His hand fell away from her arm and a string of expletives fell from his lips. He walked a few steps away and stood with his back to her before turning around to face her.
“It’s a hoax,” he said flatly.
“A hoax?” she repeated. “Your town is faking a haunting? Why? For tourism or something?”
“No.” Sam sighed and shook his head. Suddenly she was feeling every bit of the frigid air. “Addie likes the attention the old story gives her.”
“Addie?” she said incredulously. “Addie is faking this? Wait, how? And for how long?”
It was hard to believe the sweet old woman who had fed them hot chocolate was perpetrating a scam on Tabby.
Sam pointed to a large tree on the edge of the property. “There is some sound equipment hidden in the bushes for the noise the horse makes. I think it’s on a timer. There’s also a projector that shows a ghostly image of the cowboy but the cold must have drained its batteries. As for how long this has been going on? Shit, I don’t know. Since I came back to Springwood.”
Tabby was speechless. “The old con artist. And I fell for it.” She whirled around and poked him in the chest. “And you fucking knew all along. You asshole. I can’t believe you let me go on and on about this. What a douchebag. Is this your idea of a joke? If it is, you’re the only one laughing.”
She didn’t wait for his response. Instead she headed straight for the front gate, although she wasn’t sure what she was going to do when she got there. It was a long cold walk back to his house. The inn was still closed and she wasn’t sure a taxi would take her all the way to Harper.
She was so fucked.
It wasn’t the first time she’d uncovered a fake haunting but to find out that Sam had practically led her by the hand down this primrose path was…hurtful. The pain in her heart was acute.
Of course he easily caught up to her and pulled her close, holding her firmly while she struggled against the iron bands of his arms.
“Easy, Tabby. Let me talk here. It wasn’t a joke. Not in the least. Shit, I honestly hoped we wouldn’t see anything tonight and you wouldn’t put the story on your show. I hoped…honestly hoped…that this would all just go away. I didn’t want to tell you the secret. Jesus, Tabby, she’s an old woman. She misses her family and gets lonely. They’ve moved away and keeping this legend alive gives her something to live for. How could I tell you?”
Tabby stopped trying to push him away as the words penetrated her brain. “You thought I’d just forget about it?”
“That’s what I hoped. Tanner as well. He’s known for a long time someone was keeping the stories alive in some way. He didn’t know how until he came out here and investigated.”
“Someone? Are you saying it’s not Addie doing this?” Tabby was starting to calm down, her anger receding as quickly as it had come. She had never been someone who could hold a grudge, and against a man this nice it was impossible.
“I doubt that it’s Addie.” Sam shrugged. “I guess it could be her, although I doubt she knows the finer points of hologram projectors and stereophonic sound. Who knows? Tanner thinks it’s someone from town. The equipment has to be charged up on occasion and maintained. We can go months without anyone saying anything which was why I was hoping tonight would be one of those nights. I should have known it wouldn’t be. If one of the townsfolk is doing this they would know you’ve been asking questions.”
“So someone did this to help Addie?” Tabby was having trouble wrapping her mind around it. “Does the whole town know?”
“Some do, some don’t. Most of the kids don’t. People wanted Addie to have something to hold onto. They weren’t being evil. They just wanted to make the golden years of an old woman happier.” His fingers squeezed her shoulders. “Listen, honey, I’m sorry. Really sorry.”
Even in the pale light, she could see the regret and worry in his features. She reached up and smoothed away the lines above his brow.
“I’m not mad. Well, not too mad anyway. That’s why you’ve been trying to discourage me since I got here? You wanted me to give up and move on.”
A corner of his mouth tipped up. “I may have wanted you to give up on the story, but I sure as hell didn’t want you to move on. Everything I said earlier was the God’s honest truth. I like having you here, Tabby. I just wish it was under better circumstances.”
Tabby sighed heavily and scraped her gloved hand down her face. This was a mess of massive proportions. She’d just wasted three days of work and a cold night only to find out the Heartbroken Cowboy was a complete and total fake.
