Dax: Military Heroes (The One I Want Series Book 4)

by Ellie Masters

  “He won’t open that door until we land.”

  “Is that a regulation?”

  “No. I asked him not to.”

  Her knees slammed together. “You did not just tell him we were going to have sex. Dax! Please tell me you didn’t.”

  “I didn’t actually.” He gave a sheepish grin. “I asked him to circle for another hour.”

  “An hour? You think you’ll last that long?”

  “Only one way to find out.” He put his hands over her knees and pinched until she gave a squeak. Her legs parted and he tasted victory. But before he kissed her down there…

  He stood and his mouth crashed down on hers. He kissed her with all of his being and so much passion that, when the intensity of it broke, he left her as breathless as he felt.

  “I love you, Dani Studer. I think I always have. You’re the one I want and I don’t want to live without you.”

  “I love you too, Dax Kingston.” She wrapped her arms around his neck. “More than I understand if I’m being honest. But I love you.” She closed her eyes and the smile on her lips made his heart skip a beat.

  When she opened her eyes, he didn’t waste any more time. He lifted her off the couch and placed her on the floor of the cabin. Maybe he should have taken more time removing her clothes, but he was in too much of a rush to slow down.

  “I want nothing more than to play out each and every one of my fantasies, but I’m afraid I can’t wait. I need to be inside of you.”

  Her creamy breasts begged for his mouth. In one swift motion, he filled his mouth with her nipple, licking and sucking until it tightened into a tiny bud. She moaned beneath him, fingers stabbing into his hair as he took his fill. He maneuvered out of his pants and shed his underwear. His rigid cock bobbed between them, already leaking precum.

  He barely remembered to sheathe himself. While his cock throbbed against her bare stomach, he lavished attention on her nipples making her squirm beneath him. She spread her legs and he lodged his hips between her silken legs. He should wait, tease her a little more, but she took control away from him when she reached down and gripped his cock. Before he knew it, she had the tip pressed against her folds.

  “Dax, if you don’t put me out of my misery now, I will never say yes.”

  That was all the encouragement he needed. He shifted his position and then held her eyes as he slowly pushed inside. He moved an inch, easing in, allowing her to accommodate to his girth. He almost came right there, it felt that good, but he wanted to do this together.

  With every inch he pushed in, his heart opened thinking of a future with this incredible woman. This was it, and everything just felt right. She’d been in his heart from the moment he caught her broken down by the side of the road.

  He moved in and out gently, taking his time, delaying his release as she stretched to accept his full length. She wrapped her arms around him and dug her heels into his back.

  “Don’t you dare go slow, or take it easy,” she warned. “Fuck me.” Her fingernails dug into his ass.

  “Fuuuck!” He threw his head back.

  That’s all he needed. He lowered his head and bit down on her breast as he sped up his pace. She didn’t want slow and gentle, and he wouldn’t disappoint. His teeth would leave a mark where he bit her breast, but he wanted that. He wanted to mark her in every way.

  “Fuck. Fuck!” He groaned as his mouth moved to the soft skin of her neck, where he licked and sucked and bit again, marking her as he went.

  He took a fistful of her hair and tugged at it while his hips moved and moans spilled from his mouth. Everything else faded away. There was no engine noise. There was no plane. There was only the sound of their jagged breathing and the slapping of sweat-slicked bodies together as he thrust deeper, pushed harder, and drove deep inside of her.

  “You’re mine,” he said with a growl.

  That seemed to be all it took, because her body jerked and she called out his name as her orgasm slammed into her. Her muscles pulsed around his cock and he could no longer hold off the inevitable. He drove into her faster and deeper as a groan escaped him. His entire body went rigid as he released inside of her, his body rippling with pleasure as they came together. His movements stilled and they caught their breath.

  Kissing her gently, he felt his dick softening inside of her.

  “God, but I love you.” He leisurely glided in and out, not caring that his dick was no longer hard and rigid. He enjoyed the gentle aftershocks as he held her in his arms.

  The plane angled down and there was a shift in the whine of the engines. Saul was giving them a warning that they would soon be landing.

  He helped Dani up and they dressed in silence. She kept giving him secretive looks until he palmed her cheeks and laid a kiss on her.

  “What are you thinking?”

  “That I’m crazy in love with you.” She pointed to Dynamo who was curled up on one of the chairs. He’d watched them fuck with bland disinterest. “I even love your dog, but it weirds me out when he watches.”

  “He won’t always be watching.”

  “I hope not, and while we’re talking about sex…”

  “What?”

  She pointed to her empty ring finger. “We’re not having sex again until you put a ring on it.”

  “Hey, that’s not fair!” Not that it mattered. “Grandma’s ring is in the safe at home. So, I won’t have to wait for long. I plan to be back inside of you before dawn breaks.” He had no idea what time it was, other than oh-dark-thirty.

  Saul flashed the cabin lights and the plane took a steeper angle down.

  “That’s our signal.” They took their seats and buckled in, all the while Dani kept an impish grin on her face. “What’s so funny?” He cast a glance at her.

  “I’m imaging the conversation you’ll have with my dad, and wondering if he shoots you with his shotgun for defiling his daughter.”

