by Aria Scott
From there, we rode the remaining ten minutes to the barn where Gage was keeping the rescue dogs. As soon as we reached the barn doors, we heard dogs barking. Smiling eagerly, she slid off her horse before I could get over to help her, and she ended up bumping against me awkwardly, her thigh brushing down the side of my leg. She moved quickly away, as if the contact had burned her; and her hair brushed against my chin as she did so.
The feel of her thigh hard against my leg, and the smell of her hair, gave me an instant, painful hard-on. While she moved uncertainly toward the barn, I gripped my horse’s saddle and closed my eyes, my body aching with intense, painful desire. Never more than now did I remember that since I’d met her, I’d had no one else, no other women. I’d been living the life of a monk outside of the few times she’d opened up to me and let me pleasure her.
Right now, all I could think about were those soft lips of hers and the incredibly tight sensation of sliding my cock inside her. In fact, I didn’t think I’d ever wanted a woman more than I wanted her at that moment. I imagined pushing her into that barn and onto the closest bale of hay I could find. To hell with the rescue dogs, I just wanted her clothes off. I knew I’d rip them off if they resisted even a little. A groan escaped me. Frowning, I let go of the saddle and stomped toward the barn.
“Chase?”
I slowed and saw her standing at the barn door, looking at me, her green eyes uncertain. Silently I cursed circumstance and forced myself to smile. As much as I might want to, I knew better than to have sex with her in the barn, next to the rescue dogs. I had much more than a single roll in the hay in mind when it came to Aubrey. Lately I’d been coming around to think that I wanted a lifetime of pleasure with her. And so, I knew I had to stick to gently wooing her, although the Romeo role usually didn’t suit me. I was usually way too brutish for that.
I joined her at the barn door, and we entered to the sound of barking. The barking went up in pitch and became joyous when the three dogs Gage had taken in recognized Aubrey. She raced toward the dogs, weaving through bales of hay, stalls and saddles until she could scoop them up in her arms and snuggle them and kiss them.
I’d never been more jealous of dogs in my life.
After making sure the dogs looked good and were doing well, we talked to the stable hand, a teenager who’d been helping Gage keep an eye on them. The stable hand gave Aubrey the run-down on their keep, and then discreetly left when he saw me pull out the picnic basket Hilda had packed for us.
Thinking the kid way smarter than his years, I poured her a small glass of wine, and gave her a sandwich. Taking the same for myself, we ate, and somehow managed to avoid giving the rescue dogs, who were now begging without shame, a bite. While we ate, we talked about dogs in general, and her efforts to open her own shelter, which the local town council had squashed. Again, I found myself wanting to tell her about the canine cafe I was having built for her, but somehow managed to say nothing. Instead, I listened, and flirted with her, and when the time had come for us to head back home, I realized that part of me wished the afternoon would never end.
The ride back was much slower than our ride out to the barn. When we reached the top of that wind-swept hill once again, we stopped. Still caught by that feeling of not wanting the day to end, I dismounted, and helped her down, too. For a moment, we stood still and gazed out across the fields and woods at the ranch, which looked small in the distance. As before, I had that urge to lay her in the grass, rip her clothes off and taste every inch of her. Instead, I moved behind her and put my arms around her. She leaned back against me and sighed, and murmured something about how beautiful it all was, and I put my lips against her hair and breathed in the sweet scent of her.
We were so close in that moment, I felt warm everywhere. My cock was raging hard. I wondered if she could feel it pushing against her backside. Suddenly she turned in my arms until she was facing me, her head titled invitingly toward me, her pink lips parted, her breath coming quick.
This was an invitation I couldn’t say no to. I bent my head and parted those honeyed lips of hers. I kissed her, deeply, as my pulse hammered through my veins. She wrapped her hands around my neck and tugged on my hair, then slid her palms down the muscles in my back to grab my ass, and bring me in tighter. I crushed her against my body, and she clung to me. On and on we kissed, my tongue tangling with hers, our bodies straining against each other’s. Suddenly, she spread her thighs and started to rub her pussy against my leg. I held my leg steady so she could ride it all she wanted.
