Promises Linger (Promise Series)

by Sarah McCarty

  She felt the heat creeping into her face, but she held her ground. “Yes, before you decide my lack of corset indicates a lack of moral character, I’d like the opportunity to commence wearing it again.”

  He laughed. “Darlin’, if finding you entertaining good-looking men in my kitchen in the middle of the day doesn’t get me thinking along those lines, I doubt your not strapping yourself into that contraption is going to get me doubting your ‘moral character’.”

  “Aaron just stopped by to make sure I was all right.”

  He came around to her side of the horse. He picked up Shameless’ front hoof and set to work with the pick. “He heard the rumors you married up again.”

  “Yes.” She wished she could see his face. “He was concerned.”

  “He was jealous.”

  She laughed. That would be the day! “Aaron and I are just friends. He has a wife and a two-year-old son.”

  He shot her a knowing glance over his shoulder. “Those things have nothing to do with his wanting you.”

  “You misread the situation.”

  She stepped back as he slid his hand down his horse’s side to get to the rear hoof. “I’ll allow one of us has a hold of the wrong end of the stick.”

  It was clear from his tone that he thought it was her. “Does this mean you’re going to forbid me to continue our friendship?”

  He dropped Shameless’ foot back to the ground and stood to his full height. “Everybody’s got to make those kinds of decisions for themselves.”

  He put the pick back in the tack box behind her. She turned with him, wanting this settled. “What exactly does that mean?”

  “It means,” he said, reaching out to tuck a strand behind her ear, “that time has a way of making clear who your friends are.” He took a step toward her. Suddenly, he was too close. She took a step back and came up against the warm barrier of Shameless’ side.

  “You’re going to smell all horsey after this,” he informed her.

  After what? she thought desperately while saying aloud, “I like horses.”

  “I can see that.”

  His hand cupped the back of her head. His fingers were doing something to her nape that sent chills down her spine. She couldn’t tell from his expression whether he was angry or amused. All she could tell was that he was very intent.

  “You burrowing into Shameless’ side because you’re afraid?” he asked.

  “I don’t understand you!” she burst out.

  He smiled a slow smile that captured her attention, it was so lazy and full of promise. “You’ll figure me out eventually.”

  She’d prefer now. He stepped forward, until the toes of his boots touched the toes of her shoes. Her heartbeat throbbed in her throat. Was he trying to get even with her for Aaron’s arrogance? “I’m sorry Aaron said what he did.”

  He stroked his finger around her ear. She couldn’t hide the shudder that went down her spine.

  His smile broadened. “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Why are you apologizing for Aaron? He’s a grown man.”

  “He’s a little protective.”

  “I have a good idea who Aaron is and what he’s up to.”

  She swallowed as he shifted forward a bit more. “I don’t think you understand the situation.”

  “As I said before, time has a way of clearing up these matters.”

  His breath whispered across her brow. It suddenly dawned on her that he was planning seduction, not retaliation. “You’re going to kiss me!”

  She wished the words back as soon as they popped out of her mouth.

  His lazy smile spread to a full-fledged grin. “Like I told your neighbor, you keep a man on his toes.”

  She wasn’t sure if she wanted his mouth or not. She expected him to pull her away from the horse. That’s why she wasn’t prepared for his kiss when it came, because, instead of pulling her into his arms, he slid up against her, easing her into an embrace. His mouth brushed hers as his chest settled onto her breasts. Her gasp puffed against his lips. His chuckle vibrated against her chest.

  “You got any objections?” he asked as his mouth slid across her cheek.

  “Yes. No.” Was he actually nibbling on her neck? Goosebumps chased down her arms. She squeezed her eyes tightly closed and confessed on a high squeak, “I don’t know.”

  She felt him pull aside the collar of her shirt. “That’s what I figured.”

  He kissed the spot where her collarbone met her neck. She never knew anything could feel so good. She felt his whole body shift as he draped his arms over Shameless’ back. The move brought his entire body the length of hers. The sensation was so sublime as to be sinful. “Are you sure we should be doing this?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I meant here.”

