by Kaliana Cole
“What we’re going to do is let a few calves out past you. Have your loop swinging and just give the nod. Hopefully Luke will be paying a bit more attention than you were.” His grin brought a fresh blush to her face. “Just throw a loop down on ’em. Don’t expect to catch any the first time ’round. A moving target takes a bit of practice. It’s all in the timing. Are you ready to give it a go?”
Her first loop landed so far from the calf’s path he wouldn’t have even felt it passing. The second calf got a rope around its ass and kicked up bucking as the rope fell off. “That’s great, sweetheart, but you’re after the other end.” Luke got his hat flicked off for his comment since he was so handy in the elevated chair.
The third calf was a big one and brought home the fact that no one had told her what to do if she did catch one. She had cast her loop what she’d thought was way too early, but the lively little red-and-white longhorn-cross ran right through it. The loop tightened around its neck, and Casey’s victory shout joined that of Luke and Brody, harmonizing for a joyful instant before she was yanked clear out of the saddle. Only when she was lying face down in the sand did it cross her mind to let go of the rope.
She rolled over and blinked up at Brody. His concern died as she giggled and a smile was twitching around his lips like he wasn’t sure of the reception he’d get if gave in to the mirth in his eyes. Luke had no such qualms. He was laughing his ass off atop the box. Casey laughed, too. She must have been some sight, flying through the air after the fleet-footed calf.
It took two goes to grab the hand Brody extended, but he did pull her to his feet. “I’m not sure who caught who, honey, but you got a loop on him. You climb back on Spot and I’ll go get your rope.” His deep chuckle reached her ears as he wandered down the other end of the arena.
Luke was still giggling when she climbed back up on Spot. The unfortunate-looking animal had stood there patiently throughout it all. Luke reached out and brushed some sand off her nose. “That, sweetheart, is one of the funniest things I have ever seen—nearly as good as seeing Colby piss on the electric fence last year at the roundup.” Casey winced at that. “Come here, you’ve got a bit more right there.” He pointed toward her left cheek and Casey leaned forward, but the hand that snagged the back of her neck held her still for the wet stamp of lips rather than any dirt removal. His kiss was joyous and playful. “You are gorgeous, sweetheart. Now if you catch another one, let the damn rope go. Brody is going to have a fuckin’ heart attack if you get hurt again.”
The man in question was approaching with her neatly coiled rope. Casey didn’t think it was an accident that his body rubbed against her leg as he handed the rope over or that the hand he rested on the back of the saddle ran the full length of her thigh when he stepped back. The corner of his lips kicked up when her nipples responded, threatening to poke holes in both the lacy new bra he had bought her and the borrowed shirt she wore over it. It just wasn’t fair. They made her body sing for their touch without doing a goddamn thing. The only consolation was the way they both now filled the front of their jeans out. She wasn’t the only one affected.
Casey managed to catch two more of the dozen calves remaining, letting the rope go cleanly on both occasions. She’d been disappointed when they had been forced to cut the practice short due to the rising temperature. She was proud of her accomplishment and couldn’t hold back the grin as she helped to run the calves back up to the pasture.
“You look like a little kid, all puffed up and proud.” Brody brought the black in beside Spot.
“And here I was trying to prove that I’m a big girl.”
“You’ve got nothin’ to prove to us, Casey. We like you just the way you are. Dirt and all.” He wiped her cheek with his callused thumb. Casey fought not to close her eyes and purr like a kitten. Brody didn’t attempt to steal a kiss as Luke had done. He just gave her a smile loaded with cunt-clenching promise and loped away.
Spot continued on at a more leisurely pace and for that Casey was glad. Her head was reeling and her jeans had to be soaked clean through.
There was no future in it, none whatsoever.
Brody would wake up one day soon and find that now that he’d caught her it was time to let her go, and Luke, being the loyal soul that he was, would follow his brother’s lead. She had until next weekend to sate the hunger that grew every time she even looked at Brody or Luke. A week to hold her heart aloof and indulge her carnal appetite at will. Because, unlike her heart, her body could take all the lovin’ use and abuse those two could dish out and still want more.
