Racing Toward Love (Horses Heal Hearts Book 2)

by Kimberly Beckett

  “Ian, please,” she pleaded, knowing her body craved more of the sensations Ian’s mouth was creating. Her response to Ian was a revelation. He was generating feelings within her that she had never felt before. Sure, she had dated guys in her life, but none of them held a candle to this man. His courage in the face of overwhelming odds and his apparent willingness to sacrifice himself for her had her in awe. In addition, the way he looked at her with his piercing, blue eyes made her feel like she was the only woman on earth and that she belonged only to him. Her body responded to him as if it was made for him—just waiting for him to open her to his caresses. It was a heady feeling. She reveled in his attentions and was growing wet with desire for him.

  Ian realized he was approaching a point of no return. If Megan didn’t stop him, he would take her right here next to the roadway, where anyone could see them. It’s not the right time, man, you have to stop. Groaning inwardly, Ian had enough presence of mind to heed his inner voice, and he slowly withdrew from Megan’s embrace.

  She looked up at him in confusion. “What’s wrong, Ian? Did I do something wrong? Please, Ian, I don’t want to stop.”

  “No, love,” Ian assured her, “you didn’t do anything wrong. In fact, this felt so right to me that I wanted to do everything in my power to make you mine, but it’s not the right time or place. Look around you. If we stay here, anyone could drive by and see us, and the only alternative is Michael’s car. I refuse to make love to you for the first time in the back seat of my brother’s car.”

  Megan blushed when she realized she would have let him make love to her anywhere. It could have been in the middle of the road if he wanted. She was completely under his spell. She found herself craving the release that Ian had started. Now that he had stopped, that release was hovering just out of reach. “Please don’t leave me like this, Ian. I feel like I’m at the edge of something wonderful, but I can’t go any further without your help.”

  Ian had to think fast. He didn’t want this moment to end, and he was on edge with sexual tension as well. He certainly wanted their first lovemaking session to be in a place she would remember forever with pleasure, not embarrassment. Then he remembered the old bed and breakfast they had passed on the way to Brighton. It would work perfectly for their purposes.

  He turned to Megan with a hint of mischief in his smile. “I know just the place.” He quickly escorted her back into the car, entered the driver’s seat, and started the car, pulling back out onto the road.

  “Where are we going?” Megan asked. Her voice betrayed a note of concern.

  “Do you trust me?” Ian responded.

  Megan answered immediately. “Of course. With my life.”

  Ian smiled in satisfaction at her completely unpretentious answer. “Then trust that I’ve thought of the perfect place for us to be together. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.” He took her hand in his and gently stroked the back of it with his thumb. Even that small caress drew a trembling breath from Megan. She was definitely on edge from the events of earlier in the day, and, she admitted to herself, eager to be alone with Ian.

  As Ian returned his attention to the road, Megan took the opportunity to surreptitiously examine him. Even in profile, his face was gorgeous, and his features were strong and in perfect proportion. She also knew, even though his attention appeared to be on the road ahead, he was conscious of her sitting beside him. He never stopped his thumb from gently caressing her hand, offering comfort. How could I have doubted him? There is no way this man works for O’Reilly. He is too good and too honorable to even think about compromising his morals for money—or anything else for that matter. I definitely need to talk to Stephen and convince him how wrong he is about Ian.

  Megan suddenly realized her father and Stephen would probably be waiting up for her and would be quite upset if she didn’t return from their day trip to Brighton until the next day. She needed to let them know where she would be and that she was all right.

  She took out her cell phone and started to text her father, but she then hesitated and sent a message to Thomas instead, letting him know that she and Ian had decided to spend the night in Brighton and would return to his house the next day. Hitting send, she hoped Thomas would relay the message to her father without giving him the impression she was asking permission to spend the night with Ian. She was a grown woman and would not let her father dictate her private life. When Thomas returned her message with a simple OK and a smiley face emoji, Megan sighed with relief. She had fulfilled her obligation. She would wait until she saw them tomorrow to tell them what had happened at the pub.

  They arrived at the bed and breakfast just as night fell. The windows were lit with a warm, welcoming light. Ian quickly checked them in with a friendly-looking middle-aged man, who was clearly the owner, as Megan paced with restrained energy. Still cautious about the potential for danger, Ian checked them in under a false name.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Abercrombie?” Megan whispered.

  Ian grinned as he whispered, “Just in case anyone might be looking for Ian Stafford and Megan Brady, I thought I’d confuse them a bit.”

  She nodded in understanding and shared a smile with him. The gentleman proprietor showed them to their room. As soon as the man left, and the door was shut and locked, Ian pulled Megan roughly into his arms and allowed himself to kiss her without restraint. Megan returned his passion in equal measure.

  It didn’t take long for Ian to start reaching for the hem of Megan’s dress, pulling it rapidly over her head as she stretched her arms to the sky. In turn, Megan pulled Ian’s polo shirt over his head, running her hands over his solid muscular chest and shoulders. Ian then reached around Megan to unhook her bra, which fell easily to the floor at their feet. Ian cupped her breasts in his hands, running his thumbs over the light pink, pebbled nipples and covering them with his mouth to gently suckle.

