The Cowboy Meets His Match

by Sarah Mayberry

  She gave a rueful shake of her head, then double-checked she was decent before following him back over the hill to rejoin the others.

  They worked until midafternoon, when the second battery for the cordless drill ran flat. Jed was philosophical as they reloaded the trailer.

  “Got more done that I thought we would,” he said.

  “Thanks to me and CJ,” Sierra said.

  “You’re right, CJ being here made all the difference,” Jed said.

  “Funny,” Sierra said, reaching out to try to shove him off-balance. Jed was ready for her, resisting the move and then using her momentum to try to trip her.

  Jesse watched the small scuffle with a smile. Some things never changed.

  “Take him to the ground, Sierra,” CJ encouraged. “Go for the eyes.”

  “So bloodthirsty,” Jesse said. “Remind me not to get on the wrong side of you.”

  “I will, don’t worry. Whenever you need it,” CJ said.

  He was still smiling when Casey fired up the four-wheeler and the low throb of the motor filled the air. Casey started off, the trailer rattling over the uneven ground, the rest of them following a few minutes later.

  Casey and Sierra disappeared when they got back to the ranch, off to deal with regular chores, while Jed headed into the office.

  Which left Jesse and CJ to their own devices.

  “Want a shower before dinner?” he asked.

  “Wouldn’t mind washing the dust off.”

  “I’ll hook you up with a towel,” he said, leading her through the living room to the bathroom.

  Once there, he dug out a couple of towels from beneath the vanity, then leaned past her to push the door shut.

  CJ cocked an eyebrow at him.

  “What?” he said. “You don’t want me to wash your back?”

  “Just my back, huh?”

  “I might be prepared to help in other areas if you ask nicely.”

  He kissed her, pressing her against the door. She met him kiss for kiss, her hands going straight for the buckle of his jeans. Then her hand was inside his underwear and she was stroking him, her grip firm and sure. He returned the favor by unbuttoning her shirt and pushing her bra up, filling his hands with the warm smoothness of her breasts.

  She was so fucking hot, the way she felt, the way she looked at him, the way she smelled. There wasn’t a single thing about her that didn’t turn him on.

  He took as much torture as he could stand before bumping her hand away.

  “Enough,” he said, then he pushed her jeans and panties down and helped her step out of them.

  It only took a moment for him to roll on a condom, then he lifted one of her legs to his hip. She made a small, greedy sound, tilting her hips forward, and he slid inside her.

  The world became urgent and breathless as he worked himself inside her, smothering her gasps and moans with kisses, his fingers curled into her gorgeous ass and hips. She came quickly, her body grasping his, and he finally let himself go, pumping into her wildly until he came so hard his knees went weak.

  “You all right there, cowboy?” she laughed.

  “Am now,” he said, pressing a last kiss to her lips.

  He disposed of the condom, then turned the shower on. Once he’d got the temperature right, he drew her beneath the spray with him. He spent the next ten minutes sliding soapy hands over her supple muscles and curves while she returned the favor.

  Afterward, he dressed and went out to her car to collect her bag and bring it inside so she had clean clothes to change into.

  The door to the office was closed when they entered the living room, the low murmur of Jed’s voice just audible as he talked to someone on the phone. Otherwise the house was empty, and Jesse headed into the kitchen to find something to snack on.

  “We should make a start on dinner. Any idea what’s on the menu?” CJ asked.

  Her suggestion gave him pause. He’d only been thinking of himself and his currently empty stomach, but CJ was always thinking ahead, anticipating what might need to be done, how she could pitch in.

  It was just one of many things about her that he liked a lot.

  “Let me check the fridge, see what we’ve got to work with,” he said.

  She came to stand behind him, resting her chin on his shoulder as he inspected the contents of the fridge.

  “Ground beef. Onions. There are bound to be some beans in the pantry. We could make chili?” she suggested. “It’s one of the few things I can do reasonably well.”