Just as I decided that laying her down in the grass wasn’t such a bad idea, the wind changed. A gust whipped around us and giant raindrop hit my face. Then a second raindrop splashed me. We broke the kiss, and looked up at the sky. Dark clouds had gathered above us into a nasty-looking thunderstorm. The wind whipped more furiously around us.
We were going to get drenched.
Lightning flashed.
“Holy shit, the sky’s going to open up.” I swung her up into my arms and raced to her horse. I nearly threw her into the saddle. “Go. I’m right behind you.
She took off at a gallop. I mounted my own horse and raced after her, this time both of us trying to outpace the storm, rather than each other. Thunder boomed, the wind bent the trees over, and then the rain came down in buckets. We were both drenched long before we made it back to the ranch. I pulled even with her as we stopped in front of the porch. I jumped down and, without waiting for her to dismount, I slid her off her horse and carried her to the porch, before racing back into the storm to tie the horses up in the barn near the house.
When I returned, she had taken the rugby sweater off and was standing there in her blouse, the fabric soaking wet and clinging to her breasts. The chill had made her nipples hard, and the rain had made the fabric sheer, and I caught my breath. I’d never seen a sexier sight--even though I’d been to my share of wet T-shirt contests.
I stared. I couldn’t help it.
She looked at her blouse, and tried to pluck it away from her skin.
I rushed over to grab a lap blanket off of one of the rocking chairs on the porch and I wrapped it around her, telling her as I did so that she could start wars, looking that way. She laughed and huddled in the blanket, and then we were hugging each other and stumbling into the house, dripping wet like a couple of rats but never happier. I still had my arms around her and was kissing her neck, when my mom came marching up.
“What is wrong with you, Chase? Why didn’t you get this poor girl home when you saw that storm blowing in?”
“We didn’t see it in time--”
“You two have your whole lives ahead of you,” Mom said, with a stern look. “You don’t want to ruin it by doing something stupid. Save the kisses for sunny days.”
I realized then that my mom must have been watching us up on the hill, as we’d looked down on the ranch.
Aubrey’s smile faded. I put my arms around her, kissed her hair, reveled in our closeness. “Sorry, Mom.”
“God have mercy.” She scowled at me, then turned her attention to Aubrey. “Come on with me, sweetie. Let’s get you upstairs and changed before you catch a chill.” They headed toward the staircase. “I can see there’s a lot more going on between you two than meets the eye,” Mom muttered, as she led Aubrey upstairs.
“Her bark is worse than her bite,” I called out to Aubrey.
My mom let out a snort of annoyance. But Aubrey’s smile returned, and she spun around to blow me a quick kiss. I pretended to catch it, and I silently promised myself that I’d redeem it in full, later.
“Here’s to Chase and Aubrey,” my brother Gage said, and the five of us clinked our champagne glasses together.
Night had fallen, and we were all hanging around at the small dinner party my mom had arranged, to celebrate my engagement to Aubrey. Aubrey and I stood in the foyer, which my mom had decorated with roses. Roses everywhere--red, yellow, white, pink. Their scent was so overpowering, it stuck in my nose. Around us,
a few of my mom’s friends, along with Aubrey’s girlfriend Lisa and Lisa’s significant other Douglas, enjoyed the spread of top-line champagne, wine, and appetizers that my mom had laid out.
Across from us, Dakota, Gage and Luke were giving us varying kinds of smiles--Gage’s was slightly mocking, as he knew that my marriage to Aubrey was a sham; and Luke’s smile was a warming meant to remind me that if I ‘hurt’ Aubrey, I’d have him to answer to. Dakota seemed the only one oblivious to all of the undercurrents between us, and linked her arm in Aubrey’s with a happy smile.
“Come on, let’s go have drink,” my sister said. “I need to get to know you better before you marry my brother.”