  Megan gasped with pleasure as her hands found the fastening of Ian’s belt and slacks, unbuttoning and unzipping them away from his prominent erection. She then assisted him in lowering his boxer briefs, freeing his long, thick, and very hard cock. Ian kicked them away and moaned as Megan stroked his hard length, marveling at the contrast of soft skin over rock hard member.

  Ian returned to Megan’s mouth to continue their kiss, and then reached down and slid Megan’s very practical, but, to Ian at that moment, extremely sexy, cotton panties down her legs. She stepped out of them and whimpered with restrained pleasure as Ian used his fingers to stroke her warm, wet folds. When he found her very sensitive nub, she moaned with pleasure as her legs nearly buckled. Ian then picked her up in his arms and carried her to the bed.

  Ian dropped Megan roughly on the bed and quickly fell next to her. He knew he should be patient, but he had almost lost her today, and every fiber of his being was clamoring at him to claim this woman and make her his as soon as possible. Fighting the kidnappers and saving Megan had also left them both on edge and in need of release.

  As Megan lay on her back, Ian tried to rein in his desire to take her right then and there. He had no idea if she was ready for him, and the last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. He took a deep breath and forced himself to take his time. He slowly stroked her body, learning every nook and cranny and every place on her body that stoked her arousal.

  Megan had been on the edge of release since Ian had started kissing her back at the car. Ian’s attentions in the car on the way to this place had only compounded her excitement. Now, when she finally had Ian’s magnificent body naked with her in bed, his touches served to inflame her even more. She writhed in frustration at Ian’s attempt to delay their joining. Megan was quickly losing patience.

  “Ian, please, I’m not going to break. I want you now,” she urged.

  Megan’s demand was all Ian needed to hear. First, he quickly left the bed to rummage through his pants pockets to find one of the co
ndoms he had purchased while Megan was distracted by shopping in Brighton. He opened the foil package with his teeth and rolled the condom on. He moved over Megan and positioned his cock at her entrance. As he slowly pushed in, he could feel she was hot and extremely wet, and knowing she was as ready for him as she would ever be, he didn’t hesitate any further. He surged into her welcoming channel and moaned with pleasure as she gloved him in her velvety heat.

  Megan had never been with a man as large as Ian, and she moaned at the sensation of him filling her completely.

  “Are you all right, love?” Ian knew it might take some time for her to adjust to his size and looked to Megan for reassurance.

  “I’m fine, Ian,” Megan replied, tilting her hips slightly to take him in even more, “please don’t stop.”

  That was all Ian needed to hear. He slowly started moving, pulling almost completely out and then sinking deeply into her with a rhythm Megan soon picked up. She met his thrusts, and he could feel the tension build as he increased the tempo of their lovemaking.

  Ian could feel Megan’s channel tighten around him and knew she was nearing climax. He also realized that his own climax was close. Not wanting this feeling to end quite so soon, he mentally did everything in his power to delay his release, and he lowered his head to suckle Megan’s nipples while increasing the tempo of his deep thrusts even more. The combination was enough to push Megan over the edge, and he quickly covered her mouth with his as she screamed her release. He could feel her internal muscles massaging his cock and knew he couldn’t hold back much longer. The feeling was just too good. He didn’t wait long before letting go. He groaned in relief as he came, emptying himself completely until he was weak from the effort.

  Ian collapsed at Megan’s side and drew her into his arms. Both were hot, sweaty, and panting with exertion. Ian noticed that despite the fact that Megan’s face was flushed, she was looking at him in awe and had a big smile on her face. He smiled to himself. Thankfully, she had enjoyed this as much as he had.

  “All I can say is ‘Wow!’” Megan said, unabashedly. “I don’t have the words to express how extraordinary it was. Thank you.”

  “The pleasure was mine,” Ian assured her as he pushed a lock of hair away from her face. And he was right. This was his first sexual encounter since returning from Afghanistan. Surprisingly, he also realized that sex with Megan had been different from his previous sexual experiences. Until now, he had no desire to be with a woman beyond the occasional chance encounter. Even when he did go out before Neil’s death, he really hadn’t cared to spend any time with the anonymous women he slept with. Now, he had no desire to leave Megan. In fact, he was starting to feel as though he had to keep her in his life for the foreseeable future. This realization surprised him a great deal.

  Ian pressed a kiss to her temple and extricated himself from her long enough to go to the bathroom and dispose of the condom. Once that was done, he fell back into bed and drew her into his arms. She snuggled against him and threw an arm across his chest, absently running her fingers through the blond hair furring there. It wasn’t long before they both fell into a deep, exhausted sleep.

  ~ ~ ~

  The midday sun beat down on him and the rest of his team, and the dust swirling around them made it difficult to breathe. Ian scanned the surrounding countryside, focusing on the small village directly in front of them. His senses were on high alert. Something felt wrong. The village was strangely quiet—no children playing in the streets and no adults moving about doing their everyday chores. Before he could signal his suspicions to the team leader, a shot rang out, and the U.S. Navy SEAL next to him collapsed to the ground—a bullet to the throat killing him instantly.

