This Kiss (Made In Montana Book 12)

by Debbi Rawlins

  His features softened. “Huh. For what it’s worth, I couldn’t tell. And I’d checked you out plenty.”

  “Liar.”

  “I did,” he said with an odd laugh that told her he might be telling the truth. “But I was a lot more careful so Ashley wouldn’t go nuts again.”

  “Wow, high school really sucked.”

  “Yes, in many ways it did.” He reached for her hand. “Is that it? That’s what you wanted to tell me?”

  She held his gaze. “You haven’t asked me about what the lawyer I hired on your behalf had to say.”

  “Craig?”

  “Yes, Craig Langley.”

  “Okay.” He released her hand. “I’m listening.”

  Oh, brother. It wasn’t as if she’d done something behind his back. Ethan knew she was going to contact Craig. And yet the same brooding expression was on his face from a minute ago. “He’s contacting the sheriff’s office for a copy of the arrest report and Wendy’s statement. Then he’ll get back to us tomorrow first thing. He understands this is time-sensitive.” She absolutely had no idea what Ethan was thinking. He’d closed her off. “I know you don’t like talking about this, but—”

  “I don’t like that you feel you owe the guy. Certainly not on my behalf. Hell, it’s not as if we’re asking him to represent me for free.”

  Sophie relaxed a bit. “He’s super busy, so yeah, I do owe him. And I don’t care even a tiny bit. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Craig is your best shot at making this all go away.”

  Ethan stared back a moment too long. “Why are you here, Sophie? Helping me like this. Do you feel you owe me?”

  It was a fair question, she supposed. The answer, though, wasn’t an easy one. Not if she wanted to be truthful. She swallowed around the lump forming in her throat. “No,” she said. “I don’t feel like I do, which is kind of odd, actually.” She forced herself to keep her eyes even with his. “That stupid crush I told you about...I might still have a tiny itty-bitty piece of it left.”

  Ethan’s mouth curved in a heart-stopping smile. “Good,” he said, gathering her in his arms. “I might have a crush on you, too.”

  Before she could respond, he began kissing and biting her neck. She let out a shriek of laughter, then promptly covered her loud mouth.

  “It’s okay,” he murmured, taking another nip. “The next two rooms are vacant.”

  She shoved him away to look at him. “And you know this because...?”

  “Yes, honey,” he said without apology, “I asked.”

  Sophie gasped, embarrassed, flustered... And then she just laughed.

  Mostly because he was tickling behind her ear with his tongue. His hands were busy rubbing a nipple and cupping her butt. She loved having the freedom to skim her palm over his pecs while watching his shoulder muscles ripple. He was so damn beautiful it almost wasn’t fair.

  “Have you ever modeled for your sponsors?” she asked, and when he didn’t answer, she rephrased it. “Like for a magazine ad?”

  He kissed her collarbone, paused. “Once. When I was younger,” he said, and continued blazing a path to her breast.

  “Shirtless?”

  When he didn’t answer, she grinned. How had she not found the ad in one of her many searches back in her obsessive years?

  He flicked his tongue over a very hard, sensitive nipple. Just as she thought she couldn’t stand another second, he sucked it into his mouth and she arched slightly. The moment she relaxed he slid a hand between her thighs, then surprised her by going in the direction she hadn’t expected.

  He cradled the back of her calf in his palm, lightly caressing the muscle as he moved toward her ankle. His mouth moved to her other nipple, lightly biting the tight bud, then licking and sucking it until fire had spread through her veins.

  Sophie reached under the sheets and found her prize. He hissed at her touch. Groaned when she wrapped her hand tighter and stroked him to the base of his erection. She took her time learning his shape, the smooth texture of his fever-hot flesh. She wanted to feel everything before she got lost in all the sexy things he did to her.

  Ethan murmured some indistinct words—it might’ve been a mild curse—and then he pulled the sheet back and stared down at her hand wrapped around him, stroking upward. She paused at the rim of the crown and kissed him there.