Aubrey slanted a nervous smile in my direction, and I managed to nod encouragingly before my sister dragged her off. Then, I glanced around the foyer and living room, where I counted at least thirty guests, with more spilling into the kitchen. “Mom didn’t tell me she was going to invite so many people.”
“You know Mom,” Gage said, his mocking smile growing wider. “She loves a good reason to have a party.”
“My God, she’s friggin’ hot,” Luke interrupted, his voice hushed with reverence.
“Who’s hot? Mom?” I asked testily, and again scanned the room.
“No. Aubrey, bro.”
I frowned.
“When she visited me back at the hospital with her dog, I had no idea she’d clean up this well.” Luke paused, shook his head. “Damn.”
I narrowed my eyes and stared at him. Like the rest of the men in the Wilder family, he’d grown up good-looking, with what I supposed was a decent body, at least from a woman’s point of view, and a smile that Dakota claimed could bring the opposite sex to their knees. Personally, I had yet to see this kind of action, but I trusted Dakota, and I sure as shit didn’t want Luke turning his thousand-kilowatt smile on Aubrey now. “That’s rude, Luke. She’s going to be my wife. Don’t stand there and take her clothes off with your eyes.”
“Yeah, but she’s your wife in name only,” Luke reminded me.
I swallowed past the anger that had suddenly lodged in my throat like a lump. The truth was, I resented the fact that Luke had enjoyed all of those tender moments with Aubrey. And although I understood why he was looking at her that way--she looked gorgeous--I didn’t like his comment one goddamned bit.
For a few seconds, I watched her move across the room with Dakota. Tonight, she had on this fifties-throwback dress on with big red tropical flowers on it, which gave her this Marilyn Monroe look--all tits and ass, bright red lips, and her red hair a silky curtain to one side of her face. She even had on red stilettos, and all I could think about was her giving me a fashion show in only the stilettos.
“Shut up, Luke,” Gage advised.
Luke’s eyes widened. “Why? Is Chase getting jealous?”
I refocused on Luke. “Remember the fucking man code. You don’t talk like that about your brother’s woman, fake marriage or not.”
Lip curled with disgust, Luke shook his head. “I’m just saying she looks good. Chill out.”
I clenched my jaw and sipped champagne. All around me, people talked, joked, laughed, and enjoyed each other’s company. The room was filled with the buzz of conversation, the smell of good food, and a feeling of celebration. Everyone seemed to be having a good time but me, and I knew why:
This marriage between Aubrey and I would be fake.
And I knew now that I wanted it to be real.
“I think I love her,” I blurted.
Luke took a step back, his face slack with surprise. “What?” he said, his voice low. Shocked.
Gage, though, had that I-knew-it look on his face.
Luke shook his head with amazement. “You love her?”
Now that the words had actually come out of my mouth, I abruptly wanted to take them back. I sounded like some idiotic Romeo. It was embarrassing. I wished one of the blocking dummies on the gridiron was in the next room. I’d spend the next half an hour tackling it.
“How does she feel about you?” Luke asked.
“She thinks I’m a player.” I frowned, my gaze seeking her out across the room. She was standing there with Dakota, a bright red head with a mellow blonde head, drinking bubbly. “She’s just in it for the money.”
Luke exchanged a quick, concerned glance with Gage, and I knew who they were thinking about.
Simone.
“I don’t blame her,” I quickly added. “My reputation is shit. And she does need the money.”
Gage lifted an eyebrow. “Are you sure that’s the way she feels about you?”
I didn’t answer. The truth was, I didn’t know how she felt about me anymore. That kiss we’d had on the hilltop, just before the storm broke--it had been damned hot, but it had also felt...deeper in some way.
Luke shook his head. “You have problems, Chase.”
“No shit.”
“Does she know how you feel about her?”
“No.”
“Then go fucking tell her, dude,” Luke declared. “You aren’t going to get anywhere if you keep your mouth shut.”
I put my champagne glass down and picked up another. “I know what she’s going to say. What she’s going to do.”
“What’s she gonna to do?” Gage challenged.
“She’s going to feel sorry for me. She’s going take the money and move on.”