  He gave an exasperated sigh. Dynamo looked up and cocked his head.

  “For you, I’ll face anything because I’m head over heels, crazy in love with you.”

  He meant every word and would spend the rest of his life showing her exactly how much he loved her.

  Chapter 25

  Dax

  Dani’s list of three things rattled in Dax’s head. Considering her no sex declaration until he put a ring on it, he found motivation to check things off that list, or convince her to do away with it altogether.

  He tried. Hell he tried.

  He took her to his favorite spot at home where they camped out under the stars.

  Nope.

  She wouldn’t budge.

  One night turned to two. Two to three. Time became his enemy and Dani found pleasure in remaining resolute in her stance to hold out. His arm was getting a workout, easing his ache, not that jerking off satisfied his hunger. When he had the chance, he vowed to make her pay for his suffering.

  Dani’s Spring Break came to an end, which meant the time to take her home arrived. He consulted with his father over the phone, tracking his father’s recovery, and set up a deal he hoped Tom Studer couldn’t turn down.

  When he and Dani arrived at Crowbar Ranch, he met the business end of a shotgun. Dynamo jumped out of the truck, happy to be home, or what the dog considered home. Dynamo trotted up to Studer. Tongue lolling. Tail wagging. Dynamo greeted Studer with the carefree abandon only a dog could manage.

  Studer reached down to scratch between Dynamo’s ears, but did not lower the shotgun aimed at Dax’s chest.

  “Daddy!” Dani’s flustered screech did nothing to assuage her father. “Put that thing down.”

  “You get inside.” Studer waved to the open front door. “And get away from him.”

  Dani tossed an apologetic look over her shoulder and mouthed Good luck! You’ll need it. Then she glided across the dusty ground and headed inside, leaving him and her father facing each other down.

  Dax had the ring. One box checked. Now to get her father’s blessing. />
  It took grit and a lot of balls to return to face Studer. He did that with a sureness inside of him that he would die a thousand deaths before he gave up Dani’s hand in marriage.

  He and Studer would work out their differences across the barrel of Studer’s shotgun if they had to, but they would work shit out.

  “Sir, I can explain.”

  “You’d better explain where you took my daughter. Three days and no word? I’ve a mind to shoot you where you stand for kidnapping her like that.”

  “I can assure you, there was no kidnapping involved.”

  “I call it like I see it.” He glanced inside, checking on his daughter, never once letting the barrel of his gun waver.

  “Actually, I have something I’d like to discuss.”

  “We’re not discussing anything.” He gestured with his gun. “You get back in that truck and don’t think about coming back.”

  “You haven’t heard what I have to say.”

  “Don’t care what you have to say.”

  He gave a shrug. “That deal you struck with Scott’s family is a shit deal. Are you aware they were going to rob you blind?”

  The widening of Studer’s eyes said Dax scored a direct hit. Studer may have suspected, but he had no idea the extent of the thievery. Dax pressed the advantage, not giving Studer time to regroup.

  “You’re sitting on millions and they kept it from you. The measly payout they offered is a fraction of what your land is worth. I have an alternate proposition, one that solves your problems and ensures Crowbar Ranch stays in your family.”

  Studer’s eyes narrowed. “You seem to be talking big for a drifter.”

  “What do you know about Kingston Ranch and its affiliates?”

  A wise businessman, if Studer knew anything about ranching, he knew Kingston Industries. The barrel of his gun dipped and he cocked his head, likely putting the pieces together.

  “What do you know about them?” He turned the question around, giving Dax the perfect opening.

  “We’re willing to offer a limited partnership.”

  “We?”

  “Yes, me and my father, Seth Kingston.”

  Studer put the safety on his shotgun and lowered the weapon. “You Seth Kingston’s boy? You’re one of those Kingstons?”

  Dax hadn’t hidden his name from Studer. It wasn’t his fault Studer never connected the dots, not that Dax had made that easy.

  “I am.”

  “And you’re just now telling me this?” The look that passed across Studer’s face was one of shock and disbelief.

  “I have a vested interest in getting back in your good graces.”

  “And why is that?”

  He didn’t know if Dani watched through the windows, but his intent was no secret.

  “I plan on marrying your daughter, and I need your blessing before I bend a knee.” That would be step three.

  Studer would not deny him his future.

  “Is that so?” Studer leaned the shotgun against the wall.

  “If I have your blessing, of course.”

  “Well, there may not be any land to annex into Kingston Industries. Loans are due tomorrow. The ranch is pretty much gone.”

  “That’s not a problem.”

  “It’s not a small bit of cash.”

  “Not a problem. One call and it’s done, but I’d like to discuss the terms with you first. You need to know what you have on the table, the things Scott’s family kept from you.”

  “Does it matter?” Studer’s eyes narrowed. “One way or the other, I’m losing my land. To him. Or to you.”

  No way in hell was Scott’s silly offer still on the table.

  “See, that’s where you’re wrong. You retain full control. All assets remain within the Studer family and right of survivorship passes only to direct decedents.” He would marry Dani, but her land would stay in her family.

  “You don’t want my land?”