  “Sniper!” Ian yelled. “Take cover!”

  The team scrambled for safety and several shots peppered the ground around them with bullets. It appeared there were now multiple shooters. Time to call in back-up. Ian located his radio transmitter and called the base to send in air support. In what was probably minutes, but seemed like hours, an Apache attack helicopter arrived, located the snipers’ nest, and fired, obliterating it. The chopper stayed momentarily to survey the area for any other threats and, seeing none, returned to base.

  Still, although it appeared safe, Ian knew there was no guarantee the snipers had all been eliminated. He was about to urge the team to take its time regrouping when his best friend, Neil, emerged from cover and sauntered boldly into the main street.

  “Neil! Get down!” Ian shouted. What was wrong with the man? How many times had he told him not to expose himself until all hostiles were accounted for? He started to move to tackle Neil himself when a shot rang out, and Neil hit the ground—blood pouring from his neck. Ian reached him quickly, but it was too late.

  “Neil! No!” Ian cried out and sat up in the bed. His eyes were wide but unseeing, and he was panting and wet with sweat, as if he had been running at full speed, but he was still heavily under the influence of his subconscious.

  His shout awakened Megan, who watched with concern as Ian suffered through what was obviously a nightmare stemming from his time in combat. He was still asleep, but she was unsure what to do. She couldn’t just watch him suffer. She had to do something to take his pain away. She decided to try to awaken him and comfort him—to let him know there was someone there who cared and bring him back to reality. She grasped his shoulders firmly and shook him in an attempt to wake him from the dream.

  Ian felt the arms holding him and instantly reacted. His mind still in Afghanistan, he perceived the embrace as an enemy attempting to subdue and kill him. He turned, broke the enemy’s hold and wrapped his hands around the bastard’s throat, slowly squeezing the life from the man obviously in league with the snipers who had just killed his friend. But something wasn’t right. His senses were telling him his assumption was incorrect. The throat he was gripping was slim and delicate, not compatible with a male insurgent. Then he heard a soft, very feminine voice choke out his name, “Ian, Ian, please wake up.”

  The incongruity of the situation pricked his consciousness, and Ian came into awareness in time to find that he had his hands around Megan’s neck and was choking her. The look in her eyes was one of pure terror, and she was clutching at his hands in a vain attempt to break his grip.

  Horrified, Ian released his hold on Megan as if she were on fire and moved quickly away. Seeing her struggling to breathe, he returned to her, massaging her back and lifting her up to a sitting position to help her take in more air. He placed his mouth over hers and gently exhaled. When he saw her lungs expand and color return to her face, he collapsed in relief.

  Megan coughed and fought for air as she slowly regained her senses. Thank God Ian had finally come back to reality, or she might be dead. It was certainly a sobering thought. She understood on a visceral level, however, that Ian had never meant to hurt her. He had clearly been fighting an enemy that had seemed very real in his dream state. She tentatively traced her fingers over her neck and realized from the residual pain she was feeling, she would probably have bruises circling her neck by morning.

  Ian, having watched Megan’s color slowly return, fought the urge to reach for her and take in his arms. He had a feeling his embrace was the last thing Megan wanted right now. Instead, Ian left the bed, found his briefs, put them on, and then walked to the other end of the room where he sat on the floor with his back braced against the wall. He drew up his knees, crossed his arms, and placed them across his knees. He rested his forehead on top of his crossed arms.

  Staring at the ground, he replayed in his mind what had happened. You bloody fool! This is why you can’t ever be in a relationship. You could have killed Megan, the woman you just made love to. The only thing that stopped you was your damned intuition that something didn’t fit and her panicked voice finally breaking through. If you know what’s good for her, you’ll let her go, so she can find
someone who will cherish her and not threaten her life. You’re broken and will never be the same.

  Ian knew he had no choice but to end whatever had been developing between him and Megan. As long as he was suffering from the nightmares and residual flashbacks caused by his PTSD, he was a danger to her. If he had any doubts, tonight proved it.

  Megan watched with dismay as Ian not only physically but mentally closed himself off from her. She knew if she didn’t do or say something to reassure him, she would lose him, and her heart ached at the thought of not having this man in her life. “Ian.” Megan’s voice was hoarse as she tried to get his attention. “Ian, I’m OK. Please talk to me. Tell me what’s going on. Why did you attack me? Who is Neil?”

  Ian sighed in resignation. There was no way now he could avoid telling Megan everything about his experience in Afghanistan—especially about that fateful day when Neil was killed. He owed that to her at the very least.

  Megan patted the bed next to her and motioned for him to join her there. He hesitantly assented but resisted the urge to reach out to her. He was still reeling from the knowledge he had nearly ended her life. She looked directly into his eyes with an expression of compassion, and he was moved by her faith in him even after what had just happened. She focused her attention completely on him and waited.

  He began with a brief description of his work with the SAS—military service for the Crown for which he had always been, and always would be, very proud. He was convinced that the missions he and his team had taken on and completed successfully had made a difference and saved soldiers’ lives. He couldn’t provide exact details, but what he did tell her gave her a clear indication of how dangerous his job had been and how much he had loved what he did.