Make Me Stay

by Jaci Burton

  Though maybe being naked when Reid arrived was exactly what she wanted to be.

  Until her stomach growled--fiercely, in fact--reminding her she'd had such a busy day she hadn't stopped to have lunch.

  Okay, so dinner first.

  She slid into a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt and had her hair combed out just before the doorbell rang. She ran to answer it, then smiled at Reid.

  "You're my favorite person right now," she said.

  He held up the bag from Bert's. "It's because of the food, isn't it?"

  "Of course. What other reason could there be? Come on in."

  She closed the door behind him and the dog, then led him into the kitchen.

  "Something smells great." She got out plates and utensils.

  "Chicken. I hope you like chicken."

  "Right now I'm so hungry I'd eat the bag. I forgot to eat lunch today. So yes, I love chicken." While Reid unpacked the bag, she set the table. "What would you like to drink?"

  "Whatever you're fixing for yourself is fine."

  She made two glasses of iced tea and put a bowl of water on the floor for Not My Dog, who sauntered in and took several licks, then sat. She brought the glasses of iced tea over, then slid into her chair. She wanted to be polite and make small talk, but she was too hungry. It looked like Reid was, too, so they both dove into the food.

  Once she'd had a few bites of chicken, along with the amazing mashed potatoes with gravy, she felt like she could manage conversation.

  "This is so good." Of course, it was about the food.

  Reid looked up from his plate. "It is."

  Then she laughed. "I'm sorry. I was just so hungry and food was all I could think about."

  "I had a coffee and muffin from Megan's bakery for a late breakfast, and then I was busy all day."

  "So no lunch for you, either, huh?"

  "No."

  "Then let's eat. We'll talk later."

  They finished dinner, and when Sam laid her fork on her plate, she was well satisfied. "Thank you for dragging me out of the bar and bringing dinner over. Otherwise, not only would I have gotten drunk, I might have eaten all of Bash's pretzels."

  Reid leaned back and laid his napkin on the table. "I might have liked to see you drunk. And I would have fought you for the pretzels."

  "You'd have lost. I mentioned I was hungry, right?"

  "Yeah, but you're slight. I could have taken you."

  She pushed back from the table and grabbed their plates. "You'd like to think so, but I'm vicious when I want food."

  He stood to help her. "I'll keep that in mind in case the zombie apocalypse hits. I'll want you on my team."

  She laughed as they stood side by side at the sink. "Right. You can shoot the zombies while I throw bouquets of flowers at them."

  "Come on. You at least have scissor skills. We can turn those into mad machete abilities."

  She paused, half turning to face him. "I think you have to get pretty close to them to whack them with a machete. I'd rather learn to use a gun. Preferably one of those long-range ones with a scope. That way I can stay far away."

  He shook his head. "Not gonna work. Zombies always sneak up on you. You have to learn hand-to-hand combat."

  She rolled her eyes, washed a dish, and slid it into the drying rack. "And you obviously play video games or watch those zombie shows on TV."

  "Exactly. I'm preparing myself to face the apocalypse. Plus, it's a great way to wind down after a tense day at work."

  She turned off the faucet and dried her hands while Reid wiped off the table. "I think those types of games and shows would make me tense, not relax me."

  He tossed the paper towel in the trash. "Don't knock it 'til you've tried it. The games are fun. Next time you're at the ranch we'll go head-to-head in the apocalypse. I'll show you a few of my moves."

  She'd like to see a few of his moves, but not in a video game. "We'll see."

  "Speaking of the ranch, Martha told me there's a barbecue this weekend. You're coming, aren't you?"

  "Of course."

  "Then we'll play a game."

  "Sure. You can teach me how to kill zombies."

  He leaned against the counter and folded his arms across his chest. "I sense a lack of enthusiasm, Samantha."

  "Really. And I was trying so hard to mask it." She gave him a teasing smile, then reached into the refrigerator and grabbed the iced tea to refill their glasses. She led him into the living room, where they both sat on the sofa. Not My Dog followed, turned around in a circle several times, then laid his head on his paws and went to sleep.

