He watched as Chloe crawled off the bed, pushed his boots aside, and then pulled his jeans down to his feet. Stopping her from doing anything else, he stood and stepped out of them while keeping his eyes on her as she gazed up at him.
“Get up,” he growled. She quickly stood.
Storm made quick work of stripping off her clothes then picked her up again and lay her back down on the bed. This time, he moved to lie down beside her. Leaning over her, he pressed his lips to hers then moved down her neck, along her collarbone, and down to her breasts.
While he suckled on one taut nipple, he rubbed her other one with the pad of his thumb while his other hand traveled down her stomach to the curls hiding what he wanted. He slipped a finger between her slit and moved it up and down. In response, her hips moved in rhythm with his hand. Storm kissed her shoulder and neck then ran his tongue along the shell of her ear. She placed her hand over his and pushed it against her.
“You’re getting wet, Chloe,” he whispered against her ear as he pushed his hard cock against her leg.
All of a sudden, she pulled at his hair. “Kiss me,” she groaned as her body tensed against his touch.
Storm took her lips in a hard, deep kiss. He was going to explode if he didn’t get inside her soon. “Damn, I need a condom...in my wallet.”
Reaching over the side of the bed, he retrieved a condom from his jeans. Chloe took the packet from him as soon as it appeared in his hand, and ripped it open then rolled the condom down over him.
Pushing her to her back, Storm slid between her legs and inched into her. When her legs wrapped around his waist, he about lost it. Damn, it felt like coming home. He pumped in and out of her, his lips never leaving hers. He sure as hell was going to last or die trying. Storm pulled his lips from hers.
“Chloe,” he growled as he felt her clenching around his cock then he slammed his lips down on hers.
“Yes,” she cried into his mouth.
Storm thrust harder into her and unable to hold back any longer, he came hard, groaning into her mouth. He swore he almost blacked out. Lifting his head, he rested his forehead on her shoulder and tried to catch his breath. She was breathing hard against his neck. Once he could breathe again without feeling like his lungs were coming up through his throat, he rolled off her. Then rolling to lie alongside her, he gazed into her beautiful eyes.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes,” she said breathless and smiling. You?”
Storm grinned. “I’m good.”
Chloe burst out laughing. “Why do I think that is an understatement?”
Storm laughed. “Yeah...I guess we can stop trying to ignore each other. It’s more fun this way.”
“Excuse me? I wasn’t the one doing the ignoring.”
“Guilty. I’m sorry, Chloe. What the hell was I thinking?” Storm swung his legs over the bed, stood, and walked to the bathroom to dispose of the condom. When he came back out, he pulled his jeans and shirt back on then pulled his socks and boots on. “As much fun as it would be to just stay here with you for the rest of the day and into the night, I have to go get Mandy. I won’t be long.”
“All right. I’ll start dinner. I’m making chicken and dumplings so it will take a little while.”
Storm nodded and started to leave the room but then turned back toward her, leaned down over her, and kissed her. Standing, he winked at her and made himself leave the bedroom, and her lying naked in his bed.
CHLOE COULDN’T KEEP the smile off her face. Wow! Sex with Storm had been even better than what she remembered, and she had always remembered it as fantastic. This time had been very amazing. Storm truly knew how to please a woman. She’d always had a feeling he’d be able to for some reason. Perhaps it was just the way he came across, he was so confident. He was such a total male.
She stood and walked to the bathroom. Glancing in, she saw a gleaming black Jacuzzi tub sitting beneath a stained glass window. The black sink and toilet were shiny and the black marble tiled floor matched the color scheme. Everything about this man continued to surprise her. He was not just some cowboy. He had good taste, a kind heart that was very soft where his daughter was concerned and to top it all off, he was neat and clean.
Suddenly, she wondered if Storm would let her sleep in his bed with him tonight, or would he make her stay in her room because of Mandy.
