Naked Heat: Naked Cowboys, Book 7 (9 page)

Her breathing became choppy and the clawing need scrabbled its way up from deep inside her.

“That’s it, darlin’. Yes, just like that. Pleasure yourself while I watch. Your pussy is getting so wet and pink, your clit so swollen. I couldn’t get it out of my mind after the other night, how sweet you tasted on my tongue, how that little bundle of nerves felt when I rolled my tongue around it. How good your juices tasted.”

“Mac.” She breathed the word as her climax spiraled its way up through her body.

“Yes, sugar. Make yourself feel good. Make yourself come.”

His words were all the trigger she needed. She erupted, planting her feet on the bed to lift her hips, rubbing her clit ferociously as spasms rocketed in her inner walls. She moved her hand to slide her fingers inside herself, needing something for those walls to grip. Mac brushed her fingers out of the way and instead pushed three of his own inside her. She clenched down on him, rocking on his hand, her own fingers still stroking and rubbing and pinching her clit until at last the shudders began to subside.

Sliding his fingers in and out of her slickness, he rode her through the last of her climax, peppering her tummy and the inside of her thighs with tiny kisses. Then very deliberately, he lifted his fingers to his mouth and licked them one at a time. The sight was so erotic her body flushed with heat. Without even thinking, she reached for her overstimulated clit again, catching her breath even as she was barely able to touch it.

Mac lifted her hand away from her body and proceeded to lick her fingers too. Then he crawled up so his face was a millimeter away from hers and took a slow swipe at her lips. Her tongue followed the path his had taken, allowing her to taste her own cream as she’d done the other day. It made her as hot now as it had then.

Mac’s cock was swollen and the head was a dark purple. She wanted to take him in her mouth again, but she was smart enough to sense he was too close to the edge. It amazed her how quickly they became aroused just by touching each other.

“You’re so wet,” he told her as he rolled the condom onto his shaft. “So ready for me. So responsive. I love that.”

His words were like magic to her, rousing her even more. She bent her knees and planted her feet on the bed, knees apart, ready to take him. But he surprised her, flipping her over onto her stomach and pulling her to her knees. He plumped pillows beneath her tummy to support her then arranged her so her legs were spread wide.

She tensed at first, wondering exactly what he had in mind. She had never done anal before. There had never been a man she’d felt comfortable enough with or cared enough about to share that particular intimacy. Even though they’d known each other for such a short time, the instant connection had bridged the gap of time. Still, she wanted at least a little warning. A little time to prepare.

When she felt his lips on her buttocks, soft kisses on each cheek, a shiver skated over her spine.

“Are you wondering if I want to take you back here?” His voice was soft and thick with need. “Well, I do, but not until you’re ready. Until we know each other’s bodies so well it’s a natural progression. But today—” he kissed each cheek again, “—today I want to take you from behind so I can plunge inside you even deeper.”

As he talked, he nudged her opening with the head of his cock. She could feel it pushing against her tissues and pressing slowly forward.

“That good with you?” He trailed little kisses down her spine as he pushed farther inside her.

“Yes.” She could barely get the word out. All she could do was feel his thickness driving into her, her slick walls easing his path, the breadth of him filling her more and more.

“That’s it, darlin’. Yes. You can take me.” He sucked in a breath. “Damn, you’re so fucking tight. I love how your pussy grabs my cock. It’s all I can do not to come the minute I’m inside you.”

His words were making her crazy, making her hotter and hotter. He kept it up as he worked into her deeper and deeper and then…there. He was all the way in, her walls snug around him.

And he began to move, slowly at first in and out, but as his cock swelled impossibly even more and she rocked her hips in tandem with his movements, he picked up the pace. In, out. Thrust, retreat. Hard, fast. And then they were doing that erotic tango that made everything around them fade away. Her entire being was concentrated on his cock inside her, on her body’s response. With each movement, his balls slapped against her thighs, adding another layer of stimulation.

And then all she knew was the intense orgasm roaring up from deep inside her, the need to explode, to take him with her, to grip him with her pussy and milk every drop from him. The climax came without warning, every cell in her body exploding. They throbbed and pulsed and shook as if they were one person. Inside her tight walls, his cock pulsed again and again as he emptied himself. The spasms went on and on, everything fading away except for the incredible orgasm that tossed them into space and spun them around until at last they fell spent, Mac’s arms cocooning her, his head resting on her back.

Nida was grateful for the pillows that supported her exhausted body because every muscle was limp as a piece of spaghetti. It was an effort even to drag air into her starving lungs. Mac balanced his weight on his forearms and his knees so she didn’t have to bear the full weight of him. His mouth touched her nape, pressing languid kisses to it and making her shiver even now. She was sure he was no more able to move than she was.

