Beauty Shot (Hope Parish Novels Book 5) (13 page)

He stroked his hand
over the horse’s face, then turned to find me hovering a ways
away. He reached out his hand and my heart jerked. His face was open
and warm, filled with pleasure, and I felt a rush of emotion at his
expression. “Come here, Emmie. He won’t bite.” He
affectionately scrubbed his knuckles gently over the center of the
horse’s face. “Will you, boy?” Chico tossed his
head and whinnied again. “He’s got very good manners. One
of the best horses that ever lived. They’re all quarter horses,
but Chico is a buckskin, characterized by his black mane, tail and
lower legs.”

I was transfixed by
his reaction to the animal. This was love, and the lonely place in my
heart longed to be filled with his kind of sweet affection.

When I didn’t
immediately approach, he left the horse and took my hand. “Trust
me. He won’t hurt you.”

As he drew me over
to Chico, I wondered what the heck I had gotten myself into. How
could Travis, wonderful Travis, care about me? I got a little scared
thinking about how he would react to my past, started to worry that
when he found out he might not handle it well. But the warmth of his
hand in mine and his soothing voice settled me, put me at ease.

He drew my hand to
Chico’s nose and the horse snuffled me, the fine hair there
tickling my hand. I laughed, somehow it was a laugh that sounded
carefree.

Travis watched me,
and I realized this was important to him. Introducing me to Chico was
like introducing me to his family. That made my heart jerk again. I
tentatively touched the animal’s nose. “His nose…it’s
like velvet,” I said.

“Yeah, it’s
really soft. Think you’d like to ride him?”

“Ack, he’s
huge Travis.”

“I know, but
he’s gentle. I wouldn’t put you up on him if he wasn’t.
I think you’ll love it.”

I took a deep
breath, screwing up my courage, because Travis had brought me out
here to show me part of his life. “All right.”

A wide grin split
his face. “Let me introduce you to the ladies, then we’ll
get them saddled up and head out.”

“This is
Jingles. She whinnies at the sound of spurs. When she was a foal, I
used to visit her and give her apples and she associated it with the
sound of my spurs. And this one’s an American Paint.”

“Not a pinto?”

“No, she’s
got American Quarter in her. She’s also sweet as pie. Aren’t
you, girl? She’s my cow pony, and her name is Willow. I’ll
put her through her paces later, after we have our ride.”

I was looking
forward to seeing a real American cowboy in action. Travis was sexy
enough as it was, but I had a feeling that sexiness was about to get
more real.

He went into Chico’s
stall first, brushed him down, and then saddled him with a blanket
and Western saddle, and then inserted the bridle. He explained
everything as he worked, and answered all my questions patiently.

After he was done,
he saddled Jingles, then led both horses out of their stalls.

Outside, a man
greeted us with two sets of saddlebags. “Here is the lunch you
ordered, Mr. Blackwell, and the hat for the lady.” He had two
blankets under his arm. He tied one to each saddle, tipped his hat
and said, “Have a good ride.”

“Food?”

“Yes, ma’am.
We’re going to have us a fine ride and a picnic on the beach.
Here’s your first cowgirl hat.”

He settled the straw
hat on my head and I put my hand on his chest and leaned towards him,
needing his sexy mouth on me. He kissed me, lingering over my lips
until Chico stamped impatiently beside him.

We laughed and
parted. He helped me mount, and as I settled in the saddle, my
butterflies kind of took wing and flew away. When I reached down and
smoothed my hand over Chico’s neck, he snorted and tossed his
head.

Travis adjusted the
stirrups while he explained to me how to hold and use the reins on a
Western mount. Then he mounted with a powerful move, his thigh
muscles bunching as he pulled himself up and into the saddle.

“Ready,
darlin’?”

“Let’s
go, podner.”

He chuckled and I
followed him away from the ranch into a pasture beyond. Before long I
could smell salt on the wind and hear the waves. We rode down a small
hill, and across pasture land until the grass gave way to a white
sand beach.

The day had turned
balmy for the end of September, the wind mild as it blew off the
Atlantic Ocean.

We rode for about
half an hour, then Travis stopped in a secluded area, a sheltered
half-moon indentation in the side of a hill that stretched out into
more pasture.

