by Kaylea Cross
He didn’t seem bothered by her earlier comment, but she didn’t want to read too much into it. “You sure?”
“Positive. Here.” He picked up her empty wineglass, filled it, and handed it to her. “Meet you outside in a bit.”
She wasn’t going to argue. She’d slept badly the last two nights, even with Tate there beside her. Both nights she’d had nightmares. Tate had woken her, soothed her and lulled her back to sleep by holding her close. Even her subconscious trusted him, because she’d been able to go back to sleep with him holding her.
They still hadn’t had sex yet. Hadn’t even fooled around since the night in the bed of his pickup, and she was starting to worry that he might be reluctant to touch her that way now.
Not because he thought she was tainted in any way, but because he didn’t want to trigger any painful memories for her with intimate contact. Their entire relationship —if it even was one—was confusing her now.
She smiled at Avery on the way out to the back deck. The sun had just set, and it wouldn’t be long now before the sky darkened enough for the stars to appear. She’d promised Rylee a mini astronomy lesson, mapping the most visible stars and planets.
They were both heading back to campus in the morning. Rylee would stay with Tate for the time being and commute with Nina back and forth each day for school until the man responsible for the string of attacks was caught, but neither of them could afford to take time off right now.
Nina’s bare feet tapped lightly on the wooden steps as she headed down to the backyard. A seven-foot-high privacy fence enclosed the large, neatly-trimmed lawn, bordered by shrubs and some trees at the back, the roofline of Tate’s woodshop just visible in the shadows. He’d told her that in his downtime he liked to work on little projects and carve things.
The sweet, green scent of cut grass wafted up as she walked across the lawn to the deck chairs arranged around a rock fire pit. A small fire burned in the middle of it, the cheery flames crackling yellow and orange as dusk settled over the yard.
She was just lowering herself into one of the chairs when movement to her right made her whip her head around.
She shot from her chair with a startled gasp at the sight of an animal thirty feet from her. The animal—a black-and-white goat—jerked its head up to stare at her, then went completely stiff and fell over onto its back, its legs standing straight up in the air.
Nina cried out in alarm and clapped a hand over her mouth as she took a step toward it.
Hurried footsteps came from the deck behind her. “Nina? What—”
“The goat. I didn’t see it,” she blurted, hurriedly setting her wine down. “I scared it and it fell over.” Oh my God, it still wasn’t moving. Had she killed it?
She glanced over her shoulder to see Tate walking across the grass toward her. He was grinning. Looked like he was trying not to laugh. “What’s funny?” she demanded.
“He’s fine.” He continued past her toward the goat. “Come on, Reggie, shake it off, buddy. Up you get.”
Nina stared in amazement as Tate walked up to the goat, rolled it right side up and placed it on its hooves once more. Reggie wobbled on his feet. Tate held him steady with one hand, then pulled out his phone with the other and called someone.
“Reggie got over the fence and scared my company to death by fainting in front of her. Can you come get him? Thanks.” He put the phone away, picked Reggie up and started toward her. “Wanna pet him?”
Nina eyed the goat and approached them slowly. “What’s wrong with him? Is he sick?”
“No, he’s a fainting goat. They do that whenever they get startled.”
She held out a hand so Reggie could sniff at her palm. Did goats do that? Better safe than sorry, she didn’t want to risk scaring him again. “Hi, Reggie. Don’t faint on me again, okay?”
Reggie stared back at her through yellow eyes with weird, rectangular-shaped pupils, ears twitching.
“It’s okay, you can pet him. He likes it,” Tate said.
Nina gently stroked the goat’s head as it sat contentedly in Tate’s arms. She knew the feeling. Tate’s arms were the best place to be in the entire world. “You scared me to death.”
“You scared each other,” Tate said with another grin.
The scramble of paws on the deck behind them was their only warning. Nina turned just in time to see Ric flying at them like a furry bullet over the grass.
