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  “Don’t bother. I’m sure you have plenty of other things to do.”

  His eyes narrowed. “You are mad.”

  Before she could deny it, Velma burst through the swinging doors holding a gigantic ice cream concoction decorated with whipped cream and two cherries. “Here’s your root beer float, hon.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Extra whipped cream, just like you asked.”

  Carter smirked at Macie. “You know how much I like sweet, thick cream.”

  Heat flashed between her legs. Bad, bad hormones.

  No. Bad, bad man.

  “This is pure artistry, Miz Velma. Mmm. Mmm.”

  “You would know.” Velma cocked her head at Macie. “Carter here is an artist.”

  “So he says.”

  The spoon stopped halfway to Carter’s mouth. His blue eyes went as cold as the ice cream in his float. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

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  Macie addressed her comments to Velma. “He tells me he’s an artist, and says he’s

  ‘working’ but the truth is, I’ve never seen a damn thing he’s supposedly created.” She shrugged. “So I’m just wondering if his whole ‘I’m an artist line’ is just that.” Macie locked her gaze to Carter’s. “A line. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have onions to chop.”

  She half-expected Carter to sneak in after her offering all sorts of sweet-talkin’

  excuses, or for Velma to butt in, but no one bothered her. The knife thwacked into the acrylic cutting board, cleaving the onion in two. Her tears fell unchecked until she swiped them away with her shirtsleeve. Stupid onions always made her cry.

  What she’d said to Carter was true and it bugged the crap out of her that he hadn’t shown her a single thing he’d drawn or molded or carved. Him calling her his beautiful muse in that sexy, low voice of his while he fucked her unconscious didn’t count. It didn’t count when he whispered promises about immortalizing her likeness in clay either.

  She wanted to see actual, physical proof. Of something.

  Macie frowned. Was that why he’d freaked out when he caught her in his studio?

  Because he didn’t want her to find out he wasn’t working? Maybe he was blocked. She’d heard artists got blocked just like writers. Maybe that’s why he claimed he needed a muse. She’d be even more skeptical of his motives if she hadn’t seen the stunning portrait Carter created of Gemma’s husband.

  But he’d drawn that one years ago. What had he been doing recently?

  Irritating the hell out of her damn hormones.

  She put the situation out of her mind as she cleaned up and changed clothes. When she returned up front, she wasn’t surprised Carter wasn’t waiting for her, but his absence did cause her a tiny pang of disappointment.

  Velma said, “You ready to go?”

  “Yeah.”

  Before Velma hit the lights, she said, “He left something for you on the counter.”

  “What?”

  “Take a look.”

  Macie spied a cheap placemat on the spot where Carter had eaten. She picked it up and stared in disbelief.

  It was a pencil drawing of her. A close-up. Specifically of her brooding, in the diner’s kitchen, her face half hidden in shadow as she gazed longingly at something beyond the white edge of the paper.

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  Her eyes met Velma’s. “Do I really look like this?”

  “Like what, sweetheart?”

  Lost.

  Velma shuffled over and peered at the drawing. “Well, you do look sad in this picture. But you’ve been kinda mopin’ around the last week, so I think it’s a pretty accurate depiction of your mood. No denyin’ the man has talent. That’s for damn sure.”

  She looked at Macie and smiled. “No denyin’ the man also has it bad for you.”

  “But—”

  “No buts. Swallow your pride, squirt. He might’ve hurt your feelin’s over something this week, but remember: He came lookin’ for you tonight.” Velma patted her cheek.

  “Make sure the door is locked when you leave, eh?”

  Macie rolled up the picture and carefully inserted it in a cardboard paper towel tube so it wouldn’t get crushed in her backpack. She slammed the back door and rounded the side of the brick building, her guilty footsteps loud in the gravel and the muted night air.

  She was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice him until she’d reached her vehicle.

  Carter lounged against the passenger door, his cowboy hat pushed back off his forehead. His arms were folded over his broad chest; his legs were crossed at his ankles.

  If she hadn’t focused on his eyes, she’d bristle at his defensive posture. But there wasn’t a defensive, macho, self-righteous glint there—just wariness.

  Or was it hope?

  What if was she projecting what was in her eyes into his?

  Did it matter?

  No.

  “He came lookin’ for you tonight.”

  She set her backpack on the ground and launched herself at him before she ruined the moment with what-ifs.

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  Chapter Eighteen

  Carter caught her with a grunt that morphed into a laugh after she squeezed him tight and knocked his hat off.

  “Hey, hey. What’s all this?”

  She scattered kisses on his face. “My way of saying I missed you, dumbass.”

  “Ah. By all means, darlin’, keep up with the sweet-talkin’. I’m hopin’ it’ll lead to dirty talk.”

  “Thanks for drawing me that picture. Sorry I was a jerk.”

  “Apology accepted. Just so you know…I have been workin’. Time got away from me and before I knew it, I realized I hadn’t seen the real you in a week.”

  She pulled back to look at him. “The real me?”

  “I’ve been paintin’ pictures of you. But retouching you on canvas ain’t nothin’ like touchin’ you in the flesh.” His frustrated growl was a balm to her pride. “Jesus, Macie, enough talkin’. Kiss me already.”

