Mila was so thankful that her eyes had finally adjusted to the darkness because she was able to see Roman’s face when he pushed into her. Of course, she only got a glimpse of him because that push blurred her vision and thinned her breath enough that she felt ready to pass out. She didn’t care if she did.
As long as she had an orgasm first.
Roman worked hard to make sure that orgasm happened, too. He held her in place, making all the right moves in exactly the right spot. He certainly knew what he was doing. Maybe that’s why after only a few of those maddening strokes, Mila was ready to let everything shatter into gold sparkles again.
Still, she tried to hang on, tried to make this last, and she did that by cataloging as much as she could. That warrior look on his hot cowboy face. His hard muscles that made her own body feel soft. The taste of him when he kissed her. All of that rolled into one perfect ball of memories that she would have to make last a lifetime.
Because this was number three.
And Mila struck out with an orgasm that shuddered through her from head to toe. All in all, not a bad way to finish. So, she helped him finish, too. She pushed her hips against him, taking him deep inside all that shuddering. She kissed him, and with her mouth against his, Roman said the only thing she wanted to hear.
Mila.
She held on to the sound of her name for a few seconds until Roman added one more word. A word that didn’t sound as needy or romantic as when he’d said her name.
Fuck.
* * *
ROMAN COULDN’T BELIEVE he’d used his last shot with Mila on a door-fuck. Really? He wanted to hit his head against the wall.
“This should have been wine and roses,” he mumbled. He maneuvered her to a standing position, which made it much easier for him to see her expression.
Her left eyebrow was raised. “I’d rather have a climax than wine or roses,” she informed him.
He kissed her because he was thankful that she wasn’t pissed, and he made a quick pit stop in the small adjoining bathroom. Actually, it was just a toilet and a tiny sink, but it was enough for him so he wouldn’t have to return to the tack room with his dick hanging out.
However, Mila’s butt was hanging out when he returned.
She had located her panties and had hiked up her dress to put them on, but she was hobbling around, trying to keep her balance. He went to her and helped even though it went against every grain of his manhood to help her cover up that great ass. The front of her body wasn’t so bad, either.
“You deserved wine, roses and a climax,” he told her, and because he needed it, Roman kissed her.
It put a knot in his stomach to realize that might be the last real kiss they ever shared. He couldn’t risk another because kissing with Mila led to sex. No way around that so he stepped back.
She stared at him, not smiling exactly but not looking as if she’d been disappointed by this. He was. And worse, Roman was starting to think that maybe that first time they were together hadn’t counted.
But it did.
There were reasons he’d come up with that rule, and the reasons were still there. Even if he wanted a relationship, he didn’t have time for one because it would take his attention away from Tate. Right now, Tate needed a lot of attention.
“Am I going to have to say something shocking or inappropriate to get that cranky look off your face?” she asked.
“I always look cranky.” He paused. “What would you consider inappropriate?” Because if it was sexual...no, best not to go there. He waved it off.
“I have an idea.” Now, she smiled. “Want to go on a fantasy date with me? No sex allowed. I’ve always wanted to do a spanking scene but not a hard one like in Fifty Shades of Grey.” This time she was the one who waved it off. “Any kind of spanking like that usually leads to sex.”
Yes, he’d been there, done that, and while he wasn’t a fan of spanking, the idea certainly seemed appealing. Maybe because he’d just seen Mila’s bare butt. But she was right. That would lead to sex.
“How about the sign scene in Love Actually?” she asked. “It’s just a little kiss at the end.”
He’d seen the movie and knew what she was talking about. “Kissing is still kissing.” And he doubted they’d keep it little.
She nodded. “We should probably go with something G-rated. I’ll give it some more thought. You, too, and we could plan it for the day after Tate finishes school. That way, if you decide to head back to San Antonio, it wouldn’t interfere with your plans.”
Roman was about to tell her that he didn’t think a date, even a sex-less one, was a good idea, but Mila was clearly ready to leave. She threw open the door, but she only made it a few steps into the barn before she froze.
Hell.
Was Tate out there? Or had Mila’s drink date come to the ranch looking for her? But it wasn’t either of them. Or Garrett or one of the hands. Roman hurried out to see someone he hadn’t expected to see.
Vita.
Mila’s mom was standing just outside the barn door, and she shifted her gaze to each of them. “If you’re done having sex,” Vita said. “It’s time for us to talk.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
EVEN THOUGH MILA was pretty sure her clothes were all fixed and in the right place, she checked to make sure. But her mom probably hadn’t guessed about the sex because of Mila’s clothes being askew. No, Vita had likely figured that out because there weren’t many reasons she would have been in the tack room with Roman.
Plus, Roman did look a little askew. His shirt was still unbuttoned, and he seemed ready to dig a hole and crawl in it. Mila doubted he’d wanted anyone, especially her mother, to know about their temporary relationship. One that might not have ended just yet if Mila could talk him into one last fantasy date. But for now, it was obvious she was going to have to have a different kind of conversation.
“When did you get back?” she asked her mother.
