God, she was just so drawn to him in such a primal way. She’d never, ever experienced such skin tightening awareness of another human being. Was it weird that she wanted him so desperately after only knowing him for a day? Okay, so maybe putting it that way wasn’t entirely accurate. She might have only known him physically for a single day but the letters they’d exchanged had given her an insight into who he was as a man. There was simply no denying that she liked the person she knew and was drawn to who she saw.
Taking her breakfast plate from Brody’s hands, she saw him give the man a look that suggested he back the hell up – and fast. She wanted to jump into to the air and scream Yee Haw! There was nothing like a territorial Alpha to make a girl feel all tingly inside. When he turned his bloodshot gaze on her, she melted just a little bit.
“Good morning,” he grumped. Lord, but he was cute. “C’mon over here and eat your breakfast in peace,” he told her, gesturing with his hand toward the table.
Turning his attention on the other three he sniped, “Don’t any of you have something better to do?” She almost fell down laughing at how quickly the room cleared. When Dad speaks, the kids listen.
He sat across from her pushing some scrambled eggs around his plate. Probably not a good choice for a hangover, but he put on a good show. Having him so close was making her deliciously aware of him on an almost cellular level. For some ungodly reason a scene from an old movie flashed in her mind causing her to restrain the impulse to kick off her sandals and run her foot up his leg under the table. He’d no doubt choke to death from shock if she tried.
Clearing his throat he asked, “So. You ready to get up on a horse?”
Okay—so discussing what happened last night wasn’t on the agenda. She was good with that. Maybe he regretted how things ended. They’d moved too fast and he’d gotten spooked. If she had any goddamn sense she’d be spooked too, but his powerful pull on her senses wiped out what good sense she still had.
She smirked and rolled her eyes telling him, “I have no idea if I’m ready! Guess we’ll know in a little bit, huh?”
He nodded. She sighed. A man of few words. Great.
“There’s not much opportunity to learn to ride where I’m from, but I’ve always wanted to try. Got a thing for cowboys!” she added with a silly leer that seemed to loosen him up just a tad.
“Ah. I get it now. That’s why you want to hang around for the Cowboy Festival. Didn’t make much sense at first.”
Shoveling forkfuls of flapjack into her mouth, she smiled between bites. “It’s the curse of having brothers. It was either Cowboys or GI Joe.”
He snickered at that. “I grew up around the Cowboys. Must be why I ended up a real, live GI Joe.”
“Do you ride?” she asked.
He shrugged, dropped his fork, and pushed the uneaten plate away. “I used to. Was compulsory as a kid around here. Sometimes I still get in the saddle but …”
“Mmm,” she said. “It’s hard on your leg?”
“Yeah. It’s not so much the riding as the aftermath. Pisses me the fuck off.”
“If I don’t fall on my fappy ass, will you ride with me sometime?”
The look he shot at her took her breath away.
“Meghan. Shit,” he barked. “You are not fat. I don’t care if it’s just an expression – don’t talk about yourself that way.”
There’s nothing a woman wanted to hear more than that the man she was panting after didn’t think she was a chunk. She beamed at him but needled him just a teeny bit more to see what happened.
“Alex, really. Have you seen my ass? I mean, c’mon.”
“Well, it drove me to finish off a bottle of Scotch last night so I suppose that’s your answer.”
As she cleared her plate she tried not to grin at him like a lunatic. Oh my friggin’ God, was all she could think.
After a morning holed up in his tech cave doing absolutely nothing under the ever watchful and slightly amused eyes of his assistant, Alex finally threw in the towel.
“Where ya’ off to, boss?” Tori asked as he shut down his computer and strode for the door. She had a butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth innocence to her tone that he knew damn well was a put on. He felt everyone watching him and Meghan like insects under a microscope.
Throwing her a bit of brotherly side shade, he stopped to answer her question with a sigh of resignation.
