by Joanna Blake
I had never expected Kelly to be able to keep up with me in bed. She was just as eager for me as I was for her. And she was more than willing to experiment. When she’d tied me up . . . she’d been far more brazen than I could have anticipated.
And far more of a tease.
That had been . . . interesting. I was not willing to give her the upper hand again, but I didn’t regret it. She had needed to see the other side of things. I was pretty sure we’d both learned a lot.
And I’d successfully initiated her into a whole new way we could fuck. If she hadn’t pushed me so hard, that wouldn’t have happened for a while. I was grateful and relieved and very, very satisfied.
I stared at the cuffs on the headboard. I was not about to let her tie me up again. But I would damn sure be tying her up. I had all kinds of ideas about things we could do, even without my cabinet full of sex toys.
I decided to leave the cuffs on the bed. We had the room for a whole week after our guests departed. I was pretty sure we would use them again.
Only from now on, it would be me in charge.
Epilogue
Five Days Later
Kelly
I rolled and stretched after my afternoon nap. I was taking them daily now. I seemed to need more sleep than ever. Cain was wearing me out with all the vigorous sex we were having, not to mention the morning swims and walks on the beach. It was idyllic and very, very dirty.
I was one thousand percent loving being married.
Cain was endlessly inventive when it came to lovemaking. We’d had sex all over our suite, including on top of the mini-fridge. We had even fooled around in the water late at night once after he’d dared me to skinny dip. We’d barely made it back to the hotel room before tearing each other’s wet towel off and going at it like rabbits.
I giggled. Cain did not look like a rabbit. Nor did he fuck like one.
He was hard and rough and tender, all at once. But he was definitely not quick.
My stomach turned over suddenly.
I sat up and clasped my hand over my mouth. I ran for the bathroom. I threw the toilet open and hurled, barely making it. A few minutes later, I sat back on my heels and wiped the back of my hand over my mouth.
That was weird. I felt fine. I’d been so sick one minute and the next, nada. The nausea was completely gone. I got up and rinsed off my face and brushed my teeth. When I came out of the bathroom, Cain was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at me.
He looked worried.
“I’m fine. I must have eaten something bad.”
“I don’t think that’s it, sweetheart.”
I looked at him, tilting my head to the side.
“What are you talking about?”
He stood up and pulled me against his chest. Then he kissed my forehead. I laughed and told him he could kiss me since I’d brushed my teeth. He kissed my lips and told me that wasn’t what was worrying him.
“Then what?”
He pulled something out of his pocket and showed it to me. I picked it up and turned it over.
Then I stared at Cain in shock.
My husband had just handed me a pregnancy test.
Cain
“I’ll be right out here. Unless you want me to stay?”
She shook her head.
“Cain, I’m fine. I can pee on a stick by myself, you know!”
I nodded. I had kind of wanted to watch her pee. But Kelly was still shy around me about a lot of things. For now.
“I know.”
I pulled the bathroom door shut and waited. I paced back and forth. It was early for her to be showing signs. I’d been hoping she’d catch pregnant since the first time we did it without a condom. In fact, if she was pregnant, that was probably when it happened.
I smiled suddenly, realizing there was a good chance my little lady was going to give me a baby.
“Okay. You can come in.”
I pushed the door open and looked at her. She looked at me and then at the stick on the counter top.
“It said to wait five minutes.”
We looked at each other and back at the stick. Something was happening. I pulled her against me and held her while we watched the little blue line turn into a plus sign.
It took a lot less than five minutes.
“Oh, my God.”
I squeezed her, grinning from ear to ear.
“You did it, Princess.”
“What?”
“You made me a daddy.”
She chewed her lip.
“Doesn’t that seem kind of fast?”
“It must be meant to be.”
“Won’t you get bored with me if we can’t . . . you know.”
“Fuck?”
She slapped my chest and whispered yes. She was so damn cute when she got all shy. But once I got her going, she could dirty talk like the best of them.
“Who says we can’t fuck?”
“We can?”
“I’m pretty sure you can fuck right up to the end, but we’ll ask the doctor.” I kissed her. “Don’t worry. Besides, even if we can’t fuck later on, we can always do other things.”
“Oh . . .” She blushed and looked at me, all serious. “Like blowjobs and butt sex?”
I coughed, always taken aback when she said something dirty. My cock was stirring in my swim trunks. She turned me on so fucking much.
“Yes, like that, you naughty girl.”
“If I’m so naughty . . .” she ran her hand over my swelling cock. “Maybe you should spank me.”
“Maybe I should,” I growled. “But gently.”
“Not too gently, I hope,” she whispered, looking shyly up at me with those big, beautiful eyes of hers.
“No, Baby Girl, not too gently.”
I took her hand and led her to the bed. Then I kissed her and guided her over my lap. I slid her little pink panties down around her ankles.
“Hmm . . . that’s a nice sight.”
“I need a spanking, Daddy.”
