Tyler had planned to give her all the time she needed to undress him. But the more her hands brushed against his chest and down to the flesh beneath his navel, it was more than he could stand.
“Let me finish this, Callie,” he whispered. “It’ll be faster.”
He tugged off his boots then hurriedly did away with his clothing. When he was finally down to nothing but a pair of black boxers, she reached for his hand and pulled him down alongside her on the bed.
Feeling like he’d fallen into a steamy dream, Tyler drew her into his arms until her warm body was clamped tight against his and his mouth was making a feast of hers.
Desire was shooting through him like a red-hot comet, leaving a wake of sizzling heat all the way from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. He couldn’t ever remember a time when he’d felt this much, wanted this much. He was consumed with need, and Callie was the only one to fill him up and make the ache go away.
Tearing his mouth from hers, he turned his attention to removing her bra and panties. The sight of her completely naked, with her rosy-brown nipples puckered into hard buds and her thighs slightly parted, was enough to send him over the edge. But somehow he contained himself enough to cup a hand around one small breast.
Then a thought struck him and he sat straight up on the edge of the bed and muttered a curse under his breath.
“This is bad,” he said. “Really bad.”
Dazed, she sat up in the middle of the bed. “What? What’s wrong?”
He turned a helpless look on her. “I wasn’t, uh, planning on this, Callie. I don’t have any condoms with me. Hell, I haven’t needed those things in...well, years.”
She appeared crestfallen, but he could’ve told her that her disappointment couldn’t begin to match his.
“Oh,” she said. “I’d forgotten about us needing protection. There’s a drugstore—” The rest of her sentence was forgotten as a smile of triumph suddenly lit her face. “No worries, Tyler. Just give me a minute.”
She scooted off the bed and pattered into the bathroom. Tyler stared wondrously after her, thinking she must have her own method of birth control tucked away.
He was wrong.
Less than a minute later, she emerged from the bathroom carrying a small box of condoms.
“Is that what I think it is?”
Her cheeks turned pink as she smothered a laugh behind her hand. “It is. Now one of us won’t have to run to the corner drugstore.”
She handed him the box and he noticed the safety seal was still intact. “This hasn’t been opened.”
Her cheeks turned even pinker. “No. I never had any reason to open it. You see, they were going to be a gift. I thought Zach and I would be spending a cozy little Christmas together. But we never even got as close as a kiss beneath the mistletoe. He lit out long before the holiday celebrations started.”
What could he say? Except that he was glad for the condoms and glad the jerk who’d left her was out of her life for good.
He opened the box and darted a wry glance at her. “You must have been planning on lots of celebrating.”
“Not exactly,” she said. “They were cheaper by the dozen.”
Laughing, he tossed the box to one side and pulled her into his arms. “Oh, Callie, you’re something special.”
She curled her arms tightly around his neck and kissed him until the need in both of them had him reaching for one of the condoms.
Once he was wearing the protection, he eased her down on the bed and parted her thighs. Gently, his fingers brushed the outer flesh before he slowly slipped them into the warm, intimate folds of her womanhood.
Beyond the roaring in his ears, he heard her tiny moan before she arched against his hand, taking his fingers in deeper.
“Oh, Tyler, love me. Love me.”
Her voice was strangled, but at least she could speak. Tyler couldn’t have uttered a word if he’d tried. It was all he could do to hang on to his self-control. Otherwise, everything was going to end before it ever started.
He stroked her until she was whimpering and writhing against him, and then suddenly the urge to taste her overpowered every thought, every burning need inside him.
Dropping his head, he touched his lips to that intimate part of her and when she cried out with need, he understood that she was feeling just as desperate and vulnerable as he was. The thought bound him to her in a way he’d never experienced before and he wondered if something had clicked in his brain. Or was it his heart that was going through a major upheaval? He didn’t know. He couldn’t know. All he knew was that she tasted like paradise.
But the need to connect his body to hers soon had him lifting his head. When he positioned himself to enter her, she opened her eyes and smiled at him.
“Callie.” Her name was all he could squeeze past the hot lump in his throat, but at this point, he didn’t think either of them needed words between them. This was all about a man and woman communicating in the most fundamental way. About giving and taking until there was no longer two of them, but only one.
“I want you,” she whispered.
Those were the only words she spoke as he entered her with one steady thrust. After that, Tyler doubted he could have heard anything. As her warm body enveloped him, he felt certain someone had shot him off into space. Surely, he thought, no one could feel like this and still be on earth.
But then she began to move beneath him and Tyler’s body instinctively responded. In a matter of moments, he was mindlessly driving into her.
Somewhere in the grip of desire, he felt her hands roaming over his back, along his rib cage and down to his hips. The scent of her skin filled his head, while her short, raspy breaths were like an aphrodisiac on his senses.
He needed more time, he thought. To slide his lips over every inch of her skin, to pull the budded nipples of her breasts into his mouth, to feel her thighs and the very essence of her womanhood tightening around him. But with each passing second, his control crumbled more and more.
