I was willing to be her shelter and returned that kiss with every ounce of passion I had burning in my belly. Our tongues danced together wildly, and it was more than desire coursing through my body. She had all of me. Every part of my soul and heart.
“Get a room,” Travis said, sliding into the driver’s seat of the truck, chuckling at the situation. Dana pulled away. If she hadn’t I would still be devouring the sweet taste of her lips.
Her soft laughter told me that eventually everything would be fine. It was like the sweetest music to my ears, and I hoped to give her a reason to keep smiling until time no longer existed. One day this would all be a bad memory that we could look back on without falling apart.
“So I take it you’re feeling better?” Travis was smiling too, and I guess we looked like a bunch of damn happy fools driving down the road.
“I am. I’ll feel even better when we get home,” Dana answered.
I loved hearing her call the ranch home. Since I wasn’t allowing her to leave again, it was easier that she wanted to be here.
“I miss the little man,” she said. There was a sadness in her voice that needed to disappear.
“Well, you’ve got the rest of your life to entertain him. I’ve heard the terrible twos are something no parents like, so we better enjoy him now,” I replied. The thought of us sharing all the special moments in life together made me the happiest man.
“Mom said the worst time with us was when we started breaking in horses. She was sure none of us would make it out of puberty alive,” Travis joined in, helping keep the conversation light.
“Our boy will not be doing that.” Dana seemed confident, but I knew better. There wasn’t a Dixon man on the ranch who didn’t love it.
“Sweetheart, you might as well resolve yourself to it now. It’s in the blood.” Chuckling at her wide-eyed stare, I figured she deserved to be warned.
“Seems to me you Dixon boys like breaking in lots of things,” she retorted. All of us were laughing then, and I wondered if she realized what she’d just admitted to my brother.
“So that runt broke you in, did he?” Travis wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass by. He loved making people squirm. I think it was part of the whole law-enforcement background, and maybe a part of the Dixon sense of humor.
“I didn’t mean it that way!” Dana was embarrassed but kept sticking her foot in it. “I mean, he was my first, but . . . ” She stopped speaking for a second as her face flushed gorgeously. “Why am I telling you that?”
“It’s the badge, baby. No good woman can resist sharing all her life stories with a lawman.” Travis was having a field day, and I couldn’t even be angry about it because Dana looked so damn cute when she was flustered.
“Can’t believe you had it in you, boy,” Travis teased me.
This was an awkward conversation to be having with your woman and your brother, but oddly enough, it felt comfortable. “You’re just jealous you haven’t found a woman who’ll let you be her first,” I returned. This was getting out of control, but as long as Dana was laughing, I was gonna keep going.
“I’ll have you know—” Travis had his words cut off when Dana interrupted him.
“TMI. Sheesh, guys, there are some things I don’t want to know or talk about.” We were all grinning as we pulled up in front of my folks’ house, and life seemed a hell of a lot brighter than it had this morning.
The entire family ran out to the truck to greet us, but Jeremy got Dana’s first consideration. She hugged him against her chest, kissing him all over his little face, and he was smiling at all the attention. “I missed you so much, Jer Bear. I swear, I’m never, ever leaving you again. Not as long as I live.”
“So I guess that means he’s coming on our honeymoon?” I was trying to keep the humor going because I never wanted to see her depressed or frightened like she’d been earlier.
“I think staying right here is a good enough place to go. Don’t you?”
Dana’s words warmed me to the bone, and I knew I’d found the woman God meant for me to have.
“She’s gone country,” Ranger cracked, and had the entire clan laughing. “Better look out. Next time we see her she’ll be wearing cowboy boots!”
“Ain’t nothing wrong with that,” Mom chimed in, and a bunch of agreements followed. “Susan and I put together a big meal so we could celebrate you coming home. Hope y’all are ready to have your belly filled.”
