Rodeo Heat

by Desiree Holt

  “I’ll see.” Ben slammed the door then leaned in through the open window. “Thanks for everything. You’re a good friend.”

  “You’re not getting away that easily. I’ll call in the morning.”

  Ben waved at him as the truck pulled away, then walked heavily through the lobby, rode the elevator up to his floor and swiped the keycard in the door, dreading the empty room. The sitting room was dark, although he swore he’d left a light on for when he returned. His mind was definitely not firing on all cylinders.

  He switched on a small lamp and walked into the bedroom, where he froze in shock, stunned at what he saw. The bedside lamp was turned low, Lone Star beer was icing in a cooler by the bed and the covers were neatly folded back to the foot. But it was what was in the bed that astonished him the most. In the middle of the bed was Grace, magnificently naked except for jewelry—the pin suspended on a chain from her neck and the earrings and nipple clamps perfectly in place. Her legs were spread wide, her knees bent and she was stroking her pussy with a slow up-and-down motion.

  “Holy shit!”

  Ben couldn’t find any other words. His mouth was so dry he didn’t think he could say anything else, anyway. His heart was racing and his cock was so instantly hard he was afraid it would poke through the fabric of his jeans.

  When he didn’t move closer, Grace stopped stroking herself and looked at him uncertainly.

  “You said if I wanted to take a chance with you, to show up with my jewelry.” She gestured at herself. “Here I am. Or didn’t you mean it?”

  He finally got his feet unstuck from the floor and moved to stand beside the bed. Slowly he extended one hand so he could touch her, to assure himself she was real and not a figment of his imagination. Oh, she was real all right. He saw her sweet, sweet pussy glistening with her juices, felt the softness of her skin, inhaled the tantalizing fragrance she wore.

  He swallowed. Hard. “Oh, I meant it. I was just scared to death you wouldn’t do it.”

  “How could I resist an invitation like that?” She watched him carefully. “I wasn’t sure if I’d done all this only to have you walk into the room with some other woman. One of your buckle bunnies.”

  Ben winced. He had no intention of telling her how he’d almost done something he’d regret forever. Nothing happened, so there was nothing to tell. And he sure didn’t want her to know he was ready to fall into the gutter because he couldn’t handle his feelings for her.

  His eyes took in every familiar inch of her body. When his gaze landed on the nipple rings, he reached out and touched one of the luscious, ripe buds they encircled, pinching it lightly. It was swollen from being constricted and had turned a dark red that made his mouth water. Impulsively, he leaned down and licked each one with the tip of his tongue, drawing a shiver from her.

  “Okay.” He could barely catch his breath. “Enough chatter. We can talk later. If I don’t have you right now, I might actually explode.”

  He toed off his boots, stripped off his clothes and carelessly tossed them to the side then crawled onto the bed and wrapped Grace in his arms.

  “You have no idea how much I’ve missed you,” he murmured before taking her mouth in a ravenous kiss.

  He licked the surface of her lips, traced their outline then pressed against the seam until she opened for him. When he swept inside, he met her small tongue reaching for him, tangling with his. He drank from her, fusing his mouth to hers as if he’d never be able to stop kissing her. Her arms came around his neck, clasping him tightly and she anchored her fingers in his hair, holding him close.

  She moaned in protest when he lifted his head, but in the next instant, his mouth was on her neck, his teeth nibbling behind her ear, placing sucking kisses at the sensitive place where her neck and shoulder were joined, licking across the slope of her breasts. God, she tasted so sweet. When he reached her nipples, he bit each one lightly then soothed them with soft licks. He could have feasted on them all night but he was anxious to taste the rest of her. He couldn’t wait to get to her pussy, drink her liquid, fuck her with his tongue.

  She writhed and moaned beneath him as he touched every inch of her body with his mouth, pausing to pay homage to her bellybutton before finally, finally allowing himself to taste her pussy.