“She’s a good person,” Luke insisted. “Why don’t you just give her a chance?”
I hesitated. “You’re telling me to put my balls on a chopping block.”
“I’m not so sure she’s going to feel sorry for you. Or move on.” Gage appeared suddenly thoughtful. “I’ve seen the way she looks at you.”
I felt desperate to believe Gage. “How does she look at me?”
“Like she loves you.”
I shook my head with disbelief.
“She’s in this for more than the money.” Gage sounded sure of himself.
“If you want her, bro,” Luke added, “better go get her.”
I looked from Gage, to Luke, and back to Gage again. They were both nodding and looking certain. I hesitated another second, and then came to a decision. “All right.”
Gage slapped me on the back. “That’s my brother.”
Luke smiled widely. “Go get her.”
Buoyed by their confidence and propelled by a gut-deep conviction that now was the time to claim a life with Aubrey forever, I glanced over to where I had seen her last: at the bar with Dakota. Dakota still stood there, but now she was with a dark-haired woman who I recognized as a high school cheerleader--Emma Aldren---who’d once bounced pom-poms while I played. I uncomfortably recalled how Emma used to bounce on my cock under the bleachers next to the athletic field.
Where was Aubrey?
All at once, Emma noticed me looking at her, said something to Dakota, and then made a bee-line in my direction.
Jesus.
Leaving my brothers behind, I edged toward the kitchen. I wanted to make a quick exit and find Aubrey. But Emma was even more insistent on intercepting me and was more effective than any cornerback who’d played in the pros. Before I knew it, she was standing in front of me and blocking my way.
The oohs and ahh’s and flattery almost immediately started flowing like honey from her lips.
Oh, Chase, so glad I finally got to see you again.
Heard you made the pros.
So sad you forgot this hometown girl.
Everything she said seemed to be full of innuendo and I cast a panicked glance around the room, hoping Aubrey wasn’t seeing this. After a frantic search, I saw her head bent low toward another woman, who I recognized as Lisa, and knew I’d be safe for a few more minutes.
“Emma, good to see you,” I lied. “How’s life been treating you?”
“It was good until you left, Chase,” she said baldly, and I saw the hunger in her eyes.
Immediately I backed off a few steps. She touched my arm, as if to prevent my r
etreat, and looked at me with brown eyes glowing with sexual promise. “Uh….”
Abruptly she began a monologue about her life, starting with the night she’d first bounced on my cock and moving on from there. Feeling like the crosshairs had been trained on me, I waited for her to tell me about a secret baby she’d had nine months after I’d fucked her. When that didn’t happen, I wondered what in the hell was motivating her to behave this way. Did she think I was going to cheat on Aubrey with her before we even got married? Was she looking for some kind of payout, for sex? Did she want money, too?
What kind of man did she think I was?
I got that answer moments later.
“I watched your sex tape on the internet,” she told me breathlessly. “You were just like I remembered.”
I nodded toward the front door. “You need to go.”
“You and that other player, the guy from your team. You took turns.”
I cringed.
“You let that woman spank you,” she continued, her words coming fast. “It was hot. I like spanking guys. And I don’t mind being spanked either--”
“I’m engaged,” I reminded her. “I’m getting married.”
“I know,” she agreed, and put her hand on my arm. “But you pro ballers, you’re different from the average guy. You play on the side.”
I shook her hand off. “Not interested.”
She pouted. “If you want to make another sex tape--”
Disgusted, I pulled away. “Jesus, Emma.”
“Chase, I’m not like this with other guys--”
“Go home,” I ordered, and strode toward the kitchen, where I’d last seen Aubrey talking with Lisa. I glanced back at the former cheerleader, to make sure she wasn’t following me, and walked toward my fiancée, who had her head bent toward her friend.
The two seemed to be deep in conversation. My initial impulse was to push Lisa out of the way and shout to the world--and Aubrey--how I felt, but a sense of self-preservation suggested I wait their discussion out. And so, I paused just around the corner and tried not to eavesdrop.