The blush disappeared as her cheeks paled. “I just assumed your parents told you the whole story.” She pushed back from him, her head dropping again. “At first, I was too embarrassed, knowing what you must think of me.”
“Genny.” He let her go and leaned back against the counter. “It was your father, not you.”
Her head came up, a wrinkle between her brows and a half-smile on her lips. “Try convincing a fifteen-year-old girl of that.” She walked toward the screen door and looked out at the ranch. “I was a mess for a while. It took me nearly a year to adjust, and then I figured...” She turned to look at him. “You’d probably moved on.”
He saw her vulnerability, the pain in her eyes. He needed to tell her the whole story, even though it would leave him open to another heartbreak. Hefting out a long breath, he crossed his arms over his chest. “A week after you’d left, I found out the details.” He lifted a hand. “Not the ‘why’ but the ‘how.’ The way they’d packed you up and sent you off.”
She folded her hands over her stomach, and her face looked pale.
“Confronting my parents didn’t help. They wouldn’t tell me a damn thing and I...” Had he really been so willful back then? He was lucky his dad hadn’t thrown him out of the house. “I looked for you.” He met her gaze. “I needed to know you were okay.”
Her brows lifted. “You did?” Some of that worried expression eased.
“Not personally, since I was too young to drive further than into town. I pawned the watch my parents gave me for my birthday and hired a private investigator.”
A real smile broke out on her face. “You didn’t.”
“Oh, I did.” He dropped his head and shook it as a burst of laughter tumbled out of him. “And were the folks pissed when they found out. The investigator looked for your family in Texas, but I didn’t have the money to do a search of the whole country. It always bothered me that you’d just disappeared.” He held his hand out to her. “Bothered me that I couldn’t keep looking.”
Hesitating only a second, she reached out and took it in hers. “I don’t know anything you could have told me that would have made me happier.”
He tugged her back into his arms, her body pressed to his. “I’ve missed you, Genny. You’ve been that burr under my saddle all these years.”
Running her hands along his ribs, she sighed. “Funny, that pretty much explains how I’ve felt all this time, too.” She tipped her head. “Forgive me for not writing?”
He ran his knuckles along her jaw. “Forgive me for not finding you?”
She nodded. Her eyes moved back and forth, staring deep into his. “What now?”
Now, he wanted to pick her up in his arms, walk along the hallway to his bedroom, and fall with her onto his bed. Finish what they’d started when they were fifteen, but that wasn’t the right way to do this.
They’d been so close back then. If everyone had a soulmate, she would be his. He needed to be sure they were still that way. That the spark—the connection—was there. He gestured toward the kitchen table. “Sit a while. Let’s catch up.”
Turning, she grinned and walked toward the table.
Nick took a minute to admire her shapely bottom and long, long legs. He could spend a couple days re-learning every inch of them, sating the craving deep in his gut. “Hungry.”
“What?” She pulled out a chair.
Clearing his throat, he repeated, “Hungry?”
“A little. I was too nervous to eat much this morning.”
He liked that she admitted it. “Tell me about your life in Colorado.” Tugging open the fridge door, he pulled out a can of diet soda and one of regular, and set them on the table. He found the sliced cheese and meat his housekeeper had left for his lunch, and hauled it to the table along with bread and all the condiments.
While she made them sandwiches, exactly the way she used to do when they came home from school, Genny gave him the general details of her new life.
He ripped open a bag of chips, poured it into a bowl, then sat beside her, loving the sound of her voice. It had matured into a smooth, light sound that filled him with the hope he’d lost eleven years ago.
“Now you.” He hadn’t paid attention to her last few sentences, just ate chips and watched her face. Whatever she was talking about made her eyes sparkle.
“Now me, what?” He grabbed his sandwich and took a bite. Perfect. Pickles and mayonnaise, no mustard or cheese. “You remembered? After all this time?”
She shrugged. “I remembered a lot of the little things about you.” Her gaze ran over his face and hair, down his neck. “You’re a bit bigger now.”