  Fingers shaking with need, he pulled back the outer lips and avidly licked the pink flesh now exposed. Soft little noises rolled from her lips as he bent to his task. He alternated between kissing the sensitive skin and licking it, playing a soft tattoo on her swollen clit with his thumbs. He used his broad shoulders to keep her thighs wide open, giving him easy access to her body, and he took full advantage of it.

  He eased one finger into her channel and it was instantly coated with her juices. Damn, she was so wet already. He took one long, slow swipe at her opening with the flat of his tongue, pinching her clit at the same time.

  “Please,” she begged. “Oh, Ben. Please.”

  “I’ll please you all right,” he told her, his voice hoarse. “I’ll please you until you don’t know your own name anymore.”

  Reluctantly, he dragged himself off the bed, found his suitcase and pulled out the handcuffs he hadn’t even looked at since he’d left San Antonio. Turning Grace onto her stomach to cuff her hands behind her, he then pulled her to her knees and propped pillows beneath her to give her stability.

  “I’ve dreamt about this every night,” he told her as he caressed the smooth skin of her buttocks. “This is mine, Grace. Right? Answer me.”

  “Yes.” Her voice was muffled by the pillows, but there was no hesitation in it. “It’s yours.”

  “To do with as I want.”

  “To do with as you want,” she repeated.

  “Good.” He brought a hand down on one cheek, cock flexing as the skin turned pink. “Tell me you like that.”

  “Yes. I like that.”

  He rained light spankings on her until her ass was a pleasant shade of deep pink. Rubbing two fingers through her slit, he smiled to himself to find her even wetter than before. When he opened her pussy like the petals of a flower and thrust his tongue inside, Grace squealed, jerked then thrust her hips at him.

  She was going to die of pleasure, she just knew it. Never in her life had she thought she would be so turned on by a man’s domination. But the very helplessness of her position made her even hotter. Her pussy was so hungry for him she was sure she’d come just from thinking about it, just from the things he was doing to her.

  His tongue was like a wicked tool, igniting nerve endings wherever he touched her and his hands drew responses with their teasing and caressing. And their spankings. God, had she ever thought she’d be ready to beg for spanking, to feel the heat streaking from her ass to her pussy?

  Ben was busy kissing and licking the insides of her thighs, maddeningly avoiding the place she wanted him the most.

  “Inside me,” she pleaded. “I want to feel you inside me.”

  He nipped one thigh. “When I decide.”

  Again, he eased a finger into her pussy then out to paint her anus with her liquid. Once, twice, three times, and pushed the same finger against the tight ring of muscle until it was inside her to the knuckle. Grace shivered with need and desire. This man could turn her inside out and she loved every minute of it.

  “I’m going to fuck both holes, Grace,” he muttered, his voice so thick with desire she almost didn’t recognize it.

  She heard the snap of latex being tugged into place then felt his hands on her buttocks and his knees widening her legs. With one thrust he was inside her pussy. He reached around her to find her clit, tormenting it, pulling and tugging on it while he pounded in and out of her.

  “Come for me, Grace,” he ordered. “I know you’re ready. Come now.”

  And she did, exploding around the thickness of his cock, her body shaking, inner muscles milking him as spasm after spasm rolled through her. She was gasping for breath when she finished, but she realized through the fog of her brain that B
en had not climaxed.

  Sucking in a breath, she said, “You didn’t—”

  “No, but I’m going to now.”

  He pulled out of her pussy with wet, sucking sounds, pressed the sheathed head of his cock against her anus, gripped her buttocks and seated himself with one long, hard thrust. She heard herself wail at the intrusion before her body took over and responded. As he stroked in and out of her, she thrust with her hips, trying to time her movements with his.

  In and out he moved, delivering the occasional slap to stimulate them both, nipping the heated flesh of her buttocks. When he sped up his movements, she knew he was close and she felt her own climax building again.

  “Now,” he commanded hoarsely and he reached beneath her to pinch her swollen nipples.

