The Secret Ingredient

by Raine Cantrell

  Their lips parted to the uneven cadence of indrawn breaths. “Darling, Hallie, much as I’ve indulged myself with thoughts of making love to you here, I’m ill prepared.”

  Not having the least notion of what he was talking about, and refusing to appear innocent, she smiled. “Don’t give it another thought.”

  Cade stroked one finger down the line of her nose. “One of us needs to. I don’t want your bottom scratched by the hay.”

  There was no help for it now. “Why in the world—”

  His rich, soft laughter cut her off and he bent to nuzzle her ear, whispering his reason. When he lifted his head, he asked with all the loving indulgence she created, “Now do you understand?”

  The blush began at her toes and rose steadily, heatedly until flags of color tinted her cheeks. “Well, if you thought I’d say no, you’re sadly mistaken.”

  He stood before her next breath, lifting her up beside him. “Then we agree? We’ll lock the doors and you’ll let me love you by candlelight?” Once again he took her hand within his and raised it to his lips.

  “Since yours is the greater experience in these matters, I agree. But be warned, Cade McAllister,” she said, placing a kiss on his chin, “I fully expect turnabout to be fair play.”

  Drawing her to his side as they walked from the barn, Cade remarked, “That, Hallie, is one of my fondest dreams.”

  When she opened the door to her bedroom and lead him inside, Hallie lost her shyness. She lit the lamps and kept them low only to turn and find herself swept into Cade’s arms.

  “I’ve something else to confess,” she whispered. “I can’t wait to fall asleep at night to dream about you.”

  “Oh, Hallie, love, I can do better than that. Much, much better, my love. But you’ve got to promise to make an honest man of me as soon as we can arrange it or I’ll tell our grandchildren how you seduced me.”

  She smiled, then softly laughed as he rocked her in his arms, loving him more in this teasing mood that dispelled all her fear and doubts. But the laughter died when she looked up at him and saw the love she had longed for there in his eyes.

  She pulled the tails of his shirt free from his pants. “Shall we have children?”

  “A dozen at least.” His breath caught as she touched his throat and began to unbutton his shirt. Not one to be idle, Cade worked free the buttons on her bodice from the waist upward.

  Hallie slid his shirt off with the most loving caresses, Cade kissed each bit of her skin as it became free of cloth.

  “You’ll allow me to keep my animals,” she murmured, finding his belt buckle easy to open, but the buttons hidden by the placket of cloth below it were a sheer test of a woman’s ingenuity.

  Goaded by the ease that Cade used to strip her of her skirt and petticoats, Hallie, accompanied by a great deal of Cade’s groaning admonishments that she was killing him by slow degrees—at which point she stopped only to hear his testy demand that she continue or he would die—Hallie, with single-minded attention that drew his praise, completed her mission.

  As he kicked his pants free, and worked on removing his boots, she stood back. “Hi-prepared indeed. You’re a fraud, Cade McAllister. There’s not a union suit in sight.”

  His grin was unrepentant “I cheated.”

  Hallie thought of the perfume heating several intimate places and wisely did not pursue the matter of cheating.

  Clad in chemise and drawers, Hallie moved to the other side of the bed to turn down the spread. Nervous chatter filled the tense silence. “You must be wondering about the bedroom. It all belonged to Granny Rose. No one has ever been in here. I mean—” She looked up to find Cade next to her.

  “Hallie, I don’t want your family’s history. I don’t want to hurt you or order you. I only want to love you.”

  And it was love in his eyes, in every strong line of his powerful and aroused body. Love that sent her fingers to tangle with his on ribbon ties. Love that watched and waited as she stood proud and pushed the long length of her hair back.

  “You are the most beautiful woman, Hallie.”

  In his arms, with his lips on hers, she felt beautiful as they sank together onto the feather tick. Insatiable kisses where their tongues curled and flattened, tasted and tempted, the duel heated and delicious. The touches were soft caresses, bold, bringing a furnace blast of desire and Hallie reveled in every moment. She’d waited so long. She’d waited for him, for Cade, a dream lover come to life.

