The Cowboy Meets His Match

by Sarah Mayberry

  “Finally found the stupid thing at the back of the—” Sierra came to an abrupt halt in the doorway, her gaze bouncing from CJ to Jesse and back again. “Sorry. Did I interrupt something?”

  “No,” CJ blurted, too fast and too loud.

  “I was just telling CJ good night,” Jesse said.

  “Okay,” Sierra said, her tone skeptical.

  “See you tomorrow,” Jesse said, and he turned and angled past his sister to exit to the kitchen.

  “Sorry. I really didn’t mean to walk into the middle of anything,” Sierra said, her expression comically dismayed as she passed over the duffel bag she’d dug up.

  “You didn’t. Jesse was just… He was just saying good night, like he said.”

  CJ acted on delayed impulse then, grabbing the tangle of lacy panties and stuffing them into the bag. A slow smile curved Sierra’s mouth as she followed the action.

  “That’s some pretty saucy underwear you’ve got there, Ms. Cooper.”

  “I really don’t want to talk about it.” CJ could feel her face heating again. She almost never blushed, but she had no idea how to handle this…situation with Jesse.

  “All right, we won’t, then. Let’s get you settled into the Airstream instead,” Sierra said brightly, her eyes dancing with amusement and curiosity.

  CJ finished transferring her clean clothes to the duffel bag Sierra assured her she was welcome to keep, while Sierra grabbed clean sheets from a cupboard beside the dryer. Then the two of them left the house via the kitchen door. They walked across the graveled yard to the barn, skirting the left side on a well-worn path, the way lit by three big gooseneck lights hanging from the sides of the peeling red structure.

  “We can leave these lights on for you if you like. There’s a bathroom in the trailer, but if you need to come up to the house you don’t want to be fumbling around in the dark,” Sierra said as they turned the corner.

  The Airstream sat on a concrete pad that extended six feet or so in front of the trailer. A set of wooden steps had been built up to the door, and soft light shone from inside.

  “Oh. Someone’s been out here already,” Sierra said.

  She climbed the steps and pushed the door open, then gave a small grunt of surprise.

  “What?” CJ asked, peering over her shoulder.

  The interior of the trailer was neat but original—CJ guessed it had probably been new sometime in the seventies. A galley kitchen lined either wall to her left, culminating in an expanse of bed that looked as though it was easily the equivalent of a queen, maybe even a king. By day, she’d bet it folded into some kind of dining nook configuration, with bench seats and a table. To her right was a closed door that she guessed hid the bathroom and toilet.

  “Someone made the bed already,” Sierra said, stepping closer to tweak back the duvet and confirm her assessment.

  CJ was pretty sure she knew who that someone was. It was getting harder and harder not to be charmed by Jesse Carmody.

  “Well, I guess we won’t need these,” Sierra said, dumping the clean linen on the counter. “So, let me talk you through everything. The bathroom is hooked up to the plumbing in the main house, so feel free to use it at will. Water is all hooked up, too, so go for it there as well. We had an issue with the fuses shorting last month when we had guests, so if that happens, there’s a flashlight here—” she opened a cupboard to show CJ “—and spare fuses. The fuse box is just beside the door in that little recess.”

  “Got it,” CJ said.

  “There’s a shower, but it’s coffin-sized and you are welcome to come up to the main house in the morning. What time do you think you’ll be up?”

  “Um, probably before eight. I need to do my yoga or I’ll be a mess when I ride.”

  “There’s a great spot around the back of the house on the porch, gets all the morning sun,” Sierra said. “I do yoga there when I’m not being lazy.”

  “Noted, thanks.”

  “And there’s a pancake breakfast in town tomorrow, in case you didn’t know about it. It’s usually pretty delicious, so we tend to head in there and pig out rather than bother with breakfast at home when the rodeo is in town.”

  “I am totally on board for that plan,” CJ said.

  Sierra smiled. “Is it wrong that I’m a kind of glad your stuff got peed on so I got to meet you properly?”

