“We’ll be there,” Brett said and led Jessie up the steps and down the long hall. She hurried to keep up as he pulled her into the first door on the left. Before Jessie had a chance to look around at her surroundings, Brett drew her into his arms and kissed her.
His mouth didn’t waste any time coaxing hers into responding as she raised herself on her toes and parted her lips to meet the urgent stroking of his tongue. She felt as if she were dying from the sensations he was causing in her. Soon she forgot her fears of meeting his family, or being away from the farm. The only thing on Jessie’s mind was being in Brett’s arms.
He seemed to feel the same as his hold tightened, crushing her against him so she became boldly aware of the effect she was having on him. Jessie gasped, and he swallowed the sound with another hungry kiss.
“God! I’ve wanted to do this ever since I picked you up this morning.” He took a breath before he kissed her again. “I can’t get enough of you.”
Jessie couldn’t get enough of Brett, either. But this wasn’t the place. “Brett, what about your mother?”
He smiled. “I think this is the first time you didn’t ask me not to kiss you. Are you weakening to my charms?”
She ignored his question. “We have to go to lunch.”
“I’d rather stay here with you,” he teased. “Think they’ll miss us?”
“I think so.”
“And knowing Mom, she’d probably send Jenny up.”
Although the Murdocks were very cordial to her and Katie, Jessie, too, would rather stay here with Brett. But she knew that anyplace alone with Brett wasn’t smart or safe. She walked to the windows. “I should change into a dress.” She drew back the white sheers and took advantage of her high perch to examine the area. Below her were two big white barns and a corral filled with several horses.
“Why? It’s just lunch.” Brett came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “We don’t have a dress code here, Jess. I’m wearing jeans. So stop worrying about my mother, she always wears a dress.”
“I just don’t want your family to think...”
Brett turned Jessie around to face him and saw the fear in her eyes. He glanced down at her red blouse and jeans. She even had on a pair of new boots. Her short dark hair curled around her heart-shaped face. Just looking at her made his body react. “They’ll think you look perfect. And don’t change, because I want to take you riding when it starts cooling off.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh, it’s been so long since I’ve gone riding.”
“Good, I want to show you around the place. I have a meeting in Dallas right after lunch, but I’ll be back by four. I’m sure my sister and mother will be happy to entertain you while I’m gone.” He kissed her nose and left.
Once he was gone, Jessie sank onto the floral bedspread on the big bed. She glanced around the light blue room and wondered if she was going to survive the weekend.
* * *
Later that afternoon, Brett took Jessie on a tour of one of the horse barns. There were twelve mares lined up in stalls, waiting to be serviced by one of the Murdock ranch quarter-horse studs.
“This is Ty’s business. He’s the horseman in the family. Our grandfather, Zach Murdock, was one of the best in Texas. Tyler inherited our grandfather’s ability with animals.”
They stopped at one of the stalls and Jessie stroked the horse’s nose. “You seem to be pretty good at handling horses.”
“I do fine, but I don’t have the talent or the patience to train a good cutting horse like my brother does.” He leaned against the stall railing. “Before Maggie came along, I used to think that Ty was better with horses than with people.” He shook his head. “The change in him is unbelievable.”
“Just goes to show you what the love of a good woman will do,” a deep voice rang out in the quiet barn.
They both turned to find another Murdock. Tyler, Jessie guessed. He was a little taller than Brett, but they both had incredibly broad shoulders. Tyler had deep-set eyes, dark brown like Jenny’s, but the slight dimple in his chin was definitely his alone. His hair was brown and it fell against his forehead, daring to be brushed back. Then he smiled and she saw the resemblance to Brett.
“Hi, you must be Jessie. I’m Ty.” He extended a callused hand. “Hope my brother isn’t filling you with tall tales.”
“He was just telling me about your talent with horses.”
Tyler shrugged and the lines around his mouth deepened. “I had no choice. I was lousy at the oil business.”
Brett knew his brother still had problems dealing with their father’s death. He slapped Ty on the back. “Dad knew how happy you were here at the ranch.”