  Her mouth trapped his. She forced her tongue between his warm lips and poured herself into him. A hot, drawn-out opened-mouthed kiss that left her wet with need, and had him grinding his hard cock into the soft notch between her thighs.

  “The things you do to me make me think of all the nasty things I wanna do to you.”

  Carter scraped his teeth down her throat. “I ain’t feelin’ very gentlemanly. I want to fuck you right fuckin’ now. I don’t think I can wait until we find the closest bed.” He growled,

  “How daring are you feelin’?”

  “Not very. But you make me want to be daring.”

  “That’s music to my ears.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah. Ever done it on the hood of a car?”

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  She’d never done it in a car. She imagined hot metal on her back; hot man on her front. Whoo-ee. She could be down with that. “Do you have a condom?”

  “Sweet darlin’, I’ve got a whole pocketful.”

  Chills broke out across every inch of her flesh as he nibbled her neck. She moaned.

  Loudly. “Like that, do you?”

  “Yes. Your mouth feels like liquid fire.”

  “Funny. That’s the way my cock feels too.”

  Laughing, Macie pushed away. “You gonna take off your pants before the crotch catches fire? Before you get in my car?”

  “Oh, so Miz Daring decides we’re doin’ this in the car, as opposed to against it?”

  “Yep.”

  “Works for me.” Carter kept his eyes on hers as he kicked off his boots and shucked off his Wranglers. His cock bobbed against his bellybutton and he grinned at her wide-eyed expression. “Commando all the way for you, darlin’. Your t
urn. Strip.”

  Macie had changed out of her ugly polyester uniform before clocking out, but she hoped her skin didn’t reek like grease. In a flash her denim shorts and her panties were at her feet and her T-shirt dangled from the hood.

  “Bra too.”

  “Nope. You still have your shirt on.”

  Carter tugged and the pearl snaps gave way, showing just a sliver of his golden flesh from his collar to where the hem brushed his balls.

  “Enough.”

  He lifted a brow. “Enough? I thought you wanted me to take it off?”

  “Well, I don’t want to make it too easy for you.”

  “Easy?”

  “I think I wanna test you, see how good you are at removing my bra in the dark, in the car, while I’m bouncing on your lap. You might get a little flustered.”

  “You issuin’ me a challenge?”

  “Yep.”

  “What do I get if I pass your challenge?”

  Just say it. Be daring. But it sounded too crude, a little slutty, and a lot naughty in her head no matter how she phrased it.

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  “Macie? What do I get?”

  “Whatever you want.”

  Carter’s eyes narrowed. “We’re talkin’ whatever I want sexually, right?”

  “Yep.”

  “What if I want something you ain’t never given another man?”

  “Then it would be yours to take.”

  The air between them turned thick with need.

  “Remember you said that. Get in the fuckin’ car, before I throw you on the goddamn ground and fuck you in the gravel and weeds.”

  “We’ve already done that once.”

  He growled.

  “Slip on a condom, cowboy, slide your fine butt in the seat and wait for me. I need to get something out of the back.”

  “What?”

  “You’ll see.”

  Crickets chirped in the darkness but she scarcely heard them over the blood rushing in her ears. The weight of the car shifted as Carter climbed inside. Macie grabbed the case from under the seat and skirted the front end. She hesitated when she saw the raw, hungry look on Carter’s face through the windshield.

  “Don’t make me come out there and get you,” he warned.

  Before she lost her nerve, she crawled on his lap. As she set the case on the driver’s seat, her knee smacked into his groin.

  He sucked in a sharp breath. Then, “Jesus-Christ-Almighty-Oh-holy-mother-of-god-oh-fuck-oh-shit-oh- goddamn that hurts.”

  “Oh, sorry sorry sorry. I’m didn’t mean to.”

  “I know.”

  “Sorry, Carter, oh, what can I do?”

  “Give me a sec, okay?”

  “Sorry.”

  He expelled a slow breath.

  “Are you okay?”

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  “Normally I’d say after rackin’ me you need to get on your knees and kiss my poor abused boys and make ’em all better, but there ain’t enough room in here for you to do

  ’em justice.”

  “Will you take a rain check?”

  “Hell yeah.” Carter nestled her soft thighs along the outside of his muscular legs.

  “Gimme this mouth.” His talented lips toyed with hers as he danced his callused fingertips up and down her spine.

  Then he really kissed her. A full body kiss. A carnal thrusting of his tongue, his mouth gliding back and forth to find the best angle to take the soul kiss even deeper.

  Wetter. Hotter. His hips pressed up, his cock searching for her feminine heat. Nimble fingers unhooked her bra and tugged the satiny straps down her arms.

  Hey. Wait a minute.

  Macie eased back to look at him. Glare at him really.

  An extremely cocky grin spread across his sexy face.

  “Don’t challenge me, darlin’, you can’t win.” He fastened his teeth to the spot on her neck that made her melt. “I know what I want. I’ll let you think on when you’re prepared to give it up to me, ’cause I won it fair and square. But for now…tell me what’s in the box.”