“Well, Mrs. St. John. If you must know, and clearly you do, I am going down to the stables to see if Gus has managed to teach my guest how to handle a horse without getting her kicked in the head. Or worse.”
Tori knew him well enough not to openly tease him so she adopted a businesslike expression and asked him to, “Tell Meghan I said hello.”
Exasperated, he shook his head and left the room muttering under his breath about women. Detouring his growing fascination for his houseguest with an infusion of alcohol hadn’t worked. Try as he might, even with a constant mantra that he couldn’t cross that line, all he could think about was how her lips tasted and how mouthwateringly gorgeous her ass was. He was in such deep shit that he couldn’t think straight.
Alex knew they’d have to talk about what happened in the hot tub. With every day that passed, the anniversary of the bombing that almost killed him, and did, in fact, take the life of her fiancé, got closer. He hated talking about what happened, even with Drae and Cam, but she had a right to know what went down. Maybe that was why she was here. The universe was making him face, in a very blunt way, the cost of his actions. Or non-actions as the case might be.
Being attracted to a woman who had suffered because of him seemed like the ultimate fuck you, and a punishment he hadn’t seen coming. Even though he’d already known that there would be no happily ever after for him, it still stung like a bitch that he fell so hard and so fast for the one female on the whole planet he absolutely could not pursue. And fall he most certainly had.
While he absently tapped away on the computer all morning, what he was really doing was thinking about Meghan. Actually, thinking was an understatement. He’d been flat-out fantasizing about her. The gods had a fucked up sense of humor tempting him with her. She was everything he’d ever dreamed of in a woman and then some.
The curves she kept referring to as making her fat were nothing short of jaw dropping. Add to that the face of an angel, an Irish one at that, and a personality full of wit and intelligence, and you had the ingredients for a made-to-order goddess. He felt completely at ease around her even though she made him all hot and bothered. He wondered if this was how it had been for Cam and Drae. The thought tore at his heart. They deserved their happiness. He still had a lifetime of penance to serve for the failings in his past.
The minute he walked through the house on his way to the stable, Zeus came trotting to his side. He wondered if Meghan liked dogs then quickly squashed the thought. It didn’t matter, she was only a guest. One who would eventually leave.
The big Lab must have sensed his troubled thoughts because she nosed his hand and tried to jump in front of his legs to get his attention. This dog had been a balm for his soul when he settled into the Villa and started building the Justice Agency. She was treated like a princess, one of the canine variety, a distinction she’d earned by her devotion to Alex.
When they arrived at the stable, Alex immediately spotted Meghan up on one of the American Quarter Horses - perfect for a beginning rider. The handsome mount named Sasha was trotting slowly around the riding ring with Gus standing in the middle talking horse and rider through their paces.
Meghan looked fantastic in the saddle, her gorgeous auburn curls pulled back in a sloppy ponytail, with the backside he’d been fantasizing about moving up and down, her thighs gripping the sides of the horse, and her feet planted firmly in the stirrups. She was a natural. It didn’t do any good to pretend he didn’t wonder what her thighs would feel like wrapped around his hips as he pounded into her. Trying to ignore the shit-kicking case of lust he was experi
encing was a total waste of time.
Lost in his private musings starring a naked and delectable Irish goddess he didn’t at first notice the rest of the scene before him until he heard someone shout out, “You go girl!”
A dark frown and clenched jaw later, he saw a crowd had gathered along the split rail fence to watch Meghan take her first ride. Alex knew he was being an idiot, but all he could think of was that he wanted her all to himself. Seeing other people watch her didn’t sit well with him. Especially when one of those people was Brody.
He liked the dog trainer. A lot. Jensen was one of the countless Veterans who the Agency brought on board and like so many others, Alex included, he came with a shit load of issues. In Brody’s case it was a crippling case of PTSD that almost derailed his entire life until the work he did with the canines gave him a place to focus his energies. He didn’t stay at the compound full-time; in fact he was only around from late June until mid-December and then his other life called him away.
