by Cat Johnson
“Doesn’t matter. Don’t make a big deal out of it, Tara.” His eyes cut to her as he lifted the bottle of beer to his lips again.
“Why? What’s going on? Where did all your underwear go?” The more Jace tried to avoid answering, the more Tara needed to know.
“Relax. Nowhere. I still have them.”
“Then why do you need more?”
Jace let out a breath. “I had an unopened three pack when we started out. The three events I rode in while I wore a brand new pair, I finished in the money. We stopped and did laundry. Remember? So I’d washed those three, and on the fourth night I was wearing a pair I’d already worn. That’s the night I dislocated my shoulder. Yesterday, too. A used pair of underwear and I bucked off at six point nine seconds.”
Tara frowned at the surreal conversation. “Yesterday proves nothing. You rode for almost seven seconds.”
“Yup.” Dillon nodded. “And if he can hold on for seven, he should have been able to hang on for eight.”
“Exactly.” Jace raised his bottle to Dillon.
“You’re an idiot.” She scowled at Jace’s logic. “Yesterday’s buck off and the one the day before had nothing to do with your underwear. You dislocated your shoulder because you got hung up on a bull that’s unridden in competition. You bucked off last night because your riding arm is injured.”
Jace shook his head. “That don’t matter and you know it. We all ride injured.”
“Yup. We riders keep you sports medicine people in business. You’re welcome.” Dillon grinned.
Tara ignored the comment and stayed focused on Jace and this newfound underwear superstition of his. “Whether you think you can ride through the pain or not, your riding arm was still sore and weak. Subconsciously, you knew that and you didn’t push yourself as hard. Yesterday’s buck off had nothing to do with your underwear.”
“You don’t understand.” Jace shook his head.
She looked at the others at the table. “Are you two hearing this?”
“Yeah.” Dillon nodded. “And I happen to agree with Jace.”
Faced with the overwhelming stupidity of the men, Tara turned to Cassie for support. “Do you even believe them?”
“I do.”
Blown away, Tara frowned at Cassie. “You buy into this superstitious stuff?”
“In part.” Cassie shrugged. “Bull riding is as much a mental sport as it is physical. Whether it makes sense or not, if Jace thinks new underwear will make him ride better, then it will.”
Tara sighed. She couldn’t fight that logic, as ridiculous as it sounded.
Cassie laughed. “Tuck doesn’t have any riding rituals?”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” Tara had been pretty young when Tuck lived home and rode full-time, before he’d enlisted in the army and gotten married to his first wife.
Back then Tara never paid much attention to what underwear her brother wore to ride bulls. Ick. That would have been far too much information. But whatever Tuck had done, it had nothing to do with her feelings about Jace’s underwear obsession now.
“Fine, Jace. We can stop at the store if it’ll make you happy.”
“Thanks.” Jace shot Tara a sideways look. “That’s generous of you, given it’s my truck and my gas and I’m driving, and all.”
Tara rolled her eyes. Cassie was way off in her theory. There was no way Jace was interested in Tara personally. Interested in mocking her, yes, but anything else? Nope. She annoyed him as much as he annoyed her. Whatever else was between them was purely physical. An itch that needed scratching.
Cassie thought Tara couldn’t have sex with Jace without feeling something? Okay, Tara would agree with that theory. She and Jace had feelings between them, all right, and most days that feeling was loathing.
Chapter Sixteen
“No, Jace, I insist. You and Tara are sleeping here tonight.” Dillon shook his head.
“I couldn’t impose on you like that.” Jace rose from his seat on the bench.
Tara watched the exchange from her side of the picnic table. The night was still warm enough that they’d stayed sitting outside long after supper was over.
Still seated, Dillon frowned up at Jace. “What imposition? You’re more than welcome to stay the night.”
“Thanks, but we’ll just get a hotel.”
