And he wanted her. He wanted her like he had never wanted any woman before. Whenever they were together, he wanted to touch her. The nearness of her ignited a flood of emotions deep within him, and all he could think about was wrapping his arms around her and holding her close to him. He relished the heat from her body mixing with his own. It nourished his spirit, and in those moments in her company he felt full and complete. The desire was consuming, and he wanted to taste her, imagining himself drawing his tongue against the sweetness of her skin. Every single thought he had about the woman aroused him. He wanted her, and more importantly, he was almost desperate for her to want him, too.
The honorable judge was a woman after his own heart, and the more Matthew thought about her, allowing his mind’s eye to reflect back on all their time together, the more he found himself contemplating her having his heart, and everything else he possessed. He banished the sensation from his thoughts, his head shaking from side to side as he tried to pull himself together.
Easing his vehicle through the gated entrance to the grand home, he pulled into an empty parking spot and shifted his car into Park, shutting down the engine. His mind was still racing, every nerve ending in his body feeling as if it was ready to implode. Heaving a deep sigh, he exited the car and took in his surroundings, stopping to stare at the front of the house.
Constructed of Austin stone with copper accents and a tile roof, the European-style residence easily encompassed some fifteen thousand square feet of living space. It sat on some sizable acreage, the expanse of landscaping boasting a putting green, an Olympic-size swimming pool and tennis courts. It was the first home John had purchased for the brothers. Now only Mark and his wife, and their baby brother, Luke, resided there. Although Matthew hadn’t lived there for some time, he’d suddenly felt a need to return to their family home.
Making his way to the iron-and-glass entrance, Matthew dug deep into his pocket for his keys. Closing and locking the door behind him, he tiptoed across the marbled foyer and into a handsome study that was complemented by Brazilian cherrywood floors, wall-to-wall bookcases and a beamed ceiling. Inside, his brother Mark was seated in a leather wingback chair, a glass of umber-colored drink in his hand. A single light burned dimly from the desktop.
“Hey, what brings you here tonight?” Mark asked, eyeing him curiously.
Matthew shrugged, reaching for the decanter of brandy and his own crystal goblet. “Didn’t feel like going to my apartment tonight. What are you doing up?”
Mark heaved a deep sigh. “Couldn’t sleep and I didn’t want to wake Mitch. My baby needs her rest.”
“How’s she doing?” Matthew asked, concern shining in his eyes. “The pregnancy is going okay, right?”
“The doctor says she and the baby are both doing just fine. Mitch is nervous, though. It won’t be too much longer now.”
“And how are you doing, Dad? You scared?”
Mark met his big brother’s stare. He shrugged his broad shoulders. “It’s crazy, Matthew. I don’t think twice about taking a suicide curve, doing over one hundred miles per hour on a quarter inch of bike tire. But the mere thought of holding an eight-pound infant scares the crap out of me. I don’t want Mitch to know I’m scared, but I’m scared!”
Matthew laughed. “I’m sure once that baby is here, it’ll be a piece of cake. You’re going to make a great father. Just remember everything John ever taught us, and you’ll be just fine.”
Mark nodded, taking a slow sip of his drink. He paused momentarily before changing the subject. “Mitch and I had dinner with Vanessa tonight.” He cut his eye in Matthew’s direction.
Matthew cut his eye back. “And how is Vanessa doing?”
“Like Mitch. She’s ready for it to be over and the baby to be here.”
Matthew nodded. He blew a deep sigh as he took a large swig of his drink.
Mark laughed. “She told us about what she did…the insemination, I mean. I swear, I don’t know about that woman sometimes! You know, I had twenty dollars bet on you being the father.”
Matthew shook his head from side to side. “You should have known better.”
“That’s what John said.”
“Does he know, too?”
Mark nodded. “She told the whole family, but she asked us not to tell anyone else.”
“Well, that’s a start,” Matthew said, a slow smile pulling at his mouth. He nodded, dropping deep into thought.
The two men sat in silence for some time, both reflecting on their personal lives and the new life that was about to change everything they all knew. Matthew shifted awkwardly in his seat.
“What’s eating at you tonight?” Mark asked, sensing his brother’s anxiety.
Reaching for the decanter, Matthew filled his goblet a second time. He took another swig, blowing a heavy sigh after he swallowed. He didn’t have words to explain what was happening with him. It was like something had gotten under his skin and was growing steadily, threatening to consume him. He wanted to shake the sensation of Katrina from his head, but thoughts of the woman refused to let him go. And he wasn’t ready to expose the truth of that to his brother, wanting to keep his desire for the woman to himself so it didn’t become fodder for the family to take bets on, as well.
“I’m just tired. I’m sure after a good night’s rest, I’ll be just fine,” he said, rising from his seat.
“I hope so,” Mark said, a smug expression crossing his face. “Now that Vanessa’s let you off the hook, you need to be on your toes if you’re going to make things work with the judge. I hear she’s one tough cookie.”
Matthew turned to stare in Mark’s direction, his eyebrows raised. “I swear! Is nothing sacred in this family?” he questioned.
