True-Blue Texas Cowboy

by Janalyn Knight

  He grinned, rolling over and laying her on her back. Kissing her quickly, his lips brushed her ear. "Sweetheart, I was so worried about telling you. I wasn't sure how you'd take it. I'm glad you're happy."

  She whispered back, "Thank you for caring for me, Jesse. Thank you for loving me."

  He kissed her fingers, "You're welcome, sweetheart."

  Turning on her side to face him, she asked, "What did I do to deserve you?"

  "My feelings, exactly."

  They grinned, and he drew her close.

  She slipped her hand under his shirt, sliding it across the hard contours of his chest. He'd used his body all his life, and it was athletic and strong. Her body responded with tingles of desire.

  He pulled her over on top of him. "Kiss me, woman."

  So, she did, about a million times.

  It was his turn to laugh. Clasping both of her hands, he pushed her up. "I'd better be careful what I ask for, huh?" Sliding his hands under her t-shirt, he stroked her belly.

  She quivered.

  Staring at her in the dim light from the window, he moved his fingers a few inches higher and stopped.

  She leaned forward and kissed him, giving his hands what they wanted. His fingers on her breasts were exquisite, almost unbearable.

  Jesse kissed her with languid movements, sliding his thumbs across her nipples as they responded to his touch. He pushed her back, and stared at her silently. "Will you let me see you, Lee? Will you take off your shirt?"

  Mesmerized, loving, lost, she reached for the hem of her shirt, and he helped her, flipping it easily over her head and onto the foot of the bed. Moonlight caressed the peaks of her breasts.

  Jesse leaned back, one arm behind his head. "You're so beautiful, Lee. And I'm the luckiest man in the world."

  Naked and exposed, yet loved and cherished too, she sat silent under his scrutiny.

  He scooched her hips further up his chest, holding his hand near her breast before gently caressing her.

  Tingles raced through her body. Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back, enjoying the sensation.

  Jesse touched her other breast in the same way.

  She caught her breath, arching back. As he fondled her nipples, heat swept through her belly.

  She opened her eyes and, in the shadows, he looked at her. She bent and kissed him, her hair covering his face.

  He kissed her back, deeply, taking his time. He sat up and smiled, teasing her nipple with his tongue.

  Gasping, she reached for him.

  He suckled softly, and she moaned.

  She lost track of time, of her surroundings, of who she was. She existed as her breasts. It had been such a long, long time.

  Jesse groaned and pushed her down to his hips, grinding his pelvis into her once, then rolled her over on her back. Getting to his knees, he searched until he found her shirt and pulled her up, trying to slip it on her.

  She stopped him.

  Holding his body still, he waited.

  "Come here." She drew him close, whispering, "I love you, Jesse Kincaid, and I want you more than anything in this world. Will you make love to me?"

  He sucked in a breath. "Lee, honey, I'll love you the whole night long."

  She kissed him, hard, leaning into it and nipping his lip.

  He moaned and returned her kiss with powerful strokes of his tongue. He whispered, "You're sure about this?"

  In answer, she stripped her shorts off, leaving them under the covers.

  He laughed. "All righty then." Standing, he yanked down his jeans and crawled in with her.

  She rolled over on top of him and he hissed. "Baby, come here," and pulled her down for a kiss.

  She forced his hands above his head and tickled his lips with the tip of her tongue.

  He tried to move his hands, but she held them tight.

  Grinning, he said, "Is this what all those muscles of yours are for?"

  She nibbled on his neck and said, "Don't test me, buddy."

  He laughed, "That tickles."

  "Live with it. Now you know how it feels."

  Sitting up, she released his hands and slid back over his hard length.

  He gasped.

  She took his hands again, looking into his eyes in the dim light, and rocked her hips forward and back.

  Moaning, he clutched her hands.

  She did it again, building a rhythm, and he freed his hands and grasped her hips. As he rocked her, she leaned down and kissed him quick. Wanting him, loving him.

  She raised up, and he slid inside her and stopped. She slowly lowered herself until she took all of him in, feeling full and tight after so long. Closing her eyes, she reveled in him.