  What a great dog.

  Reid placed his glass on a coaster and turned to face her. "Now tell me what's going on with your grandmother. Is she doing all right after her confusion the other night?"

  "I took her to see the doctor. He ran some tests. He's concerned and might want to send her to a neurologist for further workup."

  He reached over and grabbed her hand. "Which only made you more of a wreck than you were the other night."

  "It shows, huh?"

  "A little. So what will you do if the neurological tests come up with something?"

  She took in a deep breath and held it for a second or two before letting it out. "I don't know. Honestly, I don't even want to think about all this, even though I know I have to be the responsible adult and start planning ahead for my grandmother's future--no matter what that entails."

  He brushed his hand over her hair. "Sometimes being the responsible adult sucks."

  "It can. But I'll do what I need to do to make sure Grammy Claire is safe. Which might mean I have to take her car keys away from her."

  "We had to do that with my granddad. He wasn't happy. Losing independence is so hard on folks when they get older."

  She sighed--again. She'd been doing that a lot the past several days. "I don't want to do it to her. She prides herself on being independent. She loves being able to pick up and go wherever she wants, whenever she wants to. It'll kill her to lose that."

  Sam felt the burden like never before--not only the responsibility of caring for her grandmother but also the potential to hurt her, which she never in a million years wanted to do. But Grammy Claire's safety was the most important thing, and she'd hurt her grandmother's feelings before she would allow her to drive off somewhere and either get in an accident or get lost.

  She fought back the tears that pricked her eyes. She didn't want her grandmother to get sick. She refused to think about losing the last person who was family to her. She didn't want to be alone.

  Reid moved in closer and put his arm around her. "If it helps any, my granddad got used to the idea of not having a car. Then he started making all of us chauffeur him around. I wasn't driving back then, but Logan loved it, because he got to drive all the time, and he'd just gotten his license."

  She sniffed back the tears that threatened to fall. Now wasn't the time. Instead, she tilted her head back and smiled. "I'll bet Logan enjoyed that. What teenager wouldn't? Grammy Claire used to ask me to bring items to the flower shop for her after I got my license. I don't think she really needed any of the items she asked me to get for her. It was just an excuse for me to practice driving. I was a little tentative behind the wheel."

  Reid smiled. "Whereas growing up on the ranch, we were driving the big trucks and tractors as soon as our legs were long enough that our feet could reach the pedals. As long as we were on ranch property, anyway. So driving was second nature to all of us."

  "That must have been fun."

  "It was. And, hey, if you do have to suspend your grandmother's driving privileges, you can always bring her out to the ranch. We'll put her behind the wheel of one of the trucks or tractors and she can drive anywhere she likes out there."

  Sam laughed. "I can just picture her now, mowing down a herd of cattle."

  "You'd be surprised how fast those cattle can haul ass when an eight-thousand-pound monster of a truck is bearing down on them."

&n
bsp; She pulled her legs up and crossed them, facing Reid. "I can't even imagine my tiny little grandmother behind the wheel of one of those trucks."

  His lips curved. "Makes you want to bring her out to the ranch and let her try, though, doesn't it? You know she'd have a great time rolling around the back roads of the property. All the freedom in the world, and nothing to worry about."

  "That does sound lovely. Maybe I need a day at the ranch to drive around and let myself get lost."

  "I could arrange that."

  "You could, huh? Would you come get lost with me?"

  His eyes darkened, and what she saw there was very . . . compelling. Interest mixed with definite desire.

  "I know all the great places to get lost on the ranch, Sam. Places where no one would come looking for us, and no one would find us. Maybe I can kidnap you this weekend when you're out for the barbecue, and we'll get lost together."

  "I like the sound of this. Des has told me the ranch has some beautiful lakes. And cabins. Very secluded."

