Shoulda Been A Cowboy: Rough Riders, Book 7

by Lorelei James

  “Can’t a girl stop by her favorite brother’s house and tell him she misses him?”

  He snorted. “What do you want?”

  “Nothing. I’m headed to Cheyenne. I wondered if you needed anything from the VA while I’m there.”

  “No.” He squinted at her behind his shades. “What’re you doin’ at the VA again?” For the last couple years Keely spent at least one week out of every month at the VA in Cheyenne, but she never divulged the details to anyone, which was completely unlike her.

  “Moonlighting. They’re short staffed and I’m short on cash so it’s a perfect partnership. I work PT two days this week, then I’ll be back.” A weary sigh escaped. “I sure am tired of living out of a suitcase with Mom and Dad while I’m working out the details of going to work for Doc Monroe.”

  “Sucks to be you.” Now he knew what was behind her impromptu visit.

  “Cam, I’m just gonna say this flat out. Please let me live with you until I get my own place. I’d pay rent. I’d cook and clean and—”

  “Keely, darlin’. Stop. I love you. But it won’t work. I need my own space.”

  “Space to do what? To keep your family out? How long are you going to make Mom and Dad and our other brothers suffer and hope you’ll pull your head out of your ass and join the goddamn family again? How much longer are you going to wallow in misery? Jesus. Why don’t you build a fuckin’ moat to protect yourself from us? Do you really need this much space to hide in?”

  No, I need it to fuck in was on the tip of his tongue but he bit it back. “That smartass answer ain’t helpin’ your cause, little sis.”

  “Sorry. But—”

  “But nothin’. I’m not exactly a hermit. I am seeing Domini. And Brock crashed here last night—”

  “Brock was here? Really? How is he?”

  “Good. Why?” With Keely’s suddenly chipper disposition, followed immediately by her hesitation, Cam guessed the truth. “For Christsake! You slept with him!”

  She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel—the adult equivalent of jamming her fingers in her ears and singing la la la.

  “When?”

  “Cam—”

  “I don’t believe this. Jesus, Keely! He’s like, ten years older than you. He’s my best friend and you…what the fuck were you thinking?”

  Keely lowered her sunglasses and glared at him. “I’m thinking I’m not twelve, Cam. Yeah, Brock and I made mattress angels when he visited you in Cheyenne. I could bullshit you about how we comforted each other because we were torn up over your situation, but the truth is…Brock is really freakin’ hot. He’s sweet and sexy and I like him a lot. I trusted him. It sort of just happened. We both knew it’d never go anywhere, and I have not a single regret.”

  Brock and his sister. Surreal.

  “Please don’t go all psycho big brother on him and threaten to kick his ass or anything, okay? I know he’s your best friend. I would never do anything to sabotage that friendship because I know how important it is to both of you. Which is why neither of us said anything.”

  “Fine.” He pointed at her. “But this is the reason you can’t live with me.”

  “Because I slept with Brock?”

  “No, because your behavior drives me insane. And my house is the one place where no insanity exists.”

  “You suck.”

  “Yep.” Cam smiled. “Drive safe.”

  “I always do.”

  Her tires spit gravel for twenty feet before the rubber caught pavement.

  Safe. Right. Keely was a menace. He oughta write her a damn ticket.

  ***

  Domini was restocking the pie case after the lunch rush when Deputy McKay strolled in.

  Normally he’d wave off the waitress and head to his favorite booth if it was unoccupied. Not today.

  Today Cam strode directly to her. The gleam in his eye was unmistakable.

  No hello. No smile. Cam just planted his lips on hers and kissed her with passion, hunger and total possession.

  In public.

  The only place they touched were lips and tongues until Cam reached for her hand, sweeping his ragged thumb across her knuckles. Domini’s knees threatened to buckle. This man could undo her with a simple touch.

  Finally, he eased back and smiled at her. “Hi.”

  She blinked at him. Their faces were close enough his breath teased her damp lips. Seeing such pleasure in his eyes, his smile, even his posture, made her throw caution to the wind. She returned his kiss with the same potent lust.

