“Look, Dalton,” he said as he pried her arms from around his neck, “it’s late. Time to get going.”
Her lips formed a pout. “You’re such a party pooper.”
“That’s me. Now, let’s go get you to bed.” He reached for her purse, slipped an arm around her waist and then guided Lacy toward the door.
“Mmm....sounds good to me.” She waved to several men who were watching them from the bar. “He’s taking me to bed.”
Muttering a curse, he hurried her out into the lamp lit parking lot. “You talk too much, Dalton. I can’t believe you just said that. I know those people. You get to go back to Denver and forget about all this night, but I have to live here.”
“I’ll never forget you,” she admitted softly, her words tugging at his long-dead heart.
Cade shook his head, fighting the emotions Lacy stirred in him. “You’re going to feel like shit tomorrow, Dalton. And deservedly so.”
“Why are you guys mad at me?”
You guys?
Cade looked behind him to find only the closed door of the Blarney staring him in the face. He turned back to Lacy with a frown. “I don’t like it when my employees get themselves rip roaring drunk.” Not that she’d meant to. He knew that. But he needed to keep his distance for his own sanity. He started toward his truck with Lacy in tow.
“I don’t know what you’re getting in such a huff about. I’m ferfectly pine. And I’m not drunk. I only had two bottles of wine. Little bottles.”
“Three and a half,” he corrected. “And those little bottles aren’t mixing so well with the allergy medicine you took. We’re going home and you’re going straight to bed. You still have chores to do in the morning, and I’m through being nice about it.”
“Yes, sir!” Her mock salute was followed by an impish grin.
He refused to give in to the grin her alcohol-induced behavior had tugging at his mouth. Ignoring her, he continued across the parking lot.
“My truck or yours?” she asked, pointing to a truck that sat alone in the far corner of the parking lot.
“Mine.” He opened the passenger door and shoved her inside, then hurried around to the other side.
“Got something against baby blue?”
He turned to look at the pickup Lacy had bought in place of her beautiful red sport car. Al’s had definitely gotten the better end of the bargain. He just hoped he could right everything in the morning.
He threw the truck into gear and pulled out onto the street. “You really are something else.”
“Thanks.” She leaned into him and smiled. “I’m crazy about you, too, cowboy.” Her slurred words were followed by another hiccup.
His heart slammed into his chest.
She pressed a hand to her breast and sighed softly. “Crazy in love with a cowboy.”
Slam. Slam. His heart was working overtime. Lacy loved him?
Face it, Tyler, she’s drunk.
“Yeah, well, you’re not so bad yourself.”
He turned the corner and Lacy tipped into him. “You know, they really need to make the roads around here a little straighter.”
He couldn’t help but smile. God, the things she’d said to him back there. Too bad Dalton hadn’t brought her tape recorder with her. He would have taken great pleasure in playing it back for her in the morning.
“Look!” Lacy she exclaimed, practically climbing over him to see out the driver side window.
It was a damn good thing there wasn’t anyone else on the road, Cade thought as he swerved back and forth. He pushed at the brake and looked to see the source of her excitement. Beneath the moonlight, several deer were gathered in the field along the road, feeding.
“Dalton,” he muttered as he tried to see past the very feminine body stretched across him, “I can’t see the road.”
Only breasts! And they were making it damned impossible to think.
“Aren’t...they...so...” Lacy slid slowly downward, passing out face down in his lap.
“Dalton?”
Her only reply was a soft snore.
He groaned aloud as the warmth of her breath seeped through the front of his jeans. He reached down to shake her. She didn’t move.
Damn.
“Hey, Dalton, I can’t drive like this. Wake up.” He tried pushing her from his lap, only to have her slide toward his knees. He caught her and held her in place. The last thing he needed was her head down by the pedals.
Curling an arm snugly about her slender waist to hold her there, he tromped on the gas. The sooner they got home, the better.
