Sharp Shootin' Cowboy (15 page)

“But it's also landed you right smack in the middle of a minefield.”

She met his eyes with a smile. “Then it's a good thing there was a marine on hand to rescue me. Why did you do it, Reid?”

“Told you. The odds were stacked against you.”

“I can hold my own,” she argued.

“You didn't stand a chance, sweetheart. They would have eaten you alive. When I intervened, they were barely getting warmed up.”

The waitress delivered their drinks. “Ready to order?”

“I'm sorry,” Haley answered. “We haven't had a chance to look at the menu yet.”

“No problem. Take your time. I'll check back with you in a few.”

His gaze never leaving Haley's, Reid took a long swallow, relishing the smooth bourbon burn. He wondered again why he had intervened. He'd felt compelled to protect her, and he didn't understand why. Or why he'd asked her to dinner when his instinct of self-preservation told him to steer clear of her.

She stared down into her glass, idly stirring her drink. “I don't want to talk about wolves anymore.”

“All right by me,” he said. “I'm game for any topic that doesn't include politics, religion, or
wolves
.”

“You've changed, Reid.”

“Yeah.” He snorted and took another swig. “I've changed all right.”

“How long have you been home?”

“Only a few months.”

“Are you adapting all right? I mean, it's got to be hard, given how long you were over there.”

“It's been an adjustment,” he answered tersely.

“What are your plans?”

“Don't have any. My life pretty much sucks right now, since I don't know what the hell I want to do with it. For now I'll just keep doing what I've always done.” He gave her a narrow look. “And
try
to stay out of the politics.”

“So you guide hunters?” she asked.

“It's a bit more than that. Outfitting is playing babysitter, game warden, and pack mule to people who
think
they want a wilderness adventure. Most of them are pretty damn clueless, hence the babysitting part. I keep them from getting lost or shooting themselves. Now that game's scarcer, we're having to trek a whole lot deeper into the backcountry, so Jared's put me in charge of Everett's
Extreme
Expeditions.”

“Sounds right up your alley,” she laughed.

“Yeah.” He gave a dry laugh. “But the ‘extreme' living is getting old too. I fantasize about getting away from it all. Just going someplace I can kick back without having to pack a mule, a tent, or a weapon.”

“Like some desert island?”

“Hell no.” He grimaced. “No islands. No place with sand. I've had as much of that shit as I can take.”

“So where would you go?”

“Dunno. Maybe when I figure it out, I'll just go.”

“Just disappear?”

“Mebbe.”

She toyed with her straw again. Slanting a look through her lashes, she asked, “Are you involved with anyone, Reid?”

“No. If I was, I wouldn't be here with you.”

“But it's only dinner.”

“Is it?” He glanced down at her naked left hand. “What happened with your professor?”

“Work got in the way.”

“He wasn't right for you. He wasn't what you need.”

She gave a derisive snort. “And you think you're some kind of expert on what I
need
?”

“Yeah, when you look at me like that.”

She wet her lips. “Like what?”

“Like you want me to fuck you senseless.”

Her jaw dropped and her hands hit the table. “You arrogant, presumptuous son of a—”

He'd offended her with his bluntness, but he didn't care. He pushed back in his chair and eyed her levelly. It was time to cut through the bullshit. “I'm too old for games, Haley.”

Her green eyes widened. “You think I'm playing
games
?”

“Don't be coy with me. I don't have the patience or temperament for it anymore. Time has become a priceless commodity to me. I've already wasted too damned much of it. If you want me, just say it.”

Her mouth closed. Her gaze dropped to her hands. She looked nervous as hell. For a moment he thought she'd bolt, but she didn't.

He waited. And watched.

At last she looked up, her gaze searching his. “All right,” she whispered. “I'll say it. I want you.”

It had required all her nerve to voice it, but the words were out and not to be taken back.

Reid's pupils flared, but he said nothing. Just reached for his wallet, threw a wad of bills on the table, and grabbed her by the arm.

