by Mari Carr
She punched him lightly in the stomach.
“Dad’s surgery is day after tomorrow.”
“I know.”
“So I’m not sure when I’ll see you again. My time will be split between the hospital and the farm and the boys. Ryder seems to think he’ll be home more often, now that the training for his new job is just about finished.”
“It’s okay, Leo. I know things are crazy right now.”
He blew out a long breath. “Things are always crazy.”
She didn’t know how to respond to that. It was one of the reasons he’d given her at the beginning for not wanting to embark on a relationship. She could hardly fault him now for being busy. Not that she would.
It was just…she could see him every single minute of every single day and it still wouldn’t be enough. He consumed her thoughts during the day and her dreams at night. But telling him that would only add to his stress and his feeling of letting down someone he cared about. So she held her tongue.
“Come back to the house with us. I’ll drive you home later after Ryder gets back from work.”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“I can’t get enough of you,” he admitted.
She laughed. “Get out of my head. I was just thinking the same thing, but I didn’t want to make you feel bad. Your family needs you.”
“You don’t have to shield your feelings with me, Vonnie. God knows you never have in the past.”
The ride began to slow down, stopping every few feet as people got off and others got on.
The sun was hanging low in the sky, dusk approaching. While she was delighted to get to spend more time with Leo, it was going to be a long evening of keeping her distance around the boys.
With that thought in mind, she stole one more kiss, intending to keep it quick. Once again, she and Leo seemed to be in synch. Except he wasn’t satisfied with her fast peck. When she started to pull away, he gripped the back of her neck and kissed her again, this one long and deep and definitely not fair appropriate.
They parted when the Ferris wheel stopped again, the boys hopping off.
She caught a glimpse of Vince looking at them. She couldn’t tell if he’d witnessed the kiss or not, but he wasn’t smiling. In fact, he looked upset.
She glanced at Leo, who was looking in Vince’s direction and frowning as well.
Shit.
Chapter Nine
When they were all together again, they headed for the truck. The ride home was quieter than the journey to the fair, all of them full and hot and tired. Even the music from the radio seemed worn out, as one slow country ballad after another played. Yvonne snuck several peeks back at Vince, who looked out the window during the entire trip.
“You forgot to take Vonnie home,” Clint said as they pulled into the driveway to their house.
“She’s going to hang out at our place a little while,” Leo explained.
Clint brightened. “Cool.”
At least one of the boys seemed happy to have her around. Vince didn’t say anything. Instead, he opened the back door of the truck and climbed out without looking at her.
Leo gave her a smile she assumed was meant to be comforting, but it didn’t help much. Leo said Vince had been grumpy of late, and he was blaming puberty. Maybe that was it.
They walked into the house together, Boomer waiting for them at the door. “You guys go on back and get your showers now. Wash off the sweat and fair dirt. Then we can put a movie in until bedtime.”
Clint and Vince were obviously tired because neither boy put up a fuss about having to shower. She dropped down on the couch as Leo wandered to the kitchen, then returned with two beers—a PBR for him, a Corona for her—and joined her.
Yvonne glanced toward the entrance of the living room, wondering if she dared to chance another kiss.
“Clint is the quickest showerer in the east,” Leo said, in answer to her unspoken desire. “He’ll be back here in less than five minutes.”
“He’s a bit like a Tasmanian Devil, isn’t he? Always whirling around.”
Leo gave her a look she couldn’t read until he said, “That’s the pot calling the kettle black.”
“I have no idea what you mean,” she protested.
Leo leaned toward her, close enough she could feel his breath on her cheek. “Don’t worry, Vonnie. I like the way you’re in constant motion. Especially the way you squirm around when I put my mouth on your cl—”
“Vonnie!” Vince called her name from down the hallway. Just when Leo was getting to the good part.
“Hold that thought,” she said, rising from the couch.
Leo stood and followed her, and she smiled when she noticed him adjusting the front of his jeans.
He narrowed his eyes at her knowing grin. “My permanent state when you’re around,” he grumbled.
“I totally get it. I’m hot,” she joked.
He smacked her ass, chuckling as they walked toward the boy’s bedroom.
Vince was standing just inside the doorway. He pointed toward Clint’s bed, where the little boy was lying down.
“My stomach hurts,” Clint said, clutching his middle.
“Oh no.” Yvonne made her way to the side of his bed. “I was afraid of this. You ate way too much junk at the fair.” She placed her hand on his forehead to see if he was feverish. “Cool as a cucumber,” she said, relieved it didn’t appear to be that stomach bug Sunnie mentioned going around earlier in the week.
“Can you stay with me and rub it until it stops hurting?” Clint groaned, the sound fifty-percent genuine, fifty-percent drama.
Yvonne glanced over just in time to see Leo rolling his eyes. She grinned. She’d babysat for Clint enough to know the boy was starving for motherly attention. In a house full of males, Clint’s opportunities to be fussed over by a woman were few and far between. She and Darcy were always amused by his antics to garner their sympathy for all his “ailments,” while also deeply grateful for the opportunity to nurture the motherless boy.