  “This barn’s off limits for a couple of hours.”

  “A couple of hours!” What in the world did the man intend to do? Last night hadn’t taken more than a couple of minutes!

  “Yup.” He shifted his torso from right to left and then back again. “A newly married man gets to make all sorts of requests.”

  She opened her eyes to find his face eye-blurringly close. “You knew I’d come down to the barn with you?”

  “Gotta admit you made that part real easy.”

  “Why the barn? Why not the house?”

  His features blurred to nothing as he kissed the tip of her nose. “You’re such a practical thing.”

  “That didn’t answer my question.”

  His shrug did strange things to her equilibrium. “Always wanted to spark a girl in a barn.” His mouth brushed hers again in one of those teasing touches. “You ever been sparked?”

  “No.” It was a humiliating confession to be making at her age.

  He leaned back. “Now, that’s a darned shame. How old did you say you were?”

  “I was twenty-two last April.”

  His fingers brushed her temple as he clicked his tongue. “Just a baby.”

  “A lot of women have four or five kids at my age!”

  “I’ll get to work on that right away if you’re set on competing.”

  He tilted his head and pressed a gentle, yet strangely intense kiss on the side of her neck. “I was just making a point,” she gasped.

  His lips parted. She felt the touch of his tongue before he sucked softly, and her knees turned to jelly. “Oh my God!”

  “Easy, darlin’. I’ve got you.”

  His “got you” was the insertion of his knee between her thighs. With a hitch, he lifted her until she was suspended there, straddling his hard thigh, the horse at her back, Asa’s mouth on her neck. It was the most astounding moment of her life.

  “You like that?” he asked. His breath on her neck sent a new spray of goose bumps down her arms.

  She bit her lip and nodded.

  “I’ll keep that in mind.” She couldn’t begrudge the smile she heard in his voice. Her neck felt bereft when he left it to place his mouth on hers.

  “Open your mouth, darlin’.”

  She didn’t hesitate.

  “That’s good.” The words breathed into her mouth didn’t prepare her for the sheer pleasure of his kiss. “Put your arms around my neck.”

  She dragged her arms up from her sides. She felt so lethargic it was hard to do, but she found it much more satisfying when she did. It gave her the leverage she needed to prolong his kiss when he would have pulled away. When he paused for a moment, she tipped her head back, hoping he’d resume his attention to her neck. His response was a chuckle and a total commitment to the task. A restless feeling filled her. Her stomach pulled taut and the area between her thighs felt equally tight and aching. She shifted, trying to ease the sensation. Or increase it. She was no longer sure.

  His big hands splayed over her hips. “Like this,” he whispered in her ear.

  He arched her back, pressing her hips into his thigh while her head rested against Shameless’ side. The sensation as s
he slid down his leg was breath-stealing. Though his hand in the small of her back kept her as he wanted, his lips on her neck were a far better anchor.

  “What are you doing to me?”

  “Just a little innocent sparking.”

  There was nothing innocent about what he was doing to her. It was as sinful as all get out and it was probably a lack in her moral character that she demanded more. “Do it again.”

  “You do it.”

  “I don’t know how.”

  “Like this.” He nipped her neck. The sharp jolt of pleasure ricocheted through her torso up into his. The jerk of her hips dragged her pussy across the rough denim of his pants, abrading her sensitive flesh deliciously.

  “That’s right,” he drawled in her ear when she threw her head back and moaned. His hands on her hips encouraged another slide against his thigh. “Just like riding a horse. Move with me.”

  She’d been riding since she was three. Catching his rhythm was as natural as breathing. His mouth returned to hers, less gentle, more demanding. More in tune with the sensations charging through her body. Her breath came in gasps. Her grip tightened around his shoulders. Her hips took over the rhythm, freeing his hands from the obligation. Her pussy swelled and pouted, increasing the pleasure, the ache. The fire consumed her, spiraling higher. She tore her mouth from Asa’s. She needed air. She needed the freedom to express the feeling exploding through her body She’d have been embarrassed by the moans escaping her if he hadn’t been whispering in her ear how he liked them. How he wanted more.