Turning away from the beautiful bathroom, she walked to the wall of glass in the bedroom, and gazed out at what looked to be a covered pool. The snow continued to fall making her sigh. How long was it going to keep her stranded here? Actually, she wasn’t looking forward to leaving, but knew she’d have to as soon as the weather cleared enough so the roads could be plowed.
More concerning to her, as she watched the snow fall and add to the depths already covering the ground, was how they would get a tree tomorrow if it continued to snow. She mentally shrugged. They probably wouldn’t be able to, and that would greatly disappoint Mandy and if she had to admit it, she would be disappointed too.
Chloe scooped up her clothes then walked to her room to dress. She pulled on sweatpants, a T-shirt, and thick socks then headed to the kitchen to start preparing dinner.
A few minutes after she entered the kitchen, the back door opened and Mandy came running in with Storm right behind her. Chloe greeted Mandy with a hug, and then helped her out of her coat, hat, and gloves. She glanced up at Storm to see him taking his coat and hat off too. He walked to her, took Mandy’s things from her, and entered the mudroom. Chloe took a deep breath as she waited for him to return. Was he going to ignore her again like last time? Her answer came almost immediately, making her just about jump out of her skin when she felt his hand on the back of her neck. She turned to look at him. He smiled at her and leaned in close to her.
“Later,” he said quietly near her ear, his voice sending a shiver over her.
She smiled at him. “Looking forward to it.”
“Come here, Mandy. So tell me what you did with Claire today.” Storm pulled a chair out from the table and took a seat.
Chloe watched as Mandy crawled onto Storm’s lap and envied the little girl. She planned to crawl onto it later herself. The thought made her laugh making Storm and Mandy look over at her.
“Uh, never mind,” she muttered.
“Daddy, did Chloe ride Rosa good?”
“Yes. She did very well. If it’s not snowing tomorrow, we’ll go get a tree. Claire and Jimmy will go too.”
“But...when is turkey day?”
Uh-oh. Chloe wondered how Storm would handle this. He’d told her that he’d tell the truth.
“It looks like we might not be able to go to Nana’s—”
“But I want to,” Mandy said with a frown interrupting her father.
“I know, sweetheart, but it’s supposed to snow again and if it does, we’ll have to have turkey day here.”
“What about Nana?”
“She’ll be fine. Chloe will cook us a turkey here.”
Chloe glanced over to Mandy to see her looking up at her. Chloe gave her a nod and smile, and the little girl smiled back.
“Okay.”
“Dinner will be a little longer, if you two want to watch TV together,” Chloe said.
“Good idea, princess, let’s go watch some TV,” Storm said as he stood and carried Mandy from the kitchen.
Chloe finished up, checked on the food then walked to the living room and halted when she saw Storm sitting on a small chair and Mandy was behind him with a hairbrush and barrettes.
“You need a haircut, Daddy,” Mandy said.
“I know. Just a little off the ends, please,” Storm said then looked at Chloe and winked.
Chloe widened her eyes thinking he was crazy to allow Mandy to cut his hair but Storm chuckled, put two fingers up, and made the motion of them cutting. Chloe bit her lip to keep from laughing when she realized it was just pretend. Mandy looked as if she was really concentrating on cutting her daddy’s hair.
; Chloe took a seat on the sofa, watched Mandy run her little fingers through Storm’s thick hair then she picked up her hairbrush, and brushed it. Chloe gave a small laugh when Mandy picked up a purple barrette and clipped it into his hair behind his temple.
“We’re doing purple this time, Daddy,” Mandy told him.
Storm looked at Chloe and rolled his eyes. It was so sweet that he showed such patience with Mandy and allowed her to do such non-manly things to him. She knew he really loved his little girl, and that he was an excellent father. It made her heart ache that she’d never had a father like him. Her father had never spent any time with her. He constantly worked and worse, neither of her parents ever attended any school activities. The only time she’d felt any love was when she spent time with Jennifer and Albert or when she was in Dry River with her grandmother. Her parents only cared about money and nothing else. Chloe was sure they had only had a child to pass the hotels down to so they stayed in the family. She’d always loved when summer would arrive, and she could spend time here in Dry River. She’d always missed Jennifer and Albert though—and still does. It was sad that she had missed the chauffeur and chef more than she’d missed her parents during the summer months.