“Yeah, I hope so.” Tyler looked at Jessie. “Did Brett take you riding, yet?”
“No, we haven’t had a chance,” she answered.
“I had to handle some business in Dallas this afternoon,” Brett explained, not wanting to go into details in front of Jessie, especially since things hadn’t panned out the way he had hoped. He’d expected a little better news from his financial backers. Instead, they’d refused to put any more money in the well. And for a while during the meeting, Brett had been worried that they might pull out altogether. But by using one of his daddy’s old tricks, Brett hadn’t hesitated to remind the gentlemen how profitable Murdock Oil Company had been for them over past years.
“Was there a problem?” Tyler asked.
“Nothing I can’t handle.”
Tyler grinned and clipped his younger brother’s chin. “Don’t need to come to your brother for help anymore, huh?”
Brett pulled Jessie close to his side. “Yeah, I can handle things on my own now. I don’t need to ask you for anything, except for maybe an old saddle you might have lying around and don’t use.” Brett quickly told Tyler about Josh’s problem and Tyler took them into the tack room and pointed out a saddle they could take. Then they went out to the corral and picked out two horses for their ride.
After making sure Katie and Becky were content playing together, Brett got a cowboy hat to protect Jessie from the sun, and they climbed onto the horses and took off down the trail. He told her some of the history of the ranch and the neighbors who had lived around Aubrey. Brett found Jessie easy to talk to, and shared his feelings about his father’s not being at the party tomorrow.
“J.T. was the one who started the annual barbecue. Now, he’s gone,” Brett said as he pulled his horse up to the tree next to the stream. He swung his leg off the horse and watched to see Jessie dismount. “It’s going to be a tough day for everyone.” He pulled off his hat and wiped his shirtsleeve against his forehead as they walked the horses to the water.
Jessie stroked the mare’s velvety muzzle. “Your father had these parties so people could have a good time. I don’t think he’d want his family and friends to be sad.”
“You mean, tomorrow we should act as if J.T. never died?”
She shook her head. “No, Brett. But I don’t think your father would want people to mourn him.”
Slowly, Brett began to smile and he walked to Jessie, drawing her into his arms. “You’re right, Dad would have a fit.” He placed a soft kiss against her mouth. “How did you get so smart?”
“You would have figured it out before too long. Just keep thinking about what J.T. would want.”
His body moved seductively against hers. “Oh, I think my daddy wouldn’t let an opportunity like this pass him by.” He lowered his head, taking her mouth in a fierce kiss.
The hot Texas sun was pounding against Jessie’s back, but she didn’t notice as her hat fell to the ground. Her concentration was on Brett as she moved into the cradle of his embrace, wrapped her arms around his neck, letting his persuasive mouth work its magic. A soft whimpering sound escaped her throat when his tongue slipped between her lips and stroked hers. She was in heaven. Reality had all but disappeared. Jessie wasn’t thinking about her fears of getting in too deep. No, she wasn’t thinking at all.
&nb
sp; Brett leaned back against the tree and pulled Jessie’s body to his, listening to her sexy purring sound. It nearly drove him crazy. His hands roamed over her back then slid to the front and gently cupped her breasts. She pushed against his palms, and he felt her nipples harden through the fabric. He groaned against her mouth as he quickly worked the buttons free and parted the blouse. He raised his head, seeing her flushed face and blue eyes brimming with desire. Then he looked down at what he’d uncovered to find a lacy bra barely containing her full breasts.
“Oh, Jessie. You’re beautiful.” With a shaky hand, he reached out and touched her heated skin. She was so soft.
“Brett,” she whispered. Her hands were digging into his forearms, her face revealing her pleasure. “Please,” she cried out.
Brett closed his eyes at Jessie’s plea. He had to come to his senses. As much as he ached for the woman in his arms, this was not the time or the place. Drawing her against his chest, he could feel the rapid pounding of their hearts.
“I’m sorry, Jessie.” He stroked her back. “I never should have let things go so far.”
