Healing a Cowboy's Heart (Cowboy Dreamin' 2) (23 page)

The
little quirk of his lips made her heart race. “I hope so.” She leaned over to
kiss the tattoo. “I love how you have Ben’s name on your back.”

“He’s
my life.” He rolled over and pulled her into his arms so her head rested on his
chest. “Now, you’re my life too.”

“I
know, Jeff.”

He
kissed the top of her head as he trailed a fingertip down her arm. “You know. I
don’t know much about you at all.
Family?
Where do
your parents live?”

“South
of Houston.
Santa Fe actually.”

“Siblings?”

“One
brother.”

“Will
it be strange for you to be a part of such a big family?”

She
laughed, propping herself up on her elbow to look into his eyes. “Are you
kidding me? I’ve always wanted to have more brothers or sisters, but my mom got
cervical cancer and had to have a complete hysterectomy.”

“I
hope she’s okay now.”

“She
is. She’s been cancer free for ten years. I count every day with her as a
blessing.”

“I
bet.”

She
laid her head back on his chest.

“Where
were you born?”

“Houston.
I’ve lived there all my life. Santa Fe is just south of Houston.”

“What’s
your favorite color?”

“Blue.
What about you?”

“Green.”

“You
aren’t saying that because my eyes are green, are you?”

“They
are? I hadn’t noticed.”

She
punched him in the side before he rolled her over onto her back and straddled
her hips. She didn’t even have time to blink. The scruff on his cheeks
deliciously abraded her skin as he kissed her neck, across her shoulder and
then scooted down to nuzzle her breast.

“I
want your ass, Terri.”

His
lips on her nipple made her shiver. Goose bumps flittered across her body in a
wave, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.
“Like
smacking it or what?”

“No,
I wanna fuck it.” His words sounded muffled against the skin of her breast.

Her
nipple hardened under the rough slide of his tongue. “Did you say you want to
fuck it?”

He
lifted his head as his eyes seemed to dance with the flame of need.
“Yeah.
Will you let me?”

“If
you promise to make sure things are well lubed. I’ve never had a man there
before.”

“Sure,
baby. I would never do anything to hurt you. I’ll make sure you’re so excited,
you’ll beg me.”

She
giggled. “Beg, huh?” Nerves wracked her body, but she trusted Jeff. She loved
him so if he wanted to do her ass, she’d work with it.

“Oh
yeah.”

His
hand slipped down her abdomen to play in the curls at the juncture of her
thighs. “Open for me.”

She
spread her legs as she
sighed
her pleasure when his
fingers pushed inside her pussy.
God, I
love this man more than life itself.
“Please.”

“Please
what?”

“More.”

He
quickly spun around into a sixty-nine position before he slid his lips down her
body, stopping momentarily to flick his tongue around her belly button before
continuing down to bury his face between her thighs. She cupped his balls,
rolling the hard little nuggets between her fingers. He moaned deep in his
throat. The sound reverberated against her skin.

The
rough pad of his tongue felt like heaven on her swollen, heated tissues. At the
rate he was eating her
out,
she wouldn’t last long
before she came undone in a high scream loud enough to wake the neighbors.
“God, Jeff.”

He
shoved two fingers deep inside her and pumped the digits until she felt her
pussy clamp down on them. Her wail of ecstasy sounded primal with need. Never
mind she’d already had this man twice the night before.

One
finger spread the juices from her pussy to her ass. She shivered as he slowly
pushed one finger past the ring of muscles. The intrusion burned slightly, but
wasn’t completely unpleasant. His tongue made a return trip to her clit,
flicking the distended button back and forth until she felt on fire again.

“Easy,
baby.”

“Feels
weird.”

“Weird
good or weird bad?”

“Good.”

He
pushed two fingers inside her ass as she hissed at the burn.

“You
okay?”

“Yeah.
Burns a little.”

The
slow crawl of his fingers soothed the ache, but also brought it higher at the
same time. A different need took its place.

“Do
you happen to have some lube around?”

“Yeah,
in my nightstand.
I needed it sometimes before. I kind of
get dry.”

“You
ain’t
dry
with me, sweetheart.” He spread more of her
juices around her clit. “You’re soaking wet.”

“Because
you wind me up so much, I can’t wait to get you inside me.”

He
removed his fingers and turned so he was positioned between her legs. She
tensed up.
“Easy, darlin’.
We won’t do anything
without lube.” He grabbed the tube from her drawer and placed it on the bed
beside them. “I’m gonna fuck your pussy a little before we move on. I love to
feel you squeeze me.”

“Oh
yeah.”
Her words came out in a soft purr as he pushed his
length inside her. No condom.
“Uh, Jeff?”

“Yeah,
babe?”

“Did
you forget a condom?”

“Do
we need one?”

“I’m
not on birth control. I haven’t been active with anyone in a long time so I
didn’t need it. What if we get pregnant?”

“Do
you want to?”

She
smoothed his hair back from his forehead. “I’ve love to have a baby with you,
but we haven’t really talked about the future of this relationship yet.”

“I
want you with me.”

“I
know you do. I love you and I really believe you love me too, but what happens
next?”

He
shifted his hips. “Can we talk about this after we’re done?”

