by Ginny Glass
Oh, the innuendos I could think of. I chose to keep them to myself as I crossed the threshold.
He’d been right about one thing. I could definitely appreciate the time someone had taken to making sure each room was well appointed and fit with the overall image of the hotel. The tan walls were accented with the same wood as the lobby, though far less intricate. The wood floors appeared slightly worn without looking dingy or damaged.
And then there was the bed. It wasn’t anything special, yet I couldn’t manage to take my eyes off it. The king-size frame was made of light-colored wood that looked like it came out of a craftsman’s garage.
“You like?” Nathan pushed past me and closed the door. The click made my mouth go dry and my throat constricted.
“It’s very nice.”
He closed the space between us and suddenly the room seemed far too small to accommodate the two of us. “I have a confession to make.”
Gulp. “Really?”
A few inches closer. Blood pounded in my ears as the scent of pine and coffee overwhelmed me. “I didn’t invite you up here just to see my room.”
“Oh?”
“No, I have to admit that I’ve had my eye on you since last night and, if I’m not mistaken, you’ve had yours on me too.”
Was I really that obvious? To be fair, the bulge in my pants wasn’t exactly discreet. “What makes you think that?”
“Because you didn’t try to stop me when I kissed you.”
“You didn’t kiss me.”
“Not yet.”
Then he fulfilled his promise. His lips met mine and the world seemed to completely slip away. It wasn’t the soft caress I’d been expecting after that lead-up, but a passionate kiss that almost knocked me off my feet. I took a few steps back to steady myself. As though Nathan had anticipated that reaction, he kept up with me, placing one hand on the back of my head and the other around my waist. There was no escaping his hold on me. Not that I had any desire to.
His tongue forced its way into my mouth, sliding between my lips and greedily learning every crevice of my mouth. I was slow to catch up, still shocked at the sudden turn the day had taken, but, when I did, I was determined to make sure I left him with the same heat burning within him that I was currently feeling.
Normally, worry would have been the main emotion coursing through me, constantly keeping me wondering what he was thinking. Was I doing well enough? Did I turn him on? Somehow Nathan shut down that response entirely, forcing me to focus instead on his wandering hands or his cock pressed against my thigh. Every time I thought I had a handle on the situation, he’d find a new way to surprise me. A light touch here, a small squeeze there or a change in the direction that would send me reeling all over again. My brain turned to mush, unable to focus on anything for more than a millisecond. And yet I kept trying. Over and over again.
“Is this okay?” The words sounded far off and distant and it took me a full beat to realize where it’d come from. He repeated himself as he stroked the side of my face with his calloused thumb.
“Yes.” It was the only word I could get out, but it was enough. He pulled me back in and kissed me. Even though out lips had only been apart a moment, his touch felt new and exciting all over again. His hand slid along my hard cock. What I would have given to already be rid of my jeans. Even through the thick fabric his touch lit a spark that shot through my dick and spread to the rest of my body. I ground against him, begging for more. He didn’t give in, though—he kept himself steady, providing constant but minimal pressure to my cock.
I reached for him, determined to put him through the same agony I was currently experiencing, but he pulled back. “You’re torturing me,” I managed to whisper as he nipped at my earlobe.
“I haven’t even begun to torture you.”
I groaned. Those words were enough to make me want to come on the spot.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle.”
At this rate, we wouldn’t need that long. He had me wound up so tight I wasn’t even sure we’d get our clothes off before I came. Patience was not one of my stronger points.
I managed to break away from him and take a few steps farther into the room. He followed behind me, each of us leaving a trail of clothes behind us.
Naked, I stood in front of the bed. An hour ago I would have thought it was impossible for Nathan to get any hotter. Turned out I was dead wrong. Without all that fabric covering his body he was about a thousand times sexier. His lean frame was misleading, but now there was no hiding the toned muscles that covered his body. Clearly he spent a decent amount of time in a gym.
He held my hand as he led me backward to the bed until my thighs hit the mattress. I paused for a moment, unsure whether I should sit or stay standing. He didn’t leave me guessing long. Both hands pressed against my chest, Nathan gave me a light shove. I could’ve caught myself and remained upright, but I didn’t want to. Instead, I allowed gravity to pull me down until my back was flat against the comforter, my legs still hanging over the edge of the bed.
Climbing up on the bed, he arranged his legs on either side of my hips and leaned forward, nipping and licking my neck. For the first time, our skin met and my body seemed to melt beneath him. He rocked his hips a little, rubbing his cock against mine.
“Fuck me.” Crude, but it made my point.
“Give me a minute.” He stood and I instantly regretted saying anything. The touch of his warm body had been all-consuming. Losing it felt like a huge loss.
Thankfully, he returned quickly carrying a foil wrapper and a bottle of lube. I wiggled up the bed until my feet were on the mattress. When he crawled up next to me, that big smile plastered on his face, my stomach flip-flopped.
Instead of returning to cover and kiss me again, he settled between my legs. A soft sigh escaped my lips as he ran his forefinger up my leg from my knee to my balls. The trailing electricity pulsed through my body as I anticipated his next move.
