Long Hard Ride (31 page)

Channing ran.

He caught her on his right side and hauled her against him. Colby kissed her, not like he wanted to devour her, but with pureness.

Gentleness. With his heart and soul wide open. Like he was giving them a memory to reflect on for the next sixty years when they looked back on this moment. She drank him in and filled him back up, sharing, drowning in everything they freely gave to each other.

She buried her face in his shirt, inhaling the warm intimate scent of him. “I missed you, Colby. God. I was so worried about you.”

“You were?”

“Yeah. I wanted to die when you got hurt. And in the hospital I realized I would wither and die if I didn’t have you in my life.”

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“So that’s why you left me?”

Channing butted her head against his stubborn chin. “Temporarily. I had things to get straight in my own life first. And you had other things to worry about than me. We both know you wouldn’t have wanted me around those first few weeks while you were recovering.”

“True. I’ve been grumpier than an old bear. Been in a lot of pain.

Been kind of an ass to everyone, if you wanna know the truth. But a big part of that was because I didn’t know where you were, shug.”

“I’ve been here. Waiting for you.”

Colby’s big, gentle hand shook as he wiped away her tears. “You know I would’ve been here sooner, had I known? Nothin’ would’ve kept me from you, Channing.”

Channing kissed his palm.

“So whatcha been doin here the last six weeks?”

“Learning how to ride a horse. Learning how to take care of livestock.

Learning how to cook. Learning everything I can about life on a ranch.”

“Why?”

Her eyes twinkled. “See, I’ve got my eye on this hot ranching cowboy…”

Colby grinned. Dimple and all.

She melted.

“Yeah? Well, there are a couple of things expected of a proper ranch wife that Gemma can’t teach you.” He frowned. “At least, I hope to hell she ain’t been tryin’.”

“You’re the only man for the job.”

“Always. Forever and ever amen. I don’t share what’s mine.”

“You made that crystal clear a couple of times.” Channing looked him dead in the eye. “I love you, Colby McKay.”

“I know.”

Her jaw dropped.

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Lorelei James

Colby closed it with his finger and kissed her. “You told me once, and it was enough to stick in my head forever. Although, it kinda seemed like a dream, but I remember you comin’ to see me in the hospital. I heard what you said. It’s what got me through, the idea that a sweet, sexy, sophisticated woman like you loved a roughneck like me. Loved me enough to tell me you’d be waitin’ for me. No matter what.” He brought the back of her hand to his mouth. “I’d get on one knee, but I’m still pretty beat up. So I’m just gonna ask you outright. Will you marry me, Channing Kinkaid?”

Without hesitation she blurted, “Yes!”

“Hot damn.” He readied his crutches. “Get in the truck. You’re drivin’.

We’re goin’ to the preacher right now before you change your mind. Then I’m takin’ you home where you belong.”

She almost forgot her list of demands after Colby said
home where
you belong
. But this was too important. “Ah-ah. Hold it right there. If I take you on, there’ll be conditions.”

His eyes narrowed. “Should I be afraid of these conditions?”

“Maybe.” Channing grinned. “One: You’ll be in my bed. Every night.

No boring, once a week missionary style vanilla sex. I expect you and I will both work to keep our sex life as hot and titillating as it has been.”

“Titillatin’, huh?” He grinned. “I’m down with that.”

“Two: I wanna have kids. Lots of kids. But not right away. I want you all to myself for awhile.”

“Same goes, shug.”

“Three: Between you still recovering from your injury and me being a novice at living on a ranch, we’ll have to be patient with each other. Your family will have to be patient with me. I’ve been an outsider in my own family for my whole life, Colby. I don’t want to be an outsider in yours, too.”

Colby leaned on his crutches and stared directly into her eyes. “You are my family now. Besides, Mama already loves you because I told her all about you.”

Channing didn’t have to feign surprise. “You did?”

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“Yep. And she’s gonna kick my dad’s butt when she finds about him not tellin’ me that you called, ‘cause she knows how I’ve been pining by the phone waitin’ to hear from you.” He smiled evilly. “So I think I’ll let her handle him. She can punish him way worse than I ever could.”