Her body thrummed with anticipation as he guided her to his truck. She was breathless and slightly giddy, but had hardly even touched her mojito. Just the thought of being with him again did this to her.

He still didn't speak until a few minutes later, when he pulled into a shopping mart with a twenty-four-hour pharmacy. “Just need to make one quick stop.”

Her gaze fixed on his ass, so perfectly defined in snug denim, as he walked into the drugstore. She wanted to feel it in her hands while he pumped into her. She chided herself for being so shallow, but Reid had always brought out her baser, animalistic side.

She waited impatiently, her pulse speeding as he walked out the door toward the truck. He couldn't move fast enough for her. He laid a small plastic bag on the seat and then started the truck. Five minutes later, they were in the lodge parking lot.

“Got an extra room key?” he asked, his entire body tense. She could see it in the hard line of his mouth, in the stiffness of his movements.

“No. I've only got one, but I can get another.” Her hands were trembling as she fished inside her purse. “Here. Number two nineteen.” She handed him her card. “I'll just tell them I left mine in the room.”

His hand came over hers, warm and firm as if meant to reassure, but the contact was like an electric jolt. “You okay?” He didn't make a move beyond touching her hand.

She looked up into his eyes with a hard swallow. “No,” she murmured. “I'm not. But I
will
be.” Although she quivered with trepidation, it wasn't enough to stop the train.

He gave a nod and released her hand, then unbuckled and came around to open her door. “You'd best go in alone. It's a small community. People talk.”

Her legs felt like jelly as she walked to the front desk for a replacement key. She'd never been so aware of her body before. Her anticipation ratcheted up another notch with every step as she approached her room. Would he be there already or would he wait a while? She hadn't thought to ask.

She held her breath as she slid the key into the slot and opened the door, releasing a long hiss of relief when she found the room empty. She closed the door and leaned against it. She wanted this, didn't she?

Yes. She did.

She ached with physical need. She'd kept it caged far too long and was almost ready to climb out of her skin with want. But it scared the hell out of her. She didn't just want him. She
needed
him.

But why was it only Reid who'd ever made her feel this way? Jeffrey had felt safe and comfortable, like a favorite pair of jeans. She'd never experience the same passion with Jeffrey that she'd known with Reid. He'd never remotely compared, though she'd tried very hard not to. Compare, that is.

The two men were
nothing
alike, either philosophically or physically. If they were trees, Jeffrey would be a birch and Reid would be an oak, an analogy that suited their anatomical differences equally well, she thought dryly. Although she'd tried to convince herself for the longest time that she loved Jeffrey, she knew better now. If she had, she would have long forgotten Reid. But she hadn't. Would it be the same between them as it was before?

You're thinking too much. Just relax and go with it. You're a grown woman and have every right to enjoy yourself with a man.
With
Reid
.

Should she undress? She hated to appear too eager. Then again, who was she kidding? Not Reid. He'd seen right through her, had read her every lurid thought in the bar.

With her heart racing, she kicked off her shoes but hesitated with her hands on the zipper of her skirt. Maybe he'd want to undress her? Then again, he'd probably be more than happy to get straight to the main event.
Four-point-one-six years.

He'd done the math.

She nervously shed her skirt and blouse, but left her bra and panties on. She wished she'd worn something racier than sensible white cotton with just a bit of lace trim, but the plain packaging would have to do.

The door clicked. She inhaled a tiny gasp.

“You should use the dead bolt.”

“I was expecting
you
,” she said.

“I was afraid you might change your mind.”

“No, Reid. I haven't changed my mind. No games, right?”

His hot gaze raked slowly up and down her body. He doffed his hat and tossed it on the chair. “You're a sight for sore eyes, Haley Cooper.” His voice was low and husky, inciting tiny ripples deep inside her sex. He was in tight control, but his desire was palpable, like some powerful force that was about to unleash. He extended his hand.

She approached with an intentional slow and seductive sway of her hips, shivering again as their gazes met and held.
Oh
dear
God
. All the foreplay she needed was right there, reflected in his blue eyes.