When it finally snapped, he was caught up on a giant wave of ecstasy that swept him higher and higher. Somewhere from afar he heard Callie cry his name and felt her hips arch desperately toward his. They were reaching the euphoric spot of their journey at the same time and the realization spun his senses into a whirlwind. The helpless feeling that he was going to float completely away had him gripping Callie tightly to him. And Tyler didn’t let go until the room stopped spinning and he could breathe again.
* * *
Long moments passed before Callie managed to open her eyes and, even then, she was too dazed to understand what had just occurred. Was that the way sex was supposed to be?
She’d thought she had known how it felt to have a man pleasure her body. But she couldn’t have been more ignorant. Until this moment, she would’ve never comprehended the fact that making love to Tyler could transport her to another dimension. She hadn’t known that time would stand still and she would become utterly lost to Tyler’s lips and hands, adrift in a hazy cloud of bliss.
No. She hadn’t expected to feel as though she’d been flying among the stars, but she had. And what was he thinking? Had he felt the same reckless pleasure she’d experienced?
Shifting beneath the partial weight of his body, she rolled to her side so that she was facing him. His eyes were closed, his features slack. He looked like a man who’d been running for a long time and had finally found a safe haven to rest. And as her gaze drowsily took in the black lashes resting against his cheeks, the curve of his lips, a pang of tender longing filled her chest and stung her eyes with hot moisture.
When his eyelids eventually lifted, his gaze met hers and, without a word, he tugged her tight in his arms and buried his face in the curve of her neck.
Blinking fiercely, she clung to him and tried not to think beyond this night.
�
��Callie, I—I’m sorry.”
Her heart, which had been chugging at a fast pace, very nearly sputtered to a stop. “Sorry?” she murmured. “For what?”
He lifted his head and as his eyes met hers, he smoothed the tumbled strands of hair off her forehead.
“For not making everything better for you. I wanted to make this special. But I guess I’ve forgotten how to make love to a woman.”
The relief that flooded through her was followed by a real need to reassure him and she used the tips of her fingers to trace a tender track along his jaw. “Tyler, you have nothing to be sorry for. Everything was incredible. And so very special. It couldn’t have been any better for me.”
A long sigh eased out of him and then he rubbed his cheek against hers. “Like I said before. I don’t deserve you.”
Now wasn’t the moment to press him for an explanation of his feelings. She didn’t want anything to ruin this intimate time with him. Later on, if he grew to care for her enough, he might allow the secrets in his heart to come pouring out. Until then, having him in her arms and in her bed had to be enough.
Tightening her arm against his back, she whispered, “I think you need to turn that around, Tyler. It might be that I don’t deserve you.”
Easing his head back, he stared at her in disbelief. “That’s a crazy statement.”
“No crazier than yours,” she replied. “You’re an Abernathy. You’re from an old, established, wealthy family of Bronco Heights. I’m Callie Sheldrick from Bronco Valley. My mother deals with insurance customers all day long and most of the time my dad has a nail gun in his hands. We’re simple people.”
“My family is simple, too, Callie. Owning land and livestock doesn’t really make us any different. We still have to work to make a living. Just like you and your family.”
Sighing, she smiled and pushed her fingers through the dark brown hair above his ear. He’d never understand, and maybe it was best that way, she thought.
“If you say so,” she said quietly.
“I do. And there’s one other little thing I need to say.”
“Tell me.”
A quirk of a smile lifted one corner of his lips. “I’m glad you decided they were cheaper by the dozen.”
Laughing softly, she pulled her head down to his and let her lips do the rest of her talking.
* * *
Tyler stood outside the big horse barn at the Flying A and carefully watched as Dean lead the palomino around in a wide circle.
“Sandman is limping, all right,” Tyler told his brother. “Front left. Are you sure he doesn’t have a stone lodged in his frog or shoe?”
Dean slowly led the horse over to where Tyler was standing in the shade of the building. Although the morning sun was barely peeping over the distant mountains, the temperature was already climbing. They were going to have a hot day moving cattle from the bottomland, where a stretch of drought had already dwindled grazing to nothing.
“I’ve looked,” Dean told him. “You have a go at it. I’m beginning to think the problem is in his ankle.”
Tyler squatted and ran both hands over the gelding’s ankle. “Doesn’t look puffy or feel warm.” He stood and picked up the horse’s hoof to examine the shoe and the sole of his foot. “You rode Sandman yesterday. When did he start limping?”
“After I saddled him a few minutes ago and led him out of the barn.” Dean gave the horse’s neck an affectionate pat. “Maybe he’s faking it to get out of work today.”
“He’s not faking.” Tyler pulled a hoof pick from the back pocket of his jeans and raked at a clump of hard dirt wedged in the crease next to the frog. “There must be a rock in this.”
The dirt clump fell to the ground and broke apart to reveal a piece of sharp rock. Seeing it, Dean groaned. “Damn. How did I miss that?”
“It’s easy to do,” Tyler replied.
“Thanks, brother. Now I won’t have to ride Lumpy.”
“Call him Jumpy if you put on your spurs,” Tyler reminded him then chuckled. “Or have you forgotten landing in that prickly pear patch?”