  Cam’s growl was too low for anyone else to hear, but to her it sounded as loud as a lion’s roar.

  Domini broke the kiss in tiny nipping increments. She smiled up at him. “Hi yourself. What are you doing here?”

  “I needed coffee.”

  “Have a seat and I’ll bring you a cup.”

  He squeezed her hand. “That was a lie. I needed to see you. I need to talk to you.”

  Her stomach cartwheeled like a tumbleweed. “About?”

  “Last night.” Cam tossed a look over his shoulder. “Is there someplace more private than the dining room?”

  Domini glanced around. Only three tables had customers, but everyone was watching them. The rumor about Cam’s surprising public display of affection would fuel the gossip fires all day.

  “Can’t this wait?”

  “No.”

  “My office is in the back, but I’ll warn you it’s the size of a coat closet.”

  “That’s fine.”

  She stopped at the waitress station and poured two cups of coffee, handing one to him. They wove through the cardboard boxes of produce stacked in the prep area. She unlocked her office. “I’ll get another chair.”

  Cam pushed the door closed. And locked it. That unholy gleam was back in his eyes. “No need. I’ll sit in the chair. You sit on the desk facing me.”

  His posture read: don’t argue. Domini shoved aside the papers littering her desk and kicked the chair against the wall giving them both room.

  But after Cam’s ass hit the seat, he rolled the chair up to the desk. Right into her space. He didn’t touch her. He studied her intently as he nonchalantly sipped his coffee.

  “What? You’re making me nervous.”

  “Are you okay after last night’s threesome?”

  She blushed.

  “Does that blush mean you’re not okay with what happened?”

  Domini focused on him, but his eyes were flat, as if he were interrogating a suspect. “If I wasn’t okay with it what could I do about it now? It’s over.” Her hands tightened on the coffee mug. “Unless that’s why you’re here? You’re wanting to demand a three-peat?”

  “Fuck no.” He gulped his coffee and set the cup aside. He curled his hands around her knees. “After you left I wondered if the situation with Brock bothered you…if I’d gone too far because you practically ran out of my house when it was over.”

  “And if I say yes, you’d gone too far. What then?”

  “Then I’ll ask your forgiveness and assure you it won’t happen again.”

  The conversation sent a jolt of power zinging through her. Rather than remind him she’d already confessed she wasn’t a threesome girl, Domini decided to do something bold for a change and…toy with Cam a little. Make him sweat. She gazed at him with aloofness, casually finishing her coffee. “And if I say…no? If I admit I liked it? What then?”

  The muscle in Cam’s jaw popped he’d clenched his teeth so hard. His nostrils flared. His eyebrows were squished together. Yet for all his agitation, the pressure of his hands on her legs didn’t increase at all.

  When he didn’t respond, Domini prompted, “What then?”

  Cam inched toward her. “My answer is still no. Fuck. No. I had plenty of time to think about it, too, and know what I’ve determined, princess?”

  Holy moly. Maybe she shouldn’t have taunted him.

  “I don’t like to see another man’s hands on you. I don’t like to see ano
ther man’s cock in you. Last night with Brock I realized I don’t like to share, especially not you. And you don’t need two men in your bed to satisfy you. You need one man. Me.” He pushed out of the chair and crowded her. “Any questions?”

  Was the thrilling sense of belonging only to Cam McKay…wrong? If so, too bad, Domini absolutely gloried in it.

  “I said, any questions?”

  “No.”

  “Good. Now c’mere. I’ll make you forget every man’s touch but mine.”

  Cam’s mouth was hot and controlling. He clamped his hands on her behind, yanking her forward until barely an inch of her butt cheeks rested on the desk. He broke from marauding her mouth to demand, “Undo your pants.”

  After loosening the drawstring, the white chefs pants were baggy enough Cam easily snuck his hand inside.

  He lightly traced the seam of her panties before his fingers slipped beneath the lace band. He parted the wet folds of her sex and probed her entrance with one finger, then two. “I love how fast you heat up for me.” He pressed his fingers deeper and trailed openmouthed kisses down her throat. “I love to make you come. I wish I had time to spread you across the desk and lick away all this sweet cream. Make you come against my tongue. Then I’d do it again, making you wetter and hotter. Making you come over and over until I had to carry you out of here because you couldn’t walk. I’d carry you straight upstairs to your bed and fuck you until you screamed.”