Jessie was so embarrassed, she wanted to die. Here she was half-naked, letting Brett have his way with her. You’d think she’d learn her lesson. Thoughts of Tommy flooded her head, making her feel cheap and ashamed again. Quickly turning away, she buttoned her blouse. Dear God! What must Brett think of her....
She reached down and picked up her hat off the ground. “We better get back.” She started for the horses, when she felt Brett tug on her arm, making her face him.
“We have time, Jessie. And I’m not leaving here until I make you understand that I only stopped because I was too close to dragging you to the ground and making love to you. I want you, Jessie Burke, don’t ever doubt it.” He pulled her against him, proving his point. “I just didn’t want our first time together to be a quick roll in the dry Texas grass.” His blue eyes pierced hers as his voice turned husky. “I want our first time to be in a big bed. When we have hours and hours just for making love.”
She stiffened. “I’m not going to be your one-night stand.”
His grip tightened and she saw anger flare in his eyes. “I don’t remember asking you to be,” he said tightly, then his expression softened. “I want more, Jess. I don’t know exactly what that is, but it’s definitely not just one night. I want to hold you, touch you, kiss every inch of your body... Then we can get to some of the good stuff.” He gave her a lopsided smile. “I’m hungry for you, Jessie. And I can tell, you’re just as hungry for me.”
She didn’t trust herself to do more than nod.
He gave her a quick, hard kiss with enough punch to curl her toes. “C’mon, we better get back to the house.”
Jessie couldn’t do much more than follow Brett to retrieve the horses. Brett Murdock wanted her. That was good—no, that was bad. She so desperately wanted it to be good. But for how long? One dream-filled weekend at the Murdock ranch with Brett. That’s all he had promised her. So she had to remember this was all temporary.
Jessie climbed onto her horse and smiled at the handsome man next to her. Brett made it awfully hard for her not to believe in dreams.
* * *
Dinner at Ty and Maggie’s home was a lot less formal than at the big Murdock house, and with the children and an eighteen-month-old in a high chair learning to eat by himself, Jessie felt right at home.
It was a simple dinner of spaghetti, which the girls had helped make. In fact, Katie and Becky had made the green salad and set the table, making place cards for everyone. Maggie insisted she had only supervised.
The pleasant dinner conversation was interrupted when baby Zach pounded on his tray and started to yell. He was a handsome boy with his mother’s blond hair and his father’s chocolate brown eyes.
Apparently not used to being ignored, he pounded again. Becky jumped up, went to her brother and filled his plate, making sure the spaghetti was cut up so he would be able to eat it.
“I swear, she has him spoiled rotten,” Maggie remarked so only Jessie heard.
“Same thing happened to Katie. Now her brothers can’t understand why she throws such a fit when they won’t give her her way.”
Maggie smiled. “Oh, Katie’s a sweetheart.”
“That’s how she gets her way. She pretty much has Brett wrapped around her little finger.”
Maggie glanced down the long table and eyed the two Murdock men, then looked back at Jessie. “I’d say my brother-in-law is more concerned about spoiling the other Burke female.”
Jessie glanced at Brett who was watching her from the other end of the long table. He winked and she felt herself blush. The memory of their afternoon ride was all too vivid in her mind. Her skin still tingled from his searing touch.
“See what I mean?” Maggie said as she gave Tyler a secret smile.
“It runs in the family,” Caroline Murdock began, placing her fork on her plate. “J.T. used to do it all the time.” She placed her fork on her plate and got a faraway look in her eyes. “We would be at a party and he’d be across the room talking business and I’d look up and find J.T. watching me.” There was a long silence, then Jenny spoke up from across the table.
“When Maggie first arrived here at the ranch, Tyler watched her all the time,” Jenny said. “Of course, he thought no one noticed, and he would deny to his dying breath that he had any feelings for that city woman from Chicago.”
“You’re from Chicago?” Jessie asked. She had assumed that Maggie was from the area.
Maggie nodded. “A long time ago. Someday, over a pot of coffee, I’ll tell you all about it.”
Jessie nodded and was distracted when an older couple walked into the dining room. A tiny woman with gray hair and a friendly smile, the man, big and burly with thinning hair. The men at the table stood as Maggie hurried to greet them with a hug and Becky did the same.