  “I have plenty in Texas, but I can show you how to turn things around.”

  “And these mineral rights you found?”

  “Frankly you don’t need them if you change a few of the things you’re currently doing. My father is big on conservation. Not that you can’t tap some of those mineral reserves, but if you do, we’ll show you how to do it with the least impact on the land.”

  Studer glanced over his shoulder again and scratched his chin. “I’m thinking this involves a longer conversation.”

  “How about we take this to Marge’s Diner? We can discuss everything.” Dax swept an arm toward the passenger door of his truck. He would have Studer’s blessing by the end of the day. Dani had to leave tonight to make it back to the first day of classes after break and there was no way he was leaving without taking her to bed again.

  The next few months would be a long, lonely separation while she finished out her third year and he took over operations back in Texas.

  “All right. You have my ear.”

  “Great, I’ll just get Dani.”

  Studer shook his head. “Dani stays. This conversation doesn’t involve her.”

  “I disagree.”

  Studer glanced down at the shotgun and dusted off the rim of the barrel. He cocked an eyebrow and gave Dax a hard stare. “Son, this conversation happens without her. You hear me?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Dani’s father turned and entered the house, leaving the door wide open as he disappeared inside. Traitorous Dynamo followed the rancher in, making himself right at home. There was some yelling, and Dax headed for the door. Studer met him back on the porch, light jacket tossed over his shoulder, and scowl fixed on his face.

  “You coming?” He marched to the truck and climbed into the passenger seat.

  Dax peeked inside and caught Dani peeking out from the living room, hands on her hips and head shaking with disbelief.

  “You okay?” He called out.

  She lifted her finger and made a spinning gesture. “You’d better go with him, Dax, and good luck.”

  She might have her list of three things, but Dani wanted this as much as he did. There wasn’t the smallest bit of doubt in his mind, but the expression on her face looked troubled. He took a step inside, but she shook her head.

  “Seriously, Dax, don’t keep him waiting.”

  “I want to hold you in my arms.”

  She pointed behind him. “I’m fine. My dad though? I’m not so sure he’s okay with this thing between us.”

  Suppressing a growl, his fingers clenched. “I’ll be back for you.”

  Chapter 26

  Dax

  “Dani!” Dax called up the stairs. “We’re going to be late.”

  His time in the Air Force had hammered punctuality into his genetic makeup. On-time was late. Early was on time.

  And they were already going to be very, very late.

  He didn’t want to go to this thing, but it was a rare day Dani got to reconnect with her friends from high school. She also wanted to show off her engagement ring.

  Dani Studer would become Dani Kingston.

  Well, after she graduated from veterinary school, and after her veterinary practice was set up. Those had been conditions her father placed before giving his blessing. Their engagement would be much longer than Dax wanted, but he was content to wait. He had the girl.

  Dax would work with his father to groom a successor to manage the Kingston lands in Texas. He would oversee the entirety of Kingston Industries from Bear Creek, an unlikely home, but exactly where he wanted to be. Her father hadn’t asked for that, but it was clear it meant a lot to him to keep his daughter close. Dax was happy to honor that wish.

  “Dani!” What the hell was she doing? It was a simple barbecue.

  “I’m coming!”

  Ten minutes later, he shut the door on his truck. Dynamo settled into the back seat and took up position with his nose plastered to the window. Without a word, Dax gritted his teeth and headed down the long drive toward Caleb and Caitlyn’s ranc
h.

  It was going to be a reunion, and according to Dani, the first time the gang had been together since high school. Brent, Caleb, and Erika had taken off to pursue their dreams right after graduation.

  Brent uncovered sunken treasure and then lost some of it to modern-day pirates, while Caleb went on to become a Delta operative. He and Caitlyn were high school sweethearts who managed to find each other after a separation which seemed far too long.

  Dax was an interloper, the new guy on the block, but Dani said it didn’t matter. Brent had brought his fiancée, Brie.

  Somehow that made everything all right.

  The big news and the reason for the get-together was Commander Erika Black. The Coast Guard cutter captain was home on leave.

  “I’m so excited.” Dani bounced in the passenger seat. “Caitlyn just called. Erika’s plane is a little delayed.”

  He believed that. Montana weather could be notoriously unpredictable.

  “I love your enthusiasm.” He reached over and squeezed her thigh.

  “You love everything about me.” She spoke with absolute assurance, and why wouldn’t she? Dani was one-hundred percent right.

  “Truth.” He gripped the wheel. “I’d love to pull over and fuck you on the side of the road. What do you think about a little truck sex before meeting your friends?”

  “Eww.”

  “Eww? Why eww? Way to kill a guy’s ego.”

  “It’s not you. Dynamo always stares at me, and I’m not meeting my friends with freshly fucked hair. It took me forever to get it to look like this.”

  Had she done something special?

  “You look great.”

  “Thanks.”

  He loved everything about his bride-to-be and couldn’t wait to put a ring on her finger for good.

  “You know, we could just turn around and spend a night at home…alone.”

  It had been months since they’d had the house to themselves. Once her father had given his blessing, Dax moved into the main house, but not into Dani’s bed. Her father insisted on separate bedrooms until they were actually wed.