“Good. Because I’m in for the long haul. I don’t want little picky stuff to tear us apart when the big picture is so promising.” She smoothed her fingers along the dogged set of his jaw. “Any questions?”

Colby kissed the inside of her wrist. “One.”

“Shoot.”

“Is this where I tell you I love you?”

Channing’s eyes filled with tears and she nodded.

“I love you, Channing Kinkaid. You make me the luckiest, happiest man in the world. Life on the ranch ain’t always gonna be rainbows and butterflies and the heart-poundin’ excitement of rodeo, but dammit, it will be
our
life. I’ll spend every wakin’ hour makin’ sure our life together fulfills your every fantasy.”

Deliriously happy, she snagged his hat and plopped it on her head.

“Is this where we ride off into the sunset, cowboy?”

“Yep.” Colby kissed her. Long. And hard. “I’d much rather ride you, but hey, I can adapt to anything you throw my way.”

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About the Author

To learn more about Lorelei James, please visit

www.loreleijames.com. Send an email to
[email protected]
or join her Yahoo! group to join in the fun with other readers as well as Lorelei.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LoreleiJamesGang

Look for these titles by Lorelei James
Now Available:

Dirty Deeds

Running with the Devil

Beginnings Anthology: Babe in the Woods
Coming Soon:

Running on Empty

Friendship crosses boundaries and love becomes a triangle. Can Jana
learn to trust—through submission?

Lisa’s Gift

© 2007 Mackenzie McKade

When opportunity knocks, Jana Ryan knows it’s time to face her demons and return to the city she ran fast and far away from. Her homecoming isn’t exactly what she expects—she finds Lisa, her best friend, in a rather erotic position with the one man Jana has dreamt of since high school.

The redheaded beauty is everything Lisa promised Nicolas Marchetti.

Jana is sexy and exquisite and he can’t wait to sexually dominate both women. The triangle with the gorgeous redhead and beautiful blonde is every man’s fantasy. Yet there’s something about Jana that makes him want her and her alone. His attraction to her is unsettling—it goes beyond the physical.

Only by conquering the trials ahead of them, can Jana and Nicolas find their way into each other’s arms. Forever.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Lisa’s Gift:
Jana glanced back at Nicolas. He was staring at her. “What?”

“Do you want me to tell you what I see in you?” From the hungry look on his face she would rather not.

“No.”

Again, he leaned back in the booth. That mischievous grin she remembered back when she used to watch him with his friends slipped across his face. “Scared?”

Hell
yes
she was scared. She had always wanted this man. The years hadn’t changed anything. “Not interested.” She played indifferent,

reaching for her wine and taking a sip. Then she released a heavy sigh to drive the point home.

A light danced across his features as his grin grew. “Liar.”

“Whatever.” She brushed him off with a tilt of her head. But if she thought that her impassive behavior was going to stop him, she should have thought again as she took another drink of her wine.

“You are scared—scared of the attraction between us.”

When his foot slid up her leg, Jana choked on the alcohol that chose that moment to go down the wrong way. Air. She needed air as her windpipe closed.

Within a heartbeat, Nicolas was by her side. “Gentle breaths.” He patted her back. “One and then another.”

I’m dying
. She wheezed in a breath that went nowhere. She inhaled again, making a rather unbecoming sound like a cross between a snore and an asthmatic attack. The whole time Nicolas was there, talking, touching her softly.

It took a moment, but finally Jana could breathe again. Her eyes were misty and nose running as she excused herself and hurried toward the bathroom.

What the fuck!
She leaned against the counter and stared at herself in the mirror. It was no mistake that Nicolas was coming on to her. And there was no mistake that Lisa didn’t mind. How Jana wished she could deny that he made her body burn. She had fantasized about being with him since she was just a teenager. What would it be like to make love to Nicolas Marchetti?

She couldn’t—could she?

Nah
… She shook her head. It would be weird. He was Lisa’s boyfriend. But the fact was, she needed to feel the touch of a man. She wanted to find someone to love.

Nicolas just wasn’t the man for her.