When he looked up at me, he didn’t say anything aloud, but his eyes spoke volumes. They were soft and kind, yet sparkled with an unmistakable passion. He turned his head slightly and I followed his gaze toward the bottle of lube he’d tossed aside earlier. I nodded and he grabbed the bottle, putting a few drops on his fingers. When his tip finally brushed against my entrance, I jumped before relaxing and focusing on opening to him.
To his benefit, he appeared to be in no hurry. His finger slowly entered me, moving in a little before pulling out and beginning the process over again. I, on the other hand, was impatient. I wanted him—all of him—now. I pushed my hips, trying to hurry him and make sure he knew how much I wanted him.
“Patience. I promise you’ll get exactly what you need.”
“Now.” My voice sounded husky as it filled the room.
“Soon.” His low, soothing tone had the exact opposite effect on me that it was supposed to. If anything, he made me even more anxious.
“Now,” I repeated.
“Shhh…I want to make sure you are good and ready for me.”
My hand instantly went to my cock, wrapping tightly around my shaft and pumping a few times to show him how serious I was. If I could have reached it, I would have taken his in my hand too, rubbing and stroking them together.
Looking up at him, I noticed that his mouth was open and his gaze was focused on my shaft. He answered by adding a second finger to my hole. For the love of God. This was all moving entirely too slow. I grabbed his wrist to stop him. “Now.”
Nathan stared into my eyes for a second, searching me, before pulling his fingers out. Without a word, he grabbed the condom and tore open the wrapper. I watched as he put it on, my mouth open and salivating. When he caught me staring, he smiled.
Normally I might have cared that he’d caught me so open and clearly gawking, but tonight it didn’t matter. As long as he had his thick cock inside me soon, I’d be happy.
Lucky for me, he didn’t seem intent on making me wait. He lowered himself back betwe
en my legs, grabbing them behind the knees and hoisting them into the air. The little look he gave me, eyebrow raised and lips turned up in a crooked smile, was enough to make me melt. In that second, I was convinced that there was connection between us. I couldn’t place what it was, though. There was no real reason to feel that way. I’d only met him last night and we’d barely had a chance to talk, but there was no denying that connection existed.
He pressed into me. I gritted my teeth and waited for the flash of pain I knew was coming. “Open your eyes, sweet thing.”
No one had ever had any sort of pet name for me. I stared up into his eyes and he leaned down, capturing my lips. If I thought my mind had been fuzzy before, it was now overgrown with nothing but thoughts of him and me. Flashes of the present mixed with the past and what I hoped was the future.
Before I knew it, he was buried deep inside me. Only when my hips started to move against him did he begin to thrust. Slow, steady strokes that built to a level I didn’t know even existed.
I ran my hands through his hair, tugging and caressing, then down his shoulders, digging my fingertips deep into his skin. Though I feared I was hurting him, he never once complained. Or at least none of the noises he made sounded like a complaint.
When simply touching him wasn’t enough anymore, I grabbed hold of his ass and pulled him in closer, pinching his tight flesh in the process.
My mind blurred to the point where I couldn’t have remembered my own name, let alone any other details. All I could think of was touching him more. I wanted the moment to last forever or even just a few extra minutes, but my body disobeyed every command I gave it. Before I could say a word, my body exploded, hot come shooting over my midsection.
Nathan kept thrusting through my orgasm, his body shaking. A few seconds later I could feel him find his own release. Spasms continued to shake through both of us as we lay there, neither of us willing to say a word.
He leaned forward, propping himself up on his elbows, and kissed my forehead. After a few moments of heavy panting, he took a deep breath and pushed up off of me. He disappeared disappear into the bathroom and I tried to will myself to get up and join him. No luck. My whole body felt shaky and gelatinous. When I finally managed to stand, my legs wobbled and threatened to buckle, but, despite my concerns, they held. I only got halfway from the bed to the bathroom door before he met me, holding a damp cloth. “Here you go.” Instead of handing it over to me, he gently rubbed it across my skin. The warmth felt good, but I was more focused on the way he kept a hand on my shoulder. Steadying. Calming.
When he’d finished, he turned and tossed it into the sink. “What do you think? Back to bed?”
“I wish.” I groaned. “I have to get going. There’s some work I have to take care of today.”
“You’re right. I need to get moving as well.” He placed a hand on my back. “Are you free this evening? Maybe we could have a third date?”
“Third?” I raised my eyebrow.
“Last night at the bar, today at the coffee house and dinner at a restaurant of your choosing, if you agree to it.”
I liked the way this guy thought. “If I do, is there any chance of a fourth and fifth date?”
“That depends. Are you talking about breakfast the next morning or something a little more permanent?”
“I was thinking something that involved seeing each other more than just this week.” There was no denying that I greatly enjoyed the time we’d spent together, but I’d never really been a one-night-stand kind of guy. There were plenty in my past, but they always left me feeling beat-up and guilty. What I really wanted was a relationship. This town was greatly lacking in available gay men, though, making getting what I wanted a little difficult.
“That is a definite possibility. You know, I don’t live that far away. Denver is only an hour-and-a-half drive.”
