by Cat Johnson
He didn’t know if it was to stop from laughing at him because he was ridiculous, but he continued. “That’s what I was thinking. Yeah.” Damn, this was hard. He hadn’t asked a woman out in so long, he might be the one to faint, not Tara.
“Dates are usually followed by sex.” Her eyes, a deeper shade of blue than usual, sought his.
“Sometimes.” Jace tipped his head in agreement.
“Real sex. You know, the full monty.”
He laughed even as his pulse pounded in his ears. “I don’t think that’s what the expression means, but yeah, real sex could possibly follow a date.”
“But you and I don’t do that. Have real sex.” Tara’s hints were about as subtle as a sledgehammer—one of the things Jace was beginning to love about her.
“Well, I’ve been thinking about that arrangement and I��m open to revisiting the issue, given a change in our status from traveling partners with benefits to two people who are dating.”
Jace wasn’t prepared for catching a handful of woman as Tara leaped and wrapped her arms and legs around him. She was lucky she didn’t knock him off his feet as her mouth crashed into his. The only thing to do seemed to be hold her tight and kiss her back.
They’d kissed plenty of times before, but not like this—as if a dam of pent up emotions had burst. He needed to breathe and pulled back an inch. “Is this a yes to the date?”
“Yes.”
“Good. But since we’re in your parents’ driveway, maybe we should wait on the sex part until we’re someplace more private.”
She released her hold on him and lowered her legs so he could set her on the ground. Her eyes narrowed as she met his gaze. “There’s a cheap hotel in town.”
Tara still stood close enough that he’d left his hands resting on her waist. The urge to pull her closer was strong. He resisted it, but the hotel idea was very tempting. “Maybe I don’t want our first time together to be in a cheap hotel.”
“I do. I grew very fond of those kinds of places after spending so much time in them with you.”
“I’m not sure if I want that to be my legacy, but all right.” He moved a bit closer, not caring so much anymore who saw them. “I really did miss you after I left.”
“It’s absolutely ridiculous, but I missed you, too.”
He frowned at her vehemence. “It’s not that ridiculous.”
“You know what I mean. This is us. We used to get into it all the time. Nobody’s going to believe we’re dating . . . not to mention doing other things together.”
That reminder about other people and those other things brought up a sore subject for Jace. “I guess we’re gonna have to tell Tuck now.”
Tara shook her head. “Jace, we can tell Tuck we decided to go out because we got to know each other better after traveling together. That’s all. We don’t have to tell him you gave me my first of many, many incredible orgasms while we were on the road.”
“Hearing you put it that way, yeah, I guess we shouldn’t tell him that last part.” He felt his cheeks heat. Blood rushed to more than his face. Parts lower woke up in a big way after hearing her talk about orgasms. “How about we move our date from dinner to lunch?”
There was no way she could miss his arousal as she pressed her body closer against his. “How about we skip eating altogether and go right to the hotel?”
It was tempting, but Jace needed to say something first. “We’re more than sex, you know. You and I.”
“I know.” Tara latched onto her lower lip with her teeth and drew in a breath. “We were both a little broken to start, and together, we healed.”
Jace didn’t consider himself a crier, but damned if he didn’t feel the sting of tears behind his eyes at what she’d said.
“You’re right.” He swallowed away that emotion and felt it replaced with an overwhelming need to possess her. “To hell with it. Let’s go to the hotel. We can eat after.”
“Sounds good to me.” Tara had to scramble to keep up with him as he pulled her to the truck.
He would take things slow once he got her into a big king-size hotel bed, but he didn’t have any patience for the actual getting there. Looked like he’d be breaking the law and speeding one more time, but Tara was worth risking the ticket.
“You sure about this?”
Tara spun from the bed where she’d been pulling down the scratchy polyester comforter to turn and glare at him. “Dammit, Jace. Yes. I’ve waited too damn long for you already.”