“Yes, you do.” I lifted my hand and slapped her perfect ass. She wiggled her body in excitement. “Hold still,” I commanded. “Arch your back.” She arched her back and held the position as I slapped each cheek. I finished a few minutes later by having her spread her legs for her pussy spanks.
That didn’t last long. She was so wet that I couldn’t resist laying her on the bed and tasting her sweet juices. Then I guided her onto her side and fucked her slowly from behind. I liked this position because it let me play with her tits and her clit with more precision. I could really control the depth of my strokes this way. Plus, if I angled it right, we could both watch in the large mirror over the dresser.
“Oh, yes, Cain! Yes!”
I bit her neck and fingered her as she started to come. I followed her a few minutes later.
“Should we go down to the beach before dinner?”
She nodded happily against me as I kissed her again. We got up to shower and change. We were walking down the sandy beach a few minutes later, holding hands. I pulled her against me in a secluded spot to watch the sunset.
“Thank you.”
She looked up at me.
“For what?”
I brushed the hair back from her beautiful face.
“For giving me everything.”
A note about the excerpt of Stud Farm
I’ve included a few excerpts of my older books. First up is Stud Farm: The Complete Delancey Brothers Series! It’s the story of the Delancey brothers and their cousin Pheonyx. They are a wild bunch, all horse people, and vastly different.
There’s Jake, the wild brother, who falls for a waitress at the local country club. She is not impressed by his motorcycle and tats or his fancy family home. He wins her over eventually, and their story continues to the end.
Next up is Daniel, the charming middle brother. He’s a perfect Southern gentleman but he hides a lot of pain inside. When the visiting Italian heiress mistakes him for a stable hand, she sees him a perfe
ct distraction from her recent (and very public) heartbreak. Things get spicy fast with these two. It’s fireworks and steam, right from the get-go.
The oldest Delancey brother is Jackson. He’s so alpha it hurts! He’s also kind of stupid when it comes to love. He’s in way over his head before he knows it with the big city girl who moves to Tennessee for the fresh air and sunshine, with her disabled younger sister in tow. They fight harder than anyone, and love hard too.
All four stories intertwine in one long book.
Pheonyx and Clint’s story is the first and the excerpt I’ve included here. He’s much older than her, and as cynical as they come. She’s fiery and loyal and a bit of a brat (even though her cousins Jake, Daniel, and Jackson would never tell her so). This scene is from the first time they meet.
Enjoy!
Xoxox,
Joanna
Stud Farm Excerpt
"Lesson one-"
I was speaking to her back. Her slender, strong back, covered in a slim fitting denim shirt that fit her like a glove. The wild-eyed woman was stomping away from me, too ornery to listen to reason.
"Oh, go to hell!"
I grinned, picking up my pace a bit.
"Darlin', that's not very ladylike. A professional rider must always be on her best behavior."
She turned around so fast I nearly ran into her. Her pretty little finger came out and poked my chest. Hard.
"Damn, woman. There's no need for violence!"
"I did not hire you. You are unhired. Now, go- jump in a lake!"
I laughed at the expression on her face as she tried to think up a suitably ladylike insult. I knew she wanted to tell me to go to hell again.
But she didn't.
Good girl. She was already learning, even though I knew she would start smoking at the ears if I mentioned it. Instead I decided to stick with my original plan.
To cool her off.
She squealed as I bent down and hoisted her over my shoulder. Damn, but she felt good in my arms. Smelled good too.
Sort of like a vanilla ice cream sundae.
With… fresh strawberries.
I grinned, my hand resting on her lower back to hold her in place. I was real tempted to let it slide down a bit. Then I'd be enjoying a handful of her sweet cheeks, as well as feeling her generous bosoms pressing against my back.
I'd never lifted such a fine bit of precious cargo before, even wiggling around the way she was. She slapped at me, kicking and screaming. I ignored her and kept going.
I had a point to make.
And a wildcat to put in her place.
Her head whipped up as she realized where I was going. She started pounding on my back, wailing like a banshee.
"Don't you dare!"
I didn't falter as I slid her down off my shoulder and into my arms. I smiled down at her. Then I carefully lowered her. Right into the horse trough.
"Eeeeeeee!"
She squealed as she sank to the bottom. It had constantly running water, filtered too. So it was clean.
And real cold. Frigid really. I put another toothpick in my mouth, and stared down at her.
"Now then."
I lifted my foot up, resting my boot on the edge of the trough. I ignored the fact that her tight clothes were even tighter when wet. Or the way her wet hair somehow looked like wet rubies against her creamy skin.
I ignored the fact that she looked like she wanted to kill me.
I ignored how stunning she looked with that crazy look in her eyes.
Most of all, I ignored the fact that my dick was hard enough to hammer nails.
"How bout some grub?"
A note about the excerpt of Hot Shot
Here’s another one for you! Next up is an excerpt of Hot Shot, one of my favorites. It’s a sweet and heartwrenching second-chance love story. Kennedy and Drew fell in love fast but when her family found out she was pregnant, they kicked her out. She ran far and didn’t look back. Not until a year later when she returns . . . with Drew’s baby.
