by Mari Carr
He flicked a handful of water at her. “You don’t have to worry about my abilities. I can handle myself just fine.”
Jade never turned down the opportunity for some roughhousing. She returned his splash with interest. For several moments, they continued to pummel each other with giant handfuls of water, the game a familiar one.
Then Liam dove under for a sneak attack, swimming toward her as she tried to escape. He managed to get a grip on her ankle, tugging her under with him, while Jade squirmed, trying to break his hold. They came up for air at the same time, Jade laughing loudly.
Not finished with the battle, she pushed herself up on his shoulders in an attempt to jostle him under the water once more. It was a move she’d used countless times in the past, as they often wrestled and fought while swimming.
This time, it wasn’t the action that caught him off-guard, but the way it made him feel. Her bare breasts grazed his chest as she shoved him down. Then his face was there, inches from her tight nipples. The cool water did nothing to calm his lust. His cock was hard and given Jade’s close proximity, that fact was going to be impossible to hide.
He gripped her waist in an attempt to push her away, but Jade misread his intent, taking it as a dare to continue. She followed him, tried to drag him under the water again as her laughter and squeals continued. She was oblivious to the effect she was having on him. Why wouldn’t she be? He’d never felt this way during their earlier encounters.
Before he could think better of it, Liam pulled her bare body against his. Her nipples poked at his chest as his cock rested against her stomach.
His strong hold and undeniable arousal shocked Jade into stillness. She panted, winded from their exertions, and her face flushed.
“Liam?”
He didn’t reply. Common sense reared its ugly head, screaming at him to let her go, but a wrecking ball couldn’t have moved him away from her at that moment. It felt too good to hold her. Too right.
Jade’s hands rested, unmoving, on his bare chest. “You’re not helping to refocus the lines right now.”
He knew that. “Sorry.”
“No, you’re not. But this has to stop, Liam. I’m not sure what’s going on between us, but I think we need to take a big step back. We’ve been friends for a long time and neither one of us has had a relationship in years. We’re both feeling a little lonesome, so it’s probably normal for us to think we’re attracted to each other.”
He didn’t think he wanted her. He knew he did.
He also knew she was dangerous. To his lifestyle. To his peace of mind. Jade Compton was a handful on a good day. On bad days…watch out. Any man who thought he could take on a wild filly like her needed to have his head examined.
Despite all of that, he still didn’t release her. “I’m not lonely, Jade.” He wasn’t. “Are you?”
She considered his question. “No. I don’t think I am.”
He released her and moved away. Something was changing inside him and if he didn’t get away from her soon, he was going to do something they may both end up regretting.
He glanced toward the campsite. “I’m getting out of the water.”
She nodded but remained where she was as he started walking toward the shore.
Distance. All he needed was space. And time to figure this out. Jade was high-strung, opinionated, wild as a summer storm. While there was a chance she might bend her will to his in the dark of night, he had no illusions that she’d march to anyone’s beat but her own in the bright light of day.
What man in his right mind would sign on for something like that? He sure as hell couldn’t.
Could he?
He bent down to pull his jeans on, feeling her eyes on his backside. His cock thickened even more.
Fuck. He didn’t need time or space or his head examined.
Danger be damned.
It was already too late for him.
Look out, Jade Compton.
He was about to give new meaning to the term reckless.
Jade made no move to leave the water. She’d give Liam a chance to put his clothes on and return to the campsite. If she stalled long enough, maybe he’d be in his tent by the time she walked back.
Things were too crazy between them right now. It was as if her world had been turned on its ear. She’d never felt a sexual attraction to Liam before that damn kiss, but she’d spent every night this week with her vibrator, driving herself to orgasm after orgasm while imagining his face. It had lit a fire inside her that wouldn’t be quenched, no matter how many times she masturbated. Maybe it was time to find a ranch hand, some hot stud to help her fuck Liam out of her system.
Problem was the only man she wanted was Liam.
What the hell was she supposed to do with that? She wasn’t going to indulge in an affair with Liam. That would be stupid. And strange. And wrong. Wouldn’t it?
“Hey. What are you doing over here by yourself?” Sterling swam up to her.
“I wasn’t alone. Liam was with me. He just got out.”
“What’s up with you two today?”
Leave it to Sterling to notice. Her cousin was far too observant. Always had been. Sterling had an amazing talent for reading people’s faces or body language and knowing how they felt—whether they were scared or sad or nervous.
Jade started to say nothing, but changed her mind. Maybe Sterling could help her understand what was going on. “We kissed last weekend.”
Sterling’s eyes widened. “Like kiss-kissed?”
Jade nodded. “Open mouth, tongues, roaming hands, hard cock pressed against my stomach. The works.”
“Whoa.”
Jade sighed. “Yeah.”
“I mean, I guess it’s not that surprising. I’ve noticed the sexual sparks between you two.”
Jade felt as if her cousin had knocked her to the ground. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Sterling tilted her head. “There’s always been sexual tension there, but neither one of you ever seemed to notice it. Plus, let’s face it, the two of you fight like cats and dogs. I just figured you were happy with the status quo and not looking to mess up an awesome friendship. Was it a good kiss?”