  His breath caught, and he held still.

  She eased forward and back. Then did it again. And again.

  He rocked her back and forth, gradually increasing the pace and her pleasure.

  Leaning back, she grasped his thighs, feeling him in a new and beautifully sensitive place inside her.

  He gasped, "Lee!" and held her still. "If I'm going to last, you have to stop that, honey." Laughing, he flipped her onto her back, and circled her nipple with his fingertip. "I love you."

  She held his hand. "I'm glad you do, cowboy. I don't have words to tell you how happy you make me."

  He kissed her breast and her tummy, moving down to her curls and kissed her again.

  She sucked in a breath, her pulse pounding, desire building in her core.

  Sliding down, he settled between her thighs and said, "I love you more than I've ever loved anyone." He quickly found her sensitive spot with the tip of his tongue, stroking, circling, sucking.

  She writhed against him, hot and wild. Reaching for him she cried, "Jesse!"

  He said, "I love you," and thrust two fingers inside her as he stroked her with his tongue.

  She bucked her hips, "Jesse, love me!"

  He slid up beside her, cupping her face and looking into her eyes. "I won't leave you, Lee. We'll find a way together."

  She kissed him hard, thrusting her tongue deep, crushing his lips. "Jesse, I want you!"

  He lay over her, easing inside.

  She wrapped her legs around him, desire rampant.

  He pulled out and pushed in again.

  As he thrust more forcefully, she moaned, "Oh, Jesse."

  Clutching his shoulders, hanging on, she was lost in the unbelievable sensations rolling through her. Each stroke took her closer and closer to the edge. She thought of Wess but couldn't mourn him. Not now, not with Jesse. It was right to be here, loving him.

  She opened her eyes, and Jesse said, "I love you, Lee."

  Raw, blazing pleasure tore her in two. She called his name and felt her bones go liquid, her soul shivering in contentment.

  Jesse exploded inside her, pulsing as her orgasm squeezed him.

  She pulled him to her. Cuddled his head to her breast. She'd said Wess was her one and only, but here lay another once-in-a-lifetime man, warm and spent from loving her. Maybe there was something to this God thing.

  Jesse kissed her breast and snuggled closer.

  Stroking his back, she closed her eyes. Somehow, they had to find a way to make their lives together work.

  Chapter Eleven

  LEE WOKE, REFRESHED and ready to rock. Jesse had gone home while she slept. Chowser stared at her. "I don't recognize me either, buddy. This must be the new me. Get used to it." Rolling out of bed, she headed to the bathroom.

  After making her black elixir, she sat down and determined the order of her day—work first, maybe call Elizabeth Flack after.

  The coffee burbled at her, and she poured a first cup. She walked out into the yard and settled on the bench under the tree in the cool morning air. What a beautiful time of day. The air, still wet with dew, felt wonderful to her lungs and the soft light was so different from the glaring sun she'd face later on. Her flowers delighted her eyes. Their colors were such contrast to the greys, burnt greens and tans surrounding h
er and the dusky, lacy green of the mesquite trees in the distance. Closing her eyes, she relived Jesse's warm arms around her and his soft kisses on her lips. What an extraordinarily gentle, sensitive man.

  After a quick breakfast, she headed out to the barn to feed. Two more new calves were waiting for her, easy as you please. She checked the heifers and their babies over. Both mommas and babies looked healthy.

  She'd finished feeding when Jesse drove in. "Two more baby girls," she yelled as he stepped out of his truck.

  He waved and walked over. Slipping his arms around her, he said, "So, you're happy this morning, huh?"

  "Well, I guess I am, cowboy," she said in a slow West Texas drawl.

  Grinning, he kissed her. "I am too. I slept like a baby last night."

  She cupped his cheek. "So did I, Jesse, thanks to you."

  He kissed her again and stepped back. "What's on the docket this morning, boss?"

  "I've got it covered. I'll go around and feed, then I need to make a phone call."

  He squinted at her.

