Sun Burnt

by Cat Miller

  “Cattleman,” he corrected her.

  “Huh?”

  “You said I was the best cowboy around. I’ll grant you, it’s true.” He gave her an arrogant grin. It was mighty nice of her to admit it.“But the correct term is cattleman. This is a cattle ranch.”

  “Oh,” she nodded,“I’ll remember. Cattleman. Got it.” She looked at him directly, stepping into his space.“I don’t have any issues with you, but I’d like to know why you’re angry with me, Beau.” She put too much emphasis on his name, just as he had hers.” And why did you say my name like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “Like it tasted bad or something.” She raised an accusing eyebrow.

  “I don’t know? Maybe if I’d been given your last name, this wouldn’t have happened. And what kind of name is that anyway, Kesslyn?”

  “My name? What the hell kind of name is Beau? Kesslyn happens to be the kind of name cowboys pretending to be businessmen tell me is pretty. That’s what kind of name it is! What kind of name is Beau? It sounds like a hair accessory! And what do you mean by this wouldn’t have happened?”

  “Pretending? Did I tell you I was a businessman? No, I didn’t. You assumed. I happenedto have been the best man in a wedding that day. There were quite a few people there for the after party wearing formal clothing. And I’ll have you know that, unlike that hippie-sounding name you’ve got, Beauregard is a family name that I’m damn proud to carry. Look it up, darlin’. It means handsome. And if I’d known you were a high and mighty Walker, I wouldn’t have sullied you with my dirty cowboy dick.”

  She thought he’d been playing her? Pretending to be someone he wasn’t? She’d wanted the guy in the sharp suit. The guy in a cowboy hat, not so much. It just went to prove that he had no chance with her now.

  “I didn’t say you were dirty! I only said you misled me! Don’t put words in my mouth, Beau!”

  “You’re a damn hypocrite,” he accused.“You were the one pretending to be someone you weren’t. Not me, Yankee!”

  “It is not a hippie name, by the way! My mom named me! And I’m not a yankee! How do you figure I’m a hypocrite?” Kesslyn shouted.

  “You should have told me who you were! You said you were leaving town in the morning!” Beau shouted back. The horses began to fidget, the loud voices and tension upsetting them.

  “I did leave town. I moved to the ranch. Why does my name matter? Did you care? Did you ask for my last name? No! You turned that sexy cowboy thing on me for no other reason than to get in my pants. You didn’t care who I was!”

  “So!” Shit. She had him there. Only he hadn’t been able to stop thinking of her since then.“You were after the same thing!”

  “So!” Kesslyn’s cheeks were flushed with anger or embarrassment, he wasn’t sure which. Her ponytail was coming loose. The strap of her frilly sundress was sliding down her shoulder. Beau had never seen a more captivating woman in his life. Even her too fast yankee accent was sexy as hell.

  They were shouting in each other’s faces and bickering like children one moment and kissing the next. Beau wasn’t sure who moved first, but they ended up tangled in each other’s arms. She clung to him, sucking at his tongue and rubbing against him. He lifted her against him and pressed her voluptuous ass to the wall. Her skirt hiked up when she wrapped her long legs around Beau’s waist. The thin fabric of her panties was no barrier against the heat of her pussy.

  Beau’s hand on her ass slid a little deeper. He dipped under the lace of those panties and into the velvety slickness of her folds. She hissed against his mouth. Moaning when he pressed a finger into her core. Fuck yeah. She was hot and ready for him.

  “Undo my jeans, Kesslyn, now.” He had to get inside of that slick little pussy. She stalled.“Do it.” It was a demand. He wanted her, and she wanted what he had for her. He knew it, and so did she. He might not be the professional she assumed he was, but he was the man who’d fucked her right and made her shout his name.

  Kesslyn’s legs lowered from around his waist. He never let up the assault on her mouth while she unbuckled his belt and freed his rigid dick from its denim prison. She stroked him with a soft hand and sucked at his tongue.

