Cowboy Love (5 page)

The gate opened to the pressure of her boot, and she rode the gelding inside.
I thought he might be different, but I guess I was wrong.
She dismounted and began stripping the horse of the weight of the saddle. Once free, she slid it over the side of the gate in a jerking motion.

She stiffed as she heard shuffling behind her and his hand came down on her shoulder.

"Listen, Amy, I'm sorry I doubted you. I should have known you wouldn't lie to me."

"I don't give a damn whether you believe me or not," she murmured, shrugging off his touch.

"Let me get the saddle." He moved to take the heavy tack back to the storage room.

"I can get it myself," she grumbled, pulling it from the gate when he tried to reach for it.

"Come on, I said I'm sorry."

She whirled around as she snapped, "You know what? I thought you maybe you were different, but I guess not. I thought you might believe me when I told you about the team roping, but you didn't. You're like all the rest. You don't think a woman can do anything, much less do something that is predominantly a man's sport."

"I said I was sorry," he whispered. Pulling the heavy saddle from her arms, he slid it back over the gate before turning to wrap his arms around her, tugging her to his chest.

She pushed against him, but he refused to let her go until she finally quit fighting him.

Giving up, she buried her face next to his shoulder, allowing him to stroke her back for moment before she pulled out of his arms.

"It doesn't matter. I'm sick of proving myself to people. It gets really tiresome," she grumbled as she grabbed the saddle again and headed off to the tack room.

She pushed the saddle onto the stand, making sure it wouldn't fall before she turned around and Tanner stood in the doorway.

"I wish I knew what to say."

"Never mind. I don't care, anyway." She tried to sound convincing, but it didn't work. What he thought meant a lot, unfortunately.

"No. I'm not going to let it go. I upset you, and I'm sorry."

"Listen, Tanner, its fine. Forget it. I'm heading back to Chris' parents place."

He took her shoulders in his hands, but released one to put a finger under her chin, forcing her to raise her eyes to his.

"We're goin' fishin', aren't we?" She could see the teasing glint to his eyes as he tried to make it up to her.

"I don't know if I want to be around you right now."

"Amy, come on. I've already apologized. I promise I'll never doubt you again. I should have known better, anyway. The way you handled that mare yesterday, I wouldn't be shocked to find out you could do everythin' you've put your mind to." Skimming his fingers across her jaw, he continued, "I want to spend the afternoon with you. Don't go."

The warmth of his hands caused heat to seep to her core as she saw the sincerity in his eyes and she finally relented. "All right, I'll go."

"Fantastic! You can pick out a horse out of the corral or you can ride Buster there, if you like. I'll go get the picnic from my mom and the fishin' poles." She watched him turn on his heel and move toward the house, a quickness to his step.

She sighed as she tipped her head back on her shoulders and asked the Lord above for some guidance.
Why did you give in? His doubting cut deep, deeper than any man has before. He's going to hurt you and hurt you bad,
her heart whispered as she grabbed a different saddle and headed back to gelding standing nearby. She quickly saddled him, mounted and rode into the bright sun, heading for the front of the house. Tanner waited with his horse, two saddlebags and two fishing poles

As she approached, her head told her, y
ou are going to regret this, Amy.
He's too cute for your own good, girl, and you are going to get your heart broken if you aren't careful.

"Yes. Which way?"

"Follow me," he answered, giving his horse a quick kick, moving into a canter with Amy right on his heels.

Chapter 4

Amy pulled up beside him as they rode out of the yard as she asked, "Did your dad put you on a horse as early as mine did?"

"I've been ridin' since before I can remember so yeah, probably so."

She smiled. "I guess that's the way it is when your dad rides rodeo."

"How often do you get to compete?"

"If we can find one, we go every weekend we're off."

"Yeah. A guy at work and I ride together. He works in radiology. His name is Jason Clark. He's a super guy."

"When do you compete next?"

"I'd need to check my calendar but I think there is a rodeo outside Dallas in a couple of weeks we are scheduled to participate in. I'm only off every other weekend usually so we go when we can."