“Of course I will, baby. You lie right there on your back and let me rub it all better. I shouldn’t have let you eat so much of that funnel cake. It was too greasy for your little tummy.”
Clint gave her a weak smile, though there was no true pain in his expression.
“Do you think holding on to Pikachu might make you feel better?” she asked.
He nodded solemnly. “I think it would.” The kid had true talent. He needed to move to Hollywood.
“I’ll grab it from the living room,” Leo said.
She’d carried the stuffed toy in from the truck, intending to give it to Clint anyway. He was probably skirting the line of too old for stuffed animals, but the way his face lit up when she took it from Leo and gave it to him proved he wasn’t there yet.
“You still up for a movie, Vince?” Leo asked.
Vince shook his head. “No. I think I’ll just watch TV in here. Okay?”
Leo nodded. “Sure. If that’s what you want. Clint, you need anything? Water? Milk?”
Clint looked at Yvonne. “Would milk help my stomach?”
Sunnie was the nurse in the family. Yvonne didn’t have a clue if it would help or not, but since she was now ninety-five percent sure he was faking, she nodded. “I think it would. Want me to get some for you?”
“Yes, please.”
“How about you, Vince?” Yvonne asked over her shoulder. “Would you like some milk?”
Vince shook his head without looking at her. He was definitely in a fouler mood now than he had been before the Ferris wheel ride.
“What do you say, Vince?” Leo prompted.
“No, thank you,” Vince grumbled.
Yvonne stood up. “I’ll get the milk and be right back.”
“I’ll get it,” Leo said.
“Can Vonnie get it for me?” Clint asked.
Leo opened his mouth, but Yvonne put her hand on his arm. “Some things require a woman’s touch.” She winked at him covertly, then t
he two of them left the room and headed to the kitchen.
“The kid’s fine,” Leo said, pulling a cup from the cabinet as she retrieved the milk from the refrigerator.
“I know. But he doesn’t have a mother to fuss over him, and I think he misses it.”
It was clear that hadn’t occurred to Leo. “Oh. You think that’s what it is? Clint and Vince don’t really mention Denise much anymore. I’d started to wonder if they’d been too young when they lost her to really remember…”
“They haven’t forgotten her, Leo. They never will.” She poured the milk. “I’ll run this back to Clint and meet you in the living room in a few minutes.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything else. She feared perhaps she’d upset him by mentioning Denise.
Wow. She was batting a thousand tonight…with the father and the son.
She comforted Clint for a few minutes more as he sipped his milk, but soon his stomach ache was forgotten as he and Vince become engrossed in SpongeBob repeats.
“I’m going to go watch a movie with Leo,” she said, pressing a kiss to Clint’s forehead.
“Okay, Vonnie. Night.”
She turned, wondering if she should offer Vince the same good-night kiss, but he ignored her completely, his scowl firmly in place.
“Night, Vince,” she said instead.
“Night.”
She tried to still the uneasiness in her chest as she walked down the hallway and back to the living room. Ryder and Leo shared the three-bedroom, two-bathroom ranch Ryder and Denise had purchased shortly after their wedding. It was actually a fairly nice size, though she’d heard Ryder and Leo discussing the possibility of putting on an addition. Both men knew the day was coming when the boys would want their own rooms, plus Ryder was hoping for a larger home office and Leo was determined to get his own bathroom. As it was now, he shared one with Vince while Clint shared the other with Ryder. Leo thought the boys needed their own.
Fortunately, the house was situated on a large enough plot that they had more than enough room for the additions, and Leo had mentioned several months ago in passing that they had an architect drawing up the plans.
Leo was kicked back on the couch with Boomer when she entered.
“Boys settled?” he asked.
She nodded. “Yeah. I don’t think they’ll be awake much longer. They both look pretty worn out.”
“It was a busy day for them. We spent a few hours working on the farm before heading into town to pick you up for the fair.”
Leo turned on the TV, firing up an old Mission Impossible movie they’d both seen countless times before. His movie selection told her actually watching a movie was not part of his plan for the night.
She grinned when he reached for her hand and pulled her up. “What about the movie?”
“You want to watch it?”
She shook her head.
“Then come on.”
Leo led her from the living room to his own bedroom, closing and locking the door behind them.
“What about the boys?” she asked.
“Sorry to say this is going to be a quiet quickie.”
She laughed softly. “Pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you, Mr. Watson?”
“You gotta have mercy on me, Vonnie. Three years was a long time to go without. The other night with you…I’m in pain, baby.”
“Me too. Quiet quickie it is.”
He reached for her, unfastening her jeans and helping her take them and her shoes off. He ran his hand over her breast, her shirt still in the way. He sighed regretfully. “Next time I get you in bed, we’re going to be alone, naked and have all night.”
“Not much of a challenge in that,” she teased. They were speaking in hushed tones. While the boys’ bedroom was at the far end of the hallway and the door was locked, neither of them was willing to risk discovery.
“Go to my bed and bend over, hands on the mattress.”
If Yvonne hadn’t already been soaking wet, his deep-voiced command would have done the trick.