Reggie saw the dog coming, jerked like he’d been electrocuted and tipped over in Tate’s hold as Tate angled his body to protect him. “Ric, no. Mason, come and get your dog!” he shouted.
Poor Reggie was stiff as a poker. He looked like he’d been frozen solid.
Nina quickly intervened, whirling to catch Ric by the collar. “Ric, no,” Nina said, firmly. Ric strained against her hold, quivering and whining as he locked onto Reggie with an unblinking stare.
“Ric! Leave it,” came the firm command from up on the deck. Mason hurried down the stairs. “Leave it.”
Ric whined and sat, trembling, his stare fixed on Reggie.
“He won’t hurt him,” Mason said, rushing over. “Wants to herd him, more like. Collie-shepherd thing.” He dashed over and grabbed Ric. “I’ll take him back inside. Doofus,” he told the dog, then tugged him back toward the steps, ignoring Ric’s whimpered protests and straining to get away.
Tate carried poor, frozen Reggie over toward the fence, the goat’s little legs still poking straight out.
“Hey, sorry about that, neighbor,” a voice said from the other side of the fence. “Guess I stacked the crates too close to the fence and he decided to go exploring.” The top of a gray head appeared over the edge of the fence.
“He just thinks the grass is greener on the other side,” Tate joked.
Nina laughed softly as a deep chuckle sounded from beyond the fence. A moment later the elderly man’s bearded face and torso appeared over the top of it. He grinned at her. “Hi. I guess you met Reggie.”
“He’s very cute,” Nina said. “But I thought I’d killed him for a minute there.”
The man laughed. “I’ll bet. I’m Curt, by the way.”
“Nina.”
“Nice to meet you. Sorry for the scare. Come on, Reggie. Time to come back and slum it in your own yard with the second-rate grass.” He reached over the fence as Tate handed the goat up, and lifted him back over to the other side. “Enjoy your night.”
“You too,” Tate said. “Hey, how’d it go with Mrs. Engleman?”
The man made a face, still holding Reggie, who was finally starting to thaw out again. “That woman is a real piece of work. But it was okay. I don’t think she wants to have me arrested anymore, at least.”
“So you guys are on your way to being besties, then,” Tate said cheerfully.
“Cold day in hell, Tate.”
Grinning, Tate walked back toward Nina as Curt disappeared with Reggie.
She shook her head at him, fighting a smile. “So you rescue damsels in distress and goats. Be still my heart.”
“All in a day’s work, ma’am.” He pulled her to him, kissed her just long enough that her body began to heat and tingle, then stopped and led her back to the fire with an arm around her shoulders. “So whaddya think of country living as opposed to being closer to downtown with Avery?”
“Both have their charms,” she said in a dry voice. “But I think country living could take some getting used to.”
“It was an adjustment for me too. We’ve got quite a few characters around here.” He kissed the crown of her head. “Want to sit by the fire and finish your wine, or go home?”
Just looking at him made her heart beat faster. Being this close made her entire body hum with arousal and need. She’d enjoyed the meal and the visit, but she wanted to be alone with him now. She’d do the astronomy lesson with Rylee another time.
Alone and naked, with his hands and mouth all over her, and hers on him, banishing bad memories and replacing them with magical ones
. “Home.”
His slow grin melted her insides. “Was hoping you’d say that.” He bent, plucked her wineglass from where she’d left it on the edge of the fire pit, and walked her back inside to say their goodbyes.
“We heading out?” Avery asked when they stepped inside. Tate had driven her home to his place after work.
“If that’s okay with you,” Nina said.
“Absolutely.”
Based on Avery’s somewhat stiff interaction with Mason throughout the meal, it seemed to Nina that her friend was glad for the excuse to leave. She’d have to ask Avery what the story was later.
Nina said goodbye to him, fussed over Ric for a moment, who was lying on the floor pouting after being deprived of his chance at goat herding, then hugged Rylee. “I’ll pick you up first thing in the morning. We can grab something for breakfast on the way out of town.”