“You noticed.” In his jeans, his cock twitched.
Nodding, she bit into her own sandwich.
The story of his life over the last eleven years wasn’t anything as exciting as hers. He’d lived on the ranch while attending college, then eased into the management of the daily workings while his parents cut back their hours.
“And you’ve never been married?” She bit into a chip and chewed, then licked the salt off her lips.
His mouth watered for a taste of her. “No. Never been.” He had come close. Painfully close, just a few months ago, before he broke the engagement and called off the wedding. Genny didn’t need to know about that. Not right now. If things went the way he hoped they would, he’d tell her one day soon.
“Well.” She pushed back her chair. “We’re all caught up.” She looked outside. “And I have a long drive back—”
He reached out and took her hand, pulling her sideways onto his lap. It was just an impulse, but it felt so right. “We’re not all caught up yet.” He threaded his fingers into her hair and tipped her head just right. “I’ve wanted to do this since the moment I saw you today.”
****
Genevieve melted against Nick’s hard chest and her heart thudded behind her ribs. It’d always been like this, every time they touched, heat swirled and pooled. Body parts tightened and throbbed, or swelled and became slick. Now, she knew what it was, what it could lead to, and how to reach out and take happiness when it fell in her lap. Or pulled her onto its lap.
His hand in her hair gently tipped her head up to his kiss.
Oh God, the kiss. Just like all those years ago but more intoxicating, more promising. His firm lips brushed against hers, his tongue barely touched her before she opened to him, her tongue meeting his in an exquisite reunion.
He shifted his hips, his arm across her lower back held her as he bent her slightly, taking the kiss to a higher level of intensity. He tasted her, every crevice of her mouth, tangling their tongues, sucking hers into his mouth.
Breathless, she hauled in air as her belly heated with desire and between her legs, she felt the slick warmth of her own juices escaping.
He gave her room to breathe, trailing his kisses across her cheek to her ear. “You were my first.” He whispered it into her ear.
They hadn’t had sex. Was he mistaking her for some other girl? “First?” Her word was barely audible.
“First kiss.” He nipped her earlobe, tasted the sensitive skin just below it. Then he drew back and looked into her eyes. “First love.” His pupils dilated, darkening his eyes.
Against her thigh, his hard cock felt hot, even through layers of clothes.
He seemed to be waiting for her, waiting until she made a decision.
She wanted this man, now, even if it was just once, a final chapter to the sweet love story they’d begun years ago. “Nick.” She stood, urging him to his feet next to her. Fisting her hands in the shoulders of his T-shirt, she tugged it up.
He took the hint, backed her against the kitchen table, his hips and thighs pressed tight against her, then hauled off the shirt and threw it. His gaze immediately found hers. “Genny, are you sure?”
She nodded. He’d asked her the same question when they were teenagers, exploring each other through their swimsuits. Tentative, fascinating brushes of fingertips. “Are you sure?”
He tipped his head back with a single laugh. “I’ve thought of you too damn often over the years. This feels like you’re…” That gorgeous wrinkle formed between his eyebrows. “Like you’re finally coming home.”
Her heart raced with joy. “It’s the same with me.” She glanced at his bulky chest, so much stronger than the bare chest of the boy she’d known. Now, his firm muscles were furred with dark hair. She ran her fingers through it. “I loved this ranch. Missed it so much it hurt.”
He groaned and slipped his hands under her top, easing them along her back until he found her bra strap. “Sweet Genevieve.” He unfastened her bra, she lifted her arms and let him remove her shirt, then he slid the bra straps down her arms and stared at her breasts. “Where did these come from?”
She chuckled as her nipples pebbled and tiny shivers of desire coursed downward, creating lovely havoc between her legs. “I hated it when you teased me about my little bumps.”
He palmed her C cup breasts. “No teasing now, Genny.” He kissed her lips. “You’re beautiful.” He bent and kissed the swell of each breast, then lower, until he reached a nipple. Sucking her tight bud into his mouth, he let loose a long groan.
