Single In The Saddle

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  “You forget. I don’t know how to bewitch a man.”

  His laughter had a ragged edge to it. “Right.” He kissed his way downward until he reached the tip of her breast. As he drew it slowly into his mouth, she moaned and her knees threatened to buckle. She grasped the front of his shirt with both hands, and he slid an arm around her waist to steady her as he continued the sweet assault.

  And it truly seemed like the first time a man had caressed her in this way, as if her breasts had never known the swift tug of desire that traveled downward, settling in the deepest part of her. Her body tightened and quivered, preparing for the welcome invasion to come. The lovemaking would be incredibly powerful, she knew, because Stony wasn’t interested in a plaything to amuse himself with for a few hours. He wanted a wife.

  He kissed his way back to her mouth. “I’m taking you to bed, little darlin’,” he murmured against her lips.

  “Just remember,” she whispered between kisses, “that this...is my first time.”

  He chuckled and swung her up in his arms. “Mine, too.”

  HE WASN’T LYING, Stony thought as he carried her into the bedroom, dark except for a shaft of pale moonlight coming through an uncurtained window. It was his first time with a call girl. And he’d been operating under some misconceptions about what the experience would be like. He’d thought that professionals would be sort of impersonal, maybe a little mechanical in their actions. He wouldn’t have expected such fantastic chemistry. This woman seemed as eager for him as he was for her.

  Even her virgin-for-a-night routine intrigued him. Damned if he didn’t want to play along. He’d made love to a few women in his time, but none had ever claimed to be a virgin, for which he’d been grateful. Seducing a virgin usually meant a wedding was supposed to follow, and he didn’t ever expect to take that walk down the aisle. Pretending someone was a virgin, though, was just about perfect.

  And Daphne was just about perfect, he thought as he laid her on the bed. Except for her calling in life, she was his dream girl—although he’d run like hell if he actually found his dream girl, for her sake as much as anything. He wasn’t any good at the hearts and flowers routine. He’d had no practice in it and he didn’t intend to start at this late date. His father had been destroyed by losing the love of his life, and Stony never intended to let himself in for that kind of heartbreak.

  As he gazed down at Daphne, he saw that the sheets weren’t messed up the way he generally left them each morning. “Did you fix the bed, too?” he asked, slipping off her shoes and tossing them to the floor.

  “Do you mind?”

  He braced his hands on either side of her head and leaned down to nibble on her full bottom lip. “Sweetheart, I haven’t minded a single thing about this night so far.”

  “I got Jasper to find the clean sheets. I didn’t rummage around without permission.”

  He lifted his head and gazed down at her, barely able to make out her face, yet knowing how earnest she must look, how concerned that he wouldn’t think she’d been pawing through his stuff. “You really are an unusual girl.”

  She reached up and combed the lock of hair that fell across his forehead. “Just right for an unusual man,” she said, running her fingers through his hair.

  He liked the feel of that and held still so she’d do it some more. “It’s no use trying to make it stay put. Without my hat it just won’t.”

  “I know.”

  “You do?”

  “Sure.” She cupped the back of his head and urged him closer. “You told me.”

  He wasn’t making sense of the conversation, but that wasn’t surprising, considering the state he was in.

  He started to kiss her again, wanted to kiss her again, but first he had to make sure he had birth control. If not, he’d have to ask if she’d brought any, and he hated doing that. If she’d brought some, that would be a sign of her professional behavior, and he liked pretending she wasn’t being paid for this, just as she was pretending.

  “Don’t go away.” He gently disentangled himself and went into the bathroom to check the cabinet under the sink. He was in luck, as long as the darned things didn’t go bad. The unopened box had been sitting there ever since his first shopping trip after buying the ranch. He’d had some idea he’d be using them, but the ranch had taken all his time and energy for almost two years.

  Remembering something else, he walked into the living room and blew out all the candles. He and Daphne might be about to set each other on fire, but he had no desire to burn down the house he’d worked so hard to buy. It was a sweet thought, though, bringing those candles. He’d always remember how she’d looked standing there in the glow of them.