There was no denying a meal put together by those two, and we all headed inside the house after hugs all around. We’d made it through the storm, and now was a time for family. Strolling into the dining room that had seen some of the best times of our lives growing up, I was glad to share one more part of the Dixon family tradition with Dana. We’d be enjoying every Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving at this table, but today was easily be the best celebration we’d ever have.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Wild Horses
Dana
Driving home with Brock and the little man, I was so full I wasn’t sure I’d ever eat again. The depression had slipped away being surrounded by so many people who seemed to care about me tonight, and I knew this was where I’d belonged. I was selfish enough to admit I was looking forward to some alone time with my cowboy, though. Thankfully Jeremy was exhausted, because I’d missed him as much as Brock and it was hard to decide who I wanted in my arms more.
We put Jeremy in his crib. Having Brock’s arms wrap around me made everything I’d been through seem like a bad dream. “I’ve missed you,” I murmured. Resting my head on his wide chest, I closed my eyes and breathed in that masculine scent that was all him. I’d never forget the taste or smell of him, even if I left for years, not that I planned on ever being that far away.
He turned me, not once breaking contact, and our lips melted together. The tenderness of that kiss was something I’d crave later, but not now. “Tell me if you aren’t ready for this, sweetheart,” he said.
I could feel his arousal through the jeans he was wearing, I and grabbed his sexy ass. I pressed him close. “I want you inside me.” Being timid wasn’t on my agenda tonight. He was mine, and I planned on making sure he never forgot it. Hell had tried to steal me away, but I’d been set free. I wanted all the passion Brock had to offer, because there was so much in me I could barely contain myself. Putting some distance between us, I grabbed his hand and led him out of the room.
That gorgeous smile that did something incredible to my insides found his face, and we barely made it into his room before I started undressing. “Darlin’, I’m glad you’re eager, but we’ve got all night, you know?” Brock said. His warm chuckle told me he wasn’t offended by my boldness, but he wasn’t getting undressed!
I was standing there in nothing but my bra and panties, and his eyes roamed over me like a man starving. “You don’t want me?” I asked. Even with the hunger in his gaze, I wasn’t secure enough in this intimacy thing to know if I’d somehow done something wrong.
“I want you, all right. On your knees, up against the wall, in the shower—hell, right here on the bedroom floor, but I also need to make sure you know it’s more than just sex to me.” His words touched my heart in a way that couldn’t be put into words.
I walked over to him. My fingers found and undid his belt buckle. “I love you more than my own life, Brock, but if you don’t make love to me I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive you.” Pulling the leather through the loops, I moved right on to the button and zipper. Now if he’d just get those jeans off I could have my way with him.
“Stop, darlin’.” His hands rested over mine, and I felt insecurity take over the raging lust boiling in my blood. I lifted my eyes to his. I didn’t understand why he was waiting. He pulled a box from his pocket and lowered to his knee, and my mouth fell open. “I plan on spending the rest of my life with you, and I want to make sure before this goes any further you want that too.”
I thought we’d already decided that when we’d talked about
taking Jeremy on the honeymoon at his parents’ house. “Of course I want that. More than anything,” I assured him. Did this man have no idea how much I loved him? “Baby, I love you so much. You have to know that?”
“So you’re saying yes? Even though I can be as stubborn as a mule, and will probably drive you crazy to the point you want to kick me in the balls?” He was grinning so wide it looked like it hurt his gorgeous face. Crazy cowboy!
“Yes, Brock, I want to marry you, although I might change my mind if you don’t get me in that bed.” Of course I was kidding, and when he slid a single solitaire diamond ring on my finger, making love took a backseat for a minute. “It’s beautiful.” My voice was filled with awe as I looked down at the simple yet elegant ring.
“You don’t want to wait until we’re married?” His teasing smirk was the only thing that saved him—that, and he was finally kicking off his boots, pants, then socks and underwear. That man sure could fill out a pair of jeans, but without them, he took my breath away. His fingers began working the buttons on his shirt, then he tossed it aside, showing me all his masculine beauty.