"That's cool. Maybe I'll come by and watch sometime."

"Why don't you tell me about your family?" Amy asked. "How many siblings do you have?"

"One brother and two sisters. I'm the eldest."

"I bet that puts a lot of responsibility on you."

"Yeah, but its okay. I enjoy spendin' time with my family. How about you?"

"I have two sisters. One is in Oregon, near Portland and the other lives up by Seattle. I don't get to visit them much since I live here now. I try to go once a year."

"How did you end up in Dallas, then?"

"I don't know. I got tired of the crap on the West Coast. You can't buy property because everything is so expensive and they offered an awesome job at the hospital in Dallas, so I took it."

"Let's cut back through the trees here. The river isn't far."

The tinkle of a trickling stream met her ears soothing her like nothing else could. She loved the water and missed going to the coast and just listening to the ocean wave's crash over the jagged shoreline.

Tanner took the lead as they rode toward the sound and broke into a small clearing near the rippling stream.

"Oh wow! This is beautiful!" The good sized pool at the base of the rocks reflected their images almost like glass. Trees, thick with leaves, shaded the spot and the sunlight filtered sporadically through the foliage, cooling the area from the summer heat.

The two dismounted and Tanner dropped the reins of his horse without tethering it. Pulling off the saddles, they let the horses' wander nearby.

"We don't need to tether them?"

"No. They won't go far. We can eat now, or in a while, if you want to fish first." The slight southern drawl tickled her ear. She'd heard it before, but right now, with it rippling on the breeze around her, it sent shivers down her arms. She was such a sucker for an accent.

"Later on is fine. I'd like to find out if the fish are biting." She grinned as she took the fishing pole from his fingers. "Did you bring bait or are we digging?"

* * * *

A smile rippled over his mouth. Surely she wouldn't get on her hands and knees to dig worms. "We're diggin'."

Shrugging, she said, "Okay. Works for me."

She took the small shovel he handed her, dropped to her knees and started to scoop some dirt out of a hole. Her tight jeans revealed a nicely rounded backside to his appreciative stare.

Lifting her head, she flashed a triumphant smirk in his direction as she pulled out a worm and placed it in the small can.

His breath caught in his throat.
Lord, I want to kiss her so bad.
Desire pooled in his groin as she knelt on the ground. Images of her naked before him raced across his mind and he groaned.

"I've got about a dozen worms in here. Think that's enough?" She looked up at him, holding the can out for his inspection.

"It should be plenty to start with. I'll grab the poles if you bring the bait. There is a big log juttin' out over the river where we can sit." He held out his hand to help her stand.

She pulled her hand from his grasp once she stood and brushed the dirt from her fingers on the legs of her jeans. She motioned for him to show the way as she said, "All right. I'll follow you then."

They walked for several hundred feet to the area that Tanner pointed out. They both kicked off their shoes and socks before they stepped across the log and sat down, side-by-side.

"This is fantastic! Are there lots of fish in here?" Amy peered into the pool of water beneath her.

"My dad keeps it stocked with catfish and trout all the time so there are always somethin' to catch."

He handed a pole to her, watching her keenly. She grabbed the bait can, digging her fingers into the soft dirt and pulled out a nice fat wiggly nightcrawler, threading it onto the hook. She turned, flashing a gorgeous smile at him and skillfully cast the line.

"Not the least bit squeamish, are you?"

The dubious expression on her face made him chuckle as she said, "I'm a nurse. I deal with blood and guts all the time. Do you think a little worm is going to gross me out?"

"Yeah, pretty dumb thought, huh." He sent his own line sailing into the water.

The warm summer breeze brushed the hair from her neck and she tipped her head back, letting it fall out of the way as she closed her eyes.

"This is perfect," she whispered.

His breath caught in his throat as she bared her neck to his eyes. Unable to pull his gaze away, a groan rumbled in his chest and he started to squirm uncomfortably on the log, causing the wood to move slightly.

