Catching the Cowgirl (Cotton Creek Romance)

by Jennie Marts

  It was certainly made by the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. That may have been coloring his evaluation, but he didn’t think so. That cookie was just damn good.

  “Oh stop it, you flatterer.” She pushed against his leg, and his skin tingled where her fingers had touched.

  “No, really. These are amazing.” He reached for another then took a swig of milk. The combination seemed to warm him from the inside out, and he settled back against the cushions, aware of how close he sat to her and trying to calm his racing heart.

  “You said you had an idea?”

  “Oh yeah, right.” He had the worst time concentrating when she was near. He couldn’t seem to focus on anything except the smell of her hair and the nearness of her skin as her leg came close to brushing his. Focus on the cookie. And the idea.

  He pointed to Cody’s gaming system. “I was thinking about what you said. About how you feel like you have a hard time connecting with Cody. I was thinking I could teach you how to play Masters of Misfortune so you could play it with him. It might give you something in common to talk about.”

  Her eyes lit with excitement. “That sounds awesome.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Are you sure? Because before, you were saying that you didn’t have time to play silly games like these. It was just an idea. You don’t have to.”

  “It’s a great idea. And I love that you were thinking of a way to help me connect with my son. It wouldn’t be a waste of time if it actually works.” She picked up the two game controllers that were in a basket on the coffee table and handed one to him. “How do we start?”

  He turned on the equipment and had a tinge of pride that one of the Misfortune versions was already cued up. Maneuvering to a new game, he showed Skye how to choose her character (she picked Gemma, of course) and how to select an outfit and supplies for her.

  Guiding her through the opening sequences, he showed her how to use the controller to move her character through the game. It didn’t take long for Skye to catch on.

  “Wow. This is really cool. I had no idea that this was what this game would be like. The graphics, or whatever you called them, look so realistic. I feel like I am really in the jungle. This is fun.”

  He loved watching her play the game he helped to create. Loved watching the delight cross her face as she discovered a new aspect of the mystery.

  “I’m glad you like it,” he said. “It makes me happy.”

  “Like it? I love it.” She twisted her whole body as her thumbs worked the control, as if she could control the movements of the character by moving herself.

  He loved it, too. Especially because every time she moved to the right, she brushed against him. And every time her bare leg touched his, it sent a sizzle of heat racing up his spine. And yeah, he probably could have just explained how to work the controller, but he liked resting his hand on top of hers as he guided her fingers.

  Every time he touched her, his pulse quickened.

  He seemed to be hyper-aware of all his senses—seeing her expressions, touching her hand, hearing the sound of her laughter, smelling the scent of her skin. The only one missing was taste, and he swallowed at the thought of sampling her lips, of nibbling her slender neck, of licking her…hell, her anything.

  Sitting next to her was driving him mad, and he couldn’t remember the last time he had wanted a woman so much.

  It was killing him being so close, and sharing intimate space, yet not knowing if she was flirting or if he was reading her signals wrong. Maybe she was just a touchy person. He knew plenty of women like that, ones who were always touching your arm or something. They didn’t mean anything by it, it was just their way.

  Was that what was happening with Skye? Was she just a naturally affectionate person?

  He didn’t think so. He felt like they’d had an instant attraction—a spark. At least he had. Although for him, it was more than a spark… It was more like an explosion, an eruption of feelings that burst through his chest and ran hot through his veins.

  Sitting next to her now, he felt like his skin was on fire, and his hands burned to touch her.

  She was so animated when she played, her body bumping against his as she moved around—her legs, her shoulder, her hand touching his as she pointed to a spot on the controller.

  “This ledge is crazy. I’ve died ten times trying to make this jump. I can’t make it across the river,” she said, passing him her controller. “Can you just get me past this part so I can move on?”

  Normally he wouldn’t even consider it. It would take away from the game play and the integrity of the puzzle. But nothing about this was normal. And he was quickly realizing that he would do just about anything for Skye Hawkins—wear cowboy boots, muck out disgusting horse stalls, even attempt to country dance. Whatever she wanted.

  He took the controller and easily maneuvered her character over the ledge and into the river.

  “Oh no, be careful.” She tapped his leg anxiously. “This is the part where my character usually drowns.”

  “I got this,” he assured her with a laugh. But her enthusiasm was so contagious he played up the drama for her benefit. “I don’t remember this being so tough, though. I might not make it after all.”

  But he knew he would. He’d designed this part and replayed every feature of it a hundred times. But he couldn’t resist the way she clutched his arm and hopped up and down in her seat with anxiousness.

  “Watch out for the crocodile,” she shouted, pointing at the screen. “You’re almost there.”

  He worked to manipulate the character so it swam past the crocodile and crawled out on the other bank, almost losing his concentration when she buried her head against his shoulder, laughing as she claimed she couldn’t watch.

  When she saw that he’d made it across the river to the other side, she let out a sigh of relief. “You did it.” She gave him a hug. “Thank you for sharing this with me.”

  Adam caught his breath as her cheek pressed to his.

  As if it had a mind of its own, his hand slid around her waist, pulling her to him as he hugged her back.

