“Hi, I’m Ben,” the little blond-haired boy at the far end of the table piped up. He looked to be around ten years old. “If you’re a friend of Josh’s, you must be all right,” he said. His child’s logic broke the ice and made her nervousness completely disappear as he decided to play host.
“That’s my dad, Ben senior,” he continued, pointing to a tall, sandy blond-haired man pouring himself coffee by the sink. “And this is my mom, Lacey.” He nodded to a woman with short auburn hair sitting next to him. “My grandpa, his name’s Kenneth. He’s outside already since he’s a real early riser.”
“Good morning, Ben, and thank you for the welcome,” Sabrina had replied with a laugh before she sat down and enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with Josh’s family…well, minus Josh.
Just where was the man? she wondered as she turned to walk out of the stables and head back toward the house.
Josh came riding up, his straw cowboy hat pulled low on his head. Sabrina noticed his thigh muscles flex through his soft, worn, well-fitted jeans as he turned his horse sideways so he could step next to her.
“Good morning, beautiful. Ready to go?” he asked, his sexy smile making the butterflies in her stomach multiply tenfold as he rested his forearms on his saddle horn and met her gaze with his arresting teal one.
“Out and about early this morning?” she quipped, still a little put out that he’d deserted her.
Josh’s smile turned to a grin as he pushed his hat back a bit. “Why yes, ma’am, I was. I had to take care of a few things. I’m sorry if I left you hanging, but I knew you were with my family so you’d have been well taken care of.”
She looked down at her borrowed baby-blue cotton T-shirt and jeans a couple sizes too big, then let her gaze move to her bare feet—she’d foregone the tennis shoes that were a size too small—and laughed as she met his gaze once more.
“Yes, but I’ll be glad to get back into some of my own clothes.”
Josh lifted his gaze and called out to his brother entering the stables, “Ben, how about saddling Dusty for Sabrina for me?”
“Will do.” His brother waved his hand in response.
Sabrina put her hand on Josh’s knee, her stomach knotting in fear. “Where are we going, Josh? I’ve not gotten up the nerve to ride a horse, yet. I was working my way up to that by grooming Lightning.”
“Really?” Surprise flickered through his expression, then he called out to his brother, “Ben, never mind. Just give Sabrina a foot up. She’s going to ride on Ace with me.”
Even though the idea of riding with Josh made her fear lessen somewhat, Sabrina’s stomach still remained a mass of nerves while Ben helped her mount Josh’s horse. As she settled on the saddle in front of Josh, she tensed all over, grabbing onto the saddle horn for dear life.
Josh’s arms came around her waist and he chuckled low in her ear. “Relax, Brina,” he said as he pulled on the reins and nudged his horse so he would turn around and walk out of the stables.
“Where are we going?” she asked again, thankful to finally be alone with Josh, even if it was up on a horse’s back.
Ace exited the stables and headed for the back of the Tanners’ house. Once the horse reached the edge of the woods, Josh said as he entered the woods, his tone intimate and full of promise, “I thought you might like to see my place.” He paused and continued, “I’ve taken a couple of days off. As much as I’d like to say I’m doing this to watch over you, the truth is… I’m hoping that you’ll decide to stay and spend some time with me.”
“Oh,” was all Sabrina got out before Ace began to climb a slight incline. The fact that Josh wanted her to stay with him made her heart hammer in her chest while the horse’s movement upward forced her body to lean back against Josh. Her head settled in the cradle of his shoulder and her rear end rubbed against his crotch as she slid back in the saddle.
Josh tightened his arm around her waist and growled low against her neck saying, “This ride is going to be pure torture.”
“Which is exactly the state you left me in last night,” she countered, purposefully grinding her butt against his obvious erection pressed against her backside.
“We both suffered, Brina,” he said in a husky tone while he splayed a hand across her belly. As the horse walked at a slow pace up the slope, he rubbed his thumb on the underside curve of her breast in the same rhythmic movement.
