Naked Heat: Naked Cowboys, Book 7 (7 page)

“You’re better than any meal there is in that picnic basket.” He grinned. “And the best part is I can eat it over and over again.”

The pinkness of her face deepened. “Thank you,” she managed. “But I want my share too.”

Nida had never been this bold with other men. Maybe it was because they’d never paid attention to her needs and desires like Mac did. She ran her hands up and down his back again, smoothing them over his heated flesh, sliding them into the waistband of his jeans until she could just reach the cheeks of his ass.

“Your share?” he teased.

“Uh huh. Aren’t you going to take your clothes off too?”

Damn straight he was. He rose to his feet and disposed of his jeans and boxer briefs in seconds. His cock, straining for so long, sprang free like a caged lion released. The vein wrapped around the shaft pulsed with his heated blood and the head was a dark purple and glistening with the precome his clothing had spread over the surface. Nida stared at it, eyes glued to his body. When her tongue peeped out and she slowly ran it across her lower lip, his shaft flexed in response, as if there was a string that ran directly from the head to her mouth.

“Be right back,” he told her. “Don’t go away.”

Her eyes widened. “You’re leaving me?”

“Just for a second.”

He could feel her eyes on his bare ass as he hustled to his bedroom for his wallet. He fished out the condom he kept stored there, praying to heaven that it was still good, and carried it back to drop beside where Nida was still stretched out like a beautiful feast. But he had barely lowered himself to the floor beside her before she rolled up to her knees and reached for his cock. She wrapped her slender fingers around him, her touch so electric he sucked in an involuntary breath.

“Easy, darlin’. I’m riding the edge of the ledge.”

“You better not fall off the edge until
I
get
my
taste.”

From the way color crept up her face, Mac had a feeling she wasn’t usually this bold. That he was an exception. He wondered for a brief, sharp moment what the hell was happening here with the two of them that created this intense attraction. It made him forget what he was about and had spurred her to move out of her comfort zone. He was so aroused the moment he saw her in those little shorts and cute top that he wanted to strip her naked and worship her body.

She closed her soft lips around him and took his throbbing shaft into her mouth and he pushed everything out of his mind. Damn. Fire surged through him, igniting the blood in his veins and he shuddered with pleasure. She tightened her fingers around him and took him deeper, finding room to swirl her tongue and take a long, deep pull at the same time. Her lips were so soft yet firm, her tongue giving little licks of fire that sent his temperature soaring.

Mac threaded his fingers through her hair, gripping her head and adjusting the angle for better penetration.

“Breathe, darlin’,” he whispered as he saw her struggling to take in all of him. “Breathe through your nose.”

When she did, she also reflexively scraped her teeth along his length, and he thought he’d lose it right then. She was startled when he pulled her head upward, making sure not to lose his goodies while he did it, and rolled her onto her back again.

“I can’t wait.” His voice was hoarse with need. “I have to be inside you right now.”

He grabbed the condom, quickly checked the date and rolled it on. Pressing her legs apart, he positioned himself at her entrance, slid his hands beneath her buttocks and lifted her. On a long exhale, he thrust forward and drove into her with one smooth stroke.

Oh, sweet Jesus.

Mac closed his eyes and sucked in a breath, steadying himself. Nida’s tight, wet pussy clasped around his cock like a hot fist, the muscles gripping him and flexing against him as they rippled and spasmed.

“Look at me.” He barely recognized his own voice. “Let me see those sexy eyes. Keep them glued to mine.”

Mac thought he could get lost in hers, in the deep pools of emerald green. But then her cunt flexed around his cock and he lost it. Gaze still locked with hers, hands tight beneath her buttocks, he lifted her higher and drove into her again and again. God, it was like nothing he’d ever felt before, a hard glide through velvet heat. It consumed him, reached into every dark corner of his body and his soul, filling him with its richness and the lush feel of her.

She rode with him every bit of the way, absorbing the hard plunges, wrapping her legs around him as best she could to lock them together. When he felt the familiar icy tingling at the base of his spine and the tingling in his balls, he reached between them, took her clit between thumb and forefinger and rubbed. Hard.

And took them both over the edge.

The spasms shook them both, great shudders that Mac was sure would break their bones. They ebbed and slowed and finally subsided. Mac lowered Nida’s legs and rolled to the side, keeping their sweat-slicked bodies joined together. He pulled her tight to him, their jagged breathing seesawing in the air, hearts pounding so loud he wasn’t sure which was his and which was hers.

At last, their bodies were calm, their breathing easier. Mac stroked her face damp with perspiration and flush with the residue of passion. That hadn’t been sex as much as it had almost been a religious experience. Something had happened when he sheathed himself in her, a connection that was totally unexpected. Something way beyond the physical. He wasn’t prepared for it and he had no idea what to do with it. It certainly didn’t fit into his immediate plans.