  She let her head fall back and withheld a moan when Cam slid his middle finger to her clit and started the rapid flicking that caused her whole body to vibrate like a tuning fork.

  “More?” he murmured.

  “Yes.”

  Between his blistering kiss and the attention to her clit, Domini’s speedy climax bowled her over. She whimpered through each pulse, grateful Cam’s mouth muffled her cries.

  When she opened her eyes, Cam was staring at her. Very possessively.

  “I can look at you from here on out and know no man has touched you but me.”

  That statement was true in so many ways.

  “I want your hands on me, Domini. Now.”

  She unhooked his belt buckle and lowered the zipper. The weight of his gun and cuffs on his pants dropped them to his hips. His cock jerked against her fingers as she slipped her hand beneath his briefs and circled his hard shaft.

  He hissed. “Stroke me hard. Don’t squeeze too tight but pull harder and faster than you think you should.” He put his hand on top of hers. “Like this.”

  Oh wow. That was more forceful than she dared try. But with Cam’s guidance she created an unbroken rhythm that brought forth his deep groans and gave her that heady sense of power again.

  He buried his lips in her hair and his choppy breathing drifted over her ear. His hips started pumping faster, “Yes. Don’t stop. I’m right…there. Jesus.” He cupped his hand around the tip as she kept stroking until warm, thick liquid coated both their hands.

  Domini squeezed one last time and he grunted.

  Cam’s lips sought hers. His kiss wasn’t sweet, but flirty. Teasing. He smiled against her mouth. “I didn’t show up here hoping that’d happen, but I won’t complain it did.”

  “Me either.” She reached for the box of tissues and cleaned both their hands while she continued the playful kisses.

  He stepped back and righted his clothing. “I want to see you tonight. I’m giving you fair warning that you’re mine. All mine.”

  “Got big plans for us?”

  “Yep.” Cam flashed a devilish grin. “But first, turn around and close your eyes.”

  Her heart skipped a beat when he brushed her hair from the nape of her neck. Cool metal caressed her collarbone. Automatically her hand rose to touch it.

  “Cam? What is this?” She looked down at the delicate silver links that formed a chain necklace.

  “A gift.”

  “You didn’t have to—”

  His strong, warm hand closed over hers. “I wanted to give you something that’s a symbol. A reminder.”

  “Of?”

  “Me,” he whispered silkily. “Will you wear it for me, Domini?”

  Was this necklace a tangible symbol of his…ownership? And why in the heck didn’t that very idea bother her? Why was she absurdly touched?

  Domini squeezed his fingers. “Yes, I’ll wear it for you, Cam.”

  She felt him grin against her cheek. “Good. I’ll pick you up after my shift ends tonight. Be ready.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Three hours left on his shift. What a long boring night. Thank God he could spice up his dull thoughts by replaying last night’s events.

  Talk about a blazing encounter. He’d taken Domini to his favorite spot, an overlook where the view of the high plains stretched for miles. The stars were bright, the air was cool and her body had been red-hot. Being in the great outdoors had stirred the beast in him. He’d answered the call of the wild and shown her a truly dominant male.

  Cam had made her strip then spread her out on a blanket in the back of his truck. While feasting on her juicy pussy, he’d introduced her to one of his favorite toys—a beaded butt plug. After she came with a sexy shriek that echoed across the plateau, he fucked her so hard the truck bounced. After he roared his release, he heated them both up again with the rough kisses and insistent caresses she craved. Then Cam removed the plug, pushed her over a fallen log and reamed her ass, riding her without mercy, keeping her head down, keeping his hand around her throat, around the necklace that was proof of his possession.

  She’d loved every second of her total surrender to him. He’d made sure of it.

  “Deputy McKay, please respond.”

  Snapped out of his lewd thoughts, he responded, “This is Deputy McKay, dispatch, go ahead.”