Dean directed a sarcastic smirk at him. “Not likely. If I looked hard enough, I’d probably still find a few thorns in my backside.”
Tyler headed back into the barn and Dean wrapped Sandman’s reins around a hitching post before following his younger brother into the cooler alleyway of the building.
“Think we should go to the house and get Mom to pack us some sandwiches? We might be out until this afternoon,” he suggested.
“I have sandwiches in my saddlebags,” Tyler told him as he fastened a pair of batwing chaps to his legs. “When I dropped Maeve off, Mom already had them fixed. Bologna and cheese. Your favorite.”
“Ha! More like your favorite.” Dean feigned a weary sigh. “That’s the way it is when you’re the baby of the family. Your parents spoil you rotten.”
“Sure, Dean.” With the chaps snapped in place, he straightened to his full height and looked at his brother. “We’re burning daylight. Are you ready?”
“No. I want to talk to you first.”
“Talk? We can talk on the ride out to the cattle.”
Dean shook his head. “I want your undivided attention. Once we head out, you’ll be inspecting the grass, looking at the clouds and the birds, and thinking about everything but what I’m saying.”
Tyler folded his arms across his chest and faced his brother. “Okay. What is it? Are you worried about Dad wanting to add more cattle to the Flying A?”
“Well, with a drought setting in, it seems damned risky. But no. Dad has kept this ranch in the black for many years. He knows what he’s doing even when it looks like he’s making a huge mistake. This is about you,” Dean told him.
“Me? What have I done?” Tyler wanted to know.
“Nothing.”
“Then why are we having this conversation? Dean, sometimes I wonder about you. You’re as quiet as a church mouse with everyone else—except me. Now what gives with that?”
Dean grimaced. “You’re the baby of the bunch. You need the guidance of an older brother. And I am six years older than you. So that makes me wiser.”
“Wiser. Really?” Tyler asked sarcastically.
“All right. Maybe I’m not smarter than you. But I’m not about to get myself into girl trouble.”
Tyler’s brows quirked. “Girl trouble? What are you talking about?”
“I’ve had several acquaintances of ours tell me they’ve been seeing you all over town with the little brunette.”
Tyler bristled. “She has a name, Dean. It’s Callie. Callie Sheldrick. And, yeah, we’ve been going out—and we always have Maeve with us. Just in case you’re thinking I’ve been leaving my daughter with Mom every night.”
The heated tone of Tyler’s voice took Dean by surprise. “What the hell is wrong with you? I’m not thinking anything of the sort.”
“Then what’s worrying you? Only a couple of weeks ago you told me how glad you were that I was going out again. That I had found a woman who interested me. Now you’re thinking I’m headed for trouble.”
“Yeah, I told you I was happy about you getting back into the land of the living. But I didn’t have any idea you were going to leap into the frying pan. From what I hear, the two of you are practically engaged and Maeve is calling this woman mommy.”
Cursing under his breath, Tyler stalked a few steps away from his brother then paced right back. “That’s stupid! Maeve is nine months old. She can’t say words yet, much less ‘mommy.’ And as for Callie and I being close to getting engaged—that’s crazy. I’ve not known her long enough to make that kind of commitment!”
Dean stared at him in wonder. “You hardly worried about that with Luanne. You married her after a few short weeks.”
Tyler’s back teeth snapped together. “Damn it, Dean. Don’
t bring her into this. None of it is your business anyway. So butt out!”
Sighing, Dean rubbed a hand across his forehead. “Sorry. I guess it isn’t any of my business. I just don’t want to see my brother jumping into something that might hurt him down the road. You’ve gone through enough pain, Tyler. And I think you should consider Callie in all of this, too. If you’re not really interested in something long-term with her, then it isn’t fair to make her feel as though she’s part of your little family.”
But she was part of it, Tyler thought. She and Maeve were his family. Maybe not in the legal sense, but in every other way. Callie treated Maeve as though she was her own daughter. And she treated Tyler like—His mind suddenly halted at the word husband.
When the two of them had first made love a little more than a week ago, Tyler had been stunned by the depth of his reaction to her. He hadn’t expected the onslaught of emotions that had poured through him. He hadn’t thought he could ever feel that much. And he’d especially been shocked that he’d given so much of himself to her.
Taking their relationship to a deeper level had not been something he’d planned. It had simply happened. And right or wrong, he’d been going around in a happy daze because of Callie. Because she made him feel like he’d never felt in his entire life. And it wasn’t just the incredible sex they shared. She was kind and sweet and thoughtful. She understood things about him that no one else seemed to notice or care about.
“Look, Dean, Callie understands that I’m not ready for any kind of commitment.”
“Does she?” He shrugged and shook his head. “If you two are just sharing a few laughs over some meals, then she probably does understand. But if you’re letting her believe your intentions are serious, then you’re treading on thin ice.”
Annoyed as hell that Dean was getting too close to the truth, he snapped. “What would you know about it, anyway?” Tyler demanded. “You’ve never been married or had a child! You’ve never been a widower, either. How could you possibly know what I’m feeling or what I need?”
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