Jade bit her lip. “It was incredible. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
Sterling grinned. “Well, hot damn.”
Jade raised her hand to halt where she could see Sterling’s X-rated mind taking her. “I’m not having sex with Liam.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s Liam.”
Sterling rolled her eyes and made a buzzer sound like Jade was on a game show. “Errrr. Lame excuse. Try again.”
Jade fell silent for a few seconds before admitting the truth. “That’s the only reason I have. It’s exactly what you said. I would never risk losing Liam’s friendship for a few minutes in the sack.”
“I’ve heard rumors about Liam in the bedroom and I can promise you it would be a hell of a lot longer than that.”
“You know what I mean.”
Sterling gave her a strange look that Jade couldn’t begin to interpret. “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you show this kind of restraint.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re acting so out of character. You never think things through, never hesitate, never act like…forgive me…a girl.”
Jade narrowed her eyes, feeling foolish, but offended nonetheless. “I’m not acting like a girl.”
Sterling laughed. “Of course you are. You just said the kiss was great. Let’s face it. If this were any other guy in the world, you wouldn’t have stopped there last weekend. You’d have dragged the man home and fucked him until the sun came up. And I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t be standing in this lake, naked and alone, if it wasn’t Liam who’d managed to get your panties in a twist.”
“I’m not wearing any.”
Sterling shot her an annoyed look.
Jade couldn’t argue with her cousin. Sterling was right. Jade wasn’t exactly known
for curbing her desires. If she wanted something, she took it. Thinking didn’t usually come into play. Yet all she’d done this past week was think. And think. And think.
It was driving her batty.
“So I’m just supposed to throw away eight years of friendship and fuck Liam’s brains out until we get tired of each other. You said it yourself. We fight all the time. We wouldn’t make it a day and a half before we were at each other’s throats.”
“Oh, Jade. You’re always such a pessimist. What if the two of you hooked up and it was so great, you fell in love and lived happily ever after?”
Jade scowled. “You’re drunk. You know perfectly well I have no plans to ever get married.”
Sterling giggled. “I’m sober as stone, you grumpy bitch. You know what could cure this bad mood of yours? Sex. Sweaty, sleeping-bag sex.”
“I’m sharing a tent with you.”
“You have no imagination.”
Jade rubbed her forehead. “I’m getting a headache. I think I’ll turn in early.”
Sterling glanced over Jade’s shoulder. “Okay. I’ll come with you. Looks like everyone’s getting out now anyway.”
Jade noticed the others heading back to the campground. Jade climbed out of the lake, tugged on her shorts and T-shirt, then walked with Sterling. Liam was sitting on the same log they’d occupied earlier, gazing at the fire.
Jade skirted the circle and headed straight for her tent. She said her goodnights, then before she climbed in, she glanced back at Liam.
He was staring directly at her. His face reminded her of the way he’d looked after their kiss at Spurs. It scared the shit out of her. And turned her on so much, she physically ached.
Time to get a grip. She gave him a dirty look before unzipping the two-man tent and crawling in. She’d been an idiot for talking to Sterling about Liam. Clearly she had picked the wrong cousin to confide in. Sterling’s view of life was completely warped, so now Jade was even more confused.
She would have been better off asking advice from Sienna or Hope. Of course, both of them were so head over heels in love, she suspected their opinions wouldn’t have been much different than Sterling’s. Except while Sterling was telling her to go for hot sex, Hope and Sienna probably would have told her it was fate and started planning another fucking wedding.
This was insane. She was going to go to bed and when she woke up, life would be back to normal. She’d treat Liam like she always had and they would forget the past seven days. Problem solved.
Except Jade couldn’t accomplish the first part of her plan. Sleep eluded her. She listened to the quiet strum of Boone’s guitar and heard the murmur of voices for nearly an hour, though she couldn’t make out what was being said. She’d tossed and turned so much, her sleeping bag was twisted into knots beneath her.
Finally, she heard someone at the entrance to the tent. Jade sat up, ready to warn Sterling about her restlessness, when she spotted Liam climbing in.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Liam closed the zipper, then crawled into Sterling’s spot. “Your cousin shanghaied my spot about half an hour ago. She and Jameson were making out like the plane was going down.”
“Tough luck. You’re not staying in here. Take Sterling’s bag. You can sleep next to the campfire with Boone.”
“And get eaten alive by mosquitoes? No thanks. This tent is fine.”
“Liam—”
“I’m not going anywhere, Jade. And that’s that.”
Jade tried to fix her bag, flatten it again.
He watched her struggle to smooth it out for a few quiet minutes. “I figured you’d be asleep by now.”
She blew out an annoyed breath. “It’s stifling in here.”
Liam chuckled. “No, it’s not. You sure you’re not just hot and bothered? Because I could take care of that for you.”
Jade lay down and turned her back to him. “Go away.”
“No. In fact…” Liam scooted his bag closer to hers, then wrapped his arm around her waist, tugging until he was spooning her. “I sort of like the idea of snuggling with you.”
Jade sucked in a deep breath, trying to ward off her arousal. Crap. Sterling was right. She wasn’t used to curbing her desires and right now it took every ounce of willpower she had not to roll over, straddle Liam’s hips and scratch the itch.