  “Multiple vehicle accident on Highway 74A. Officer on scene is reporting multiple fatalities. We’ve called in all available units, as well as first responders from Search and Rescue from Weston County. They’ve confirmed they’re en route.”

  “What happened?”

  “A temperature inversion at the bottom of Shep’s Canyon caused heavy fog. Due to slick road conditions, a semi misjudged the curve and jackknifed, blocking both lanes. Approaching vehicles didn’t see the accident until they were right upon it. Sayzers is reporting at least four vehicles are involved at this point, two confirmed DOA, so use extreme caution when approaching scene.”

  “What am I looking for?”

  “Mile marker forty-one.”

  “Has the fog lifted?”

  “Affirmative.”

  “My ETA at mile marker forty-one is approximately six minutes.”

  “Roger that. And…Deputy, please be aware that if another law enforcement choice were available, we wouldn’t be sending you to deal with this…situation.”

  Cam’s knuckles went white on the steering wheel. Son of a bitch. That was dispatch’s way of warning he knew the victims.

  Fuck. He tried to rein in his fear as his mind checked names off the list of possibilities. His parents were home. Ditto for Colby, Cord, and their families. Carter and his brood were in Canyon River. Keely was in Cheyenne. Colt and Indy were at an A.A. meeting in Sundance and wouldn’t have reason to be on the back road going into Moorcroft.

  His stomach twisted into a mass of knots. Kade traveled this road every day. As did his wife, Skylar. He swallowed hard against the bile rising in his throat.

  Didn’t mean it was them. It could be anyone.

  That thought didn’t alleviate his fears.

  He looked up just as mile marker forty passed by. Less than a mile now.

  There was no way to mentally prepare himself, but there was no way to blank it out either. The darkness of the isolated location morphed into an eerie otherworld as red, blue and amber strobe lights flashed. He slowed.

  Pieces of twisted metal, chunks of plastic taillights littered the road. His gaze landed on the semi. One white mega-cab pickup was embedded in the side of t
he semi-trailer. His gaze tracked the headlights spilling across the road from an unnatural angle. Another car was upside down on the shoulder, the front end crushed into the front seat. The roof was caved in and glass from the broken windshield covered the roadway. Two workers were attempting to remove the driver’s side door and they weren’t hurrying.

  His belly lurched. Chances were slim whoever was in that car had survived.

  Orange cones and flashers lined the perimeter, although no one manned the area. Leaving his flashers on, he donned his reflective vest and forced himself out of the patrol car.

  Cam’s feet were dragging—for once not because he had an artificial leg. He’d seen car accidents in his time as a deputy. Hell, he’d witnessed some damn gruesome car bombings in his years in the army, but none of the incidents involved someone he knew.

  Fred, the part-time EMT, motioned him over. “Deputy, are we taking the victims to the hospital?”

  The guy didn’t mean to the hospital for treatment; he meant to the hospital since it also housed the county morgue. Cam cleared his throat. “Yes.”

  “I’m supposed to tell you to track down Sheriff Shortbull right away.”

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s on the other side of the semi, dealing with the accidents over there.”

  A two-lane highway meant wreckage on both sides. His eyes flicked over the body on the stretcher, covered with a sheet.

  As Cam debated the fastest, safest way to proceed to the other side, Sheriff Shortbull appeared around the front end of the semi. The normally gregarious man was dragging his feet too.

  “McKay.”

  “Sheriff.”

  Pause.

  Shortbull rubbed his top lip with the back of his hand. “Did Jolene tell you—”

  “No. She didn’t tell me anything besides to prepare myself.”

  “There ain’t any easy way to say this.”

  “Then just say it flat out.” Just don’t say Kade. Or Skylar. Or Buck. Or anyone else in my family. Please. Don’t say it.

  “One of the confirmed victims on the other side is Luke.”

  Cam’s chest constricted. “Luke? As in my cousin Luke McKay? You’re sure?”

  “Yes. Dammit, Cam, I’m so sorry.”

  Jesus. What the hell was Luke doing out here? That thought vanished and Cam’s head snapped up. “Was his wife Jessie with him?”