I’d hit the lottery of perfection in my cowboy, and I wasn’t waiting for anything. It seemed only fair to tease him a little after what he’d done to me. “We probably should wait. What would your momma think?” I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling because the look in his eyes was hysterical. Imagine a puppy dog having a bone taken away, and you get what I was seeing. When I couldn’t stand making him squirm any longer, I laughed.
“Woman, you still deserve to be over my knee, so you better get that beautiful ass in my bed before I decide to make that threat a reality,” Brock teased.
Trying to keep my laughter down, because the last thing I wanted to do was wake up Jeremy, I ran over and put myself where I’d been trying to get since we’d walked in the room.
He joined me, tackling me on the bed, and instead of kissing me, he began tickling. I had to put my hand over my mouth to keep from being too loud. He pulled his hand away, and then our lips met, but then the tickle torture continued until I was pushing hard against his chest. “There’s other ways to tame a wild horse like you.”
I pushed him over, but only because he allowed it, considering he was much stronger. I straddled his waist, and the teasing stopped. He sat up with me in his lap that way and unhooked my bra. “I think it should be a rule that we’re never dressed in this room,” he hedged. Those words were followed by an action that made me readily agree. He lowered his mouth to my breast and suckled my nipple deep.
My hips had their own agenda and gyrated against his hard shaft, showing how much I enjoyed what he was doing. “Please.” The word slipped unbidden from my lips. I needed him so desperately I wasn’t willing to wait.
“Do you have any idea how sexy that is? You’re already so wet.” His fingers slid under the waistband of my panties and over that aching flesh, making me burn.
“Do something about it.” I didn’t know if everyone felt like this with their lover, but I was almost in pain from the need he made me feel.
“I’ll take the edge off, sweetheart, but I want this to last,” he murmured. His hands inched my panties off, taking away those fingers that were delivering paradise. I whimpered until he tossed my panties aside, and he entered me gently with one finger. We reversed our positions, and his lips met mine as he rode me until the dam broke free, giving some relief.
“It’s not enough. I want you inside me. Please,” I begged. I’d almost lost him, and a part of me worried that any minute he’d be taken away again. It was foolish, but it was still how I felt.
“Darlin’.” His strong hands gripped my cheeks, and those whiskey-colored eyes told me he wasn’t going anywhere. He parted my legs with his own, and his large shaft pressed in slowly. “Wrap your legs around me, and I’ll keep you safe.” He had to know what I was feeling. I didn’t think, only reacted, needing everything he could give me.
His body stretched mine deliciously, with none of that pain I’d felt the first time. I dug my feet into his ass, and he filled me completely. I cried out at the beauty of being possessed this way. Raising up on his arms, he slowly inched out, our eyes connected as he found home again. This was my sanctuary. I reached up my hands to grasp his powerful biceps, and he took us on a sensual ride that was all about two souls melding together perfectly.
I cried out his name as passion flooded through every fiber of my being, breaking through the fears and releasing me inside a warm cocoon of bliss. He increased the tempo until we were like wild horses breeding, and it was sweet perfection. His face when he found release was powerful, almost savage in its beauty, and I reveled in the cowboy who branded my heart.
Our bodies were covered in a fine sheen of sweat, but I didn’t care. I loved how he felt pressed against me, still embedded deep. “I love you,” I whispered in reverence. This man. He was my world now.
“I love you, sweetheart.” He turned us until I was resting on top again. “I’m gonna catch my breath and make love to you all night long.” Marveling at the feeling of him still half-hard, filling me, I couldn’t stop wiggling my hips a bit. “Not going to give me a break, are you?” he teased. It was an amazing sensation as he came back to life, stretching me. “Take what you need,” he implored.
I understood him, but I wasn’t sure how to ride my cowboy. Sitting up, I looked down into his eyes, encouraged by the slow smile that spread over his features as I moved slightly. Deciding to do what felt good, I found a deliciously slow rhythm that built my desire to the breaking point. His hands reached up to cup my breasts, his fingers sliding over the nipples as I let go again. I cried out his name softly, loving being impaled on him this way.