  He sensed her need before she drew his hand to touch, his lips to taste and tease, and found, with the aid of his shaky plea, that his needs mirrored her own. He kissed her breasts, her nipples, with a tongue made warm and wet from their kiss. Her heart hammered in her chest as his fingers worked a wicked sorcery on her.

  The room tilted and swirled, spun with bright color, filled with heated sighs. She whispered yes at some point, repeating it and his name until it was one word, then dissolved in a sigh. She tensed briefly, his broad hands on her bare hips, holding her up to him. His whispered praise blended with love words, sharpened by passion and she dug her fingertips into the small of his back and moaned.

  Cade’s mouth simultaneously invaded hers. The kisses fierce, almost love-violent as the rhythmic movement of his hips changed from the gentle play that began making Hallie his. His breath moved in hot, shivery waves across her flesh as he coaxed her to melt for him. She was achingly tight and tender. He stole her cry and swore it was the last he would steal.

  Love bathed her in a gauzy mist. Drenched with rapture she held him still within her body and saw above her his face sinful with unrestrained passion. Love flooded her, without limit and timeless. Eternal. Everlasting.

  “I love you.”

  To Hallie the words were a delicate feast, balm and sweet sensation, rich promise and reverent vow.

  It was later, the lamps extinguished, and they lay facing each other unable to cease the need to touch, when Cade spoke.

  “There is one matter we didn’t finish discussing, Hallie. About your animals—”

  “You won’t go back on your word?”

  “No, love, no. I want your word that I can have my whiskey.”

  “Will you want a lot of it?” Her fingers curled within the hair on his chest and she gently rubbed the hard nub of flesh hidden there.

  “An … occasional glass, love, no more.” Cade groaned as her lips replaced her touch.

  “Do you know,” Hallie said moments later as she sought bolder game, “that you groan a great deal?”

  “Only around you, Hallie.”

  “Well, keep it that way.” She pushed him back against the tick and rose above him. “I’m a possessive woman. I definitely want to marry you.”

  Cade’s grin should have blistered her skin. His gaze found hers. “I’m not sure I can keep up with you, Hallie: You plumb wore me out.”

  “I did? I mean, I did.”

  “If you’re gonna seduce me every chance you get, I’ll be old before my time.”

  “We’ll ration,” she murmured with stifled laughter. “But until it’s necessary, you won’t mind if I take my turn to be on top?”

  Cade stretched beneath her. “You’re a bossy woman.”

  “You agreed to take turns.” Her lips hovered above his as she settled herself along his length.

  “One last promise?”

  “Only if you hurry.”

  “You won’t share your chocolates or your kisses with anyone else.”

  Her head jerked back. He sounded so serious. “Cade, not even our children?”

  “Not even them. Those sweet sensations are mine. All mine. You see, I’m gonna make you a happy woman, Hallie.”

  She shifted and squirmed and settled herself upon him with a startled cry.

  “Hallie be gentle with me. This needs to last for a lifetime of loving you.”

  More from Raine Cantrell

  Novellas

  Apache Fire


  Widowed and childless, Angie is named The Woman of Sorrow by Niko, a noble warrior of the Apache. But as passion ignites between them, Angie must weather the storm of prejudice and injustice for another chance at true happiness—and true love.

  The Bride’s Gift

  Nicholas Dowling’s mail-order bride is not what he’d hoped for—she’s too young, too delicate, and far too superstitious for a pragmatic man like himself. But not even Brianna’s untamable spirit can’t cast a shadow over her luminous beauty, and before long the blaze of their attraction grows into something neither one of them was expecting.

  Miss Delwin’s Delights

  Kit Sidell, Texas’s most eligible bachelor, has an insatiable sweet tooth. But when the challenge of a wager brings him to the kitchen of Birdie Delwin, Kit finds himself tempted by much more than her dessert menu.

