He held out a hand. “Just put your foot in the stirrup and I’ll pull you up.”
She slipped her hand into his. “I hope you have a heavy-duty insurance policy that covers passengers.”
“No insurance, but I’d be happy to kiss away any bruises if you get hurt.” He hauled her up in front of him and nudged the horse.
They jerked forward and Sabrina grabbed Billy’s thighs to keep from teetering to the side.
“Easy.” The word whispered through her ear as they trotted forward, and Sabrina clutched him tighter.
“I don’t think she heard you,” she said over her shoulder.
“I wasn’t talking to the horse. I was talking to you.” He held the reins with one hand, and moved the other to cover her fingers, which dug into his blue-jean-clad leg. “Relax, sugar.” He touched her, his fingers warm and strong and reassuring.
They rounded the cabin and started for the open pasture up ahead. For the next several minutes, Billy kept them moving at a steady walk and Sabrina managed to relax her grip.
“This isn’t so bad—whoaaaaa!” They pitched forward as he urged the horse to a trot.
Her heart lodged in her throat for the first few moments. But soon, she grew used to the steady pace and her body relaxed. Her grip on his thighs loosened until her hands rested easy on either side and she actually started to enjoy herself.
The wind whipped at her face, catching the edge of her T-shirt and sneaking beneath the soft material to tease her bare skin. She became acutely aware of the powerful thighs that framed hers, his chest a solid wall of muscle and strength behind her.
“Why don’t you take the reins.” The deep voice in her ears caused her to shiver. Without waiting for a reply, he urged the leather straps into her hands and she found herself steering the horse. “Just remember to keep your grip firm but not tight. And don’t jerk. You’ll scare her if you do that.”
“What if I want to stop?”
“We’re not stopping until we’re done.” She had the sneaking suspicion that he was talking about more than just the ride.
A few frantic heartbeats later, he touched her thigh and she knew she’d been right. His palm burned into her flesh and her grip faltered.
Billy’s other hand closed over hers, urging her fingers tight around the leather until he had a proper grip again.
“Focus,” he told her.
“You try focusing in a thong.”
Laughter rumbled in her ears and danced along her nerve endings in a seductive caress that made her entire body tingle. “I guess that would make it a little difficult.”
“More like hot. Is your bottom supposed to burn like this?”
“You have to rise and fall with the horse. Feel the motion with your thighs and let it guide you.”
She spent the next few minutes doing her best to tune into the horse. But the only thing she seemed aware of was the way Billy’s hands splayed on her bare thighs. His hardness pressed into her bottom, proof that he’d meant every word he’d said—this was about sex.
If only it felt like sex.
“This isn’t right,” she murmured out loud before she could stop herself.
“You’re trying too hard,” he told her. “Just feel the animal and think about something else. Think about me and what I’m doing to you.”
“You’re not doing anything.”
“Not yet.”
His fingers made lazy circles on the inside of her thigh and Sabrina’s insides tightened. The movement continued for an endless moment before he urged the animal a little faster. The horse picked up the pace even more and so did Billy. His fingers swept higher, his touch more intense as he moved beneath the edge of the T-shirt and higher until he was an inch shy of the moist heat between her legs.
“See,” he murmured against her ear, his deep voice gliding over her nerve endings. “You’re doing it. You’re moving with the horse. Can you feel it?”
The only thing she felt was him. Surrounding her. Filling her senses. Her heart pounded and her nipples tingled and she could barely think, much less form a reply.
“Sabrina? Are you with me?”
Boy, was she ever, she realized when his thumb brushed her clitoris through the thin lace of her thong and sensation speared, hot and jagged, through her body.
She would have dropped the reins if Billy’s hand hadn’t been fastened around hers, guiding the horse when all rational thought flew south to the pulsing between her legs.
“You’re so wet.” His word were more of a groan as he dipped a finger beneath the edge of her undies and touched her slick folds. “So hot and wet and...” His voice faded into the pounding of her heart and the buzz of excitement that filled her ears.
She tilted her head back, resting in the curve of his shoulder as she surrendered herself to the ecstasy beating at her sanity and let him take control, of the horse and her body.
He slid a finger deep inside her and the air bolted from her lungs. He moved with the horse and so did she, shifting just so, riding his fingers the way the two of them rode the animal.
Her body grew tight and hot. The pressure built with each stroke, every thrust, until a cry broke past her lips. Her climax hit her hard and fast, like a zap of lightning that shook her to the bone. Shudders racked her. The blood hummed in her ears.
The horse seemed to slow with her heartbeat, until they moved at a slow, easy walk. Sabrina had never felt as relaxed as she did at that moment with Billy’s arms around her, his heart beating at a steady tempo against her back.
The sun blazed high in the sky by the time they topped a small ridge and found themselves overlooking an endless stretch of green grass that gave way to a winding creek.
“It’s pretty, isn’t it?” he said.
“Very. Is this your favorite spot?”
