Front Range Cowboys (5 Book Box Set)

by Evie Nichole

  “So?” Aria prompted. “What’s his name?”

  “HLC Black Bart.” Laredo sighed. “I told Cal that it was the silliest thing I’d ever heard.”

  “It is,” Bella said loftily.

  Laredo grabbed her and tickled her mercilessly until she was squirming away from him. “Oh, yeah? Did you know that Smokey’s registered name is HLC Okie Dokie Smokey?”

  “Hey!” Aria protested. “That’s actually kind of cute!”

  “Better than Black Bart,” Bella wheezed.

  Aria got to her feet and started repacking what was left of the food. “I would agree. I think we’ll just keep calling him the black horse. You know, to save his pride.”

  “You ladies are harsh,” Laredo joked.

  They continued to tease him about his horse, but Laredo didn’t mind. The three of them packed up and then mounted their horses. There was a camaraderie and sense of family between them that Laredo had never experienced before. This was what he had been longing for all his life. He’d had it to some extent with his brothers but never like this. He could feel the love and the positive regard rolling off Aria in waves, and it made him almost certain that no matter what the Flying W, his father, or even alcoholism had in mind, he could handle it.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  “Bella is in bed.” Aria yawned as she stretched her shoulders and back. “Man, I’m ready to hit the sack. How about you?”

  Aria had never been so simultaneously tired and yet happy all at the same time. She and Laredo were in her bedroom. Bella was down the hall. And somehow, none of this seemed out of place or odd.

  Laredo glanced at the bedside clock. “It’s only nine forty-five. It makes me feel old to contemplate going to bed at nine forty-five. Don’t you think?”

  Aria bit her lip. She’d been in a few relationships that had progressed far enough to include physical intimacy like sex. But she had never shared a bed or a bedroom with anyone. Was she supposed to go to the bathroom to change clothes? Was she supposed to put on pajamas? She didn’t usually sleep in pajamas.

  With that in mind, Aria tugged her shirt off over her head and just tossed it aside. Her jeans followed. It felt so good to get out of those that she went ahead and got rid of her bra and panties too. She had jumped into the bed and curled up on her side before she realized that Laredo was gaping at her.

  “What?” she asked, trying to feign innocence as best she could.

  He pulled his T-shirt off and tossed it right at her head. “You strip naked, get in bed, and then ask me that? Are you trying to be a tease?”

  “A tease?” She rolled onto her back and stretched again. She felt sexy and wanton and maybe just a little naughty. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

  Laredo growled. She heard his boots hit the floor. Then she saw him strip out of his jeans. Her heart sped up until she grew almost light-headed with anticipation. She wanted so badly to be with Laredo. She wanted to belong to him in this way. She wanted to feel as though they were one person.

  “Woman, you are driving me out of my mind.”

  His words were rough, but they excited her. There was no fear. She knew beyond doubt that this man would never hurt her in any way. His body was a delicious weight on top of hers as he climbed onto the bed and covered her head to toe with his skin.

  She felt his bare toes tickle the bottoms of her feet. The crisp hair on his legs tickled her thighs. She spread her legs to accommodate his body. His hips nestled into the vee of her body, and she felt the insistent press of his hardness against her. Still, there was no hurry.

  Laredo’s hands settled on either side of her shoulders. He gazed down at her for a long moment. The only light in her bedroom came from the soft glow of her bedside lamp. She reached up and brushed her fingers over his lips. Their softness made her smile. There was nothing soft about this man, and yet the gentleness he displayed with her made her feel more cherished than she could ever recall feeling before in her life.

  “I love you,” he whispered as he lowered his lips to hers.

  The kiss was long and slow. Their mouths melded together as though there was a never-ending cycle of give and take that began and ended only to start again as his tongue moved lightly against the seam of her lips. She parted hers and welcomed the delicious contact. His flavor overwhelmed her senses and made her feel as though she were high on his love.