  The intense pleasure-pain shoved her over the edge and she came again as he pulsed inside her rectum, her body shaking as if it would fly apart. Colors flashed through the blackness surrounding her and every nerve fired and fired again. This was pleasure more intense than any she’d ever felt before. How could she ever have thought she could give it up?

  “Mine,” he shouted. “Mine, mine, mine.”

  Ben pumped out the last of his semen and fell forward. She felt the thunderous beat of his heart against her body as her own threatened to pound out of her chest. They struggled to drag air into their lungs, the sounds harsh and raw.

  Finally, Ben levered himself up, released the handcuffs, turned her over and pulled her against his lean, hard body. He tucked her head into the place between his shoulder and his neck, stroking her spine with gentle caresses.

  “Mine,” he said again, this time more gently.

  She had no idea how long they lay there, content in the silence, bodies sated, at least for the moment. Finally she roused herself.

  “I’ll bet that beer is good and cold by now.”

  “I’ll get it. But, first, we need to let those tender nipples free. I think they’ve been ringed long enough.” He was very gentle as he worked the rings from her nipples When he was finished he kissed and sucked each one lightly, easing the sting of pain as the blood rushed to the points. The heat of his mouth soothed everything.

  When he was satisfied she was comfortable again, he opened two bottles, handing one to her, then plumped the pillows behind them so they could lean against the headboard.

  “I see you liked the jewelry.” He grinned. He lifted the boot she was wearing as a pendant. “This started it all, didn’t it?”

  She wrinkled her forehead. “How did you know?”

  “The way you always wore it, kept touching it, as if it were a talisman of some kind.”

  “A vendor at the rodeo sold it to me. A woman who told me it would help me find my lover.”

  “And she was right,” he said softly, kissing her again. “More than right.”

  “Wherever did you find the jewelry to match it, anyway?” she asked, her breathing finally evening out. “Especially the…the…”

  He chuckled. “The nipple rings? That took a lot of searching, but I just happened to get lucky.” He lowered his voice. “In more ways than one.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered, leaning against him.

  “Okay. Confession time. How did you find me?”

  “That was easy.” She smiled at him. “I just called every hotel in Houston until I found where you were registered. Now, my turn. Did you win tonight? I was afraid to call the arena and find out.”

  Instead of answering, he hopped out of bed, fished the buckle and the check out of his jeans and dropped them on her bare thighs.

  “Ohmigod!” she squeaked. “You did it. And look at the amount on this check. Ben, you should be able to buy your ranch by now, shouldn’t you?”

  “That depends.”

  She frowned. “On what? I thought that was the whole point now. To be able to quit and buy that place in Wyoming. Oh, wait. You’re going on to Vegas to the Grand Nationals. That should give you what you need, right?”

  He lifted one of her hands with his and laced his fingers through hers. “Grace, this has been the most miserable couple of weeks in my life. I never thought you’d get under my skin the way you did. Or…or find a place in my heart.”

  Her own heart turned over at his words. What was he saying here?

  “Are you trying to tell me something?” she asked.

  “In my own bumbling way.” He took a long swallow of his beer. “I know this has been a big leap for you. I came into your life and turned it upside down. But, Grace, there was such a wonderful, sensuous woman just waiting to be turned loose. And now that she is, I don’t want anyone else to pleasure her.”

  She wriggled her fingers against his. “You realize when you’re forty I’ll be fifty-two. And when you’re fifty, even worse—I’ll be over sixty.”

  “That again? You think age makes any difference? There are women half your age who are already old and women older than you who enjoy life better than anyone younger than them. That’s you, Grace. You have the capacity to enjoy life. And to bring joy to someone else’s.”

  “It’s just a hard thing to get past,” she insisted.

  “You must have gotten a little past it if you drove here to Houston. How did you manage that?”

  She laughed. “I always thought I was being so sensible, so practical, that being in control was where it was at. But my secretary, then Melanie—even my daughter—told me I was about to dry up and wither. That if I ever wanted to enjoy life, I’d better get to you before some other female snatched you away.”

  And one of these nights I’ll tell you about my abortive attempt to settle for Curt Sanderson.