  More Than a Miracle

  Maureen O’Rourke made a home for herself and her children in an abandoned cabin in the Colorado mountains. While searching for his lost child, Gabriel Channing stumbles upon the cabin, and finds a whole new family instead. But it will take more than a Christmas wish to make these two broken families one—it will take more than a miracle.

  A Time For Giving

  Jacob DeWitt, a widower on Christmas leave during the Civil War, returns to his New York home determined to get Ellie Winifred to marry him. She has taken in his two motherless children and his younger brother while he is off at war. It makes perfect sense to him that they marry, but Ellie resists. It will take every bit of help Jacob, a proud, stubborn man, can get if he is going to convince Ellie that he is worthy of her love.

  Novels

  The Homecoming

  In the aftermath of the Civil War, one man’s vow to stand alone is shaken by the return of the love of his life. A new novel from national bestselling romance author Raine Cantrell.

  For most Texans, Reconstruction stood as a second declaration of war. Returning to his Texas farm at the end of the War Between the States, Matt Coltrane finds his land ravaged by scavengers as part of a greedy Reconstruction land grab. Turned bitter by the war, Matt attempts to avoid others, until Laine Ellis, the only woman he ever loved, is threatened. Despite the odds against him, Matt swears to protect her, as well as his land.

  Born to be a Southern lady, Laine Ellis grew up in a lonely cabin on the edge of the bayou. Stubborn and courageous, she is raising her brother and sister after raiders killed her parents and destroyed her home. Laine doesn’t entertain any man’s attention, until Matt’s return. She loved him with a girl’s starry-eyed innocence and now wants him with a woman’s passion. She and Matt struggle in the face of old enemies and new challenges to bring their dreams to life as an entire country strives to put itself back together.

  Wildflower

  In the idyllic mountains of Colorado, a woman will risk her life to save the ones she loves.

  For two years Jenny Latham has lived alone with her young son in the Colorado mountains, trying to manage her guilt over letting an abusive husband control her for too long. Her beauty makes her the object of many men’s desires, but with a broken heart and an independent streak as strong as the mountains themselves, Jenny refuses them all. But when she accidentally shoots a stranger and takes it upon herself to nurse him back to health, she finds all of her defenses wavering.

  The stranger is a handsome man named Charmas, but he claims to remember little else, having lost his memory after the accident that led him to be in Jenny’s care. Overcome by Charmas’ allure, Jenny begins to succumb to her feelings of passion, until her world is shattered by the reappearance of her violent husband. Jenny will gamble with her very life in order to protect her son and Charmas from harm.

  Silver Mist

  In a race to strike it rich, a naïve woman discovers how precious a man’s love can be.

  Dara Owens has been sheltered by her brothers in quiet Rainly, Florida, unaware of the rough nature of the rest of the world. That is, until “white gold” fever takes over Rainly, and prospectors overrun the town in the search for phosphate rock. With the miners comes gambling and robbery, and suddenly quiet Rainly isn’t a safe haven for an innocent beauty anymore, especially once the rugged Silver McQuade arrives on the scene. But once Dara meets Silver, no warnings about this charming seducer can keep them apart. As the small community becomes divided over the presence of the miners, Dara is torn between loyalty to her home, and her newly awakened desire.

  Western Winds

  A headstrong woman more than meets her match in an unexpected inheritance.

  When she inherits her father’s sprawling Texas ranch, the Reina, Lacey Garrett is determined to run it on her own. With a long line of men waiting to wrestle control of the land away from the willful young woman, many with dreams of winning her hand as well, Lacey has her work cut out for her. But of all the difficulties Lacey foresaw, never could she imagine a last minute change in her father’s will that leaves part of the Reina to another heir.

  Rafe Parrish is a loner with a dark past, and no happier to be sharing control of the homestead with Lacey than she is. Angered by her arrogance, Rafe is determined to have it all: the Reina and Lacey herself. Lacey will have to fight for what is hers, or risk surrendering to Rafe’s dominance, losing control of her heart in order to stay on the land she loves.

