“Juliana, this is one of Jack’s cousins, Boone Warner. Boone, this is Juliana Meyer. She’s the manager of Stigall’s Department Store and my former boss. She’s also Ash Peterson’s girlfriend. Boone, you’ve met Ash before, haven’t you?”
Surprise and good humor registered in Boone’s eyes. “Oh! Yeah, hey, Ash! Good to see you again. She looked like she was about ready for a dance. I thought I might oblige her. Sorry, didn’t know she was your girlfriend,” he said as his horn-dog gaze shifted back to Juliana, suggesting that perhaps Ash was neglecting her.
Boone knew exactly who she was here with because he’d had a staring contest with him as soon as they’d walked in. He must’ve been waiting for his opportunity to slip in and flirt with her. Show her other options if she was interested. He’d be willing to bet Boone wasn’t the only man here who had noticed the seams up the back of her sexy stockings as they’d walked through the club a few minutes ago.
That thought pissed him off in a thoroughly primitive way, but he took satisfaction in knowing he was the one that would have the great pleasure of easing them off of those satiny thighs later on.
Ash glared silently at Boone for a few seconds until he noticed Grace and Juliana were watching him.
He finally chuckled and held out his hand in greeting. He supposed he couldn’t fault the guy. Juliana was irresistible tonight.
“Good to see you, Boone. How’re things going at the old home place?”
Boone seemed to relax a bit. Probably relieved Ash wasn’t going to punch his face in.
“Good. We’re all still working out at the Rockin’ C Ranch for now. We’re working on the old ranch house, making it livable. Still saving money for breeding stock.”
“Well, keep at it. That’s a beautiful spread out there. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to dance with this pretty lady if she’ll trust her dainty toes to me,” Ash said as he offered his hand to Juliana but directed a long gaze at Boone. “Smoke Rings in the Dark” by Gary Allan began to play as he led her to the dance floor.
Boone grinned toothily at Ash and nodded. Ash’s look said “back off,” and Boone’s smile and shrug clearly communicated that Ash couldn’t blame a guy for trying.
He helped Juliana from her chair and led her onto the dance floor. She was an excellent partner, fitting her body to his, taking her cues from him and allowing him to lead her. Their bodies fit together well. For a woman, she was above average in height, and he appreciated not having to bend himself into a pretzel to kiss her or whisper in her ear.
Neither was she too Amazonian for his tastes. She was strong and solid with lovely, long, smooth muscles like a woman should have but also possessed luscious curves and hollows that made his mouth water just thinking about sliding his lips over them.
The song ended and another began at a slower tempo. He pressed her a little closer, loving the way her body conformed to his, his thigh sliding sensually between hers as he maneuvered her around the dance floor to Blake Shelton’s “Who Are You When I’m Not Looking.”
He nodded at a few friends as they took several turns around the floor. He groaned quietly when she curled to him, slid her hands into his back pockets and laid her cheek on his shoulder, content to let him guide her blindly.
His hand slid down her lower back, coming to rest at the upper swell of her ass, when he caught several men at a table gazing openly at her long legs.
Mine.
Joaquin nodded to Ash as he and Teresa passed them on the dance floor. He’d come to respect all the men of the Divine Creek Ranch as employers but also as friends. He had not known Joaquin as long but could tell he was cut from the same cloth as his brother, Angel, despite his long-ranging reputation as a playboy among the rodeo circuit buckle bunnies.
He appreciated their friendship and trust as he took over duties as ranch foreman so Angel could focus on the equine breeding program at the Divine Creek Ranch.
What he knew of Grace and Teresa made him respect them just as much. It had to be difficult to balance such unusual relationships. He sensed that if they were asked, Grace and Teresa would both insist that they were spoiled beyond belief, and their men made it easy to achieve that balance.
Ash knew he could never exist happily in a sharing relationship like they all did. He was too possessive. Coming into The Pony tonight with Juliana radiant at his side had reinforced that in his mind. He felt an adrenaline surge every time he caught a man staring at Juliana and had the almost undeniable urge to put them all in their places, hard. To let them all know she was his and he damn sure did not share.