“This is a
beautiful spot,” I said as I dismounted and discovered my
muscles were a little sore and wobbly.

“Yeah, I’ve
always loved this place. We don’t have beaches like this where
I live in Texas. There’s one in Galveston, but that’s on
the Gulf…you hungry?” he asked.

“Starved.”
He tied the horses off with two metal stakes up on the hill, and they
started to graze. Then he hefted the saddlebags and blankets off them
and carried everything back down the hill to the beach. He spread out
the blankets. Scooping out a jug of iced tea, two bagged lunches, and
napkins, he set everything down on the blanket. I took off the straw
hat and folded down on the blankets, the sand soft beneath me.

He removed his hat
and set it down next to mine. Settling down on the blanket close to
me, the scent of him filling me up, he kissed me. I wound my fingers
into his silky dark hair, all tousled from the wind.

“Are you
trying to woo me?” I said against his lips.

“Is it
working?” he said with a smile.

I touched his jaw,
wandering my fingertips down his throat. “Yes, it is.”

He gave me a wet nap
so I could clean my hands. “You’ve thought of
everything.”

He reached for one
of the bagged lunches. “Check out what we have for lunch.”

My stomach grumbled
as I accepted the wrapped sandwich from him.

While I unraveled my
lunch, Travis eagerly said, “It’s lobster salad on a
croissant and chips. There’s even a cookie,” he added,
his eyes that twinkling blue I could not get enough of.

“Lobster? I’ve
never had it. Does it taste good?”

“Boy howdy, it
shore does. Try it.”

“Chocolate
chip. My favorite.” I kissed him.

Looking pleased, he
poured the iced tea into paper cups. “I hope you like it.”

“You’re
good at paying attention.”

We ate the delicious
food, and I discovered I loved lobster. Afterwards, he pulled me into
his arms and we watched the ocean lap against the shore. The horses
were still grazing, and the day was about as perfect as it could be.

He nuzzled my neck.
“You’re so beautiful, Emmie.”

“I’m
glad you think so, Travis.”

“You are.”
He moved so I was cradled in his arms and he could look me in the
eyes. The earnest look on his handsome face made my heart turn over.

“Thank you,
Travis.”

His eyes met mine,
and I felt suspended, floating. The intensity, the life of him
winding around me, taking me without even touching me. I felt like I
was his, possessed, wanted…beautiful.

“Travis…”

“I know,”
he said. “Shoot, Emmie, I know.”

#

Travis

It was too soon and
just right, all wrapped up into one glorious moment. I slid my hand
to the back of her neck and drew her mouth to mine. I kissed her
softly at first, then more deeply, letting my tongue play inside her
mouth, letting the taste and feel of her get me hard.

And she kissed me
back, her hands in my hair, holding me. Her tongue slid across my
teeth, exploring my palate, invading me on every front, and I gave
myself over to it—soft lips crushed against me, her breath on
my skin, the taste of her in my mouth. We kissed forever,
deliberately, erotically, until I was drugged with the sensation of
her body moving against mine as I pressed her down into the sand. She
consumed me, kiss after kiss, until I was so hard I couldn’t
think, until I had to be inside her or die.

Emmie.

She was mine, every
cell, every sigh. Her love of Batman and Spiderman, her cute,
stunning brain, her longing for sex so clear in her eyes, sweet,
intense yearnings that had her unbuckling my belt and lowering my
zipper—all mine.

Slipping her hand
inside, she ran it over me, and I groaned into her mouth. “Emmie,
are you sure about this? We don’t need to rush. We can wait.”

“Shh, more
sure than I have ever been about anything in my life.”

“Have you done
this before? I don’t want to take anything for granted. I want
to keep you safe. Don’t do this because you think I want you.”

“You don’t
want me?”

“Shoot yeah!
You’re killing me. I want you so much, but we don’t have
to hurry.”

“I don’t
want to wait another minute and, yes, I’ve done this before.
But, Travis, it feels like the real very first time for me.”

She pulled my shirt
over my head and helped me with my jeans. “Oh, Travis,”
she breathed. “You are so beautiful.”

She pulled her top
over her head and wiggled out of her own jeans, then she straddled my
lap while I was running my eyes over her exquisite curves. “Why
do you hide all this beauty under those baggy clothes?”