  “Sophie,” he whispered, his breathless rasp so hot she felt it all the way to her swollen center.

  He’d abandoned her leg, and she was sorry she interrupted him before seeing where he was going with that. But then he urged her thighs apart and slid a finger along the seam of her lips, and her mind went blank. Unconsciously she squeezed him tighter, and he dipped two fingertips inside her. Not far, just enough to tease her. To make her whimper.

  He leaned forward at a slight angle so he could kiss her mouth. He kept his fingertips inside her and she hadn’t given up her hold on his erection.

  “I want to try something,” he murmured against her mouth before leaning back to look at her.

  “Okay,” she said, and released him. It briefly occurred to her she should probably be wary. Or at least ask what he had in mind, but gazing into his blue eyes, she knew he wouldn’t harm her.

  He brought their faces close together and rested his forehead against hers. “It’s nothing kinky or weird,” he said. “I promise.”

  “I didn’t think it would be.”

  Ethan smiled as he drew back. His fingers were still inside her. He pushed in a little deeper, his nostrils flaring, his expression strained, as if he might be rethinking his plan. Finally he pulled out.

  He threw the covers to the foot of the bed. Grabbed a condom off the nightstand. Pushed the pillows out of the way so there was a clear spot in the middle of the mattress. He shifted until he was sitting close to the center, his legs crossed loosely at the ankles.

  She tried not to stare at his erection, but that was asking too much of herself. She figured out what he wanted to do, and her heart was already racing toward the finish line.

  “I want you to sit on me,” he said as he rolled on the condom. “As if you were going to wrap your legs around my waist. You’ll be sort of sitting on my thighs at first. We’ll find a fit to accommodate our height difference.”

  She nodded, and Ethan put his hands on her waist to help guide her as she climbed on board.

  “Making the adjustments should be fun,” she said.

  Ethan’s laugh turned into a groan as she sank down on him.

  Maybe that was why he didn’t notice that it was still an awkward arrangement. If her legs were a tad longer, it would be easier. She wiggled into a better position and ignored his tormented groans.

  He reached behind and cupped her butt with both hands. He lifted her a tiny bit to the right and an inch closer against him. The angle of his erection covered a lot of territory...

  Her breath caught at the base of her throat. No air was going in or out. He lifted his hips in the slightest thrust and he filled her utterly and completely to the max. A small cry escaped her lips when she felt her body stretch for him. How could he keep filling her?

  She hoped this was good for him.

  For her it was like hitting the jackpot.

  One hand stayed on her butt, and the other slipped between them and found her clit. His thumb circled and rubbed with varying pressure.

  Sensations bombarded her from both sides. They came down from the top and up from the bottom. Everywhere. They shimmered around her, ruled over her. Awareness of her surroundings slipped in and out. She knew she was with Ethan, though. He was doing all of these miraculous things to her.

  His body was warm and solid. Her hands rested on his shoulders, her fingers curling into his flesh and muscle.

  “Open your eyes, Sophie,” he whispered soft
ly. “Come on, look at me.”

  She forced them open.

  He was right there, his face inches from her face. His darkened eyes looking deeply into hers. And his smile... God, his smile melted anything that might’ve been left of her.

  Holding his gaze, she rocked gently against him. He was still rubbing her, but she moved his hand away. It felt amazing, but she wanted to wait. She wanted to stay in this moment with him for as long as they could bear it.

  Each of their movements was so tiny, so overwhelming. Neither of them had blinked. She was too afraid of missing something in his gorgeous blue eyes. He was trembling, his whole body straining to hold back. Sophie couldn’t decide if that was what she really wanted.

  Freezing this particular snapshot in time was amazing, but watching this incredible man shatter...for her... She had a feeling that would keep her heart warm forever.

  She moved her face closer to his, wanting to kiss him without losing eye contact.

  It didn’t work.

