“Boone can hold me,” Josh said.
Boone eased the door closed to keep the barn warm. “I would, Josh, but I’m kinda dirty. Shelby probably wouldn’t want you to get any mud on you.”
“Oh, I’ll bet Shelby won’t mind too much,” Luann said.
“No, of course not,” Shelby said.
So Boone picked Josh up, trying to keep him away from the worst of the mud while they started down the row of stalls. Boone whispered the names of the horses as they came to each stall, and all four of them stood and gazed into the shadowy depths at the horse lying or standing quietly inside. Luck was with them, and Samson roused himself enough to come to the stall door.
Josh held his breath and leaned down to carefully stroke Samson’s nose. “See you tomorrow, Samson,” he murmured. “Now, go sleepy-bye.”
Josh didn’t want to leave Samson’s stall, but Boone knew it must be getting close to Josh’s bedtime, so he coaxed him away and continued the tour. Gradually Josh relaxed in his arms, and eventually began to yawn, even though he was obviously fighting sleep so he could stay in the barn.
His head drooped closer and closer to Boone’s shoulder, until at last it rested there. Boone discovered he absolutely loved the feeling of the little guy falling asleep in his arms.
“Somebody’s out like a light,” Luann said in a low tone. “Why don’t you let Shelby or me carry him up to the house, Boone?”
“I’ll do it,” Boone said.
“That won’t work very well,” Luann said. “You’re going to have to strip down before you go in that house.”
“Good point.” He wondered how Sebastian and Travis had handled that problem. Stripping down outside in this weather would be cold as hell. And Matty had been cleaning for days getting ready for the wedding, so she wouldn’t take kindly to people traipsing through her house with mud on their clothes.
“Tell you what,” Luann said. “You stay here where it’s warm. Shelby and I will take Josh up to the house, and one of us will bring you some clean clothes. I’m sure you’ve got a sink or a hose or something in this barn, so you can wash up a little. How’s that?”
“Okay.” It sounded much better than what Sebastian and Travis must have been put through, so he decided to grab the opportunity.
“Here,” Shelby said, moving close to Boone. “Let me take Josh.”
Gradually Boone transferred Josh to Shelby, which involved more touching, plus he got a good whiff of her cologne. He must not have blown off as much steam during the wrestling match as he’d hoped, because he was right back in a state of agitation. Worse yet, the dim light in the barn reminded him of the night before, when he’d been in bed with Shelby and wrapped himself around her in his sleep. The potent image grabbed him in a very specific area and started working on him.
“Got him,” Shelby whispered. “Thanks, Boone.”
“No problem,” he lied, his voice husky. Major problem. He wanted her so much he could hardly breathe. He wondered if Travis’s wedding tomorrow was putting ideas in his head, or maybe even Matty’s announcement tonight had started him thinking about babies and how much fun it would be to make one. Whatever it was, Shelby had become an incredibly strong temptation, one he had to resist. Somehow.
“Okay,” Luann said as she started toward the door of the barn. “One of us will be back down in a jiffy with fresh clothes.”
Boone stared after them. He knew who would be the safest person to bring him some clothes. It was not the person he wanted to bring them.
11
BOONE CONVINCED himself that Luann would be the logical choice to bring him his clothes. Shelby would be busy tucking Josh into bed. So it seemed safe to take off his mud-encrusted shirt and use the big utility sink Sebastian had installed near the front door of the barn to wash off at least part of the grit.
The water was cold, but not too bad. After cleaning his hands, arms and neck, he stuck his head under the faucet to rinse the mud out of his hair. Then he found an old but clean towel on a nearby shelf and rubbed it over his head. As he thought about that wrestling match, he began to grin.
Carrying Sebastian outside and throwing him in the snowbank might not have been the most mature thing to do, but it had been fun. After growing up with two sisters he’d always treated with great care, it was a relief to let go and have some fun with a couple of friends who gave as good as they got.