It made him feel good that Juliana ignored all the admiring gazes, looking up at him with those hypnotic, sky-blue eyes of hers every so often.
His near constant, semierect state soon turned into a full-blown hard-on when he felt her hips flex against him.
When the song ended, she looked up, her eyes a little dazed and sultry looking. “One more?”
“Of course, darlin’.” Ash tried to tame his insistent erection with baseball and football stats, but he was only partially successful. His dick wouldn’t be satisfied until it was balls deep inside her hot, slick pussy.
“Darlin’, you’re a good dance partner.”
“Thank you. I had an excellent teacher.”
Ash was big enough to admit to a flare of jealousy at the thought of someone else holding her like this. He asked as neutrally as he was able, “Who taught you how to dance so well?”
“My cousin taught me how to dance. His big sisters taught him and told him that a woman wanted a dance partner who could lead properly. Not just guide them around in a circle or lead them where they wanted to go. They taught him how to take charge of the dance, and by leading his dance partner well, she would learn to trust him no matter how complicated the dance. He, in turn, taught me. He spoiled me, actually, because not many men lead as decisively as I’d like. Then…there’s you.” His eager cock responded to her husky tone, swelling with pride.
“What about me? Do you think you can trust me and allow me to lead?”
Would she learn to trust him? He didn’t think trusting him was her problem. He hadn’t offered lots of fancy, poetic words, but he was pretty straightforward about how he felt. There was no permanent commitment between them yet because he sensed she wasn’t ready for that. Trusting him wasn’t the problem. Trusting herself was.
“Well, if you must know, you’re an even better dance partner than he was. Want to know why?” she whispered as she drew closer. Her soft lips brushed his earlobe.
Ash nodded, and she whispered for his ears only, “My cousin was good, but being my cousin, he never made me yearn to rip our clothes off and let him have his wild and wicked way with me like you do.” The tip of her tongue flicked against his ear, sending a shot of lust straight to his cock.
“Damn, I feel the same way,” he murmured in response. “When you melt against me like this and we move together like we were already connected…mmm.”
“The feeling is totally mutual, being up against your strong, hard body.”
“Are you wet from thinking about it?” he asked as his hand slid down over her ass, sliding his fingers back and forth over one of the straps of her garter belt, grinning when she whimpered softly.
“Uh-huh, since our first set of dances earlier.”
“Good, then I’m not the only one enduring a little bit of torture tonight. When we get home, will you model those high heels and this garter belt for me?”
“Big man, I’ll do whatever you want me to,” she whispered sexily, her lips brushing against his ear before she flicked his earlobe with the tip of her tongue again.
Juliana giggled when she heard his deep, rumbling growl of response, and he couldn’t resist the urge to press her to him, grinding his erection against her abdomen. She looked up at him. “Ash, I want you to know something.”
“What, darlin’?” he asked, looking into her warm, open gaze, his heart thumping at the love and desire he sa
w plainly there. She rubbed her fingers against the fabric over his chest, and this time she didn’t hesitate.
“It’s high time I told you I—”
Chapter Thirteen
Whatever Juliana would’ve said to him was cut off abruptly as a couple crashed into her as they whirled around on the dance floor, nearly knocking her down. If he hadn’t been holding her so close, she would’ve been flattened on the slippery floor as her feet were knocked out from under her.
“What the fuck!” the drunken blonde yelled too loudly. “If you ain’t going to dance, get off the fucking dance floor, bitch!” The bimbo laughed loudly as her equally drunken dance partner twirled the blonde away.
“Whoa, darlin’. You okay?” Ash asked as he helped her from the edge of the dance floor.
“What the hell was that all about?”
He held her to his side as he helped her back to the table, a little anxious to see if she was all right. The blonde had collided with her pretty hard and ruined their moment.
“You okay? I’m glad I had a hold of you, or she would have flattened you.”