He was a good-looking guy. One of those laidback surfer dude types on the outside—he was the complete opposite of Alex’s brawny presence. Although suddenly comparing himself to the younger man seemed a bit weird, it didn’t take a genius to figure out why. When he’d seen Brody trying to chat Meghan up at breakfast, he’d almost exploded. Morphing in to the Incredible Hulk over some polite conversation between the two had been a reaction that surprised Alex. Seeing him here though, watching her as she rode, fired up a fierce sense of possessiveness that wasn’t going to help the situation.
Zeus let out an adorable woof when she saw the K9 guru. Brody was one of the people who spoiled the dog rotten and while she didn’t leave Alex’s side, as any female would, she wanted all of her admirers to see she was there. He scratched the Lab behind her ears earning him an adoring gaze from her big brown eyes. “Not you too, girl,” he chuckled. Seemed he was doomed to fight Brody for this female too.
Hearing the dog’s bark, Jensen looked over and saw them. He quickly ambled over and gave Zeus an enthusiastic greeting, crouching down to rub the dog’s chest while lavishing praise for how pretty she was. The damn dog sat there with her tail thumping in the dirt as she stretched her neck up for more scratches. All Alex could do was sigh.
Trying not to be an unreasonable asshole but not able to stop the words that tumbled out of his mouth, Alex gritted his teeth and told him, “You gotta steal all my women, Jensen?” He’d never seen anyone move as fast as Brody did when he shot to his feet and met Alex’s glare.
“Shit, Alex. I wasn’t trying to be a prick this morning.” He looked toward the riding ring as Gus was leading Meghan and Sasha into the stable. “She’s a teacher, man. I just thought…well, actually….fuck.” He seemed genuinely pained that Alex had called him out for an innocent conversation.
Jensen was one of those silent types who didn’t talk much about his other life but he, Drae, and Cam were among a select few who knew that when he left Arizona, it was to head back east where he taught a winter semester English course to second language learners at a community college. Remembering that made Alex feel like a jerk.
Slapping Brody on the back he looked him dead in the eye and said, “Sorry man. I’m the prick. Professional courtesy. Teacher talk, right?” It was the best he could do without a full-blown apology. Jensen nodded and patted Zeus on the head one last time.
“I was just yanking your chain,” Alex added. Watching as the half-door on the stable swung shut he asked him, “How’d she do?”
Brody seemed relieved that the tense moment had passed reminding Alex that he needed to get his shit together before his attitude upset the teamwork he and his brothers had worked so hard to maintain within the agency.
“I think Sasha scared the crap out of her at first but she’s a great horse. Sweet temperament. Gentle.”
Alex threw back his head and laughed. “I was asking about Meghan, not the damn horse!”
Patting Zeus on the head he asked Brody to take her back to the house and get her settled. “I’ve got something to take care of here.”
“Gus, that was fantastic!” Meghan cried as she swung her leg over the horse and eased out of the saddle. “Can I ride her again?”
Gus smiled and laughed. “Of course you can. She likes you, I can tell.”
“Really?” Meghan asked. “I think she’s wonderful.” Rubbing her hand up and down the beautiful sorrel-colored horse’s neck, she giggled softly when Sasha‘s muzzle pushed against her face.
It was the affectionate moment between horse and rider, which Alex commented on when he strode into the barn. “Made a friend have you?” he chuckled as he came upon them.
Meghan’s head shot up at the sound of Alex’s voice and greeted him with a broad smile that wrapped neatly around his heart.
“Oh Alex! It was awesome. She’s such a sweetie. Thank you so much for letting me ride her.”
“Don’t thank me. It was old Gus over there,” he said as the horse master quietly led the quarter horse away for a good brushing and something to eat. “He knows better than anyone how to match a rider and a horse, but I’m delighted you enjoyed yourself.”
As she walked toward him she made the cutest face. “Uh oh.”
“What?” he asked.
“My butt’s sore. Or maybe it’s my thighs. I can’t quite tell yet.”
