Bronco_A Contemporary Cowboy Romance

by H. P. Mallory

  “Should I stop?” I asked, suddenly flushing from my toes to my cheeks. Had I seriously misread her that badly?

  She paused for a moment. “Do you want to stop?”

  I laughed. “No,” I said. “The view out here is very good and, I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t help myself.”

  There was another long pause. Then Summer did something that surprised the hell out of me. She peeked her head out of the shower curtain and began to watch me stroke myself.

  “Wow,” she said. My boxers were now around my ankles and I was stroking myself with my left hand, all the while staring at Summer as she stared right back at me. Her eyes were wide and fixed on my dick. Almost like she’d never seen a man naked and erect before.

  “You’re… you’re enormous!” she said in shock. Her eyes met mine and then she stared at my Johnson again. I loved it that she seemed so in awe of me. Yes, I knew I had a huge penis. I’d heard that my whole adult life but there was something about the way she looked at it that was different. There was an innocence in her expression that I’d never witnessed on another woman before.

  Even though I’d had my fair share of erotic experiences, this was turning out to be one of the hotter ones. And that was something that struck me as odd considering I hadn’t even touched Summer and she hadn’t touched me.

  I continued to stroke myself while she watched. I was so hard I couldn’t think straight. I just wasn’t sure what I should do—continue doing what I was doing? Go over to her and kiss her? Grab her and bend her over the bed? Remember what Brady had warned and run the hell out of there? Yeah, there was no way that was going to happen.

  God, all I could think about was gripping her tiny waist in my hands and then bending her over so I could take in all of that wide ass.

  I stepped toward her in a calm, smooth motion so as to not startle her, all the while stroking my Johnson and imagining what it would feel like to push into her depths. I looked into her eyes as if to say, ‘kiss me if you dare.’

  She responded by gulping down what appeared to be anxiety as she then just stared at me with wide eyes. Her eyes followed every line of my body, starting from my eyes, down my chest, my biceps and then her gaze settled on me erection. It was as though she couldn’t pull her gaze away from it.

  “Are you okay?” I asked, suddenly feeling afraid that I was moving too quickly, that I was scaring her. That was the last thing I wanted to do.

  “Yes,” she answered on a breath as she continued to stare at me.

  “I can leave,” I offered as I continued to touch myself and she continued to stare at me.

  “No,” she said almost immediately and then pulled open the shower curtain and displayed her gorgeous body from head to toe. And she was exactly that. Her breasts were heavy and milky white with those tiny aureoles. And the hair between her legs was cut short, making a perfect triangle above her lips.

  “You’re stunning,” I said as I forced my eyes back up to hers. She looked a tad startled at her own boldness but whatever was going through her head wasn’t stopping her. She reached out and grabbed me by my shoulders, need burning deep in her eyes.

  “I want you, Jake,” she whispered. “I…” she said the words but it didn’t seem that she fully registered them. She just seemed innocent somehow, skittish even.

  “Hold on, sweetie,” I said as I kicked off my shoes and then yanked off my socks, boxers and pants in record time. I stepped into the shower, feeling the hot water pour down on my shoulders. I pulled Summer’s body close to mine and thrilled over the feel of her in my arms, her soft skin against mine. I pressed her slick, wet body up against the back of the shower while the hot water fell on both of us. And then I kissed her. Her lips were soft and full. Her tongue was shy but eager. She kissed me all over my face and mouth with an excitement and anticipation I’d never witnessed before. As I pulled away from her and looked down at her, I realized that she was completely ready to go, dying for it, for me.

  My hard length was pressed up against her luscious body, so big I half wondered if she could take it. But I wasn’t going to do anything down below until she gave me the sign. I needed her to touch me first. I wanted her to touch me first—to show me that she wanted me, that she wanted to be taken.