“About an hour ago. I came here looking for you. Sensed you’d be here,” she added. “And I knew you’d want to talk about the letter I sent you. About your father, as well.”
Oh, yes. Mila definitely wanted to discuss that but not here. Apparently, her mother and she were of a like mind on this.
“I thought we could sit in the sunroom,” Vita suggested. “You, too,” she added to Roman. “Because there are some things you need to hear, as well. Things you’re not gonna like much, but I had my reasons for doing what I did.”
Roman and she both groaned. It was never a good thing when her mother said something like that. Actually, Vita rarely said anything that made people feel good. Mila figured this time would be no different, especially since there was the hot topic of her biological father.
“First of all, I’m sorry things are over,” Vita said, making her way up the steps. “I had hopes you two would get together, but sometimes hopes are like a thimble of spit—yucky and useless.”
Mila frowned. She didn’t like having her time with Roman compared to spit. It’d been wonderful. Life-changing. But Vita was right. It hadn’t worked out. Roman had gotten that shell-shocked look in his eyes only seconds after the orgasm had worn off. If Mila was a betting woman, she would wager he was getting ready to run. The only reason he hadn’t already was because of Tate.
And speaking of Tate, Mila checked the area surrounding the sunroom to make sure neither he nor Alice were around to hear any of this. She definitely didn’t want him to know that his father and she had become temporary lovers.
Mila had been so concerned about looking for Tate that she hadn’t noticed Roman’s expression. That’s because he’d been behind her when they’d walked up the steps, but now that they were inside, she could see he was scowling. Not an unusual expression for him, but he wasn’t scowling at her mother. He seemed to be aiming his expr
ession at everything in general.
“How’d you know anything had even started between Mila and me?” Roman asked.
Vita made an isn’t-it-obvious sound and sank down into one of the white wicker rocking chairs. She motioned for them to sit, as well, and that’s when Mila noticed both her mom’s suitcase and a cup of half-finished tea. Apparently, she’d been here at least a little while before she’d gone out to the barn. Mila hoped Roman and she hadn’t made sex noises and that’s what had clued Vita into what was going on.
“Sometimes, sex can clear the head,” her mother went on. “It doesn’t appear that happened with you two but never mind. You’ll be able to figure this all out whether your mind is clear or not.”
Mila definitely wanted to switch subjects. “Is this about my birth father?”
“It is.”
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Mila demanded when her mother didn’t add more. “Why wait thirty-one years?”
“The tea leaves.” Maybe it was Mila’s narrowed eyes that prompted Vita to add more than that. “And I figured you should know the truth before you settled down and started your own family.”
Those reasons might make sense to Vita, but they didn’t to Mila. “You should have told me. Not in a letter, either. You should have told me face-to-face.”
“It wouldn’t have helped. You would have still been mad, still would have had to work out all of this on your own, and I knew it would complicate things if you found out the truth. And it did, right?”
Mila threw her hands in the air and took the love seat across from Vita. “It might complicate things if I knew for sure. I don’t. Billy Lee took a paternity test—”
“It’s not him,” Vita interrupted.
The emotions hit Mila a lot harder than she thought they would—especially since she’d already suspected he wasn’t the one.
Roman sat on the love seat beside her. “Are you okay?” he asked, slipping his hand over hers.
She nodded, looked at her mother, waiting for more. Much, much more. Mila wanted an explanation as to why Vita hadn’t told her this in that letter, and then she wanted to know the identity of the man whose DNA she had.
Vita took a moment before she continued. “It’s too bad, though, that it’s not Billy Lee because now that he’s eloped with Belle, it might tie things together nicely.”
“How did you know they’d eloped?” Judging from Roman’s tone, he wasn’t very happy with her mother right now. Neither was Mila. “ESP?”
Vita gave him a flat look. “Alice. She told me when she was fixing me some tea. She said Belle sounded happy. That’s good. There needs to be at least one person around here who’s happy.”
“I might be happy if you hadn’t sprung that bombshell on me with a letter,” Mila told her. “What you did wasn’t right.”
“No,” Vita quietly agreed. She dragged in a long breath. “I did have sex with Billy Lee, but it was just sex.”
Mila so didn’t want to hear about her mother’s love life, even if it might be pertinent to the discussion. “Skip the parts about Billy Lee and tell me about who did get you pregnant.”
“You know.” Vita looked her straight in the eye. “And I did try to warn you about him. Waylon will never admit it, though I did go to him and I told him I was carrying you. He said he didn’t even remember us being together, that he was too drunk.”
For the first time in her entire life, Mila thought she might have seen the beginnings of tears in her mother’s eyes, but Vita quickly looked away.
“I know this is hard, but he’ll never be your father,” Vita added.
That wasn’t hard at all. Waylon wouldn’t be. He was a jerk and didn’t deserve a moment of her time. Too bad that she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
And that led Mila back to sex.
This probably wasn’t a can of worms she wanted to open, but she had to know. Roman beat her to it, though.
“What possessed you to be with an asshole like that?” Roman asked her mother.