“It used to be. Actually, this is the first time I’ve ridden over this way since I’ve been back. My brothers and I used to come out here to fish.”
“Before or after you went to live at the Gunner Ranch?”
“Both. At first, we did it because we had to. But even after Pete took us in, I’d still ride up here every once in a while and throw out a line.” His arm slid around her waist and held her. “Jesse hates coming out here because he says it reminds him of all those tough times. But I never really saw it like that. This place reminds me of my brothers and how close we always were.” He neared the creek and brought the horse to a stop. “Come on.” He slid down and turned to pull her after him.
“What are we doing?” she asked as her feet settled in the lush grass.
“Getting wet.” He pulled his own T-shirt up and over his head and walked toward the grassy bank.
She followed. “I think I already beat you to the punch.”
His grin was infectious. “Then it’s time for me to catch up.” He unfastened his jeans and pushed them down in one fell swoop until he stood completely naked. He fished a condom from his pocket and sheathed himself in one deft motion before he turned to her. He grabbed her hand and pulled her close to help lift the T-shirt up and over her head. He pushed her undies down, gliding the lace over her skin until it pooled at her ankles and she stepped free. And then he hauled her into his arms for a kiss that sent a flood of moisture between her already damp thighs.
Sweeping her up into his arms, he waded out into the water and walked toward the small waterfall coming off the cliff above.
A heartbeat later, the cool water rushed over them like a soothing shower, killing the heat of what promised to be another scorching Texas day.
But the relief didn’t last long because he pulled her close and then they were kissing again, his hard body pressed to hers, his mouth plundering hers. He moved them deeper into the waterfall, beyond the constant stream of water into the small opening that sat behi
nd the curtain of water.
He urged her legs up on either side of him and lifted her, hoisting her up until his thick erection rested between her slick folds. His large hands cradled her bottom as his mouth shifted to her nipple. His hot tongue flicked the ripe tip and her moan split open the peaceful quiet.
He teased the ripe peak, licking her over and over. Soon his lips closed around her areola and he sucked her so long and deep that she thought she would come apart right then and there. She tilted her head back
He worked her up and down his erection, the friction making her gasp.
With one hand braced on his shoulder, she reached down between them with her other and touched him. He was hot and heavy and she wanted to feel him inside even more than she wanted her next breath.
“Now. Please.”
His grip on her buttocks tightened as he lifted her a few inches, braced himself and thrust deep inside.
Billy ground his teeth against the overwhelming heat that gripped his throbbing erection. Holy hell, she was hot. And tight. And juicy. He closed his eyes and drank in a deep draft of air, determined to gather his control.
But he had none left.
What little he had had been spent that morning, making pancakes and doing his damnedest not to touch her. To take her.
He’d wanted to give her some distance, some space to see if she felt the way he did.
If she actually liked him as much as he liked her.
She did.
He’d seen it in her smile when he’d asked how the website was going. Heard it in her voice when she’d told him about Melba and Sarah Jean, and how she really wanted to help both women find that someone special even though they weren’t her usual demographic. Felt it when she’d told him how much she appreciated him sharing his secret pancake recipe.
She liked him and while he wasn’t one hundred percent certain she was ready to admit it, she still felt it.
And that was enough.
It had to be enough because his time was running out. The realization had hit him when Eli had called to give him the night’s line-up for the finals. Tonight.
Tonight was his chance at a local championship, the first step toward making the finals in Vegas and winning the overall championship to become PBR’s best. That’s what he really wanted. The one and only thing that had ever really mattered to him. But at the moment, he couldn’t think beyond the fact that the rodeo ended tonight, and so did their agreement.
And while he hoped like hell she’d come to realize how she felt about him enough to keep seeing him for a little longer, he wasn’t going to miss his one sure shot to be in her arms again.
And now she was here, beneath him, pulsing all around him.
She lifted her hips, urging him deeper and he lost his mind. He backed her up against the slick rock wall of the cave and rode her hard, one arm braced on the wall behind her head, the other holding her close as he plunged deeper, faster, until she grasped his shoulders and moaned again.
A rumble worked its way from deep in his chest as he buried himself fast and sure and deep one final time. He bucked, spilling himself while her insides clenched and unclenched around him.
He gathered her close then, holding her tight as his heart threatened to burst from his chest. The water rushed in the background, masking the frantic in and out of his breath as he fought for oxygen. And his sanity.
A losing battle with her so warm and sweet and close.
Losing? Hell, he’d lost the moment he’d first spotted her at the kickoff dance. He’d lost his head.
And his heart.
The realization hit as he drank in another deep breath and tried to think about the rodeo that night and the bull Eli had said he’d drawn. And damned if he could remember exactly which one it was.
Damned if he cared.