* * *

She'd surprised him, meeting him in her bra and panties, but at least her actions stated clear intent.
Thank
God.

“Take it off. All of it.” Though his balls ached with anticipation, he didn't trust himself to touch her. Not yet.

She bit her lip, looking suddenly shy. All the confidence she'd greeted him with a moment ago had evaporated. He pulled her close. Locking eyes with hers, he ran his index finger slowly down the valley between her breasts. The bra had a front hook. He managed it with one hand. She trembled as it dropped to the floor.

Her breasts weren't overly full, but nicely shaped and pert as hell with pretty pink nipples standing at attention, reminding him of ripe raspberries. His mouth watered with the desire to suck them. But not yet.

His fingers tracked down the midline of her belly, over pale, smooth, satiny skin. He traced the band of her bikini panties, then hooked one side of them. Her eyes widened and breath audibly hitched as he peeled them down.

“Aren't you at least going to kiss me first?”

“Yeah,” he replied with a dark laugh. “I'm going to kiss you, all right.” She gave another little gasp as his knees hit the floor. “I'm going to kiss and tongue you until you scream. I'm going to brand every inch of you with my mouth, Haley, so that this time you won't forget.”

“I never forgot the last time,” she whispered.

The scent of her arousal washed over him in a dizzying wave, nearly knocking him on his ass.
Holy
shit!
He'd never been so turned on. Grasping her hips with both hands, he made the first long, slow swipe with his tongue.

She cried out, her body quaking. She was so ready, so ripe, and he'd hardly begun.

Reid plunged his face into her mound with a moan, licking, sucking, and exploring every sweet and tangy inch of her with his hungry mouth. Her fingers clenched in his hair. He delved deeper with greedy sweeps of his tongue. She bucked her hips against his face with a whimper, urging him further into her sex. But he eased up instead, just enough to keep her on edge, sucking and swirling, teasing with flicks and darts until she rocked and moaned. He wanted to torture her with pleasure, crank her need until she couldn't take anymore.

The moment she reached that brink, when her body signaled the onset of orgasm, tensing in his hands and under his mouth, he backed off again. “Don't stop now. Please, Reid,” she sobbed. “Don't. Stop.”

“No need to fret, sweetheart. I'm gonna give you what you want…what we both want.”

He rose and wiped her juices from his mouth with his own trembling hand before finally claiming her lips with a ravenous kiss. She met him eagerly, moaning as their tongues met and tangled, engaging in a frantic thrust and retreat. She hooked her leg over his hip, grinding herself against him with a needy sound.

Her hands moved feverishly over his chest, tearing at his shirt buttons. She moved south then, toward his crotch, fumbling for his zipper. “Please, Reid,” she pleaded. “I need you inside me. You don't know how long it's been.”

“I know damned well,” he growled. His need was almost blinding. He could hardly think beyond it, but he still held himself in tight check. He reminded himself how it had been before. Five years ago, he'd taken it slow and easy, treating her like a skittish colt, only to have her lay waste to him. He'd tried to win her heart, only to be left with a gaping hole in his—a hole that had never quite healed. He refused to let it play out like that again.

He clasped her wrists behind her and backed her toward the bed. He'd pleasure her with his mouth. He'd screw her senseless, but no way in hell was he gonna lose himself in her again.

“Turn around,” he commanded. “I want you from behind. I want to watch as I enter you. I want to see myself inside you.” He bent her across the bed, shoved a pillow under her belly, and then angled her hips. She raised her ass to him in readiness and looked over her shoulder with a needy sound that was almost his undoing. He shuddered with a rampant wave of raw lust and prayed he wouldn't explode the second he penetrated her.

Too impatient even to remove his clothes, he quickly unzipped and peeled his jeans off his hips only far enough to release his throbbing dick. Fisting his length, he gloved himself in latex with his gaze locked the whole time on that sweet, beckoning ass. God, he loved the curve of it.

