Back at the Ranch

by Em Ashcroft

  They weren’t done yet. Thea wanted more than a few days, and if he wanted it, too, they could hook up again. Work him out of her system, that was the way. And what better way to do it than a few more blistering nights of fucking for hours on end?

  The slight soreness between her legs reminded her deliciously of what they’d done. She didn’t want their affair to stop anytime soon.

  “There are other places closer to home.”

  “Goldclaw offers the whole package. You can vacation here, before the wedding and after it. They have a vacation ranch or a luxury hotel, and they’re close enough to Houston to provide a good shopping experience. It’s perfect.” The more she thought about it, the more enthusiastic she grew. A contract with Goldclaw would pay for this hideously expensive wedding and more.

  Chester stuck his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “I guess so. But watch her. She plays the casino sites online. Did you know that?”

  As it happened, yes she did. But she also saw her sister log off once she’d worked through her allotted “mad money.” Ladonna didn’t spend above her limit, not in her private life, anyhow.

  She heard the rap at the door with relief, but she had to push past Chester to get there. Before he could react, she had the door open.

  Heating from head to foot, she smiled at Blade, her stupid grin telling him he was welcome.

  Blade’s attention lifted to the man standing just behind her. “And this is…”

  “Chester, the bridegroom.” Thea made the introductions.

  Chester stuck out his hand but without his usual charming smile. “Hi. Nice place you have here.”

  “Isn’t it? Thanks.”

  Thea thought she had better give some kind of explanation. “Chester was just having a few wedding nerves. I told him there was nothing to worry about.”

  Chester nodded. “Yeah, that was it.”

  “They’re waiting for you downstairs,” Blade said. “I volunteered to come and find out where you were.”

  “On our way.” Darting back into the room, Thea grabbed her key card and stuck it in her pocket before finding her tablet. “We’re blocking out the wedding in the room, that’s all. We decided against a dress rehearsal.”

  Blade openly eyed her casual attire with blatant admiration. “Got to say you look great.” He was wearing a suit that put Chester’s to shame. Or maybe it was the body inside it.

  Thea knew the bodies of both men, so she was in a position to know. Chester worked out religiously to keep himself in shape. He belonged to the best gym in New York, where, incidentally, he met people who could help them in the business. Or so he said. Come to think of it, he hadn’t introduced anybody from there recently. Maybe Thea should push him on that since the company subsidized his membership.

  After the honeymoon, she’d put him to work. She should be looking forward to getting home and developing the business. This wedding was their big push, after all. But she wasn’t, especially with this man in front of her. This gorgeous hunk of manhood was looking at her as if he wanted to eat her up.

  “I’d better go.” Chester darted out the room as if the hounds of hell were after him. Or a full-grown tiger, which would be closer to the truth.

  But Blade merely glanced over his shoulder at Chester’s retreating form and kicked the door shut.

  “I thought you said we were needed downstairs.”

  Gently, he took the tablet from her hands before laying it down on a nearby table. “I lied. They’re still at breakfast. Unless you’re hungry?”

  “N-no. You fed me.”

  “Got to keep your strength up.” He leaned over her, his hand pressed against the wall. “I don’t want you fainting again.” His mouth lowered to hers.

  How did he do that? Surrounded her with his magic, so she couldn’t think of anyone else but him, do anything but kiss him back?

  Baby, you taste so good!

  I do?

  You do.

  While she was still gasping at her response to him—she’d answered him back—he kissed down her neck. He murmured words against her skin, the delicious vibrations thrumming through her whole body. Her pussy clenched, responded, and dampness seeped from between her cunt lips.

  He carried on down, pushing her T-shirt up to get to bare skin. He kissed her stomach, lascivious, open-mouthed, licking her, the rough edge of his tongue rousing every nerve ending in her body. A long sigh escaped her as he unfastened the button at the top of her jeans and then the zipper. “I’m addicted to you. I can’t go another minute without the taste of you in my mouth.”