  When he returned, he found her still in bed, but she’d climbed under the covers, moved to the far side of the bed, and pulled the sheet up to her chin. “What’s this?” he asked, smiling.

  “Modesty.”

  “Oh, right.” His smile widened. “You would be modest, being a virgin and all.”

  “I am.”

  She said it with such conviction that he laughed with delight. “Thank you for being here tonight, Daphne.” He set down the box and started taking off his clothes. “You’re exactly what I needed.”

  “I know.”

  “You certainly do know a lot.” He continued to undress and wondered if she’d taken off her skirt and panties before she slid under the sheet. Shortly he’d find out. And whether she claimed modesty or not, that sheet would soon be history. “You must be a very wise young lady.”

  “About a few things.”

  He pulled off his boots and shucked his jeans. “But not what happens between a man and a woman when they lie in bed naked together, right?” He noticed the moonlight washed over her side of the bed in particular, which was good. It would give him light to love by.

  “You’ll have to show me.”

  Finally his briefs joined the pile of clothes on the floor, freeing his erection. “I’ll be only too happy to do that, sweetheart.” There was just enough light on her face that he could see her eyes widen, which was a very gratifying reaction, indeed.

  He walked to the bed and pushed back the sheet on his side as he lay down beside her. Damned if he didn’t enjoy the idea that she wanted him to coax her a little, like a new bride. Propping himself on one elbow, he looked into her eyes as he ran his finger along the edge of the sheet. “We don’t want any secrets between us, now, do we?”

  “No,” she said softly, with a trace of shyness.

  “Then let me see you,” he murmured, drawing the sheet down gradually over the slope of her breasts. As he uncovered the dusky tips, his mouth moistened with need. He paused to lean down and taste her, all the while listening to her breath quicken and thinking what a wonderful thing it was to make a woman gasp with pleasure. He’d missed that.

  Easing the sheet down a little more, he kissed his way down the valley between her ribs. The sweet scent of desire greeted him as he traveled farther down to her flat stomach and discovered nothing covering her but the thin sheet.

  But as he tried to venture deeper into blissful territory, she pulled the sheet tight across her hips. Ah, she was a coy one.

  He slid back up to cup her face in one hand. Then he kissed her, long and thoroughly, using his tongue in a suggestive rhythm until she whimpered and her grip relaxed on the sheet. He pushed it gently down to her knees, then stroked lightly up the inside of her thigh, stopping just short of his goal.

  Lifting his lips a fraction from hers, he whispered his request.

  “Yes” came the trembling response.

  As he covered her mouth with his, he almost believed he was the first man to slip his hand into her moist curls and begin the intimate journey that would bring them both so much joy. She was drenched with passion and moaned as he carried out his slow exploration.

  Raising his head to look into her eyes, he rubbed her tender flashpoint. His touch registered in her eyes, and he savored the heady feeling that she
was ready to explode. “Lesson number one,” he murmured, stroking her quickly and surely until she cried out and arched against his hand.

  He felt her climax in every nerve and ached for his own completion with a fierceness that stole his breath. When the next explosion took her, he needed to be deep inside her, absorbing her convulsions and letting them sweep him into the mouth of the volcano with her.

  Speechless and panting, she lay trembling on the bed. With a soft kiss he eased away from her and rolled over to get the condom box. It seemed an unnatural thing to do, as if he should just enter this woman and spill his seed, taking her virginity and creating new life. He must have gone crazy to be thinking things like that. This was nothing but sex for hire.

  But as he turned back to her, he couldn’t accept that. The notion didn’t square with the way she looked at him, or the welcome in her expression as she held out her arms. A tiny thrill of fear pierced the red haze of desire in his brain. But to pay attention to that fear would mean leaving this bed. And he couldn’t do that.