When they finally arrived, relief swept through him. He’d never been so glad to see that plain old ranch house. Now Burk was another story. But there he was, leaning against a porch beam, coffee cup in hand.
His friend gave a wave and set his cup down on the porch rail. Then he sauntered out to the truck before Cade could get Lacy’s head off of his lap.
Oh, hell.
His friend stuck his head in through the passenger window, his gaze dropping down to Lacy. “What, pray-tell, are you two doing in here?”
“It’s not what it looks like.” Heat crept up from beneath the collar of Cade’s shirt.
“So you say,” Burk snorted, making no attempt to hide his amusement at seeing Cade’s predicament. “Must be your lucky night.”
“She’s tanked. Someone forgot to tell Dalton that wine and allergy medicine doesn’t go well together.”
“Looks like you made out all right.”
“Just get her off me!”
Chuckling, Burk took his good old time opening the truck door. He helped lift Lacy off of Cade’s lap and back into a sitting position on the seat.
“Hey, Burk,” she said, her head lolling back and forth.
“Someone had a good time tonight.”
“The best,” she said with a hiccup. “I danced with Cade.”
“You did?”
“Mmm...hmmm...” she mumbled sleepily.
Cade walked around the truck and took her from Burk, draping her over his shoulder. “Don’t ask.”
“My hero,” she mumbled as he hauled her into the house like a sack of potatoes.
He would have carried her in his arms, but doing so would bring that beautiful face too close to his. That body too intimately against his. Slung over his shoulder kept him safe from the things she had him feeling tonight. Emotions he wasn’t ready to deal with yet.
“What about her purse?” Burk called after him.
“I think you can manage that.”
“Sure thing.” He reached into the truck, grabbed for her bag and slung it over his shoulder before chasing after Cade.
Lacy lifted her head and giggled. “Leopard print really clashes with flannel.”
He chuckled. “Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Cade’s taking me to bed,” she announced happily as Cade carried her into the house through the kitchen door.
“I think he’s got the right idea,” Burk replied with another chuckle as he followed them down the hallway.
“You know,” she continued, “he’s always so moody around me I thought he’d never ask.”
“Don’t say a damn thing,” Cade warned when he heard Burk’s muffled laughter behind him.
“Not a word.”
“Doesn’t he just have the sexiest butt you’ve ever seen?” Lacy gave it a loving pat.
Burk choked and then burst out laughing. “Most definitely the sexiest butt I’ve ever seen.”
“Sorry, Burk, you’re not my type,” Cade grumbled as he lowered the sassy little reporter onto the bed. Then he moved around to remove her heels, trying not to think about the shapely legs connected to them.
Burk dropped her purse onto the bed beside her. “So, about what she said back there... You know, about how she thought you’d never ask her to bed. That doesn’t mean what I think it means, does it?”
Cade glanced back at him with a frown. “She’s drunk. I never asked Dalton to...
Hell, I’m putting her to bed, not taking her to bed, and that’s all I want to hear about it.”
“But you wouldn’t mind?” Burk countered.
“Is sex all you think about?” He refused to give his best friend the satisfaction of knowing he was right on the money where Lacy was concerned.
“Yep.” Burk looked down at Lacy. “Nothing better in life than pretty women, stubborn bulls, and a good ride.” Without giving Cade a chance to reply, he turned and walked out of the room.
There was no missing the double meaning to Burk’s words. His gaze returned to Lacy, a woman who had more fire in her than any other woman he had ever known.
“Forget it, Tyler. You have nothing to give her. Not even your heart.” Forcing himself to turn away, he strode from the room, closing the door behind him.
* * *
Lacy groaned as she roused from sleep. The only light in the room came from the small tulip-shaped lamp on the nightstand which cast the room in muted shades of pink and gold.
Sitting up, she placed a hand to her aching head. Looking down, she found herself fully dressed, except for the heels she’d worn the night before, ones she couldn’t for the life of her remember removing. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and reached for the clock.