  "It's just one call. Quit looking at me like that. Tell me when you want to load up these hogs. I can haul them for you, since you're laying down clay."

  Nodding, he said, "I'll see how many I scare up today when I check the traps. Probably tomorrow. I've been averaging six or eight a day. They're sure getting packed in that pen." He hugged her and headed to his truck.

  Way past noon, she made it back to the house to eat and rest. In the mud room, she met the cool air she was dying for. Grabbing a cold bottle of water, she fixed a quick lunch before sitting down at the table to go over her notes. Her phone rang, and she punched in the call. "Hello?"

  "This is Elizabeth Flack. I was just about to leave you a message. If you'd like to talk now, it's okay."

  Lee grinned. This was great. "Hi, Elizabeth. Thanks so much for calling back. Listen, I'm trying to find out some information about an old friend of yours from high school—Theron Rubek. Some basic stuff. Can you tell me a little bit about what he was like?"

  Sounding confused, she replied, "Um, okay, I guess. We went places together. My parents were kind of strict, so it was nice to have a guy to hang around with, without it being called a date. He never made a play for me, but I wished he would have."

  Lee pulled the band out of her hair and continued to question her. "Do you remember anything that stands out in your mind as different or slightly off that ever happened during that time?"

  "What do you mean? What kind of things?"

  "I'm just wondering if you ever noticed anything out of the ordinary about him."

  She was quiet for a while, then answered slowly. "Well, I thought it was a little weird that he didn't have a steady girlfriend. He dated some, but never the same girl more than once. He was a good-looking guy. And, well, I always wondered why he hung around with me. I mean, I know I'm not pretty." She paused. "I think it must have been because of his parents. His dad was awful—a really brutal guy. He did things to Theron that you just don't do to kids. That mean bastard didn't see the difference between a child and one of his marines. He scared me."

  Elizabeth sighed. "His mom wouldn't ever stick up for him. I don't know if she was afraid of the old man or just didn't care enough about Theron to do anything. I guess Theron knew I cared about him."

  Lee pushed her. "Anything else, even a little strange that you can remember happening around him, maybe not bad, but just a little weird? You were friends so you might have seen something that was a little bit off."

  "What's this all about, anyway?" she asked.

  Lee frowned. Crap. "I think he might be involved in the disappearance of a girl in my area, and it's important that he not know that we're speaking today. Anything that you tell me may help me help this girl. Can you do that for me, Elizabeth?"

  "I never thought he was like that! Never! What kind of weird things are you talking about here?"

  "Well, some things that would interest me would be him hurting animals or people."

  Elizabeth was quiet some more, then continued. "Well, when we were in junior high, he started bugging his mom for a puppy. He'd never had a dog or seemed like he wanted one and then he really wanted a puppy, right? She finally got him a pup that was advertised on the bulletin board at the grocery store. Theron didn't have it more than two weeks and the thing disappeared, so she got him a different one. A week later that one was gone. His mom got mad and said if he couldn't take better care of his pups, he couldn't have any more. Then the next week, I couldn't find my cat. Three in a row. I always worried about that."

  Lee gritted her teeth. "Anything else?"

  "No, not really. Just that when he left high school, he left me too—high and dry. He didn't say goodbye and never called or came back to see me. Like we were nothing. It hurt me."

  "I'm sorry, Elizabeth. Listen, you've been a big help to me. Please remember, keep our conversation completely confidential. This young woman is depending on you."

  Lee ended the call. That rat bastard, Rubek. She would get clearance to ask around the compound about her girl. Let that asshole Rubek try to turn her down twice.

  Jesse’s brother was in town from back east, and he and Jesse were spending the evening with their mother. Lee wouldn't see Jesse until tomorrow.

  BY THE NEXT MORNING, Lee missed Jesse something awful. After her first cup of coffee, she figured out what her day would look like and ate a quick breakfast.

  Jesse drove up as she checked the heifers in the pen. Grabbing some hay, she jogged to his truck and latched onto him as soon as he got out. After giving him a kiss, she said, "Cowboy, I sure had a long night all alone in that big old bed. How's your momma?"