  Lifting her right leg, she let her calf glide down the back of his thigh. She loved the contrasting sensation of his skin pressed against hers. Stroking her hands down his back, she tested the resilience of his shoulders with her nails. The low noises he made as he continued to kiss her told Aria that he enjoyed her touch.

  She did not need the words to know that Laredo wanted her and needed her just as much as she did him. She could feel the insistence of him pressing against her most hidden place. Her core pulsed with heat. She spread her legs as the aching emptiness seemed to permeate everything. Spreading herself wide, she welcomed him into her body.

  Laredo surged forward. The slow glide of their joining left her breathless with pleasure. The exquisite sensation of being fully joined with this man was more than she could have ever imagined. This was what she had longed for. This was what she needed. He began moving inside her. The ebb and flow of their joining mimicked the movement of his tongue against hers. Their bodies tangled together as they joined completely in the age old dance of pleasure.

  Aria’s breasts pushed against Laredo’s body. He held her so close, his arms wrapped around her as he kissed her deeply in perfect cadence with each deep push into her body. The sound and scent of their lovemaking filled the room. It permeated everything until her whole world was consumed by the need she felt for this man.

  “Laredo!” she gasped. “Please!”

  Her desperation was short-lived. Each press of his body into hers sent her spiraling higher and higher toward fulfillment. It was as though she could see the stars wheeling overhead. If she reached out her hands, her fingers would brush the very planets themselves. She went so high. Each muscle and nerve in her body was strung tight and ready to ignite.

  And then, as suddenly as she had launched into the stratosphere, she was soaring. Climax rolled over her body like a tidal wave. Aria cried out in ecstasy as Laredo strained against her and filled her body with his seed. She felt the warmth and knew that he had marked her in this most primal way as his own. It was more than she had dreamed of and exactly what she wanted.

  With a sigh, Aria felt her fingers and toes tingling as endorphins flooded her veins. She could hardly breathe. The pleasure was so intense that she wanted nothing more than to stay with this man in this moment forever.

  Yet the coming down was just as wonderful and satisfying as the soaring up. As her peak subsided, she felt the thunder of Laredo’s heartbeat against her chest. Their bodies were pressed together in the ultimate intimate moment. He rolled to his side and took her with him. They were still pressed against one another. There was no space between them. She laid her cheek against his chest and felt the loving embrace of the man who had been such a surprise to her nearly as far back as she could remember. Time seemed to spool on unchecked. The numbers on the clock changed, but there was no meaning behind them. Not to Aria. Not right now.

  “Did you ever imagine it would be this way between us?” Aria whispered against Laredo’s chest.

  He squeezed her gently and pressed his lips lovingly to the top of his head. “I don’t know if I ever imagined it. I perhaps dreamed about it. You know, the way boys dream about pretty girls.”

  Aria giggled. She felt ridiculously giddy. “The way boys dream about pretty girls? Seriously? What does that even mean? Is it something naughty?”

  “No.” He sighed. “You have to understand that you were always a part of our lives. All of us. You and Jesse were friends. The relationships were always convoluted and confusing. I liked you. You were a little younger, but I was so obsessed with making my father happy that I found a
woman who was everything that he would have wanted for his son.”

  “That seems ridiculous,” Aria mused. “Why do you want your son to be miserable? Why wish him to be with a woman who cannot do anything but pine for more money and power?”

  “Because you want him to be the type of person who pines for money and power. That’s why.” Laredo grunted. “My father wanted me to be the type of man who lusted after power and position. That way I would take the company to a higher place than even he could dream of.”

  “It still feels like making your kid miserable just to make you happy. You know?” Perhaps Aria just felt pouty because she didn’t like the idea of anyone trying to make Laredo into a puppet. “You tried so hard to make that man happy, and it just turns you inside out. Every. Single. Time.”

  “So, maybe I need a woman who can help me stop falling into those patterns,” he suggested. Laredo rolled her onto her back and nestled between her legs. Then he kissed her neck. “Maybe the woman for me is one who isn’t afraid of my father.”