“But why spend the money when you don’t have to? We’ve got an extra room. Hell, we’ve got two rooms. One for each of you if that’s how you want it. Cheyenne’s taken to sleeping in bed with me and Cassie, so her bed is empty if one of you doesn’t mind sleeping on a twin-sized mattress with pink sheets and pictures of princesses all over them. The other room has a nice big sofa and a television. A pillow and a blanket and you’re good to go.”
“Seriously, I’ll just—” Jace hooked a thumb toward the driveway where the truck was parked, their bags inside.
Cassie pushed through the kitchen’s screen door. “No, Jace. You’ve had a few beers and I won’t let you drive.”
“I’m not drunk, Cassie.”
“That doesn’t matter. There’s alcohol in your system, so why be silly and risk it? Besides, Dillon’s right. Cheyenne’s already dead asleep in our bed. Her room is empty and so is the TV room. I already pulled the extra pillow and blanket out of the closet for you.”
“All right. I guess we’ll stay.” Jace turned to look at Tara. “You okay with that?”
“Me? Heck, yeah. I’m not passing up sleeping on pink princess sheets after all the crappy bedding at the places we’ve been staying.” Tara’s joke had Jace shaking his head.
She wondered if his protest was really because he didn’t want to impose on the McMahans’ hospitality, or something else. Like maybe he wanted privacy for the two of them. Tara had been watching him. Judging by the number of times she’d caught his eyes on her, Jace seemed to be watching her, too.
Cassie could be right about him. Maybe he was hyper aware of Tara and hopefully that was because he was ready to stop fighting the physical attraction. Ready to give in and let the sparks fly. Tara had no doubt that if he ever stopped holding back, they’d set fire to the sheets together. She couldn’t blame him for not wanting those sheets to have princesses on them, though.
“I’ll go get our bags then.”
“Need help?” The bags weren’t big, and Tara was pretty comfortable where she was, but she figured she should offer.
“Nah, I got ’em.” Without making eye contact, Jace spun on a boot heel and headed for the drive.
Once they’d all gone inside, and Cassie had made sure Jace and Tara had whatever they needed, they said good night. Dillon and Cassie headed off to their bedroom and their sleeping daughter.
Inside the pink room, Tara changed into fleece shorts and her oversized T-shirt. It was too warm for her sweatpants. Not that it mattered too much, since she had every hope of not being in them much longer if things went well with Jace across the hallway.
Grabbing her toiletry bag, she figured she could wander over to his room under the guise of wanting to say good night after brushing her teeth. Not a great plan, but it was the best one she had at the moment.
She found Jace already in the hallway between the two rooms they’d be staying in. He’d changed out of his jeans and boots and was in the shorts she’d become used to seeing him in.
He paused in the middle of the hall. “Sorry, Tara. You can have the bathroom first.”
“No, that’s fine. You can go before me.” She glanced in the direction the McMahans had gone. “They have a bathroom off their bedroom. Cassie told me. So this one’s all ours.”
“ ’Kay.” He didn’t move to go in, just looked at her as if he was waiting for her to do something.
She scrambled to make conversation so he wouldn’t say good night and disappear into the bathroom. She tipped her head at the other end of the hallway. “So that whole situation must put a real damper on their sex life. You know, the kid sleeping in bed with them.”
“Yup. Pro
bably.”
Tara swallowed hard when she noticed Jace’s intense gaze remained on her. A day of sitting in the warm sun drinking cold beer and plotting how to get Jace into her bed had ramped up her neediness. Maybe it had done the same for him. “So, is your room nice?”
“Go on and take a look if you want to.” He pushed the door wider and stepped inside before her.
Tara followed him in, sidestepping the duffle bag on the floor. “Cozy.”
“Uh-huh.”
“You want the bed and I’ll take the couch?” she offered, for lack of anything else to say. “So you’ll be more comfortable with your arm and all.”