  He hugged her and swung her in a circle. When he set her down, he said, "I missed you, too. My momma was sure happy to have all three of her boys together last night. It's hard to see her so stove up, though. There isn't enough medicine in this world to make her pain go away. It's getting to where she can hardly walk."

  Lee cupped his face. "I'm so sorry, honey."

  He sighed. "So, what did you do while I was gone?"

  She grinned. "Sulked and went to bed early."

  Laughing, he grabbed her. "Come here, you," and kissed her again.

  When he let her go, she told him there were several more heifers that needed to be run up into the barn from the pen. So, they moved some of the newest mommas out into the cow pasture and put the next ones into their stalls.

  As they finished feeding, she gave Jesse the rundown of her day, leaving out the part about her trip to the compound which would happen later in the morning, knowing that he wouldn't approve. "So, I'll go to Abilene this afternoon to get groceries and a haircut, and maybe even shop for something at the mall. Can't remember the last time I was inside that place."

  "Well, it's about time you got away from here. All you do is work. I'll miss you, though. I've gotten used to seeing you in the evening."

  She dropped the hay she was taking to the horses and walked back to him, slipping her arms around his waist. "Jesse Kincaid, I'll miss you, too. Who in the heck is going to put me to sleep tonight?"

  He grinned and then frowned. "Nobody better do that but me, Miss Lee Granger," and he kissed her with a loud smack.

  She laughed and kissed him back hard. "Take that, you! I'll call you when I get home, if it's not too late."

  Jesse said, "Correction, little lady, please call me when you get home, no matter what time it is. I'll be worrying about you. That road between here and Albany is infested with deer."

  She smiled. "Okay, okay, worry wart. I will."

  After dropping off the hogs with their guy in Newcastle, she drove down the highway toward the compound. She needed to plan her strategy for arrival or they might not let her inside. Heat waves rippled the center white stripes in the scorching sun. The county still hadn’t had any rain.

  Admitting that she was a little anxious, she popped in one of her Red Dirt CDs. The rush she always felt when she listen
ed to Deryl Dodd took the edge off, and she was more herself when she approached the entrance to the church complex.

  A bulky man dressed in a black suit walked up to the gate and waited for her to step out of her truck. She shoved her hand through the wrought iron bars. "Lee Granger. I'm here to see Theron on some follow-up business to the visit we had a few days ago. Would you open up, please?"

  He ignored her hand. "I'll give the office a call, Ms. Granger." Walking away, he spoke quietly on his cell.

  Damn, this was sure different than the way things used to be—interesting and more interesting.

  Walking back, he said, "Please drive through. Someone will be waiting for you at the main hall." The gate slowly began to open.

  She approached the building, and Kenneth Hale exited the doors, stepping toward her. "Lee, I'm surprised to see you back so soon. How can I help you?"

  Clicking the lock on her door, she stepped up on the sidewalk and said, "Well, actually, you can't. I need to talk to Theron. Is he available right now?"

  He narrowed his eyes. "Theron is a very busy man, Lee. Perhaps you can tell me what this is about?"

  "It's about the conversation we had the last time I was here, Kenneth. I need to speak with him again."

  "I think we've said all there is to say about that subject. As I said, Theron is busy." He smirked at her.

  Scowling at him, she said, "Well, it's a good thing you're not the man I need to talk to then, isn't it? Because Theron might miss out on some interesting information if you were." Surely Kenneth’s sneaky ass would take the bait.

  He gave an aggravated sigh. "Come on then, you'll have to wait. He's on a conference call." Leading her up the stairs without a backward glance, they entered Kenneth's office, where he motioned her into a chair near Theron's door.

  Okay, now she had to think. Without new information, she'd need to make up something plausible and hope Theron didn't discover her deception.

  Eventually, the door to Theron's office opened. He looked at her with a smile that came nowhere near his cold, blue eyes. "Lee, I'm surprised you're back our way so soon. What's this Kenneth tells me about you having more news for me?"