Ride ’em Hard 6
The Reluctant Virgin
Cindy Taylor has reinvented herself after a childhood she’d rather forget. It’s seven years later when she’s forced to return to her hometown on business. She’s a new woman with the same deep-seated vulnerabilities thanks to her disability.
Her regular client, Josh Granger, and two men from her past, Matthew Garner and Chance Anderson, are all hell-bent on making her theirs. But Cindy can’t bring herself to reveal her secret, choosing to live a lie instead. She wants nothing more than to experience the sexual fantasies these men promise, but her fear of rejection is just as strong.
Cindy will have to overcome her personal demons if she’s to experience the happily ever after she was certain would pass her by. It’s a race against time because the men won’t wait around forever, and Cindy is the most reluctant virgin.
Genre: Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre, Western/Cowboys
Length: 44,208 words
THE RELUCTANT VIRGIN
Ride ’em Hard 6
Stacey Espino
MENAGE AMOUR
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Ménage Amour
THE RELUCTANT VIRGIN
Copyright © 2012 by Stacey Espino
E-book ISBN: 978-1-62241-130-6
First E-book Publication: August 2012
Cover design by Jinger Heaston All cover art and logo copyright © 2012 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
Dear Readers,
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This is Stacey Espino’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Ms. Espino’s right to earn a living from her work.
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DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to the three lovely ladies who won my recent Name That Cowboy contest.
Jackie Wisherd came up with the name Josh Granger.
Tamara Hoffa came up with the name Chance.
Cindy Gall insisted I name the heroine after her. :)
Thank you!
THE RELUCTANT VIRGIN
Ride ’em Hard 6
STACEY ESPINO
Copyright © 2012
Chapter One
“This is why you called me all the way out here?” Cindy Taylor tightened one of clamps on a connecting pipe and then rose to her feet. The sun was still low on the horizon, the ground not yet dry from the morning dew.
“Couldn’t have done it without you, Ms. Taylor,” said Chance. He leaned against the side of an outbuilding chewing on a piece of straw. She felt his heated stare when she’d been on all fours with her wrench, and those penetrating blue eyes hadn’t let up. “Mr. Oakley told me to call anytime I had trouble.”
She frowned and took a deep breath. “Chance, you know darn well you’re capable of tightening a bolt on your own.”
He shrugged, a guilty smirk on his face. Why did he have to look so damn sexy? She’d been crushing on the cowboy drifter for five years but refused to act on her desires.
“I have an important sales call up north later today, and I can’t be late. If that’s all you need help with, I’ll be leaving,” she said, bending to pick up her tool case.
Chance Anderson loved to push her buttons, calling her every week for maintenance help that a child could handle. He was born and raised a cowboy—taught to do things for himself rather than ask for handouts. She’d only known life on a working ranch, so she knew the cowboy code well. But for some reason, beyond her comprehension, he seemed to enjoy her company. She never encouraged him and wasn’t a flirt. In fact, she was especially curt in an attempt to stifle his interest. It didn’t work.
Cindy could admit to being attracted to the dirty-blond laborer. He was cute with a hard, sun-kissed body. There weren’t many men she allowed under her skin, but there was something genuine about Chance that brought down her hackles. He didn’t try to be someone he wasn’t. What she saw was what she got, and she appreciated that honesty.
But to support his frequent advances would be pointless. He was a drifter, working as a hired hand on different ranches during busy seasons. Nothing serious could develop between them. That she was sure of.
Cindy walked to her truck, the sharp crunch of gravel beneath her boots. As soon as she swung open the whiny, metal door, Chance closed it with a hand high above hers. She dropped her case, the tools spilling on the driveway with a clatter. He’d moved so fast that her breath caught. She turned, pressing her back to the driver’s side. He’d never been so forward.
“What’re you doing?”
“What is it about me that’s so repulsive? I know you’re not a married woman, so it must be me.”
She exhaled, looking to the ground. “Chance, if I had a dollar for every pick-up line I heard on the job I’d be able to buy my own place by now. I’m here to do my job. Nothing more.”
“You quoted this irrigation system five years ago. Lord knows I’ve tried to get on your good side since then.” He pinned her between his arms. His plaid shirt was rolled up to his elbows, his muscled forearms supporting his weight as he leaned slightly forward. The man even smelled good, a mix of masculine musk, clean sweat, and horses. The essence of an Albertan cowboy, and she wasn’t immune.
