An image of Beth, face flushed, eyes dark as emeralds as she held his head and panted his name flashed through his mind. Brick smiled. “Who said it was ruined?”
Stone chuckled. “I’ll send Beth in. I’m sure she’s chomping at the bit. That girl appears to have a stubborn streak. It was kind of fun watching you two battle it out.”
“Yeah, hilarious. Now go. I’d much rather look at her pretty face than your ugly mug.” He picked up his clothes off the floor and cursed as his skin tightened and pulled. Bending was going to have to go on hold for the next day or so. He tossed his shirt in the trash and the rest of his clothes in the hamper, then turned to his brother. “Hey, Stone?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks.”
With two fingers to his forehead, his brother saluted. “Think about taking one of those pills later.”
His brother was out the door before Brick could reply, so he contemplated pulling a shirt on, then vetoed the idea. With luck, he’d only be removing it.
“Brick.” Beth breezed in, wearing the navy dress that tied at the hip Jovy had worn the night she’d hooked his brother good at the Beer and Steer last month. Stone’s jaw had dropped and heart had shone in his eyes, and Brick remembered thinking, he’d never fall like that…be such a sucker.
Thing was, Brick was pretty sure he wore the exact same expression right now. Damn, she was beautiful. Hair wet, face scrubbed clean, those gorgeous green eyes full of worry and heat as she took him in. “I’m so sorry. Is there anything I can do?” She set her hands and head on his chest and pressed close.
“You’re doing it.”
She glanced up. Her concern was genuine and deep, and he was both lost and found in her need to make sure he was all right. No woman had ever looked at him like that, like his wellbeing was more important than hers. She slayed him.
Then released him to turn and lock the door.
His heart kicked the shit out of his ribs. “Beth?”
She returned, running her hands up his chest then back down. God, he wanted this more than anything in the world, so much he could taste it, taste her, but not if it was out of some misplaced sense of guilt. Which was weird. He never gave a rat’s ass about the woman’s motive before, whether she was using him for a great orgasm, as an escape, a way to forget. It hadn’t mattered. Sex was sex. But not with Beth. Never with Beth. Hell, even their first time, he knew she was special. He’d just been in denial.
Until now. He didn’t know why it was important she wasn’t doing this out of guilt. He just knew it was.
She leaned in to lick his nipple while her fingers strummed over his abs.
Brick jumped. “What are you doing?”
“I was hoping to have my way with you.” She kissed a path to his other nipple. “Is that a problem?”
No. Hell no. Wait, yeah, maybe.
“Depends.”
“On what?” She stepped back to untie the bow at her hip and slowly let the dress part to reveal the hot, naked curves he desired above all others. Then she pushed it off her shoulders and, fuck me, the dress fell in a heap at her feet.
He was toast.
His tongue wasn’t the only organ in his body to swell; the boner tenting his sweats vied for top billing. And won. She was so damn gorgeous his whole body tightened and all his pains and aches disappeared as desire flooded his veins, taking over all his receptors.
Still, he had to be sure.
“Beth, if you’re doing this to reward me—”
She chuckled. “Oh, I can assure you this is payback, but not for why you think. Not for protecting me from the storm, although, I’d gladly do anything,” she said, stroking him through his sweats. “Give you anything you wanted, but you see, it’s always been that way for me with you. And if you think back to before the storm, we weren’t exactly playing bingo. We’ve got some unfinished business.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh, yeah, cowboy.” She dropped to her knees and freed him, letting his sweats fall to his ankles as she lightly grasped him, and he throbbed in her hand. “I want this. I want you, badly.”
Then holding his gaze, she took him in her mouth.
Bloody-fuckin-hell.
Brick had always considered himself to be a strong man, sometimes even immovable, but the feel of her mouth on him was so exquisite it nearly brought him to his knees. “Angel,” he rasped, grabbing her shoulders to try to pull her away. “You don’t have to—”
She released him and glanced up. “I know. I want to, Brick. It’s only fair. You got to taste me, why can’t I taste you?”
