The Lovin’ Is Easy (Triple Diamond Book 1)

by Gemma Snow

  His cock surged in response to her shuddering, her body hot and tight and so sexy he might finish right then and there. Instead, he stood, caressing her still trembling body until her breathing slowed and her gaze came back into focus.

  “I think you might have just killed me,” she whispered on a laugh. “Jesus, that was incredible.”

  “Ryder will do just fine,” he said, unable to stop his cocky grin from spreading. Maddy gave him an amused look, her face still satisfied and, oh, so delicious.

  “Will he now?” she teased him with one raised eyebrow. She brought her hands around his waist. “Why don’t you prove it?”

  And with that, Ryder was on her, kissing her like a man possessed, her lips, her neck, the swelling curves of her breasts. He undid his jeans, yanked a condom out of his back pocket and pulled it on in what must have been record time. Fisting his cock in his hand, he groaned into her ear.

  “Are you ready for me, sugar?” Her soft mewl in response was delicious and so fucking tempting.

  “Please,” she begged, with just enough innocence in her voice to make him want to pump deep inside her.

  He nipped at her ear. “Please what?”

  She didn’t pretend not to understand. “Please fuck me,” she groaned. “I want your cock. Now, Ryder, please?”

  How can a man resist a request like that? Ryder lined his cock up to her pussy and pressed inside. Her walls clutched hot around him. God, she was so tight he felt crazed and heated and needy all at once.

  “Gotta move, baby,” he said. “Please.” Now it was him begging, for release, for anything that might relieve some of the insane pressure mounting within him.

  “Oh, God, move. Please move,” Maddy begged, clenching her pussy and making Ryder’s whole body burn. Which was when he did move, pulling out slowly then burying his cock deep, the thrusts growing harder and faster. He started losing control, giving over to the sheer carnality of fucking and filling and taking her hard and fast, over and over.

  Maddy grasped at the wall behind her, eyes glazing over, breath coming in short, desperate pants, her breasts bouncing and pressing against him.

  “More, more, more.” She broke on the last, coming apart against her evident pleasure and screaming his name. Her tight cunt squeezed his cock so hard that Ryder’s control spiraled out from under him and he burst free, pumping and riding his release as he spilled jet after jet of hot cum into the condom, emptying his full balls into the sexiest woman he’d ever fucking met.

  “You’re so good at that.” Her tone was a little husky and a lot rough, and he liked knowing he was the one who had made her sound like that.

  “Team effort,” he said, nipping at her neck. He tossed the condom into the trash and slid his zipper closed. “You make me crazy, Maddy. Totally unhinged.”

  She smiled a dangerous kind of smile. Then she pushed off the wall and walked toward the door. “Good,” she said. Then she slipped out of sight.

  Chapter Nine

  “I don’t know, Lils, life is so much slower out here. I have to say, it’s kind of nice.” Madison pressed the phone between her ear and shoulder, pulling clothes out of her suitcase as she caught her cousin up on everything that had happened over the past few days. Well, not everything. The men—not her men, just the men—would be coming back in from work pretty soon and she wanted to chat with Lily before she got distracted. Again.

  “Well, obviously I don’t want you to go anywhere,” Lily said, the busy sounds of her downtown San Francisco flower shop coming over the line. “But if you do decide to ride this one for a while, I’m in full support. You work too hard, Mads. Daniels and Hark works you too hard. I keep telling you that.”

  Madison sighed, somehow not responding to the inadvertent ride this one. Was she cracked to consider staying there, even for the smallest amount of time? Hell, if the initial sales estimate was anywhere near correct in its valuation of Triple Diamond, she wouldn’t need to work another day for three reincarnations, let alone eighty hours a week. It was tempting, even if she couldn’t quite figure out if it was the ranch and open skies that was pulling her east of California, or something else entirely.