“You don’t have to do that. I’m fine. I’ve had enough beer, it don’t hurt so bad. I won’t even know I’m on a sofa once I’m asleep.” Jace’s gaze dropped to the skin exposed by the deep V neckline of her T-shirt, and then grazed over the bare legs framed by her shorts.
He was thinking about something, but it wasn’t sleep. For all his fighting and denying it, he wanted her and she was sure the beer he’d drunk only helped her case.
Tara took a step closer and laid a hand on his shirt. His gaze dropped to where she touched him and he drew in a breath that had his nostrils flaring. When his eyes rose again, they were heavily lidded. He was teetering on the edge. One push would send him over to where she wanted him—in bed, or at least on the sofa, and ultimately, inside her.
She reached out and pushed the door to the hallway shut, waiting for him to protest. When he didn’t, her heartbeat sped up. It was going to happen. She tossed the small bag in her hand on top of his duffle and took a step closer.
“What are you doing?” Jace planted his hands on her hips.
“Nothing.”
“Doesn’t feel like nothing.” His voice sounded low and sexy.
“Neither does this.” Tara reached between them and stroked a hand over the bulge beneath his shorts, taking great pleasure when he drew in a sharp breath. She pressed closer.
With a tight grip on each of her hips, Jace held her away from him. She used the space between them to her advantage and stroked him again through his shorts. When he didn’t stop her, she slipped her hand inside the waistband and touched his hard, silken flesh.
“Jace, I want this.”
“I know.”
“Then let’s do it.” Tara grasped him tighter in her hand.
“No.”
Why was he so stubborn? “Jace—”
“Tara, please stop arguing with me.”
“Then give me what I want.” She traced a fingertip over the slit and the slick moisture beading there. She remembered the taste of him from the other night.
Jace closed his eyes. A frown creased his forehead as she stroked his length. That he hadn’t pushed her hand away had to be a good sign. She pressed closer to him and ran her tongue along the outer edge of his earlobe, delighting when a tremor went through him.
Tara was planning her next move when he opened his eyes and hoisted her up. Shocked, she wrapped her legs around his hips. She straddled him, putting him right in line with her, and right where she wanted to be. He could play domineering caveman as long as she got what she wanted in the end.
Things looked promising until he dumped her onto her back on the sofa.
“What are you doing?” she asked, concerned he might just leave her there and go take the princess bed.
“I am gonna give you what you need, Tara. Just not everything you want.”
“What does that mean?”
“I suggest you stop asking questions. Lie back, shut up, and let me handle things before I change my mind.” He yanked her shorts down her legs and drew in a deep breath when he found she wore no underwear.
“Okay.” She could be quiet if whatever was about to happen required she be naked from the waist down.
With a hand on each of her ankles, Jace spread her legs wide and positioned himself on his knees on the floor between them. When he dipped his head low and she felt the heat of his mouth connect with her core, her hips jerked off the mattress. “Oh, my God.”
Jace’s eyes crinkled in the corners as he smiled and looked up at her from between her thighs. Then he no longer looked amused as he went back to concentrating on torturing her with pleasure she’d never imagined.
His tongue filled her channel and Tara pushed closer to the sensation. The wet heat stroked in and out of her while his thumb moved, rubbing a spot that had her muscles clenching. He gave her a small taste of what she craved and slid one finger inside her.
“Yes.” Tara pressed her hips closer, seeking more.
He sucked hard, sending tingles to her very core and bringing her close but not over the edge. It made her want to crawl out of her skin as the ultimate pleasure eluded her. He slipped in a second finger and stroked, working her from the inside all while his mouth tortured her from the outside.
She pushed against him as frustration warred with anticipation. As she wiggled, seeking what, she didn’t know, Jace lifted his head. “Brace your feet on my shoulders.”
Tara did as told and pulled her bent knees back. The position gave him more room to stroke inside her, even if it was his fingers when what she wanted was all of him. He went back to work with his mouth while he pressed the spot inside her that had her breath coming faster.