  Resistance? What was that? When he tugged her jeans, she pressed against the wall behind her. He moved far enough for him to pull her jeans and panties down her legs, for her to spread her legs so he could get between them.

  A long, heartfelt groan came from his throat. “Your smell drives me crazy. Delicate, feminine, and so much you.” He slid his hand between her pussy lips, circling her cunt before shoving two fingers inside her. He followed with his mouth.

  Nothing Blade did could be described as tasting. He devoured her, opening his mouth wide against her mound, eating her whole. His tongue circled her clit, and then he claimed it, sucking it in, delivering long pulls that drove her insane.

  I want you to come. I want you gushing, and I want it all. Everything, baby.

  With a choked cry, she obeyed, her body pulsing and throbbing wildly, an uncontrollable explosion detonating deep inside her. “What are you doing to me?”

  Claiming you. You’re mine, Thea. Say it.

  I’m yours. Anything. Don’t stop.

  He drove her to another fast, shattering orgasm before he relented and pulled away, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Fuck, I can’t get enough of you.”

  Shoving aside the assorted clothes, cosmetics, and jewelry strewn on the nearest bed, he grabbed her waist and threw her down on it. He followed her as soon as he’d freed his cock from his pants. He was in her before she could draw breath, and then she couldn’t breathe properly again.

  Lifting her legs to wrap them around his waist, she found herself hampered by her jeans. She could only lie there and take him.

  He claimed her, fucking her with long, hard strokes, their bodies colliding in slaps that grew faster. He locked his mouth onto hers. His tongue stroked hers softly, not a hint of the previous roughness that had driven her crazy earlier.

  Crying his name in time to his strokes was more instinctive than anything else. Thea tossed her head from side to side, unable to bear the sensations making a playground of her body. Single orgasms were in the past. Now she went from one to another with barely a pause.

  Nothing of the handsome, suave playboy remained. Fierce possession flared on every line of his face, in the blazing gold of his eyes, and the open, wet mouth. Grabbing her face in his hands, he kissed her, savage punishment vying with possessive, messy tasting of her.

  He yelled, a wild cry, as his cock throbbed inside her pussy, fresh cum gushing into her. He growled as he kissed her, his animal very close to the surface. He stayed in her until their bodies had quietened. Thea had no idea how long that took.

  “You’re something else,” he murmured against her lips before he withdrew and got to his feet in one smooth movement, holding out his hands to help her up. He jerked her into his body and kissed her. “I’m greedy for you, sweet Thea. Don’t expect me to leave you alone for long. The minute you quit the apartment today I wanted you back.”

  Nobody had ever said things like that to her. Ever. With those words, Blade claimed her, and she understood perfectly how he’d enslaved so many women. She touched his swollen lips with her forefinger, and he sucked it into his mouth. “Maybe it’s just as well I’m going home next week. I don’t know if I could take it for much longer than that.”

  He freed her finger. “You could. I’d treat you well, take the greatest care of you.” Something in his eyes stirred before he glanced away. “Come on, we’d better clean up.”

/>   “One at a time,” she said. Pulling up her jeans, she headed for the bathroom and opened the door.

  His eyes widened when he followed her and saw the small tub and the shower set above it. “Four of you are sharing this?”

  She shrugged. “We’re fine. But you and I won’t fit in there at the same time.”

  “Too fucking right. Come upstairs and freshen up?”

  She shook her head. “You go ahead. I have to get downstairs for the rehearsal.”

  As she walked past him, he caught her arm and claimed another kiss. “Stay upstairs with me until Tuesday.”

  Her response was to laugh. “That’s going to make me popular.”

  “Don’t forget. If it gets unbearable here, for any reason, call me.”

  “I don’t have your number.”

  “Give me your phone.”

  While he programmed his number into her phone, Thea stripped and stepped into the shower. She made it as fast as possible, but when she exited, she found an empty room and a message on her phone.