His brother chortled heartily. “You really didn’t think Vanessa came clean because she had nothing better to do, did you? She just didn’t want us looking at you funny, since you and the judge are officially a couple. At least that’s the story Vanessa is telling, and she says the odds are in her favor that she’s got this one right. About you and the judge being official, that is.”
“And let me guess, you took a bet that Vanessa is wrong?”
Mark laughed. “Not this time, big brother. I learned my lesson after I had to pay John twenty bucks the last time I bet on you.”
The two brothers laughed warmly. Making his way out of the room, Matthew wished his sibling a good-night.
Mark called after him. “Hey!”
“Yes?”
Mark lifted his glass in a mock toast. “It’s all good, man. It’s all good. It has happened to the best of us. Falling in love is a beautiful thing, family. It’s a beautiful thing!”
* * *
It was well past midnight but Katrina couldn’t sleep. And she couldn’t stop thinking about Matthew. She couldn’t stop herself from wishing he were there with her, resting beside her for the night. She imagined that if she could curl herself against the hard lines of his body, she could easily fall asleep in his arms. She wanted to fall asleep in his arms. She heaved a deep sigh.
Rolling onto her back, she tossed her arms over her head, kicking the covers from around her feet. She was in awe of the relationship she and Matthew had managed to build. Months earlier had she even imagined the possibility of being so happy with any man, she would have readily dismissed the thought from her mind. And here she was now, happier than it should ever be possible, an unlikely blessing coming when she least expected it.
The past few months with Matthew Stallion in her life had opened a whole other world to her. One she’d thought was lost forever to her when her late husband was killed in action. She had suddenly found that she had not only a best friend and a confidant but also a partner who wanted his future to be about the two of them together, his dreams interlocked with her own.
Lately they’d been talking about taking their relationship to another level, both of them yearning to take their union in a more intimate direction. Katrina was finding it more and more difficult to hold back, to contain the desire that rose with a vengeance each and every time they were alone together. Matthew had even confessed his own difficulty with leaving her with just a kiss at the door after their many dates together. The wanting was beginning to take on a life of its own.
Katrina sat upright in her bed, pulling her knees to her chest. She was acutely aware of the many women who would have already given up their goodies to the handsome man, not thinking twice about spreading themselves open for his pleasure. It wasn’t that she was purposely holding out, but that no time or place ever seemed right. With thoughts of their jobs, their positions in the community, and her child seeming to always intrude on the moment, Katrina had just not allowed herself to take that step.
She also knew that it was her own hesitancy that held Matthew back, the man seeming to sense that she wasn’t quite ready to step over that threshold. Not once had he ever asked why or pressured her for more than she’d been willing to give.
But she was ready. More than he realized. It was knowing that once they did that deed, there would be no turning back that had her totally afraid. Katrina knew that when that happened, Matthew would own her heart, her soul and her body, and she needed reassurance that he would want all of her for the rest of their lives. She needed that reassurance because she knew, given how she was feeling now, that making sweet love to Matthew Stallion would have her never wanting to let the beautiful black man go.
Chapter 13
Briscoe Ranch had well over eight hundred acres of cattle pastures and an equestrian center. Back in the day, Edward Briscoe, the ranch’s original owner, had been one of the original black cowboys. Not long after the birth of his three daughters, Eden and the twins, Marla and Marah, he’d expanded his Texas longhorn operation. He and his first wife had added an entertainment complex that specialized in corporate and private client services. The ranch now housed two twenty-thousand-square-foot event barns and a country bed-and-breakfast.
After Marah Briscoe’s marriage to John Stallion, Edward had signed the property over to his daughter and new son-in-law, and so it came to fall under the Stallion Enterprises umbrella. With the property being central to Austin, Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth, Briscoe Ranch had made quite a name for itself. It had also become a second home to all the Stallion men, the dynamics of the close-knit family drawing them even closer together.
As Matthew made his way up the front steps for the requisite monthly family breakfast, the sound of laughter from the rear of the large country home spilled out onto the front porch. The joy of it made him smile. Moving inside, he sauntered through the foyer, calling out a rousing hello as he entered the large family room and kitchen.
His brothers, John, Mark and Luke, returned the greeting, tossing up their hands in hello from where they sat at the oversize table. At the stove and kitchen counters, the women—John’s wife, Marah; her sisters, Eden and Marla; Luke’s fiancée, Joanne Lake; Mark’s wife, Michelle; and Juanita Briscoe, Edward’s second wife and the Stallion boys’ surrogate mother—were busy prepping the morning meal. Juanita moved toward Matthew, dusting her hands against a kitchen towel before reaching to press her cheek to his face. She kissed him warmly.
“Good morning, baby!”
“Good morning, Aunt Juanita. How are you doing today?”
Juanita nodded her head, twisting her hands together in front of her. “I’m doing well, Matthew. How are you doing?”
“Exceptionally well.”
“I hear a good woman will do that to a man,” Edward Briscoe said, moving into the room behind him. He clapped his palm against Matthew’s broad back.
The Briscoe sisters all raised their eyebrows, curious.
Marah chimed in warmly, “Is that right, Matthew? Has a good woman done that to you?”