It was the first I’d heard him say where he was from, but I breathed a sigh of relief to hear that he wasn’t from back East. At least there was the possibility that we could end up seeing each other again. “We are most definitely on for dinner, then.” I eyed his half-clothed body for a second. “Maybe we could do something simple, though. Like order pizza and eat it in the room.”
He seemed to catch my drift. “Sounds like a perfect arrangement.”
I stuffed my feet into my boots and headed for the door. If I’d known leaving the ranch could bring me so much luck, I would have done it a lot sooner.
*
The afternoon seemed to drag on forever. Between the images from my time with Nathan and the expectation of the evening, staying focused on my work at the rodeo proved difficult. It’d been one crazy disaster after another all afternoon. For the first time since the rodeo started, I finally got to go watch a portion of the event. Resting my arms against the high metal fence, I leaned in and tried to get a look at the scoreboard to see who was up. My odd angle and the glare of the sun prevented me from getting a good look.
The next rider shot out of the chute and I watched as he and his horse chased down the steer. I always felt bad cheering for the livestock instead of the cowboy, but I couldn’t help it. They were the ones I would be taking home at the end of the night. It was nice to hope that they won a few rounds.
The rider leaped from his horse and planted straight into the dirt, missing the target, and the now free-and-happy steer, by a mere inch. The crowd moaned and clapped slowly as the man got to his feet and dusted himself off. As he turned to wave, I caught sight of something I didn’t expect to see. Nathan. Not just at the rodeo, but in the middle of the arena competing for a belt buckle and a piece of the prize money.
The man who had accused me of being a potential spy turned out to be the one keeping all the secrets.
*
I did my best to get through the remaining aspects of my job without screwing anything up. If I’d thought keeping my mind on my work while trying to plan for my date was hard, focusing while trying to come up with something good to say to Nathan was impossible.
I’d been trying to figure out how to call him and tell him that we needed to talk when I saw him standing around with a group of other cowboys, as though nothing had happened. I stared for a few minutes, before he turned and looked at me. When he did, a look of panic crossed his face before he returned to his conversation.
I waited, attempting to come up with something witty to say to him once the rest of the crowd cleared. Nathan patted the last of his friends on the shoulder and walked toward me. Everything I’d managed to think of up to that point vanished and my mind went blank. “You’re a…” I couldn’t find the words to finish my sentence.
“Steer wrestler?”
“Asshole.” It wasn’t the word I originally went looking for, but it seemed appropriate. “You knew what I did this whole time and you didn’t say a word. Do you have any idea how much trouble we could get in?”
“First, you never explicitly told me you were involved in the rodeo.”
“But you knew.”
“Yes, I recognized your name when you introduced yourself.”
“And you what, thought maybe you’d jerk me around for a while to see how that worked out?”
“No, I figured I’d do a little harmless flirting. I never expected we’d end up in bed.”
“And when things didn’t exactly go the way you planned, did you stop and think that maybe you should give me a heads-up?”
“To be real honest with you, I wasn’t doing any thinking.”
Flashbacks to our moments in the room overtook me. The memories both exhilarated me and made me want to vomit. If I’d been the one with a secret to share, I doubted I’d have been coherent enough to say anything either.
“It’s not that big of a deal. No one needs to know that we slept together. The bottom line is that we didn’t cheat, so it isn’t a problem.”
“No, it is a problem. A big one. I could lose my job over this.”
“Who’s going to fire you?”
&n
bsp; “The committee. There are very strict rules about this. I’m not allowed to fraternize with the competitors.”
“Or what? You’ll somehow rig the lottery that decides which steer I get?”
I’d never really thought through how I’d even help someone cheat, let alone someone who didn’t go near my animals. Nathan had a good point. It would be almost impossible to pull something like that off. But it didn’t change the fact that what we’d done in his hotel room was a violation of my contract with the rodeo. Losing this part of my income would be devastating. I’d probably have to sell acreage in order to make up for the loss. “That’s not important. You lied to me.”
“I omitted the truth. There’s a difference.”
I snorted. “Thin line, if you ask me.”
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t know I was doing anything wrong. I like you. You’re smart, sexy, and we are great together. A few hours ago you agreed with me on those points. Let’s put this past us and enjoy the time I still have in town.”
“Yeah, well, a few hours ago I wasn’t risking my way of life in order to be with you. I don’t think that things between us are going to work.”
“Does that mean tonight is off the table?”
I scoffed. Seriously? He really thought that he could just apologize and make up for everything? “Do cows have assholes?” I pivoted on my heel and walked away, afraid to turn back and look at his face. I had made up my mind and there was no way I was going to let him change it.
*
It was after midnight when I finally managed to fall asleep. I kept replaying the events of the past twenty-four hours trying to figure out where things went wrong. All the signs had been right there in front of my face. Sexy cowboy in from out of town during the rodeo. He’d been evasive anytime I tried to ask him about his job, but I should have been able to guess. What other kind of work could he be in town on?
I’d wanted to find companionship so much I’d been willing not to ask that sort of question. Even worse was the fact that I’d put all the blame on him. He should have said something—especially since he knew I provided livestock for the rodeo—but there was no way for him to know that it would be such a big deal.