Heat broke lose inside her, slamming a blast of desire deep in her belly, contracting her core and tingling along her pussy lips. She felt herself falling back and grabbed his shoulders to stay upright.
He laved each nipple, suckled and nibbled as his hands skimmed along the length of her back. The rough scrape of his calluses reminded her of the strength and maturity of the man who held her, who made love to her just like she’d always fantasized.
His kisses trailed down her breast and along her ribs as he knelt in front of her. From each spot he touched, ripples of desire expanded along her skin.
She ran her fingers through his hair, freeing the sides where his hat had matted it down. Soft and thick, it took her back to the days when he’d ask her advice on hairstyles, combing it in different ways for her approval.
“How’s my hair today?” He looked up from kissing her belly button.
How had he read her thoughts? She smiled. “You remembered?”
“I’ve never forgotten a moment, Genny.” His gaze turned serious. “I’m glad you came back.”
It was hard to draw breath for the depth of emotion his words evoked. She cupped his cheeks. “I’m glad you caught me breaking in.”
His crooked grin nearly sent her spinning. Focusing on her belly again, he nipped at her skin just above the waistband of her shorts. He unbuttoned and unzipped and with a glance up at her, he slid her shorts and her pink panties down and off, tossing them aside.
Exposed, bared to him, voracious for his kiss there, she fought her hesitancy by reminding herself he wasn’t a stranger. He was her first love, and—oh heavens, how amazing—she was his, too.
“You’re beautiful, Genny.” The words rumbled from his chest. He leaned forward, slowly, making every muscle in her body tense, crave his touch.
When his lips brushed her trimmed mound, he groaned and she whimpered.
Nick gripped her hips in his large hands and lifted her to sit on the edge of the table. His mouth pressed hot against her inner thigh, his hands spreading her legs for his kisses, moving too slowly toward her pussy as his tongue drew patterns along her skin.
“Nick, yes, please.” She wanted to grab his hair, drag him in, but she let the sweetness of the moment ease her tension. When his lips found her opening and he sucked her pussy lips into his mouth, an explosion of heat shot from her core up her spine, flaring in her brain like a Roman candle.
“You taste amazing. Like honey and musk.”
Her head lolled on her neck, her entire body tingled, hot and itchy for more.
When his tongue traced upward along her lips, she shook with delight. And when he sucked her clit into his mouth and tickled it with his tongue, a blast of pleasure from her core raced through her body and into her head with a flash of climax that sent her spiraling out of control.
“Yes, Genevieve, come.”
She could hear him coaxing her higher, could feel his finger sliding into her channel, his tongue working magic on her clit. As she absorbed each sensation, her mind reeled off into darkness. Red flashes exploded behind her eyelids as flames raced through her, blazing at each nerve ending. Her body heated until she screamed his name and slipped from consciousness for long seconds.
His kisses slowed and, after a moment, he pulled her into his arms.
The spinning and the heat receded, leaving her without muscle, without strength, but more satisfied than she’d ever been.
Her head lay against his chest. His soft hair tickled her lips and she kissed his pecs as her breathing returned to normal and the whirling in her head slowed to a muzzy blur. “Nick, that was wild.”
He kissed the top of her head. “Thank you for giving me that, Genny.”
She tipped her head back, looking into his beautiful eyes. “You’re amazing, cowboy.”
He slid his thumb softly along her cheek. “You used to call me a redneck.” He kissed where his thumb had been.
“I remember. You’d blush so hard whenever we kissed, your whole head looked like a sugar beet.” She traced her hands over his shoulders, down his arms, and along his sides. “You’re not blushing now?”
“Uh uh.”
She slipped her fingers into his waistband. “Now?” She gave him a naughty smile.
“Nope.” His voice was calm, but his eyes were intensely sensual, his jaw tight as he visibly held on to his control.
Her fingers brushed toward the front of his jeans, connecting softly with the hot bulge behind his zipper. “Now?”
He nodded. “Yeah, now.”