Nida had no idea how long they lay there like that. Mac was the first one to move, sliding his cock from her wet clasp with a sigh of regret.

“I kind of like lying like that with you,” he told her.

“Me too.” She gave a giddy little laugh. “But it might get uncomfortable after a while.”

He placed one last kiss on each globe of her ass. “I’ll bet I could think of something creative. Do you think you have enough energy to take a shower?”

“I’m not sure, but…” She paused. “Don’t freak out when I say this, but I think I want to go to sleep with your scent on me.”

He kissed her cheek. “I think that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me. Let me dispose of this condom and I’ll crawl in right beside you.”

When they were lying in bed in the dark, his arm around her, her head on his shoulder, she cleared her throat, hoping she wasn’t about to destroy the mood.

“Mac?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re right. Something good is starting here. I hope…”

“Hope what, darlin’?” She could tell he was just seconds from sleep.

“I know Dillon and the others will be able to find this terrible person who killed Alicia. Can you promise me you’ll let the law handle it when they do?”

His entire body tensed against her. “You mean the way they have so far?”

“Dillon is a different breed of cat. And he worked at SAPD for a long time. He knows the right people to give this to.”

“Nida—”

“Jinx can give it lots of publicity. She has contacts everywhere, not just here. She worked as a crime reporter in New York for a long time.” She placed her hand over his, the one cupping her breast. “Please, Mac. Don’t do something that you’ll regret for a long time.”

He took so long to answer her that she was sure he’d say no.

“I’ll do my best,” he said at last. “That’s all I can promise.”

She guessed she’d have to be satisfied with that, but a pervasive sense of unease gripped her and kept her awake long after Mac fell asleep.

Chapter Six

Nida slid into the big booth at Bit and Bite where Jinx, Charity, Georgie and Cyn waited for her.

“Amy and Reenie would have been here,” Jinx began, “but they had obligations they couldn’t get out of. Something involving both ranches, but I promised we’d give them whatever marching orders they need.”

“Please.” Nida flapped a hand at them. “I don’t expect everyone to turn their lives upside down for this. Neither does Mac.”

Cyn leaned forward on her forearms. “We’ve all had challenges that we’ve needed help with. You’re our friend, and now Mac is too. We want to do this.”

Emotion clogged Nida’s throat for a moment. “I don’t— Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“So.” Jinx picked up her cell and tapped on an icon. Text scrolled across the screen. “Matt and Cade got together and created a list of every wealthy rancher in Rowan County, everyone with enough power to close the lid on something like this.”

“And?” Nida asked eagerly.

“They narrowed it down to four. Dillon’s getting the analysis done on the paint chips Mac gave him, and he can use that to identify the type of vehicle.”

“Then it’s just a matter of us going through the DMV data base,” Charity put in, “and matching the car to one of those kids.”

“Do we even know how old this person is?” Nida asked. “I mean, are we talking about some teenager or a guy in his twenties or what.”

“Cade said the ones he’s thinking of are in their twenties.” Georgie sighed. “He said he knew every asshole from twenty to forty from when he was being one himself.” Her mouth curved in a tiny grin. “Now he says instead of being one, he wants to kick the shit out of those he sees.”

Nida laughed. “I’d pay to see that.”

“Anyway,” Georgie went on, “he and Matt really have their finger on everything in the county, and they came up with four really good candidates.”

“When will we know more?” Nida persisted.

“I’d say tomorrow,” Charity told her. “I know Dillon sent the paint chips to Austin for analysis the morning after he got them from Mac. Had one of the other deputies drive it up there.”

“Oh.” Nida was startled. “He didn’t have to do that. I mean, it’s not as if this thing is an active, open case right now.”

“Yes, but it’s going to be,” the other woman pointed out. “The sooner the better. He said they were really swamped but they’d get to it as quick as they could.”

Nida was aware that the smaller police and sheriff departments all used the forensics lab of the Texas Rangers for all but the most basic things. It was a lot more efficient than bearing the cost of setting up their own labs. But it meant that the lab in Austin was usually fully booked.

The conversation was put on hold while the waitress took their orders and brought them ice water. But then Jinx looked at her phone again.

“I also got with some of my contacts in San Antonio, not just at the
Express-News
but also at a couple of the television stations where they know me. They promised they’d get right on the story as soon as we have any kind of concrete evidence.”

“I’m not sure you should say anything to Mac just yet,” Cyn said. “It’s obvious he’s so on edge about this. With good reason, but you don’t want him to go off and do something unfortunate.”

Nida snorted. “You mean like start following all of these guys?”

“Exactly.”