“Those are some deep thoughts.” Nida’s soft voice broke into his concentration. “Should I be worried?”

He shook his head. “What just happened here?”

Her lips quirked in a smile. “Surely you don’t need me to draw you a picture.”

“No, I don’t. I— This was more than I expected. Way more.”

Her smile disappeared. “Me too. But I suspect that’s a problem.”

Mac allowed himself one more long, sweet kiss, tasting the goodness of her mouth and the softness of her lips. Then he let out a long sigh. “I think we should get dressed, Nida. We can set up the nice lunch you brought and I’ll tell you a story that will darken your day.”

He waited for her to frown or push at him to move or anything, instead, she just smiled.

“I’m here for whatever you want to tell me. Let’s get cleaned up.”

Was that too easy, he wondered? Would the other shoe drop?

He eased their bodies apart and disposed of the condom. Then he led her into the bathroom, apologizing for the lack of amenities. They cleaned themselves—and each other—and dressed. Nida went to get the picnic basket and Mac shook out the sleeping bag.

“Sorry I don’t have a table or anything better than this.”

“Mac.” She touched his arm. “Quit apologizing. When I came out here, I certainly wasn’t expecting the Ritz. Let’s eat.”

They sat cross-legged, the picnic basket between them. After she had divided the food onto paper plates and poured their drinks into plastic cups, she gave him an intense look.

“Okay, Mac. Why don’t you tell me why you’re spending your time out here in this tumbledown excuse for a house and what dragons are chasing you.”

He looked at her for a long time, at the glossy black hair she’d managed to tame into a ponytail. At the pink glow to her skin that he knew came from really good sex. At the warmth in her eyes and the smile on her soft lips and realized in what was little more than the blink of an eye that they had come together in a solid connection. He could tell her this, and she might even understand.

“It’s about my sister,” he began.

Chapter Five

Nida rolled up the waxed paper from her sandwich and stashed it in the disposable trash bag she’d brought from her house. She took her time doing it, her movements slow and deliberate because her mind was racing so fast she had to catch up with it. Reading about Alicia McDaniel’s accident and hearing about it from Mac were two totally different things. The pain and emotion in his voice cut right through her like a knife and stabbed at her heart. It made the difficult episodes in her life look small and insignificant. So she’d made bad choices in men who made her feel worthless. How did that even compare to losing someone close, especially a twin sister?

When he talked about Alicia, about their childhood, their teen years, their years as adults, the closeness they’d shared, his affection for his sister was blatantly obvious. She’d heard about the twin syndrome, the special relationship such people had with each other, but now she was learning about it firsthand. And his poor parents, and Alicia’s fiancé. Their grief had to be just as immeasurable as Mac’s. Impulsively, she reached out and took one of his hands in hers. For a moment, she thought he might jerk it away, but then he curled his fingers over hers.

“Please don’t pity me.” His voice was rough and uneven.

“Pity you?” She stared at him. “Share your grief. Offer you my sympathy. But pity you? No, Mac, there’s nothing here to pity. You lost half of yourself, and that’s an incredible pain to deal with.”

That pain was certainly evident in the deep lines on his face and the haunted look in his eyes.

“Thank you for understanding.” He took a long pull from his can of soda, his eyes staring into the distance at nothing.

“So, they still have no clues?” she asked, although she was pretty sure what the answer would be.

“Clues.” He screwed up his mouth as if the word was something bitter. “I know—and I can’t tell you how—that they identified the driver of the other car but they’ve buried the report.”

Nida was shocked. “But why? He might as well have taken a gun and shot her.”

She was stunned at the rage that bloomed in his eyes. “No kidding. But when you have power and money, you apparently can get anything shoved under the table. Or in a drawer or a closet.”

Nida didn’t know why she was shocked. She was well aware that games like this were played all the time. She just hadn’t ever been so close to one and it sickened her.

“That’s why you’re hiding up here in Saddle Wells, right? Because it hurts too much to be in San Antonio where she died. To face everyone else’s grief?”

“Something like that,” he muttered, and released her hand.

Then it clicked in her brain. Of course.

“You’re going after him yourself, aren’t you? That’s what this is all about.” When he didn’t answer, she nudged his knee with hers. “Tell me, Mac. You’re on some kind of hunt, right? That’s why you bought this rundown property, so you could fly under the radar and not call attention to yourself.”

He just continued to sit there and stare out the window.

“You do realize this is a small town and this place has been the object of a lot of speculation. Although if you want a place no one will come to visit, this is definitely it.”

“I figured as much.” His voice was flat.