  Beau quickly retrieved a condom and tossed his wallet to the floor. He pressed the condom into Kesslyn’s hand. She knew what he wanted. While she went about sheathing his dick, Beau was teasing the little button hidden by tidy red curls at the apex of Kesslyn's thighs. She moved against his hand wanting more pressure.

  It was delicious agony when she rolled the condom down his shaft. He couldn’t wait any longer. Beau lifted Kesslyn back into his arms. He pressed her to wall. His dick needed no direction, sliding through her wetness and finding a home in her body unerringly.

  Kesslyn was just as tight and hot as he remembered. He wanted to go slower this time. He wanted to be a gentleman and find an appropriate place to give her pleasure, but it was too late for that. As soon as Kesslyn touched him, it had been too late for anything but fulfilling the pounding need to possess her. Her nails dug into his shoulders. Her legs wrapped tightly around Beau’s waist.

  Beau let go of all thought. His body took over, and he gave it free reign. Kesslyn was in his arms. She was wrapped around him like a vine, pushing back against his pounding thrusts. Harder and deeper he pressed. Making her scream his name again and again. He joined her, falling over the edge of a violent orgasm. Never stopping the steady slide of his hips until he felt ready to collapse, and Kesslyn hung limply in his arms.

  Slowly, Beau lowered Kesslyn to her feet and held on until he was sure she was steady. Avoiding his eyes, she straightened her skirt and picked up her panties. He knew he should back up and give her some space, but he didn’t want to. He wanted her to feel his presence. He wanted her to remember him. Beau Knox, the cowboy, who couldn’t get enough of her.

  ****

  Kesslyn stared up at the stars from her blanket on the grass a few hundred yards from the house. The night was a deep black around her. Without the distraction of streetlights and so many buildings to block the view of the velvety ceiling above her. And the stars. There were so many stars. Kesslyn knew there were billions of stars in the night sky, but she’d never really seen them. Not like this. You didn’t really understand the beauty of the night until had the opportunity to see like this, in the quiet solitude away from the noise and lights of man.

  She’d come out here to think. The last few days had been filled with social calls and meetings. She and Tippy had made the rounds of Walker Creek, letting everyone get a good look at her. Hopefully being seen out and about would make her less of a stranger. She just wanted to be less of a sensation when she left the house. Wherever she went, people pulled out their phones and started texting. Maybe it was her imagination. She’d been just a bit paranoid since that first day at the diner.

  She’d learned a few interesting things, too. Like asking for a Coke doesn’t work. The word Coke in Texas is like saying soda back home. All sodas there were Cokes. She still wasn’t sure how to order an actual Coke.

  She’d also learned that rain had an odd effect on Texans. She’d stopped at the gas station on the way home from a visit to Mr. Baird’s office to sign some paperwork transferring all of her grandfather’s property, investments, and business to her. While she was pumping gas and contemplating the enormity of recent changes in her life, the sky suddenly opened up and it poured down on Walker Creek. The surprising part of this happened when the other drivers began to hoot and applaud. The clerk rushed out to high-five everyone. One motorist even stopped to get out and dance in the rain. That was life in Texas she’d been told. Rain was a reason to celebrate vigorously. The memory made her smile.

  A shooting star crossed overhead. Kesslyn closed her eyes tightly and wished like a child. She wished for the strength. Strength to do what needed to be done. Strength to figure out what exactly that was. The strength to spend the day with Beau without throwing herself at him . . . again.

  Kes
slyn’s cheeks burned fiercely. Good god. If she came within three feet of the man, it was like the elastic melted right out of her panties and they hit the floor. She covered her face with her hands. Volcanic. That’s what it was like to touch him. Just a brush of his hand, and she exploded in a shower of lust followed quickly by shame.

  How did he do that to her? She’d seen him several times in the last few days, but they never spoke. Not really. Tippy had the cattlemen coming up to the house for meals again. Kesslyn had met most of them and got to know them a little. She wanted them to feel comfortable coming to her if they had a problem. Normally, they would go to Beau, but if Beau was off or not around, she was the boss. Tippy was right, again, and Kesslyn didn’t know what she was going to do when Tippy went back to retired life.