  His fingers climbed her torso, counting the ribs of her corset. When he reached the fullness of her breast where it swelled over the top of the garment, he flipped his hand and used the tender point of her nipple to count the ladder of his fingers.

  She buried her face in the curve of his neck, afraid of where this was leading. Afraid she wouldn’t care. “Asa!”

  He released her hips. His hands cupped her breasts, weighing their fullness. With a squeeze, he tested their resiliency. “You’re doing fine, darlin’.”

  His thumbs rubbed her nipples, gliding over her cotton shirt in a caress so light, it was almost illusionary. She needed more. She froze when he grasped both nipples simultaneously between his fingers and thumbs. For the space of two heart beats, he did nothing. In those two seconds, she discovered anticipation could be agony.

  When she opened her eyes, he was watching her. The blush started at her toes, but she didn’t look away. She couldn’t. All the feelings she struggled to contain, he wore openly. Proudly. And she wanted to release all that passion, to experience it. To feel it pour over her in a sensual rush. She slid her fingers into his hair. The strands were cool and soft against her flesh. A balm to her over-stretched nerves. “Please,” she whispered, holding his dark gaze with hers.

  The pressure on her nipples increased, stopping just short of pain, holding her on the edge.

  “Just lean back and trust me,” he drawled.

  She couldn’t. She wanted to, but she couldn’t give up the pleasure she’d attained. If she moved back, it would be gone.

  He bent his head. A sharp twinge in her breast immediately blossomed to pleasure, surprising her enough to scoot back. She stared into Asa’s face. His smile was sensuous. His expression intense.

  “You bit my bubbies!”

  His breathing was as labored as hers. “Lean back and I’ll do it again.”

  She did, and he did. Gently. Thoroughly. It was almost too much. He squeezed and tugged her nipples with his lips as his hands worked her on his thigh. She tossed her head from side to side, trying to find release from the agony within. “Asa!”

  “Jesus!” He was lifting her, tugging at her clothes, pushing her skirts away from between them. His hands were hot under her thighs. Even through the thin cotton of her pantaloons, she could feel their power. He lifted her. His teeth on her breast through her shirt distracted her from the intimacy of their position. She wrapped her fingers in his hair and forced his mouth harder on her breast.

  “Put your legs around me.”

  She did, mindlessly obeying. The hard ridge of his cock burned hot and huge against her crotch. The pulsing pressure took her higher. Every nerve stretched to the breaking point. Reaching for release. “I can’t stand it,” she gasped.

  “Not yet,” he ordered, his face inches from hers, every plane etched with the passion taking them both.

  “What?”

  “I want to see.”

  She had no idea what he was talking about, but when his mouth left her breast, she groaned and pulled, but he didn’t respond. His hands gripped her hips anew. With relentless force, he slid her pussy over his cock. >From top to bottom, he let her slide. Her pantaloons, slick with her juices, caught at her pussy lips, tugging at her already sensitive flesh, adding another biting element of sensation. She moaned and twisted, pressing harder. Striving.

  “That’s it, darlin’. Ride me. All the way.”

  He repeated the motion, elongating the contact, forcing her to take more. Their combined gasps filled the barn, drowning out the soft sounds of horses shifting and pigeons roosting. The world dwindled until it only consisted of his touch, his breath, his will. She locked her ankles and pulled closer. It wasn’t close enough. Every thought, every sensation, her world focused on the point where her hips met his. The pleasure built until it was too much. Something was happening.

  “Help!”

  “Go with it,” he whispered hoarsely. She opened her eyes. His gaze locked with hers. Had she not been so far gone, his expression would have frightened her. He shifted their bodies until his hand could reach between them. His fingers grazed her swollen flesh, tracing the curves lightly, sending whispery darts of delight weaving through the heavy drive of pleasure grinding through her loins. With a firm tap on her clit, he forced all the sensation rampaging through her body to coalesce in one burning, aching, unbearably sensitive point of agony.