“No.”
She moved so his cock wasn’t penetrating her anymore. “We need to talk about
this now.”

“Fuck.”

“Do
you love me?”

“Yes.”

“Say
it.”

“I
love you, Terri. I told you that before.”

“So
what are your plans for our future?”

“I
don’t know. I thought you’d move back to the ranch with me. We can be a
family.”

“Do
you ever plan to marry me?”

“Marriage?
Wait a minute.”

“That’s
what I thought.” She pushed against his chest until she could slide out from
under him. “I think you need to leave.”

“Leave?
I’m not leaving.”

“Yes,
you are. Go back to the ranch or whatever. I don’t care.”

“I
thought you said you loved me?”

“I
do, Jeff. I love you with all my heart, but I’m not shacking up with you until
hell freezes over because you’re scared to get married again or live in a long
term relationship with the intention of marriage at some point.”

He
jumped to his feet, grabbed his pants and then shoved his legs into them. “So
this is all to get a marriage proposal out of me?”

“Fuck
off!”

His
chest rose and fell with his rapid breaths.
A sheen
of
sweat coated his upper lip. The man was in full panic attack mode at just the
thought of getting married. “I ain’t
leavin
’ until we
talk about this.”

“There’s
nothing to talk about.”

“Come
on, Terri. I love you. Isn’t that enough?”

“No,
it’s not, Jeff. I’m sorry, but it’s not. I want to get married someday. Have a
family. Raise my kids with the man who helped me produce them. I’m not going
anywhere. You don’t trust me.”

“Yes,
I do.”

“No,
not really.
You say you love me, but the trust
isn’t there.”

“What
can I do to change your mind about this?”

“Ask
me to marry you.”

“I
can’t.” He threw up his hands and let them fall. Dejection clouded his eyes.

“I
know,” she whispered in a tearful voice.
Am
I doing the right thing? What if he walks away and never comes back? What if I
never see him again?
A twenty pound lump clogged her throat. She slipped on
her bathrobe, uncomfortable now with her nakedness in front of him.

He
raked his fingers through his hair. “This isn’t over.”

She
glanced at the ceiling as she pressed her lips together to keep from telling
him it didn’t matter, when in truth it mattered a great deal.

Chapter
Fourteen

Jeff
pulled his parent’s truck into the driveway of the ranch, hit the gate button
on the visor and sighed. What the hell went wrong? He loved Terri, but here he
was returning to the ranch without her. This whole thing seemed totally fucked
up.

“Daddy!”
Ben raced from the door of the main house toward the truck as Jeff put it into
park.

Nina
followed closely on his heels, but her lips turned down in a frown when she saw
the passenger side of the truck was empty. “Is Terri following you in her car?”
she asked as he stepped out and shut the door.

“No,
Mom.”

“What
happened?”

“I
can’t talk about it right now.”

“Yes,
you can and you will.” She hollered toward the barn for his father who poked
his head out of the double doors. “Can you take Ben please? I need to have a
chat with our son.”

“Uh-oh.
You in trouble, Daddy?”

“I
guess so, buddy. Go on with Granddad.”

Ben
raced across the yard as fast as his little legs would carry him.

“Come
with me.”

Apparently
he was in for the talking to of his life with his mom and he couldn’t bring up
the feelings to care. He’d left his heart in Houston, but he wasn’t sure what
the hell to do about it. Marry Terri? His stomach rolled at the thought.
Not that he didn’t want to be with her.
He did.
More than anything, but marriage?
Tied down to her for the
rest of his life? What if she turned out to be like Misha? What if she cheated
on him?

“Now,”
his mother said, pointing to the chair in her office for him to sit. “What is
this all about?”

“Terri
told me to leave.”

“Well
you spent the night with her last night, right?”

“Yeah.”
He raked his fingers through his hair, knocking off his hat in the process. “I
don’t get her, Ma.”

“You
love her, right?”

“Yeah
and she said she loves me.”

“Then
what is the problem here?”

“She
wants a marriage proposal.”

“And?”
His mother had a look of
are you stupid
or what
on her face.

“I
can’t do it, Ma. I won’t. What if somethin’ happens again?”

“So
what.
Jeffery,” she clasped his hands between hers,
“honey, you’re in love with her. She’s in love with you. Marriage is the next
logical step. You can’t live your life worrying about if it’s going to fall
apart, sweetheart. You’ll be miserable for the rest of your life if you do. Do
you seriously want to let the hell Misha put you through ruin your future?”

“No.”

“You
have to move on. Terri is your future.
The future for you and
Ben.”
She ran one hand down his cheek and came away with wet fingers.
“You’ll be miserable without her. Don’t you trust her?”

“I’m
not sure.”

“Why
are you crying?”

“Because
I miss her.
I need her with me.”

“You’ll
have to get over this fear you have then. I don’t think she’s going to settle
for anything besides a marriage proposal from you.” She patted his hand. “Take
a few days to think about it, son. I think you’ll come to the same conclusion I
have.”

She
walked out leaving him with his thoughts. Everything seemed jumbled and out of
focus. His life was up in the air all of the sudden. Yes, he still had his job
on the ranch. The future of the ranch appeared secure thanks to Terri. His
heart would never be the same without her in his life.