“What do you do when you’re not visiting friends on vacation?” he asked conversationally as if he weren’t arousing her body with his tantalizing touch.
“I work in an advertising firm.”
“Travel much with your job?” he asked as he began to pull her tucked-in shirt from her pants.
Her heart sped up at his slow, purposeful seduction. Rational thoughts were fading fast. “Uh…um…no. Actually most of my job is done via email and phone with travel only to a couple of meetings a year. Marketing isn’t always as glamorous as it sounds,” she finished with a chuckle.
“I was hoping you traveled to Texas a lot,” he emphasized the last word as his fingers brushed against the bare skin on her belly. Warmth began to spread through her body competing with the Texas heat that clung to her skin even in the shade-covered trail.
“Technically my job could be done from a home office for the most part,” she laughed, warmed by the idea that he hoped to see more of her.
Josh’s touch made it hard to focus on her surroundings as it was, but she realized a moment’s panic when he knotted the ends of the reins together then suddenly dropped them to put his palms on her thighs.
“Josh, the reins,” she gasped in alarm as she used her grip on the saddle horn to lean forward to grab the reins lying across Ace’s neck.
She sucked in her breath when his hands encircled her waist and quickly pulled her back against his chest.
“Ace knows the way,” he replied with confidence. “I need both hands to learn every inch of this new territory that’s before me,” he whispered in a seductive tone before he planted a tender kiss on the sensitive spot behind her ear.
The gentle brush of his lips on her skin caused shivers to course through her.
As his hands moved higher, her stomach tightened in arousing anticipation while blood rushed to her sex in pulsing tension.
When his hands cupped her breasts, Sabrina gripped the saddle horn tighter and closed her eyes, waiting with bated breath as her heartbeat thrummed in response.
The first brush of his thumbs across her nipples through the fabric of her bra made her gasp at the pleasure that shot straight down her thighs and lower belly.
“Put your hands on my thighs,” he ordered in a gruff voice.
Sabrina’s eyes flew open. “No,” she breathed out in fear, clinging to the saddle horn even more.
Josh’s fingers slid down to her nipples. “Trust me, Sabrina,” he said, this time pinching the hard nubs.
The slight pain heightened her arousal, making her moan in sheer carnal bliss.
Slowly, she let go of her “lifeline” and put her hands on his thighs.
“That’s my girl,” he said, then continued in a calm tone, “Now lean your body fully against mine, close your eyes and feel.”
She did as he requested and closed her eyes.
When Josh’s lips touched her neck, nuzzling her at the same time his hands cupped her breasts fully, she purred her pleasure.
“Do you feel the horse moving under you, Brina? Feel his movements? Can you anticipate with your body and move with him, instead of against him?” he asked as he slid one hand down her bare belly.
Oh, God, he was going to kill her with this slow sexual torture, she thought before she answered with a nod. Even his scent, a mixture of fresh outdoors, faint aftershave and leather worked to ignite her senses.
“Leaning against you, I can feel how you move with him.” And she did notice the difference. Slowly her body had begun to relax, following the horse’s motion.
When she started to put her hands bac
k on the saddle horn, his grip on her breast and belly tightened and his body tensed behind her.
“No, keep your hands on my thighs.” His tone lowered, darkened as his hand landed on her knee.
Her eyes opened once more. “What are you planning—” she started to ask.
She didn’t get to finish her question because her breath caught in her throat when his hand slid up her inner thigh.
“There’s a lot I’m planning to do, darlin’,” he drawled, feathering his lips down her throat as he cupped the inside of her other thigh as well and applied pressure to both, pushing her legs further apart.
“Josh,” she hissed out as she gripped his hard thighs and tightened her own against the horse. The anticipation was almost her undoing.
Then he found the closure on the front of her bra and unsnapped it, rasping, “Feel for me, Brina,” as he pushed the cotton material out of the way and rolled her bare nipple between his fingers.