Drew swore off women when she disappeared and lost himself in the bottle. He’s a firefighter who lost his mother young and then his best friend and cousin in the line of duty. After Kennedy leaves, he’s reckless, damaged, and has a death wish. He doesn’t want to want her and it takes him a while to give in. This is a little taste of the first time they see each other. He’s a bit of an ass, but he pays for it later.
Enjoy!
Xoxox,
Joanna
Hot Shot Excerpt
I groaned at the sunlight coming in through the window. My head was pounding. I wondered how long I'd slept. Judging from the beer cans on the floor, not long.
I forced myself out of bed and into the shower. In ten minutes I was on the streets. I needed hot coffee and a bagel. Maybe two bagels. Either way though, I was not ready to face the day.
Another morning shift, another ferocious hangover.
I started walking down the same street I always took. I'd started because I wanted to 'bump into' her cousin Jamie. Now it was just part of my mindless routine.
My eyes slid to the side, checking the front porch out of habit.
I stopped dead in my tracks.
There was a girl on the porch swing, rocking slowly back and forth. A delicate, dark haired girl with a heart breakingly beautiful face. A face I never thought I would see again.
It was her.
Kennedy was back.
She was staring wistfully into space, her gorgeous hair loose over her shoulders. She looked sad somehow. But peaceful too.
Not like the lying little bitch that she was.
She turned her head and saw me. Or I thought that she saw me. I was too busy getting the fuck out of there to be sure.
I dashed down the block, practically running around the corner. I leaned against a tree, catching my breath. It wasn't that I was out of shape.
Seeing her like that, it just knocked the wind out of me.
My heart was racing about a million miles an hour. Her face... seeing her angelic face had made me want to shout with joy. It was like I'd been starving for the sight of her. I'd imagined the worst over the past seven months. That she'd been kidnapped. Fallen in love with someone else. Or that she'd been too ashamed to be with me.
Mostly though, I'd imagined her bound and gagged in some guy's basement crawlspace. I'd even tried to talk to her brothers about going to the police but they'd told me she was fine with a sneer. Right before they threated to beat my ass.
But I didn't believe it. Not until I'd seen it with my own eyes. I'd even gone into the police station, blitzed out of my mind, only to be informed that only a family member could file a missing persons report.
She was alive. She was here. She was fucking real.
For a split second I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. My whole body felt alive. I was on the verge of running up to her and scooping her up into my arms.
Until I remembered what the fuck she'd done to me.
It took all my control to stay where I was. To force my feet to turn in the other direction.
To get the hell away from her. Her poison. Her lies.
My beautiful angel was a devil in disguise. The fact that she'd fooled me so completely, gotten me to fall for her so hard, and so fast... well that just made the foul truth of it that much worse.
Perfect little Kennedy was a perfect little bitch.
I closed my eyes, feeling like an idiot. I had to fight to stay where I was. I wanted to go back, to look at her some more. To kiss her or yell at her. Maybe both.
That's when I realized someone was standing behind me. I turned around and there she was, standing there with a tiny little smile on her face. Nervous, but not ashamed of herself like she should be. Just... saying hello.
"Hi Andrew."
Just like that. Like she hadn't ditched me. Like she hadn't fucking ghosted on me.
She looked shy and nervous and fucking beautiful. I felt my insides crack open. I wanted to yan
k her into my arms and kiss her sweet face.
I had to talk myself down from the ledge.
Don't believe it. It's an illusion. She's a snake. She is like the Goddamn snake in the Garden of Eden.
I just stared at her. It was like seeing a ghost. How many times had I begged for my mother to come back one more time after she died? How many times had I begged for Kennedy to come back too?
Only Kennedy was alive. She could have come back. But she didn't.
All the same I couldn't help the relief that coursed through me. I hated myself for feeling it. But it was there. I was glad she was alive. But I didn't want to care one way or the other, dammit.
Kennedy smiled self-consciously and kept talking, like I wasn't waging a battle inside.
"I've been meaning to talk to you. I meant to- for a while. To tell you something."
I crossed my arms over my chest. I forced myself to look disinterested. The truth was I was dying to hear what she had to say.
"What stopped you?"
"What?"
"What stopped you from telling me this big secret of yours?"
She blinked at me, clearly losing her momentum.
"I just... I wasn't ready. I was nervous."
I felt my insides twist up a bit as she fidgeted. She did look nervous. Fuck that. What did she have to be nervous about? She was the one who left me.
I shrugged as if I could care less.
"Right. This should be good."
She hesitated then and a hurt look flashed across her face. I hated myself in that moment. Then I reminded myself. She only looked sweet and innocent.
In reality she was a heartbreaker. A viper. A woman who ate men for breakfast. The very reason I had given up women.
But the way she'd felt in my arms...
"I haven't got time for this Kennedy. I have to get to work. Spit it out."
She blinked and looked away. Not before I saw the sheen of tears in her eyes. I cursed and pushed away from the tree.