“And these frivolous calls are supposed
to win me over?”
Cindy wanted to get in her truck and drive. Far away from Chance and an offer she so desperately wanted to accept…but couldn’t.
“It’s the only way I can spend a few minutes time with you, darlin’. You’re always busy with work, and to this day you haven’t agreed to any of my dinner offers.”
“Then maybe you should take all that into consideration, Chance. Not every woman is ready to drop her panties because you flash them a smile.” She’d seen the women sniffing around him. He usually entered all the local rodeo events, even travelling to neighboring towns on occasion. She’d seen Chance with other women, and it had stirred the green-eyed monster inside her, but she never acted on it. He wasn’t hers. Cindy knew for a fact there were a slew of buckle bunnies ready to bring all his fantasies to life. She could never compete with that.
He moved his right hand to secure her chin and then tilted her head back slightly so she could look him in the eyes. “I’ve been a gentleman, have I not? I only wanted a chance to know you better. Nothin’ like you’re thinking.”
She closed her eyes for a moment, feeling like a complete bitch. She had no reasonable excuse to give him. Why couldn’t he give up like every other man? They all did given enough time. For five years Chance had tried to court her without fail. He worked the Connery Ranch every season, using their irrigation system as an excuse to get closer to her. Chance wasn’t a lazy man. He was a hard-working, dedicated cowboy. But he always had time for her or these silly house calls he used as a justification to get her to stop by. It was flattering in a way. Half the women in town had eyes for Chance Anderson. But Cindy could never take a relationship past a certain level. If he saw her with her clothes off she’d be humiliated, reminded of a childhood she wanted forgotten, and never be able to recover from seeing revulsion in his eyes. It was the reason she found it safer not to get too close to men at all. And the reason she gladly followed her parents out of their hometown to start fresh. It may be a shallow way to live, but it was the best she had given the cards she’d been dealt.
“I have to go,” she reminded him. Cindy wasn’t willing to have this discussion. Not now and certainly not with Chance. She was beginning to believe he was her Achilles’ heel, so avoidance was a necessity.
He continued to hold her chin, trying to maintain eye contact. His body was temptingly close, so tall and broad next to hers.
“Not until you promise me one night. Dinner. Nothing more.”
“That’s immoral, Chance. You can’t inspire love in another person.”
“Who’s talking about love, Ms. Taylor? Just dinner is all. Tomorrow night, what do you say?”
She bit the inside of her lip hard enough to draw blood. It was her poor attempt at keeping her mouth shut when every fiber of her being wanted to take him up on his offer. She was only human, with needs and wants she kept under lock and key. But what harm could dinner be? Maybe it would shut him up when he saw firsthand that she wasn’t interested in taking things beyond a first date.
“Fine.”
Chance smiled, looking years younger and adorable. “Thank you. Was that so hard?” He leaned all the way down and kissed her. Not on the lips, but next to her mouth. It felt like the whole world was in that brief kiss. Her body lit up as if jolted with life for the first time.
“Terribly.” They crouched down at the same time, nearly bumping heads. She started collecting her tools, knowing she had to get off the property quickly. If her heart beat any faster, she was likely to pass out.
Cindy climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine. Chance stood in the yard with his thumbs in the front loops of his jeans, watching her leave. Part of her regretted not being able to stay with him longer. She hit the gas so hard that she left a spray of gravel in her wake. As she put distance between herself and the Connery Ranch, she could finally begin to breathe again. What was she thinking agreeing a dinner date?
She had one more quick house call to make. Cindy took the back road to the Donner Ranch. It was one of the larger operations in town, and they had an even larger staff than at the Connery Ranch.
After dropping off the new lengths of PVC pipe that she had in her truck bed, Johnny handed her the money owed to her boss, Mr. Oakley. Johnny Donner was the owner’s son and a worse flirt than Chance. Only she didn’t have eyes for him. There was something counterfeit about the young cowboy that brought out her hackles. She leaned against her truck door and counted the money. The land was warming up as the sun rose in the morning sky. She could feel the soothing heat on her cheeks.