5:03 a.m.
At least she had managed somehow to get herself to bed. She would never mix alcohol with medication ever again. If she hadn’t of been so distracted by her problems with Cade she might have considered what mixing the two would do. But she hadn’t thought about it. Only about Cade.
Standing, she fumbled with the zipper on her skirt, sliding it down. She pushed it down over her hips and let it fall to the floor. Her sleep wrinkled shirt followed, until all that remained was her favorite red lace bra and matching panties.
Throwing on her robe, she made her way into the bathroom where she splashed a handful of cold water onto her face. It was incredibly refreshing, just what she needed to clear a hangover muddled head.
She reached for her toothbrush, which hung suspended from a cactus shaped holder on the wall and smiled. Only in a cowboy’s house.
When she was through, Lacy slipped quietly back to her room. Or tried to. Her foot came down on what had to be one of her discarded shoes, twisting her ankle. She tumbled to the floor with a loud thud.
Seconds later, the door flew open. “Dalton?” Cade called out in the semi-darkness.
“Down here.”
He reached out to flip on the overhead light, his gaze dropping to the floor where she lay sprawled across the throw rug. “What are you doing down there?”
“The bed was too soft,” she replied with more than a little sarcasm.
“The what?” His dark hair was disheveled, hanging down over his thick brows and fresh stubble shadowed his square jaw.
“I stepped on that,” she said, pointing to the high heel responsible for her embarrassment.
He knelt beside her, a worried frown marring his handsome face. “Are you hurt?”
“I think I...” her words drifted off as her gaze moved down his bare chest. She swallowed hard.
“You what?”
“I...I twisted my ankle.”
“Let me take a look.” His hands moved down her calve to examine her tender ankle.
The feel alone of his gentle hands gliding over her skin made her pulse race. She breathed in his musky male scent and closed her eyes as he continued his thorough examination of her ankle. Maybe she should tell him she twisted her knee, too. Hip for that matter. Keep him moving in the right direction.
“It doesn’t appear to be broken.” He ran his thumb over the bone. “Does it hurt.”
“Not really.”
“I don’t think it’s sprained, but it might be tender for a few days.”
A soft moan slipped past her lips.
He ceased his tender ministrations. “So it does hurt?”
She opened her eyes and took a deep breath, needing more air than she seemed to be getting at that moment. “No.”
His gaze shifted lower and his expression changed. Then he looked away. “Your robe,” he muttered tightly.
She looked down to see it hanging agape, the low cut lace of her bra covering very little. Cade had definitely gotten an eyeful.
She reached up to close the gap with a soft gasp. Could she embarrass herself any more? “You can look now.”
“Let’s get you up on the bed.” He scooped her up in his arms and carried her the remaining few steps back to the bed.
She clung to him, even as he lowered her onto the mattress. Looking up, she met his heated gaze.
He worked her hands free of his neck. “I really should go.”
She reached up to touch his cheek. “Don’t go.”
A muscle in his jaw twitched. “You don’t know what you’re asking. Your judgment’s impaired.”
“You’re wrong,” she countered. “I know exactly what I’m asking. I need you. Please stay.”
He groaned. “Lacy...”
“Make love to me, Cade,” she pleaded softly. “If only this one time.”
He moved over her. “Damn it, Dalton, what I should be doing is getting ice for your ankle. Not this.” He lowered his mouth to hers as he slid the robe from her shoulders.
The cool morning air caressed her heated flesh, teasing her already heightened senses.
“You’re so damn beautiful,” he murmured against her lips as he ran a finger down the lacy dip of her bra.
The pounding in her head long forgotten, she ran her hands over his bare chest, exploring its finely chiseled contours. Giving in to temptation, she let her hand glide lower to the thick arousal pressed against his briefs.
He caught her wrist with a low growl. “Dalton, I need to slow down. I’m too damn close to the edge.” His free hand found her other wrist, pinning them both to the feathery pillow beneath her head.
