A Rancher's Bride

by Vivian Arend

  “But we were relaxing,” Diane complained. “And having girl talk,”

  Jack pulled her in for a kiss. “Which means you were talking about us. That’s like a magic spell. You summoned us to your side, and now you’re stuck with us.”

  “Oh,” Kelli said, wiggling a finger at Diane knowingly. “It’s like one of those curses. You know, recite the wrong lines and get stuck in limbo forever. Or recite Bloody Mary three times—”

  Luke tipped her into his arms, ignoring her shout as he rose and tossed her over his shoulder before marching toward their bedroom. “Meet you back here in five minutes, Jack,” he offered.

  A squeal rang from behind them, and then Diane’s laughter. “Caveman,” she complained.

  “Og’s woman needs swimsuit,” Jack growled. “Ten minutes, Luke. I’ll try not to get distracted.”

  Kelli planted her hands against Luke’s back and pushed upward far enough to see Diane was being carried across the floor. She was cradled in her boyfriend’s arms, the two of them kissing as Jack blindly shuffled forward.

  The last thing Kelli saw before the view cut off was him knocking into a wall. Diane’s laughter echoed loudly.

  Then Kelli was flying through the air, bouncing on the bed. A second later she was pinned in place by a strong, masculine body, Luke’s lips on hers.

  Oh yes.

  Sadly, the kiss was brief. Quick, but dirty enough to leave her gasping as he rolled and left her alone and abandoned.

  She curled to a sitting position to watch as he dug into his dresser drawer and pulled out a pair of board shorts.

  Ten minutes would pass quickly.

  Kelli grabbed the swimsuit Ivy had not just lent but outright gifted her with, claiming it was too beautiful to send back to the shop. Someone had messed up big time because the outfit was three sizes too small for Ivy, making it a nearly perfect fit for Kelli.

  It was also a far cry from the one piece she usually wore when she went swimming in Big Sky Lake or down at Heart Falls.

  There was no time to be shy, or coy, so she turned her back on Luke and stripped to nothing, pulling on the boy short part of the swim suit then wiggling her way into the bikini top.

  She bent over to adjust her boobs into the bra cups like Tansy had taught her, and a loud groan rang from behind her.

  Kelli snapped upright, glancing over her shoulder to discover Luke staring at her butt, one hand pressed firmly to the front of his swim trunks.

  “Your ass is a thing of beauty,” he growled. The words came out low and gravelly. She turned to face him, and his gaze shot up to her breasts. He swore again softly as he slid his hand up and down the length of his erection. “Bury me now, because I’m about to fucking die.”

  It was hard to speak. Her mouth had gone dry just watching him. What were the chances Jack and Diane would actually be ready on time?

  Or maybe the real question was, why did people think punctuality was such an important concept, anyway?

  She crawled on the bed, moving toward him like a cat. “Do you want to set a timer?”

  “Kelli,” Luke warned, but he didn’t move away.

  Didn’t take his eyes off her, although he didn’t seem able to decide whether he wanted to look at her top or bottom.

  “We’re doing this. You want my mouth or hand?” she asked, the words coming out breathless and low.

  Luke swore again before he lifted his hand far enough to jam it under the waist band of his shorts. He adjusted his grip, fingers now obviously wrapped around his cock. Jacking himself up and down rapidly.

  Kelli crawled closer. “Luke?”

  “Touch me.” The words came out a guttural plea, and she levered up on her knees so she could lower the elastic waistband far enough to see him working.

  He kept stroking his length, the purplish cock head peeking from his fist like an erotic jack-in-the-box. Kelli laid her fingers on his rigid abdominal muscles that formed a grid pattern, his every muscle tight as he stared at her.

  She etched the edges of his six-pack, down to his hip then along the line between leg and groin. The rapid pumping continued, and he groaned again as she touched the delicate skin under his cock, stroking his tight sac.