  The sheet slid to the floor as he kicked it aside and moved between her thighs. As he gazed down at Daphne, he was startled by how right, how natural it seemed to be making love to her. It was as if he’d been waiting for this woman, this moment, all his life. Yes, he was definitely going crazy.

  She smiled up at him. “I’ve dreamed of this for so long.”

  Maybe she was the crazy one, he thought. Maybe this gorgeous, sexy woman was missing a few spokes in her wheel. All he knew was that a woman who looked like Daphne and made love like Daphne was his fantasy, so he might as well enjoy the evening’s surprise gift. “So have I.”

  He entered her gently, allowing her to adjust to him. When her eyes glistened with tears, he stopped. “Am I hurting you?”

  “No.” Her voice was choked with emotion. “But Stony, it really does feel like the first time for me. And it’s...so beautiful that I’m...crying.”

  “Oh, sweetheart.” Tenderness for her overwhelmed him and he leaned down to kiss the tears that slid from the corns of her eyes.

  “D-don’t stop,” she said, sniffing. “Don’t stop because I’m crying. Please. Oh, please.”

  She hardly had to beg, he thought. The hot sheath of her body tempted him beyond enduring, despite his concern about her tears. Closing his eyes, he surrendered to the needs driving him and shoved deep. He groaned at the intense pleasure.

  “Who are you?” he whispered.

  “Silly man. You know who I am.”

  He opened his eyes to gaze at her. “Just tell me again.”

  “Why, Stony, I’m the love of your life.”

  3

  THEIR LOVEMAKING was all Daphne could have hoped for. True, they hadn’t said those three important words to each other, but that would happen soon, when the time was right. Meanwhile she was curled inside Stony’s protective embrace, and her world was about as perfect as it could be. Excitement had kept her from sleeping well recently, and that, combined with a long day of traveling, sent her quickly into a deep slumber.

  Sunshine falling on her face and the chirping of a robin outside the window finally pried her awake the next morning. After a moment of disorientation, she remembered where she was and what had happened the night before. With a smile she rolled over and found the other side of the bed empty.

  Hoofbeats sounded outside. She tumbled from bed, grabbed up the discarded sheet to cover herself and hurried to the window just in time to see Stony canter out of the yard on a big bay, his golden retriever running to keep up with him. And the cowboy rides away.

  She battled disappointment, telling herself this was a working ranch where people got up at dawn. The routine couldn’t stop around here just because she’d arrived. They were fighting a drought, and no doubt Stony had to check on the herd, just like Jasper had said. In his typical considerate fashion, he’d let her sleep in, allowing for jet lag.

  He’d learn soon enough that she didn’t expect that sort of mollycoddling. Maybe she hadn’t emphasized enough in her letters how much she’d loved ranch life and ranch work during the few years she’d been able to enjoy it.

  Stony, the horse and dog disappeared from view over one of the many undulating hills she could see from the bedroom window. She’d arrived in the dark, and this morning was her first chance to drink in the welcome sight of Texas Hill Country since she’d left eight years ago.

  Even though the area wasn’t quite as green as she remembered due to the drought, it was still one of the prettiest places in the world, in her opinion. She could hardly wait to get on a horse and explore the Roughstock. In his letters Stony had told her about a small lake on the property and the cypress-lined stream that fed into it.

  Eager to begin her new life, she turned from the window, laid the sheet over the bed and started toward the bathroom. Then she saw the note on the nightstand anchored by a box of condoms. She picked it up, and underneath lay a hundred dollar bill.

  Puzzled, she read the note.

  Dear Daphne,

  I figure you’ve made arrangements for Jasper to drive you back to San Antonio. I don’t know what he paid you, but this is from me, in gratitude for making this cowboy a very happy man last night. Help yourself to coffee and toast before you go.

  Sincerely, Stony Arnett

  Daphne sat on the bed and read the note again. And again. Her stomach twisted with anxiety. Surely there was some mistake. Some horrible mistake. He was writing to her as if she were a prostitute hired for the evening instead of the woman he planned to marry.