She let out a low moan at the jolts of desire that radiated from her breast straight down her body. Her moan turned into a loud gasp when Josh’s hold on her inner thigh tightened before his touch skimmed higher until he reached her mound.
Just when she hoped he would begin to move his hand, he whispered against her ear, “When I touch you for the first time, I want to see your expression, the pupils in your eyes change.” His grip on her breast tightened as he continued, “Do you want to know what I thought about last night while I lay on the damned couch?”
She could only nod her head when he brushed his thumb across her nipple once more.
“I thought about pulling all your clothes off, taking my time so I could discover every inch of your sweet flesh,” he said as he unbuttoned the top button on her jeans, then unzipped her pants.
Her body heated all over at his words.
His hand slid down her belly beyond her underwear until his fingers teased the curls below. Sabrina bit her lip to keep the whimper that threatened to escape her lips inside.
“Then I’d lay you down and run my hands all over your body. I’d want to touch you everywhere. You’d arch your back, silently begging me to touch your breasts, then you’d lose control and tell me exactly what you wanted.”
Her heart hammered in her chest at the visual he painted and the stimulation his teasing caused.
“But I’d want to taste them instead,” he continued in a seductive whisper, his breath hot against her ear as he withdrew his hand from her pants and cupped both breasts fully, his grip firm and possessive.
“I’d suck long and hard on your nipples, until you twisted and whimpered and pushed my head between your gorgeous thighs.”
Sabrina’s pulse thrummed at the sexy image he described. When his thumbs just barely brushed across her nipples, she squirmed against the hard saddle, trying to assuage the painful ache that had settled between her legs.
“I’d put my hands on your thighs and spread them wide while my thumbs massaged your pink flesh. It’d turn me on to see just how wet you were for me, and I’d be unable to resist taking a long, leisurely taste with my tongue.”
He’s killing me, she thought.
Josh moved a hand to cup her sex through her jeans. He applied pressure as he continued in a husky tone, “But one taste wouldn’t be enough and I’d go back for more and more.” His voice took on a relentless tone as he continued, “I’d trace every fold, every bit of your sensitive skin, making you so horny you’d beg me to make you come.”
Sabrina’s breathing turned choppy and her heart hammered in her chest at the wanton scenario he painted. Perched atop a horse, holding on to this sexy man’s rock-hard thighs, his muscular chest and hard-as-marble erection pressed against her backside—all this while his words and teasing touches built a fire burning inside her—she’d never been more turned on in her life.
“I hear you panting,” he continued in a determined voice as his grip on her sex tightened. At the same time he plucked at one of her nipples, saying in an intense, insistent tone, “I can’t wait to hear you scream for me when you come, Brina. I know you’re a screamer and fuckin’ hell…all last night I thought of nothing else but hearing it.”
Sabrina closed her eyes and moaned at the intensity in his voice as the need for physical release engulfed her body, causing a sensual burn to build inside her, spiraling out of control.
While she unconsciously rocked against his hand, she heard his pleased comment near her ear, “That’s it, baby. Damn, I can’t wait to feel your sweet body wrapped around me.”
When he stopped speaking and wrapped his arms around her waist, saying, “We’re here,” she realized his horse had stopped walking and she opened her eyes, shaking herself out of the sexual web of desire he’d weaved around her.
With her body still quaking, Sabrina managed a shaky smile at the quaint house before her. His two-story wood-sided home with a bench swing off to the left of the front door and a couple of pale wood rocking chairs to the right created a homey look that surprised her considering he was a bachelor.
She noted that there wasn’t a big front yard and practically no backyard since the woods backed almost all the way up to the house. Nodding to indicate the front yard that blended right into the woods, she said, “Now I know why you didn’t drive me up here. Is there even a road to get to your place?”