Without waiting for his reply, she licked him like a lollipop then drew him all the way in. Ah, damn that felt good. So damn good. Maybe he could give her a minute, but not two, he’d never last two minutes. He slid his fingers into her hair and lightly held on, letting himself enjoy the sensation of her working him over with her mouth.
Gripping his hips, she upped her pace to his—damn, she knew his pace so well—and his eyes about rolled back in his head when she did something with her tongue. He groaned, lost in a wave of heat, then her hands trailed around and she brushed him underneath. Everything in him tensed.
“Ah, hell, angel,” he cursed under his breath and hauled her to her feet.
“What’s wrong? Did I do something wrong?”
“Hell, no. You were perfect. So perfect, but that’s not the part of you I want to come in.”
“Oh.” A beautiful, heated smiled crossed her lips. “Do you have a condom?”
“Nightstand.” He pointed, glad to let her walk across the room to fetch it. He wasn’t entirely sure he’d make it more than a step or two, since his legs were shaky, thanks to her wicked mouth.
She returned in a flash, even had the packet open, but when she went to roll it on him, he took it from her.
“No, thanks, I’d better do it.” After he was covered, he ran his hands up her body, lingering on her ribs, brushing the underside of her beautiful breasts with his thumbs, then her gorgeous, mouthwatering nipples.
She made a sexy sound in her throat and grabbed his head to pull his mouth to hers for a hot, wet kiss that nearly set him off. Without releasing her mouth, he bent and willingly endured the pain stretching across his back to run his hands under her sweet ass and lifted her up so she could wrap those mile-long legs of hers around him.
“Hold on to me.”
She stilled in his arms. “But I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Angel, you’ll hurt me if you don’t,” he growled, then walked a few steps to lean her back against the wall, where he captured her lips for a hot, deep, frantic kiss. She opened for him, kissing him back, giving and demanding in return, her tongue brushing his with mind-drugging precision.
A sound rumbled up from his chest, and he released her mouth to kiss a path to her neck, paying special attention to the soft spot behind her ear he knew drove her wild. Beth moaned and clutched his shoulders, tipping her head to give him access to more. He took it, nibbling and kissing, while his hand roamed to her opened legs to make sure she was ready.
So damn wet.
“Brick…” she gasped.
“I got you.” He positioned his tip at her center, and drawing back to hold her gaze, he pushed inside.
Their mingled cries of pleasure filled the air as he filled her, shoving all the way in, finding…home. He’d taken plenty of women against a wall before, but never had he felt so consumed, so enveloped, so damn incredible.
“You still with me, angel?”
Her eyes were glazed over and her face was flushed as she nodded.
“Am I hurting you?”
“No,” she croaked. “You feel so good you take my breath.” Her hands ran over his shoulders and chest as she leaned forward to kiss his lips. “I need you to move.”
He smiled against her mouth. “Yes, ma’am.”
Then he held her hips and began to move, pulling out slowly then pushing back in. A sexy little mewl sounded in her throat. S
o he did it again. Another mewl. God, he loved that sound.
But he’d been holding on for too long and she just felt so damn good the simple movement spiked heat in all directions, along with a telltale tightening in his balls. He wasn’t going to last. He upped the pace, watching their erotic connection as he drove in and out, then lifted his gaze, mesmerized by the bouncing of her glorious breasts.
“Brick…I need…”
God, yeah, he needed that to.
Pressing his thumb to her center, he groaned as she bucked wildly, and he captured her “Oh God, Brick” with a hot, demanding kiss, shoving his tongue in her mouth, matching their frantic, delicious rhythm.
Beth tightened around him, and as he pounded into her sweet heat over and over she took him to the very brink with her climax. Yeah, hell yeah. With one deep thrust he came with her in a release so damn strong it momentarily stole his vision. And his strength. His palms hit the wall as he slowly slid them to his knees and slumped against her.
It was several moments before control of his limbs and vision returned. His head rested against the side of hers while their ragged breathes mingled.
