Hungry Cowboy

by Charlize Starr

I helped Sherry with the Christmas tree. Her husband had gotten it set up near the front window and she wanted me to decorate it. We ended up doing it together while I told her the same stories about the ornaments that I had every year since she’d come here. Some of the ornaments Mom had bought during her travels, others she had bought as part of a new theme that she would try every few years. I loved to mix them up and add in the ones that Grandma gave me every year for Christmas before she passed away.

  Decorating the tree took all afternoon, and I went up to my room to change into some black slacks and a purple cashmere sweater for dinner. Dad didn’t appreciate yoga pants being worn when company was over. I didn’t either, knowing how much they accented my full figure.

  I helped Sherry set the table for dinner and everything was ready when we heard the garage door. I looked up with a smile when Dad led Nathan inside, talking about a court case as could be expected. He saw me and smiled briefly before he went into his office to put his briefcase away. Nathan leaned against the kitchen counter, and I felt his eyes roving over me while I looked at the floor and blushed, plagued by my earlier thoughts. “It looks like California is treating you well, Alyssa.”

  I looked at him, appreciating his smooth face and intense blue eyes. My word, Nathan was working out these days. I could see his muscles bulging under his white shirt. His tie was hanging loose. He was more relaxed than Dad in some ways, but I sensed a deep strength inside of him as I smiled. “Yes, it’s a great firm and La Jolla is lovely.”

  “Indeed, it is. I have a sister living over there that I visit frequently. Maybe next time we can have dinner together,” Nathan suggested, and I nodded as our eyes locked for a second. I felt heat pass through my veins and licked my lips as I grabbed onto the counter behind me.

  “That would be wonderful,” I told him as Dad came back into the kitchen and Sherry started ladling the soup into big bowls for everyone. She’d made a hearty salad to go with it as well as thick, crusty bread. I sat across from Nathan and next to Dad. They talked about a new case that sounded complicated. I felt out of place. I took small bites of the soup and let my gaze rest on Nathan from time to time. His tie was gone now, and he seemed to relax a little while he ate and sipped the wine that was poured for dinner. Dad’s was still on as if he was still at work.

  I thought about Mom and how different she was from Dad while my eyes grazed over Nathan. Seeing his left-hand bare made my heart pound in my chest. He was single now? Not that it mattered of course, but when his eyes met mine with intensity for just a second I almost believed that it did. I focused on my food that was delicious, taking faster bites of the soup and tearing the bread apart to dip it into the bowl. There was something in this room now, and I didn’t know what to do with it. I glanced at Dad to see if he was picking up on it, but he was so wrapped up in the conversation that he didn’t even feel my gaze.

  Nathan felt it. I saw it in his eyes when he glanced at me before offering a suggestion to Dad, dark with a promise of something similar to the book I was reading on the way here. I felt stunned. I had never felt this way before in my twenty-three years of life, not even with the people I’d nearly slept with before I changed my mind. This wasn’t right. He was older and my father’s business partner, for Christ’s sake.

  I excused myself from the table to take my dishes into the kitchen for an escape, and took a few deep breaths. Sherry made an apple cake for dessert, and I walked over to the fridge to pull it out after noisily dropping my dishes into the sink. She’d left for the evening to get home to her husband and I was alone. I set the cake on the counter and turned when someone cleared their throat. “I was going to make some coffee. We have a late night ahead of us.” Nathan stared at me while he spoke and I nodded and walked over to what looked like an even newer Keurig. I got the water in, asking him what he liked without looking at him. “Something strong,” Nathan told me. I pulled out a dark French roast and got it into the machine with shaking hands. “You feel it as well, don’t you?”

  “Feel what?” I asked as I set a large mug under the spout and pressed the button to start brewing the drink. I set the blend that Dad liked down on the counter and raised my eyes to his.

  “This heat, this attraction,” Nathan replied as he lowered his hand to rest it on my lower back. The heat from his skin seared me and I arched forward and closer to him as he eyed my lips.

  “Nathan,” I whispered and looked toward the dining room with wide eyes.