  She drew back, but just slightly—just enough for him to see her face and take in her wide-eyed look of surprise.

  His gaze dipped to her mouth—to her slightly parted rose-colored lips—and she inhaled a quick sharp pull of breath.

  Not him. He couldn’t breathe at all, couldn’t move.

  He was frozen in place, even though every synapse in his body was firing on all cylinders sending sparks of heat surging through his veins.

  He looked back up, into her eyes, searching for a sign, anything that would tell him she was feeling the same thing, the same swirling sense of dizziness that had his own stomach in knots and his mouth going dry. Anything that would give him a glimpse of permission.

  But she seemed to be frozen as well, suspended in the moment, as if she were waiting, afraid to move.

  He leaned in—just a fraction of an inch—but close enough that his mouth was a whisper away from hers. She didn’t pull back, and he moved the smallest bit closer and brushed her lips softly with his.

  She sucked in a soft gasp, the tiniest sound but full of gigantic meaning. A sound that was a cross between pleasure and pain. It pierced his heart.

  He stopped, not pressing, but not pulling away, as he felt the slight tremble of her lips against his. He waited, his heart pounding hard against his chest, somehow knowing that this moment could change everything.

  Chapter Eight

  Adam raised his free hand and set it gently against her cheek, cupping the side of her face, and she let out a soft moan—and it was about the sexiest thing he’d ever heard.

  Heat streamed through his body, and he tilted his head just the slightest, and pressed his lips to hers.

  A soft kiss, but full of meaning. Of promise.

  Then another. Like a slow sip of an expensive glass of wine, he sampled her lips, testing her reaction.
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br />   Her lips parted, offering him an invitation, and he deepened the next kiss, slanting his mouth across hers and dipping his tongue between them.

  She tasted like chocolate and cherry lip balm and what he was pretty sure heaven would be like.

  The rest of the world fell away. Nothing mattered except this moment, this second in time.

  Blood rushed to his ears as she pressed back, meeting his kiss with a sudden urgency as her fingers tightened against his back, then gripped handfuls of his T-shirt.

  He slid his hand down her cheek, across her neck and shoulder then clasped her arm, pulling her tightly to him.

  She pressed closer, her soft curves melting against him, and he had to remind himself to breathe.

  He pulled back, his breath ragged and shaky, already missing the soft feel of her lips.

  Aw hell, breathing is overrated anyway.

  He leaned back in, capturing her mouth in another kiss, this one filled with heat and passion and a crazy sense of desperation that he had no idea where it was coming from.

  But he did know he wanted her. Needed her. Knew that his skin felt like it was on fire, and having her was the only way to extinguish the flames.

  He drew his hand down her arm, skimming the side of her breast, and she let out another low moan against his lips.

  Pressing her back against the sofa, he kissed the corner of her mouth, then her jaw, then laid a line of kisses along her neck and across her chest. Her tank top had shifted, revealing her creamy breasts as they pushed out of the top of her lacy bra, and he ran his tongue along her pale skin at the edge of the white lace.

  She squirmed under him, arching her back and dropping her head back against the sofa.

  His hand slid up her ribs to cup her breast, feeling the hardened pebble of her nipple through the fabric of her bra as he skimmed his thumb across it, eliciting another soft gasp.

  She let out a gasp of need, of desperate desire, and something broke inside of him. A defensive wall that he’d built around his heart crumbled and fell as her body trembled beneath him.

  Hunger spiraled inside of him, stirring in every cell of his body, as he tugged the top of her bra down, then filled his palm with her exposed breast, pushing it up as he circled her taut pink nipple with his tongue.

  Her fingers dug into his back, urgent and insistent as he drew the hardened tip between his lips, sucking the bud as he kneaded her breast.

  Her body was perfect, and he ached to see—and touch—more of it. All of it.

  Sliding his hand down her waist and hips, he cupped the impeccable curve of her butt, skimming his fingers along the bare skin at the frayed edge of her shorts.

  A low growl sounded in his own throat, a hum of need and hunger, as he feasted on her skin, kissing each breast then her chest, her neck, the line of her jaw.

  He pulled the ponytail holder from her hair, letting it fall across her shoulders, and he drove his hands through it, clutching the silky strands as he buried his face in her neck.

  Pulling her body against his, he shifted them so he could lay her back against the sofa, then he pulled back, filling his gaze with the vision of her. Her hair was tousled and spread across the couch, and her shirt was disheveled, pulled down on the side, so that one bare breast spilled over the top.

  She looked gorgeous, sexy as hell, like a fantasy. Except this was real. This was actually happening.

  He leaned down and slanted his mouth over hers, crushing her lips in an onslaught of desire.

  Her leg circled his, pulling him tighter to her, as she yanked up the back of his T-shirt.

  Everything else fell away. All of his focus was on her. Touching her. Kissing her. Feeling her.

  He couldn’t get enough.

  Nothing else mattered.

  Nothing except the subtle whisper of clicks that sounded as someone inserted a key into the lock of the front door.

  Adam sprang back, and panic filled Skye’s eyes.

  “It’s Cody.” She struggled to sit up, hastily adjusting her top and smoothing down her hair.