Cindy knew the young rancher was watching her every move, lusting, and hoping she’d jump at the chance to bed a playboy like him. He didn’t know who he was messing with. Cindy was a stickler for keeping professional on the job—not including her recent blunder with Chance. And she couldn’t be bought. She certainly wouldn’t throw away her career for a quick roll in the hay with a sweaty cowboy. They were more abundant than horseflies in her line of work.
“You’re prettier than a summer rose—” he started.
She rolled up the wad of cash and pushed it deep into the front pocket of her Levi’s. Cindy tilted her Stetson. “Nice doing business with you, Johnny. You call me when you’re in need of more supplies.”
Johnny frowned, likely used to getting everything he wanted. Today he let her leave, probably realizing she was more trouble than she was worth. He was no different than any other cowboy—bound to try his luck when a female irrigation specialist showed up instead of a man. It didn’t faze her in most cases.
Cindy drove off the property and parked on the side of the road about a mile up. Butterflies had been fluttering in her stomach all week. Tonight she had to return to her hometown for business. She’d asked the owner of Oakley Irrigation to reconsider sending her back to the one place she’d avoided since she turned twenty, but he insisted she was the most qualified for the job. There wasn’t a thing she didn’t know about her line of work. With the unpredictable nature of the weather in Alberta, more and more farmers were switching over to modern equipment. And Oakley was one of the leading distributors in the area.
Her cellphone rang. She grabbed it off the passenger seat. “Cindy Taylor.”
“Darlin’, where you at?”
“I’m on the road, Mr. Oakley.”
“On your way to the Granger Ranch, I hope.”
She loved the old man like a second father. He’d built the company into what it was but had a hard time embracing the modern world—computer programs, Internet, and digitized order forms.
“Yes, sir. I should be there by dinner hour.”
“Good girl. You get that account for me, and make me proud.”
“I’ll do my best.”
Josh Granger. She remembered him well. Although she’d left town seven years ago, she could envision him with perfect clarity in her mind. He had the bluest eyes and a teasing smile that brought out her shyness. His family had moved into town only a couple years before she’d left, so Cindy hoped he didn’t know her secret. She was bound to run into many old faces, forcing her to relive a life she wanted forgotten. The best she could do would be to stay out of public places, complete her job, and then get the hell out of Dodge.
Cindy stopped by her family ranch to pick up a few product samples before her long drive north. Her mother was sitting on the porch, rocking on her bench swing.
“I missed you this morning,” said Cindy as she walked towards the house.
“You left before the sun rose. Are you home for lunch?” Her mother was knitting a white layette for a neighbor due with her first child. Cindy knew she’d rather be making one for her own daughter. But that day may never come at the rate she was going. She had no husband, no boyfriend, no prospects, and no real desire to change any of it. Cindy had originally told herself she was only living with her parents until she saved enough money for her own little place. But that promise was seven years in the making, and she was still in the same predicame
nt. She had little saved and grew more distant emotionally each passing year.
“No, I had a couple house calls, and now I’m heading to the Granger Ranch. Just needed a few supplies first.”
Her mother set her knitting to the side, a look of concern softening her features. Her blonde hair was rolled up in a loose knot. Everyone said she looked exactly like Cindy when she was younger. “You sure you’re okay with that? I know Mr. Oakley would understand if you told him you weren’t comfortable heading back there.”
She shook her head. “It’s okay, Ma. I’m not the same girl I was at twenty. I’ll be just fine.” The girl she was years ago was lost, never to be found again. Cindy had reinvented herself, started over, with no looking back. She only hoped her heavy emotional guards would stay intact once faced with the painful memories of her childhood years.
Only her parents had stood by her side through thick and thin. She wished she could give them the grandchildren they dreamt of, but she doubted she’d ever find a man willing to accept her for who she was—faults and all.
Cindy headed out, ready to get her assignment over with. Maybe she wouldn’t see Josh Granger at all. If she was lucky, she’d only deal with his father. She rolled the window partially down and turned up the music. The country twang instantly soothed her, bringing down her rising nerves. She’d accomplished a lot since she left her home town, and she was proud of herself. After taking a two year course in agricultural management, she was hired on by Oakley Irrigation. Now Cindy was an independent working woman with a strong name in the trade. It felt good to make her own money, not needing to rely on anyone for charity. She would have had a lot more savings, but her goal was to pay off her parents’ mortgage so they could have some peace in their retirement years.
The Reluctant Virgin [Ride 'em Hard 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 1