  Maybe those two hot cowboys wormed their way into my mind more than I want to admit. No, that’d be crazy. She’d only arrived a few days ago but found herself thinking about them in spare moments between paperwork for the bank and remote work for her job. And more than just her spare moments, too. Fine, almost all her moments. Except it was just about sex—nothing else whatsoever—like the security she had taken in waking in Christian’s arms, or the way Ryder had opened up to her in the barn, made her feel comfortable enough to open up to him.

  Yeah, not thinking about any of that at all. Right.

  “God damn it,” Lillian said, her light and airy tone a stark contrast to the curse, and it snapped Madison back to reality.

  “What’s up, Lils?” she asked. She found a black teddy at the bottom of her bag and held it up in front of her body before the mirror, then she tossed it on the bed and dug around for the black pumps she knew were in there somewhere. Maybe after dinner she’d surprise Ryder and Christian with some of her sexier stuff. Lucy jumped up from her spot on the floor in the sun and settled right down in the middle of Madison’s expensive French lingerie. Furry little shit.

  “Just work,” Lillian said. “I have a wildflower-themed wedding coming up and my order of arnica Montana flowers froze en route. It’s super in this season and a real pain in the ass to get my hands on.”

  Madison twisted her lips. “Montana?” she asked. “What does it look like?” She peered out of the window at the vast expanse of farmland and mountain ranges. Christian had told her a little about the commercial agriculture but she didn’t know anything about the wildflowers growing just past the edge of the Triple Diamond irrigation systems.

  “It looks like a wild flower,” Lillian grumbled. “Your basic yellow wildflower. It’s pretty but I am so not a fan right now.”

  “Hmm, maybe I can convince the guys to grow you some,” Madison considered out loud. The sudden silence on the phone was loud as hell and she swore she could hear Lily raise her eyebrow.

  “The guys?” she asked, “Madison…”

  “Nothing,” Madison cut in, far too quickly to alleviate any curiosity—Lils was a shark when it came to these things. Better to quit while she was ahead. “It’s nothing. But think about it. I’ll run away from my big city job and become your wholesale flower exporter. It’ll be a family business!” She didn’t tack on the having the world’s hottest sex with the world’s hottest cowboys every night addendum. That, she was saving for herself.

  “It does sound nice,” Lillian replied. “Maybe don’t be so quick to write off making a change. And I’m not just saying that because I’d love to have you as my wholesaler.”

  Madison had meant it as a joke. She really had. But the idea—the fantasy—was a little sticky now, like it wasn’t quite letting go. Her mind swam with planning. Just for fun. Finding bakeries for the cakes, decorators and tent supplies, florists, musicians and caterers…

  “I won’t write it off completely,” she said, feeling a little odd in the face of her excitement at the prospect. There was a knock at the door and Madison looked up, before adding, “But I have to go, work to do and all. I’ll call you if I find the flowers you need, all right?”

  “Sounds good,” Lillian said, her tone far too knowing for Madison’s liking. Could she tell over the phone that Madison was contemplating the massive upheaval of her life? More like Madison was just being paranoid, given just how insane the whole idea of it was. “I love you, Mads. Whatever choice you make, I’ll support you.”

  “Love you, too, Lils,” Madison replied, also reverting back to their childhood nicknames before they both clicked off. The last time she’d had a nickname, she and Lillian had been kids. Until now. Until this weekend and her two hunka-hunka cowboys who had been occupying her every thought.

  Mmm, I’m gettin
g used to being called Maddy.

  Shut up, Madison.

  It was a little scary and a little exciting all at once. Because she liked the independence the Triple Diamond Ranch provided, liked knowing she was now the one in charge of the decision to stay or leave her job. Hell, how much would she miss San Fran, in truth? Lily and her parents, who had adopted her after the car crash, were all still in Cali. But Madison didn’t love her job and didn’t have any sort of social life because of it and since things with Joshua had all gone so tits up… Hmm, maybe sticking around is something worth considering.

  Another knock sounded and she called out. Ryder opened the door, a sexy, lazy smile on his face, and it made Madison feel calmer, somehow, safe and comforted. Maybe she’d bring up staying with him and Christian, just to see what they thought of the idea. For some reason, it really mattered what they thought.