“He talked to his parents again last night. He’s trying to be better about keeping in contact with them. And Alicia’s fiancé called while we were having dinner last night. I think he really wants to get together with Mac and talk about Alicia, but Mac sure isn’t ready for that yet.”

“I think we all felt his pain the other night,” Jinx told her. “If we can make this right, you know we will. Dillon is just pissed off, to be blunt about it, at how the cops in San Antonio allowed themselves to be manipulated. He was really proud of having worked there for ten years.”

“According to Mac’s source, the cops weren’t too happy about it either. But the word came straight from the mayor and a judge.”

“That really sucks.” Charity shook her head. “I know how I’d feel if someone had put me in that position.”

“So back to the question. What and when do we tell Mac? Nida, you’d be the best judge of that.”

She took a sip of her water. “If I had my druthers, I’d wait until the thing was all wrapped up, but that won’t do. Mac knows you guys are working on this, and I’m sure he’ll bug me the minute I see him today.”

“You can tell him we’re waiting on paint-sample analysis,” Charity said. “And then we have to go through the DMV. Lots of dangling string at the moment.”

Nida sighed. “I guess that’s the best I can do. I hope he won’t decide to do something crazy.” She smiled. “Well, let’s talk about something else for now. Who has any good gossip?”

Mac had bought a picnic table, so the two of them would have something to eat on when Nida brought lunch. That’s where they sat now, picking at the barbecue she’d brought for dinner.

“I’m trying not to bug Dillon,” he told her, “but the waiting isn’t very easy. Have you heard anything?”

“As a matter of fact, I have.” She wiped her fingers and her mouth and took a drink from her soda. Then she relayed the status of everything at the moment. “And they are all putting together a plan to right this wrong,” she continued. “He won’t get away with it any longer. I promise you.”

“I’d like to go camp out in Austin until they get an answer on that paint.” He took a swallow of his beer. “I’ll tell you, I’m getting antsier every day just waiting.”

“I know you are.” She reached across the table and closed one of her hands over his free one. “The waiting is the hardest thing. Just be assured everything is going as fast as possible. Once we can use the paint to identify the make of car, maybe even the model, they can move forward with everything else.”

“I hear you. It’s just that I’m about out of patience with the waiting.” He closed his fist around his drink. “You don’t know how much I want to get in my truck, drive around to every fucking ranch in this county and see who has a son living there that fits the profile.”

“You said yourself you didn’t get too far hanging out in redneck bars and trying to listen to gossip. I don’t think the other would get you anything either.”

“I just don’t know where to put all this rage.” His voice had a hard edge to it. “And there’s so much pain. I spoke to my folks again this morning, and that was difficult.”

“How are they doing?”

He shrugged. “As well as they can. My mother’s still having trouble coming to terms with it, and my dad is even angrier than I am, if that’s possible.”

“You haven’t been home to see them since you bought this place,” she reminded him.

“I know, I know.” He tilted his head back, swallowed the rest of his beer and then slammed the bottle down on the table. “What do I say to them? They expect me to find a way to make this right.”

“And you will. It won’t be much longer. Everyone’s doing their thing as fast as they can.”

He studied her face for so long Nida shifted uncomfortably. “Do I have dirt or sauce on my face or something?”

“No.” He gave her a half-smile. “I just keep asking myself why someone like you bothers with me. I carry a shitload of problems, and half the time I’m sure you want to swat me with a two by four.”

She chewed on her lip, her brain racing, trying to decide if she should tell him something. “When I say not to go off chasing this guy yourself, I have my reasons.”

“Are you going to tell me, so I’ll understand?”

She swallowed, hard. “I dated a guy for a long time. Problem was, he had a tendency to settle things with his fists. Oh, not on me,” she assured him quickly. “But I was always bailing him out of one scrape after another. He always claimed it was justified. But it seems to me smart people can find other ways to deal with things.”

“Even when they want to beat the bastard to a bloody pulp?”

“Even then.” She nodded. “Mac, if what we’re building here means anything to you, please listen to me and don’t do anything crazy. Will you promise?”

“I can promise that I’ll try.” He leaned forward, all trace of the smile gone. “I want this, Nida. Whatever this thing is between us. I want to take it wherever it’s supposed to go. It isn’t just sex. I like you. Even—”

“Don’t say it.” She reached across the table and touched her fingertips to his mouth. “Not now. I want this too. And when everything is resolved, we’ll be able to move forward.”

He wrapped his fingers around her wrist, holding her hand in place. “Just don’t give up on me, okay?”

She winked. “Not a chance. Just don’t you go off half-cocked.”

His mouth finally curved in a smile. “I think with you I’m fully cocked. All the time.”