  Aria put her arms around his neck and dragged him closer for another kiss. She undulated against him. Her body was warm and languid after their lovemaking, but the desire stirring below her belly was growing with each passing second. She wrapped her legs around his waist and moved against him again and again to show him what she needed.

  “Nobody has ever made me so hard and so ready so very quickly.” He groaned the words against her lips. “I need you so badly, Aria. Can I have you again? Can I be inside you?”

  “Yes,” she whispered. She spread her legs wider to accommodate him. “I love to feel you inside me. I love it when you make me yours.”

  He surged into her body. Arching her back, she welcomed him and held him close as he began to gently move in and out of her. The friction and heat left her feeling almost instantly close to her peak. She gasped and cried out as her body trembled with need. This was good. This was pure and right and everything that she had ever dreamed of having with a man.

  He gently touched her cheek. His eyes were open and he was watching her. The knowledge of that left her feeling desperate and maybe a little devastated. There was something utterly intimate about knowing that you were gazing into the eyes of your partner as they reached their climax.

  “So beautiful,” he whispered. His thumb gently traced her lower lip. “I love to feel how wet and how willing you are. Nothing has ever felt so good or so right. You were made for me, Aria. I was made for you. I never want anyone else. Say that you’re mine. Tell me!”

  “I’m yours,” she gasped.

  Her orgasm left her breathless as she squeezed her eyes closed and let the tremors overtake her body. She squeezed him tight between her legs and felt each powerful thrust of his body into hers. His muscles grew taut as he pushed deeper and harder and finally strained against her just one more time.

  “Aria!” Laredo cried out. “Baby, I’m yours. All yours. Mine. You are mine. My woman. My life.”

  His words dissolved into erotic male noises of pleasure and possession. He held her close and gave her everything that he had. Aria wrapped her arms around him and held tight as the storm overtook them both.

  When it finally subsided, Aria sighed and pressed her face to Laredo’s chest. “This is what I want,” she whispered. “I want you and me in this bed every single night. I want to go to sleep beside you and wake up next to you and never want to get out of bed because I’m just having so much fun.”

  “Sounds like heaven,” he told her softly.

  Aria yawned. “I suppose we’ll have to see what Bella has to say about that.”

  Laredo’s hand settled low on her belly. He placed his palm flat against her. “You never know. There might be more children in our future too.”

  A sort of shock went through Aria as she realized that he was right. Her whole future was ahead of her. She had been living. She’d had a good life. But it was not full. It was not what it could be with him in it.

  “Thank you,” she whispered to Laredo. “Thank you for giving me what I never even knew that I needed.”

  His low laugh made her shiver. “I think you’ve managed to shake my life up in exactly the right way. I’m just glad I could give you something in return.”

  “Oh, you’re going to give it to me,” she teased. Cupping his cheeks in both hands, she kissed him once again. “You’re going to give me everything I want and more. And I promise to give as good as I get.”

  “Consider me motivated.” He slid his tongue into her mouth and proceeded to show her exactly what he was promising.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  The stands were packed for the very first—and very early—local equestrian play day. It was a Saturday afternoon. The sky was blue. The dirt was flying. And the mountains of the Rocky Mountain front range provided a dramatic backdrop for the cowboys and cowgirls showing off their stuff in the big horse show arena.

  “Wow. This brings back some memories,” Jesse commented to Aria.

  Aria could not help but laugh. “Didn’t you completely take out a barrel on your very first time in this ring?”

  “Yeah.” Jesse sighed. “My parents were still around back then. Pixie and I came around that barrel so fast that there was no way either of us was going to stay upright. The mare went down sideways, and I slammed right into that barrel and went flying.”

  “Let’s keep the memory of that event to ourselves, shall we?” Laredo muttered as he walked up behind them.

  “Oh, look at that!” Jesse said sarcastically. “Horse show dad isn’t as brave and confident as he kept telling us he was.”