  “He’s on the phone in his office,” Nathan assured me and I pressed my lips together. “I am not going to push this with you, Alyssa. I just know that I want you and I can see in those scared brown eyes that you want me as well. I am divorced now and available. Linda left two years ago, looking for something else.”

  “I’m sorry,” I told him. He shook his head and looked at my lips again.

  “Don’t be. It was time,” Nathan assured me as I glanced over to see his coffee ready. I pulled it out and asked if he wanted cream or sugar, seeing him shake his head. Dad was the same way, and I brewed his dark roast and pulled it out as I looked at Nathan. He leaned down and brushed his lips against mine slowly. I sucked in my breath, pulling away as he took his coffee in his hands. I brought Dad’s to the office, where he finally hugged me and told me that it was good to have me home. I told them to let me know if they wanted more coffee. I left to clean up the table, remembering the cake and brought the dishes in.

  My brain felt lost since that brief kiss. It was nothing really, but it felt like my whole life revolved around it. I cut pieces of the dessert and took the plates into the office, tapping on the door before I walked inside. I set the cake down and glanced at Dad and Nathan as his eyes locked on mine for a long moment. I told them to call me if they needed anything before I left again. I took my slice to the bistro table by the window overlooking some of the rare trees in New York, silently thanking my father for choosing a house outside of the city where he worked. We were on Long Island, and while the traffic could be unbearable, Charles dealt with it while Dad worked in the back of the car. Mom and I preferred living here and having the choice of going in when we needed to, something that she was doing when she was killed.

  God, I missed her right now.

  Chapter Three - Nathan

  I lost my breath when I walked into the house and saw Alyssa in the kitchen. She was helping with something on the counter, and I took a long look at her, curvy in all of the right places and looking sexy as hell. Alyssa had always been a beautiful girl, but now she was older, more mature. She looked more like her mother by the day, someone that her father hadn’t appreciated as much as he should have. That was my opinion anyway, seeing how loving that she was towards her family. Nola was an incredible woman, and I sensed how lost my friend was now that she was gone, realizing what he’d had. Brad worked more and more and tightened the control around his house, making me able to see why Alyssa left after she graduated. She needed to spread her wings.

  She was here now, and the blood went rushing to my groin as I tugged my tie loose.

  I greeted her, hoping that I sounded sane as she responded. I knew that she lived in La Jolla near my younger sister, so I brought that up, adding in that I visited her a lot. I didn’t work as much as Brad did, insisting on vacations and time to decompress. I told her that we should have dinner sometimes when I was there, something that she agreed to as I hardened under my slacks. Jesus, Alyssa was hot. I saw the way that she was looking at me as well and wondered if she felt this too. Brad came back into the room, and I watched as his chef spooned something into bowls that she and Alyssa carried into the formal dining room. There was also a plate of bread and a salad there, filled with vegetables and making my stomach growl. I didn’t eat well as a bachelor, though that was probably the only thing that I missed about Linda. I’d considered hiring my own chef for some time now, but it was easier to grab something on the way home from work at this point.

  One bite of this stew made me reconsider my
choices as Brad went right back into the new malpractice suit we had going on now. It was big news in the office. I looked at him as he spoke, wondering why he hadn’t hugged his daughter yet or greeted her at all. I offered suggestions and felt Alyssa’s big eyes on me as we talked. I’d draped my tie over the chair, needing to breathe as the room heated up around me, feeling the electricity between her and I. What the fuck was happening? I was no angel since my divorce, but I’d never felt this way before. I allowed my gaze to rest on her from time to time, feeling my own blue eyes darken with need as she stared back at me. Somehow, I managed to eat and keep up with the conversation, enjoying every bite of the meal even through my distraction. I knew we were in for a long night, so I devoured everything on my plate and promised myself a long workout in my home gym in the morning.

  I noticed as Alyssa nervously left the table with her dishes and felt everything good in the room leave with her. Brad pushed away his half-eaten plate and mumbled something about getting to work as I tried to find a reason to go talk to her in the kitchen. “Go ahead and call Michael. I’ll make some coffee and meet you in the office.”