Although he might be bigger and a little stronger than Sebastian and Travis, they both had some moves that made them worthy wrestling opponents. Yeah, rolling around in the snow and working off his excess energy had felt great, especially after being cooped up in the truck for so many hours with a woman he wasn’t supposed to want, a woman he couldn’t stop craving.
The barn door creaked open, and he turned, expecting Luann.
Instead, Shelby stood in the pale light from the battery lamp with a bundle of his clothes in her arms. She nudged the door closed with her foot. “I…I had to guess what you might want me to bring,” she said.
“Anything.” He cleared his throat. “Anything’s fine.” His heart began to race. So she had decided to bring his clothes. He wondered if she knew how dangerous a move she’d just made. They’d never been really, truly alone until this moment. Surely she’d thought of that before she’d set out for the barn. Or maybe she had no idea he was on fire for her.
She’d caught him half-naked this morning, too. He’d been embarrassed then, but now…now he was too far gone for embarrassment. Long agonizing hours of wanting her had worn him down, and he was crazy to hold her warm body close.
With his shirt gone they were one step closer to what he’d been thinking about all day. One more tempting step. And that was why, if he had thought she’d bring his clothes instead of Luann, he would have left his shirt on.
She walked toward him and held out the clothes. “I, um, brought underwear, too.” Even the weak light from the lamp picked up the bloom in her cheeks. “I wasn’t sure if the snow got down in…well, I wanted you to have that option of changing your…”
Her explanation ran out of steam as she gazed at him, her lips parted, her breathing unsteady. Her ski jacket was open in front, as if she’d unzipped it in the house while she gathered his clothes and then hurried down here without bothering to zip it up again.
Or maybe she’d left it open on purpose. Maybe there wasn’t a single innocent thing about this trip to the barn. He swallowed. “Thanks.” He took the clothes and his hand brushed hers. His heart nearly stopped. Her skin was so warm. So soft. She would feel like that everywhere. Oh, God.
“I like your friends so much, Boone,” she went on, chattering as if standing here in the semidarkness was no big deal. As if they weren’t moments away from a major decision. “Here I’ve burst in on the wedding festivities and yet they’re making me feel completely welcome, as if having me and Josh around is no trouble.”
He forced himself to say something, anything. “I’m sure they’re glad to have you.” He could barely see straight from wanting to touch her again. But he knew damned well touching Shelby would be like the potato-chip ad. He wouldn’t be able to stop with just one.
“They act as if they are glad. Luann asked if she could put Josh to bed because it had been so long since she’d tucked a little boy in and she missed it so. Isn’t that sweet?”
“Yeah. Luann’s great.” He sounded hoarse, as if he had a cold coming on. But it was heat, not cold that was running through him right now. He was a fool to keep playing with fire, to stand here half-naked talking to Shelby, but he couldn’t seem to walk away from the blaze. “And she caught onto the Bob thing real quick.” He didn’t want to talk about Luann. Touch me, Shelby.
“I know. And when she asked Josh to call her Gramma Luann, I could have kissed her.”
He nearly groaned. Sure enough, now he couldn’t stop looking at her mouth. She had a world-class mouth—full lips shaped like an archer’s bow, framing perfect white teeth. Kissing her would be better than winn
ing the lottery. “Guess I should change my clothes and get on up to the house.” But for some reason, instead of stepping back from her, which would let her know she should leave, he moved a little closer.
“I’m not sure I brought the right things.” She seemed to be edging closer to him, too.
He watched the movement of her lips as she spoke, and he lost track of what she was saying as he imagined fitting his mouth to hers and exploring all that perfection with his tongue. Then he would thrust deep, to let her know what was really on his mind, and she would mold herself against him. And this was a woman with the curves to do it right.
“Maybe you should check through them before I leave.”
He had no idea what she was talking about. “Check through what?”
“Your clothes.” Her gaze held his, and her voice was breathy and soft. “In case you want me to take something back and bring you something else.”
His nostrils flared as he breathed in her scent, and his groin tightened. There was a soft sheen on her lips, as if she’d run her tongue over them before coming into the barn. “I’m not fussy…about clothes,” he said. Only about the women I kiss.
