Tessa laughed and rolled toward him. “Well, you’ve succeeded…so now what?”
Sam leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. When she opened to him, he slid his tongue into her mouth. She moaned and wrapped her arms around his neck as he deepened the kiss. Trailing one hand down over his chest, she smiled when he hissed in a breath as she wrapped her fingers around his hard cock. His fingers encircled her wrist.
“It’ll be over before it begins if you keep that up.”
“Isn’t that what I’m supposed to do? Keep it up?”
“When the hell did you become so evil?”
Tessa laughed. “Since the sexy sheriff of Clifton kissed me.”
“Really? I don’t think so.”
“Okay. Since I first saw the sexy sheriff. How’s that?”
Sam grinned against her lips. “That’ll work.” He rolled on top of her. “God, I need you, Tessa.”
“I need you too, Sam.”
Sam moved his hand between them and touched her very core. His finger rubbed against her clitoris making her moan. He continued to stroke her until she threw her head back on the pillow and groaned out his name. Leaning over, he reached for his jeans, and retrieved a condom from his wallet. After sheathing himself, he slowly inched into her.
Sam stared down into her face, leaned in, and gently kissed her. “Damn, you feel so good,” he whispered.
“So do you,” she said against his lips.
“Do you have any idea how good it feels to be inside you?”
“Sam,” she groaned, closing her eyes as he nibbled at her throat.
“There’s no one sexier than you, Tessa. No one.”
“Sam…”
“You’re repeating yourself.”
Tessa’s laugh rushed out in a breath. “You’re so bad.”
Sam pressed his lips to hers as he began moving in and out of her with long, slow strokes. Moving to his knees, he placed his elbows on each side of her head. When she hooked her ankles around the back of his thighs, he had to clench his jaw not to thrust hard into her. Instead, he rolled to his back, and pulled her on top of him.
“Ride me, Tessa,” Sam said with an eager grin.
Tessa sat up and smiled down at him then slowly moved her hips up and down over him while she ran her hands over his chest.
“You’re driving me crazy, Tessa.”
Tessa laughed deep in her throat, and gave him an innocent expression. “Me?”
“Christ, you’re evil,” Sam groaned.
“You told me to ride you, Sheriff. It’s what I’m doing.”
Sam sat up, wrapped his arms around her, and then flipped her to her back making her cry out in surprise.
“I can’t take it anymore. Tessa…baby, I need to do this fast and hard,” he growled next to her ear.
“Yes, Sam. Please…” She gasped when he picked up the pace.
It wasn’t too much longer before he felt her inner muscles clenching around his cock, and then he pressed his lips to hers hearing her groan out his name as she came. Sam thrust harder and a deep groan tore from his throat as he came hard, his life feeling as if it couldn’t get any better. As he came down, he leaned his forehead against hers while trying to catch his breath.
“Are you all right? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
“No, Sam. That was so good.” Tessa kissed his chin.
Rolling to his back, he pulled her against him. She rested her head on his chest and draped her arm across his waist. A few minutes went by with just the sound of them trying to catch their breaths filling the room. Sam rolled toward her and she rolled to face him. She smiled at him and his heart skipped a beat. Sam ran his hand over her hair and he pulled strands of her soft hair over her breasts.
"Your hair is so beautiful. I prefer seeing it loose instead of up in a ponytail now that I know what it looks like down." He grinned. "Either spread over my pillow or flowing down your back as you ride me."
"Sam…" Tessa's breath rushed out.
He leaned forward and kissed her, his lips pressing against hers before deepening the kiss, and moving his tongue into her mouth. Groaning low in his throat, Sam moved over her, resting between her thighs again and lifted his mouth from hers, and gazing into her eyes. "You are so beautiful."
Tessa cupped his lightly whiskered cheeks in her hands. "So are you.”
Sam drew back with a chuckle. "No—”
Tessa kissed his mouth then laughed. "Yes."
“I’m not going to argue with you.”
“Good, because you’d lose.”
“Don’t bet on it.” Sam kissed her quickly. “How about a shower?”