Once he’d calmed down long enough to move, he carried her back under the rushing water and out into the waist-deep river. He walked up onto the riverbank and stretched her out on the soft grass. The sunlight spilled over her, bathing her in a warmth that was palpable. Her eyes were closed, her face flushed. Her lips were pink and swollen from his kisses. Her creamy breasts were tight, the nipples a bright rosy pink. A smooth strip of silky hair bisected the vee between legs that were long and slim, her calves shapely, her feet dainty as they rested on the soft green grass.
He’d pictured her like this so many times, so open and naked and his. But nothing he’d cooked up in his imagination had been quite as good as the real thing.
This he could touch, smell, feel.
He reached out and traced one nipple.
Her eyelids fluttered open and she smiled up at him. “I think I like this place.”
“Glad to hear it.” He leaned over and dropped a kiss on the tip of her nose. “Really glad to hear it.”
She smiled and the picture she made burned into his memory and made him think that maybe, just maybe, winning the finals wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
This... This was what snagging the top prize felt like.
And where he’d recognized before that he felt something different for her, he hadn’t grasped just how different until her lips parted and she smiled at him.
Because this wasn’t just like.
This was the real thing.
Blinding, dazzling, mind-blowing love.
Not that it changed anything.
Because while he knew she felt something for him, he also knew that it wasn’t enough to make her stay. While he’d finally accepted that just because he looked like his old man and had a few of his traits, he wasn’t the same rat bastard who’d chosen a life of crime over being a father.
He wasn’t his dad.
Any more than Sabrina was her mom.
The trouble was, she didn’t realize that and there was no guarantee that she ever would.
She was leaving. He knew it. He felt it when she reached up and touched his face, as if memorizing every contour.
And there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.
18
“BILLY AIN’T HERE,” said the old man as he came around the corner of a bull chute at the rodeo grounds later that morning.
It was almost noon on Saturday after the hottest morning of her life.
And the most jarring.
Something had happened between them. Something big.
Billy Chisholm had lost his precious control, and while a small part of her rejoiced, her brain kept telling her that she was in trouble. Big trouble.
Because a small part of her was rejoicing.
Sabrina ignored the strange warmth zipping up and down her spine and concentrated on the old cowboy standing in front of her. “I’m not looking for Billy.” She gave Eli an assessing glance. “I’m looking for you.”
“Me? Hells bells, what do you want with me?”
“I want you to fill out a profile for my website.”
“You might have hypnotized all the other cowboys around here with that nonsense, but I ain’t fallin’ for it. Why, it ain’t natural to meet a woman on a computer. Whatever happened to good, old-fashioned courtin’? Meetin’ at the Piggly Wiggly and gettin’ a whiff of her perfume in the vegetable section? Or watchin’ her smile while we share a banana split at the Dairy Freeze? Or holdin’ her hand while we head for the church picnic? Why, I ain’t had a good mess of potato salad since I don’t know when.”
“You can still do all of that after you fill out a profile. A profile is the first step to meet someone. Then she emails you and you email her and bam, you hit the picnic grounds. Or the Senior Sweetheart Dance,” she added, anxiety racing through her as she glanced at her watch. It was Saturday at noon and she had less than seven hours to find Melba a date. She’d gotten the idea for Eli after paying yet another visit to
the senior center and realizing that her choices were severely limited. And then she’d thought of Billy and how much he thought of the old man who’d been like a grandfather to him. And just like that, the idea had popped into her head.
“I ain’t messin’ with no computer.” Eli shook his head. “Can’t stand the thing as it is. I told Pete not to go all electronic out at the ranch, but he didn’t listen. Now every time there’s a lightnin’ storm, I can’t print out an invoice for a decent order of bull semen. Tried writin’ the damned thing, but Pete told me it has to be in the system. System, my ass. It’s bull semen, for heaven’s sake. Nature’s moneymaker. It ain’t natural that we’re all so damned dependent on technology. Why, if a zombie apocalypse wipes us out, we’re all screwed.”
“What did you just say?”
“I said we’re screwed.”
“Before that.”
“Dependent on technology?”
“After that.”
“Zombie apocalypse?”
“Bingo.” While Eli seemed like the last person for Melba, that one statement had zapped a connection between them. Even more, Sabrina had a gut feeling that it would work.
“So forget the computer and just let me set you up on an actual date.”
“I can do that?”
“Sure. I can take care of all the details. I’ve got someone perfect in mind. You can pick her up and take her on a real outing. No pictures or email required.”
“Who are we talking about?”
“Her name is Melba Rose and—”
“No.” He shook his head. “That woman’s got a few screws loose and I ain’t going to be the one what gets stuck with her at the dance. Do you know she cried last year when she didn’t win queen? Broke down and bawled like a baby. No sirree, not me. I ain’t gettin’ stuck with no crying woman.”
“But I have a good source that tells me she’s a shoo-in for queen this year. That means no crying.”
“Are you freakin’ kiddin’ me? The happy cryin’ is even worse than the sad cryin’. Women ’round here freak out for everything. That’s why I been single all these years.”
Texas Outlaws: Billy Page 13