by Krista Ames
Some minutes later, Ally had dressed in her oldest, most faded, comfy jeans and a pale yellow I LOVE NY T-shirt. She’d gathered her hair at the nape with a leather tie and grabbed her old straw cowboy hat off the shelf in her closet.
She walked along the hallway toward the stairs. The aromatic smell of strong coffee pulled her like a magnet. Caffeine was her only saving grace in the mornings, the only chance at humanization. And the way she’d slept the night before, she needed all the help she could get.
As she passed her daddy’s study and the living room—both empty—she grew steadily more confident she was in the clear concerning her earlier outburst. She pushed through the kitchen door in search of the steaming pot of java and a breakfast she hoped Maribella had whipped up. Instead, her heart skipped a beat at the clean-shaven, fresh-from-the-shower look of Matt Gentry, foreman of the Circle K Ranch and star of her most erotic fantasy to date.
“Morning, princess, like some coffee?” He stared openly at her, waiting for a response. Was it her imagination or was there a hint of laughter on his lips? “Cat got your tongue?”
“Ah…no. Yes, I mean, yes I’d love some.” She cleared her throat. “Please.” She didn’t recognize the husky voice coming from her mouth. It would be just my luck if he notices. “Is Maribella around?” She refused to look at him and poured the black liquid into the cup he’d set on the counter for her.
“Nope. It’s her day off. I made breakfast though. There’s plenty left, help yourself.” He pointed toward the stove.
She didn’t comment, only sagged onto the closest chair, a two-handed death grip on her mug when she brought it to her mouth for her first sip.
“So, princess, sleep well?”
She sputtered, choking as shock racked her body. Oh. My. God! He must have overheard me. This is so beyond the max of humiliation. She suddenly wished she’d never come back to Freewill. No, that’s not true. She had been missing her daddy something awful, and his phone call was all the excuse she’d needed to come home. What she regretted was her continual confrontations with this “too sexy for his own good” cowboy.
He was at her side before she realized what was happening, holding her free arm in the air, pounding earnestly on her back. “Hey, beautiful, are you okay?”
Was there concern in his voice? He almost sounded shaky. If anything, she should be the shaky one, and vowed to make a note to herself—Don’t let this man touch any part of my body. Her pulse had to be jumping out of her wrist where he was holding her.
“Ally! Take a couple deep breaths for me, sweetheart.”
“I’m fine,” she coughed out. She released her spilled cup and swatted at his hand. “And let go of me!”
Nobody ever called her “sweetheart,” not even her daddy. She liked it. It made her feel like there was some secret thing only they shared.
He grabbed the towel from the counter, cleaned up the table, righted her mug, and poured her a fresh cup.
“If you’re okay, I’ll leave you to eat. Jesse has a horse arriving this morning.” He made to leave but turned back to her again. “Hey, if you feel daring, come on out to the corral. I’m waiting on a special delivery, you can help.” And then he was gone.
She rested her head briefly in her hands. “My God, he’s so bad for my equilibrium.”
She filled a plate and ate some, but mostly pushed the food around with her fork, contemplating the situation she had unknowingly put herself in with this cowboy. He was absolutely, by any smart, red-blooded, American woman’s standards, sexy as all get out. Her history with men was less than memorable. She definitely didn’t need another—even though he did totally unmentionable things to her insides, things no man had ever made her feel.
So here she was again, in another fine mess. A sexy cowboy with a past nobody, least of all her daddy, knew anything about, and that included a possible girlfriend or wife from the conversation she’d overheard the night before. Well then, decision made. Her new objective was to find out what she could about the man and any of his sleazy affairs. Jesse Kincaid was all she had, and she wouldn’t stand by and see him hurt by anyone.
***
As Matt stood in the shadowed doorway of the cool barn, he drove his hand through his hair again. He was in way over his head. He had no business getting involved with Ally, even a little bit. Her kisses were so sweet though. He’d never had this strong of a reaction to any other woman. Shit, just being in the same room with her muddled his brains, turned them to mush, and made him hard instantly.