  “What’s up?” she asked, trying to shake the cobwebs of confusion and doubt from her mind. His grin only widened.

  “Get your stuff, sugar. We’re going camping.”

  Madison blinked into the doorway, where Ryder stood with a small bag slung over one shoulder and a devilish grin on his face. He knew just what she thought about camping and there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that he was enjoying teasing her.

  “What?” The word held all of her incredulity and distaste, and Madison tossed her phone on the bed. Lily would have laughed her ass off at the idea of all-grown-up Madison camping. Maybe she should go, just to prove she could.

  “You heard me,” Ryder said. God, he was just so big and she felt so tiny in comparison to his broad chest and the obvious strength of his shoulders and arms. Camping. With him. Dangerous territory.

  “I don’t want to go camping…” Her tone signaled a question, but it came out more as you know I don’t want to go camping, so why are you asking me?

  “I know you don’t.” He stepped into the room, which had felt large and spacious until he’d arrived. Now she felt like she couldn’t breathe, squeezed into the space with a hot cowboy who made her want to lick everywhere. “But there are two reasons why you should. One, it’s a full moon tonight and it’s nothing like you’ve ever seen before, up in the mountains.” He paused and wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her closer to him, making Madison forget just why she should be saying no to this, instead of begging to sign up.

  “And two, if you come with us, we’ll fuck you so hard under the stars you’ll think you’re in outer space.”

  Her breath hitched. It shouldn’t have. The line was stupid and the bribery obvious. But her desire for both of these men had grown nothing but stronger in the few days they’d been sleeping together, as had her sexual curiosity.

  You’re allowed to want this, Madison. There is nothing wrong with taking what you want.

  “I don’t have a sleeping bag.” Her voice came out squeaky and Ryder’s eyes clouded over with a hint of desire. She liked it, liked inspiring a reaction in this unflappable man, even as he stood before her, so powerful and strong and capable. Having been accustomed to being the one in control, Madison enjoyed using it for something other than work or responsibilities. Though they were the ones dominating her—her body and her mind—she had just as much power and ability to control them, if she worked it right.

  “Not that we’re planning on doing much sleeping,” Ryder said on a growl, “but we’ve got extras. Now, grab what you need and come meet us downstairs in five minutes.”

  Madison winced. She hadn’t even packed for a trip to the dentist in five minutes, let alone an overnight camping adventure. Ryder knew that.

  “And if I take longer?” She put her hands on her hips and tilted her head to look him in those dangerously blue eyes. “Then what?”

  He took a step closer to her, his gaze heavy and blazing, and Madison resisted the urge to step back. At the expression on his face, her nipples tightened and her pussy clenched, already throbbing in anticipation of what was to come, and, she hoped, sooner than tonight.

  “Sugar, if it takes you longer than five minutes to pack then you’re taking too much.” Another step forward. “And as for that mouth of yours, I’ve got a few ideas for dealing with that.” He wrapped his hand around her hip to keep her from getting any farther away—not that Madison really wanted to—and grinned down at her. God, his smile made her think of whipped cream and summer nights and all the different ways dessert could be interpreted.

  “Like what?”

  “Like this.” He backed her against the wall and held her arms tight over her head. Fuck, but the idea of being at his complete mercy made her hot and turned her body molten in his hands, images of silk scarves and headboards crossing her mind. Ryder bent down and devoured her mouth, using his tongue to explore her, taste her, tease her, until Madison whimpered and begged against his lips, arching into him, riding the thick bulge behind his denim.

  Then he pulled back, taking a step away from her until there was too much distance between them for her to touch him anymore.

  “Five minutes,” he said. And he was out of the door before she could call his name.

  In the end, Maddy didn’t pop her head down the stairs for fifteen minutes, but it was less than he’d been expecting. He should have known better than to tease her. After all, a mere few days on a ranch was not going to wash away the city dust. But he had seen changes in her—slight, small details that she might not have even realized, ones that showed some of the ranch life was seeping into her blood and turning her a little wild. He looked forward to seeing just how wild.