  Aria smiled at Laredo and took his hand. She lifted it to her lips and kissed his knuckles. “Last week, when I told you that I wanted to let Bella do this little fun horse show, you were fine with it. Remember?”

  “That was then.”

  Aria gave his arm a little tug. “Are you whining? That’s not very manly.”

  “Forget manly,” he muttered. “I’m freaking out trying not to think about what could happen.”

  “Bella will be fine,” Aria assured him. “This arena isn’t scary. Smokey is about the most solid little horse I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. And Bella has about a billion relatives here to support her.”

  That was certainly no exaggeration. The entire Hernandez clan—including Cal—had turned out for Bella’s inaugural barrel race. The kid was flying high, and she hadn’t even competed yet.

  “I thought you said you’d entered her in more than one event,” Laredo said tensely. “What about that?”

  “She’s entered in four events. Some of them aren’t even speed events. I want her to go in there and just bum around to get a feel for riding in that ring. It’s all going to be fine.”

  Jesse touched Aria’s arm. “The announcer is calling Bella’s first class.”

  “Right.” Now Aria was a little nervous.

  Aria left Laredo in Jesse’s capable hands and went to find her rider. Aria had made the executive decision that Bella was going to be her only student competing today. Usually Aria took ten or fifteen of her students to these easygoing low-key events. It was excellent practice for riding in a horse show situation, but the cost was minimal and the crowd was super supportive instead of being wildly competitive.

  “Are you ready?” Aria asked her favorite student.

  Bella’s little face was pale but determined, and her eyes were bright with excitement. “Smokey is ready.”

  “Okay. So, this is not a speed class, kiddo. It’s just following directions on the rail like you do in your lessons. Listen for the announcer to tell you to walk, trot, or canter, and then line up in the middle when he says to. Keep your distance from everyone else. Same arena rules as we use at home, kiddo. All right?”

  “I’ve got it.”

  There was no doubt in Aria’s mind that she’d gone a little overboard with her first “daughter” and the show clothing. Bella was wearing tooled cowboy boots with turquoise-colored
accents that matched her saddle trim and the saddle blanket next to Smokey’s gleaming grey coat.

  Jorge and the other grooms had spent a whole day making that mare as clean as humanly or “horsely” possible. Her coat was shiny. She was all trimmed up and spiffed up, and she looked like a million-dollar championship horse instead of a kid’s pony. But everyone at Clouds End Farm wanted Bella and Smokey to knock the competition out of the park, and they weren’t shy about letting it be known.

  “Is Mrs. Naranjo up in the stands?” Bella suddenly wanted to know.

  “Yep.” Aria waved to the housekeeper, who was sitting with Jorge and her other relatives. “You have a whole section up there. Grandpa Joe and Gramma Avery are up there too. Jaeger wants to know why he can’t compete yet. And everyone is rooting for you!”

  Bella picked up her reins and tightened up the little tie that kept her cowboy hat on her head. “Okay. I’m ready to go.”

  “Remember, not speed this time,” Aria cautioned as the ring steward opened the gate and started letting the class of competitors inside. “Nice and easy. Be relaxed and Smokey will be too.”

  Aria held her breath as Bella and Smokey entered the ring. A few of the other trainers waved at her or tipped their hats. Aria knew most of the other horses and riders. It was a class full of beginners. A few rival training barns had their students here, but those rivalries were always friendly and positive. Of course, that did not include the huge contingent of riders from the Flying W.

  On the other side of the show ring, Aria could see Paul Weatherby whispering to someone beside him at a furious rate. Her stomach tied itself in knots as she tried to imagine what that man might be saying. Lately, every single time he opened his mouth, he made trouble for them all.

  “That your kid?” Another trainer sidled up close beside Aria.

  She pressed her lips together and tried to decide how to answer. Lance Anderson was a local trainer with a reputation for pushing his kids really fast and hard. She’d done some horse deals with him in the past but usually tried to steer clear of the guy. He was also an absolute fixture on the local grapevine. The only thing Lance liked better than a good deal on a horse was a good tidbit of gossip.