  Her hands were flat against his chest, her fingers flexing into the rippling muscles.

  God. He was so strong. So smooth. So perfect. She leaned forward, buried her nose against his collarbone and inhaled. “You smell so damn good. All the time. Your scent drives me out of my freakin’ mind. I want to lick every bulge and vein and line from your neck on down to your hipbones. And then I want to do it all over again so I can double-check that I didn’t miss any good spots.”

  “Macie—”

  “Let me touch you, Carter, please.”

  The heat in the car made his pecs slick with sweat. The constant stroking of her thumbs over his nipples made the tips rock hard. His belly muscles quivered beneath her fingertips.

  But Carter wasn’t about to be distracted. He thrust a hand through her hair and tugged her head back so he could peer in her eyes. “You can suck and lick me to your heart’s content later. Right now I wanna know: What’s in the goddamn box?”

  She nipped his chin. “You taste like whipped cream here.”

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  “Macie,” he warned.

  “Fine. My vibrator.”

  He froze. “You have a vibrator?”

  “Yep.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’ve never been able to count on a man for anything, so I take care of all matters myself.”

  “You keep your vibrator in the car?”

  “It’s safer than keeping it in my dad’s camper where he could find it. Plus, it’s portable. Which is handy for us right about now. So, do you want to use it on me? Or should I use it on you first?”

  “Christ Almighty. I may not survive you.”

  “Toughen up, tough guy. Or are you scared? I thought you were daring?”

  “Hah. I ain’t skeered ’a nuthin’. Hand it over.”

  Macie reached for it and slapped the soft purple plastic phallus in his palm. “Need instructions?”

  “Nope.” Carter grinned and turned it to high. Over the constant buzzing noise, he said, “Spread your legs and hold on.”

  “But—”

  “You started it. Lean closer. I wanna suck your tits while I’m doing…this.”

  He slid the vibrator right between her pussy lips and left it there.

  Macie shrieked.

  Then he shaped and squeezed her left breast, sucking her right nipple until it felt like her whole breast was in his hot mouth. He sucked and groaned against her skin while he let the vibrator rest directly on her clit.

  She’d be lucky if she lasted a minute.

  Or thirty seconds.

  She gyrated her hips, arching her spine, wanting him to suck her harder until her nipple hit the back of his throat.

  Carter moved his mouth and the vibrator away.

  “Hey, don’t stop!”

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  “I’m not. Scoot back.”

  She did and he slid his butt toward the dash.

  “You ain’t gonna last long. I wanna be ready to slide deep.” Carter brushed soft kisses over the tops of her breasts and he repositioned the vibrator right where she needed it.

  Macie threw back her head and moaned.

  “Come for me, darlin’.”

  Four strokes, four sucks, that’s all it took.

  She exploded.

  Carter bit down on her nipple as her clit pulsed against the soft rubber. Before she could find her sanity, Carter’s mouth was on hers and he’d impaled her, even as her pussy still throbbed from the tail end of her orgasm.

  “Jesus, Macie. You are so wet.”

  “It’s your fault. The way you touch me, the way you look at me. You make me wet.”

  “I ain’t compla
inin’, knowin’ I can heat you up.”

  “Oh GOD that feels good.”

  “Come again for me. I like watchin’ you come.”

  Another orgasm ruptured inside her.

  Carter rammed in and out, each thrust deeper. Harder. Prolonging her climax until she couldn’t breathe and white dots appeared in front of her eyes.

  The sound of skin slapping on skin drifted far away. Was she having an out of body experience? Or was this just another damn dream?

  Pinch yourself.

  But she couldn’t move. Her arms shook. Her legs were numb. She was sweating. She was on fire. Goosebumps broke out across her flesh. She was chilled to the bone. Her head was full of white fluffy cotton and then everything was fading to black.

  All movement quit. Even the sweet stroking of Carter’s velvety tongue against hers.

  He broke the kiss completely. She tried to chase his mouth for more of his intoxicating taste, but ended up smacking her face into his chin.

  “Macie? Darlin’? What’s wrong?”

  “I think I’m gonna pass out.”

  “Shit. Hold on.”

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  “Okay. I am.”

  “Let me pull out—”

  “No. Don’t move.”

  “I should—”

  “Carter.”

  “I’m here.”

  “Don’t. Move.”

  “But—”

  “Just hold me.”

  “No, baby, we need to stop.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “I can’t believe—”

  “Please. It’ll pass.”

  He didn’t say a word.

  “Just give me…a minute.”

  “Take however long you need.”

  Finally, sanity began to reassert itself. After her head quit spinning, Macie became aware of several things. Carter’s cock was still rock hard, still seated fully inside her. His skin was damp. His short, broken breaths stirred her hair. His pulse pounded against her chest. His body was going haywire with the need to finish this frenzied mating, yet, he held her in utter stillness.

  With gentleness. With protection. With…care.

  Crap. That felt a whole lot scarier than passing out.

  This man was so dangerous to her heart.

  Slowly she lifted her head. Smiled at him. “Whoa. That’s the first time I’ve nearly passed out from an orgasm.”