“You okay back there?”
“More than okay. I’m perfect.”
“I’ll second that.” He drove onto the highway and turned off again after going only half a mile farther. He came to an open gate with a big arched entrance.
“Where are you taking me?”
“Look up.”
The letters on the gate were large and it took her a moment to piece them together while sitting so close. “Second Chance Ranch?” She shook her head. “Who does it belong to?”
“Me.” He clamped his cowboy hat down and took off before she could say another word.
When he pulled up in front of a large, limestone and cedar ranch house, Lacey could only stare, her mouth open. “This is yours?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Nick set the kickstand in place and held Lacey’s hand as she dismounted, then he slung his leg over the bike’s seat and sat sideways on the bike. “Was the rescue a little too over the top?”
She smiled, happiness and confusion warring inside her. “It was great. But why?”
“I heard, from certain friends of yours, that it would take a knight on a white horse sweeping you off your feet to convince you to give love a second chance.” He took off the white cowboy hat and waved a hand at the white Harley. “Do you know how hard it is to get your hands on a white Harley?”
She shook her head, tears welling in her eyes. “No.” Her hands trembled and she was afraid her knees would give out. “Why did you do it?” she asked again.
Once again, Nick saved her from embarrassment by tugging her hand, forcing her to lean into him. “After my divorce, I didn’t think I’d ever fall in love again, nor did I really want to.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Then you showed up in my brother’s apartment, bent on sex without strings.” He chuckled. “I’d never met a woman like you. You’re tough, you’re tender, you speak your mind and you don’t give a damn what people think about you.”
“That doesn’t sound like a good thing.”
His arms tightened around her, his cock nudging her bottom. “And you’re sexy as hell, and you make a great walking partner on a clear moonlit night. All of those attributes are what keeps me coming back for more.” He eased her onto his lap. “I don’t know what’s going on between us, or where it will go. All I do know is that for every minute I’m away from you, I’m counting the minutes until I see you again. I like you, Lacey, and I think I might be well on my way to loving you, if you’ll give me a chance.”
She smiled and cupped his chin. “What happened to the fact you weren’t looking for a relationship?”
“You happened.” He kissed her, running his fingers through her hair to cup the back of her neck and bring her closer. When he let her breathe again, he asked, “So, are you game to give love a second chance?”
“Let me up.” She pushed against his chest, stood and straightened her skirt, her lips pressed into a thin line.
Nick’s heart plummeted. He’d gone all out, finding the Harley when he really wanted a horse to ride on but unable to locate a white one at the last minute. After baring his soul to her, he couldn’t think of anything else. Audrey and Cory were wrong. Lacey wasn’t interested in strings. She’d said so herself.
He braced himself for her answer, praying he was wrong and that she was ready to try for love.
“Let me get this straight.” She lifted one finger. “You’re not down-and-out because of losing half your worldly goods to your ex in your divorce.”
He shook his head. “No. I had to sell my last place to split the proceeds. I was staying with Cory until the construction crew finished my house. Didn’t I tell you?”
She shook her head. “Must have slipped your mind.” Lacey raised another finger. “You own an auto repair shop and it pays for all of this? Are you operating a chop shop on the side?”
He laughed. “No. After my divorce, I invested my half of the sale of our home in the stock market and promptly quadrupled my investment. I needed something to keep me busy while I looked for another ranch and built my house. I owned the shop and when the mechanic quit, I took over.”
“I feel as if I don’t even know who you are.” Lacey rested her hands on her hips.
“You know how I feel about lying. You know that I like walking beneath the stars with a pretty girl and skinny-dipping in the moonlight. You know that I’ve always wanted my own horses and that I want to live on a ranch.”
“True. Is there anything else you haven’t told me I should know about?”
He captured her wrist and tugged her close. “That I care a lot about you and I wouldn’t have driven into a garden party on a Harley for just anyone.”
“Even Julia?”
“Especially not Julia.” He laughed. “I still can’t get over your walking into my apartment completely naked with my ex standing there, her mouth hanging open. I think that was the moment.”
“What moment?” Lacey lifted the hem of her skirt and straddled his legs.