However, she’d made wonderful friends here in Dry River. Kendra Mattingly had quickly become her best friend and she always missed her so much anytime she left to return to California. She feared she’d never see any of her friends again when she left after Dakota and Megan’s wedding. She thought she hadn’t any other choice because her parents threatened to take her allowance away if she didn’t return and marry David—a man who was more like a brother to her than anything else. She thanked God for Albert advising her to do what made her happy, not her parents. She had no idea how she was going to make it here, but she’d do it somehow.
Storm’s idea was a good one. She could rent her home out and live above the restaurant. It might just work. She could also try to find a part-time job. Jobs were scarce in the little town, but there had to be something she could do. She’d figure something out.
Smiling, when she noticed Mandy adding yet another barrette to Storm’s hair, she turned and headed back to the kitchen to check on dinner. Since it was ready, she called for Storm and Mandy. Mandy came running into the kitchen, pushed her chair out, and started to climb up into her booster seat.
“Did you wash your hands, Amanda Jo?” Storm asked her as he entered the room.
“No, Daddy.” She started to run past him when he placed his hand on her shoulder, stopping her.
“Walk, please.”
“Okay,” Mandy said and skipped off.
Chloe looked at Storm, and saw him sigh and shake his head. He looked at her with an expression of exasperation.
“She didn’t run,” Chloe said giving a small shrug and smiling.
“She didn’t walk, either. She runs everywhere. I just don’t want her to fall.” He walked toward her and stopped a few feet from her, glanced over his shoulder then looked at her. “You will spend the night with me tonight, right?”
“If you want me to.” She nodded. Her heart was trying to leap out of her chest even as she tried to appear calm.
“I do. I’ll get you up too. You have to make breakfast, after all.”
Chloe huffed and then grinned. “Maybe I’ll get you up first.”
“Go for it, darlin’.”
Chloe blushed at the endearment. She knew he didn’t mean it. He was a cowboy, for God’s sake. They all used that word. After all, if she had a dime for every time a cowboy called her darlin’, she wouldn’t have to go to work to keep the restaurant. She was about to say more to him when Mandy came skipping back into the kitchen. Chloe served up chicken and dumplings from the pot and set the plates on the table.
“I’m hungry,” Mandy announced as she started to climb up into her chair. Instead, Storm picked her up, settled her into her seat, and then pushed her chair in closer to the table. He politely waited for Chloe to take her seat then he took his, and they all began eating.
“This is really good, Chloe,” Storm said tipping his fork at her in gratitude.
“Yep, really good,” Mandy added as she spooned more into her mouth.
“Thank you. It’s my grandmother’s recipe.”
“My nana is my grandma,” Mandy said in a serious voice.
Chloe did her best not to smile. “I thought so.”
“She cooks good too. If we do go to her house for turkey, you can go too. Can’t she, Daddy?”
“Sure,” Storm said, sounding anything but excited about her joining them.
Suddenly, Chloe had no doubt he didn’t want to take her to his mother’s for dinner. Why would he? She wasn’t anything special to him. Besides, if the roads were clear enough to go to his mother’s house for Thanksgiving, they would be clear enough for her to go...wherever it was she was going to go.
Chloe realized she really should have thought all of this through before she headed back to Dry River. She just ran so fast to get away from California that she didn’t even call Kennie to let her know she was on her way. Of course, she hated the idea of imposing on Kennie and Cooper too. They hadn’t been married very long and Chloe would feel like a fifth wheel. She supposed she could stay in her house for a while. She had some money put away, probably not enough to live on for a long period but she had enough to make it for a while. Maybe she would take Storm up on his offer and have he and his friends work on the apartment above the restaurant. Depending on how long it took them to finish it, she could stay in the house until then. Of course, she really didn’t have a choice. If they were willing to work on it for her, she’d let them.