He was right behind her, and by the time she was in position, his pants were already open, his erect cock in his hand.
With his free hand, he stroked her bare ass. “God, what I’d give to spank you right now.”
She wiggled her ass at him suggestively, but he didn’t take the bait.
“Too noisy. Especially the way you respond, all loud cries, screaming my name, begging for more,” he whispered.
“I don’t beg,” she said, lying through her teeth.
He ran his finger along her slit, brushing her clit before sinking two fingers deep. “Is that right?”
She sighed blissfully, pushing her ass back against him on every inward thrust. Leo continued to stroke in and out, but he didn’t add another finger, didn’t increase his pace, didn’t…
Ah. Of course. The asshole was waiting for her to beg.
She looked over her shoulder at him.
“Yes?” he said, with a shit-eating grin. “Did you want something?”
“It would serve you right if I gave you what you were asking for. Screamed your name. Loudly begged you to take me hard.”
Leo narrowed his eyes, then glanced around the room.
A small groan escaped her when he pulled his fingers out and moved away. He returned with a clean shirt.
“Open your mouth.”
She started to shake her head. “I was kidd—”
Leo stuffed some of the material into her mouth, then used the arms of the shirt to secure the makeshift gag.
She shook her head, not as a no, but as a way to see if she could dislodge it. She couldn’t.
“Want me to take it out?” he asked.
She shook her head again. This time she meant no.
“You like it?”
Yvonne nodded. Leo was clearly into bondage, something she’d never really tried, but couldn’t deny was a huge turn-on.
“You have no idea how sexy you are,” he murmured.
He shifted to stand behind her once more, and she moaned—the sound muted by the shirt—as he slowly slid inside.
Even with the gag in, Yvonne tried to be quiet. She was fairly vocal in the bedroom, so forcing herself to remain silent was a new experience for her. As was the gag.
There was nothing about Leo that was predictable in the bedroom except the fact that he knew how to rev her engine. Fast or slow, deep or shallow, the man knew every button to push.
Right now, he was rocking inside her as gentle as a boat on a placid lake, one hand resting loosely on her hip as the other snuck around to caress her clit.
She arched her back, marveling at how close she was. Leo had said it would be a quickie. She’d interpreted that as something fast, something frantic, like the other night down in the pub. She never would have expected to be able to come so quickly like this.
Her head dropped to the mattress as she felt the swell of the wave, anticipating that sharp flash of almost-pain. Sex with Leo was seriously addictive.
She held her breath, and then—
Leo withdrew, his fingers falling away from her clit.
Her body was tense, but with nothing there to push her over…
She glanced over her shoulder, ready to blast him, but the gag prevented her complaints. Yvonne narrowed her eyes, but Leo merely chuckled.
“I know I said quickie,” he murmured. “But that was too quick. You really need to exercise some restraint, baby.”
Yvonne reached up, intent on pulling the gag from her mouth so she could give him an earful of exactly where he could stick his restraint. He grabbed her hands before she could accomplish that, drawing them behind her back.
Without her hands to hold her up, her head fell to the mattress. He applied just enough pressure to her caged wrists to keep her down.
Yvonne wasn’t an innocent when it came to sex. She enjoyed it and she’d experimented plenty. However, she was starting to realize she was still a novice. Because great sex wasn’t about all the positi
ons, it was about experiencing it with a lover who knew how to pull out previously unseen desires.
Leo made love to her mind as much as her body, allowing her to explore things she never would have known to ask for.
Like this deep-seated desire to be held captive, helpless, submissive. With anyone else, that would be terrifying, but with Leo—whom she trusted completely—it was mind-blowing, exciting, hugely arousing.
He held her wrists together with one of his calloused hands, letting her feel his strength, his power over her. With the other, he softly stroked her ass, petting her as gently as he would a newborn kitten.
So many contrasting feelings.
“That’s better,” he cooed, when she stopped trying to get up and instead relaxed, her body going limp. “Let’s try this again. Are you going to come the second I slide back in?”
She shook her head. He wanted to draw this out, make it last. These stolen moments were so few and far between, she understood that need. They had to make every second count.
“Good. Because I want us to come together, Vonnie. Always together.”
She nodded earnestly. She wanted the same, wanted him to know that, even though she couldn’t say the words.
He released her hands, gripped his cock and guided it home once more. This time, he grasped her hips in a firm hold and fucked her the way she’d expected.
It was a hard, fast, explosive ride, one meant to test her. Yvonne fought back her orgasm for several minutes, the act of stopping herself a different sort of pleasurable pain, something she’d never felt before.
She was grateful for the gag in her mouth because she feared she’d never manage to keep herself from screaming when she finally did go over.
Leo, as always, seemed to know exactly what she was thinking. He bent over her, his chest pressed to her back, and whispered in her ear, “Not a sound, Yvonne. Not a single peep.”
She slowly shook her head, her pussy clenching, her breath ragged. There was no way she’d succeed.
“I mean it,” he murmured. “Not a sound.”
She sucked in as much air as she could through her nose and the soft cotton filling her mouth, then closed her eyes tightly.