  “A little, but I understand where you’re coming from,” CJ said. “You’ve been awesome. Your whole family has.”

  CJ didn’t come from a super-demonstrative family, but it felt right to give Sierra a quick hug then, and she was both gratified and relieved when Sierra hugged her back.

  “I’m going to leave you to it now. You’ve had a huge day, what with striking a blow for womankind and then following that up with two loads of laundry and surviving a Carmody family dinner, complete with unspoken tension and moody walk-out from my ridiculously handsome brother,” Sierra said.

  “Lots of highs and lows, for sure,” CJ said with a grin. “It’s been a roller coaster.”

  Sierra descended the steps to the concrete pad, giving CJ one last wave before disappearing around the corner of the barn. CJ waited until she was gone before shutting the door and letting out a big, gusty sigh.

  Sierra was right—it had been a huge day, and now she had a moment to think about it, she was bone-tired. Her ass, thighs and shoulders had the well-worn feeling she always got after a ride, and she circled her shoulders a little before she remembered she needed to grab her saddle from the bed of her truck. There’d been clouds scudding across the night sky as they walked through the yard, and she didn’t want to risk rain.

  It only took a minute or two to fetch the remainder of her gear, and she parked it to one side of the galley kitchen on the floor. It only left a narrow pathway, but that was okay, she wasn’t planning on doing the tango anytime soon.

  Feeling cozy in her shiny aluminum cocoon, she went to brush her teeth, then stripped down to panties and her T-shirt. On closer inspection she discovered the duvet cover featured cowboys on bucking broncos, and she wondered if Jesse had chosen it on purpose or if it was simply the first cover that came to hand.

  Whatever, it was cute and welcoming, and she turned off the main light, leaving only the reading light above the bed aglow, and crawled onto the mattress. It was a little firm, but comfortable enough, and she slid beneath the duvet and tested the two pillows, selecting the squishier one and setting the other aside. Then she rolled onto her back and leaned across to flick off the light.

  Which was when she spotted the large, eight-legged intruder on the ceiling directly above her pillow.

  Well, damn.

  Apparently the day’s dramas weren’t over just yet.

  Chapter Eight

  Jesse was checking the weather on his laptop when Sierra entered the living room, a couple of folded bath towels in hand.

  “Forgot to give CJ a towel, in case she wants to shower out in the Airstream,” she explained.

  Jesse eyed his sister’s pajamas and bare feet. “I’ll take them out to her. You’re ready for bed.”

  Sierra hesitated briefly before handing the towels over. “All right. Thanks.”

  He shut down his laptop before heading outside. Gravel crunched underfoot as he made his way past the barn. He was about to turn the corner when he heard a high-pitched yelp of alarm that could only have come from CJ. Speeding up, he caught sight of a shadow lunging across the curtained window in the bedroom area of the trailer.

  “Stop being…such…an asshole.”

  Her words had him yanking open the door and leaping into the trailer, visions of intruders or snakes or some other life-threatening invader at the front of his mind.

  He froze in his tracks at the sight that greeted him—CJ, clad in nothing but a pair of black lace panties and a soft white T-shirt, balanced on her knees on the bed, a drinking glass pressed to the wall. Inside the glass, a big brown spider was doing its level best to escape.

 
; CJ glanced over her shoulder. “Thank God. I forgot to get something to lift him off with. There’s a magazine on the shelf above the counter there. Would you mind grabbing it for me?”

  He turned to the shelf as instructed, fumbling to dump the towels and grab the magazine, his head full of long, muscular legs and firm, supple arms. Trying to keep his eyes on her face, he passed her the magazine.

  “Thanks.”

  He watched as she carefully slid the magazine beneath the glass before walking on her knees to the edge of the bed, tanned thighs flexing with every move. He moved back toward the bathroom zone as she slid off the bed and approached with her captive. He was about to suggest she pass the spider over so he could find it a new home outside but she was already stepping out the door.

  Of course CJ wouldn’t think twice about going barefoot and barely dressed into the dark. She probably leapt tall buildings in a single bound as a hobby.