  “I’ll have to thank them all.” He lifted her hands and kissed each finger. “How long can you stay?”

  “Until Wednesday.” She lowered her eyelids shyly. “If you want me to, that is.”

  “If I want you to? Are you kidding?” He squeezed her hand. “I want you with me forever. Don’t you know that?”

  She shrugged. “You never said… I wasn’t sure… I mean…”

  “Grace.” He set both beer bottles aside. “I don’t do this very well, but I want you in my life permanently. I want to marry you. Can you handle that?”

  “You don’t think all your friends will make fun of you for marrying an older woman?” she asked.

  “Hell, they’ll be so jealous I’ll have to beat them away from you with a stick.” He kissed her. “Get over the age thing. Right now.”

  Her heart was beating so fast she was sure he could see it pounding in her chest. “O- Okay.” She flapped her hand in the air. “Gone.”

  I hope.

  “And the last of your sexual hang-ups?”

  She tilted her lip in a tiny grin. “What hang-ups?”

  His laugh was soft and sensual. “But there’s logistics to look at. You know, I can buy a ranch anywhere. It doesn’t have to be in Wyoming.”

  Grace shook her head. “No. I want you to buy the piece you’ve had your heart set on.”

  “But—”

  She touched her fingers to his lips. “Now, it’s my turn to say, no buts. I need to leave the past behind me, instead of locking myself up in it and away from life. I’m ready to leave San Antonio.”

  “What about your business?”

  She laughed. “As someone pointed out to me recently, selling it will be easy. The house is paid for, so I’ll let the kids decide what they want to do with it.”

  He pulled her across his thighs, capturing a breast with one hand and chafing the nipple. “You mean it, Grace? You’d really come with me? It’s a big step for you.”

  Grace took a deep breath and let it out. “You’d just have to be there to catch me every time I faltered.”

  He lifted her breast to his mouth and sucked briefly on the nipple. “I’ll always be there to catch you, Grace. You’re mine. That means I’m keeping you forever. If you agree.”

  “Oh, Ben. Of course I do.”

  “Even knowing the kind of
sex life I like?”

  She knew she was blushing as she said, “Especially because of that.”

  He laughed, a full-throated sound. “You little minx. You know, we’ll have to send a thank-you note to the woman who sold you that pin. Meanwhile, how about sealing the bargain?”

  He took one of her hands and wrapped the fingers around his cock, already hard again, and he began stroking her pussy. “We may never be able to get out of bed,” he teased as his fingers drove her toward the peak again.

  When he’d rolled on another condom, he knelt between her legs, lifted them over his shoulders and drove deep into her wetness. As he filled her completely, Grace locked her ankles around his neck, touched the pin nestling in the hollow between her breasts, feeling its warmth, and wondered why she’d ever been afraid.

  Also available from Totally Bound Publishing:

  Strike Force: Unconditional Surrender

  Desiree Holt

  Excerpt

  Chapter One

  Slade Donovan, code name Shadow, moved silently into the room where the men on his Delta Force team waited. Tall and muscular, he was the essence of a warrior, his dark brown hair slightly shaggy with a gray thread or two showing here and there, and the expression on his chiseled face said Bring it on.

  Lowering his gear bag to the floor, he dropped himself into an oversized armchair and pulled out his laptop. First things first, he told himself. Mission completed. Men all accounted for. Time to reconnect with the outside world. He turned on the machine and waited for everything to load.

  He was more than grateful for the satellite setup at their base camp that allowed them all to communicate with the rest of the world. It was a great way to maintain contact with his ‘brothers’ in the many Spec Ops groups, not just on newsy items but on ways to do things better. He also kept in touch with the foreman of his ranch back in Texas and with the few friends he’d been close with for years.

  While he waited for the computer to boot up, he glanced around the room at his men, the members of Team Charlie, sprawled out on the battered furniture, weary and battle-hardened. They still looked rode hard and put away wet, as the saying went in Texas. This last mission had sucked a lot out of them.