“You’re sure?” Her eyes darkened.
The lack of light had probably made her eyes do that, he told himself. “These will be fine,” he said. But she might be aroused. If she was, he should ignore it. Like hell he would, when he was trembling with the need to hold her. He gazed into those eyes, searching for heat to match his own. There. Maybe. Yes…no…
She laid her hand on the pile of clothes he held in his arms. “Because if you want something else…”
She’d leaned in close enough that he felt her warm breath on his chest. His nipples tightened. He wanted something else all right, something he had no right to ask for. “Shelby—”
“Boone Connor, if you don’t kiss me in the next two seconds I’m going to explode.”
He dropped the clothes and swept her up in his arms with a groan of surrender. Contact. At last. “This is a mistake,” he murmured. They were the last coherent words he spoke as he found her mouth and lost his mind.
She was so light, no heavier than a child in his arms. Yet this was no child he was kissing. Her mouth was a woman’s mouth, hot and eager. He’d meant to explore, maybe even to tease, but she parted those full lips and gave him an invitation he couldn’t refuse. Her moan of delight when he pushed inside echoed throughout his body and settled heavily between his thighs.
He had to hunch down to keep his contact with her, and at first the wonder of her mouth and the openness of her response kept him so occupied he didn’t mind. But a crick was developing in his neck, and besides, he wanted those full breasts right up against his chest.
He slipped an arm under her bottom to lift her so that her hungry mouth was level with his, and she wrapped her legs around his hips, exactly as he’d once imagined she would. Ah, yes. There. He felt the sensuous give of her breasts as he drew her in close.
But not close enough for her, it seemed. His pulse rate skyrocketed as she wrapped her legs even tighter around him, crushed her breasts against his bare chest and tilted her head back, inviting him deeper into her mouth. Oh, Shelby.
With a growl of need, he took what she offered and more, possessing her mouth with a frenzy that wasn’t like him at all. He squeezed her so tight it was a wonder either of them could breathe. He’d thought of himself as gentle, deliberate, cautious. Not this time. Not with this woman.
She urged him on, and as his kisses became more intense she wrapped her legs tighter around him, putting sweet pressure right where he needed it. Yes. Like that. In a million years he wouldn’t have imagined this much passion lurked within her. He didn’t think women daydreamed about sex the way men did.
But Shelby acted as if she’d spent the past day building up as much frustration as he had. She began to rock against him, causing a maddening, wonderful friction against his chest…and lower, where his erection strained. As the tension ratcheted upward, she made little noises deep in her throat. Wild, needy sounds that shattered what little self-control he had left.
He backed her against the sink, propping her on the curved edge so his hands would be free. Free to reach inside the coat she’d left unzipped, free to pull her shirt from the waist of her jeans and reach up underneath to unfasten her bra. And all the while he drowned his conscience in the whirlpool of her kiss.
When he cupped her bare breasts her skin was hot as a furnace, and his caressing thumbs found her nipples already hard, thrusting eagerly against the pad of his thumb. His desire expanded. Now he wouldn’t be satisfied until he took a warm, puckered nipple into his mouth, swirled the tip against his tongue, sucked and nibbled and licked until she became as wild with lust as he was.
Yet as he imagined tasting her breasts, he knew that wouldn’t be enough. Maybe nothing would ever be enough, when it came to Shelby. He hadn’t known he could ache like this, or that she would match him in her desperation.
Knowing she was as filled with repressed desire as he was made him want more, dare more. He gave up the heart-stopping pleasure of fondling her breasts so that he could tug off her coat. His blood surged when he realized she was helping him, wiggling out of the coat, pulling off her shirt.
Of course he shouldn’t be doing this, but he couldn’t stop and she wasn’t about to stop him. This grinding need had been born when he’d woken this morning with her curled against his hot, hard penis. And it had never left. The need had been there underneath his thoughts about Fowler, his worry about Elizabeth, his joking with his friends. At last his need for her had burst free, and he was helpless before it.
He dragged his mouth from hers and supported her with an arm around her waist as she whipped the shirt off over her head, flinging it to the floor. Her bra followed.
