True Love Cowboy

by Jennifer Ryan

  He kicked his pants off, took her by the hips, and rubbed his aching dick against her rump. She pushed back into him and it was all he could do not to pull his cock free of his boxer briefs and drive it home into her wet core.

  But they had all night and he wanted to make this first time last.

  If he could. Because damn, she tempted him to just take what he wanted. Hard and fast.

  He leaned over her back. She immediately rubbed her ass against his dick again, making him groan. Hell, he’d beg at this point, he wanted her so damn bad. He swept her long hair to one side and whispered in her ear. “Lie down.”

  She turned her head to him, their bodies pressed against each other, and smiled.

  He could live on that wicked grin.

  She held his gaze, put one knee on the bed, pushed herself forward at the same time lying across the bedspread. The soft moonlight filtering through the window highlighted every curve of her long body. The slope of her shoulder, the dip of her waist, the swell of her ass, and those long legs.

  “Perfection.”

  She answered with, “More.”

  He ripped off his socks and boxer briefs. At last he stood before her with no barriers between them. Her eyes dilated with desire and her mouth opened slightly. Temptingly.

  He started at her ankle and kissed his way up to her very fine ass, then took her knee, pushed and rolled her to her back. On his hands and knees, he stared down at her lying beneath him. “I think about doing this all day long.”

  Her fingers slid into his hair and tightened into a fist the second he leaned down and licked his way up her soft folds to her clit with the tip of his tongue. Her soft little moan made him smile, so he did it again, glanced up at her, and licked his lips. “More?”

  She pushed his head back down. He chuckled, but gave her exactly what she wanted and more, drawing her legs over his shoulders and burying his face in her sweet center. He sank his tongue deep, and she went limp on another moan. He loved her right up to the edge and kept her there with soft slides of his flat tongue and barely there brushes of his thumb against her clit.

  “Jon, now.” Frustration and demand filled that order, making him want to smile, but instead he gave her what she wanted, slid two fingers into her slick channel, circled her clit with his tongue, and sent her flying over the edge with her heels dug into his back.

  The quake of her body against his lips and the satisfied moan echoing in his ears nearly undid him, but he held it together, distracting himself by kissing his way up her body to one peaked nipple and drawing it into his mouth. He licked the tip, then rose over her, stared down, and found her smiling up at him as her hand clamped around his hard dick. She stroked his length up and down. Her thumb found the bead of moisture and she circled the head, spreading it around and driving him crazy.

  He stilled her hand with his. “I’m so damn close, I . . .”

  Words eluded him when she squeezed his dick. “Condom. Now.”

  He’d bought a box this week and tossed it in the nightstand drawer. While he grabbed it, Trinity kissed and touched any part of him she could reach. He loved the feel of her hands and mouth on him, but it made it hard to concentrate and roll the condom on before he settled between her soft thighs and nudged the tip of his throbbing cock against her wet center.

  Her hands slid down his sides to his hips and she pulled him in as he thrust deep.

  “Oh God, yes,” she said on a sigh.

  He lost all thought and the ability to speak as their bodies moved together. She held him close, her hands sliding over his skin, their lips locked in a kiss that matched the way they made love. Steady and urgent at first, then wild and desperate until they both went up in a brilliant flash of ecstasy that pounded through him and continued to pulse even after he collapsed on top of her.

  She held him with one hand on his back, the other on his head, her fingers slowly sweeping back and forth in his hair. His heart thundered against hers. He could barely catch his breath, and the only thought in his head was, Don’t let go.

  His mind didn’t start with, I think this could really be the start of something. It went right to, I don’t want to lose her.

  Or maybe that was his heart talking.

  Either way, he’d never felt this way about anyone.

  He’d had hints of it since the first day they met. He knew she was special. The connection he felt to her kept getting stronger. But this. Being with her, making love to her, it opened something inside him. And she filled that empty space.

  Any reservation he had, any nagging warning he should go slow, be sure, this could go wrong, disappeared, replaced with a sense that everything between them was absolutely right and perfect.

  Possibly sensing something in him, she hugged him close and nuzzled her nose into his neck and kissed him softly. “Mmm. That was . . .”

  She stalled a second. He held his breath.

  “Amazing.”

  Relief eased the tightness in his chest. He wasn’t the only one feeling something more now.

  He had to be squishing her, so he slid his hand around her back and rolled to the side, taking her with him. She ended up tucked into his side as he landed on his back. He brushed the hair from her temple and kissed her on the head.

  “I’m not sure amazing covers it.” His mind was still trying to catch up to the overwhelming feelings filling him up.

  She snuggled in closer.

  The silence stretched until he had to ask. “What are you thinking?” Wasn’t it women who always asked that? But he really wanted to know.

  “I don’t know how to say this, except to say . . .” She paused. He hoped from being shy about saying whatever was on her mind and not because she didn’t want to tell him. “It felt different.”