“So do I,” she replied. “I just wish you had told me.”
“I wanted to, honey. So many times. When we visited with Addie, I could see how excited you were about the story. There was a part of me that kept thinking that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. You’d make a few videos and that would be it. Aw fuck, I don’t know what I thought. I was torn between my loyalty to Addie and to you.”
“The fact is you don’t owe me any loyalty at this point in our relationship. We’ve only known each other less than a week.” A thought occurred to her. “Does Addie believe its real? She was so convincing when we talked to her.”
“That’s the thing,” Sam said grimly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. “I do think she believes it’s real. That was another reason I couldn’t tell you the truth. Addie is a believer and it would be devastating to her if someone said anything to the contrary. I can’t have you putting this on television. I won’t let you humiliate Addie that way.”
“I would never do that.” Tabby liked Addie and didn’t want her hurt. “I guess I’ll just report back that this location was a bust.”
It would simply be one more site that turned out to be completely normal. She’d had hundreds of them but she admitted silently she’d had hopes for this one.
“I’m so sorry, honey.” There was anguish in Sam’s tone. “I feel like ten kinds of shit about this.”
“You were stuck in the middle.” Tabby shook her head, also trying to shake off the disappointment. Although he hadn’t come right out with the truth, he’d spent the better part of the last three days warning her. He’d been forced to walk a fine line. “If I’m honest, one of the reasons I was so excited about this location was that I would get to come back when we did the show. I would get to see you again.”
“You’re going to see me again, Tabby. I don’t know when, but you will,” Sam vowed.
Suddenly she was faced with the fact that her time with him was coming to an end. Her car would be repaired soon and she would be leaving. Leaving him.
“I’m not gone yet.” Her hand curved around his neck and pulled his lips to hers. The kiss went on until they were both breathless. Tabby’s heart pounded and the blood raced through her veins. No more waiting. She needed him more than she needed her next breath. “Take me home, Sam. Take me home and make love to me.”
Chapter Seven
It was as if time slowed down. Tabby was intensely aware of everything. Every touch. Every kiss. A single brush of his callused hand against her skin sent shivers through her body. It felt intimate, stripping away any armor she’d built to keep him at arms length.
Now there was nothing between them. Not the future they wouldn’t share together or the clothes they’d strewn carelessly on the floor as they’d stumbled back to the bedroom kissing and tugging at the confining layers of fabric. Even the excitement from Tink when they’d come in the door hadn’t deterred them from their final destination.
“I want to kiss every inch of you.” Sam breathed the words against the skin of her bare midriff, his lips tickling her ribs before inching down to dip his tongue in her belly button.
Her fingers tangled in his silky dark hair and dug into his scalp as his mouth pressed kisses everywhere he could reach. They were lying back on the bed, his large body covering hers. She let her hands slide down the column of his neck to his broad shoulders, loving the play of muscle under her palms.
When he’d stripped down she’d watched in fascination and carnal lust. Never had a man looked so beautiful to her gaze. His body was a work of art, honed more from being outdoors than working in a gym, she was sure. She’d seen how his body strained against his shirt when he chopped wood for the fireplace, and how his thighs bunched when he carried in the armload. He was so different than any man she’d ever dated.
Straightforward. No games. Sexy as hell.
Tonight she wouldn’t think of the myriad of reasons this wasn’t a good idea. That could wait for a later date. Preferably when she was hundreds of miles away from Springwood.
In this dimly lit bedroom, there was only Tabby and this man she’d come to care for. She’d take everything he had to give and return it tenfold. It was a gift that was a pleasure to give.
“Touch me. Love me,” she whispered as his tongue traced patterns around her already taut nipples. There was no shame in pleading for what she desperately needed. Already lost in a haze of pleasure and passion, she arched her back, pushing her breasts up for his perusal.