  I’ll shower upstairs. See you for dinner, if not before.

  As she’d stood under the shower, and for once didn’t have anybody banging on the door asking how long she’d be, she had a moment to let her thoughts flow over her.

  Blade was a player. Everything she’d read and found online told her that. So why was he behaving more like a boyfriend, a man who expected things of her? She hadn’t said she’d see him tonight, but instinctively she had the same sense of urgency and potential loss that he did. When they were fucking, she’d felt it. He was driven to take her as much and as often as he could.

  And she wanted him just as badly. Going back to New York would hurt, but she had to do it for her own peace of mind. At least she’d have plenty of work to do.

  She tried to find the jeans she’d taken off. She couldn’t put them back on, but they were her last clean pair, and she needed to rinse them through so she could wear them again. But they were gone, probably hidden under a pile of tulle somewhere. Although she pushed a few garments around, she couldn’t find them. She chose a loose, long sundress this time, white with orange flowers sprinkled over the fabric. Very festive. But she didn’t have much choice right now. Most of the things she’d crammed in her suitcase were too creased to wear in this swanky place. And she couldn’t get an iron out in the crammed room. Or send anything to the laundry because that would destroy her budget.

  Glancing around, she wondered when she’d last seen her pink camisole. Shit, maybe one of the girls was appropriating her stuff. Except that the jeans had been here a few minutes ago.

  She had no time to solve the mystery now. She needed to get downstairs and supervise the rehearsal.

  Chapter Five

  “At least that went well.” Wrung out, totally exhausted, Thea went into her room and plopped down on to her bed. If she had anything to do with it, she wouldn’t move from here until tomorrow. The big day.

  The ballroom where the wedding was to be held was gorgeous and the decorations exactly what she’d ordered. Chester had kept Ladonna from any serious meltdowns. The pink of the gauze bows on the backs of all the chairs was, thank the gods, the perfect shade. Thea should care, but honestly, she didn’t give a fuck any more.

  Sleep pulled her down. Even her roomies laughing and chattering around her didn’t have an impact. She hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, and today had finished her off. If she could walk her way through the wedding tomorrow, she could sleep.

  Maybe. If Blade hadn’t lost interest in her yet.

  This morning, she’d been so convinced that he was as into her as she was in him, but a day spent away from him gave her more perspective. Of course he didn’t. He must have gone through this with a dozen different guests before. As she’d seen in one of his interviews, if they were willing and he was, too, whose business was it but theirs?

  Exactly. So Thea needed to get a grip.

  Drifting on the brink of sleep, she didn’t register the sudden silence in the chatter, or the arms scooping her up, until she found herself lying against a hard chest she was coming to know well. Automatically she lifted a hand and clutched at his tie.

  Then she opened her eyes. “What the fuck are you doing?”

  “Taking you somewhere you can get some rest.”

  Exhaustion swept over her in a great wave, and she melted back into sleep, as if somebody was singing the sweetest lullaby in her head.

  She came to when Blade set her in his bed. His scent surrounded her, and she had rarely known such peace.

  “Let me take care of you, baby,” he murmured. “I’ll make sure you’re up bright and early in the morning.”

  * * * *

  “What the fuck are you doing, man?” Renaud demanded when Blade returned to the living room.

  Blade glared at him. “She’s exhausted. Did you see her today?”

  Renaud nodded. “I looked in. Every time she was organizing people.”

  “All fucking day. Those useless shits she’s with don’t do anything.”

  Renaud crossed to the bar and held up a bottle of whiskey. Blade nodded. “They’re getting married. As far as I can see, this is her gift to them.”

  Blade took the generous tumbler of amber liquid his breed partner handed to him before claiming the seat opposite him. “She’s taking it too far. The bride goes beyond anything I’ve seen. What’s worse than bridezilla?”