  During these meals, Beau was polite, but quiet, and he didn’t speak directly to her. He seemed to be keeping an eye on the other cowboys. As if maybe he were jealous and didn’t want anyone getting too close. That idea warmed her. Was it possible that he was interested in her for more than blazing hot barn sex? She was afraid to hope for it. Getting close to Beau only to get her heart broken could make day to day life very messy. He was her foreman, and he was the best man for the job. She couldn’t send him away because it didn’t work out between them.

  And wasn’t that line of thought telling? Every hour of every day she was thinking of Walker Creek as her home more and more. Now she was thinking of her future on the ranch and wondering if Beau would be a part of it past his position as foreman. With a deep sigh of resignation, Kesslyn gathered up her blanket and began the short walk back to the house. She’d be up with the sun and riding the range with Beau in the morning.

  Kesslyn peeked at Beau from under the rim of her hat. Beau’s eyes were focused on the trail ahead of them. His strong hands gripped the reigns expertly. Kesslyn couldn’t help remembering how those large hands had felt on her body. She couldn’t stop the racing of her heart or the desire to feel those hands on her again, but she was trying.

  Beau was stunning as ever to her foolish heart. He looked powerful sitting on Zeus’s back with his hat tipped to block the sun. She noticed that he used those powerful legs of his to control the horse more than the reigns. She barely had the strength to hold on with her legs. She was a decent rider, but she was used to leisurely rides with her dad from time to time. Not this kind of long ride that punished her backside and tested her tolerance for pain. She would be hurting the next day for sure.

  When she met Beau in the barn that morning for their scheduled ride, he’d paused when he saw her standing in the breezeway looking a little confused before he continued saddling Butterscotch for Kesslyn.

  He was taking her along to ride the fences and check for damage. Apparently downed fencing was a regular occurrence. The fences had to be check to ensure the cattle didn’t wander out of their grazing areas. Having the herd wander onto a neighboring farm’s property and eat their crop would be a problem. The fences also keep other critters out. Likewise, they didn’t want their prize grazing land eaten up by neighboring cattle either. The cattlemen rode the fences and repaired damage caused by the cattle, winds, or rains as needed.

  They had been riding for over an hour, and Kesslyn was amazed at the size of the property. This was what she’d wanted. To see the land for herself. The cattle itself was going to take some getting used to for her. They were big and kind of cute grazing peacefully from afar, but the smell was not something that she’d ever adjust to.

  For the most part, the land was very flat except for the occasional rise. It was at the top of one of these rises that Kesslyn had to pull Butterscotch to a stop. The sheer beauty of the land stole her breath. The small valley before her was like an ocean of bluebells rolling over the gentle hills like waves.

  Beau pulled up and circled around behind her. She looked over her shoulder in amazement.

  “It’s beautiful, isn’tit? This being my home, I sometimes forget to stop and appreciate the glory of the land.” He was smiling. It was the first genuine smile she’d seen on his face since he’d found her in the Walker Ranch kitchen and thought she was there to find to him.

  Beau was looking out at the beautiful field of bluebells, but Kesslyn’s eyes were locked on Beau. As lovely as the scene was, it didn’t compare to the sight of Beau sitting tall in the saddle with a look of relaxed happiness on his face.

  ****

  Beau watched Kesslyn fidgeting in the saddle on poor Butterscotch’s back and tried to keep his need to have her again in check. It had only been five days. He’d had long dry spells without a woman and been just fine, but being in close proximity to Kesslyn on a regular basis was wreaking havoc on his libido.

  When she’d strolled into the stable wearing those tight faded jeans and a little smile, Beau’s brain had stuttered to a momentary stop. She was a cowboy’s wet dream on the back of a horse with that red braid hanging down her back and a Stetson on her head. Good lord, how was he going to keep his hands to himself all damn day?

  He’d stayed out of her way since he’d nailed her sweet ass against the wall in the barn. Instead of making her less argumentative and more affectionate, the encounter had pushed her further away from Beau. She’d been embarrassed and shy when she slipped out of the barn and scurried back up to the big house.