  Ethan’s smile widened a little. He knew what she was doing. “Guess you have to make a choice,” he said, his voice sounding weak from the strain of his tight control.

  “Why?” She barely got the word out.

  “Can’t have both.” He ran his fingers through her hair and it felt so great she almost closed her eyes.

  “I think I might die,” she said. “Right here. In whatever town this is. Cause of death...sensation overload.”

  “Then I’d better hurry up and come.”

  She laughed and the forward motion had him hissing through his teeth. It affected her, too. She could’ve sworn he’d rubbed her, but he didn’t have a hand down there.

  “I made a decision,” she said.

  “Good.” His eyes were completely black. “I don’t think I’m gonna last.”

  Sophie smiled. “Ready to rock and roll?”

  In answer Ethan lifted his hips and her.

  “Dammit. You made me blink.”

  Still watching her face, he smiled. And thrust again, only deeper.

  She had to hang on to him.

  He used both hands to anchor her hips, holding her steady to receive his thrusts. Semi-controlled at first, consistent, precise, but then that disappeared along with the eye contact.

  She wound her arms tightly around his neck, her breasts cradled by his chest, the friction caused by his thrusts driving her crazy. Their whimpers and moans permeated the room.

  Again, the pressure began building inside her, expanding and stretching, accelerating beyond her limit. And the heat. God, the heat rolled over them in shimmering waves of otherworldly pleasure, seducing them into the fire, fooling them into thinking they were warm and safe. Suspended here in the eye of the storm.

  Ethan’s strangled groan penetrated the sensual fog. His arms shook. Sweat beaded on his skin. His hands slipped from her hips. One landed on her thigh. She hadn’t let go of his neck. Her own body hadn’t stopped quaking. The spasms quivering inside her left her breathless and as weak as a newborn kitten.

  She knew she should climb off. She couldn’t move.

  Ethan kissed the corner of her mouth. He lifted her up and laid her back on the mattress carefully, so her head landed on the pillow. Letting out a big whoosh of breath, he collapsed at her side.

  “I think I know what it feels like to ride a bull,” she murmured between gulps of air.

  His laugh barely made it out. “You stayed on for more than eight seconds.”

  “I expect a buckle,” she said, and then just breathed for a while. “That position really was ridiculously amazing. We have to do it again.”

  “Not right now.”

  “Wuss.”

  Chuckling, he rolled toward her. “We will. Do it again. And again.”

  “Many times.”

  He kissed the side of her neck. “Many times,” he agreed, the warmth in his voice bringing a tightness to her chest.

  She snuggled up against him.

  He drew away for a moment, but just to pull the covers over them. And then he wrapped an arm around her, bringing her close.

  Many times.

  Repeating the words in her head made her smile. Though it was easy to say glib things now when she was here with Ethan, quite literally the man of her dreams.

  But there was only one thing she knew for certain.

  Ethan Styles was impossible. Impossible to understand. And impossible to resist...

  16

  SOPHIE WAS SITTING on a picnic bench near a snack bar about two hours from the motel where they’d stayed last night. No one else was sitting outside. The air was warm for November, but that wasn’t saying much. The sun felt good, though, and she wanted to get the dreaded conversation with Lola over with—if she’d ever call back.

  If Craig called soon, that would make her exceedingly happy, but she wasn’t expecting to hear from him for another hour. He would’ve only received the paperwork this morning.

  Lola was beginning to worry her. She hadn’t been answering her texts or calls. Which wasn’t like her at all. She couldn’t be that busy just because Sophie was gone. Anyway, Lola had been anxious to keep in close touch, and since she was expecting Sophie and Ethan to be arriving in Wattsville this morning, it seemed very odd she wouldn’t answer her phone.

  Sophie sure hoped this weird behavior didn’t have anything to do with Hawk. When Sophie checked him out early on, she hadn’t found anything significant or violent in his past. She would’ve definitely alerted Lola.