“Papa,” Zach cried out.
Maggie made the introductions. “Jessie and Katie, these are my grandparents, Emma and Will Carson. They’ve been gone for nearly three weeks on vacation.” She hugged her grandfather again. “I’m so glad you’re both home.”
“We couldn’t miss the barbecue,” Will said, and glanced toward Caroline. “I promised J.T.”
Emma crossed the room and Jessie got up, offering her hand to the older woman, but got a surprise when Emma put her arms around her, giving her a hug.
“We’ve heard so much about you, Jessie,” Emma said. “And your wonderful family.” The older woman looked around, found Katie and hugged her, too. “How do you like Texas?”
“It’s great.” Katie smiled. “I love the ranch, and all the horses.”
“Grandma Emma,” Becky said, “Katie has a colt named Sir Lancelot. Isn’t that a neat name?”
“It’s a wonderful name.”
Will appeared next to his wife. “Do you ride, Katie?”
Katie gave him one of her famous forlorn looks. “No, we haven’t had any horses on the farm in a long time. And Lancelot is still a colt.”
Will Carson squatted in front of the two girls. “I’ll tell you what. If you’re up early tomorrow morning...say, about seven, maybe I can give you a few pointers on training your colt. And if we have time left, maybe we can ride around the corral. But then you two need to help set up for the party.”
Both the girls’ eyes lit up. “Neat,” Katie said and Becky echoed the same.
“Grandpa Will is the best horse trainer in Texas,” Becky explained, then looked thoughtful. “Except for my dad.”
“Thanks, sweetheart,” Tyler said as he pulled his squirming son out of the high chair and carried him to stand next to his wife. “I guess I don’t mind following Will Carson’s reputation.”
Brett came up behind Jessie. He saw her nervousness, knowing his family could be a little overwhelming. He moved his arms around her waist. She stiffened at first, then finally relaxed against him.
“Well, we’re glad you’re all here,” Tyler sai
d. “We have an announcement.” That got the noise to die down. He looked at his wife. “Maggie’s going to have a baby.”
The room quickly erupted in cheers, slaps on the back, hugs and a few tears. And Brett couldn’t be happier for his brother and Maggie.
Becky hugged Maggie. “Mom, can we have a girl this time?”
“I’ll try, honey.” Maggie exchanged a secret look with her husband as she touched her stomach. “But that’s already been decided, along with the names. If it’s a girl, Emma Caroline, and if it’s a boy, John William and we’ll call him J.W.”
Tyler turned to Will and Emma. “We’d like you both to be the godparents.”
More tears filled Emma’s eyes as she hugged her granddaughter. “Of course, we’d be honored.” The older woman looked at her husband. “Oh, Will, another baby...”
“No baby!” Zachary Tyler Murdock shook his head.
“I’m sorry, son,” Tyler said. “Looks like you’re going to be a big brother around about January.”
Brett watched the loving scene between his older brother and his brother’s wife. He knew there had been a lot of years of pain, but that was all in the past now. They deserved all the happiness in the world. And seeing the loving looks on their faces, he knew they had found it.
Suddenly, Brett realized he envied his brother. A home and a family was starting to look pretty good. He frowned. No, he couldn’t think about that now. There was no way. He had to keep focused on the business of drilling wells. His personal life had to wait. He moved closer to Jessie, feeling the curve of her hips against the front of his jeans. He released a soft groan next to her ear. It was getting pretty difficult to control himself when he was with her.
“Who’s ready for dessert?” Maggie called out, interrupting his wicked thoughts. “Ice cream and chocolate sauce all around.”
“Me! Me!” Zach giggled, clearly happy he was once again the center of attention.
Maggie and Jessie were the ones who ended up in the kitchen fixing dessert, with a promise that the men were going to do the dishes.
Jessie watched as Maggie scooped out ice cream into the bowls. “You sure you don’t want to sit down and rest? I can handle the dessert.”
Wildcat Wedding (Wranglers & Lace #2) Page 12