Jana grabbed a tissue, dabbed her eyes, then blew her nose with a loud snort.

She needed a plan to get through dinner and then go home alone.

Concerned, Nicolas watched the bathroom door, and was relieved once Jana exited. He stood as she approached. Her eyes were swollen, her adorable nose red. “Are you okay?”

“Fine.” Sitting at one end of the crescent-shaped booth, she refused to scoot over, forcing him to sit at the other side. “The wine just went down the wrong pipe.” Picking up her glass, she hesitated then set it back down.

He slid clear around on the semi-circular seat until he was within touching distance from her. Her mouth went dry. She glanced at him, feeling her palms start to sweat.

The salad had arrived in her absence, and he busied himself tossing it, mixing the dressing and cheese, before placing a generous helping on her plate.

When he attempted eye contact she glanced away. She had grown distant, not that she had previously been warm by a long shot. He was back at ground zero.

Serving himself a heap of salad, he picked up his fork. “Where were we? Ah… Yes. I was just about to tell you what I see in you.”

“I wish you wouldn’t,” she said, looking down into her plate as she stabbed at a piece of lettuce.

“Strength,” he offered the single word.

Her head shot up. “
Strength?
” Their eyes met and he felt her surprise.

Obviously she’d expected something superficial. Like how her eyes sparkled beneath the light like two crystals, or perhaps how silky her hair looked draped across her shoulders like a red curtain.

The salad was good, fresh and crisp, the dressing not too tart he noticed as he took a bite. He would have to remember to compliment Antonio later tonight.

Nicolas let her think about what he said before he continued. “Look at what you have achieved in such a short period of time.” He picked up the basket the waiter had set before them and offered her a breadstick, but she shook her head. “You’ve been alone since you were eighteen.

Moved to a different state. Started a new life where you had no friends or family to rely on. You have a college degree and have a brilliant career ahead of you. How many people can say that?”

A warm sensation filled him when she smiled. “A lot of people have degrees.”

“True. But not all of them have put themselves through school,” he countered taking a sip of his wine.

She stabbed another piece of lettuce with her fork, but didn’t put it in her mouth. Instead she shrugged. “I was given a scholarship.”

“You earned that scholarship. Even so you did this by yourself—

alone.” He placed his hand over hers. “Jana, Lisa says you are a strong, beautiful person. I know she’s right.”

A soft expression fell across her once-tight features as she extracted her hand. “Thank you.” She grinned, dropping her gaze once again to her salad plate.

“What?”

Continuing to smile, she met his eyes. “You’re not exactly what I thought you were.”

He pulled his brows together. “What did you think I was?”

“Well, arrogant for one.”

Nicolas feigned surprise as he flinched at her words.

She giggled, the sound like bells swaying in the breeze. “Superficial and a whoremonger.”

He pressed his palms to his heart. “I’m hurt.”

“As if,” she said. Her eyes danced with laughter for the first time that night.

“Well perhaps whoremonger is accurate, because I sure want to taste your lips right now.” An ache began between his thighs, tightening and pressing against his black slacks. His sight was riveted on her full lips.

How soft would they be against his? Would she whimper softly beneath his attack?

“Nicolas. I’m sorry, but I’m simply not attracted to you.” She swallowed hard, giving away the fact she lied. “If I’ve done anything to mislead you, I apologize.” Her hands left the table.

It was a challenge he couldn’t ignore.

“The thought of me pressing my lips to yours, of my tongue delving between them doesn’t make your nipples hard?” He waited only briefly before saying, “Tell me your breasts aren’t heavy. That a slight tingle hasn’t begun slowly filtering through them, aching for me to stroke them? Place my hot…wet…mouth on them?”

He trapped her gaze with his and paused. “Tell me you’re not moist just thinking of how my hands would feel caressing your body, stroking the flame that burns in your belly, building it into a raging wildfire.

Because that’s exactly what I would do to you.”

With his last words her eyelashes lowered halfway, the thick fringe hiding how her eyes had grown steamy. The increased rise and fall of her chest was a dead giveaway that he had aroused her.