  Adam shifted in his seat, grabbing a throw pillow and holding it in his lap, fervently trying to think of baseball stats or something that might diminish his raging erection. Thank goodness he wore loose shorts.

  The game controllers were scattered on the floor, and he reached for one, quickly hitting a key that started the game playing again, while he struggled to catch his breath.

  He felt like he’d had the wind knocked out of him, as if a tornado had just swirled through the room, lifting them up and tossing them around in a passion-filled storm.

  He sucked in a deep breath as the door swung open and Cody walked in.

  The boy stopped in his tracks, glancing from them sitting on the sofa to the television, and his forehead creased in annoyance. “Hey, what do you guys think you’re doing?”

  “Cody, listen, it was my fault,” Adam answered, searching his brain for a way to explain. But his mind refused to work; his thoughts were still muddled with images of Skye. It was as if he could still feel her against him.

  But somehow he didn’t think Cody would be thrilled with any explanation of why he’d been mauling his mother on the living room couch.

  He snuck a glance at Skye. Her mouth was open, as if she wanted to say something but no words would come out. All Adam could think about was the way her lips had that just-kissed swell to them, which did not help his attempts to quell his own problem. He readjusted the pillow.

  But Cody’s eyes were fixed on the television screen. “Are you guys playing my game? Did you mess up my level?”

  Adam let out a relieved sigh.

  “Don’t worry. Yours is safe. We started a new game.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I wanted to learn how to play it,” Skye said, finally managing to speak.

  “You did?”

  “Yeah, I did. You’re always wanting to talk about it, so Adam offered to teach me how the game works. Maybe we could even play it together.”

  Cody’s eyes narrowed with skepticism as he glanced between her and Adam. Then his face broke into a grin. “Really? You actually learned how to play Masters of Misfortune? For me?”

  Her face lit up, and something inside of Adam lit as well—like a little pang of happiness at his role in coming up with the idea.

  “Of course for you. I’m not very good at it. But I’m trying.”

  Cody dropped onto the sofa next to her and reached for a controller. “You must be pretty good if you got past the river. It took me forever to figure that part out. I kept getting eaten by the crocodile.”

  She laughed, and the sound was music to his ears. “Me, too. I couldn’t even get to the crocodile. I kept getting swept into the rapids and drowning. Adam helped me with that part.”

  “What?” Cody cocked an eyebrow at him. “Dude.”

  Adam held up his hands in surrender. “I know. I should have let her do it herself. But I couldn’t help it.”

  The boy shook his head. “I probably would have helped her, too. That part is totally ridiculous. I wish I knew the guy that created the game so I could tell him what I think.”

  Adam chuckled. “I’m all ears.”

  Cody looked at his mom. “So do you still want to play? Like a game with me?”

  Adam felt Skye stiffen next to him, and then she reached between them and clasped the side of his shorts, gripping a fistful of the fabric.

  “Yeah. Sure. I’d like that.”

  Cody fiddled with the controller to maneuver the screen to a fresh game, then leaned around his mom to look at Adam. “I have an extra controller if you want to play with us. But I get to be Vic.”

  Adam laughed again. He liked this kid. “You’re on. I like playing Theo better anyway. I’ve got to warn you, though, I do have a bit of an advantage. But I’ll try to let you guys do the majority of the tasks.”

  “I’ll warn you,” Cody said. “I’m pretty good, too.”

  He clamored from the sof
a to dig the extra controller out of a basket of game paraphernalia that sat on the shelf under the television.

  Skye snuck an excited glance at him, and he gave her hand a squeeze.

  “Here ya go.” Cody passed him a controller. “It’s the original one that came with the setup, so the grips are worn and the X button sometimes sticks. That can be your disadvantage.”

  Adam let go of Skye’s hand before Cody saw it and took the game device.

  They settled in to play, and Adam was surprisingly happy to let Cody take the lead in explaining the game to his mom. It was fun for him to hear how the boy explained challenges and what his take was on the puzzles, plus he got a kick out of listening to them both laugh as they traversed through the jungles of Peru, united in their quest to find the treasure.

  They had plenty of gamers that tested their products and helped them find bugs in their games, but this was different. This was just ordinary people enjoying something he’d helped to create.

  His chest swelled with a mixture of pride and happiness that his game was also helping to bring this mom and son together—to give them a common interest. He never imagined people like Skye being part of the target audience, but the wheels in his head were already spinning about how they could create some type of family-play version in the next game.

  Just by listening, Adam was picking up a lot of ideas about what to include in their new product.

  “Watch out for that snake,” Skye shouted, pointing to the screen.

  “I see it. Calm down, Mom,” Cody admonished, then laughed. “You just take care of collecting the artifacts. I’ll take care of the jungle creatures.”

  “You’re so close. Just a few more steps.” She bounced in her seat. “Adam, get that statue. We’re almost to the top.”

  He gladly followed her instructions, and the three of them guided their characters up the stairs and into the ancient tomb. Racing through a series of tunnels, they came out into a large, cavernous room filled with treasures. Waterfalls rained from spouts in the sides of the walls, and golden sunlight spilled into the room, sparkling off the piles of gold.