Tessa burst out laughing. “You just want to take a shower to change the subject.”
To prove he was serious about the shower, he climbed from the bed, grabbed her, and sent her into peals of laughter when he picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder before heading to the bathroom.
****
Election Day brought in severe weather. Sam sat in his office and stared out at the snow coming down. The wind was howling and blowing snow sideways. The snow was so heavy he couldn’t see the Glaciers. Would today mark the beginning of his last day as Sheriff of Clifton? He hoped not but if it were, he’d deal with it. He loved Tessa and nothing else really mattered.
Sam smiled as he gazed in the direction of the animal hospital. He knew she was over there working and he loved thinking of her caring for the animals. That was something they shared—a love for animals. He loved her for that among so many other reasons. He sighed thinking how he still hadn’t told her he was in love with her yet. Once this election was over, he would. Right now, his anxiety over it weighed on him too much.
“Sam?”
He turned to see Betty Lou standing in the doorway. “Yes?”
“You’re ahead in the polls,” she said grinning at him with pride.
Sam let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “Are you sure?”
Betty Lou put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “Of course, I’m sure, Sam. I just heard it on the radio.”
Sam ran his hand over his mouth to hide a grin. “Thanks for letting me know, but it’s early yet.”
Betty Lou huffed. “I told you. You’re going to win.”
“What are you…psychic?”
“Don’t take that tone with me, Sam Garrett.” Indignant, she spun on her heel, and walked away.
“Psycho maybe,” Sam muttered.
“I heard that, Sam Garrett.”
Sam chuckled. “Of course you did, Betty Lou.” He laughed when he heard her laughter. He grabbed his hat. “I’m going to check the roads. I’ll be back in a while.”
“All right. Be careful. I’ll call you if I need you,” Betty Lou hollered.
Sam put his hat and coat on, and headed out the back door. Son of a bitch! The wind was crazy and now the snow had ice mixed with it. The ice slapped him in the face making it feel as if shards of glass were hitting him. Sam quickly climbed into his SUV, drove slowly out of the parking lot, and headed out of town. The snow was covering the roads quickly and ice was pinging off the hood and roof. Damn. It was going to get a lot worse before it got better.
Coming up behind a pickup truck crawling along the road, Sam stayed back in case the truck stopped quickly. He sure didn’t need to run into the back of anyone. When he saw someone toss a green garbage bag out the passenger side window, he frowned. Didn’t the fool realize there was a sheriff behind him? Obviously not, since he was littering.
Sam glanced over to the side of the road where the bag lay and he had a strange urge to stop. Quickly memorizing the license plate on the truck, he then pulled off the road. After writing the number down, he pushed his door open and stepped out of the vehicle. He had to be insane to get out in this weather to check what was in all likelihood, just garbage. Holding his hat on his head, he made his way to it. Sam dropped to his knees, tore the bag open, and swore when he saw a tiny kitten inside the bag. Picking up the poor
little thing, he put it inside his coat, got back into his SUV, and drove back to town. Pulling up by the front door of the animal hospital, he strode in stopping at the desk.
“Hi, Sheriff.” Jodi smiled up at him.
“Hi, Jodi. I need to see Tessa,” Sam told her pulling the furry little creature out of the protection of his coat.
“I think she’s with a patient.” Jodi gasped. “What do you have there?”
“A kitten someone tossed out of a truck. Get her for me, please Jodi.”
Jodi nodded and ran from the lobby. A few minutes later, Tessa came running out. “Sam? Jodi said you have a kitten that was tossed from a truck.”
Cradling the mewling kitten, he showed it to her. “I’m going after the asshole who tossed the kitten out. Here, you take him and make sure he’s okay.” Sam handed her the kitten.
“Her.”
Sam frowned. “What?”
“She’s a calico and a very high percentage of calicos are female. She can’t be more than four weeks old. Go get him. I’ll take care of her.”
“I was behind him, but I guess with the snow blowing the way it was he didn’t see me or he didn’t care.”