  I stood with my own dishes and went in, clearing my throat when I passed through the door so I wouldn’t scare her. Alyssa dropped something on the counter and turned to see me as she pressed a hand to her chest and took a deep breath. I explained that I was going to make coffee as I walked over to the sink, seeing her nod and go to the coffee maker as she stared at it blankly for a moment. She seemed to move past whatever was troubling her, filled the reservoir with water and opened a drawer located nearby as she asked me what I liked.

  I moved closer to her and told her that I wanted something strong. Alyssa shivered, pulled out a pod and inserted it into the machine with shaking hands. “You feel it as well, don’t you?” I asked her as I watched her carefully. She grabbed a mug from the cabinet and placed it into the machine before pushing a blinking red button.

  “Feel what?” Her voice was soft, almost a breath as she pulled out a pod and set it on the counter.

  “This heat, this attraction,” I replied as I moved my hand to rest it on her lower back, above the soft sweater. I longed to pull her closer to me, but I resisted, reminding myself that she was young and likely feeling uncomfortable by this. She arched her back, jutting her full breasts out towards me as her body moved closer to mine.

  “Nathan,” she whispered with her eyes wide as she stared at the entrance to the dining room.

  “He’s on the phone in his office,” I assured Alyssa as she pressed her lips together. I wanted to add that I doubted he noticed her at all, but I bit my tongue. “I am not going to push this with you, Alyssa. I just know that I want you and I can see in those scared brown eyes of yours that you want me as well.” I remembered something else and stroked her back. “I am divorced now and available. Linda left two years ago, looking for something else.” Alyssa expressed her remorse, and I shook my head as she pressed her enticing lips together. “Don’t be. It was time.” I watched as she pulled out the coffee and asked if I wanted cream and sugar, making me shake my head as she remained close to me. She made another cup, presumably for her father before she stared up helplessly at me.

  I couldn’t help myself as I leaned down and kissed her, barely brushing my lips against hers to test this chemistry. I tingled from the contact and heard her suck in her breath before I forced myself to pull away. I knew that I’d rather keep this going, ending the night with her in her bed as I took her hard and fast.

  I carried my coffee into the office, and she followed with her father’s, looking visibly shaken up. Brad finally hugged her, and she smiled before she looked at me and told us to let her know if we needed more coffee before she left the room. I had to excuse myself to use the restroom so I could jerk off after that brief encounter before I settled into work for the night. I dropped my pants and took my hard cock in my hand, aiming at the toilet as I replayed the feeling of her lips against mine. I wanted Alyssa badly, and I felt my orgasm coming on as I told myself to shut up. Just let it go.

  I shot forward with a jerk of my hips, mostly making it into the toilet. I cleaned myself up and wiped down the floor and toilet seat before I decided it looked like I’d never been in here. I looked into the mirror, seeing my flushed face as I analyzed myself. I was forty-eight though most women thought that I was only in my thirties. I knew that Alyssa was twenty-three now, which was young but she was an adult. I made my way back into the office, just settling in when there was a tap at the door, and she came back in with two plates. She set them down on the desk as she shot me a nervous look and reminded us to let her know if we needed more coffee.

  Fuck if I wasn’t hard all over again.

  Chapter Four - Alyssa

  I took my plate to the sink and washed everything before I made my own cup of coffee before wandering into the big den to find something on television. I wasn’t used to a lot of idle time since my work habits mirrored my dad’s. I told myself that down time was healthy and that it was good to just sit and watch television as I searched through the extensive channel list. I found a holiday film that Mom and I used to love and settled back as my thoughts drifted back to the kiss. It was nothing compared to ones in the past, not as aggressive. But while those were aggressive, they were also clumsy and without any of the feelings that Nathan gave me. Just a brush of his soft lips, hardly anything - and I was so turned on that I couldn’t stand it. I hated it when he pulled away and wondered if I wanted it to go further.

  No, it couldn’t. Nathan was older, a lot older even if he still looked at least ten years younger than his actual age. That was wrong, or was it?