  Fifteen minutes or not, Maddy had managed to pack a duffel bag so full that he had to wonder if she’d gone out to the store and bought more stuff. She dropped it on the table and the sound of creaking wood echoed through the kitchen.

  Ryder raised an eyebrow. “How’d you fit the bathtub in a bag that size?” he asked.

  Maddy scowled. “I haven’t been camping since college,” she sniped. “I didn’t know what I’d need.”

  He eyed the zipped bag. “Not that…” He unzipped it and pulled out a pair of flip-flops and dropped them on the chair. Next, a swimsuit. Chair. Two sweaters. Chair. Chair. An extra pair of jeans. Chair. A bag of makeup.

  “Jesus, Maddy, we’re going into the woods, not doing a photo-shoot for an L.L. Bean catalog. You need a toothbrush, a sweatshirt and a water bottle.”

  She pouted and he pulled her close, enjoying the way her bottom lip jutted out, tempting and teasing him, making his cock surge. He thought about her lips around him, sucking him deep and hard. The pout turned to something else, something more wicked and dangerous when he brushed against her.

  “Won’t you keep me warm tonight?” she asked him, blinking those pretty brown eyes up at him. The sight gave his heart a strange shuddering vibration that Ryder didn’t quite know what to do with.

  “Oh, I plan on it,” he said. “Keeping you warm has become my favorite pastime.” And if he didn’t want to delve too deep into why that was, well, fuck it.

  “If you two are quite finished making sex eyes at each other,” Christian said, walking through the backdoor, “we better hit the road while we’ve still got good light.” He stopped, eyeing the enormous spread of Madison’s stuff all over the kitchen chairs. “You’re kidding, city girl.” Oh, yeah, no way was she full Montana yet.

  “Ryder’s only letting me bring three things,” she said. “So don’t worry about it. Need me to move the car so we can take the truck?” They both laughed and she sighed. “We’re hiking, aren’t we?”

  “Hence the reason you’re only allowed three things,” Ryder said. “We’ve got food packed and a charger for the phones. Modern day camping does involve communication in case of emergency.”

  “Noted.” She yanked a UCLA sweatshirt from the depths of her ever-expanding bag before walking over the fridge and grabbing her water bottle from the second self. “Am I allowed toothpaste to go with my toothbrush, or do I have to scavenge for wild mint?”

 
Ryder laughed. She was quick and he liked that, liked that she gave as well as she got, that she didn’t take anything sitting down, not even their ribbing.

  “We’ll take the toothpaste,” he said. “Come on, let’s hit the road.”

  Because it felt a little odd to talk about sharing toothpaste with her, and because the idea that the woman he’d thought to be the picture perfect city girl was weaseling her way into his life, even after just a few days, made him uncomfortable.

  Sure, he had people in his life he cared about. Christian, obviously, and Bill, who had practically adopted Ryder at sixteen. He had cared so much about Mason, too, the sting of his loss far deeper and more painful than anything he’d felt after his own father’s death. But when was the last time he’d allowed himself to care for a woman—really care for a woman? Never. Not once had he found someone who he pictured any sort of future with. And that was terrifying.

  So he grabbed his sleeping bag from the mud room, his hunting rifle—just as a precaution—and a bag of necessities, before heading outside. Right now, he needed a little fresh air to clear his head, or he would start believing the dangerous kind of things his mind kept telling him—you like her.

  Chapter Ten

  The hike wasn’t that bad, truth be told. In a former life, Madison had hiked on the weekends, driving out from UCLA to Sequoia National Park for an afternoon of swimming or exploring with her roommates. Back before work had taken over her life and her weekends, she’d enjoyed the great outdoors—in small doses, at least.

  And the stretch in her legs and fresh air on her face was only improved by the company she kept. Even in the quiet of their walk, she felt safe and comfortable around these two men in a way she hadn’t in a long time. They didn’t need to talk, not to settle into their walking ease, and she liked that, liked knowing they were there. Even after just a few days, she felt calmer and more relaxed around them than she had around Joshua in a long time.