  He rolled to face her and stared into her eyes, letting her know he really wanted to hear more. “How so?”

  She placed her hand on his jaw. And though he saw the shyness in her eyes, she said, “Like it meant more.” The way she said it, it almost sounded like a question.

  So he immediately reassured her. “It did to me.” He kissed her softly, then met her gaze again. “What we have, Trinity . . . It’s good. It’s what I’ve wanted for a while now, but just couldn’t find. Until I met you.”

  “I’ve watched my brothers all fall for someone who turned out to be the right one for them.” She pressed her lips together, her eyes soft and hopeful, staring back at him. “I’m hoping that’s what this is.”

  “Me too.” It felt good to know they were on the same page and feeling the same thing, even if it was new for both of them.

  And all he wanted to do was hold on to this feeling and her forever.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Trinity walked into Jon’s kitchen and found him with his back to her, phone to his ear. She slipped up behind him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and laid her cheek between his shoulders.

  His hand immediately pressed to hers over his heart. “I told him I’d pay that amount nearly a year ago, but he didn’t want to sell. Now his business is in real trouble and it’s not worth anywhere near what I originally offered.” Jon turned in her arms as he listened. “No.” He shook his head and gave her a disgruntled look, though she guessed it was for the guy on the phone. “I’m not interested even if he drops the price.” Jon kissed her softly, then leaned back, disgusted by whatever the guy said to him. Hopefully not because of the kiss. She’d finger-brushed her teeth when she got up half an hour ago so she could take Emmy to school on her way into work. “Yes, I could turn the business around, but it would require an infusion of cash, and I’ve got my eye on something else right now.” He held her gaze.

  She liked being the object of his affection and attention, so she slipped her hands up and over his chest, then down his belly to the thickening erection swelling behind his jeans zipper and now in her hand.

  He sucked back a groan. “I’m not interested.”

  She raised her eyebrow.

  He
pointed to the phone, then closed his eyes when she gripped his length and squeezed. “Tell him he’s too late. He’ll have to find another buyer.” Jon tapped his phone to end the call, tossed it on the counter next to them, cupped her face, and kissed her like he hadn’t done it in forever, even though he woke her up this morning with a hot kiss, then made love to her, slowly, drawing out every stroke of his body in and against hers.

  The long weekend had been more than amazing. Thursday night had simply been the first of several nights spent in each other’s arms. She hadn’t been able to spend the days with him, but each night after work, she drove out to his place and they spent as much time together as possible.

  Mostly naked, because she arrived after Emmy had gone to bed.

  Of course, if she got there early enough, they had dinner with Emmy, played games, read her stories, and tried to give her the kind of home life Jon wanted her to have every day.

  Except today. Jon’s lawyer advised him to follow the custody agreement. He’d already warned Steph she needed to get her act together or he’d fight for Emmy.

  This was her last chance to get it right.

  Trinity doubted she would and hated that Emmy may have to endure more neglect from her mother before Jon could get the court on his side.

  Jon nuzzled his nose against her cheek and whispered in her ear, “All I want to do is take you back to bed.” Instead, he gently separated them because they both heard Emmy humming her way down the hall toward the kitchen.

  Trinity smiled up at him. “I can’t help it. When I see you, I have to touch you.”

  He kissed her softly. “Don’t ever stop feeling that way.”

  They stood close, but a respectful distance apart for Emmy’s sake. Though she’d stayed overnight, they tried to be up, dressed, and presentable when Emmy woke up.

  Luckily, Emmy was so tired each night when she went to bed because Jon kept her busy during the day, she didn’t try to sneak into his bed.

  Trinity wasn’t sure what he’d say to her if she did and found Trinity already there. Maybe in time it wouldn’t matter, but right now, things were new between her and Jon, even if it felt like life had always been like this.

  She didn’t want to remember what it felt like to be alone. She liked this feeling of connection to Jon too much to let it go.

  The last few days together had brought them even closer to each other.

  Still, she wanted to know more. “I don’t actually know what you do for a living.”

  Jon chuckled under his breath. “I told you I sold most of my businesses before I moved here to rehab the ranch and raise Emmy.”

  She squished up one side of her mouth and gave an exasperated look. “That tells me nothing about what you do with the businesses you kept.”

  He laughed again. “Okay. Let’s see. I used to look for small businesses that had a great service or product but not the resources or know-how to expand. I bought the business, grew it over time, then in most cases I sold it for a profit.”

  “Except you kept the two you own now.”

  “I kept them because they make great money and are managed well. I don’t really have to do anything but make the major decisions for the businesses.”

  “So that call, someone wanted to sell you their company.”

  “Yes. I made them an offer last year when the company hit the peak for what the owner could do with it, but he didn’t want to sell despite the generous amount I offered him.”

  “How much?” It wasn’t so much about the money as it was about understanding the deals he made and the . . . She really didn’t know what else. The scope. And maybe the status he had in the business world.