  He drew circles around one of her knees with his fingers, then pulled her legs out and draped them over his lap. The temperature in the room suddenly soared as their bodies touched. Even fully clothed, she felt the searing heat of Reid's body and wanted nothing more than to touch him. That kiss the other night, the one before they'd been interrupted by the phone call from her grandmother, still burned hot in her memories.

  They had just begun to explore each other, to see where this explosive chemistry between them could go.

  She wanted to do a lot more exploring with him.

  When he shifted their bodies and she suddenly found herself on his lap, she was about three seconds short of an explosion.

  "You know," he said, "if we go find some of those hidden places at the ranch this weekend, we might get so lost we'd be gone all night."

  Her heart beat so rapidly she could barely think straight. It wasn't often she found herself so wrapped up in a man that she lost all sense of coherent thought, but Reid had amazing eyes, and an incredible mouth. She traced his lips with her fingertip.

  "I don't think we'll have to go very far, Reid. I'm feeling a little lost right now."

  He tilted her back onto the sofa, then covered her body with his. "Are you?"

  He rubbed his erection against her, and she instinctually arched against him. "Oh. Definitely."

  His lips curved. "Good."

  And then he kissed her.

  Chapter 18

  SAM HAD NEVER experienced the kind of kiss that took her breath away.

  Until now.

  There was something so exponentially hot about a man who knew how to kiss, who wasn't tentative about it and kissed with authority. Reid was that kind of man. He had one hand on her hip and the other on her neck, and his mouth moved over hers with an eager passion that told her he was as much into this as she was.

  A definitely heady feeling.

  Sam lifted into him, her lips and tongue doing a desperate dance with his. As he pressed into her, his body all hard planes and angles, she tried to memorize this moment, to feel every moving part of him, from his mouth to where his hands were. Her senses went haywire, like electrical zings pulsing through her, her body crying out for more, more, more.

  And when he moved his hand underneath her to cup her butt, she moaned against his mouth, arching toward him. It was almost embarrassing how close she was to an orgasm already. It had been sort of a dry spell for her in the sex department, and Reid was supremely hot and sexy, and the way he rubbed against her hit all those hot, delicious parts that hadn't been . . . serviced lately.

  He lifted his head. "You're shaking. Everything okay?"

  She managed a smile. "Everything is definitely okay. More than okay. Like, I could come really soon if you keep moving that way kind of okay."

  His lips curved. "So what you're saying is you'd like to stay in this position?"

  He surged against her, and she gasped as tingles of pleasure shivered through her.

  She wrapped her legs around his hips. "Yes, this could definitely work for me. Or, we could get naked."

  "I like the naked idea a lot. Hold on."

  He pushed off the sofa and stood, his hands cradling her behind.

  "Can I just say I like your hands on my butt?"

  He grinned. "I'm making a mental note of that."

  He held her so easily as he headed toward the hallway, as if she weighed nothing.

  "Which door?" he asked.

  "Last one on the right."

  He shifted her, holding her with one hand while he turned the knob on her bedroom door.

  So. Impressive.

  He pushed the door open, walked in, and flipped the light switch on, and at that moment she really hoped she hadn't flung her bra and underwear on the floor before her shower earlier.

  Not that he would notice her underwear on the floor, since his gaze was most definitely fixed on her, which only heated her insides more. He laid her on the bed, then leaned over her.

  "Now. How about we take some clothes off?"

  If it were possible to go up in flames spontaneously, this would be the time. The man just oozed sex appeal with his bedroom eyes and the way his voice lowered when he suggested they get naked. And they hadn't even gotten to all the actual sex stuff yet.

  She could well imagine just how good he was at the actual sex stuff, and she couldn't wait to get there. She pulled off her shirt and wriggled out of her yoga pants, watching intently as Reid kicked off his boots and undid the buckle of his jeans. When he drew his shirt over his head, she had to pause, because, oh, his chest and those abs. Rock-hard didn't even begin to describe him.

  Wow.

  This was about to get really interesting, and she didn't want to miss a thing.