He smiled. “Okay, just making sure. I won’t ask you again. Believe me.”
As he drew a long strip of condoms out of his back pocket and tossed them on the nightstand next to the bed, she did believe him. The tip of his erection peeked out of the top of his underwear as he opened his jeans. He pushed them down his legs while kicking off one boot at the same time.
Reinforcing the fact that he was as enthusiastic as Tara, he beat her in the race to get undressed. She decided that wasn’t a bad thing as he strode naked toward her, need showing in his eyes. He stood close as he put his hands around her waist. Jace’s lean, hard body, which she’d never wanted to admit in the past was pretty nice, looked tempting enough to make her want to take a bite out of him. Maybe she would. They were dating, even if they’d yet to go on the actual date. Still, she could leave all the marks on him she wanted.
As Jace reached behind her back for the clasp on the bra she hadn’t gotten a chance to undo, she ran a finger over his new tattoo and then closed her mouth around his nipple.
He drew in a sharp breath, moaning when she scraped her teeth over his flesh. “Keep that up and I’ll be done much too fast.”
She eyed the half dozen condoms. “Then we’ll have to do it again.”
“Good plan.” He grinned, before pressing a kiss to her lips.
Jace plunged his tongue against hers and the kiss intensified. He backed her up until they were falling onto the mattress. Kneeling over her, he pulled her panties down.
She’d been bare beneath him before, but this felt very different. She knew for sure they’d be as close as two people could get. As he looked down at her with desire etched on his face, Tara suspected he wouldn’t fight her on it. When he reached for the condoms, she was positive.
He rolled the latex over his erection and glanced at her face. “You know I’m all about the foreplay, but I don’t know if I can wait any longer for this.”
“I know. I don’t want to wait any longer, either.”
Relief showed in his expression as he ran his hands up her legs and spread her thighs wider. “I’ll make it up to you later.”
“I know you will.” Her answer sounded breathy in her own ears and her heart pounded.
Even after all they’d done, she was nervous, which was crazy since Jace was more familiar to her than any man had ever been. This one final act that he’d denied her for so long had taken on monumental meaning. Though maybe it should seem huge, because it was no small thing. It meant something. With him, it felt as if it meant everything.
Jace slid two fingers inside her. Tara knew what had his eyes growing dark and his mouth opening to draw in a shaky breath—she was already wet and so ready for him she might die if it didn’t happen soon.
Braced above her, his eyes never leaving her face, Jace pushed inside, slow and steady. He filled her and she finally felt what she’d imagined so many times. He continued to watch her as he pulled out and slid deeper on the next stroke, ratcheting up the intensity of the moment.
Every stroke of his body into hers had Tara breathing harder and feeling more until she didn’t think it could get any better. She squeezed her eyes shut and concentrated on the sensations assaulting her. The tingles spreading through her body. The muscles that clenched inside her. It was all too amazing.
She realized it could get much better as her orgasm built slowly and broke over her. It exploded within her and she came with him inside. Jace plunged deep and stilled above her, groaning as her cries filled the
room. She felt him come right after her.
Panting, he braced his arms on either side of her, holding most of his weight off her even though he looked ready to collapse.
Tara wrapped her arms around his back and pulled him down on top of her, happy to be crushed beneath him. “That was worth waiting for. Thank you for making me wait until it was the right time.”
His laugh vibrated through her. “You weren’t thanking me all those nights you cussed me out for that very thing. Making you wait.”
“Eh, you know me. I like to be contrary.”
“You certainly do.” Jace pulled out and rolled to one side.
After tossing the condom in the trash, he rolled back to her and draped one arm across her stomach. He propped his head on his hand as he smiled down at her.
Tara took a closer look at his cover-up tattoo. Surprisingly, it was an old-fashioned insignia for the make of his truck. She traced the tip of one finger over the letters and felt how the ink made them feel slightly raised.
“I like the new tat. What made you choose this design?”