He hadn’t been with anyone intimately in a long time. He’d intentionally stayed away from them for his own good. Especially Carol, who waitressed at the Blue Moon Café in Freewill. She’d made it very clear exactly what she wanted from him every time she came on to him. He really liked Bud, the owner of the Blue Moon, but lately, he’d avoided it altogether. Small towns were murder. Gossip traveled faster than a creek. She wasn’t bad to look at, but nah, he definitely wasn’t interested.
Ally was different. He couldn’t stay away from her, and it pissed him off royally. He’d taken more cold showers in the last twenty-four hours than he ever had, and was quite certain his condition would continue. He didn’t want to give in, but could he really help it? Probably not, damn it.
“All right, Gentry, focus!” He had a job to do, and she was a distraction—a damn nice distraction but a distraction nonetheless. He turned his head toward the house when the front door slammed shut at the same time a Fairway Ranch truck and trailer pulled up the lane. It was gonna be one hell of a day.
Matt readjusted his Stetson and headed through the door.
“Hey, Jimmy, how’s it going?”
“Hey, Gentry, sorry about having to show up today,” Jimmy Klausen, the foreman for Fairway Ranch in Cheyenne said. “Couldn’t even spare one of the hands to drive over. We got more business than we can handle for the next couple weeks.”
“No problem. I’m anxious to get working on this beast.” He helped unlock the trailer and lower the ramp then unlatched the corral gate and swung it wide. Ally appeared at his side with a huge grin and held the gate open.
He walked back to the trailer and waited while Jimmy backed the thoroughbred out and handed over the lead. He slowly raised his hand, giving the horse a chance to catch his scent. A prime stock stud—beautiful and coal black with a white streak down his nose and white boots—lowered his ears and pranced in place. He sniffed at Matt twice then nudged his hand, the horse’s ears perked back into place, and he swished his tail in acceptance.
Matt grinned. The stable normally only housed riding and cutter stock, but Jesse had decided to try out a new venture. Thoroughbreds could be a good business with the right breeding. Matt considered himself a horse guy, loved all types. Sometimes, he fancied he could even tell what they were thinking.
”Thanks, Jimmy,” he said and turned to lead the stallion into the corral. But the black beast dug in his hoofs, stopping dead at the sight of Ally. Matt tugged at the lead, but the rogue refused to budge or look away from her. She seemed just as entranced as the animal, their gazes locked while she carefully approached.
“Ally, take it real easy with this one. Okay—”
“Relax, will you?” She reached out anyway, ignoring his warning and gently rubbed up and down over the thoroughbred’s shoulder and across his neck. The beautiful animal stretched his head to nudge her hand, and she laughed.
“I’ll be damned.” He stood in shock, witnessing the friendship form between them. He’d never known anyone, besides himself, who had an immediate camaraderie with a horse. At least both of them had something in common, which probably wasn’t a good thing. He didn’t need any more reasons to like her, but watching her made him want to pull her close and kiss her senseless.
Ally patted the new addition one last time and took a step back, smiling wide at Matt.
He tugged on the rope. “Come on, boy, you can flirt later.” His comment tugged another pleased laugh out of her, and
she sat idle while Matt lead the stallion into the corral, unhooked the tether, and smacked him on his hind end. The horse took off at a gallop around the corral.
“Oh, he’s positively beautiful.” She stepped up onto the bottom rail of the paddock.
“Your dad definitely knows how to pick ’em. He’s a beaut!”
“Speaking of Daddy, where is he?” She spoke to him but her gaze remained locked on the gorgeous creature.
“He’s out in the fields, rounding up the last of the herd. They should be finished today. I stayed behind to wait for this rogue.”
“Rogue.” She nodded. “That’s a great name for him. It fits.”
“Well, I’ll leave the name up to you and your father. I just train the horses. Speaking of, I gotta get to work.” He pushed away from the corral and smacked her on the ass as he walked past.
“Hey! What the heck was that for?”