She shrugged and
wrapped her arms around my neck. It was such a perfect tease, being
half naked with Emmie in my lap, the way she grazed my lips with her
teeth, gently nipping me, licking the sting and sliding her tongue
back inside my mouth, and the whole time she was kissing me, she was
stroking my dick.

I was floating in
carnal bliss, the sweet weight of her holding me in place, her hand
small, exciting, and so much less predictable than my own.

“Geez, Emmie.
Don’t, yes…ah, God.” She was incredible,
destroying me with soft, wet, deep kisses, the exquisite friction of
her palm, and the lazy trailing of her fingers going around me, over
the top of me, all over me.

Suddenly, I needed
to see her completely naked—her breasts and the naked curve of
her hip, and especially between her legs, where she was practically
riding me. I needed to see it all. Right now.

“I don’t
usually wear…pretty underwear.”

“I think you’d
look sexy in burlap.”

“Ooh, that’d
be scratchy.”

Finally I noticed
what she was wearing. I stared at the pretty pink lace concoctions.

“Matching
panties,” she said, twisting so I could look at them.

“Gorgeous.”
I didn’t know what else to say. It was a miracle I could even
get the one word out. “Take them off.”

She giggled and
stood up, and I helped to brace her, rising with her. God, I wondered
if it was possible for anything to be more erotic. Then she slipped
the panties down her legs and stepped out of them.

Equal parts lust and
love welled up in my chest and brought me to my knees. She was so
incredibly pretty there.

I pulled her to me,
kissing the soft skin of her belly, the silky length of her thighs,
the even silkier, softer place between her thighs. I buried my face
in her dark curls, then burrowed my tongue in even farther, finding
the sweet place that made her melt.

And I stayed there,
played there, teased her until I thought I’d die, everything
else becoming elemental. The way she gave it all up for me, her knees
weakening, her hands coming to rest on my shoulders, the taste of
her, the lovely female scent of her. It all made me crazy.

I licked her until
cried out and pulled away, trembling. Then I tugged at her waist
until she lay down with me on the blanket. My lips were still warm
with her heat, still tasted of her, when I kissed her. It was
incredible to feel a kiss in the marrow of my bones.

Slowly, I reached
over to my jeans pocket and pulled out a condom, but she stayed my
hand. “We don’t need that. I’m protected.”

I braced my hands
and slowly pushed into her, looking up to watch her face. Her eyes
were dreamy, the tip of her tongue tracing her upper lip. She sighed,
and I brought my mouth back down to hers, letting her breath infuse
me with a light sweetness. It was unlike anything I’d ever
known, being inside her, a part of her, our heat and bodies joined.

It wasn’t sex.
It was a surrender, and I gave myself willingly. When she accepted
me, I felt overcome.

“Travis,
please,” she whispered, and I thrust—
my
beautiful Emmie,
.
It was so sweet. A soft sound escaped her and her head went back, her
throat arching.

Her body tightened
beneath me, slick and heated and wanton, her breath coming in pants.
I was on my forearms on either side of her, my fingers in her hair,
my thoughts dissolving into mindless sensation and need, desperate,
compelling need, and my dick—oh, God. I bent my head to look
down between us, to where I was sliding in and out of her, a driving
beat. My cock was rock hard, my belly tight, my chest, my thighs, my
balls, all so tight.

“
Travis
,”
she gasped my name. “
Please…oh
.”

I cupped up her
breast and took her nipple into my mouth, laving it, warming her
skin, and when I sucked, she came undone.

A cry burst from
her, and sharp, sweet pleasure shot through me, gathering
instantaneous force. I rocked into her, pumping hard and deep, my
teeth gritted, my body rigid—then release, even sweeter.
Fuuuuck.
It
was heaven, pouring out of me, all consuming…transcending.

“Ohmigod,
Travis,” she said a couple of minutes later, still lying limp
next to me.

Ohmigod was right. I
pulled her closer.

“Can we do
that again?”

“Yeah,”
I said, and dragged my fingers back through my hair, trying to catch
my breath, trying to ground myself. Then I kissed her shoulder and
her cheek. Felt a grin try to escape. “Yeah. We ought to do
that as many times as I can before it kills me. But just give me a
minute.”