His rough fingers cupped their heaviness and his head bent to suckle first one and then the other. She whimpered as the pull of his mouth shot an arrow of desire straight to her clit. Over and over he tortured them, using his tongue and teeth, until she was writhing underneath him.
His body was pressed to hers and the heat between them scorched her already sensitive flesh. His hard cock was trapped between their bodies and she could feel a few drops of pre-cum cool her skin.
Her hands coasted down his tautly muscled back as he captured her lips with his own. Their tongues played tag and she closed her eyes, reveling in every sensation. Always before sex had seemed rather perfunctory, if not downright awkward. There was none of that with Sam. It was as if her body had been waiting for him.
She brought her hands between them and pressed against his chest. “I want to touch you too.” At first he resisted, but she kissed his stubbled chin and ran her hands down to his flat abdomen. “Please.”
He rolled onto his back but he didn’t let her go. Tabby pushed up onto her knees and bent over his prone body, a veritable feast before her eyes.
“Are you just going to look?” Even in the dim light she could see Sam was grinning. She insinuated herself between his thighs and let her hands glide up and down his body. He was a study in contrasts. The skin stretched over his biceps was smooth while his chest was covered in a fine silky hair that trailed down to the dark nest between his legs. His thighs were hard, the hair there rougher against her more delicate skin.
Sam groaned as if in pain when her hands slid up those thighs and wrapped around his cock. He was large and thick and she wanted to explore every inch of him, making him feel the same way she felt.
Hot. Urgent.
She dipped her head and ran her tongue up his cock before tracing every ridge and vein. By the time she engulfed the reddish-purple mushroom head in her mouth, Sam was trembling and clutching the sheets.
A sexual power like she’d never known came over her. She felt wanted, desired, giving as much to him as she received. It was a heady experience, and to her shock it amped up her arousal through the stratosphere. Her honey was dripping down her thighs and she was already moving toward a climax. They’d barely started and she was on fire.
She took his cock as far back as she could until the head bumped the back of her throat. With her fingers wrapped around the base, she bobbed her head up and down, flitting her tongue on the sensitive underside with each stroke. His hand reflexively went to the back of her head, anchoring her there as if he couldn’t bear her to stop. His fingers wound into the long strands of her hair and she doubled her efforts, wanting to send him over the edge.
The tang of salt tantalized her tongue and she knew he was close. Her other hand cupped his heavy balls and with a groan he heaved himself away from her, his chest rising and falling with the effort to catch his breath.
“No, baby.” Sam shook his head, his expression tortured. “I want to come inside of you this time. I want to feel it when you climax.”
That sounded like something she wanted to experience but she didn’t want to leave him hanging. She stroked his inner thighs and his eyes closed for a moment before opening again, his features more determined than before. “I want to make you feel amazing.”
“Honey, you already have.” Sam reached down and pulled her up his body until they were face to face. “It was so good, I was almost lost. There’ll be other times for that. This first time I want us to be together.”
Tabby shoved away the unwelcome thought that there might not be any more chances after tonight. Wanting to believe him, she pressed her lips to his collarbone, his skin salty and damp.
“I just want to be with you, Sam.”
“That’s what I want too. I’ve never wanted anyone the way I want you.” He rolled her onto her back and kissed and nibbled his way down her body until he was at the top of her mound. Pushing her thighs apart, he ran his tongue up her inner thigh and through her slit.
She muffled her cry of pleasure and grabbed the comforter in her fists, bunching the fabric in her fingers. His tongue played wicked games as it fluttered around her swollen clit and traced the folds of her cunt.
Sam kept her legs firmly anchored apart with his strong hands, and she had no choice but to give herself over to the pleasure. He pushed his tongue inside of her, lapping at the cream that poured from her pussy. She was teetering on the edge of a precipice. All she needed was the right pressure on her clit and she would explode.
Sam seemed determined to keep her waiting for release. He deliberately kept her on the edge of orgasm for what seemed like hours but was probably only minutes. His warm breath teased her sensitive flesh and his tongue drew circles around her button but never directly where she craved it most.