Jace reached for the bed pillow on the sofa next to her with his left hand. He shoved it next to her face just as Tara’s muscles clenched and the orgasm broke like a rubber band snapping.
He’d known she was near the breaking point, and while she’d forgotten there was a family just down the hall, Jace hadn’t. Grabbing for the pillow, Tara buried her cries against it as the orgasm sent wave upon wave of unbelievable pleasure through her.
It lasted for a long time, though time seemed to have stopped making sense to her. Jace didn’t ease up for what could have been a minute, or ten minutes for all she knew. Finally, he gentled his touch, bringing her back to reality slowly. One last flick of his tongue against her had her twitching like she’d been electrocuted.
He pulled away and plopped down on the end of the sofa. “Better? You satisfied now?”
“A little.”
Jace’s brows rose. “Sounded pretty satisfactory to me.”
She dropped her gaze pointedly to the bulge in his shorts. “For one of us.”
“Don’t worry about me.”
“I’m not worried.” She rolled bonelessly toward him, then lifted a knee to straddle him.
“What are you doing?” His eyes narrowed.
“Thanking you.”
“No thanks necessary.” Jace settled his hands on her hips.
“I disagree.” Tara leaned low and drew his lower lip into her mouth, before sliding her tongue between his lips.
They hadn’t kissed since that first time they’d been together. Too bad, because she liked this part. She half expected him to pull back and tell her they shouldn’t be kissing. He didn’t. Instead, he kissed her back. Interesting. Maybe, just maybe, he was giving in. She leaned more heavily against him.
With only the fabric of his cotton shorts between them, Tara could feel the outline of his cock pressing into her. If he was naked and in this position, he could slip inside her with no effort at all. As they were, the friction of the fabric covering his bulge was enough to have her rubbing harder against him . . . and enough to have him trying to stop her.
Jace tightened his grip on her and held her still. When she still pressed against him, he leaned away from the kiss. “Stop.”
“No.”
“Then you’ll have to go to your room.”
“If I stop I can stay?”
“Not all night, you can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because little kids wake up early and so do their parents. I don’t want anybody finding us in here together.”
“So if I go to sleep in the other room later, we can do more now?”
“Not what you’re thinking about, we can’t.”
“You don’t know what I’m thinking.”
“I think I do.” He glanced at where Tara was making sure the tip of him rubbed against her.
As long as he was on to her anyway . . . she slid her hand beneath the elastic waist of the shorts and exposed his erection.
Jace covered her hand with his. “Not a good idea.”
“I think it is.” She trailed a fingertip through the glistening moisture at his tip, noticing he didn’t stop her.
“Tara, go back to your room.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re not doing this.”
“Do you really think Tuck won’t be upset that you had your hands and your mouth all over me just because we didn’t do anything else?”
“No, you’re right. And thanks for reminding me how inappropriate this all is.” His expression turned angry.
That logic had backfired. “Stop. That’s not what I meant at all. I mean . . . I don’t know what I mean. I just want you to stop denying yourself.”
“It makes me feel better.”
“Denying yourself makes you feel better?”
“Yes.”
“So if I leave you here, like this, then what?” Tara glanced down between them.
“It’ll go down.”
“If it doesn’t?”
“Then I’ll deal with it.”
“Why can’t I help you deal with it?”
“Because it’s wrong.”
“You help me deal with things,” she pointed out.
Jace cocked one brow. “You need the help. I don’t.”
“Oh, real nice. Thank you so much, Jace, for helping poor little inexperienced Tara who can’t even—”
Jace covered her mouth with his in a rough kiss and cut off any further rant. Tara was tempted to ask if she’d won the fight, but figured that was a bad idea. As long as he kept kissing her, as long as his hard length remained trapped between her thighs, she’d consider it a victory.
His hands moved to cup her face as the kiss became more intense. Without him holding her hips still, she could move, gyrating until he groaned against her mouth.
He pulled back just far enough to say, “There’s gonna be some rules.”