Eyes hot, she held his gaze. Her mouth was swollen from his kisses, her skin pink from the scrape of his beard. As her breath came in quick little gasps, she braced a hand on each side of the sink…and arched her back.
“Oh, Lord.” His heart beat so fast he thought he might need an ambulance soon. But he’d die a happy man, having seen such glory.
He’d been in a rush to rip away her clothes, but now her beauty, evident even in the dim light, awed him. He hesitated, afraid to touch her creamy breasts for fear of marring them. Her small frame made them even more spectacular, more lush and exotic. His breath caught as he stared in admiration.
“My heart is pounding like a rabbit’s,” she murmured. “Touch me there, Boone. I want you to feel my heart going like sixties.”
He slowly laid a hand over her heart and his fingers curved naturally, cradling her fullness. Her heartbeat tapped against his palm, a secret code spelling out her desire. A miracle, that a beautiful creature like this wanted him so much. He flexed his fingers, kneading gently. Her nipple quivered, lifted, tempting him. A sweet raspberry of a nipple centered on the areola, ripe and ready to be plucked. His mouth grew moist.
Yet still he hesitated, gazing at his big, work-scarred hand cupping the satisfying weight of her breast. He thought of how his calloused fingers and his beard might scrape her tender skin. “My hands are so rough,” he whispered. “And my beard, too. I’ll give you a rash. I’ll—”
“I want your rough hands,” she said breathlessly. “I want your hungry mouth and your rough beard. I’ve spent the whole blessed day wishing you’d touch me like this.”
He looked into her eyes. “I’ve been going insane.”
“Oh, so have I,” she whispered. “So have I. Take what you need. Give me what I need. Please.”
And at last, he did. Gently at first. Carefully. Until passion built to a flood within him, washing away restraint. Then he feasted like a wild man, mindless to everything but pleasure, heedless of all else but her soft moans and choked words of encouragement.
And now he wanted more. Another time, another place he might have held back, chained by his own reluctance to trespass. But his life was spin
ning out of control, opportunities slipping away. Shelby was here, offering him these few stolen moments, this chance at forbidden pleasure. Her ripe body roused a demon within him, one that had no limits and would not be denied.
He’d made no conscious decision to unfasten her jeans, and he barely remembered working them and her panties over her hips, lifting her up like a rag doll in the process. It was merely a necessary step toward his goal.
And now he had what he wanted, as he crouched in front of her, his hands splayed across her bare bottom. All he knew was that she didn’t stop him. She wasn’t going to stop him. His blood ran hot in his veins.
Slowly, deliberately, he tasted. She gasped and quivered in his arms. Breathing in the primitive scent of aroused woman, he savored the rich nectar of her response on his tongue, and his mind filled with a red haze of passion. A low, urgent groan rose from her throat. He took his prize.
Ah, she was sweet. And so willing, so ready for whatever he wanted. And he wanted. He trembled with wanting. He battled images of rising to his feet, ripping open his jeans and taking her completely. She was so open, so wet.
As he pushed her higher, the pressure to be deep inside her became almost beyond bearing. But he would bear it. She had endured so much. He would give her this. She was nearly there. Triumph welled within him. Yes, he would give her this.
As she climaxed, she bucked and quaked in his grip. Her muted cries of release thrilled him more than shouts of ecstasy, and he was overcome with a fierce possessiveness. Despite the painful ache in his groin, her satisfaction eased the sharp edge of his desire and made way for tenderness.
He kissed her moist curls. Then he guided her to his lap, trailing kisses over her belly, her ribs, her breasts, her throat. At last they were once more face-to-face.
Resting her hands on his shoulders, she gazed at him, her eyes filled with wonder.
He cupped her face in one hand and brushed his thumb over her cheek. The expression on her face made the torture in his groin well worth it. He’d never been so bold with a woman he’d known such a short time. They’d come a long way, considering that two days ago neither of them had known the other existed. And it was probable this was as far as they’d ever go.
Boone’s Bounty Page 13