So instead, she put up a token resistance, trying to break his grip. “Dammit, Liam. Really?”
Her strength was no match for Liam’s and they both knew it. He trained bucking bulls, for God’s sake. His muscles had muscles.
“You finished?” he asked.
His question reminded her of the back alley at Spurs. He’d asked her the same thing just before he’d kissed her.
She stilled. “Yeah.”
“We’re just sleeping, kiddo.”
“Don’t you think it’s sort of perverted to hold me like this while calling me kiddo?”
He chuckled. “Yeah. Probably. I’m sure as Hell not going to deny there’s a woman in my arms right now.”
She was sorry she’d mentioned it. She didn’t mind the nickname. In fact, she liked it.
He tugged her even closer and Jade could feel his erection against her ass through his boxers and her lightweight pajama bottoms. She wiggled to prove she knew it was there.
He laughed. “Just lay still, close your eyes and rest awhile.”
“You’re not going to give this up, are you?”
She felt rather than saw him shake his head. “No. I don’t think I am.”
“You’re wasting your time. A relationship between the two of us would never work, not for the long-term.”
He pressed a soft kiss to her shoulder. “You’re right. It probably wouldn’t.”
She twisted in his arms, turning to face him. “Then why push this?”
“Because I can’t stop.”
She would have questioned him further, but the moon had broken free of the clouds. She and Sterling had left the top cover off the tent, both of them wanting to look at the stars. The sheer mesh sent a stream of light into their tiny space, allowing her to see his face clearly.
Liam seemed resigned to something she was only just beginning to understand. It was pointless to fight the unavoidable.
And she and Liam and sex…
Well…
It was inevitable.
Chapter Three
Liam tightened his grip on the training rope as the new bull he’d been working with kicked violently against the constraints. He was pleased with the grit Fearless had shown during his initial sessions. This bull was shaping up to be one of his best ever. If he kicked like this during competition, Fearless had a chance at going down in the rodeo history books, much like Bodacious had over thirty years earlier.
“Damn. That’s one fine bull.”
Liam looked over his shoulder as Daniel strolled over. Liam had been so intent on the training, he hadn’t heard Daniel pull up in his pickup.
“Yeah. I was just thinking if he keeps it up, this bull could kick some pretty serious cowboy ass.”
Daniel chuckled. “I sure as hell wouldn’t want to ride him.”
Liam released the strap on the bull and leaned against the fence.
“What are you doing over here? Isn’t it a bit early for happy hour?” Daniel had moved to Compass Pass nearly three years earlier to work with Sienna’s father, Seth, breeding prime horseflesh. Since then, he and Liam had become friends. They were about the same age, both cowboys with a love of sleek horses, a bottle of Jack, and a good game of pool. And they were both currently trying to figure out how to deal with one of the infamous Compass girls, not that Daniel knew of that last, more recent common bond.
Of course in all fairness, Daniel had an easier task with his Compton lady. Sienna was reliable, down-to-earth and practical. Daniel didn’t have to worry about her getting into barroom brawls, challenging some roughneck to a drag race or hopping onto the back of a wild stallion. L
iam had witnessed Jade do all three of those things. More than once. Which was why he should be trying to get his cock under control instead of considering the leap from just friends to something more.
“I’m not here to drink, though God knows I sure as hell could use one. There are too many women over on Compass Ranch with only one thing on their minds these days—me, gettin’ hitched in style. I keep trying to convince Sienna to run off to Vegas, but she’s not budging.”
Though Daniel complained, his face betrayed him. He was head over heels in love with Sienna and there wasn’t a damn thing he wouldn’t give the woman. While Daniel bitched and moaned about the wedding plans, Liam wasn’t fooled. He suspected Daniel was looking forward to the big day as much as the bride.
“You picked a tough family to marry into. They’re great people—one on one—but damn, when you put them all together, it’s like a tidal wave crashing on your head.”
Daniel laughed. “You got that right. Between the Cousins and the Mothers issuing orders, all of us men are jumping around like barefoot bums on hot asphalt. We’re painting shutters, planting flowers, fixing fences, tidying up the yard, hiding all the ranch equipment they think is ugly, which is a pain in the ass considering we need to use the tools to do our jobs. Spent nearly half an hour this morning looking for these so I could return them.”
Daniel handed Liam several straps he’d borrowed the previous week. “Thought I’d better get them back to you before they went missing for good.”
Liam took them and tossed them near the door of the stable. “Thanks.”
“Heard through the grapevine that Jade nearly took Rhonda Barker’s head off at Spurs a couple weeks ago. Surprised you didn’t say anything on the camping trip. Sounds like it was quite a show.”
Liam shrugged. “Wasn’t much of a story to tell. They just exchanged a few words.”
“Rumor has it you pulled her out of the bar before fists flew.”
Daniel had been insinuating that Liam had feelings for Jade for nearly a year, despite the fact Liam constantly denied it. Ever since Daniel had decided to get married to his pretty girlfriend, he’d been determined Liam should take the same plunge. And for some insane reason, he had fixated on Jade as the top choice for Liam’s future bride.