  “Sounds good,” he said, even though he was mostly just appreciating the press of her body against his and the fresh smell of her skin, along with the easy familiarity of the gesture.

  Together they worked to prepare the meal, CJ making up some corn bread from a mix they found in the cupboard while he chopped onions and tomatoes for the chili. He was browning the beef when Sierra entered the kitchen, stopping in her tracks with an astonished look on her face.

  “Someone pinch me. Am I hallucinating or is someone else actually cooking dinner?” she asked.

  “Jesse insisted,” CJ said, shooting him a cheeky look.

  “Had to talk CJ into it, though. She wanted to shop for shoes online, but I finally convinced her to pitch in,” he said.

  CJ laughed, while Sierra followed their banter back and forth like a spectator at a tennis match.

  “You kids are adorable, you know that?”

  “Just for that you can set the table,” Jesse said.

  Forty minutes later, they were all sitting down to a meal of chili, corn bread and salad. Casey headed off to town afterward, claiming band practice, while Sierra had a scheduled book club meeting at a nearby ranch. Jed disappeared into his office, which left CJ and Jesse free to fire up the TV and collapse on the couch.

  It felt good to relax after a hard day’s labor, especially when the person at the other end of the couch was CJ. They quickly settled on a rerun of an old Tom Cruise movie, and after a few minutes CJ toed her boots off and curled her legs under her.

  “Give ’em here,” he said, patting his lap, and she stretched out so that her feet were resting on his thigh.

  Gripping her foot in his hand, he ran his thumb firmly along the arch, eliciting a small moan from CJ.

  “Good?” he asked.

  “Oh yeah.”

  He applied himself to the task of pleasing her, his attention divided between the action on the screen and CJ’s occasional murmurs of approval. The knowledge they would be sharing a bed that night was the only thing that stopped him from jumping on her again, the small shifts of her body and inarticulate pleasure sounds driving him more than a little crazy. He thought she was oblivious to the effect she had on him, then she slid one of her heels higher on his thigh and rubbed it along the hard length of his erection.

  He turned his head to look at her, only to find her watching him with heavy-lidded eyes, a secretive smile on her lips. He reached out to flick off the TV.

  “Bedtime,” he said, pushing her feet off his lap with an abruptness that made her squawk comically.

  Then he hauled her to her feet and led her out to the Airstream, where there’d be no chance of his family interrupting what he planned to do to her.

  *

  The next morning, the sense that the bed next to her was empty dragged CJ out of sleep. Stretching her hand out, she found nothing but cold sheets.

  Jesse was gone.

  Blinking herself to full wakefulness, she propped herself up on her elbows just as the door to the bathroom slid open. She watched with blatant admiration as Jesse traveled the short distance to the bed.

  “You’re up,” he said. “Good.”

  He climbed back onto the bed, lifting the duvet to slide in beside her before pulling her into his arms. She went willingly, slipping a leg over his hip, sliding her palms onto his chest as his mouth found hers.

  Last night had been crazy good. Maybe it was her imagination, but it seemed to her that every time it got bett
er between them. Which probably explained why she was becoming a bit of a glutton where his lovemaking was concerned. All day yesterday she’d had to consciously concentrate to stop her thoughts from drifting to what would happen once the day was over and they could retire to the Airstream. She’d been so worked up by the time they were alone in the bathroom yesterday afternoon, she’d almost sobbed when he pushed her against the door and slid inside her.

  Now, she pressed herself against him and luxuriated in the feel of his body against hers and the knowledge that soon she would be clawing at his back and moaning his name as he made her come.

  True to form, he made her body sing, but instead of letting her go or rolling away the way he usually did afterward, he wrapped his arms more tightly around her, one hand cradling the side of her face. She felt the same need to stay close, to hang on to the intensity of their connection, and she wrapped her legs around his hips and pressed her cheek into the palm of his hand.

  They lay locked together for long moments, his body still joined to hers, neither of them saying a word. Then the distant sound of a door slamming prompted Jesse to stir, and finally they drew apart.