  And then he was coming, stroking forward, eyes closed as his upper body arched. He brought his other hand up to cover the head of his cock, catching the come spurting free.

  Kelli was like a kid in a candy store—she didn’t know where to look.

  No, she did. Because as fascinating as it was to see the beauty of his body, it was the expression on his face that made her smile. Pain turned to pleasure. Satisfaction…and yet unmet craving.

  His dark eyes met hers and she shivered in anticipation.

  This was just the beginning.

  They’d been in the swimming pool for over thirty minutes, and Kelli hadn’t stopped grinning.

  Luke stretched his arms along the edge of the hot tub where he and Jack had retreated, but his gaze stayed fixed on the dark-haired pixie who seemed determined to blow his mind at every turn.

  Who knew she’d been hiding a bombshell under those layers of denim?

  He supposed he had to congratulate himself for having kept his brain far away from anything dirty when it came to her over the past years. But the change meant that he was now really enjoying exploring this new mental territory. Kelli climbed out of the pool to escape a laughing group of preteens, and he let his eyes drift over her with pleasure.

  Trim, and yet curvy enough that when he’d had her under him in bed it’d been far too difficult to stop. Far too pleasurable to continue.

  Maybe he was as smart as he’d always imagined, because it was twenty-four hours ago when she dropped her bomb on him, and now that he’d gotten over being shocked, he was more than ready to fulfill her request.

  That sense that something was very right continued to rise.

  “I was going to ask for a few more details regarding you and Kelli, but I can cross half the items off my list.” Jack’s voice held a volume of amusement.

  Luke dragged his gaze off Kelli’s breasts reluctantly. They were like a late Christmas present, all wrapped up in a cherry-red bow.

  Jack grinned harder, and Luke prepared to be taunted.

  “What?” he demanded.

  “I don’t need to ask what you see in her, besides the obvious.”

  Jack’s appreciative glance sent a bristle along Luke’s spine. “Put your eyes back in your head. You’ve got your own woman.”

  “Who I love and adore, but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate your good luck. And I was talking about more than the packaging.” Jack twisted toward him his expression going a little more serious.” “I haven’t seen her in the field, but it sounds as if she knows her stuff.”

  “Kelli is the best,” Luke affirmed.

  “When’s the wedding?” Jack asked. “Because if you don’t mind me saying so, I think you’d be smart to lock that up as soon as you can.”

  It’d been too easy to turn back to the pool and watch her with the kids as she and Diane played keep-away with them. The heat in his belly rose from a blatant physical attraction. Something that hadn’t registered until now.

  Kelli was great with kids. She adored his nieces and was wonderful with their friends, even when it came to helping with birthday parties and the like.

  An image flashed into his brain of her holding a kid, and it didn’t freak him out. Maybe it was that whole she’s already mostly family business, but this was another part of their relationship that seemed right.

  “Earth to Luke, come in.”

  Damn, he was staring at her again.

  He turned back to Jack and tried to remember the last question, but he lost it. “What did you ask me?”

  His friend patted him on the shoulder. “You are so gone.”

  The comment should’ve sent Luke into a panic, and yet it still felt right. “We need some time. The change in our relationship is new, and while it’s going well, we have a l
ot of things to figure out.”

  None of that answer was a lie, and the discovery gave Luke hope. He might be able to turn this situation from disaster, to positive, to perfect without a lot of effort.

  Jack raised a brow. “A bit of advice. She’s now on the radar of more than a dozen ranches, and while only some of them have eligible competitors who’d be interested in fighting you for a spot in her bed, all of them want to see what she can do with their stock.”

  It was a fair warning, but not one that Luke wanted to spend any time on. Not when a sense of urgency was rising to let her know he’d not only seen the change in the traffic signals, he was ready to hit the highway at full speed.

  “On that note, I think we need to gather our women.” Luke stood, water sliding away. Jack joined him and the two of them closed the distance to the main pool.