Chapter 11
“I think you missed a bump, Luke. Want to go back and get it? No! I was only joking!” Casey jumped off the cargo rack of the ATV before he could act on her sarcasm.
Brody pulled up beside them on a second four-wheeler, parking next to the hitching rail above the thermal pool. “How is your butt, Case? That looked like a rough ride.”
“It was.” She punched Luke’s shoulder and rubbed her injured rear at the same time.
“Ouch! Don’t be bruising me. I was just having a little fun.”
“Yeah? You could tell who had the padded seat. I want to drive on the way back.”
“You’re welcome to, but you can bet I won’t be shy about sharing the soft seat, sweetheart.” Luke flashed her the kind of smile that could wet panties from fifty paces.
Casey realized she was doomed to a state of eternal arousal around the pair of them when she turned to Brody, who had that smoldering, bad-boy grin happening. He tossed her a duffel bag that was big enough to hide a body in and hefted the large Igloo he had on the rack of his bike. “Jump on the other end of this, Luke. How much beer did you put in here? It weighs a friggin’ ton.”
“We’ll probably still run short. Casey can drink like a fish.”
Casey shook her head and threw the bag over her shoulder. They had met Andy at her place earlier that afternoon, and she had been able to retrieve necessaries from her house and empty the fridge and freezer before everything went off with the power being cut.
When Luke had suggested a picnic dinner by the spring to use up the contents of her fridge, she had been more than a tad flustered but had agreed when his elder brother had raised his eyebrows in clear challenge. The smile that had hovered around Brody’s eyes left no mistaking that he, too, was remembering her last visit to the spring.
A lot of good natured bitching met her ears as they negotiated the precarious path with the cooler between them. A breeze had picked up, flowing down out of the Bighorns and bringing some welcome relief from the stifling heat that had sprung up in the later part of the afternoon. Carrying the scent of warm pine and summer, the gentle wind wrapped around Casey as she waited for Luke and Brody to negotiate the first drop-down. It was the kind of summer evening made for kicking back with friends and cracking a beer or two, for letting go of worries and living in the moment. She felt it was a real privilege to be able to do it in a heavenly setting like the spring, and it was no hardship that the “friends” were so damn easy on the eye.
They reached the spring nestled in the head of the box canyon and sat the cooler down in the shade of the scraggy pine beside the clear aqua water. Casey squinted up at the orange ball low on the western rim and knew it wouldn’t be long before the sun sank beyond the rock lip above. She dropped the bag to the relatively flat gravel gathered between two protruding boulders and accepted the Miller Lite Luke offered.
“Cheers.” Casey lifted the bottle in salute and then sighed as the icy-cold liquid flowed across her palate. Nothing hit the spot like a cold one at the end of a hot day.
“The towels are in that bag if you want one to sit on, Case.” Brody kicked his joggers off and sat on the smooth rock surrounding the pool, dangling his feet in the water. She had been relieved that both brothers had changed into shorts and tanks after their shower. Her IQ suffered enough in their presence without having them naked.
She grabbed the towels out of the bag and sa
t them on a rock by the water. Her belly did strange little flip-flops when, in addition to a picnic rug, she saw a couple of sleeping bags stuffed into the oversize bag. Brody had packed that one while she and Luke took care of the cooler. He had clearly decided to cater for all possibilities.
She slipped the long-sleeved shirt off and sat on the side where her feet could rest on the ledge. She watched the water turn cloudy as her feet stirred up the fine limestone sediment. The calcium-rich mineral was the reason she had carefully pinned her hair up high. Luke had warned her, but nothing could have prepared her for the steel-wool feel of her hair when it dried without being washed first. It felt like a nightmare and left her looking like she’d been dragged through a knot hole backward.
The weight of two gazes fell upon her and she looked up to see them both peering in the cloudy water. “What?”
“Lift that left leg up.” Brody’s tone brooked no nonsense.