He lifted me quickly, pulling free, and had me on my hands and knees before I could figure out what he was doing. With his hands holding my hips, he slid in deep, and I cried out at the incredible sensation. “Too much?” he asked.
Stilling, I thought it was nowhere near enough. “Never. Take me, Brock. I want to feel everything.”
One hand left my hip and tangled in my hair, and he wrapped it around his hand before he sensually tortured me with quick, hard thrusts. This was his way of claiming me, I felt, and I loved being dominated this way. I pushed back my hips to meet him. It was the ride of my life.
“Damn, woman!”
It was sore, sweet, and everything I wanted. Pulling me back by my hair, he kissed me, not once giving up the pounding strokes that had me finding paradise again. Within seconds he joined me, straining against my hips as he released all his desire deep inside.
The emotion of being consumed that way broke a dam in my heart. It had nothing to do with sadness, but tears streamed down my cheeks. I flinched as he slid free, because he wasn’t a small man. The look in his incredible eyes told me he was reading the wrong signal about my tears.
“Don’t,” he said, pulling me into his lap and squeezing me so tightly that I could barely breathe. “I won’t, darlin’, never again. I don’t know what came over me. You were so beautiful and giving, and I couldn’t stop myself.” He was soothing me like I’d imagine him doing with one of his horses, petting my hair. It was almost comical except he had the wrong impression.
“Crazy man. Don’t ever think I didn’t love how you made me yours. I want everything. The tender kisses, the wild passion, even your stubborn ass when you’re being unreasonable. I’m happy.” For him to think anything else was unacceptable, and I refused to allow it!
“I don’t like you sore. That might be how some men get their rocks off, but not me. You’re my woman, and it’s my job to cherish and protect you.” Brock released me enough to look into my eyes, and I could see the possession that should have made my modern-day heart uneasy. What it did was make me want him again.
“Well, I like the way you made me sore and plan on demanding you do it several times more. What do you say to that?” Wrapping my arms around his neck, I straddled him again. I wasn’t sure a person could
make love that many times in a row, but I was willing to find out.
“I say that you are going to be over my knee faster than you imagined if you don’t let me do what’s right here.” Brock stood, with me holding on, and walked us into the bathroom. Laughing because I wasn’t afraid of him doing what he’d threatened, I let my feet find the floor.
“I say you run that water and stop making idle threats. You’ve made me quite sticky, Brock Dixon, and I think you should fix that.” Hands on my hips, I was still grinning as he lifted me by the waist and put me in the shower after making sure the temperature was right.
If he thought bathing me was the way to get my libido in check, he was dead wrong. By the time he used that soft cloth down south, I was ready for round three and lowered to my knees to make sure he knew it. I had no idea how to give a blow job, but apparently I wasn’t a complete failure at it because he was pulling me off almost as quickly as I started.
“Gonna be the death of me, no doubt in my mind.” Pulling me up, he lowered to his knees, putting my leg over his shoulder as he showed me how talented his mouth was. He gave me another release that left my legs quivering. After showering that pleasure away, he stepped out of the shower, dried off, and held the same towel out for me. “At least it’s a good way to go.” He winked at me before making sure I was taken care of.
Jeremy’s soft cries made us both smile, and Brock left me to grab a pair of shorts and check on the little man. I joined him a few minutes later after throwing on one of his T-shirts. Jeremy held his arms up to me from where Brock was sitting on the bed with him, and I quickly took him. He’d always been such a good sleeper, but his little life had changed a lot lately.
Looking at Brock then back at the bed, I wanted to be with both. It was probably starting a bad habit, but knowing that the two most important men in my life were with me was something I was willing to break rules for. Besides, who knew the right thing to do when raising a kid, anyway? Brock pulled back the covers, and we put Little Man between us, smiling at each other when he gave up the fight and went back to sleep again.
Cowboy Sanctuary (The Dixon Ranch) Page 19