by Lane, Soraya
She slipped into her boots and went out the door, crossing the drive past Scott's bike. Just the thought of getting on it again sent a shiver down her spine, but as scared as she was, she was also ready for the thrill of holding on to Scott again, eyes shut as the roads blurred past them.
Amanda was about to call out to Scott, catching up to him, when she saw her brother emerge from the barn. Charley came walking out behind him, a stern look on her face, and Amanda slowed her pace. The last thing she needed was Blake and Scott having a confrontation.
"Stay the hell away from my sister, Gregory. I've told you before and I don't want to waste my breath saying it again."
Amanda's heart sunk. She didn't know what Scott had said to get that response, but whatever he'd said had managed to rile her brother up. And fast. As she neared she could hear everything, and she slowly made her way to stand by her sister, not wanting to be too close to either man. She didn't want to take sides, but if it came to it she had every intention of telling Blake to pull his head out of his ass.
"I don't want to argue with you, Blake. Hell, we've been friends for years. That's why I'm here now."
Blake glared at Scott like he was about to leap the distance between them and throttle him.
"Like I said, stay the hell away from her and we won't have a problem."
Scott ran a hand through his hair, looking as if he was on the verge of losing his temper.
"Look, I came here as a courtesy to you. I'm not looking for your permission, but I didn't want to be sneaking around and lying to you."
Amanda stepped in then, even though Charley held her hand out and tried to stop her.
"Blake, let it go."
He glared at her like she'd betrayed him. "Let it go? You have no idea what…" he stopped talking, his jaw a rigid line.
"What?" Scott demanded. "You going to tell her about Rose or all of the other women I've been with? Because I already have. I've told her why you wanted me to steer clear of her, and she didn't give a damn."
Blake shook his head. "You want your heart broken by the manwhore? Fine. Just don't come crying to me when you realize all he wanted was one night in the sack with you."
"That's enough, Blake. You have no fucking idea what kind of man I am now." Scott's words were low; deep and angry.
"Ever heard the saying that a leopard never changes his spots?" Blake stepped toward Scott, hands fisted like he was about to punch him. "You'll never be good enough for her and you know it."
Amanda felt like she'd been slapped across the face. Her brother's words stung. She watched as he stared at Scott for what felt like an eternity, before storming off back into the barn. Charley touched her shoulder, bringing her back to reality.
"He's just protective," she said. "And probably just struggling with the whole losing dad thing."
"We're all struggling with losing dad, but it doesn't give him leave to be an asshole. I've never seen him act like such a jerk before."
She turned back toward Scott, saw the steely expression on his face. He had to be pissed with being spoken to like that, and she was embarrassed it had been her brother who'd been the one to do it.
"I'll leave you guys to it. See you later, Scott," Charley said.
Amanda reached for Scott's hand, looked up into his eyes. "Hey."
He smiled down at her, but his smile never reached his eyes. Usually they crinkled at the corners, turned into the warmest shade of brown that usually reminded her of melted chocolate, but today they just looked black and angry.
"I know why he wants to protect you from me, but he's wrong. He's so fucking wrong."
"I know he's wrong," she told him, squeezing her fingers around his palm, pleased when he closed his hold on her, too.
"Back then, he had every right to tell me to stay away. Hell, if we were thinking about getting serious then I'd understand him giving me a damn good talking to, but…"
"I know," she said, nodding. "Whatever happens between us is just you and me. We're only having fun, right? That's no one’s business but ours."
Scott's body slumped slightly, not as rigid as it had been. "I just wanted to do the right thing and tell him that we were hanging out."
"I know. But maybe we're best to just…"
"Sneak around?"
She laughed. "Yeah. I'm thinking we should just embrace the whole forbidden thing."
Scott slung his arm around her shoulders, laughing. Relief hit her, the tension in her body slowly seeping out. The idea of him being pissed off and walking away wasn't something she wanted to think about.
"You still want to go for a spin?"
"Let me run in and grab a jacket. You should go say hey to mom."
They walked together toward the house, his arm still around her.
"You want me to get a dressing down by your mom, too?"
She grinned up at him, hardly able to take her eyes off his face. He had at least a day's stubble covering his jaw line and her fingers were itching to rub across it. After being up close and personal with him the night before, she was ready to straddle him again and feel his hands on her and his mouth covering hers.
"My mom loves you as much as she loves Jack. Trust me when I say she'd want to see you."
"Yeah?"
"She just told me to ask you over for dinner, so I'd say you're definitely still in her good graces."
"Maybe I should have started with talking to her instead of your idiot brother, because I'll sure as hell never be invited over for a meal now."
Amanda sighed when Scott dropped his arm and followed her up the steps to the house. There was something about him touching him that made her feel different; that made her feel like she'd stepped back in time, but in a good way. Now she just had to figure out how to translate that feeling into her painting, and she'd be able to feel a whole lot less guilty about being tucked away on her family ranch instead of locked in her studio.