  I imagined his mouth claiming mine in a harder kiss as I squeezed my legs together with a sigh. I wanted his tongue against mine, stroking it as he gave fuel to the fire that was growing inside of me. I wanted his hands on me, stripping me and touching me as his lips moved down my skin. I let out a moan, feeling the need inside of me as I blinked and looked around.

  The television was playing infomercials, and I realized that I must’ve fallen asleep. I stretched and saw a piece of paper flutter to the floor in the dim light. I reached down for it, finding a note from Nathan including his number. I stared at it before shoving it into my pocket. I stood up and shut off the television before walking upstairs to my room, taking note of how quiet the house was. Dad must be asleep, and Nathan likely went home.

  Once there, I locked my door and changed into a pair of pajama pants and t-shirt before I dropped on the bed. I saw that it was past one in the morning and I stretched as I played back the erotic dream that I was having when I woke up. I remembered a kiss that felt real, and I pressed my fingers against my mouth, wondering if that’s what woke me up.

  I waited for a moment before I slipped off my pants and got under my covers. I looked at my locked door and at the moonlight shining through the window before I moved my hand down my stomach and into my underwear, finding my folds slick and hot. “Oh, God,” I murmured as I stroked myself, finding the sensitive nub that I was seeking as I arched my back. I knew how close I already was to coming as I slipped two fingers inside and pressed my palm against my clit as I let my mouth drop open. It was intense, building up inside of me from within as I fucked myself harder and finally shot up to the ceiling.

  The release pulsed through me as I rocked against my hand. I recovered slowly and stared at my walls as I wondered if that was what sex felt like. I didn’t know. More to the point, I wondered if that’s what sex with Nathan would feel like.

  When I felt like I could walk, I made my way to the bathroom that was attached to my room and cleaned up. I looked into the mirror to see the dewy look to my skin and the wonder in my eyes. I washed the day off of my face before dabbing it dry with a towel and walked back to bed to try and get some more sleep. I had made plans with some high school friends to go to lunch and shopping, which wasn’t a great day for me. It sounded better than staying home and staring at the walls, thou
gh.

  I slept fitfully before I heard my alarm and rolled over to shut it off. I dreamed about Nathan all night and got myself off again, though with slightly less intensity. The girls were going to come and pick me up in a couple of hours, so I went to make some coffee while I took a shower. Sherry was the only one home, and she greeted me as I pressed the button for my drink. I took my time showering and got out as I wrapped a robe around my body and dried my hair. I reached for my pants that were on the floor, digging into the pocket for the note as I glanced at my phone charging on the nightstand. I brushed my hair as I read Nathan’s suggestive invitation to contact him anytime, nibbling on my lip as I reached for my phone. I sent him a simple good morning text and went to brush my hair as I waited for a response.

  I giggled as he responded and asked how I slept. I told him well as I walked down to the kitchen to get my coffee and reheat it. The phone was in my pocket, and I made some toast as Sherry worked on meals for the week, since I was here. I nibbled on it at the bistro table as I sent texts back and forth to Nathan, smiling with each one. “Who is that?”

  “Just a friend from home,” I responded as she looked curiously at me. “I swear.”

  “You’re smiling so much that I thought it might be a boyfriend of sorts.” I blushed and shook my head with a laugh, assuring her that I worked too much for that.

  I hurried upstairs and dressed as he asked me if I’d like to stay in the city tonight and have dinner with him. It seemed so sudden, but it felt right as I pulled on jeans and another cashmere sweater, this time in a dark plum. I slid some cute boots over my thick calves and applied a little makeup as I kept glancing at his texts and the time on my phone.

  I was outside waiting when my friends pulled up, and I gave them an awkward group hug before I climbed into the back of the Escalade. We talked about life after graduation, jobs and boys as we drove and laughed, most of which was fake on my part. I wanted to get to our destination and text Nathan back more than anything else. We parked near Bloomingdales and walked down the street as I looked around with the same wide eyes that I always had in the city. As much as I didn’t want to live here, it still took my breath away during visits.