  Then and there, Beau decided to give the woman some space. She’d been through a lot in a short time. Her parents passed away and left her alone. Then, her long lost grandpa passed and left her a company she knew nothing about and an entire town to look after a world away from her home. The welcome wagon was a randy cowboy who couldn’t keep his hands off of her. No wonder she ran. Beau knew women, and this lady was not the sort who had one-nighters. That made him want her all the more, because she’d chosen him to be naughty with. He wanted to see her naughty side again. Frequently.

  He peeked over at her again and wondered how long it would take her to admit she had far less riding experience than she let on. His little yankee princess was in for sore muscles in places she didn’t know she had muscles by the end of the day. He chuckled inwardly. The woman wouldn’t be able to walk in the morning.

  The longer he watched her, the stronger the desire to pull her from her saddle and set her firmly in his lap grew. He’d tell her it was for her own good, and it would be true, but Beau just wanted to get his hands on her again. Kesslyn was a sexy handful of a woman, and his hands itched to roam over those sensual curves again.

  They’d been riding for hours, and he’d only had to stop twice to replace a downed post. It was about time to head back if they wanted any of the ribs Tippy’d promised for dinner. The other cattlemen would clear the place out. Tippy’s ribs in that magic homemade sauce of hers was legendary.

  Beau turned to tell Kesslyn it was time to turn back just in time to see Butterscotch rear up. Kesslyn valiantly tried to hold on, but she was a greenhorn, and something had spooked the usually placid horse. She reared again, and Kesslyn tumbled backward. She hit the ground with a thud and lay there motionless. Butterscotch reared up one more time, her hooves coming down perilously close to Kesslyn’s still form before she took off back toward the ranch.

  Beau pulled Zeus to a stop and slid from his back. Fear for Kesslyn had his guts lodged firmly in his throat. As he approached Kesslyn, he looked around to see what might have spooked the horse just in time to see a massive rattler slink off into the brush.

  He skidded to a stop at Kesslyn’s side. She was breathing but shallowly. He first checked her limbs for breaks and found none. He gently ran his hands over her head, being careful not to move her neck. There was no blood or obvious large lumps.

  “Kesslyn, baby, please don’t do this to me. I just found you,” he heard himself say as if from afar. His heart was pounding in his ears. He couldn’t lose her this way. He couldn’t.

  Her pulse was steady and strong. Beau whistled for Zeus who obediently trotted to his side. Beau grabbed his radio to call the ranch and his f
irst aid kit. Kesslyn coughed behind him and took a few gasping breaths. Beau dropped to his knees beside her.

  “Kesslyn, darlin’, don’t move. You were thrown from your horse. We need to make sure you haven’t broken anything.” She blinked up at him dazedly.“Do you understand me, Yankee?”

  “Not a yankee,” she answered with a pout.

  Relief washed over Beau. She was conscious and arguing with him. She would be fine. He hadn’t lost her.

  FIVE

  Kesslyn was so embarrassed after her fall from the horse. It hadn’t been her fault. The horse was spooked by a snake. Beau and everyone else assured her that things like that happened, but if she’d been a better rider, she might have been able to keep her seat.

  She’d had the wind knocked out of her and received a few bumps and bruises. All in all, she was very lucky. The mortifying part came when Beau called the ranch to have someone ride out to pick her up in a Jeep. She wanted to ride back with Beau on Zeus’s back, but he wouldn’t hear of it. He fussed over her and refused to let her move until a Jeep driven by one of the other cowboys pulled to a stop near them. He placed her gently in the passenger seat and drove her back to the ranch while the other cowboy rode Zeus back at more leisurely pace.

  There was an ambulance waiting for her when they reached the house, and in spite of her insistence that she was fine and didn’t need to go, Beau had bullied her into going for a check-up and some X-rays just to be sure she hadn’t done any real damage.

  When her scrapes were cleaned and she was declared fit to be released, Beau was waiting to drive her home. Without a word, he took her hand and guided her out of the clinic to his truck. She liked holding his hand. It made her feel all gooey inside. Like he needed to touch her. He opened the passenger side door and lifted her into the seat.