“Sounds good.” Rylee looked between Nina and her uncle, a faint smile playing at the edges of her mouth. “Enjoy your night.”
Tate ignored the innuendo and led Nina out to his truck with Avery behind them. “You sure you’re ready to go back full time right now?”
She wasn’t sure if he meant because of everything being dredged up on Monday, or because the attacker was still at large. “Yes. What happened to me was a long time ago. I need to put it behind me, and work is the best thing for that. I have bills to pay. Also, I care about my professional reputation and my students need me.”
“Good for you,” Avery said, coming up on Nina’s other side. “You’re in control of your life, not that asshole. And he’s going to get caught.”
“Yes, I am, and hell yes, he is.” Nina fist-bumped her friend, determined to believe both those things were true.
Chapter Seventeen
Once at Avery’s house, Nina and Tate started to head around back, but Avery stopped her with a hand on Nina’s arm. “Hey, can you come up and grab the leftover dessert from the other night?”
It was clear her friend was making an excuse to get her alone, and Nina was pretty sure why. “I’ll be down in a sec,” Nina said to Tate, and handed him her key.
He and Avery exchanged an unreadable look, some unspoken conversation happening between the two of them over the space of a few seconds. “Sure,” he said, then started around the side of the house.
Nina followed Avery through the front entrance and into the kitchen. Her friend went straight to the fridge and pulled out the leftover cake. Placing it on the counter, Avery turned to face her. “I’m gonna make this quick.”
Oh, good.
“Has Tate told you what happened with his ex?”
“Yes.”
Avery nodded in approval. “He’s seriously an amazing guy. But I don’t want to see you get hurt. Either of you,” she clarified. “So maybe…”
“Keep my expectations down to a dull roar where commitment from him is concerned, in case it doesn’t work out?”
Avery looked relieved at not having to say it. “Yes.”
“I will.” Even as Nina said it, she knew it was already too late to heed her own advice. Tate was the most incredible man she’d ever met—outside of her dad—and in another galaxy compared to the other men she’d dated.
She was in for as long as she could handle him not committing. If he was never able to get past his fears and commit to her, then yeah, she would have to end it eventually, and it was gonna hurt. Bad.
Still, she’d been through a lot. She’d survived a lot. And right now, both her heart and her head were telling her not to hold back. “We good now?”
Avery grinned at her. “We were always good, and always will be. I’m just doing my due diligence and looking out for you. I take my best friend duties seriously.”
“And I love you for it.” Nina hugged her, then stepped back. “Sure you don’t want to keep this cake?”
Avery made a face. “Take it before I eat it all. And have a good day tomorrow. Go kick some astronomy ass.”
“I will. G’night.”
A strange weight sat in the middle of her chest as she made her way back down to her suite. She couldn’t stop thinking about what they’d just talked about.
“That all for us?” Tate asked, his eyebrows going up.
“Yep.”
“You want some now?”
She put the cake in the fridge and crossed to him, then wound her arms around his neck. “No. I just want you.”
His eyes heated. “Well, that’s lucky.”
“Isn’t it?” Smiling, she lifted up to brush her lips across his.
Tate immediately drew her closer and deepened the kiss, one hand coming up to cup the back of her head. She loved it when he did that.
But he didn’t take it further. Frustrated, she reached down for the bottom of his shirt and began peeling it upward. Tate broke the kiss and raised his arms, allowing her to strip it off him.
Just seeing all that raw male power and knowing she could touch him all over was enough to make her dizzy. She rubbed her nose against the center of his chest, following the deep line between the ridges of his pecs.
“Nina.”
“Hmm?” She kept going, her hands busy exploring his back and working their way down to his muscled ass.
“Are you sure?”
Of course he would ask. He was too honorable not to. But Nina didn’t want to be treated like a victim. She wanted to put the past aside and enjoy this to the fullest. She lifted her head to look into his eyes. “Yes. I trust you, and I know you’d never hurt me.” Not physically, and never on purpose in any other way either.