Her eyes popped open, and she turned her head. “Something wrong?”

He cleared his throat as his cock grew painfully behind the ridged fly of his jeans. "No, but do you have any idea how much I want to lick that spot on your neck where the pulse flutters against the skin?"

A dreamy smile spread across her lips. "Do you?"

His mouth lifted at the corners as he answered, "Oh yeah."

"Here, hold this." She handed him the fishing pole, turning on the log and straddling the expanse with her legs. Scooting closer, they both laughed as the log jiggled with her movements, threatening to spill them both into the water. When she got close enough, she threw her legs over his thighs, her breasts almost touching his chest.
Holy shit!
His breathing hitched sharply as his heart slammed against his ribs.

Sweeping her hair over her shoulders, she leaned back on her hands and arched her neck, she said, "Now you can reach it."

He accepted her invitation, tucking the fishing poles under their legs and leaned forward, lightly touching the hollow of her throat with his tongue. He almost groaned out loud at the salty taste of her skin.

"I love the way you taste and smell," he whispered softly and she started laughing.

He sat back, startled at her giggles, not quite understanding what was so funny. She laughed so hard, she almost doubled over, putting her hands on his shoulders to keep from falling. As she continued to chuckle, the log began to shake and they both tumbled off, landing in the cool water below.

Surfacing not far from her in a spot where he could stand, she came up out of the water still laughing and he joined her. They chuckled for several minutes as they looked at each other, until he noticed how transparent her white T-shirt appeared. The bra beneath did nothing to hide the pert nipples that strained against her shirt. He stepped closer as the laughter died on her lips and his hand came out of the water to skim across her shoulder.

He ran his fingers along her jaw, letting his thumb whisper over her bottom lip. She released a soft sigh and closed her eyes. He let his hand move to the back of her neck and pulled her closer as he slipped the other one around her waist. He bent forward and captured her mouth, softly at first, but after only a moment, desire took over and he deepened the kiss, pressing his tongue insistently against her lips until she opened for him with a groan.

When he finally lifted his head and he stared into her eyes, he let his palm slide over her breast and she gasped. "God, I want you Amy, but not here, not like this."

A blush crawled up her neck and splash across her cheeks as she dropped her gaze. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for things to happen this way. I don't want you to get the wrong impression."

He lifted her face so he could look into her eyes. "Don't be sorry. I don't want to make love to you for the first time in the creek or on the slope of the grass, where anyone can see us." He kissed her softly, before grasping her hand and pressing it to his straining, throbbing erection. "I want you, make no mistake about that, but not here, and I don't relish tryin' to get those wet jeans off of your hips."

She laughed. "Me either. What's going to suck is riding back to the house in them." Reaching inside her shirt, she lifted a small fish out of her bra and they both chuckled.

A smile rippled across his face. "Yeah, it will and bein' hard enough to hammer nails with my dick, makes it so much worse."

Giggling softly, she said, "If you'd like, I can take care of your problem for you."

He groaned at the thought. "Very temptin', but I don't want this to be one sided. I'll survive until we can do this together." He grabbed her hand in his, leading her out of the creek to where they'd dropped their shoes and the picnic basket.

He pulled sandwiches and potato salad from the saddlebags and handed her everything as he settled back on the blanket. She chewed the sandwich as she looked out over the water.

When her tongue flicked out to capture a small spot of mayonnaise that rested on the corner of her mouth, he almost whimpered.
Damn! It's going to hurt ridin' home. “
If you like, we can ride along the river for a while after we are done eatin'. The trip is prettier, but a longer way back to the house."

"That would be cool. It took us, what, about an hour to get here?"

"Yeah. If we travel down by the river, it will take about two hours to get back."

"Do you ride out here a lot?"

"Sometimes. Between helpin' my parents on their place and playin' at the bar, I don't have much time for myself."

"What are your plans for the future?"

"Why?" He grinned.

"Curiosity, I guess." Her shoulders lifted in a shrug. "I assume you don't expect to work on your parents' place all your life or playing just at Pete's."