His cock strained against the confines of his jeans. He sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. “The moment I knew.”
She leaned back, unhooked his belt buckle and slid his zipper down. “Knew what?”
Nick’s cock sprang free. “That I couldn’t lose you. That you were the gal for me.” He lifted her up, wrapping her legs around his waist, his cock nudging her entrance. “So what do you say?”
Lacey rested her hands on his shoulders and leaned her forehead against his. “Have you ever done it on a Harley?”
He shook his head. “No. But I have a feeling I’m about to.”
“Damn right.” She lowered herself down over him, taking him in all the way to the hilt.
“Question is, are you game to give love a second chance?” he asked again.
“I don’t know that I was ever really in love the first time. I think I was in love with the idea of love and marriage. So I can’t say that I’m giving love a second chance.”
Nick held still, afraid to get too far into her without some sort of pledge on her part. “Baby, you’re killing me.”
“Not yet, I’m not. We have a lot more to try before we die.” She kissed him hard, her tongue snaking out to slide along his. When she broke off, she whispered in his ear, “Game on, cowboy, but no sloppy seconds. I’m in it for a first shot at real love.”
“That’s all I ask, sweetheart.” He gripped her hips, and stood.
“I thought we were going to do it on a Harley.”
He turned her around so that she was sitting on the bike. “You bet we are.”
About the Author
Twenty years of livin’ and lovin’ on a South Texas ranch raising horses, cattle, ostriches and emus left an indelible impression on Myla Jackson, one she likes to instill in her red-hot stories. Myla pens wildly sexy, fun adventures of all kinds including historical westerns, medieval, romantic suspense, contemporary and paranormals with beasties of all shapes and sexy sizes. When she’s not wrangling words from her computer she’s snow-skiing, boating, riding her ATV or spending time with family. She lives in the tree-covered hills of Northwest Arkansas with her husband of twenty-plus years and her muses—human-wanna-be canines—Chewy and Sweetpea.
To learn more about Myla Jackson and her stories visit her website at
www.mylajackson.com
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Look for these titles by Myla Jackson
Now Available:
Ugly Stick Saloon
Boots and Chaps
Boots and Leather
Boots and Bareback
Bound and Tied
Honor Bound
Duty Bound
River Bound
Old Man O’Brien’s plan to get his sons hitched is about to work a little too well…
Boots and Bareback
© 2012 Myla Jackson
Ugly Stick Saloon, Book 3
Isabella Severs’s life is a shambles. When her fiancé dumped her, he took the horse she’d raised from a colt, and she wants him back. The horse, not the fiancé. Though she’s scrounging every penny working at the Ugly Stick Saloon, there’s no way she’s going to make enough to buy Sundance back before he’s put up for auction.
Until Old Man O’Brien makes her an offer she can’t refuse. One night of stripping for his son Jesse’s bachelor party, and all her problems will be solved.
Sean, Gabe and Tanner aren’t interested in settling with any one girl—until Isabella’s eye-popping performance on a mechanical horse gets their blood pumping. She’s perfect: sexy as hell, and well-suited to ranch life.
Yet as the brothers vie for her attention, they discover there’s a vulnerable woman beneath the sass. And instead of a winner-gets-the-girl competition, they find themselves joining forces to convince her she’s worthy of the love of a good man…or three.
Warning: Pull up a saddle. This is one erotic ride you won’t want to miss. Three hot cowboys, one sexy cowgirl and a mechanical horse that gives a whole new meaning to riding bareback. Caution—stock up on ice and bring your vibrator, this one’s gonna make you burn!
Enjoy the following excerpt for
Boots and Bareback:
“Do you still want me to dance?” Isabella asked from her perch on the stage.
“Dad said he was paying for three,” Tanner said, his face set, his dark brown, intense stare focused on her. “We hope you’ll stay and earn your pay.” His lips softened into a smile.
Isabella’s knees weakened. That had to be one of the very few real smiles she’d seen on Tanner. “Of course.”
Anything you ask, as long as you smile at me that way.