CHAPTER TEN
THE roar of his motorcycle always managed to calm him, and today with Amanda's body pressed to his, Scott was feeling better already. To hell with Blake - if he wanted to be a child about the whole thing, then that was his damn problem.
He pulled off the road and changed down gears, being more careful than he usually would. When he'd started to ride in Australia, he'd spent hours on the road pushing the limits, going as fast as he could, but with Amanda on behind he was a whole lot more aware of their mortality. She'd only just trusted him enough to even get on behind him, and he had no intention of giving her an excuse to turn him down the next time.
Scott slowed to a stop and kicked the stand down, taking a moment to pause and just look at the view. Keeping his temper in check hadn't ever been something that came easily to him, but the older he got the better he'd become at dealing with it. His brother had been able to ignore their dad, just get on with things, but Scott had never been able to walk away from a confrontation. Until recently.
"Is this somewhere you come often?"
Amanda's soft voice pulled him back to the present, made him stop thinking about his dad.
"It's a good quick ride when I need to clear my head," he told her.
Amanda climbed off and stretched, and he watched her before doing the same. They stood side by side and looked out over the land, the sun beating down on their shoulders. Scott shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it over the seat of the bike.
"I shouldn't have come around like I did today."
"You did what you thought was right. No harm in that."
Scott reached out and touched Amanda's hair, tucking it behind her ear so he could see her face. She was beautiful in a different way to how he'd always remembered her, but she'd definitely improved with age.
"I've been thinking about last night."
She turned, a smile lighting up her face. He hadn't meant to even say it out aloud, wasn't used to admitting how he was feeling to anyone.
"We had fun, didn't we?"
He chuckled and wrapped his arms a
round her waist, tugging her closer. "Last night we were on steel, and now we're in the open, standing in a field. I think we need to come up with some better places to meet."
Amanda laughed and put her arms around his shoulders, standing on tiptoe. Instead of answering him she kissed him, her lips feather-light. Scott wanted to take things slow, but he couldn't, because he didn't just want to make out with Amanda - he wanted her naked and sweaty and writhing beneath him. Screw kissing, he needed to find somewhere for them to have some serious fun.
Scott pulled her even closer, her body tight against his, one hand fisted in her hair to lock her in place. He crushed his mouth to hers, taking charge, loving when she moaned and gripped his shoulders, tongue dipping into his mouth. He skimmed his hands down her body, frustrated that she was wearing a jacket, but when he went to pull it off she stiffened and stepped back, breathless as she gasped for air.
"Uh-uh."
He groaned. "Two times in 24 hours? This is killing me."
"Hey, you're the one who put a stop to things last night."
"And it was the stupidest thing I've ever done," he muttered, yanking her closer again and planting another kiss on her mouth.
Amanda's hand moved to his chest and pushed him back a little. "We're in full view of the road, and I'd rather not be arrested for public indecency."
Scott laughed and she grinned back at him. "So maybe I should come back and collect you tonight?"
"What, so we can do this in the dark and hope not to be seen?"
He pulled her closer again, but this time he just held her, dropped a kiss into her hair and tried to ignore how hard he was for the woman in his arms. "Let's just say that next time I'll make sure we're somewhere more…" He laughed. "Suitable."
"So you don't just want to lie here in the sun and keep things at first base?"
"Hell no," he said, giving her a gentle push away and walking back to his bike. "If I kiss you again, I will not be responsible for my actions."
"Maybe you can think of something good for tonight, then?" Amanda said with a wink.
Scott didn't need any encouraging. Maybe it was because he was being forced to wait, or that he'd never been allowed to indulge in his want for her, but his desire for Amanda was driving him crazy. Idiot brother notwithstanding.
"Tempt me like that again and I won't give a damn about being out in public."
"Oh yeah?"
Scott made a noise like a growl and Amanda squealed when he chased her, giggling as he wrapped his arms around her and stole a kiss from the hollow above her collarbone.
"What your brother said before, about me…"
She shook her head. "You don't have to explain," she said.
"But he's right. I mean, I've never been a relationship guy, and I'm still not. I just want to make sure you're okay with whatever this is."
Amanda's smile told him he had nothing to worry about. "I've already told you that I'm going back to New York. This is just me and you having fun, doing what we should have done years ago. You can't hurt me, Scott, I promise."
"So how about meeting at my place tonight, then?"
"As in your half-finished house?" she asked.
"Bring your overnight bag, and I'll make sure there's a roof," he said with a laugh.
"You're on."
Amanda was still smiling to herself as she pulled up the drive of Wild River and headed for Scott's place. She thought about turning her headlights off, so Jack and Maddie didn't know they had a visitor, but then decided otherwise. It wasn't like she was sneaking around with Scott, so technically they had nothing to hide.
As she neared the construction site she slowed to a crawl and parked alongside the half-finished structure that would be Scott's house. While she'd gone over the plans for his luxury accommodation with him, she hadn't seen the drawings for his home, but from what she could see it was going to be incredible.
"Hello," Amanda called out as she stepped out of the car. "Scott?"
"Just a sec," he called back.