  Just to make herself feel better, she texted Mandy to see if she knew what was happening at the office. Talking to her would be better, but Sophie wanted to be the one to tell Lola about the last-minute decision to go to Las Vegas. Yes, she could’ve left a heads-up on a voice mail, but she hadn’t felt right doing that. She wanted to explain everything, even let Lola yell and scream at her if she wanted.

  Best-case scenario, everything with Lola was fine—just the regular Monday madness keeping her busy. And Sophie would hear from Craig telling her the charges had been dropped, and Lola and Sophie wouldn’t be on the hook for the full hundred-thousand-dollar bond.

  If only she lived in a perfect world...

  She looked up from her phone to take the cup of coffee Ethan had brought her. He bent to kiss her and even before their lips touched, she got that giddy feeling in her tummy that had been hanging around since they left Blackfoot Falls yesterday.

  “They didn’t have lattes or anything fancy. You should’ve seen the look I got when I asked for your part-skim, caramel-drizzled whatever.”

  “Well, if you didn’t know what to ask for, how do you know if they have it or not?”

  “Trust me, the second I mentioned the word latte, the old guy stopped listening. He was too busy mumbling something about yuppies ruining the world.”

  She eyed the Danish he’d brought for himself. “We just had breakfast.”

  “So?” He took a big bite, chewed, then sipped his coffee. “Do you know how many meals I’ve missed since I hooked up with you?”

  “Is it my fault you think sex is a meal replacement?”

  Ethan touched the brim of his hat and smiled at some phantom person behind her. “Mornin’, ma’am.”

  “Yeah, like I’m going to fall for that,” Sophie said, and heard a tsking sound. She refused to turn all the way around, but managed to catch sight of the little white-haired woman walking toward the snack counter.

  She looked at Ethan and they both laughed.

  “You’re the one who wanted to sit out here in the sun for a while,” he said.

  “Yes, and now I want a bite of that Danish.”

  “Then you’d better ask nicer.” His next bite demolished half the pastry.

  Her phone buzzed and she co
mpletely forgot about everything but the fact that she had a confession to make to Lola. And she sure didn’t want to do it in front of Ethan.

  As if he’d read her mind, he got to his feet. “I’ll go pick up more Danish,” he said.

  “Hey, Lola, you were starting to worry me,” Sophie said, watching Ethan stroll toward the snack bar.

  “Where are you?” Lola asked. She sounded as if she’d been crying.

  “Are you okay?”

  “No. Not really.”

  “Are you at the office?”

  “I was, but I’m at home now.”

  Sophie’s chest hurt. Lola practically lived at the office. “Does this have anything to do with Hawk?”

  Lola burst out crying. She tried to talk but couldn’t seem to catch her breath.

  “Can you tell me if Hawk is there with you now? Just say yes or no.”

  “No,” Lola managed to choke out.

  Sophie swallowed, feeling helpless and close to tears herself. “Did he hurt you?”

  “No. Yes.” Her voice broke, but the sobs were easing. “Not like you think.”

  “Okay, don’t rush. I’ll be right here when you can talk.” Sophie caught herself rocking back and forth, an arm wrapped across her stomach. She quickly glanced around. No sign of Ethan. She didn’t want him to see her like this. He’d want an explanation she might not be comfortable giving. “Lola? I just wanted you to know I’m still here.”

  “I’m okay,” she said. “Or getting there. Where are you? Are you close by?”

  “No, I’m not.” Sophie bit her lip. “I’m sorry. Is Mandy there?”

  Lola sniffed. “No. I have to call her, though. She needs to help me find that goddamn, lying son of a bitch. I could kill that bastard.”

  Sighing with relief, Sophie listened to her cousin throw in a few more curses. Lola was sounding more like herself. Anger would serve her better than hurt right now.

  Sophie’s cell signaled an incoming call. She saw that it was Craig and winced. He’d have to leave a message. “Lola? Can you tell me what happened?”