Alone with the three men who’d been foremost on her mind, Isabella concentrated on maintaining her footing when her legs wobbled like limp rubber bands.
The music played on. Libby must have lined up several songs.
Only obligated to dance to one more song, Isabella didn’t care. Tanner, Gabe and Sean pulled up seats near the raised stage and sat, waiting for her to begin.
Letting the music fill her body and soul, she closed her eyes and swayed gently, her hips moving in circular motions like Audrey had shown her one day in the storeroom. Isabella crossed her hands over her waist, spreading them over her bare belly, then raising them to clutch the vest buttoned in the middle. She pulled the button free and let the vest fall off her shoulders to the floor.
Cool air caressed her heated skin, but it wasn’t enough to extinguish the fire building inside. Isabella wanted to be closer to the men who’d sparked the flame. She reached out her arms.
All three men leaped to their feet. Gabe reached her first, tugging her hand hard enough to pull her off balance.
Isabella fell forward, completely confident Gabe wouldn’t let her hit the ground.
He caught her in his arms, sweeping her legs out from under her. After he swung her around once, he set her on her feet, his hands resting on her hips. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to,” he whispered against her hair.
“I want this.” Her words feathered across his cheek.
“All three of us?” He pulled back, staring down into her eyes.
“Maybe that’s what I need.”
“Isabella, you’re beautiful and the sexiest woman I know. Don’t ever think you’re not, because you are. I’m greedy and don’t want to share, but…” Gabe held her gaze and at last shrugged. “… For you.” His mouth descended to claim hers.
The kiss started out a soft pressure, growing more insistent until Isabella opened her mouth, letting Gabe’s tongue slide past her teeth to toy with her own.
A third, strong, male hand caressed her shoulder, sliding down her length to cup her bottom. Tanner leaned in and captured her earlobe, nibbling gently. “You take my breath away.”
Gabe pulled her closer until her pelvis fit snugly against his thighs. He pressed a knee between her legs, the coarse fabric of his denim jeans causing a friction against her thong-covered sex.
Not to be left out, Sean slid his hand up Isabella’s rib cage, boldly capturing one of her breasts, his thumb digging beneath the sequined fabric to find and tweak the pointed nipple.
Isabella reached to either side, the backs of her hands sliding over Sean and Tanner’s crisply starched cotton shirts, downward to their thick leather belts. She sighed, barely remembering to draw in the next breath.
Gabe’s mouth released hers and he leaned back, staring down into her eyes. “Are we overwhelming you?”
Hands stilled on her breast and bottom. “No!” she gasped. Then she slid her hands into the waistbands of Sean’s and Tanner’s jeans. “I’ll let you know if it’s too much.” Her leg slid up the outside of Gabe’s, her sex rubbing over the top of his thigh. If anything, the thong was too much.
Tanner gripped the string binding one side of the thong and tugged the bow loose. “Sweet mercy.”
Gabe untied the other, dragging the tiny scrap of flashy sequins out from under the black chaps.
Sean worked the bow at her neck.
The straps slithered across her collarbone, letting the bra fall forward, her breasts spilling out. He quickly loosened the strap at her back and tossed the garment to the ground. Now all she had on were her chaps and boots.
Feeling decidedly wicked and greedy for having three men where most women settled for one, Isabella pressed her breasts into Gabe’s chest, then backed away, tugging at the metal snaps on his shirt. “I don’t plan on being the only one naked in this scenario.”
“We can fix that.” Sean ripped his shirt open, the silver snaps popping open with the force. He tossed the shirt across the stage.
Tanner followed suit, taking it a step further by unbuckling his belt and ripping it free of the loops.
Isabella quivered, her senses on fire. She pushed Gabe’s shirt over his shoulders.
He shrugged free of it, the muscles in his chest rippling with every movement.
Isabella reached for his belt buckle, slipping the belt off. The music played on and she danced away from the men, dangling the belt from her hand, letting it slide over her shoulders and down between her breasts.
Sean reached for her. “You’re killing us.”
She slipped away. “I never finished my lap dance.”
All three men sat as one, flies open, chests bare and ready for anything she might do.