“I’m okay,” she said, checking her stockings. “No runs, no pain. They surprised me, that’s all.” He helped her into her seat and they took a little break, sipping from their drinks and chatting with the others.
Adam released Grace from his lap, and Ash saw her blow a kiss to where Ethan now stood in the DJ booth watching their table. Ethan returned the gesture with a smile. Ash had been around long enough to know what that meant. Grace sidled up to Juliana.
“We girls are going to dance. Why don’t you come with us?”
Ash schooled his wide grin as Grace led Juliana away from him, back to the dance floor. They were quickly joined by Rachel Wolf, Rosemary Piper, Bernadette Carter, Kathleen Stevens, Corina Scott, and her friends Lisa and Michelle.
Protective as ever, Eli Wolf positioned himself in closer proximity to his wife on the dance floor, just as Ash was currently doing. All the girls were there with someone, and their men must have all been feeling territorial as Trace Adkins’s “Ladies Love Country Boys” began to pump through the sound system.
As the newest member of the of “girl’s dance” tonight, the girls circled Juliana and began to dance in a group. They all flirted shamelessly with their men as they danced for them.
Some of the guys had not liked this little tradition in the beginning. Ash heard that it nearly incited a riot on a couple of occasions when men who were new to the club thought maybe the girls were available.
“…Now she’s coming home to visit,
holding the hand of a wild-eyed boy
with a farmer’s tan…”
Ash watched as Juliana got into the fun of it when Grace moved to the music with her before turning to her three men who stood together ten feet away from her, watching as she moved for them.
The circle widened a little as Juliana began to boldly grind and moved through the group until she was facing him.
“…They raised her up a lady,
but there’s one thing they couldn’t avoid.
Ladies love country boys…”
He felt a rumbling growl well deep in his chest as her eyes stayed riveted on his, and she slid her hands over her hips, twisting and swaying for him, moving gracefully like she’d done this before.
As the music started to fade, the men moved forward to claim their women, and Ash was no exception. She slipped her fingertips into his palm.
“Now that was fun.” She giggled as he drew her into his embrace.
“No, darlin’, fun would be you dancing like that for me then me stripping all your clothes off and having my way with you. This, right here and now, is torture for your man.”
“Oh,” she said in a breathless, quivery voice, “my man?”
“Yes, darlin’. You know it. Your man.”
“I think I like the way that sounds. Do you want to leave now?”
His cock sat up and begged like the pathetic horn dog that it was. “Not on your life, darlin’. I’m not anywhere near done dancing with you. You were beautiful out there.”
“Thank you. You’re pretty handsome yourself in your black cowboy hat. You’re…yummy.”
He drew her to the dance floor as another slow dance started and asked, “I’m ‘yummy’ huh? What’s yummy about me?”
When he looked in the mirror, all he saw was an overgrown redneck. If she was seeing stuff she liked, he wanted to capitalize on it if he could.
She came into his arms. “What’s yummy about you? I don’t know if I should start from the bottom and work my way up, or if I should start at the top and work my way down.” His cock suggested she start at the head and just see where they went from there.
“Mmm, from the top?” he said with a chuckle, enjoying her rosy blush. He looked forward to making her blush even more later.
“Okay, the hat. With your coloring, the black felt hat makes you look intimidating and powerful. Then I look in those gorgeous blue-green eyes beneath the brim and I melt.”
“Oh, I like the sound of that, darlin’. Keep going,” he murmured as his lips nuzzled her cheekbone.
“You’re enjoying yourself, aren’t you? Okay, the chest. Honey, this chest is,” she began and then pressed her lips together like maybe she was trying to restrain herself from ripping his shirt open. “It’s immense, so powerful and strong. Those muscles in your arms, umm. Whoo, is it hot in here, or is it me?” she asked, giggling as she fanned herself a little.
“Oh, you’re very hot, darlin’. Keep going.” He wondered if she had any idea how fucking sexy she looked when she bit her lip like that.