  Renaud shrugged. He was getting concerned about his breed partner. That and excited, a slow simmer he didn’t dare let Blade discover. “Double bridezilla? Bridasaurus Rex?”

  “Yeah. That one.” Blade toasted him with his glass. “This is supposed to be a promotional effort for their company. But the guy seems as intent on taking footage of the arguments. I suspect the stuff will end up on social media if they don’t pay him. He’ll probably want a bonus.”

  “Probably. In a way, I don’t blame him.”

  Blade sat up, resting his forearms on his knees. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  No time was a good time to mention this. “While you’ve been—looking after her, I’ve been investigating their business. It doesn’t look good, Blade.”

  He had his breed partner’s undivided attention, but he wished it was for anything else but this. He sipped his whiskey and put the glass aside. “She’s asleep?” He nodded in the direction of the stairs.

  “Sure. I want her to sleep.”

  That was news to Renaud. Blade was behaving more like a breedmate around her than he’d ever seen before. He treated women with respect, but once he’d gotten what he wanted, he moved on. Thea wasn’t like Blade’s usual parade of blondes, and not just because of the color of her hair. She was unsophisticated in that she didn’t use exclusively high-end cosmetics and clothes and spend half the day putting them on. Despite her job and her place of residence, she didn’t behave like a woman used to moving in the world. Renaud quelled his excitement. He’d been waiting for a breedmate for years, but there was no hurrying Blade. The infuriating man would probably deliberately put her at a distance just to prove he wasn’t ready.

  He liked Thea, and yes, he desired her. Oh yeah, no doubt about that. The minute he had the chance, when he thought Blade would accept the possibility, he’d make his move and see if she felt the same way about him.

  “Okay. She’s probably better not hearing this. But the business is in trouble. They owe money all over the place. The fiancé, Chester Rayburn, he’s a piece of work. He’s never stuck with anything. Sure, he’s from one of New York’s primary families, but a minor branch.”

  “Which in our terms means he has no money.” Blade’s attention was fixed on Renaud, his nearly empty glass gripped in a hand where the knuckles had gone white.

  “Yep. But he’s an entitled son of a bitch. He spends like he has money, and he behaves that way. Yeah, he’s introduced them to a new circle, one that could prove promising if they can come up with the goods, but they need more than social con
tacts. They need contacts in the industry, too. We know that. Chefs, bakers, interior designers, the whole damn thing. There’s a lot of word of mouth going on in those circles, too. So I made a few phone calls to some of our contacts in New York.”

  Blade finished his drink. Renaud handed him his half-full one. He was going to need it. “Rumors are starting. A few suppliers won’t work with them. Some are putting a stop on their credit. If they can’t pay their bills, they’re done for. And Ladonna, her attitude is a liability. She’s not as bad as she’s been here, but she doesn’t project well.” He grimaced. He’d heard the words “vulgar” and “blatant” in his calls. Not words he cared to use himself in that regard because they implied snobbery, but they had emerged.

  “They’re in trouble.”

  “Just thought you ought to know, pal. Have you told her about us?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “The bill.”

  Blade shrugged. “No.”

  “Do it. Unless you want me to.”

  Blade shook his head. “It’s better coming from me.”

  That was true. Blade was deep enough in Thea’s head to know when she was telling an outright lie. “I double-checked. We received the deposit, but not the rest of the payments. They were supposed to pay in three installments, the last one coming two days ago. They haven’t arrived.”

  “What do you mean, the payments haven’t arrived?”

  The voice didn’t come from Blade. Thea stood at the top of the stairs wearing one of Blade’s robes, the dark blue making a gorgeous picture of her tousled hair. But not her confused expression.

  Both men watched her come down the stairs, gripping the handrail as if afraid she’d fall.

  “You should be asleep,” Blade said.

  She pointedly came and sat at the other end of the sofa that Renaud occupied. “I needed the bathroom. Then I realized I was thirsty.”