“And while you’re taking out your anger on the overgrown land, you can sniff and smell around and try to find out who this guy is. Right?”

His face held an implacable expression, but a muscle twitched in his cheek.

“Answer me,” she demanded.

When he looked back at her, the anger and vengeance in his eyes took her breath away.

“If the police won’t do their job, I’ll do it for them.”

“And you chose Saddle Wells because whoever your source is told you the guy lives in this county. Right again? Mac, answer me.”

“What do you want me to say?” he snapped. “You just said it all.”

Her stomach knotted. Before, when they’d made love—and it was definitely that, not just sex—she’d felt an unexpected deep connection with him out of the blue. But she was afraid to trust it. She’d been wrong so many times before. Now it seemed she was right to feel that way. Why should it hurt this much when she’d only known him for two short weeks? Damn it, that was what she got for rushing into things the way she always did. Four years of celibacy apparently hadn’t taught her a thing.

Nida drew in a long breath and let it out slowly. “Please tell me you don’t plan to hunt him down and take care of him yourself. You can’t do that, Mac.”

“I can’t?’ He stood in one lithe movement and walked to the dust-streaked window that looked out into the front yard. “No one else seems to be doing it, right?”

Nida pushed herself to her feet and went to stand beside him. Hesitantly, she touched his arm.

“You have friends here now, Mac. People who can help you. Like Dillon. And his wife. She owns the newspaper.”

“And exactly why would they help me?” he demanded. “And how?”

“Because that’s who they are. Dillon can find out a lot more things than you can on your own.”

“As long as I don’t try to take anything out on the guy when we find him, right?”

Nida shrugged. “Makes sense to me.”

“You think the great sex we had gives you the right to tell me what to do here?” he spat.

Nida jerked with the shock of his words. The great sex? Okay, yes, it was all that. Spectacular. Stupendous. But she truly believed it was a lot more too, even in the midst of this horrific situation. Did he dismiss is that easily?

“I’d say it was a lot more than that. And just in case you’re wondering, I don’t hop into the sack—or sleeping bag—with just any guy who comes along.”

“I didn’t think you did.” The muscle in his cheek was twitching again. “That’s not what I meant.”

Her stomach knotted, but she planted her clenched hands on her hips and glared at him. “Then just exactly what did you mean? For some reason, I didn’t think you were like all the assholes I’ve known. I guess I was wrong. I’m sorry.” She shook her head and took a step back. “I didn’t mean to presume. Either…before or now. I‘ll get my things and leave”

Feeing both sick and angry, and more than a little humiliated, she turned to go before she embarrassed herself. But Mac reached out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back to him.

Mac tightened his hold on her. “No. Don’t go.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry for saying what I did. I’m really not such an asshole. I’m not…I don’t… You have every right to kick my ass and never talk to me again, but please don’t go. Stay. Please.”

The ragged tone of his voice told her just how hard that was for him to say. She chuffed a breath.

“Why should I?”

He turned her so they faced each other and cupped her cheeks, his touch now very gentle. “I’m a mess right now, Nida. I don’t have anything to offer anyone. We hardly know each other, but there’s a connection here. I don’t think you expected it any more than I did. I know there’s something going on between us and I don’t want you to walk away from it. It’s just that—”

“It’s just that you can’t see anything past the pain and the tragedy,” she interrupted, “and the terrible handling of the situation. I get that.”

“I believe you do,” he said slowly.

“Everything is focused on that,” she continued. “This thing with us, the attraction, the feelings, they’ve blindsided you, and now you’re feeling guilty.”

“Yes.” He swallowed. “You’re right. So you do understand. You’re the first person who’s gotten past my defenses and made me lose focus. I can’t afford to do that. Please believe me when I say I want this to go somewhere, but I have to resolve Alicia’s death first.”

“Then let these people help you,” she pleaded. “If Dillon can find who it is, there isn’t enough money or influence to make him look the other way. That’s just who he is. Jinx too.” She waved a hand in the air. “Everyone.”

“I don’t know, Nida.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “I’m not sure I trust anyone to handle this properly. Whoever is manipulating this wields a lot of power and could mean trouble.”

She laughed, but there was little humor in the sound. “Mac, believe me when I tell you all of these people have dealt with their own brand of trouble. That won’t scare them away. How about giving them a chance? You won’t lose a thing,” she pointed out. “And maybe they can speed up the process for you.”

Nida waited through another long silence, chewing her lip. They barely knew each other, despite the little games they’d been playing since that first day and the spectacular sex they’d just had. She studied his face, trying to read his expression.

“There’s something going on between us,” he went on. “I know you feel it too. Otherwise you’d never have come out here today. Right?”

She nodded, unwilling to speak until he finished.