  CJ avoided meeting his gaze for a few seconds afterward, uncertain exactly what the moment meant—for her, or for him.

  She liked him a lot. She was wild about his body and couldn’t get enough of his lovemaking. But she was aware of a small, cautious part of herself that was holding back whenever she was with him.

  Getting serious about someone was not what she wanted or needed in her life right now, and she was pretty sure Jesse wasn’t looking for anything more, either. Not that they’d ever talked about the future, or what they were doing—which pretty much said it all, really.

  This was a fun-while-it-lasted type deal. She needed to remember that, no matter how tempting it was to let herself get swept up in how it felt when she was in Jesse’s arms.

  “You want to shower out here or up at the house?” he asked.

  “Might be easier out here, if everyone else is in line,” she said, hoping she didn’t sound as stiff and uncertain as she felt.

  If he picked up on her tension he gave no sign of it, teasing her throughout their shower, and slowly she let go of the sudden caution that had gripped her.

  No need to panic, she told herself. As long as we both know what this is, nothing can go wrong.

  They all ate breakfast together, then Jed decided to hit town again to get more fencing supplies, since they’d burned through the first lot so quickly the first day. CJ and Jesse went along for the ride, soaking up the morning sunshine, warm air flowing into the truck as they raced down the highway. Outside the car window, the sky seemed to stretch on forever, framed by the snowy peak of Copper Mountain, and CJ couldn’t seem to stop smiling.

  Right at that moment, there wasn’t anywhere she’d rather be in the world.

  She left Jesse and Jed to round up the fencing supplies, and wandered the aisles with a lazy lack of purpose. Jesse found her in the lumber section and took the opportunity to steal a kiss, leaving her more than a little flustered when they rejoined Jed at the front counter.

  Which was why it took her a few beats to realize Jed seemed off-balance himself, his movements unusually jerky as he shoved his wallet back into his pocket.

  “Okay, let’s go,” he said, not looking at either of them before heading outside.

  The supplies they’d collected were stacked beside the truck, but Jed only loaded a couple of rolls of mesh and one bundle of rebar into the truck bed. When Jesse went to heft the remainder, Jed gave a terse shake of his head.

  “Don’t worry about the rest of that. Probably overkill to get so much at once.”

  Jesse frowned. “The way we tore through it yesterday, we’ll need all of this.”

  “Let’s see how it plays out,” Jed said.

  Jesse studied his brother’s face, clearly trying to work out why he’d changed his mind. “Save us another visit into town if we take this now. And it’s not like you won’t use it at some point.”

  “I’ve made the call. Let’s just go,” Jed said, his tone clipped.

  He cut off further discussion by heading around to the driver’s side and climbing into the truck. A muscle flickered in Jesse’s jaw as he absorbed the dismissal and for a moment something dark and dangerous seemed to hang in the air.

  Acting on instinct, CJ reached out to rest a calming hand on Jesse’s hip. He seemed startled by her touch, and it took a moment for his gaze to come back into focus when he looked at her. Then he forced a small smile.

  “Guess we’d better get moving,” he said.

  No one talked as Jed pointed the truck out of town. Then he reached out and punched the radio on and the sound of Kenny Chesney’s latest hit filled the cab.

  It wasn’t the most comfortable twenty minutes of CJ’s life, but by the time they’d reached the ranch both Carmody men seemed to have regained their equilibrium. They worked in tandem to load up the trailer for another day of fencing, and soon the four of them were heading out on horseback again, Casey bringing up the rear with the four-wheeler.

  It didn’t take long for them to fall into the rhythm and roles they’d established yesterday and the hours flew by. Every now and then CJ found herself taking the temperature between Jesse and Jed, looking for signs of their earlier conflict, but neither man seemed to be hanging on to what had happened. If anything, Jed seemed to be going out of his way to interact with Jesse, laughing at his jokes, offering praise for a well-drilled hole or well-tensioned length of mesh. Almost as though he was subconsciously trying to make it up to his brother.

