his face.

  The feel of him driving deep inside her, hitting the spot that had her begging him to send her over the edge.

  She was drowning in him and loved every second of it. She’d had sex before, but she now understood that was all it had been during those encounters . . . just sex. But with Nathan, she was making love. They were two completely different things when you were with the right person and emotions were involved. The only sounds in the room were their gasps and moans of pleasure and the slap of flesh against flesh.