She laughed. “That is definitely the truth.”

But later, driving back to her office, Nida had to keep reminding herself that Mac was riding the fine edge of self-control. If Dillon and the others didn’t come up with enough information and evidence for the police to move right away, she wasn’t sure what Mac would do. Or if she’d be able to keep him from doing something he’d be sorry for later on.

Late the next day, sitting in her office, Nida was still trying to figure out how to handle the situation with Mac. He’d been restless the night before, unable to sleep, and the sex had been less than satisfactory, unusual for them. He was strung so tight that she was sure any little thing would send him off on his vendetta. She had just picked up her cell to call him when Dillon burst into her office.

“I’ve got good news and bad news,” he told her, tension lining his face.

“You identified the car but you can’t find the guy,” she guessed.

“Worse than that.” He tilted his hat back on his head and leaned one hip on her desk. “Charity did a search in the DMV database, and we found out who it is. The paint’s an unusual color, a custom job for a fancy truck.”

“So then what’s next? Can’t you pick him up for questioning?”

“It’s not quite that simple. The accident didn’t happen in our jurisdiction, and when I called the SAPD and got hold of one of my old friends, he told me this is a hot-potato situation.”

Nida gave him an angry stare. “You can’t let this just go away. Dillon, you have to do something.”

“I am. I have some things cooking, and Jinx is going to give this guy a hell of a publicity campaign. She’s calling in favors with the media in the city to work with her on this.”

“And they aren’t afraid of the same political clout?”

“Nida, did you ever try to silence the media? You’ll end up in jail or in front of the Supreme Court.”

She frowned. “So what’s the bad news?”

“Mac happened to be in my office when all the information hit my desk. He walked in just as Charity was telling me who the guy was and that he was currently in San Antonio.”

“Damn it, Dillon.” Nida closed the file on her computer and swiveled in her chair. “Who is it, anyway?”

Dillon sighed. “Dale Richmond. His father, Ray Richmond, owns the Double R Ranch and probably half of the San Antonio metro area. He’s supported campaigns of everyone from judges to the city mayor to who knows who else. The kid’s been in trouble since before I took over as sheriff and probably before that.”

“How old is he?” Nida wanted to know. “Is he a teenager?”

“Hell, no. He’s twenty-seven. Old enough to know better. His daddy thinks he hung the moon and sees him as a chip off the old block.” He shook his head. “Unfortunately, he’s probably right. Kid learned early on how to throw his weight around.”

“Dillon, we have to find Mac. Lord only knows where he’s gone to.”

“San Antonio’s a big place. I’ll have to do some digging to find out if the kid has any usual hangouts.” He stood and resettled his hat on his head. “I just wanted to give you a heads up and remind you to let me know the minute you hear from him. If you do.”

“Don’t worry. That’s what I plan to do. I just hope…” Her voice trailed off.

“We all do, Nida. We all do.”

Cyn came by the office and insisted Nida come home with her. Much as she didn’t want to, she wanted to be alone even less. It was a lot easier being on edge when someone was with you. Especially if they poured you chilled white wine.

Jesse, Cyn’s husband, treated her like an honored guest and then left the two women to be by themselves.

“I’d be a third wheel in this group.” He grinned.

She was sitting in their living room working on her second glass of wine when her cell phone rang. Hoping it was Mac, instead she saw Dillon’s name.

God, I hope this is good news.

“I don’t want you to get upset,” he began.

“Dillon, I just hate it when people start out a conversation that way. It guarantees I’ll get upset all over the place. Just let me have it. Did you find Mac?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

Her stomach knotted. “Please explain. And don’t sugarcoat anything.”

“All right.” She heard his sigh over the connection. “A friend of mine from the SAPD called me. Said he had someone I know there that I probably needed to come get.”

Nida thought for a moment her heart would stop. “He’s in jail?”

“Seems so. Apparently, after he lit out of my office with the name, he went looking for the guy. He saw him leaving the ranch and trailed him into the city.”

“To do what?” Nida asked.

“Followed him into a bar, went right up to him, started swearing at him. The kid swore back and next thing everyone knew fists were flying and there were bloody noses. The bar owner called the cops and they hauled both of them in, both still screaming at the top of their lungs. Dale Richmond’s daddy came and bailed him out but they stuck Mac in a cell. When he cooled down, they asked him if he wanted them to call anyone and he gave them my name.”

“Oh, Mac.” She could hardly breathe. “How long will he have to stay there?”

“I’m on my way to get him now. I just wanted to give you a heads up.”

“I thank you for that.” She chewed her bottom lip. “Listen, can you get him to agree not to come looking for me right away? Please?”

“He might be too ashamed to see you,” Dillon pointed out.