“A good woman we might know?” Eden asked.
The men gathered around the table laughed heartily.
“You might as well spill it,” Luke said, leaning back in his seat as he crossed his arms over his chest. “If you don’t, you know we’ll all make up our own versions of what’s going on.”
“Or believe what Vanessa is telling us,” Mark added.
Matthew shook his head from side to side, laughter brimming past his full lips. “Mr. Edward, what is it you always say? If we spent six months minding our own business, and six months staying out of everybody else’s business, we wouldn’t have any time to poke our noses where they don’t belong. Is that right?”
His brother’s father-in-law laughed heartily. “I think what Matthew is trying to tell all y’all is that you need to be out of his business.”
Matthew winked an eye. “Thank you, sir. I appreciate that translation.”
Juanita sucked her teeth, rolling her eyes. “I swear, if all you boys don’t stick together like flies on stink!”
Edward leaned forward to give his wife a quick squeeze. “Learnt it from you womenfolk!”
Everyone in the room laughed.
Mark echoed the sentiment. “I know that’s right!”
“You don’t know any such thing at all,” Michelle said as she eased her very pregnant belly over to take a seat beside her husband.
Mark cut an eye in John’s direction, meeting his brother’s gaze as the man chuckled softly. Both men knew not to say anything in response, Michelle and Marah both eyeing them keenly.
Moving to his usual seat, Matthew laughed as he sat down. “When there is something to tell, I promise, you all will be the first to know.”
“I doubt that,” Luke said, nodding his head as Vanessa suddenly bounded into the room. “Not if the mouth of the South has anything to say about it.”
They all laughed as the youngest brother gestured in Vanessa’s direction.
“Good morning, everybody!” Vanessa chimed.
They all responded in sync. “Good morning! Hey, Vanessa!”
Vanessa plopped down onto a cushioned seat. “How’s everyone doing this morning?”
The men all nodded. Matthew met Vanessa’s gaze, and she raised her eyebrows, a sneaking grin spreading across her face.
“What’s up, big daddy?” she asked, humor painting her tone.
Matthew shook his head from side to side. “Not much, Vanessa. How are you doing this morning?”
“Ready to bust! Junior’s kicking up a storm this morning.”
From his seat at the head of the table, Edward leaned forward in her direction. “Miss Vanessa, what’s up with calling that baby Junior? You know that baby a boy, or you just guessing?”
Vanessa shrugged her shoulders. “I really don’t have a clue, Mr. Edward. Junior could be a boy or a girl. I want to be surprised.”
“Oh, you’re gonna be surprised, all right!” Edward exclaimed, his head waving from side to side. “Puts me in mind of a joke I know,” he said.
His daughters all rolled their eyes skyward. Marah groaned out loud.
“Daddy!” Eden exclaimed.
“Tell your joke, Mr. Edward,” John interjected. “Don’t pay these women an ounce of attention!”
Edward chuckled, his gray head bobbing against his thin neck. “A police officer saw a man dressed as a cowboy in the street, complete with a huge Stetson hat, spurs and his six-shooters. ‘Excuse me, sir,’ said the police officer. ‘Who are you?’ ‘My name’s Tex, Officer,’ said the cowboy. ‘Are you from Texas?’ asked the police officer. ‘No, sir,’ said the cowboy. ‘I’m from Louisiana.’ ‘Louisiana?’ said the police officer. ‘So, why are you called Tex?’ The cowboy said, ‘I wouldn’t want to be called Louise, would I?’”
John cut his ey
e at his wife as he laughed.
Marah shook her head. “That was so not funny, Daddy!” she said.
Her sisters nodded their agreement.
The patriarch flicked his hand at them in annoyance and then turned his attention to Mark and Michelle. “What about y’all? Do you two know whether or not yo’ baby is a boy or a girl?”
Mark grinned, cutting his eye at his wife. “Maybe we do… . Maybe we don’t.”
Michelle rolled her eyes. “Yes, sir, we do know.”
Everyone in the room was silent, their gazes moving from one to the other.
“Well?” Luke finally said. “Are you going to tell us or what?”
Mark laughed. He looked at his wife. “I don’t know. Should we?”
Michelle smiled. “You play too much,” she said to her husband. “You know you’re dying to tell them, so I don’t know what you’re waiting for.”
Juanita walked up behind Mark and gently slapped the back of his head with her hand.
“Love tap!” the Stallion men all chimed in unison, laughing heartily.
“Stop fooling around,” Juanita said as she placed a platter of freshly fried bacon on the table.
Mark was still grinning as he winced ever so slightly. “Ouch, Aunt Juanita. That wasn’t nice.”
“It’s not nice of you to be keeping us in the dark. We all want to go do some baby shopping, so tell us something.”
Mark clasped Michelle’s hand beneath his own. “Mitch and I found out this week that we are having…” He paused, looking around the table as everyone sat with bated breath.
“A baby girl,” Michelle interjected, rolling her eyes at her husband a second time. “And we plan to name her Irene. Irene Stallion, after your mom.” A blanket of silence fell over the room as she looked from one brother to another.
Seduced by a Stallion Page 9