  “The company was worth about nine million. I offered him ten because I knew I could make it worth ten times that.”

  Okay. Millions. Wow. “So you’re rich?”

  He stared at her for a long moment before answering, “Yes.” He took a step away. “I bought my first business with a loan, a plan, and a prayer. With lots of hard work, I made a decent profit when I sold it. So I bought another company. And I did the same thing, but instead of selling it right away, I leveraged it to buy an additional company. That one failed. Poor management. I was too busy building the other company and looking for a new one to see that the plan I’d put into place wasn’t being implemented. The guy I hired to run the place thought he knew better than me and made a bad deal that tanked the reputation of the company. I had to lay off workers and close the doors because it would have cost too much to rebuild. Lesson learned.”

  Emmy walked into the kitchen, taking Jon’s attention from the story and Trinity. “Your breakfast is on the table.” Emmy set her bunny next to her plate, sat down, and dug into the scrambled eggs and toast with strawberry jam Jon made her.

  He went to the coffeepot, poured Trinity a mug, and handed it to her. “I lost a ton of money on the deal. I wanted to focus on the one business I was running well. But I had a feeling about this start-up. The guys had the idea, the ingenuity, the drive, but they needed capital and someone who knew business to oversee the expansion from the ground up. They wanted to go with a well-known venture capital company. I convinced them to take a chance on me.” Pride lit his eyes.

  “Let me guess, you made a killing.”

  “It took a lot of sleepless nights, eighty-hour work weeks, and blood, sweat, and tears, but that one far exceeded my expectations.”

  “Do you still own that company?”

  He nodded. “Yes. We make custom packaging and cases for products.”

  “Sounds interesting.”

  “It can be.”

  She wanted to know more. “What kind of cases do they make?”

  “For instance, we work with a company that makes high-quality earbuds. We make the case customers can buy to hold and charge them.” He shrugged.

  She couldn’t help but notice he kept a greater distance than they’d shared this whole weekend between them. He kept his answers to the information about what she asked and didn’t expand on it. She wondered why. “Do you not want to talk about this?”

  “It’s fine. Why?”

  “You seem standoffish all of a sudden.”

  “I’m fine.” He didn’t seem fine.

  “What’s the other business you kept?” She hoped her interest would show him that she cared about what he did and what mattered to him.

  “It’s the one I’m most proud of actually.”

  That made her smile. “Really? Why?”

  “Because it helps the community.”

  “I understand why that would make you feel good. Adria and I support the cities we’re in with Almost Homemade. You know we deliver to seniors. We also donate excess food to the local shelters and food banks near the stores. What does your business do?”

  “It started as a single grocery store in an underserved community. The business was going under because of rising rents and, believe it or not, theft from the store because customers were too poor in the community to pay for their groceries. I had read an article about how people in communities like this were losing their local grocers and having to travel to larger cities to buy food, but it cost so much more, plus what they had to pay for gas or public transportation.”

  “So you bought the store to help the community.” She loved that. It showed his big heart.

  “I could have just bought it, but the man who owned it was the second-generation owner who was teaching his son to one day take over. It wasn’t their fault the store was going under. They managed it well and tried to keep food costs low for their customers. So I bought the building and lowered the store’s rent for a modest piece of the profits after I looked at their books, helped them negotiate better wholesale buying prices, added some security measures to cut down on theft, and basically helped turn things around for them.”

  “That’s brilliant. And you allowed that man to keep the family business that meant so much to him.”

  “He was very grateful. So were the locals
. So I did it again. And again. And again.”

  “How many store buildings do you own?”

  “At last count? Twelve. I was thinking about buying the local grocery store here and expanding the chain to help out some of the more remote areas in Montana.”

  “Are you going to do that?”

  “I’m focusing on the ranch right now. Originally, my plan was to spend summers here with Emmy and go back to California during the school year so she could be with her mom, too. But when I talked to Steph about my idea, she said she wanted a change, too. Living here would be less expensive, she could do it on her own, be more independent from her family. Anyway, I asked the owner of the grocery store to give her the open manager position. She used to manage a clothing store. I figured a grocery store wasn’t much different.”

  “And you could keep an eye on her.”

  “That’s exactly why I didn’t buy the store. It’s still on the table, but a week before the move, I had an epiphany.”

  “You didn’t want to be her boss and that closely linked to her on a regular basis.”

  He smiled. “That’s right, smart girl.”

  She waved her hand out toward the desk area he had set up in the living room during the renovations. “So what have you been working on? It looks like a bunch of grocery store stuff.”

  “It’s similar, but something new. Just some ideas I have, but I’m not sure I’m going to do anything with them yet. I’m not sure if the owners of the business are open to my ideas.”

  “Well, if your track record is any indication, they’d be crazy not to partner with you.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because it doesn’t seem to be about the money for you. You care about the people you work with and the service or product you deliver. What those businesses do matters more than how much you can make on them.”

  He eyed her. “What matters to you, Trinity?”