She slapped her hands on both spots to brush off some dirt and in doing so did this sexy shimmy of her hips that sucked all the oxygen out of his body. Alex struggled to stay standing while his dick got so hard, so fast he almost dropped to his knees. It didn’t help that he wanted to slowly slide her jeans down over her ass and get her naked from the waist down so he could bend her over and fuck her hard and fast. So hard that she really would be sore afterward.
Apparently, the oxygen deprivation also robbed him of coherent words. “Uh. Yeah. Um, uh - want to walk or sit down?” Jesus Christ, he sounded like a twelve-year-old struggling to talk to a pretty girl.
She looked at him as though he had half a screw loose, then shook her head like she was clearing her thoughts. “Believe it or not, I’d like to sit on something soft that doesn’t move for a little bit.”
He wanted to offer his lap but had the smarts not to be such an ass. That didn’t mean however that he didn’t have an equally great idea.
“C’mon Calamity Jane,” he said smiling as he held out his hand to her. “Let me introduce you to the comfort to be found on a bale of hay.”
She grabbed onto his hand without hesitation, causing an explosion like fireworks to fly into his shoulder when they touched. Maybe the hay bale wasn’t such a good idea if they were going to create sparks every time they came in contact. He could just imagine the whole place burning to the ground from the heat they created.
“Did you know horses don’t burp?”
“What?” he laughed good-naturedly. “Sounds like something Gus made up.”
“Oh no!” she assured him. “I looked it up on Google.”
“For real?”
She squeezed his hand and leaned closer, telling him in a serious mock whisper, “It’s a teacher thing. I Google just about everything.”
He led her to the rear of the stable, near the tack room where a stall was piled with hay bales. Grabbing a horse blanket he threw it over a two bale stack at the foot of a much higher stack and invited her to sit down. It was almost like a hay couch made just for them.
“Comfortable?” he asked her as she wiggled that majestic ass of hers until she found the perfect spot. When she was settled, she patted the empty space at her side for him to join her. He practically dove on top of her right then and there.
The minute he sat beside her she raised her legs up straight and giggled. “Look! I’ve got cowboy boots! Lacey leant them to me.”
“Very nice but you’ll need a pair of your own if you want to be a real cowgirl. There’s a place not far from here where we can go to get you properly kitted out. Boots. Hat. Gloves. You name it.”
“Thank you sooooo much, Alex. This is much better than sitting in a hotel room and watching things from the sidelines.”
He couldn’t breathe and not from the intensity of her hug. The moment she plastered herself against him he caught a whiff of her sweet scent mixed with sweat and the smell of horses, all of which blended perfectly into one huge wallop of sensory overload.
“Meghan,” he growled.
She loosened her embrace and looked at him with a question forming on her lips. “Wha…?”
He ground out an earthy swear word and grabbed her by the nape of her neck, aggressively pulling her into him as his mouth crashed onto hers.
There was nothing gentle or persuasive about this kiss. It was one hundred percent demand as he devoured her mouth, thrusting his tongue past her lips. She answered a heartbeat later, clutching at the front of his shirt and moaning into his mouth.
She tasted like chocolate and coffee and something else he couldn’t quite pin down. Sucking on her tongue he invited her to explore his mouth, grunting his approval when she flicked her tongue quickly against his.
Still holding her by the nape of her neck, he shifted his hand to fist her ponytail of curls and yanked her head back as his mouth backed off so she could catch her breath. Not wanting to lose a second of opportunity to greedily consume everything she had to offer, he latched onto her neck as he held her still. She responded with a surprised yelp followed by a deep shudder as she arched her head back giving him total access.
With her hands crushed between them she grabbed at his shirt and held on tight as he licked her delicious skin from ear to collarbone with the flat of his tongue, then sank his teeth into the soft spot where her neck joined her shoulder. Pulling a hand free she put it on his head, spearing her fingers into his hair and encouraged him on.
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