  Kelli was out of the water, chasing after a ball that had rolled onto the deck and under a chair. She was on her hands and knees as he strode up, nodding politely to the woman sitting on the chair who wore street clothes and a snow jacket.

  “Excuse me.”

  He scooped Kelli around the waist, lifting her in the air as she shrieked in surprise.

  “What—? Luke?!”

  He knocked the ball from her hands toward Jack, enjoying the warmth of her body against his as he strode for the water. “Were you expecting someone else?”

  She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, clutching tightly. Eyes wide as she stared into his face. “Maybe. I ordered a battery-operated inflatable boyfriend from Amazon.”

  A burst of laughter escaped. “I’m better. Life-sized and I don’t deflate that easily.”

  Whatever she was about to answer in retaliation was lost under her squeal as he threw them forward. They crashed into the deep end of the pool. He pushed off the bottom and brought them to the surface, turning her in his arms as he headed shallow enough he could stand.

  Water dripped down her cheeks, one of her braids lying over both their shoulders.

  She held on tight as she stared. “You’ll make my team lose,” she warned.

  “We can’t have that,” he responded even as he slid his hands to her hips, and lower. He cupped her ass briefly, dragging their bodies together just to torment himself.

  “Luke,” she murmured, motioning with her head over her shoulder. “Kids. Behave.”

  “I know,” he promised, but he didn’t let go. Just twisted her in his arms and held on tight, an arm hooked around her belly to keep her in contact. He put a hand in the air and waved at Diane. “Here. Throw here.”

  Diane stood in the shallow end, gauging the distance between her and the group of a dozen kids closing in fast.

  “Go long,” she shouted before smacking the beach ball with a fist.

  Kelli shot her arms into the air as Luke lifted her, giving her the extra height she needed to take control of the wayward toy.

  She crowed as she caught it, flashing him a delighted smile before panic set in. “Oops. They’re after us now.”

  The next fifteen minutes were a rush of energy and chaos. Children shouted, water splashed, laughter rang. The teams were mostly fluid, with anyone holding the ball fair game.

  The only thing consistent was Luke stayed within touching distance because even a step farther from Kelli would have been too far.

  Lifting her, hands on waist or hips. Lowering her against his body and letting her soft skin brush his. Twisting past her and secretly copping a feel—he made sure not to do that one too often because it was dangerous. He didn’t need to get more turned on than he already was.

  By the time the moms who had been chatting clapped their hands and informed the kids it was time to get ready for supper, Luke was hard as a spike and ready to do something about it.

  Kelli was momentarily surrounded by a pack of preteen girls who all had to get in a hug before they climbed out of the water and left with their moms.

  Jack and Diane had retreated to the hot tub. Kelli turned, lowering her chin slightly as heat flashed in her eyes. “I should make you walk out of the pool right now as punishment for getting me all hot and bothered.”

  He closed the distance between them again, holding her against his body. “You want me to walk with this handicap?”

  Sneaky woman. She slid her hand around his neck, shaking her head slightly. “Whose fault is it you’re suffering? I thought we did something about that before we came downstairs.”

  Luke glanced around, but everyone else had abandoned the pool and the growing chill. Jack and Diane remained in the hot pool, but they were busy kissing. He caught hold of Kelli’s free hand and slid it down his body so her palm pressed his hard length. “I told you I’m better than any inflatable boyfriend.”

  She snickered. “Is this like one of those trick birthday candles that you can never blow out? Get your never-ending, self-reinflating erection here. No matter how many times you deal with it, there’s always a new one right behind.”

  The feel of her hand on him was driving him wild, but they weren’t doing this again. Not when there were so many other better options.

  “We need to go,” he told her.

  Even to him, his voice sounded scary. Borderline dangerous and definitely needy.

  She pushed back, and he let her go, following slowly. Marching up the stairs at the end of the pool and ignoring his erection that was fully visible and tenting his shorts.