She looked up at him, seeing the burn of desire in his eyes. “Kiss me, Cade.”
He captured her mouth with an urgency she felt clear down to her toes. Parting her lips, she beckoned him to taste her.
His tongue swept across her lips before slipping inside to tangle with hers. Letting go of her wrists, he buried his hands in her hair, deepening the kiss.
Her hands settled on those broad shoulders, clutching him to her as their heated bodies writhed atop the tangle of cool cotton sheets.
She needed more. And more is what she got as Cade reached around to undo the clasp of her bra. He worked the straps over her shoulders and slid them down her arms, tossing it to the floor.
Ending the kiss, he leaned back to look at her. His gaze moved slowly downward as he assessed her hungrily. Then, he cupped her breasts, caressing them tenderly with the sides of his thumbs. “So sweet.”
She closed her eyes, moaning softly as his thumbs moved across her aching nipples, teasing them until they thrust eagerly into his awaiting palms. Liquid heat pooled between her trembling thighs.
“Look at me, Lacy. I want to see the fire burning in your eyes when I take you over the edge.”
She did as he asked, finding his blue eyes watching her. She arched into his touch, gasping softly as he lowered his head to flick his tongue over a sensitive peak.
The warmth of his breath brushed across her skin, making her shudder with need. Cade moved to lie beside her, his hand skimming her stomach until his fingers brushed the lacy top of her underwear. Slipping his fingers beneath the slender elastic, he eased her panties down over her hips.
She lifted until he’d pushed them down far enough for her to kick free of her lace panties. Then his hand was there, his fingers parting her to his touch. Her body was on fire and Cade was stroking the flames. He took her to the ‘edge’ he was clinging to and pushed her beyond as her body quaked beneath his fevered touch.
“Cade, please.”
He dragged in a long breath. “We need protection.”
“I don’t have any.” She hadn’t been with anyone in a very
long time.
“Me either.” He muttered a curse.
Her body ached for more. For him. He couldn’t stop. Not now.
Suddenly, his head shot up. “Burk.”
“Burk?”
“He’ll have some in his room.”
Just when she hadn’t thought it possible, Lacy’s cheeks grew even more heated. “But he’ll know...”
He shook his head. “Burk won’t know anything. He headed out to the barn about an hour ago.” That said, he moved away from her and slipped from the bed.
Lacy’s gaze traveled the length of him. Cade Tyler was magnificent. “Hurry.”
He smiled at her. “You can count on it.”
True to his word, Cade returned a moment later, foil packet in hand. He strode toward the bed, his erection still straining against his briefs.
“I can see you haven’t changed your mind,” she teased with a grin.
“Have you?” Though his tone was just as teasing, she knew he would stop if she asked him to.
“Not on your life, cowboy.” She reached out from the bed to tug at his briefs. “One of us is wearing a few too many clothes.”
Grinning, he shoved them down his lean hips and stepped out of them.
She reached out, her hand closing around his erection as she sought to pleasure him as he had done her. His hips lurched and a low moan escaped him as she stroked his hardened length.
He reached between them to stop her. “I need to be inside you, Dalton. And I need it now.” His hand shook as he ripped open the foil packet giving credence to his huskily whispered words.
“Let me.” She took the package from his hand and slid the condom from it, sheathing him with urgent but gentle hands.
Blue eyes blazing with desire, Cade joined her on the bed, moving over her. “It’s been so long. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t.”
“You don’t understand,” he said his voice hoarse with desire as his lips sought the flesh just behind her ear. “I want to bury myself inside you until there’s no beginning, no end.”
“Then do it,” she whispered. She opened for him, lifting her hips in urgency. She needed him. All of him.
Her name came out a pleasured moan as he buried himself deep inside her. It was flesh against flesh, heat against heat, need against need.
Capturing the Cowboy's Heart Page 16