“Sex,” Vita readily answered. She sighed, and there were no more threatening tears. She even gave a wistful smile. “I used to enjoy it in those days, and I was young and single.”
Mila had hoped there might be something deeper. Something like love. After all, Waylon had been married twice so there had to be something lovable about him.
“I was only with him two times,” Vita went on. “He had this stupid two-time rule in those days. Twice with a woman and then nada.” She used her hand to make a cutting motion across her neck.
Because Roman still had hold of Mila’s hand, she felt him go a little stiff. “You have nothing in common with that man,” she assured him. Maybe it’s because she was punchy from the recent orgasm and her mother’s arrival, but Mila had to laugh and then she turned to Roman. “My stepsister, Arwen, and your son have a thing for each other.”
She wasn’t sure why she found that amusing because clearly Roman didn’t. Maybe because he saw the pain behind her attempt at humor. He leaned in and despite the fact her mother was sitting there, he brushed a kiss on Mila’s mouth.
“Oh, no,” Vita said, getting their attention.
Both Mila and Roman looked at her. “Oh, no?” Mila repeated.
“I really thought it’d be over between Roman and you by now.” Vita stood. “That’s what was in the tea leaves, anyway. That you’d be together three times and that it’d be over.”
Mila wasn’t sure how to respond so she went with the simple answer. “Roman and I aren’t together.”
“Whew.” Like her mother’s teary eyes, Mila had never seen that much relief on Vita’s face. It was definitely a night for firsts.
“Why are you whewing?” Roman snapped. He obviously knew this wasn’t going to work in their favor.
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” Vita said as if the answer was obvious. It wasn’t. Roman and Mila just gave her blank stares.
“Valerie,” Vita finally answered. “I’ve talked her into coming back to Wrangler’s Creek. She’s inside right now. Valerie’s here to try to make a go of it with Roman and Tate.”
* * *
ROMAN SURE DIDN’T thank Vita. In fact, he wanted to tell her to mind her own business while punctuating it with a whole bunch of cussing. But he didn’t have time for that. If Valerie was really inside with Tate, then he had to get to them before she caused any more damage.
That damage was especially possible if she’d brought that idiot boyfriend with her.
“You shouldn’t have done this,” he warned Vita before he went inside. Mila was saying something similar to her mother, and she was also adding the curse words. Vita had overstepped her boundaries in a huge, shit-kicking way.
Roman ran through the house, looking for Valerie, Lick and Tate, and he soon found two of them. Valerie was sitting on the foot of Tate’s bed. Tate had his back against the headboard, and even though she was talking to him, his attention was on a book that was in his lap.
No Lick, thank God, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t there somewhere in his pussy shorts and with his bad attitude.
“Roman,” Valerie said. She stood, rubbing her hands along the sides of her jeans.
Since he didn’t want to curse in front of Tate, Roman gave her a glare that he hoped conveyed his feelings. That’s when he saw the bruise around her left eye. It had makeup caked over it, but it was still visible. Like Tate, she suddenly got very interested in not making eye contact with him.
“Lick and I are over,” she added.
Roman was relieved about that because it meant the clown wasn’t here. But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t show up. Valerie was a turd magnet, and Lick was a first-class turd.
“Tate, are you okay?” Roman asked him.
Tate nodded but didn’t spar
e him a glance. That told him his son probably wasn’t okay at all, that he was conflicted about his mom’s visit. Roman wasn’t conflicted, though. Plain and simple, he didn’t want Valerie there.
“We need to talk,” Roman told her. He motioned for her to follow him. Valerie did, but only after she gave Tate a hug.
“Why the hell are you here?” Roman demanded the moment they were out of Tate’s room and at the end of the hall. He kept his voice as low as he could manage, but there was no way he would take out the anger.
“Vita.” Valerie sighed, pushed her hair from her face. “She found me, somehow.” She stopped, looked up at him. “You think she really does have ESP?”
“No. I think she has decent Google-search skills. Your boyfriend started posting trash reviews of my business. Trash talk about me, too, on social media. And no, I didn’t find it. One of my business associates did. Lick allowed his location on the posts. It’s not hard to find someone in a New Mexico town that only has three hundred people.”
“Oh, Roman. I’m so sorry.” She sounded genuine. And surprised that her nutjob boyfriend had done something like that. “Did it hurt your business?”
He nearly said yes just to make her feel bad, but the feeling bad part had already been accomplished. Well, unless this was all an act. But acting wasn’t Valerie’s style. Especially acting so that somebody would have sympathy for her. She usually preferred to shock people with her god-awful behavior.
“My business is fine.” Booming, in fact, thanks to some of Garrett’s connections, but he wasn’t going to get into that, either. Not when there was something much more important to discuss. But Valerie spoke first.
“I learned my lesson with Lick,” she said. She touched her fingers to the bruise. “He did this to me.”
“Yeah, I didn’t figure you were going for the raccoon look with one eye.” Roman instantly regretted that. Old habits when it came to Valerie. They’d fought and slung barbs for so long that he wasn’t even sure how to do something as simple as have a normal conversation with her.
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