Tessa stood on her toes and kissed him. “Be careful out there…please.” She turned from him then turned back. “By the way, you’re ahead in the election.”
She smiled at him and then walked away.
When Sam walked out of Tessa’s hospital, he had to hold his hand over his hat since the wind was so strong and he really didn’t feel like chasing after it if it blew off his head. The wind nearly ripped the door of his vehicle from his hand when he opened it. Old man winter was showing his ugly side early this year.
Sam climbed inside, shutting out the weather, and talked into his two-way radio.
“I need you to run a tag,” he told Betty Lou, and then read it off to her. A moment later, she gave him the information he needed. “Thank you. I’ll be back in a while.”
Armed with an address for the man who tossed the kitten out, Sam swore aloud as he drove out of town. Some people didn’t have any brains was his thought as he drove onto the property of Henry Clark. Sam pulled up close to the front porch, climbed out of his SUV and walked across the porch to knock on the door. A little girl about six years old opened the door and stared up at him. He squatted down and smiled.
“Hi there, is your daddy here?” She nodded and ran away from the door. Sam peered into the house. “Hello? Sheriff’s department.”
“Hello, can I help you?” a woman asked stepping into view from a room in the back of the house.
Sam removed his hat. “Yes, ma’am. Is Henry Clark here?”
The woman’s eyes widened. “Is he in some sort of trouble?”
“I’m Sheriff Garrett. I’d like to speak to him, please.”
She nodded. “Henry! There’s someone here to see you. Come on in, Sheriff.”
Sam nodded and stepped into the foyer, closing the door behind him. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”
A large man entered from the direction of the living room and frowned at Sam when he saw his badge pinned to his coat.
“I’m Henry Clark. What can I do for you? Sheriff Garrett, right?”
“Yes, sir.” Sam glanced at the woman and little girl. “Could we speak privately?”
“Come on, Tabitha. Let’s go into the kitchen so Daddy and the sheriff can talk,” the woman said taking the little girl’s hand and leading her away.
“Mr. Clark, I was behind you earlier on Moonshine Road. About an hour ago,” Sam stated tipping his hat back on his head.
Henry Clark frowned at him. “I wasn’t on Moonshine Road then, Sheriff. I haven’t been out of the house since early this morning.”
Sam scowled. “Who else could have been driving your truck?”
“My son Owen was out today.” Henry sighed. “What did he do now?”
“I saw him throw a garbage bag out—”
“Hold on. Let me get him.” Henry yelled for his son and a few minutes later, a tall, lanky teenager descended the stairs. He came to a stop when he saw Sam. Henry narrowed his eyes at his son. “The sheriff here says he saw you toss a garbage bag out the truck window today on Moonshine Road.”
Sam stared at the boy and saw the fear in his eyes. “You want to tell me why you tossed that bag out, son?”
Owen shrugged coming to stand at the base of the steps. “I didn’t throw a bag out.”
“I was behind you. I saw you toss the bag out the passenger side window.”
“There were only a few things in it.” Owen shrugged again.
Sam stepped closer toward him. “There was a kitten in the bag,” he said through clenched teeth feeling the muscle in his cheek twitch. Sam knew he needed to rein in his temper. “I can arrest you for animal cruelty.”
Owen’s eyes widened so much that Sam was surprised they didn’t pop out of his head. “I didn’t know about the kitten. Warren asked me to throw the bag out when we were together today.”
“You didn’t question your friend as to why or what was in the bag?”
“No, man. I’ve done it for him before. I’d just stop by the garbage bin and dump his trash but it was cold out, I didn’t want to stop and get out. I just thought it had some trash in it,” Owen muttered.
“Well, there was more than trash in it. You didn’t notice the bag moving or hear the kitten?” Sam was sure he was being lied to but unfortunately, couldn’t prove it.
“I had the radio up and was concentrating on the road because it’s so bad out.”
“I’m not sure I believe you but I need to know Warren’s last name, and I’m also fining you for littering.”