“Tyler came up with the idea. My first truck was a Chevy, so old it might have officially been an antique. Every vehicle I’ve had since has been one too, so it seemed like a good fit. That started me thinking about all the time you and I spent together in my truck.” Jace went from peering down at his own chest, to staring into Tara’s eyes. “You know, it was while Tyler was driving the truck that it hit me. I was going in the wrong direction. I didn’t want to be heading away from you. I wanted to be where you were.”
Jace shrugged, acting casual, but there was nothing casual about the emotions swirling through Tara at what he’d said. Since she’d been a child, that was the kind of thing she’d dreamed a man would say to her. She’d always imagined it coming from Logan, but Jace was the one saying the beautiful words.
It was strange and scary and had her insides fluttering as if a thousand butterflies had been set loose.
“So what’s next?” Jace asked.
“Well, I was hoping we’d get to do it again before we eat. Or after. Or both.” Tara had to joke or she might tear up.
He smiled. “I meant with school. You finished your internship with flying colors, I’m sure. What happens now?”
“I have to go back and finish the fall semester and then I’m done. I get my degree and get a job.”
He didn’t say anything, but there seemed to be an unspoken question hanging between them—where did this leave the two of them?
Tara continued. “Of course, I’ll probably look for work somewhere close to family. You know, maybe around here to be near Tyler and my parents, or in Stillwater to be close to Tuck and Becca . . . and you.”
A smile crossed Jace’s lips. “Sounds like a very good idea—particularly that last part.” He leaned over and took her mouth with a hard kiss that reinforced how much he liked her plan for the future.
Jace Mills—a part of her future and Tara was happy about it. Who’d have guessed it?
Her phone rang. Tara reached for it and read the display. “It’s Tyler.”
“Give me.” Jace held out his hand.
“What are you going to say?”
“I’m going to get us over the next hurdle so I can get back to what we both would rather spend the day doing.”
“Okay.” Tara handed Jace the phone.
As she watched, he hit the button and pressed the phone to his ear. “Tyler. It’s Jace . . . Yeah, I’ve got your sister. She’s fine. And actually, she and I are dating now—I wanted you to be the first to know. We haven’t told Tuck yet, so keep it under your hat.” Jace listened for a second, then frowned. “What do you mean, about damn time?”
Tara felt like crawling out of her skin, waiting to find out what Tyler was saying on the other end of the line.
Finally, Jace laughed. “All right, man. I’ll bring her home in a bit and you can gloat more then. See ya.”
“What the hell?” Tara huffed out a breath. “What did he say?”
Jace handed her back the phone. “That it was about damn time we realized we liked each other, because he’s known for months.”
She frowned. “He’s crazy.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Jace let out a short laugh. “Anyway, apparently your parents haven’t seen you yet since you’ve been home, which you neglected to tell me when I whisked you away to have sex, thank-you-very-much. They’re asking Tyler where you are.”
“Sorry. I wasn’t exactly thinking about my parents at the time.”
“No kidding. Me, either. But now, we need to get back there, I guess.”
Tara ran a finger down his chest. “They can wait a few more minutes.”
As she moved her finger lower, Jace followed the motion with his gaze. “I know I was a little quick on the trigger just now, but believe me, you keep that up, we’re going to be here for a lot longer than just a few minutes.”
“I certainly hope so. You owe me some foreplay. Remember?” Tara smiled.
“I remember.” Jace’s eyes narrowed while he ran his palm over the bare skin of her stomach. “We’re going to get to that date eventually.”
“I know.”
“And we have to tell Tuck as soon as possible.”
“Yup. We will.”
“And we do have to get you back to your parents soon.”
“Okay.” Tara wrapped her hand around his hardened length. “But not right now.”
Jace moved over her. “No, not right now.”
Read on for a sneak peek at Tyler’s story, from the first book in Cat Johnson’s new Midnight Cowboy series, Midnight Ride, available as a Zebra paperback next April.