  He pulled on his robe, watching Kelli do the same. He interrupted when she would’ve hauled the belt around her, crossing the fabric over her body himself. Brushing his fingers over the swells of her breasts as he pretended to adjust the fuzzy fabric.

  He tightened the ties of her belt as he stared into her face. Her cheeks were flushed as if she’d spent hours in the hot tub, and when she licked her lips, he was done.

  If they made it back to their bedroom, it was going to be a fucking miracle.

  12

  She was lightheaded as Luke caught her fingers in his and led her off the pool deck. In the distance bells were ringing, the delicate rumble of elevators and behind-the-scenes noises, all cool and peaceful.

  Inside, she was fire and ice.

  The blood rushing past her eardrums was the loudest sound. They stood side-by-side in front of the elevator, the lit-up numbers slowly descending to where they waited on the ground floor. Luke clutched her hand in his, brushing his thumb over her knuckles again and again.

  She was afraid to look at him. Afraid to meet his gaze in the mirror in case it was the final straw that broke her control.

  All the touching had built the pressure inside until, forget the talk about inflatable boyfriends, she was a balloon puffed up to half a notch before bursting. All it would take was one too-blunt suggestion and she would jump him. Right here, right now.

  She jammed her free hand into the pocket of the robe, drawing in a gasp as her fingers closed around a square that crinkled under her touch.

  “Oh my God,” she whispered.

  “What?” His voice—gravel and lust and steely self-control.

  The elevator door opened, and he dragged her in, using his wristband to access the button for their floor.

  Instead of answering she looked up, checking the corners of the elevator.

  A trace of amusement broke in. “I’m pretty sure they have security cameras in here.”

  She twisted toward him. “Then I suppose I shouldn’t start a scandal by using this.”

  She inched her hand upward far enough to expose the corner of the condom.

  He closed his eyes and let out a long, slow breath, broad shoulders flexing, fingers clenched tight at his side. “Don’t tempt me.”

  “I’m not doing anything,” she claimed.

  Luke stepped against her, scooping her against his body. “You’re you. That’s enough to tempt a saint.”

  Screw decorum. Kelli wrapped herself around him, thrusting her fingers into his hair to drag their lips together.

  Or that was
her plan. He met her more than halfway, kissing her hungrily. His fingers squeezed her ass tightly. His tongue battled with hers, driving her so wild with lust she didn’t notice the elevator doors opening.

  They had to have opened, though, because suddenly they were in the hallway, and she was being pressed against the nearest wall, the thick length of Luke’s erection grinding against her clit through the thin layers of their swimsuits. Her breasts crushed against him, and it was good, but it wasn’t nearly enough.

  It was all him. Luke kissing her, consuming her. Making her head spin. Pulling back far enough to carry her a little farther down the wall before he’d lose control, pivot on the spot, and seal her against the closest vertical surface.

  The third time he did it, there was finally wood at her back instead of drywall. Kelli stretched her arm blindly downward, desperately twisting her wristband in front of the security lock as his teeth sank into her neck.

  A beep sounded, and he shoved at the door handle. The doorframe shifted at her back then he was two steps into the room and she couldn’t wait any longer.

  She pushed frantically at his robe, shoving the material aside even as he was doing the same to her.

  Fabric fell to the floor, his hands going for her bikini top. She caught the top of his board shorts and dragged them down his thighs. His cock sprang free, and she reached—

  “Damn.” Kelli whirled back, grabbing her robe at the same moment Luke caught the top of her bikini shorts and stripped them off.

  He picked her up again. She had just enough time to grab the condom from her robe pocket before he stumbled the final distance to their bedroom.

  So many possibilities beckoned now that they had a bed and all the privacy they wanted, but the urgency remained. “Right now,” Kelli demanded, holding up the condom.

  Temptation flashed in his eyes, but he shook his head. “I need to get you ready—”

  Damn the man. The instant he loosened his grip she wiggled free, catching her balance before wrapping her fingers around his girth.

  Luke groaned as she dragged her hand upward. “Kelli.”