She had a death grip around his neck. “Sorry,” she muttered, easing her grip.
He brushed his lips over her damp temple. “Don’t be.” Lifting his head, he stared into her dazed eyes. “You okay?”
“What just happened? Did you feel that?”
“Angel”—he brushed her cheek with his thumb—“you’re all I feel.”
He slid the rest of the way out and eased her to the floor, his chest tightening at her sound of helpless regret. Yeah, he loved being inside her body, too. What he didn’t love was the stiffness overtaking his muscles.
Fucking hail.
So, he probably overexerted himself, but damn, it had been worth it. Now, he just had to figure out how the hell to get up off the floor.
She cupped his chin. “You okay?”
“Better than.” He kissed her lips. “Just trying to find my bones.”
She smiled. “Yeah, my legs are all rubbery, too. Maybe we can help each other up.”
But he was too stubborn for that and found the strength to push to his feet and help her off the floor. He bent to give her another quick kiss. “I’ll be right back,” he said, then disappeared into the bathroom to take care of business before returning—a little slowly—to find her holding a pill in one hand and a glass of water in the other.
Damn Stone for leaving them there.
“You took care of me, now let me take care of you.” She handed them to him, then pulled the covers back and climbed in his bed.
Unable to resist the lure of her on her back, offering her glorious chest as a pillow, he downed the pill and joined her. He was such an Angel whore. Settling against her soft curves, half on half off, he tossed a leg over hers, rested his face on her gorgeous chest, and stroked a hand across her belly.
She kissed the top of his head and sighed, one hand in his hair, doing amazing things to his scalp, while the other skimmed his arm, her thumb tracing tiny little circles. God, he’d never felt so relaxed. So at ease. Having never been cradled before, the sensation was new. He liked it. A lot. A hell of a lot.
And bless his angel, she didn’t feel the need to fill the contented silence with words. It was as if she was happy, too. Satisfied. She just held him, and he held her, well aware the angle kept him off his injured back.
Brick’s last thought before he drifted off was that Beth really was his angel.
…
Beth was going to hell.
She was falling for Brick and he was falling for her, and instead of it being wonderful and glorious, it magnified her guilt. Yet, she still didn’t…couldn’t tell him the truth. Not right now. Not with him hurt because of her.
For over an hour, she stayed in his bed and held him, just listening to him breathe, wrapped in his heat, and his strength, wishing she could channel some of that strength to tell him her full name.
The same argument went round and round in her head as he fell asleep. It only got worse. But if she stayed any longer, it was going to get downright awful when her brother arrived. So she lightly kissed Brick’s head, carefully slid out from under him, and quickly slipped into Jovy’s dress.
Daylight was beginning to fade outside and the clock on Brick’s nightstand glared her brother’s impending return. She had to go. Now.
After someone took her back to town for her car.
Beth scribbled a quick note to Brick, telling him she had an early morning appointment, which thank God was not a lie. She and Rachel were meeting with the Cake Lady to approve of the final design.
One last glance to the bed and Beth’s heart squeezed and her stomach knotted. A haphazard maze of Band-Aids, welts, and bruises covered Brick’s back, while hidden beneath the sheet was his well-formed ass and muscular legs sporting several black and blue marks where the denim had cushioned the blows.
All her fault. His back wouldn’t have been so mangled if she would’ve let him use the blanket. But there was no way she could’ve allowed the poor horse to go without protection. It was a mess, and she was tired, partly due to nerves, partly due to having the hottest, wildest, most incredible orgasm in her life. And orgasms by Brick were always amazing.
This one had topped them all, and the complete draining of energy afterward had, too. So much so, she’d needed the hour to find not only the inner strength to leave, but also the physical. Beth smiled as she snuck quietly from the room. Sex with him got better and better. But it had never been just sex for her. And this time, he felt it, too. She was sure of it. Her smile faded and her steps faltered at the bottom of the stairs.
God, when he learned the truth he was going to hate her.
The sound of male voices in the kitchen caught her attention, especially the one that sounded like her brother.