  He held his shirt in his hand. "You stopped."

  She got up on her knees and moved to the edge of the bed so she could touch all that beautiful, sculpted skin. She laid her hands on his shoulders, then skimmed her fingers down his arms. "You took your shirt off. I got distracted."

  He grinned, then dropped his jeans to the floor, making her shudder with anticipation.

  He wrapped his arm around her waist, then dropped them both to the mattress. "And you're wearing pink underwear."

  "I am."

  "I have a thing for pink."

  She looked down at him. "You do? Because your boxer briefs are black."

  He laughed. "I don't mean I wear pink."

  "Good to know. Because my sex buzz might have died a little if you did."

  He smoothed his hand over her stomach, his fingers teasing the top of her panties. "I meant I have a thing about women who wear pink underwear. And you look very sexy in yours. Hot pink especially is my favorite."

  "That's very good to know, because I happen to own a lot of pink underwear."

  He rolled her onto her back and toured the curves of her breasts with his fingertips. "Then I might just have to see them all."

  "I guess you might."

  "But for now, let's take these off." He reached for the clasp in front of her bra and, with one expert flick of his fingers, unhooked it. He pulled the cups away, then swept his hands over her breasts, brushing his thumb over her nipples.

  He met her gaze.

  "These are pink, too. And hot."

  Her senses went haywire as he leaned over and put his mouth on one of her nipples, while his fingers teased the other. She tunneled her fingers into his hair, holding tight while tingling pulses shot south, making her sex quiver in anticipation.

  She wanted his hands on her everywhere. She wanted to explore his body with her hands and her mouth. She wanted everything. Right now.

  She lifted his head and looked down at him. "Panties."

  He smiled up at her. "Yes. Did I mention those were hot?"

  "Off. Take them off."

  "I can definitely do that."

  He pressed kisses down her body, which only prolonged the torment as his mouth moved over her hi
p bone. When he dragged one edge of her underwear over her hip with his teeth, she shuddered.

  "Reid."

  He lifted his head. "I like the way you say my name, Sam." He drew up on his knees and dragged her underwear over her hips and down her legs, then spread her thighs and nestled between them. "Let's see if I can make you scream it out."

  She sucked in a deep breath as he put his mouth on her sex.

  He swept his hot, wet tongue across her and she lifted up, craving more of the delicious sensation. She was already spiraling so fast it made her dizzy. She grabbed the sheets to hold on, to suspend the moment, because the things he was making her feel were just so good she wanted to delay the inevitable fall.

  But it had been too long, and Reid must have some kind of sorcerer's tongue, because she was out of breath, hit by lightning and losing it fast.

  She did cry out his name when she hit her climax. And she had absolutely no regrets about it, because it had been glorious.

  When he climbed up her body and hovered above her, she framed his face with her hands.

  "Well. That was a very good start."

  He grinned. "I'm glad you thought so. You seemed kind of into it."

  "Kind of? I nearly passed out."

  "Hey, don't pass out. I'm not finished with you yet."

  She brushed his hair away from his face. "If this gets any better, you might need to bring in an oxygen tank for me."

  "You sure know how to feed a guy's ego." He rolled to his side, then swept his hands over her breasts.

  There went those tingles again. She shifted to face him. "You sure know how to give a woman a great orgasm. Just stating the facts."

  "How about we try that orgasm thing again? The first one seemed to go well." He shifted his trajectory, moving his hand over her stomach. He was slow with his movements, which she appreciated, since he seemed to enjoy touching her. And she sure liked the feel of his fingers exploring her body, especially when he went lower, cupping her sex, using those exceptional skills he possessed to make her breath catch.

  "Keep doing that," she said.

  He moved over her so his face was aligned with hers. She saw the heat in his eyes, making desire coil deep in her belly.

  He increased his movements. "That?"

  She gasped. "Definitely a lot more of that."

  His erection lay hot and hard against her hip. She knew what she needed, what she wanted more than anything right now.