Amanda walked slowly to the edge of the framing, running her hand along the lumber as she waited for Scott to appear. She looked around and burst out laughing when she caught sight of a tent in the far corner of the house, a light suddenly flickering from inside of it, followed by Scott's head appearing.
"So this is your idea of luxury?" she asked.
He grinned as he walked toward her, his features easy to read even in the almost darkness.
"I never said anything about luxury," he said. "From memory we discussed privacy and comfort. I can tick both of those off the list."
Amanda felt shy all of a sudden, because there was no denying why they'd met up tonight. It had been one thing flirting, kissing even, but this was a straight booty call and she'd been the one to instigate it.
"Do I get a grand tour before we disappear into the tent?" she asked, biding for time.
He shrugged. "Sure."
Scott walked back to the entrance, indicating for her to follow.
"The front door will be here, big windows straight ahead looking out over the ranch," he said. "The master bedroom and bathroom are upstairs, kitchen and living areas straight ahead across the front down here, and a couple of spare bedrooms and another bathroom upstairs to the right."
"Room for a few kids one day, huh?" she teased.
"Not a chance. This is a bachelor pad, no two ways about it," he said, leaning against a beam. "Those spare rooms will be turned into a gym and a," he paused, "I don't know what, but definitely not for kids."
Amanda touched his shoulder and nodded toward the tent. "And what's in that little room over there?"
The serious expression disappeared, replaced with a grin. "That little room just so happens to be worth a grand tour all of its own."
"Really?" she asked, taking a few steps backward as Scott came closer.
He just laughed, and his smile was wicked when she backed into the framing of a wall and was trapped against the wood. Scott took one big step and was suddenly in front of her, so close he was almost touching her, his big body blocking everything else out.
"You know what I think?" Scott asked, opening his legs out wide and bracing his hands above her head.
She swallowed, hard, as he shuffled closer, his thighs trapping her, his mouth dipping closer to hers. Amanda didn't know what to say, so she just shook her head.
"I think we need to christen this place."
Scott's lips were so close, his breath warm against her mouth as he spoke. She moaned as he reached for her hands and slowly pulled them above her head, pinning them both with only one of his hands, the other supporting his weight as he leaned forward and down.
"Kiss me," she begged, her voice a whisper.
He didn't need to be asked twice. Scott's mouth met hers, his lips moist, mouth insistent as he moved it back and forth across hers. His wet tongue made her moan again, the tightness of his hold making her want to wriggle harder against his body, loving that he'd locked her in place, that she couldn't get away. In her everyday life she was always in charge, but with Scott it was the complete opposite. He was calling the shots, making her submit, and there was nothing about it she didn't like, because she trusted him - knew he would stop if she asked him to.
Scott kept her hands pinned and trailed a kiss down her neck, sucking just above her collarbone, his tongue darting out to make her groan with pleasure. But he didn't stay there for long, releasing her hands and placing his palms on her butt instead, lifting her up until her legs were wrapped around his waist and her ass was pressed hard against the wood frame.
Amanda met his kiss with everything she had, clawing her fingers through his hair as his mouth took ownership of hers, one of his hands holding her in place, the other running over her hip and up her body. Her jeans were skin tight, but she didn't care, would have put up with any kind of discomfort to stay pressed this hard up against Scott.
"You," Scott said, his voice husky, "are driving me crazy."
; He leaned back slightly, his pelvis pushed hard against her, locking her in place, and reached for the hem of her top. He raised it and she raised her arms, letting him pull it off, leaving her only in her bra. She'd worn black satin underwear, her bra low-cut and pushing her breasts together, and from the look on Scott's face he liked what he saw.
Scott pushed her back, his mouth over the soft skin at the top of her breast, but instead of moaning in pleasure, Amanda squealed.
"Ow!" She grabbed hold of Scott and wrapped her arms around his neck. "My skin and lumber is not a good combination."
He stroked a hand down her back, his grin contagious. "What is with you, me and uncomfortable places, huh?" he asked.
Amanda ignored him and started to unbutton his shirt instead. Once she glimpsed his bare, tanned skin, she had no intention of stopping.
"I think we should take this party to the tent," Scott said, carrying her as he walked.
Amanda ran her hands down Scott's chest, loving the feel of his hard muscles beneath her palms, never having touched a man with a body like his before. She wanted to explore every inch of him, and she wanted to do it right now.
"Damn, Mandy!" Scott growled. "Keep touching me like that and I'll drop you right here."
She laughed and switched her focus to his neck instead, suckling him like he'd kissed her, running her tongue across his skin. His groan made her smile, but there was nothing light-hearted about the way he stopped when they reached the tent, putting her back on her feet and grabbing hold of her wrists.
"You," he said, his dark eyes stormy with what she hoped was need, "will not be getting out of here until morning."
"Really?" she asked, pulling her wrists out of his grip and turning around, dropping to her knees and crawling in.
Scott was right behind her, giving her only a second to look around at the makeshift bed he'd made, camping lights in each corner. It was romantic in a wild kind of way, and she liked it.