  She leaned up on her tiptoes and kissed me again as I waited for her to touch my aching shaft. As if channeling my thoughts, she reached down and fingered me tenderly, shyly even. I kissed her harder to let her know I approved as she reached down and enclosed my straining Johnson with her hand, stroking it in a gentle motion. I threw my head back and moaned as I clenched my eyes shut tight. She continued to rub me up and down, her grip tight and perfect. I slowly reached down as I opened my eyes and stared into her wide ones. I let my fingers trace up her thigh as she continued to stroke me. I touched her inner thigh and moved my hand upward, needing to feel her.

  I was going for one thing only and when I felt the base of her swollen nub, I got even harder. She moaned and the sound was like music to my ears. Her sensitive nub was rigid with excitement and I rubbed it in circular motions, forcing myself to go slowly even though I wanted to bury my fingers deep inside her. I began sliding my fingers up and down her tight opening all while rolling my thumb over her nub. Summer’s eyes rolled back as I rubbed her faster and harder. Moans began to drip off her lips.

  She let go of me as the sensation proved too much for her, but she continued to passionately kiss me and moan while I continued to rub her, loving the mastery I had over her body. Suddenly, she stiffened and grabbed my hands with both of hers as her eyes went wide.

  “We need to stop,” she breathed out.

  Disappointed, I still did what I was told. When a woman said no, that was it in my books. I wouldn’t push. It wasn’t in me. “Let me make you orgasm,” I said as I looked down at her. “You don’t have to touch me but I want to do that for you.”

  She immediately shook her head. “No,” she said as she took a deep breath and stepped away from me. “I should never have started this.” She exhaled deeply. “I’m… I’m sorry.”

  I immediately stepped out of the shower because the last thing I wanted was for her to feel guilty about this. I glanced down and found I was still hard as a rock. Grabbing a towel, I covered myself and realized I’d need to take care of myself as quickly as I could so I didn’t get blue balls.

  “Don’t beat yourself up about this, please,” I started.

  “I’m sorry, Jake,” she said as she turned off the water and then just stood there, covering herself with the shower curtain.

  “Don’t be sorry,” I answered as I pulled on my boxers and then my pants. I wanted to give her privacy so I hurried into the other room to put on my shirt and my shoes. “If you want to talk to me, I’m here.”

  “Thank you,” she said but she sounded sad.

  “I’m going to go,” I called out. “But please remember what I said.”

  I never heard her response.

  Chapter Nine

  Summer

  I didn’t want to feel this way but I couldn’t believe what I’d just done—what I’d almost just done. I’d basically invited Jake into the shower with me and we’d very nearly had sex. I’d nearly just lost my virginity to someone I barely knew! After all the promises I’d made myself to avoid men and relationships! After everything I’d been through, how in the world had I nearly lost my virginity to Jake? What the hell was wrong with me?

  I had no desire to go after this guy. I didn’t. I knew that if something happened between us, he’d soon discover how truly messed up I was, and that would be that. Well, if he even bothered to find out how truly messed up I was. It was probably more realistic to say that once we had sex, he probably wouldn’t have much more to do with me. That’s what men like him did—they played women and were interested right until the point they got a woman in bed and then, boom, their interest vanished. And there was no way in hell that I was going to allow myself to become that sort of statistic.

 
But that shouldn’t even be a thought in your head right now! I berated myself. You have an interview to get ready for and you should be focused on that not on sex with Jake!

  And then I remembered who would be driving me there and I felt my heart drop all over again. God, what had I been thinking by basically inviting him into the shower with me? Where had the cool and levelheaded me gone? The one who had a plan laid out for her and one that didn’t include blue-eyed men with the devil’s smile?

  Focus on your interview, Summer! I yelled at myself. That’s the only thing you should be thinking about right now! Not Jake or his enormous…

  Looking at my clothes bunched together in the tiny closet, I didn’t know what to wear. I had plenty of clothes. Most of them with designer labels on them, which now kind of embarrassed me. I used to think that having a Tory Burch belt, or a pair of Chanel sunglasses, or a Kate Spade bag meant I was something or somebody. And yet that was so far from reality for me now. It just seemed stupid. An image of my dad flashed through my mind and I pushed it aside. I didn’t want to think about him right now.