He shut his eyes on a hiss as he guided himself into her wetness. Circling and probing, he teased until she squirmed, rubbing herself along his length. His lungs burned with the effort of restraint, as he penetrated by slow, agonizing inches, stopping only when he was seated to the root. He exhaled in a long rush, his cock pulsing in time with his own pounding heart. He began to move, slowly and deliberately. His balls ached like hell, but he was determined not to lose it.

She rocked her hips into him with another needy cry.

“You want more?” he ground out through his teeth, still fighting the primal instinct to ram repeatedly into her.

“I love how you feel inside me, Reid. Please don't hold back. Give me all of you.”

His restraint snapped. He withdrew and thrust. Hard. She met his thrust with a cry of pleasure. Squeezing her hips, he plunged in and out. Short jabs. Long stabs. Deeper. Faster. His mind locked. His vision blurred. His pulse roared as he pumped in a mad, manic frenzy.

* * *

This Reid wasn't the warm and tender lover she remembered from so long ago, the one who'd first taught her pleasure. This version of him was more controlling and almost dangerous, and his carnal ravaging told her that the lessons were far from over. Filling and stretching her almost to capacity, he thrust with nearly brutal strokes. It was a feral, almost illicit coupling, but still not wrong.
Sweet
Jesus. Anything but wrong.

It felt so good. How his body fit hers.

The air surrounding them filled with their mingled moans, strangled gasps, and the sound of slapping flesh. Her world contracted and closed around her until nothing existed beyond the marrow-penetrating pleasure of his pistoning hips.

Her climax came hard and fast, ripping through her until she clawed the sheet and bit into the pillow to stifle her cry. His release was almost simultaneous, hitting the moment her core began squeezing him in orgasmic spasms. He muffled his own groan as he came, collapsing against her back with his sweat-coated chest, his panting breaths hot and humid on her neck. After a moment, he nipped her earlobe and withdrew.

Senseless and satiated, she rolled onto her back, watching him disappear into the bathroom. She shut her eyes on a satisfied sigh, wondering how long it would be before they could do it all over again.

* * *

Hours later, Haley shivered and grabbed for the covers, only to realize she'd never crawled beneath them. She opened her eyes to a darkened room. Had she really fallen asleep?

“Reid?” She sat up and called out to no answer.

Her gaze darted over the room. Had he left her without a word? Her stomach tightened as her mind raced over the past few hours. Although he'd defended her earlier, he'd said he wasn't on her side. Had she been wrong to trust him? Was this whole night an act of revenge for the license suspension? Had he purposely set her up in order to destroy her reputation? Her credibility?

She clutched the sheet to her breasts as fear and shame hit her in a nauseating wave. She'd have to face them all tomorrow. Would they all know? Was he even now giving the outfitters a blow-by-blow account of how he'd done Dr. Haley Cooper? And how she'd begged him for more?

Dear
God.
A shower. She desperately needed a shower.

After that, she'd pack her stuff and drive back to Cheyenne. It was cowardly to slink away, but she refused to let him humiliate her in front of all her colleagues. She cursed him with angry tears streaming down her face, ferociously scrubbing her body, only to get soap in her eyes. She then cursed herself. How could she have been so naive? So stupid?

She shut off the water, grabbed a towel, and proceeded to rub her skin raw. Although cleaner, she didn't feel any better. She raked a comb through her tangles and stared at the hair dryer, remembering their first weekend at Coronado Island and his silly obsession with her hair. She'd never known anyone like him, but he was so different now. Not just older but jaded, hardened, and cynical—so different from the man she'd knowingly hurt five years ago.

Her throat went raw, and her eyes burned all over again. She plugged in the dryer, but then froze at the sound of voices coming from the bedroom. The television? But she hadn't turned it on.

Wrapping herself in a towel, Haley cracked the bathroom door and peeked out. Her heart leaped into her throat at the sight of Reid, sprawled full length on the bed, a pizza box on his lap and a beer in his hand. He was back. All her fears were unfounded. Hit by a tsunami of relief, she shut her eyes and slumped against the wall.