Chapter Three
As Nick reached down and undid his belt, Genevieve jumped in and pushed aside his big, warm hands. Her fingers fumbled a little as she worked to unbutton his jeans. She’d imagined this moment so many times, the reality felt almost like a dream.
She tugged down his zipper as he pulled his wallet out of his pocket and removed a condom packet from it.
“That confirms it.” She grinned. “Only Romeos carry a condom in their wallets.” She shoved and his jeans dropped to the floor, puddling around his booted feet.
In his gray boxer briefs, his cock stood hard and long, the wet spot on the material proving his level of arousal. “That’s me.” Hobbled, he shuffled close, between her legs. “Redneck Romeo.”
Through the haze of her lust, her heart quickened with memories. “I wanted to try out for the high school play that fall.”
“You would have made a wonderful Juliet.” His big hands cupped her breasts.
That summer, Nick had boosted her up onto a tree limb as she’d read over the lines of the balcony scene a dozen times, making him read Romeo’s lines from her script book.
Their gazes locked, sweet memories colliding with the pain of lost years. “You were the perfect Romeo.” Regret choked the breath from her.
“We have some catching up to do, don’t we.” His soft words echoed the grief in his eyes. His trip through their past was quickly replaced with a sensual smile and a devilish leer. “Let’s start with this.” His hands moved to her ass and lifted her against the hard swell of cock.
The heat of his body seared her mound and she held his shoulders and circled her hips, pressing closer. “Take me, Nick.” She couldn’t bear another minute without him inside her.
His breath hitched as he set her on the table.
She reached down and tugged his briefs over his erection and down to his knees. “Oh, yeah.” Genny’s lips were so close to his cock, she could take a lick. “You’ve grown up a lot.”
He laughed but stepped back and sheathed himself with the condom. “Wish I could play a little more, but goddamn, I can’t hold back.” Wrapping one arm around her, he leaned forward, grasped his hard cock in his hand, and slid into her slick channel with one long thrust.
He groaned as
she stretched to take his length and thickness deep inside, the fullness spreading heat and lightning shocks through her core. “Nick, yes, all of you.”
He pushed himself in a little farther, tipping her backward, bracing them both with one arm. His soft chest hair brushed against her breasts, tightening her nipples and sending sparks of pleasure down into her pussy.
“God, Genny, you don’t know how long I’ve wanted this.” His lips found the sweet spot under her ear and sucked as he withdrew from her, slowly, torturously sensual. Then he plunged back in, deeper, until his hipbones hit her thighs.
The surge of pure bliss nearly sent her flying. She clung to his shoulders to keep from soaring backward over that cliff.
His hips worked in a primal beat, sliding his hard shaft out of her clenching channel, and driving it back in, the movement picking up speed with each thrust. “You’re like a dream that’s come to life for me.”
As his kisses worked along her neck to spread tingles and shivers, his words worked deep into her soul, soothing the rough edges and making her want everything he offered.
“Woman, you’re tight and hot. And so damn slick, I can’t hang on much longer.” Her fingernails dug into his shoulders and she wrapped her legs around his hips, urging him forward. His body shook. “Aw jeez, it’s gonna be embarrassing, how fast I come.”
“Fast is good for me, Nick.” She turned her head, taking her turn kissing him on the neck, her tongue tasting his salty flesh, her nostrils picking up his male scent mixed with the pine soap he used. “Hot,” she whispered. His skin scorched her lips and tongue. Deep in her core, shivers of lust rolled and swelled, swamping her belly and racing up her spine. “I’m there, too, Romeo. Now. Take me with you.”
He growled and bit the skin on her shoulder, his hips working faster, pistoning his thick staff into her quivering pussy.
Genevieve’s hips tipped up, her ass tightened, and sparks burst inside her brain. She rode with him, sliding her nipples across his chest, grinding her clit shamelessly against his pubic bone, the coarse hair around his cock abrading her tight nub in shocks of wicked pleasure.
Redneck Romeo: A Red Hot Valentine Story Page 2