  She was back half a minute later, empty glass and magazine in hand.

  “Okay. Hopefully he’s not going to turn this into some kind of turf war and try to find a way back in,” she said, placing both items onto the kitchen counter.

  “Yeah. Good call,” he said stupidly.

  He was pretty sure he could see the dark shadows of her nipples through the fabric of her T-shirt. Not that he’d been looking for them—but he was only human.

  She glanced at the towels. “Are those for me?” she asked, one hand tugging at the hem of her T-shirt self-consciously.

  His eyes followed the movement. Man, her panties were smokin’. Lace combined with something that looked as though it would be silky to the touch. The way the fabric and lace cupped her ass and hugged her hips was insanely hot…

  He realized he hadn’t answered her question. And that he was staring at her like a desperate sixteen-year-old from a bad coming-of-age movie.

  “Sierra said she forgot to give them to you earlier,” he said, wrenching his eyes back to her face. “Sorry for barging in, I thought you were in trouble, which was pretty dumb in hindsight.”

  Because if the last couple of days had taught him anything, it was that this woman could take care of herself.

  He took a step toward the door, heat burning the back of his neck. He needed to go, before she noticed the raging hard-on pressing against the zipper of his jeans.

  “Thanks for the towels,” she said.

  She looked as uncomfortable and off-balance as he felt, standing there with her dark hair flowing over her shoulders and her body outlined in the soft amber glow of the reading light.

  “Pleasure,” he said.

  And then the world went dark.

  For a moment there was nothing but silence as they both absorbed the shock.

  “Must be the fuse,” CJ said, and he almost smiled at the matter-of-fact acceptance in her tone.

  Did anything faze this woman?

  “Yeah, Casey mentioned they’d been having problems with the electrics. Should be some fuses in one of the top cupboards,” he said.

  He took a step forward—and found himself hard up against a warm, firm body as CJ evidently did the same thing. His hands came up instinctively to steady her, one landing on the flare of her hip, the other on her waist.

  They both went very still. Beneath his hands, she felt warm and strong. He breathed in the smell of fresh soap and clean hair and felt himself harden into full, painful arousal. The need to kiss her, touch her, taste her was almost undeniable—but if anything was going to happen between them, it had to be CJ’s call. She was his guest, she’d had a shitty day, and she had good reasons for keeping her distance. He wasn’t going to add himself to her list of problems.

  Not unless she wanted him to.

  The moment seemed to stretch and stretch. He felt her inhale, felt the muscles of her torso move subtly beneath his hands. He was so hard it physically hurt, but there was a weird kind of pleasure in the pain and it hit him that he hadn’t wanted anyone this badly for years. The realization made his hands curl into her flesh, but somehow he managed to limit himself to the small gesture and cling to his self-control.

  A shudder rippled through her, as though she’d just won or lost a fiercely fought battle within herself.

  “Fuck it,” she said, and then she kissed him.

  *

  He tasted like heat and coffee and desire, and CJ whimpered with need as he angled his mouth over hers and deepened the kiss she’d initiated. His tongue stroked hers as he laid siege to her mouth, his hands sliding across her back to draw her closer. His body felt amazing against hers, so hard and powerful, the denim of his jeans brushing against her bare legs. Her hands slid over his shoulders and back as she gave as good as she got, fighting for control of the kiss, reveling in the tension she could feel thrumming through his body.

  He shifted his hips closer, his hands sliding to her backside as he tucked her against him, and she felt the firm pressure of his erection against her belly. Grabbing his ass in turn, she ground herself against him, driven by the need for more, more, more.

  God, she wanted this man, in the best and worst possible way. She wanted him over her, inside her, behind her, wanted to feel his naked skin against her own, his sweat on her skin, his taste on her tongue.

  Impatience drove her to break their kiss and reach for the hem of her T-shirt. She pulled it over her head then gasped as Jesse’s work-callused hands slid up her sides and onto her bared breasts.

  “Oh,” she moaned, unable to put into words how good it felt as he stroked her aching nipples with his thumbs.