Her hands drifted from his biceps, back to his chest, then down to his abdomen. “Your strong abs and those hips. You know, sometimes I want to nibble on them and…” He groaned when her fingertips strayed to his hip bones. His dick stood up and volunteered to be nibbled.
“And what?”
“Lick them. Yeah, I do.” She emphasized her statement by unconsciously licking her luscious lips.
“Okay, what else?” he asked, feathering his fingertips into the silky hair at the nape of her neck.
“You have the most powerful thighs and calves I’ve ever seen, so muscular, and when you’re wearing those boots and blue jeans, I—um. Oh, it’s just so good.”
“Anything else?”
“Yes, there—there is something else. You’ll think I’m crazy, but there is something about you that gets me wet every time.”
“Wet, huh? Every time? What is it? Whisper it in my ear.” He leaned down a little, expecting her to whisper some compliment about his cock, saving that greedy bastard for last.
“It gets me wet whenever I see you…” she murmured, her voice shaking a little.
“What? Naked?”
“Oh that does it, too, but this is something different, something unique.” Her cheeks were glowing bright pink.
“You got me real curious now, darlin’. Don’t keep a man hanging.”
“It’s… your spurs,” she finally blurted.
He stood straight and looked at her incredulously. “My spurs? My spurs do that for you?”
“Honest, Ash. Whenever you drop by the store with your spurs still on, I can hear them jingling from a distance, and by the time you get to my office, I’m ready to rip your clothes off. Heart-hammering, pussy-clenching wet, okay?” she finished, her hands gripping his biceps.
“Damn! That is good information to have, darlin’. Thank you very much for sharing that little tidbit.”
“Plus your cock is pulse-pounding perfection, just in case you were curious,” she added as she pressed her breasts against his chest and kissed him hotly on the lips.
Ash chuckled. “I’ll tell you, darlin’, you’re good for a man’s self-image.”
“Just telling you the truth, Ash. I love everything about you.”
He looked quickly into her eyes, but she looked away and wrapped her arms around him. He grinned happily and a
llowed her to hide for a moment.
He pressed his lips to her hair, and she trembled a little in his arms, bracing for a comment from him, he supposed. Like a little girl hiding, she stole a glance at him, blushing when she realized he was watching her. Evidently encouraged by what she saw in his eyes, she smiled at him and relaxed in his embrace again.
“I love everything about you, too, darlin’.” He echoed her words back to her, not wanting her to feel pressured to make a declaration of love before she was ready.
He immediately noticed when Juliana stiffened in his arms. “What in the hell is she doing here?” The surprise was evident in her tone. He turned to survey the crowded club. He looked toward the door and groaned miserably when he saw who had just walked through the door on the arm of some unknown, probably unsuspecting, cowboy.
“Come on, darlin’. We need to get back to the table, before Grace sees her. I’ll talk to her men. I don’t think they’ve seen Brenda yet.”
* * * *
Juliana watched sympathetically as Grace immediately stiffened and tried to rise from Adam’s lap, but he wouldn’t allow it. Shaking his head at her, Adam murmured softly to her until she settled again and tipped her forehead against his. Ethan placed a soothing hand on her back, stroking through her wavy curls.
Ethan said, “I’ve never seen that cowboy before. I’ll go visit with them. I wonder why she’s back in Divine.”
Ethan excused himself, and Juliana watched with curiosity as he approached the couple. A frown registered on Brenda’s face the moment she recognized Ethan as he approached them. Then she smiled flirtatiously at him.
“What a conniving little witch!” Juliana muttered as she watched Brenda try to flirt with Grace’s husband. Ethan ignored her, shook hands with her date, and spoke to him.
Juliana watched as the young woman looked up at her date innocently. Her expressive face ran the gamut in her attempt to control the situation. Her date looked down at her questioningly. She shook her head and played the sweet and pure card, bluffing expertly.
Box Set: The Divine Creek Ranch Collection, Volume 2 [Book 4 - Rosemary's Double Delight (MFM), Book 5 - Spurs and Heels (MF)] (Siren Publishing Romance Collection) Page 32