Matt turned back just as Ally nailed him with an offended glare.
“Sorry, couldn’t resist.” He shrugged his shoulders and chuckled, before striding into the barn. Damn, she’s adorable.
Chapter Six
Ally sat on the top rail of the corral gate for what seemed like hours while her father’s foreman put the rogue through the paces, adding a saddle blanket halfway through for familiarity. The thoroughbred was more beautiful than she’d originally thought. He would sire stunning foals. Matt had talked while he worked, telling her the plan to have the horse mount both the new honey colored mares.
She left the corral at mid-morning to make them lunch, amazed at how comfortable she felt in his company. At the same time, her insides were stretched tighter than a rubber band. He gave off a male vibe she simply couldn’t resist. It might be her imagination, but he seemed as taken with her, and she secretly smiled. There was no denying it, she wanted the man in every way she could think of and probably some ways she shouldn’t. However, there was the potential issue of another woman in his life, which gave her cause for concern.
Shortly after they’d both eaten roast beef and Swiss sandwiches, she’d resumed her perch on the top rail. The weather had warmed up nicely. Matt worked patiently with the horse, but then out of the blue, he stopped long enough to peel off his T-shirt. Good Lord! Ally almost fell off the gate. He was too good to be true—a real nice tan from all the hard work in the sun showed off a set of six-pack abs to die for. Her fingers itched to touch every part of his body.
She pictured herself first running her fingertips over his wide shoulders and defined pecs. Then she would brush her thumbs over his male nipples, imagining the catch of his breath and the pooling of desire as his cock strained against the zipper of his faded jeans.
She wouldn’t want it to be all one-sided, however much she loved to touch and pleasure him. She wanted his hands on her too, caressing her most intimate spots. She smiled sheepishly at letting herself think like this again. She used her shirtsleeve to wipe the sweat from her brow and pulled on her pants to adjust her damp panties.
Startled out of her erotic daydream, and not for the first time, she licked her dry lips as her eyes connected with his all-knowing ones. He proudly carried the shit-eatin’ grin of a man who knew exactly what she’d been thinking. Had she been drooling? Unbelievable! She’d read and edited more erotic romances than she could count, and she’d definitely heard it all. But this was different for some reason, and very personal.
He stalked closer to her with the horse at his heels, but he never broke eye contact. That is, until Rogue bypassed him to nudge at her knee. She remained perched precariously on the fence.
“I think this thoroughbred has had enough for today.”
She climbed down from the gate, unlatching and opening it so Matt could lead the stallion back to the barn. A stall had been cleaned and readied earlier before his arrival.
As Matt passed by her, she reached for him, touching the forearm holding the lead. “Do you mind if I tag along?”
“Why, ma’am, I’d be delighted.” He winked and strode away, the horse in tow.
She struggled to hang back for a minute, her gaze on his tight, jean-clad butt while he walked out of sight. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Wrong, so very, very wrong. She was more aware of this one man than she’d ever been of anyone or anything whether she could see him or not.
She wouldn’t be in Freewill forever, even though for some reason this visit felt different from the others. Maybe she could handle a casual fling. But how casual would it actually be? It was obvious she couldn’t get enough of Matt Gentry. Something about him pulled at her to keep coming back for more.
But what about the other woman in his life? Ally had kissed him. Of course it had happened before she’d known there was another woman, but still, to think she had taken part in his cheating made her sick with anger. Is that what he did, use women? Have a girlfriend or a wife stashed in another town and fool around with whomever he ran into in the meantime?
She shook her head. She was cursed when it came to men. She always fell hard and then got her heart broken. She couldn’t be to blame for another woman getting hurt, as well. She needed to stop the situation before it got out of control.
***
He sensed her presence before she even came into sight. Rogue knew too, which explained the prancing and head tossing as the horse moved about his stall.
“I know how you feel, boy.” He grabbed the grooming equipment.