  I picked out a plain, white, quarter-sleeve blouse and a clean pair of jeans. I wondered though if maybe it was a little too casual for a job interview. So, I decided on a simple black pencil skirt and a pair of low-slung heeled sandals. I dried my hair, put on a bit of makeup and I was out the door. As I closed it behind me, my heart started to beat a little faster.

  Jake was waiting out front, tossing a ball for Bob who was running back and forth, looking happy. As soon as I saw him, my stomach sunk. Images of him touching me returned anew and I felt my cheeks heat up. What had I been thinking, leaving the shower curtain open? And as soon as I’d noticed him noticing me, I should have stopped it right there. And yet, I’d perpetuated the whole thing. I’d led him on. I’d wanted him to do what he had. God, what had gotten into me? And what was it about this guy? Besides his good looks, charm, and the fact that he adored his dog?

  He smiled as I stood at the bottom of the porch. “Ready?” he asked, acting completely nonplussed, like what had just happened between us had never really happened.

  “I think so.”

  “You look ready. You look, uh…”

  I felt my face go red as I glanced down at myself. Was there something wrong with the way I was dressed? “Is this okay?” I smoothed my hands over the top of my thighs. I was just so completely out of my element here. I didn’t know how to dress, what to say, what to think, how to act. I felt like a total fish out of water.

  “I think it’s great,” he answered and seemed like he was at a loss for words, a role I had yet to see him in. He cleared his throat as his attention settled on something in the distance behind me. “I think you look great.”

  I turned around to see Brady walking toward us. “What’s going on?”

  “I was just taking Summer into town so she can talk to Sharon, and Rue asked me to grab some things at the store,” Jake answered quickly. A little too quickly—like he was heading off an argument or over-explaining something.

  Brady nodded. “I see.”

  I couldn’t help but notice that Brady was eyeing Jake and if I wasn’t mistaken, it was with suspicion. On top of that, Jake seemed a little anxious.

  “Well, you two better get going,” Brady said as he watched Jake narrowly. “Just remember what I told you.”

  “It’s stuck up here, in stone,” Jake replied as he pointed to his head. “Come on, Bob, Summer.”

  I followed him to his truck. We climbed in and I had to ask. “Everything okay between you and Brady?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did he mean when he told you to remember what he told you?”

  Jake sighed heavily and turned down the dirt drive that led to the road. “Everything is fine.”

  “Didn’t seem fine.”

  “It’s fine,” he repeated curtly, then turned on the radio. I took that as a cue that he didn’t want to talk. I turned and stared out the window, wondering if what we’d done in the shower was going to come back to haunt me. And then I wondered if it was already haunting him.

  ***

  We drove through town and if I hadn’t known better, I would have thought I’d been thrown back in time, or was in some Twilight Zone-type warp. Everything just looked so… old. Like ghost town old, but with people. Well, a ghost town with a modern grocery store plopped right in the center.

  Jake hadn’t said a whole lot on the drive in but just faced forward like he was wholly consumed by his thoughts. He pointed out a few things, like the grocery store, the laundromat, a house the locals claimed was haunted, but that was about it. He’d definitely lost his earlier fervor he’d had when he’d offered to take me into town. My gut said that his sudden quiet had something to do with Brady’s comment, which had me curious, of course. But since Jake seemed genuinely irritated since we’d left the ranch, I figured I’d better just leave it alone for now. I had to wonder, of course, if it had something to do with Brady making Jake promise he’d leave me alone.

  “Here we are,” he said, pulling up to a rectangular building which looked like a train caboose since it was so narrow and long. It had a row of large windows and I could see patrons sitting inside. The outside of the building didn’t look very special, it was a plain old beige color with a big sign on top in bright red bold letters that read Sharon’s Place.