“Come on, man—”
“Don’t call me man. I’m the Sheriff of this county. I’ll be right back. I need to get my citation book. The fine for littering in Montana is two hundred dollars.” Sam walked out the door and grinned with satisfaction when he heard Henry yelling at his son.
Sam retrieved the book and entered the house again. He wrote the ticket and tore it off, handing it to the teen. “If you go to court, you may just get community service or a reduced fine—if it’s your first offense.”
“You will go to court, and you’ll be working off payment of the fine. I’m sorry, Sheriff Garrett.” Henry stuck his hand out.
“Now, what is Warren’s last name and where does he live?” Sam said as he shook Henry’s hand.
Owen sighed. “Warren Wright. If you turn left out of here, his driveway is three up on the right.”
Sam touched the brim of his hat. “Thank you. You both have a good day.” He started out the door when Henry spoke.
“I voted for you, Sheriff Garrett. Good luck in the election.”
Sam smiled. “Thank you, I appreciate your vote.”
Hurrying back to his vehicle, he had a feeling young Owen feared his dad’s punishment far more than any handed down by a judge. After stopping to speak with Warren Wright, Sam drove back to town. The kid had been terrified when Sam wrote him a ticket for five hundred dollars for cruelty to animals. Sam told him the same thing he’d told Owen Clark about going to court. Warren’s mother was so angry with him, she cried. The only thing Warren wouldn’t say was where he got the kitten to begin with. He’d told Sam it was in the bag when he found it but Sam didn’t believe that for a minute. Since he couldn’t prove any different, he let it drop.
Arriving back in town, he went by the animal hospital before returning to the department. Upon entering the lobby, Jodi glanced up and smiled at him when she saw him.
“I’ll get Doc Mac for you, Sheriff,” she told him picking up the phone.
Sam took a seat in the waiting area. There was no one else around. He stood when Tessa entered the room and smiled at him.
“What did you find out about who threw Honeybee out?”
“Honeybee?”
Tessa shrugged. “That’s what I named the kitten.”
Sam frowned. “Some kid threw her out. I c
ouldn’t get it out of him where he got her, but he had his friend take the garbage bag. Thing is, his friend didn’t know there was a kitten in the bag when he threw it out of the truck, or so he says. Both will have to pay some hefty fines, and most likely appear before a judge.”
“Good. Thank you, Sam.” Tessa smiled up at him.
Sam leaned down and kissed her. “Can we get together tonight?”
“Why don’t you come by after you finish work? We’re going to close early. No one else is coming in. Most of the appointments have canceled due to the weather.”
“All right but I don’t know what time I’ll get out of the office though. I’ll come by as soon as I can.” He kissed her again.
“Can you stay with me tonight?” Tessa whispered.
Sam shook his head. “I have to get home for Bo, but you can stay with me. We can wait for the election returns together.” Tessa nibbled on her bottom lip and Sam groaned. “It’s okay if you don’t want to chance driving out there tonight, I understand,” Sam said.
“I can follow you after we have dinner. Will that be all right?”
“Of course.”
“I’ll see you later then, Sam.” She kissed his chin.
Sam leaned down and kissed her. “I’ll see you later, sweetheart.”
Tessa grinned up at him. “Yes, you will.”
Sam smiled and left the hospital then drove back to the office, entering through the back door. “I’m back, Betty Lou,” he called out shaking off the snow before entering his office.
When she didn’t answer, he strolled to the lobby and found her chair empty. Sam frowned as he glanced around. He was about to call her cell phone when she came rushing through the front door with the wind howling on her heels.
“What in the hell are you doing out in this?”
“I had to go vote! I’m not an invalid, Sam. Bobbi Jo picked me up out front and just dropped me off.”
“Jesus H. Christ, Betty Lou. You could have left me a note,” Sam muttered.
“Don’t you—”
“Do not say it, Betty Lou. You could have voted on the way home. The polls don’t close until late tonight.”
Betty Lou marched up to him. “If you had talked to me like this before, I would have voted for Rick!”
Sam Men of Clifton, Montana Book 7 Page 14