Puzzled, Casey complied. Luke winced and Brody just looked mad. There was a purple rendering of the sole of a heavy-treaded work boot on her ankle. It was sore to touch but otherwise caused her no worry. “It’s fine. It looks much worse than it is. I bruise easily.” She looked from one brother to the other, a little amused at the consternation on their faces. “Really. It’s not bothering me, so it shouldn’t bother you.”
“You’re not the one who put it there, sweetheart. I feel terrible.”
“You weren’t so concerned about bruising my ass on the ride up here.”
“Your ass is different. Bruising that gives me all sorts of excuses to kiss it better.”
Casey choked on her beer. Luke was irrepressible. “Break out those potato chips. I’m starving.”
Brody retrieved the chips from the cooler with his long reach and opened them up, laying them on the rock between him and Luke. “Come and sit over here if you want some.” Rather than get up and walk around, Casey stripped off her spaghetti-strap tank and faded cutoffs, revealing her black bikini beneath, and slipped into the cool water. Being careful of her half–full longneck, she nudged Luke’s foot off the submerged boulder and took a seat. If she leaned on Luke’s leg she had the perfect spot, central to the food source, somewhere to sit her beer, and something a lot more comfortable than the hard rock wall to rest her back against. Brody just grinned with amusement as she made herself comfortable. “I guess that means we’re on firewood duty?”
“I’m not going poking around looking for wood. There’ll be snakes everywhere after the heat today, and they are not on my list of favorite wildlife.”
“That makes two of us, Case. I don’t like ’em either.”
“You’re a pair of sissies. Lean all over Brody instead and I’ll go and get some wood.” Luke got up and stalked off down the ravine. “And don’t eat all the chips.”
Casey shifted around and made herself at home against Brody’s thigh. She leaned back so she could see his face, “Are you really scared of snakes, Brode?”
“No. It keeps me out of getting wood, though.”
“That’s what I figured.” She shifted against him, trying to get comfortable.
“Hold still for a moment, wiggle worm.” Brody lifted one thigh clear over her so that she sat between them. Casey rolled her shoulders and ended up hooking an arm over each of his thighs so it was like sitting back in a big old armchair.
“That’s better. Nice and comfy.” She tilted her head to take a drink and felt her piled-up hair brush against his belly. She wondered how long he’d last in that position. Her nipples had contracted sharply at the first touch of skin on skin and the way Brody was hissing through his teeth when she took a drink told its own story. He’d said his pants were staying on today, but Casey was wondering just how much coaxing it would take to get the big man out of them.
* * * *
Brody sat back and tried to think of job quotes, tax figures, February blizzards, and the Cowboys’ game stats from the last three seasons. Anything but the woman between his thighs. But her heat and silky skin could not be ignored. Nor could the scent of her shampoo drifting up, a heady combination of feminine gardenia and sassy cinnamon that had his blood migrating southward at an alarming rate.
He had promised her he’d prove it was more than sex. He knew it was so much more, but right then all he could feel was the desire rising within, powerful and breath-stealing, like none he’d ever known. One hand wrapped his beer, clenching hard enough that the bottle should have shattered, while the other tried to bury into the sedimentary rock behind him in an effort to keep them from all the pale, freckle-kissed skin before him.
He had a week to prove to Casey that he wanted her, not the sex, a full week. He’d end up with a bad case of blue-balls, that was a given, but Brody felt it was a small price to pay to see a smile on his brother’s face every day and have this woman in his bed for all time. Casey was nothing like the other women he’d known. She was brutally honest and she wouldn’t take anyone’s shit, least of all his. She was gorgeous and giving and burned hotter than any other woman Luke and he had ever had between them. Casey Buckley was perfect. He just had to convince her he was serious, and as to how to do that, he had not a fucking clue.
She tipped the bottle up and her head brushed along his stomach once more. He swallowed the tortured groan striving to break free, but the resulting strangled noise sounded like a dying, waterlogged frog.
Casey rolled her head to the side and looked up at him in question. “What was that?”
“Nothing. I’m fine.”