  “See you in about an hour.”

  “Okay,” I climbed out of the truck and started to shut the door. “Thanks, Jake.”

  “You’re welcome,” he fired back immediately. I smiled at him and then turned to leave. “Hey, Summer,” he started as I turned back to face him. He took a deep breath and forced a smile.

  “Yeah?”

  “You’ll do great. And, for the record, you look beautiful, Posh.”

  “Thank you,” I replied quietly, a little in shock. Two seconds ago, he refused to talk to me and now it seemed he was flirting with me. Jake was an enigma, that was for sure. And he was an enigma that I couldn’t bother myself with at the moment.

  I shut the door and turned around to face the restaurant. Then I took a deep breath and walked through the front doors and into the diner.

  The golden strains of a jukebox and the smell of comfort food mingled together and winded around me, drawing me inside. I smiled easily as a tall Reba McIntyre look-alike grinned from a table a few feet away from the door.

  “Hi, ladybug. Be right with you.”

  While she loaded her arms with plates and empty dishes, she chatted up the occupants of the nearby tables and I tried to shake off my nervousness so I could at least pretend to have the skills for waitressing. This woman seemed like a natural. She breezed past me with a wide grin and inclined her head toward the back.

  “You must be Summer?” she asked and I nodded. “Come on over here.”

  I followed her and was more than a little intimidated that she knew every single person at all of the tables we passed.

  I will never be this good at this job, I thought to myself as I fought the panic surging up my throat. I’m not outgoing enough, friendly enough. I’d never been good at any job because I’d never had one.

  Stop thinking like that! I admonished myself. The only way you’re going to become good at anything is with practice.

  She stowed the dirty dishes in the back and wiped her hands on her apron. “Now that I put those down, I can give you a proper introduction,” she said with a wide grin. “I’m Sharon and I’m really glad you could make it. Thank you.”

  I smiled and held out my hand. She grabbed it between both of hers and squeezed it with a big smile. “I’m Summer and thank you for the opportunity,” I said, feeling immediately relieved because there was something about her that just spoke to her friendliness and good nature.

  “So, this is a pretty standard evening crowd for us,” she continued as she glanced around the place, looking proud. “We’re the closest restaurant for a lot of the ranchers, so most everyone you see is a regul
ar.” She looked over my shoulder and waved energetically to a couple leaving. “G’nite, y’all. Tank, you better let me know when the girls are having their recital.” The man—Tank, I assumed—nodded and laughed as he held the door open for his lady friend.

  “Good people.” She smiled at me and seemed to read my insecurity because she patted my hand encouragingly. “Brady said you were from back east.” She moved behind the short bar and filled two water glasses with soda and set one on the bar a few feet away from her and the other one in front of me. “Have a seat,” she said.

  “Yes, I’m from Connecticut.” I slipped onto the stool and sipped the soda. “I’ll be here at least until fall.”

  “Great.” She leaned her elbows on the bar and leaned in close. “We can definitely use the help. Brady will probably keep you busy on the weekends so you’ll miss out on those big tip days, but you’ll still be able to make money during the weeknights and whatever weekend nights you can.”

  “So that’s it?” I asked, confused.

  “What’s it, bug?” she asked, equally lost.

  “I’m hired?” I asked as I frowned and wondered how that could be. “I mean, aren’t you going to interview me or something?”

  She threw her head back and laughed. “I don’t need to interview you to know you’ve never done a day of waitressing in your life. But it’s okay, bug. I can tell you’re a good soul and that goes far around here.”

  “Oh,” I answered, surprised. “Thank you.” Then I took a big breath as excitement surged through me. “When can I start?”

  “Whenever Brady can give you up,” she answered with a laugh. “I’ll have you trained up in a flash.” She winked. “Waitressing is all about the flirt, and you look like you’ve done your share of that.”

  I laughed even though it was as far from the truth as it was possible to be. “I can be friendly.”