“You should’ve seen him, Cord. His shirt was all torn like the Hulk,” Vince said, confirming her worst fear.
Dammit. She hadn’t known the exact time he was due home. Apparently, she’d sprung into action too late.
Eying the swinging kitchen door that separated her from damnation, she scooted across the dining room, barely making it to the hall, when the voices grew louder.
“Brick always was chivalrous.” Her brother’s tone held approval, which would be great if he would approve of her dating the chivalrous guy. “Where is he now?”
“Upstairs, but so is Beth, so, I doubt we’ll see him until morning.”
Her heart squeezed. God, she wished she could’ve stayed. And now she was feeling guilty for eavesdropping, but she didn’t really have anywhere else to hide except the office down the hall. Too bad the door was shut.
“Wait, he actually has a woman upstairs? In his room?” Now her brother’s tone was full of incredulity.
“I know, crazy, right? She’s the only woman he ever brought here, and now she’s the first one he took to his room. Brick seems to really like her, too. Which is great, because Beth is really nice, and good for him.” Bless Vince for singing her praises. “Next thing we know, he’ll be staying the night with her. Maybe even tonight.”
A sense of empowerment washed through her, knowing she was the first woman, the only woman Brick had literally taken upstairs.
Cord chuckled. “Then we’ll know he’s good and sunk. He’s never stayed in a woman’s bed the whole night.”
“Mark my words. He’ll stay with Beth,” Vince stated, their voices growing louder.
For a split second, Beth thought about panicking then shot into action. Not today. Not now. Brick needed to rest. Visions of Cord bursting into Brick’s room sent her down the hall, twisting the knob on the office door. When it gave, she scurried inside, startling a concentrating Jovy, who jumped in her chair.
Before she could utter a quick explanation the men stopped outside the door. Beth lunged to crouch behind the desk, pressing her back against it, pulling her bent knees to her chest in an attempt to make
herself invisible. She met Jovy’s startled gaze and pressed a finger to her lips just as she heard the door swing open.
“Hey, Jovy. I was looking for Stone,” Cord said. “Is he around?”
“Yes.” Bless the woman, she got up and walked around the desk. “He’s doing something in the men’s barracks.”
“All right. Thanks,” her brother replied, then his voice and Vince’s grew fainter before she heard the door shut and a lock click in place.
Beth slumped against the desk and breathed a sigh of relief. One disaster averted. But it was going to be short-lived if she didn’t get the hell off the ranch.
“Okay. They’re gone. You can come out now.” Jovy held out a hand and helped her up, then released her to fold her arms across her chest. “Mind telling me why you were hiding from Brick’s friend Cord. Do you know him?”
“Maybe it’s better you don’t know. I’m already going to hell; I don’t want to take you with me.”
Or worse, cause any type of rift between her and Stone.
Jovy’s lips twitched. “I have a handbag for the occasion and I’m certainly not afraid of a little heat. I moved to Texas, didn’t I? So, tell me, do you know Cord?”
She sighed. “All my life. He’s my brother.”
“Oh boy.” Jovy sank down into the chair, mouth opened.
“Yeah.” Beth nodded. “Oh brother. And the last thing Brick needs right now is a confrontation, so I need to get out of here before Cord sees me. Can you take me back to town for my car?”
Jovy rose to her feet and nodded. “Okay, but you’re going to have to tell them.”
“I know.” She followed Jovy outside, and when the woman gave her a thumbs up, she rushed to the car and got in, praying her brother didn’t see.
It wasn’t until Jovy pulled onto the country road that Beth decided to breathe.
“Care to tell me how it happened?”
Beth shrugged. “Because fate hates me. I swear, Jovy, I had no idea they were friends when I first started dating Brick, and by the time I figured it out, well, I was halfway in love with the guy.” She blinked as her words registered. “Ah, shoot. That’s not good.” Tears of frustration burned behind her eyes. Damn, it was true.
Her Secret Ranger (The Men of at Ease Ranch) Page 12