“I’ve been thinking...if you think the guys wouldn’t mind, I’d love for you to fix up the apartment above the restaurant for me. I can live in the house until it’s finished. I do have some money to get by on for a while. However, I can’t pay you, except by feeding all of you.”
Storm chuckled. “Sounds good. I think I can vouch for the guys. We’ll work for food. Emily fed us in payment when we fixed her house after her ex-husband shot out the windows.”
“Good. As soon as I’m able to get out of here, we’ll talk more about it.”
“Okay. I’m sure it won’t be a problem. I’ll talk to the guys tomorrow.” He stared at her. “No hurry.”
She smiled, understanding his unspoken words. No, there was no hurry at all.
Chapter Seven
The next morning, the snow having stopped during the night, Storm saddled the horses and waited for Chloe and Mandy to join him in the barn. Claire and Jimmy couldn’t go because Claire wasn’t feeling well and Jimmy said he preferred to stay back and keep an eye on her. Storm envied the couple their devotion and loyalty to each other. That was something he never had in his marriage. Was it possible to have it with anyone? Chloe perhaps? Thinking of Chloe, he almost groaned aloud when he thought back to last night. Chloe was so hot, and completely uninhibited in bed. She gave as good as she got. His dick started to rise when he remembered the things she’d done to him.
“Daddy,” Mandy yelled as she ran into the barn with an exuberance that startled him out of his thoughts. He looked in her direction and saw Chloe following close behind her.
Hell! Storm quickly moved to the other side of the horse. He sure didn’t want Chloe to see he had a hard-on. He’d never hear the end of it. He looked over the saddle at her and bit his cheek to keep the groan from emerging. She looked so very good in her tight jeans tucked into knee-high snow boots. He could see a red sweater under her jacket that was unzipped.
“You should have your jacket zipped up. It’s colder up in the north pasture.”
“I’ll zip up before we go. I was hot in the house. I thought it was rather hot all night.”
Storm stared into her eyes and saw a mischievous glint. He burst out laughing, catching her innuendo. “Can you get up on your own?” He jerked his chin toward Rosa.
“Can you?” she asked as she tugged her wool cap d
own lower on her head, while giving him a naughty wink.
“I may need help with that later.”
Chloe snorted, making him chuckle. She walked to Rosa and in a manner that impressed him, pulled herself up onto the saddle just as he’d taught her. She beamed a smile at him. She was definitely a good student.
He shook his head, laughing then lifted Mandy onto his saddle and vaulted up behind her. She leaned back against him.
“Ready, baby girl?”
“Yep. Let’s go.”
Storm laughed and nudged Dream Catcher to lead the way. He glanced over his shoulder to see Chloe following. She looked good on the horse. A real natural at it. Some people could sit a horse almost from the start while others bounced around so much in the saddle he was surprised they didn’t get sick. He was glad to see she’d bundled up because it was damn cold out. The snow had stopped the night before, but the temperatures were close to freezing.
They rode out into the sunshine and Storm stopped Dream Catcher to remove his sunglasses from his pocket. He turned to tell Chloe she should go in and get hers, when he saw her putting hers on. Smart woman. The sun reflecting off the snow made it almost impossible to see. Sunglasses were a necessity.
Chloe looked at him and tilted her head. “What?” She smiled at him.
“I was going to suggest you get your sunglasses but...”
“When I stepped out onto the porch and was almost blinded, I went back inside to get them.” She laughed.
“Good idea. I should have told you about it earlier, but I didn’t even think about it. It’s habit for us. Even Mandy knows to have them with her on days like this.”
Mandy leaned around him to wave at Chloe then pointed to her Mickey Mouse sunglasses.
“Oh wow! I need Mickey Mouse sunglasses.” Chloe grinned when Mandy giggled.
Storm Page 9