“You sure? You sound a little ragged.” She swiveled around sideways and this time Brody couldn’t hold back the groan as her arm caressed the fleshly pole making a tent of his shorts. He saw her surprise and the instant arousal as her pupils dilated and her lips parted on a soft gasp.
“You make it so damn hard to be good, Casey. Luke’s right. I was a fucking moron to make a promise like that.”
“I don’t know why you’re so worried about that. This morning proved to me that you can stay in control. I know you won’t fuck me no matter how much I want it, but I want to play a bit, Brody. Will you let me do what I want?”
He looked down into her cerulean eyes and knew he was lost. He couldn’t deny her anything. “Do your worst, Casey. I’m just praying you’re not going to be cruel and leave me hanging.”
She turned until she was kneeling on the submerged rock, and Brody felt his cock pound fiercely with the blood coursing through it. Casey looked hungry. There was no other word for it. Raw hunger burned in the blue depths of her eyes. “Relax, cowboy. I’ve got no intentions of leaving you hanging.”
Her hands splayed across his thighs and pushed upward, sliding over skin and material alike until she reached his top. She tugged at it imperiously. Brody couldn’t help but smile as he put his beer down and pulled the tank off over his head, Casey had a real thing for his chest that he wasn’t about to question. He worked hard and his body reflected that. It was big and rough and unrefined, but that didn’t seem to worry Casey none. Her hands sneaked up his sides and spread across his bulky chest. They looked so pale and delicate against his dark, hair-spattered chest, but there was nothing delicate about her strength as she pushed him back with a shove.
He caught himself on his elbows, and the look in Casey’s eyes said she had him exactly where she wanted him. She rose upward, letting her wet hands trail down across his stomach. Brody sucked in a breath as she teased the sensitive skin. They zeroed in on the button of his shorts. She seemed unconcerned that the way was blocked by a persistent piece of flesh standing at attention. She just bumped his cock aside with her wrist and kept on with her task. Brody thought about breathing in and making it easier for her, but he was more than a little enamored of the kiss of her knuckles against his belly and the nudges on his cock as she struggled. She would get there eventually.
He had expected her to pause when the button finally gave in but the rip of Velcro quickly assured him otherwise. She spread the fly wide, leaving
him proud and bare to the kiss of the summery wind.
The way her eyes lit up had him digging deep for control. She looked bashful and brazen all at once, a shy seductress bent on pleasure. Her hands slid beneath his open shorts and cupped his hipbones, the thumbs stroking softly over the ridge of muscle girding them. Her gaze lifted from the thick length of throbbing flesh momentarily, hardly more than a flick up to his, but it was enough to spy the voracious wonder. His scrotum drew up in anticipation as she lowered her head.
Hot, wet velvet ran from his balls to the wide, smooth cockhead, laying a trail of flames along his shaft only more of her touch could put out. The tip of her agile tongue darted into the slit, damn near rolling his eyes in his head as fissions of sensation streaked along his nerves. Her hot breath bathed him a heartbeat before the satiny wonder of her lips laid a suckling kiss right atop the wide crown.
There was no way in hell he could have held back the fiery essence that trickled past his control. He felt more than heard the moan that rumbled through Casey as she swiped the flat of her tongue eagerly across the pre-cum he spilled.
One of her hands crept to hold the base of his cock and Brody found his eyes glued to the strip of blood-darkened flesh where her fingers didn’t quite meet. His ego roared its approval of the sight. He knew he wasn’t small, but the knowledge that a woman with Casey’s strong hands couldn’t span him was immensely gratifying. He couldn’t wait to see her lips stretched wide around it.
She lifted his shaft away from his body, holding him in position for her mouth. He saw the corner of her lips curl and the blue eyes that looked up at him held mischief and promised more than a little trouble. Boldly holding his gaze, she lapped at his crown, licking at him like he was an ice cream melting fast. Her lips parted wide and Brody thought he was finally going to feel the full embrace of her mouth. He’d seen her go down on Luke and he knew just how willing and eager her sweet mouth could be. Casey could deep-throat with the best of them, but she was intent on teasing him. Again and again she opened wide, only to take teasing little sipping sucks at the weeping head.