  They ran out of rebar partway through the afternoon, but Jesse didn’t say a word. Still, Jed’s expression was shuttered as they packed up for the day, and he rode ahead of the pack on the way back to the house, claiming he wanted to get back in time to make some phone calls before close of business.

  Once again Casey and Sierra peeled off to deal with other chores once they’d unloaded the equipment and dealt with the horses, and Jesse and CJ were left to their own devices.

  “Should have the draw for Great Falls by now,” Jesse said as they climbed the steps to the porch. “We can check how we did on my laptop.”

  “Sounds good,” she said. With luck, they’d both get great broncs.

  They entered the house and she watched as Jesse’s gaze went to the closed door to his brother’s office.

  “You should go talk to him,” she prompted.

  He shot her a look. “Who?”

  She simply cocked an eyebrow. He knew exactly who she was talking about.

  “He’s busy,” he said, turning away with a frown. “You want something to drink?”

  He headed into the kitchen, and CJ followed him, hands tucked into the back pockets of her jeans.

  “Look, it’s none of my business, but has it occurred to you that maybe Jed didn’t take the rest of the fencing supplies this morning because he couldn’t afford them right now?” she asked, lowering her voice so that there would be absolutely no chance of Jed overhearing her. “Maybe that was why he was so snappy when we were heading home.”

  Jesse didn’t say anything as he opened the fridge and pulled out a jug of water. Finally CJ got sick of waiting for a response.

  “So…no comment?” she said, head tilted to one side.

  He glanced at her. “You’re right—it’s none of your business. So maybe we should leave it at that.”

  There was no heat in his words, but the flat firmness of his tone was almost worse. CJ told herself she had no right to feel rebuked—she’d known the moment she opened her mouth she was wading into deep, unknown waters, so his response was hardly a surprise.

  And yet her chest and belly muscles still felt tight and she had trouble making eye contact with him. “Fair enough.”

  He slid a glass of water across the counter toward her, and she swallowed it in a couple of long gulps.

  “I might try to get a run in,” she said.
“That okay with you?”

  Jesse’s green gaze scanned her face. “Of course.”

  “Then I’ll see you in an hour or so.”

  She offered him a small smile before heading for the door, fully aware that it was absurd to feel so burned by his stonewalling.

  The man had a right to his privacy. Just because she was sharing his bed didn’t mean she had an all-access pass to his life.

  If she was smart, she’d consider what had just happened a timely reminder: this was just about fun, nothing else.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jesse closed his eyes briefly as CJ let herself out the back door. He was such an asshole. She’d been trying to help, and he’d slapped her down and hurt her feelings.

  He hadn’t meant to, but he’d been trying to convince himself all day that his suspicions regarding the incident at Big Z’s were wrong—and then she’d validated his fears and it had freaked him out so much he’d simply shut her down.

  Like an asshole.

  He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He needed to apologize to her. And he also needed to decide what to do about the situation with Jed, because it was becoming increasingly obvious that the ranch was in some kind of financial trouble.

  The puzzle pieces were all there if a person was looking for them—the peeling paint on the barn, the worried look in his brother’s eyes, the delayed quarterly payment, his reaction when Jesse told him he’d asked CJ to help out with fencing, the incident at the hardware store.

  If it was anyone else, he’d simply ask what the problem was and offer to help in any way he could. But it wasn’t anyone, it was Jed, and there was no way Jesse could get into that conversation with his brother. There was too much sitting between them, too much history. And that wasn’t about to change anytime soon.

  Which left Jesse clueless as to what to do. Walking away wasn’t an option. He knew that. Which left him…nowhere.

  He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He might not know how to handle Jed, but he knew what he owed CJ—an apology, and sooner, rather than later.

  Dumping their water glasses in the sink, he headed for the back door. He took the steps from the porch in one big leap and started across the yard, his strides long, only to stop in his tracks when he caught sight of CJ disappearing down the driveway, her ponytail bobbing as she jogged.