There were times when a man should stick around and fight, and there were times when it was wiser to cut and run. It was clear to Tyler this was the latter.
Shoving the woman he’d been kissing just moments before out of the way, he clamped his hat lower on his head, and took off at a sprint as her bruiser of a fiancé followed him.
Cowboy boots weren’t meant for running, but Tyler managed it. He sure had incentive. Avoiding being pummeled into the ground by a jealous fiancé served as fine inspiration. He knew the truck was unlocked but he didn’t have the keys to start the engine. Colton had those with him inside the bar. He wasn’t about to lock himself inside a truck he couldn’t flee in, not with an angry lunatic hot on his tail, so he kept running.
The terrain worked in his favor, as did the darkness as Tyler crashed into the woods off the side of the parking lot. Branches whacked into him as he dodged between them. He twisted an ankle when one foot landed on a rock, but he kept going, limping in a half run. A pine bough caught him across the face, blinding him as he squeezed the injured eye tight and the tears began to flow. Still, he forged ahead. His life depended on it.
The woods broke into a clearing and he realized he was behind the lumberyard right off the main road in town.
Tyler slowed to a fast walk when he hit the concrete and glanced around him. He needed to get somewhere safe and tend to his eye, which hurt like hell and was still tearing up. He needed to zip his jeans and refasten the belt buckle the girl had undone, all while she’d kept to herself the one important detail that the fiancé she was mad at was just inside working the door of the bar. He also needed to make sure his cell phone hadn’t fallen out of the back pocket of his jeans so he could call Colton to come and rescue him. But before any of that, he had to make sure the man in hot pursuit hadn’t followed this far.
A crash in the woods behind him, followed by a loud cuss, told him the lunatic hadn’t given up yet. Damn, but this guy was persistent.
Tyler took off running again, though at this point it was more of a fast hobble. He had to hide. A pickup truck parked in the lot in front of him provided his only hope. He should just take the truck and drive away. It wouldn’t be stealing. He’d only be borrowing it. He could bring it back as soon as life and limb were no longer in jeopardy, but he didn’t know if the owner had
left the key inside and he couldn’t waste precious seconds checking.
Maybe it was dark enough that if he lay flat and still in the back, he might not be seen. But if the guy looked closely enough and saw him hiding, he’d be a sitting duck. It was a chance he was going to have to take.
Running out of time, he sprinted to the back of the truck, planted both hands on the tailgate and vaulted into the bed. When he landed inside, Tyler knew his luck was holding. There was a big green tarp in the bottom of the truck bed. He flipped it over himself and held his breath, trying to move as little as possible. While he waited to be discovered, or not, he figured praying couldn’t hurt. Silently, he vowed if he got out of this night unscathed, he’d never make out with a stranger in a bar again.
As his heart pounded, he heard heavy footsteps in the lot, and then a few more loud cusses and what sounded like a bear—or a really big man—crashing back through the trees. Seconds ticked by in silence, and the crazed fiancé didn’t come back to whip the tarp off him and beat him to a pulp.
Against all odds, he might just be safe. Out of the woods, literally. In light of that, Tyler decided to add a small amendment to his deal with God. It would probably be all right to hook up with girls he met in a bar. However, he would be sure to ask them if they had a boyfriend, or any kind of significant other before he kissed them and let them unbuckle his pants.
Satisfied that was a promise he could live with, and hopeful that the guy had given up the chase, Tyler was about to take a peek to see if the coast was clear when he heard footsteps heading toward the truck.
It sounded like two people walking. They hadn’t come from the direction of the woods, but rather from the building. He was most likely safe from being maimed by his pursuer, but he definitely was not in any position to be socializing with anyone. His jeans still hung wide open, his eye remained squeezed shut, and he was hiding under a tarp in a stranger’s truck bed.
It wasn’t as if he could pop up and say hey, but he also couldn’t stay hidden. If the owner of the truck drove away, who knew where he could end up.