  “Fuck,” Jesse said, the single, profane word loaded with awe and lust and intent.

  They tumbled together onto the bed, and then she was on her back and he was on top of her, kissing his way down her neck and across her shoulder and finally, finally arriving at her breasts. She clutched handfuls of his dark hair as he teased her with his clever mouth, flicking his tongue over and over first one nipple, then the other.

  She’d never been so turned on so fast in her life, desire a greedy, demanding throb between her thighs. When he slid a hand down her belly and beneath the elastic of her panties she lifted her hips to welcome him and sobbed as he stroked two fingers along the seam of her sex.

  She felt the shudder that went through him as he discovered how wet she was, heard the rasp as he sucked in air.

  “Unbelievable,” he muttered, and then he was sliding down her body, tugging her panties down in an impatient, demanding rush as he bared her to him.

  She spread her legs wide, unashamedly eager for what he was offering. When he licked between her thighs she gripped his shoulders and let out a low moan, giving herself over utterly to the moment.

  The next minutes passed in a blur of sensation and ratcheting desire as he licked and teased her with his mouth until she was quivering and taut, trembling on the brink of climax. She panted, desperate for fulfillment but also not wanting it to ever end because this man was good at this. Persistent and inventive and creative in all the best ways. Then he circled her entrance with a single knowing finger and she held her breath, waiting for something…something…

  He slid a finger inside her, and she was lost, sobbing his name as her body shuddered into pure, pulsing pleasure. He kept stroking her with finger and mouth until she was limp and breathless. Then she felt the loss of his warmth as he moved away from her.

  A belt buckle clinked in the dark and she opened her eyes.

  “You’d better be taking your jeans off,” she warned him.

  “Good, you’re still breathing,” he said, surprising her into laughter.

  “No thanks to you,” she said.

  “I don’t expect thanks,” he said. “But I’ll take payment in kind.”

  She laughed again and felt the mattress dip as he landed beside her. The thought that he was naked chased away the last of her climax-induced lassitude and she rolled toward him.

  His chest was leanly muscled and dusted with hair that she bet was as dark as
that on his head. She caressed one firm pec and then found the other before lowering her mouth to flick his flat male nipple with her tongue. He tensed minutely, so she did it again and had the satisfaction of hearing his breath rush out in a needy sigh.

  She was tempted to keep teasing him, but she was burningly aware that the hot, hard erection that had been pressed against her belly was now all hers to explore and she smoothed a hand down his flat belly, following a silky happy trail to a startlingly hard, hot erection. She wrapped her hand around him, her inner muscles tensing greedily as she registered how thick and long he was.

  He shifted his hips as she stroked her hand up and down his shaft, and she knew instinctively that he was wound tight, that he needed and wanted this as badly as she did.

  “Tell me you have a condom,” she said, stroking her hand down and then up again.

  “Back pocket, in my wallet,” he said, his voice raspy with desire.

  It took her a moment to find his jeans then locate his wallet and finally the condom in the dark. She tore the packet open with her teeth and rolled toward him, sliding a leg over his hips and climbing on board. For a moment she got distracted by the feel of his erection against the soft, wet folds between her legs, but she told herself to stay focused and slid the condom inch by inch down his hard shaft.

  “Hold on, cowboy,” she said, then she guided him into place and took him inside her—just as the light above the bed sprang back to life.

  *

  Jesse thought he’d died and gone to heaven as CJ slid down onto his cock—and then the lights came on and he discovered there was something better than heaven, and that was being able to see what she was doing to him as well as feel it.

  She laughed in surprise, her face flushed, her hair a dark tangle flowing over her shoulders and breasts. His gaze followed the trail his hands had blazed earlier, taking in her full, rounded breasts and rosy nipples, the flat plane of her belly, and finally the dark curls at the apex of her thighs. His gaze got stuck there as she rose up to the point of almost losing him before sliding back down. The sight of his cock disappearing into her slick warmth was almost enough to undo him, but he grit his teeth and fought back against the pleasure threatening to swamp him.