Josh chuckled as he slid off the horse onto the ground. “Yeah, I guess the grass driveway you see appears to lead to nowhere. We used the road to bring up the materials to build my house and on the day I moved my stuff in. But I prefer riding my horse up here, so the driveway has grown over by forest underbrush over time.” Nodding to the back of the house, he said, “There are open pastures beyond the woods behind my house. I just haven’t cut a path to them yet.”
As he finished speaking, he reached up and clasped her around the waist. When he effortlessly lifted her off of Ace and set her on the ground, Sabrina’s unbuttoned pants must’ve decided they’d spent enough time hanging around her hips because they immediately fell to her ankles.
Despite the fact Josh had just had his hand in her underwear, heat infused her face. There’s just something totally mortifying about being caught with one’s pants down.
Josh didn’t miss a beat as he bent down and pulled her pants back up, saying with a grin, “I’d planned to get you out of your pants as soon as possible, darlin’, but this wasn’t quite how I envisioned it.”
His humor at the situation soothed her embarrassment, making her laugh as she zipped up and buttoned her loose pants then resnapped her bra.
Josh took off his hat and ran a hand through his hair, his penetrating teal green gaze searching her face as he visually connected with her. Her heart hammered at the long, sexually charged moment that passed between them.
“Why don’t you go change into your own clothes while I put Ace away?”
Sabrina’s spirits perked up. “You have my clothes?” She was too thankful to have her own clothes to be peeved that Josh “assumed” she’d stay with him.
He nodded. “Yep, that’s where I was this morning—retrieving your belongings. Nan wouldn’t let me leave until I had assured her I would bring you to the ranch today so she could see for herself you were okay.”
Sabrina grabbed hold of the waistband of her pants, just in case, as she turned and walked up the steps to enter Josh’s house. She chose to ignore his good-humored chuckle as she closed the door behind her.
The contemporary design inside surprised her. Raised up on a couple of wooden steps, the kitchen and dining room sat on an “island” in the center of the room. Josh must put a large importance on cooking if his kitchen held the center of attention, she thought.
Geez, she sure hoped he didn’t expect her to cook. Eggs and toast were about all she’d learned to do. She’d always been in awe of her cousin Nicole’s ability to just “whip” up a meal from practically nothing. Sabrina’s creativity came in the form of advertising slogans and “understanding” the target market.
Even though Josh’s choice for where to place his kitchen seemed very modern and contemporary, he’d kept it warm with rich leather and polished wood barstools against the tall wood and slate counters. Spindle back chairs graced the oval oak dining table. Everywhere she looked, wood floors graced the house from wall to wall.
To her left was apparently a living room with its well-worn leather sofa and matching smaller sofa for two sitting on top of a rug with an Aztec design. Very few pictures graced the walls but the ones that did depicted horses. Oils and watercolor pictures decorated the living room while black and white photos of horses running decorated his office off to her right.
Once again, Josh had added an Aztec designed rug in deep maroons and blues in the center of his “office” room. A single mission style desk in a rich cherry wood and a tall black leather chair made up his office. A laptop, a printer/fax machine, and a telephone sat atop the desk.
Sheesh, except for the few papers she’d seen scattered on his desk, Sabrina just realized how utterly immaculate Josh’s place was.
The whole other back side of the main room in his house held a foosball table and a poker table. Must be the recreation room, she thought with a grin as her gaze followed the wrought iron spiral staircase against the wall in the center of the far back wall of the house. The staircase led to a small sitting area landing that overlooked the whole house and had a huge picture window that must have a gorgeous view of the woods behind the house.
On the far wall of the main floor, two doors led off on either side of the room, presumably to Josh’s bedroom and a guest bedroom.
She bit her lip, wondering where Josh had put her stuff. When her gaze landed on her small suitcase sticking out beside the sofa, she let out a sigh of relief. At least she wouldn’t be rifling through Josh’s bedroom looking for her belongings. Despite their instantaneous sexual attraction, she’d rather be invited into his room first.
Grabbing her suitcase, Sabrina went to find the bathroom and change clothes.
Hearts Are Wild Page 6