  “Now,” he ordered. At the same time, he thrust his hips into hers, grabbed her swollen clit in his fingers, pinching and tugging with relentless demand. One she was helpless to refuse. Her senses shattered on a scream that echoed forever.

  Chapter Eight

  He knew the minute the reality of the situation hit her. Her body, leaning so softly against his, stiffened one muscle at a time, starting at the base of her spine and spreading outward.

  He sighed. “I suppose this is where you start fretting on my reputation?”

  “Would you think me horribly selfish if I admit I’m more concerned with my own?”

  He laughed softly. “I suppose I could make allowances.”

  Her “thanks” was a dry husk of embarrassment.

  His stomach chose that moment to rumble loudly. She leapt on the sound like a kitten meeting a grasshopper. “You’re hungry.”

  Her words vibrated against his chest.

  “I told you, darlin’. I’ve been dreaming on that cobbler since sun-up.”

  “I gave the last to Aaron.”

  “You don’t sound guilty.”

  The jerk of her shoulders under his hand could have been laughter. “I’m sorry.”

  “That’s the most insincere apology I’ve heard in all my days.”

  “Would I be redeemed if I admit I baked a cake this morning?”

  “Depends on what kind.”

  This time, he knew it was a laugh. Husky and sweet, slightly smothered by his shirt. “You’re not fooling me, you know.”

  “Not fooling you how?” he asked.

  “I heard your heart jump a beat when I mentioned cake.”

  “That’s cheating.”

  She looked up from his chest. Despite the redness of her cheeks, she met his gaze squarely. Not much kept the woman down. He admired that.

  “I bet I could ask for anything right now and you’d give it to me,” she told him.

  “That’d be a sucker’s bet, so I won’t be taking you up on it,” he countered. “But it doesn’t have an
ything to do with that cake you baked.”

  He didn’t think her face could get any redder, but she proved him wrong. “I’ll make you a deal.”

  She about strangled on the words, but he admired the fortitude that kept her fighting when she was so obviously handicapped by modesty.

  “Shoot.”

  “You don’t mention my outrageous behavior here, and I’ll put frosting on that cake.”

  Saliva filled his mouth. “Chocolate cake with frosting?”

  “Yes.” She pushed out of his arms, collided with Shameless’ side, and sidestepped out of range as if she expected him to be getting ideas again.

  “You drive a hard bargain.” He was hard put to hold his laughter in. Did she really think stepping out of his arms would make him forget how good she felt?

  “Is it a deal?” she asked, swatting her skirts as if the wrinkles were responsible for her lapse from proper behavior.

  “Depends,” he drawled.

  “On what?”

  “On whether you plan on doing it again.”

  “Mr. MacIntyre!”

  He stared at her. Her skirt was hopelessly wrinkled. Her hair was half down. Her neck sported a small love bruise. Her lips were swollen. On the whole, she was the spitting image of a woman who’d been tumbled in the barn. And she was back to calling him Mister? He reached out and straightened her bun. It immediately lurched to the other side. “Don’t you think you could bring yourself to call me Asa?”

  Her hands flew to her hair. “Oh, my goodness!” She centered the knot of hair on her head and held on for dear life. “I must look a fright.”

  “I like it.”

  She glared at him while clinging to her hair as if it alone had the last grip on her dignity. “I can’t believe you let me stand here, carrying on a conversation, while totally, totally…unpresentable!”

  “There’s not a thing wrong with your looks.”

  If glares could kill, he’d be dead for his teasing. She released her hair and started fussing with her clothes. Small gasps of dismay punctuated her twisting this way and that. Finally, the burst of energy ended in a total stillness. “I’ll never make it back to the house.”

  Her voice was as accepting as her expression. He had no idea why she put such stock in being ‘presentable’ but she did. “You promise to put chocolate frosting on that cake and I’ll get you to the house without anyone being the wiser.”