  And there was something else that bothered her about this note. He’d always typed his letters, saying his handwriting wasn’t very good. That was true enough, she thought, looking at the scrawled message, although he wrote as legibly as most men.

  Still holding the note, she walked over to the suitcase she’d left in the corner of the room. She pulled out the thick packet of letters from a zippered compartment, unfolded the top one and held it beside the message she’d found on the nightstand.

  The signatures were similar. She looked more closely, hoping against hope that she was wrong and the same man who had written the note had also signed those letters. She was no handwriting expert, but she’d had plenty of art classes while she studied interior design, and her eye for detail was pretty darned good.

  At last she had to face the ugly truth; one that made her feel as if she’d just swallowed a large chunk of cement. The signatures were not the same.

  STONY’S SELF-ASSIGNED chore this fine morning was to repair a section of fence along the east boundary of the ranch. It wasn’t one of his favorite jobs, but even mending fence didn’t seem so bad today, considering the treat he’d had during the night.

  He’d enjoyed himself so thoroughly that he’d considered waking her up at dawn to have another round. Then he’d thought better of it. There might be some awkwardness this morning, especially when he gave her the extra money, which he felt she certainly deserved.

  No, better to let her leave in a dignified way when he wasn’t around. Once she was safely back in San Antonio, he’d ask Jasper about her. Maybe next time he’d just drive to the city, get a hotel room and invite her to come there. Yeah, that was a better plan.

  He hadn’t thought he’d ever be interested in such a setup, but a woman like Daphne could change a guy’s mind. Lord, was she terrific. He couldn’t remember when he’d had a better time.

  “Hell of a beautiful morning, Dog!” he called out to the retriever, who barked happily in response.

  As Stony neared the spot where he’d noted the bad section of fence two days ago, he recognized Jasper’s buckskin ground-tied beside it. Sure enough, there was Jasper tackling the job Stony had assigned himself for the day.

  Jasper glanced up from his work as Stony dismounted and dropped his horse’s reins to the ground. The retriever trotted over to Jasper for some attention. Jasper scratched behind the dog’s ears, but the foreman looked worried, and his mustache twitched as it
usually did when he was nervous. “Howdy, boss.”

  “Howdy, Jasper. Did you ever see such a pretty morning as this?”

  “Could use some rain clouds on the horizon, I expect.”

  “You know, Jasper, I have a feeling that rain is coming. Yep, I think the drought’s about over.”

  “You’re mighty cheerful this mornin’,” Jasper vantured.

  “Good lovin’ puts a smile on a man’s face.”

  Jasper shook his head in wonder. “Then you ain’t upset with me? I mean, after I found out about the bar fight, and the fact the boys didn’t really explain it very well, I thought you’d be steamed, for sure.”

  “Well, I was, at first. I’m sure the boys told you that.”

  “Yep. Sort of expected you to show up at the bunkhouse with my walking papers. Didn’t sleep so well last night.”

  “I’m sure you didn’t. That was quite a thing to pull, Jasper.”

  “I know it.” Jasper set his tools on the ground and took off his hat to wipe a sleeve over his forehead. “And I know it was low-down.”

  “I’m impressed with all the planning it took. I didn’t think you were that interested in my love life, Jasper.”

  Jasper’s gaze grew more intense. “I take interest in everything about you, Stony. Always have, ever since your mom died and your dad...well, your dad’s never been the same, and it always seemed like you could use some extra looking after.”

  Stony was touched. “I guess I’ve always known that.”

  “I hated tricking you like this, but it was the only way I could figure you’d go for such a thing, if it was sprung on you kind of sudden.”

  Stony laughed. “It was sudden, all right. But I guess you and the boys knew what you were doing, after all. I had a great time.”

  Jasper relaxed enough to grin at Stony. “When you didn’t show up at the bunkhouse last night, I figured things had gone passable well. I was hoping you’d sleep in a little and enjoy yourselves. That’s why I came out here to work on the fence.”