  Calico

  An Irish spitfire meets her match in a western romp.

  Maggie O’Roark knows how to walk, talk, and fight like a man. When Maggie inherits her uncle’s profitable silver and gold mines, she’s determined to prove she can operate them on her own, even as her wedding date approaches. When Maggie’s groom is kidnapped just before the wedding, Maggie is convinced saloon owner C.V. McCready is responsible, in a desperate bid to keep her from re-opening the mines.

  McCready is a silver-tongued con man, but when he sees Maggie in her wedding finery, he becomes obsessed with protecting her from less savory men who would do anything to get their hands on her mines. McCready kidnaps Maggie and claims her in a marriage by proxy, setting the stage for the fiercest and funniest battle of the sexes in the West.

  Desert Sunrise

  A desperate woman meets her destiny on the Arizona frontier.

  After her husband is murdered on their wedding night, Faith Beckett is on the run, with her father and siblings in tow. They have a land stake on the far side of the Arizona Territory, a perilous journey for even seasoned travelers, and are in need of a guide as determined as Faith.

  Delaney Carmichael was raised by the Apache, and a man as hard and dangerous as the land he loves. On a mission to restore his family’s honor, he has no time to help Faith and knows he’ll be better off if he ignores her beauty. But when Faith walks head on into danger, he’s moved to save her despite his best judgment. Ensnared by Faith’s turquoise eyes and a mystical connection to ancient Apache legends, the hardness of Delaney’s heart is softened as mutual passion is revealed in the wild lands of Arizona.

  Tarnished Hearts

  Not even a war between the states can keep apart a Southern aristocrat and the love of his life.

  Tormented by his past and denied his dream of becoming a doctor, Southern aristocrat Trevor Shelby has little in his life to live for, until he meets the beautiful overseer’s daughter, Leah Reese. Unused to the warmth and kindness Leah shows him, Trevor learns to love from the young woman, while his intensity teaches her about passion. Despite the difference in their social classes, they dared to dream of a future together, a fantasy that is shattered by lies, betrayal, and the outbreak of war.

  Darling Annie

  Acts of charity quickly lead to a flirtation with the deadliest of sins for DARLING ANNIE.

  Kellian York has big plans for the brothel he’s inherited in Loving, Texas. Too bad that just days after his arrival the Legion for Decency has burned it to the ground, citing their mission to rid the town of drinking, gambling, and “loose women.” Set on vengean
ce, Kellian targets the spinster leader, Annie Muldoon, never expecting that the beautiful young woman would let Kellian and his girls move into her boarding house.

  Believing she has a responsibility to protect and redeem the women formerly in Kellian’s employ, Annie soon realizes she’s made a terrible mistake inviting them, and especially Kellian, into her home. Unsure whether he’s trying to torture her or seduce her, Kellian’s striking presence is beginning to rouse the passionate nature she’s tried to hide. Annie decides to take her fate, and Kellian’s, into her own hands, and learns a few tricks of the trade from her boarders, before turning the tables on Kellian. Will the saint redeem the sinner? Or the sinner seduce the saint?

  Whisper My Name

  A young woman is tempted from her path by a handsome cowboy as mysteries about her past are revealed.

  Before taking her vows at a convent to become a young novice, Dominica Kirkland is summoned to an isolated Idaho ranch by Toma Colfax, a friend of her deceased father. Alone and naïve as to the ways of the world, Dominica soon finds herself overwhelmed, and reluctantly accepts the help of Luke, a ruggedly handsome cowboy. Drawn in by her beauty and her innocence, Luke makes it clear that he’s interested in Dominica, no matter what vows she’s considering.

  But at Toma Colfax’s ranch await more questions than answers for Dominica. Toma claims no knowledge of the letter that called Dominica to the untamed wilderness. Slowly long-kept secrets are revealed, about Dominica’s family, about Toma Colfax, and about Luke. Dominica must make painful choices, to return to the safety of the convent and live a life of solitude, or risk everything, including her heart, to stay with Luke.

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