“Never,” he whispered, stealing another chunk of her heart.
“Then unless you don’t want me—”
“I want you.” He slid his hands into her hair, his gaze intense, full of hunger.
She held his gaze, her heart hammering. “Then don’t stop.”
With a low, rough growl he stepped into her and fused their mouths together. Nina opened immediately, a hot throb of desire settling between her thighs as his tongue danced with hers.
He bent to scoop her up in his arms and carry her toward her bedroom.
She giggled. “Now, this is romantic.”
“Sunshine, you haven’t seen anything yet.”
A tiny shiver sped through her at the dark promise in his words. He laid her on the bed and came down on top of her, his weight pressing her into the mattress and his hips wedged between her thighs, adding pressure right where she throbbed so badly.
She helped him get her dress over her head, then lay back and enjoyed the way his molten gaze raked over the length of her in her bra and panties. Giving his hands plenty of bare skin to enjoy.
He stripped off her bra and panties, cupped her breasts together and held them there for his mouth. Nina gasped and shivered as his lips and tongue worshipped her aching flesh, sending streamers of sensation flooding throughout her body.
She was so wet, and getting wetter every moment until finally he eased to the side enough to dip his hand between her legs. A plaintive moan spilled free as he cupped her, then began rubbing subtly. When she moved restlessly against it, he switched to the other breast and turned his hand so he could caress her throbbing clit.
He reached for the condom on her nightstand, shifted to his knees. Nina stroked his thick length as he rolled it down, earning a rough groan, his abs tightening under her avid gaze.
Before she could enjoy him properly, he gripped her thighs and scooted down the bed until his face hovered directly above her slick, flushed folds, those gorgeous hazel eyes burning into hers.
Nina curled her fingers around his broad shoulders and waited, the delicious anticipation stretching out. Finally, he closed his eyes and lowered his head.
She cried out as his lips and tongue made contact exactly where she needed him. And when he eased a finger inside her while his tongue licked her most sensitive spot, that dark wave of pleasure began to crest.
“Tate. Tate, now,” she gasped out. She
needed him inside her. Craved that complete connection, of holding him inside her.
Tate crawled up the length of her body to brace himself on one forearm and gaze down at her, the head of his cock lodged just inside her. Nina stared up at him, unable to look away, spellbound by the incredible, magical connection between them. But the need coiled tight in her core. She groaned, tried to lift up to push him in deeper.
Tate’s grip tightened on her hip, then he surged forward.
Nina’s eyes closed, her body arching as pleasure shot along her nerve endings. He was so hot and thick and hard, stretching her, filling her. Before she could adjust to the feel of him, he slipped his hand back between her legs to find her swollen clit and rub it.
She whimpered and dragged his mouth back to hers, tangling her tongue with his as he began to thrust. The way he stroked her inside and out was incredible.
She couldn’t think. Could barely breathe, holding on for dear life as her hips churned, the hunger burning in her center. A soft, helpless sob broke free, her fingers clenching in his hair as the pleasure suddenly intensified.
Tate growled into her mouth and maintained the steady, inexorable rhythm of his thrusts, hitting the sweet spot just inside her while he stroked her clit.
Suddenly everything went supernova. She shattered, pulling her lips from his to cry out her pleasure into the thick silence. Every measured stroke of his cock kept it going, prolonging it as the shockwave rippled through her.
She was still drifting in the waves, gripping his shoulders tight when he abruptly drove deep with a throttled cry, his powerful body shuddering against her. Gradually the tension melted out of him. His weight settled on top of her, his face buried in her hair.
Nina wound her arms around him and ran her hands through his hair, her chest and throat tightening. She closed her eyes as tears flooded them, a tiny hitch quivering through her.
Tate pushed up on one elbow to look down at her. Nina opened her eyes to stare up at him through her tears, unable to speak.