Her fingernails had dug into his shoulders and her head thrashed back and forth when he finally closed his mouth over her clit and lightly sucked the engorged nub. Her orgasm detonated inside of her, rocking the bed and making her dizzy. She vaguely heard herself cry out as the pleasure grew more intense.
When it was over, her body went limp, her heart still racing. He kissed his way up her body before leaving her for just a moment. The crinkle of the condom wrapper sounded loud in the silence but in a moment he was back with her, his warm body covering hers.
His cock nudged at her pussy, and she spread her legs wider and her hands clutched his shoulders. He pressed forward and she felt the walls of her pussy stretch to accommodate his ample girth. As inch by inch entered her, she felt every ridge and bump of his cock rub the sensitive spots inside her. When he was finally in to the hilt, she was once again climbing toward another orgasm.
It floored her how she felt with this man. She’d never have described herself as orgasmic or even particularly passionate but with him she was someone else. She could be naked with him and not just her body. She didn’t feel the need to tone down her responses. They were laid bare for him to approve or reject. It should have been scary but it wasn’t. Instead she felt empowered.
Bracing his hands on either side of her, he captured her lips with his as he pulled out slowly and then thrust back in. She keened under his mouth at the symphony of sensations that danced through her. Over and over his cock stroked inside of her, carrying her higher. He sped up, his thrusts harder and faster. Their breaths mingled with the musk of sex in the air.
Sam buried his head in the crook of her neck as the sounds of their lovemaking swirled around her. Her fingers tightened around him and she wrapped her legs around his hips, urging him on. Each stroke of his cock rubbed her clit and he whispered hot words of lust in her ear.
“Sam. Now.” Her voice was barely a whisper but somehow he’d heard her. Their bodies were slick with sweat, their breathing ragged when he reached between them. It only took a touch from his thumb on her clit and she exploded.
Her pussy clamped down on his cock and he groa
ned as if in pain. She rode wave after wave of pleasure, forcing her eyes open so she could watch as he too went over the cliff. His head was thrown back, his jaw tight. The corded muscles of his neck where in stark relief to the smooth skin and she could see his gritted teeth and then his gasp as his orgasm took him.
Afterward they both lay in a tangle of limbs and sheets. Sam rolled to his back, pulling her with him so she was tucked close to his body. She stroked his chest as her heart slowed and her breathing returned to normal. Eventually he kissed the top of her head and pulled away slightly.
“I think we both need a drink. I’ll be right back.”
She let him go regretfully, wanting to hold on to what they’d just shared. He wasn’t gone long however, and he returned with a cold glass of water. He helped her to a sitting position and she drank the cool liquid thirstily. He chuckled at her enthusiasm.
“Easy there. Don’t make yourself sick.”
“I guess I’m a little dehydrated.” She giggled and handed the empty glass back to him. “That was quite a workout.”
“More?” he asked, holding up the cup but she shook her head. He set the glass on the bedside table and slid into bed beside her, cuddling her close. “Let’s get some sleep, honey. I’m guessing I’m going to want to wake you up five or ten times during the night to do this again.”
“Ten times?” she teased. “Just thinking about that makes me sore. And tired. How about five? That seems more reasonable.”
“Five it is.” His arm tightened around her. “Close those beautiful blue eyes and rest. I’m a voracious man, Tabby. I’ll never get enough of you.”
As her lids fluttered closed, she feared she’d never get enough of him either.
Sam peeked out of the corner of one eye and groaned. Rolling over in bed, he grabbed his cell phone from the bedside table, trying to shut the damn thing off before it woke Tabby. Or Tink.
Too late.
Tink came flying into the bedroom while Tabby rubbed the sleep from her eyes and yawned. He fumbled with the phone, still not quite awake, and managed to answer it just before it would have been sent to voicemail.
The Deputies: 3 Novella Box Set Page 14