Her scent was unmistakable, and the pure sex oozing from the woman was undeniable. Damn it all, but he was having a real hard time keeping away from this one. He should resist her. He’d put a wall around his heart two years ago to avoid this very thing—the shaky raw nerves, the mush that inevitably would be his heart, and the sensations, which messed with his head. Not to mention, he’d been pretty much at full attention nonstop since he met her. How had she gotten past the wall he’d built already? Damn it. Just thinking about her made him hard. Looked like there would be a lot more cold showers in his future.
He should have told her he didn’t need any help, so she would go back in the damn house, but his mamma hadn’t raised him to be rude to a woman. That is, no woman except Carol at the Blue Moon café, and he probably wouldn’t classify her as a woman, if he were smart. She didn’t take no for an answer, so there was no other option with her.
“Hey, beautiful,” Ally whispered when she stopped in front of the open stall, rubbing the horse’s nose.
Matt moved closer to her. “He likes you.”
“Oh, my gosh!” she shrieked, jumping back from the stall.
The horse reared back in surprise, lowering his ears, huffing and pawing the ground in protest. He grabbed both her arms to steady her, pulling her flush against his chest and backing quickly, out of the horse’s stomping range. Good thing he’d tethered the animal to its stall.
“Careful, honey.”
She tried to turn toward him but met with resistance.
“Stand still.” He didn’t want the horse to be alarmed.
“I’m so sorry I screamed. I swear I didn’t see you there. You scared me,” she whispered, her head lowered.
Her normally solid, sexy voice shook. Damn, he really had scared her. What the hell had he been thinking? Apparently, he hadn’t been. He tended to lose his head when she was around.
“No, I’m sorry. It was my fault. I thought you saw me. I shouldn’t have come up behind you like that.” He really should release her and move away, but he couldn’t. She felt too good against him. God, he was going insane.
His lips were so close to her, he couldn’t stop himself. If he got her locked in his arms again, he wouldn’t want to let go. He darted his tongue against her neck, and her hands snaked behind her to find his hips, holding him still with her fingertips as she wiggled her butt cheeks against his rock hard cock. He exhaled a groan through gritted teeth.
“Matt….” she whispered.
“God, Ally, what are you doing to me?”
He moved a hand to span t
he side of her neck as he nuzzled the sensitive, sweet smelling flesh below her ear, nibbling along her jaw line while his other hand slipped around her middle, resting on her flat stomach but using enough pressure to keep her flush with his ever increasing hardness. His fingers worked at her T-shirt until he found her hidden warm flesh, fanning his hand down below the waistline of her jeans, too impatient to bother with the button and zipper.
She wasn’t aware until they bumped into the doorframe that he had been slowly walking her backward toward the tack room. No way was she going to let this happen. He had a huge amount of explaining to do, even if her hormones were telling her brain to shut up and enjoy.
“Hold it right there, buddy.” She grabbed the hand conveniently situated in the front of her pants and turned to face him. Planting her other palm firmly on his chest, she pushed him away, tuning out the way heat shot through her body every time she touched him. “I heard you on the phone last night, so I’d love to know what the hell you think you’re doing here with me when you have a girlfriend or fiancée or, Heaven forbid, a wife off somewhere, you dirty rat.”
She’d expected guilt or shame or both to show on his face, but his dumbfounded expression? That definitely confused her.
“What the hell are you talking about?” He sounded oddly innocent and perplexed.
“Oh don’t you dare play dumb with me. You know, last night…on the phone, talking to your honey, telling her you missed her, and the stars were beautiful. Blah, blah, blah….”
“Were you eavesdropping on my phone conversation, princess?”
“Of course I wasn’t.” Except maybe she had been. Her face warmed —and not from the heat between them a few moments ago.
His eyes narrowed. “Oh, I think you were. ‘Daddy’s little princess’ stooping so low as to listen to a phone conversation, which had nothing to do with her? Shame on you. Where were you, with your ear to my door?”
Her heartbeat quickened at his accusation. How had he turned this whole situation around to be her fault? “Hold on, this isn’t about me. This is about—”