“I just know I have to do this. Have to—”

Unexpectedly, he pulled her against his body and wrapped his arms around her as if he’d never let her go.

“Will you promise me something?” Her voice was muffled against his chest.

“I’ll try. What do you want?”

“Before you go off doing something crazy and maybe get yourself killed like your sister, or at least in trouble, will you let me bring my friends in on this?”

“I don’t—”

“Just hear what they have to say. You’ve met them all except for Jinx. They’re really nice people and we all help each other out. Besides, Matt Stark’s family has been in this county for generations. So has Cade’s.” She gave a tiny laugh. “If anyone knows who all the assholes are, it would be him.”

“I got that idea.”

“Dillon can find out things you can’t on your own, and Jinx has lots of resources through the newspaper.” She looked up at him. “Please. If you want to really see what we have here, then do this. For me.” She paused. “And for you.”

He took so long to answer she was afraid he’d just say no and tell her to leave. But he surprised her.

“Okay. I’ll give it a shot.” His face was solemn. “One chance, a meeting with everyone. But if I don’t get a good feeling from it, I’m going it alone.”

“But you’ve met everyone,” she protested.

“In a purely social setting. Let’s see what they have to say when I lay this all out for them.” He stared at her, hard. “If I don’t think this will work, if I think they’ll either get in the way or tell me I’m crazy or—I don’t know what—I’ll leave and there’ll be no hard feelings.”

“But—”

He touched a finger to her lips. “My terms and conditions.”

“All right, except I think they’ll surprise you,” she told him.

“Maybe.” He lowered his mouth to hers and gave her a kiss both tender and passionate. “But if you’re in it with me, I’ll give it a chance.”

The first person Nida called was Dillon. Everyone else could play some part in this, but law enforcement was key. The sheriff had access to information no one else did. Matt and Reenie offered their ranch for the meeting, even suggesting dinner, although Nida nixed that.

“I don’t think Mac will feel much like sitting through a social meal and discussing this won’t be too great for his appetite.”

“You’re right,” Reenie agreed. “My bad. I wasn’t thinking. I imagine in his position I wouldn’t be much interested in food either.”

“We may need a few drinks though,” Nida warned. “It’s not a very pretty story. And I’d like to do this as soon as we can all get together. Dillon’s off the clock tomorrow night, if that works for everyone else.”

Reenie made the calls for her, and the next night, Nida drove out to Mac’s a half hour ahead of time to pick him up.

He gave her a half grin when he opened the door. “Were you afraid I’d decide not to show?”

She lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “I wasn’t sure. I know you think you can do this yourself and you’re sure this won’t work—”

“Because I’ve been shut down everywhere else I turned,” he reminded her, his voice edged with bitterness. “Except for one person.”

“I told you my friends are different. Now come on. We don’t want to be late.” She took in his fresh jeans and clean plaid shirt. “By the way, you clean up good.”

“I was cleaned up the first time you met me, remember?” he reminded her.

“Must have been what turned my head,” she joked.

At the front door, he turned and stared directly into her eyes. His were a swirl of stormy emotions.

“One thing before we leave.”

She lifted her chin. “What’s that? More conditions?”

“Uh uh. Just this.” He lowered his mouth to hers, the pressure soft at first and then increasing as he traced the seam of her lips with his mouth. “Open,” he murmured, and when she did, he thrust his tongue inside, tasting her, the contact so electric she felt it straight to her nipples and the inner walls of her pussy.

When he broke the kiss, she could only stare at him through glazed eyes.

“Wow.”

“From my side too.” He took her hand. “Let’s go and see if your friends are all you say they are.”

Which was how, thirty minutes later, she found herself sitting next to him at the Starks’s dining room table. Reenie had insisted on playing hostess, setting out snacks in the center of the table and pouring coffee and iced tea for everyone.

As if by silent agreement, all eyes turned to Dillon as the sheriff. If a law had been broken—and in this case that was an understatement—they acknowledged him as the person to take the lead.

“Okay, Mac.” He cleared his throat. “I think we all know the bare bones of the story by this time, being the usual nosy bunch that we are.”

His wife jabbed him with her elbow. “Speak for yourself. I’m not nosy, I’m just gathering news.”

“Yeah, whatever.” But he grinned at her. “In any event, could you tell us one more time, and be sure to put in every single detail you have. You never know what scrap of information will be the key to unlocking something.”

Nida sat quietly while Mac recited the facts of the accident. He was calm and stoic as he told the story yet again, including the aftermath and the cover-up. The fact that he reached for her hand and gripped it tightly the entire time told her just how tense he was. As he laid everything out, his grip on her hand grew tighter, but she never flinched. Instead, she gave an answering pressure to show him she was with him all the way.