Stone Cold Cowboy (19 page)

R
ory sat up and swung his legs off the couch. He planted his feet on the floor and raked his fingers through his hair, remembering that he needed to get a haircut. Though maybe he'd leave it alone. Sadie sure did like running her fingers through it.

Sadie. Where the hell was she? After what they shared last night, he couldn't believe she'd leave without a word.

“Hey, man, you're up,” Colt said, walking in from the kitchen.

“Where is she?”

“When I came down this morning, she was sleeping on top of you. I hated to wake her. Looks like she didn't get much sleep last night.” Colt wiggled his eyebrows, suggesting without words that Rory had kept her up late last night. He had, but he wasn't about to give Colt the details, or let on that he was right.

“We had coffee together, then she went out for a ride.”

He imagined Sadie sitting at the breakfast table across from Colt wearing nothing but her thin white tank nightgown and nothing on under it. “And did you get an eyeful of her in her nightgown this morning?”

Colt held up his hands. “No. She ran upstairs, showered and changed, and came back down fully dressed and covered while I made the coffee. Chill, okay.”

“Sorry.”

“She's like my sister, man. Get a grip.”

Rory stood and stared at his brother. “You mean that? You think of her like a sister?”

“She's your girl. It's not hard to see how much you love her. I figure it's only a matter of time before you make her a part of the family officially and all.”

“Did you finally ask Sadie to marry you?” Ford asked, coming down the stairs.

“Finally?” Rory couldn't believe his brothers' acceptance of his relationship with Sadie, though why he was surprised, he didn't know. They'd given him grief about other women he'd dated. Women they didn't particularly like. They seemed to take to Sadie right away.

“You've been staring at that girl from a distance for years,” Ford said, like it was common knowledge.

“How the hell do you know that?”

“Every time we go to the diner we sit across the room from her section. You sit with your back to the windows so the only view you see is her. The question is, why did you wait so long to ask her out?”

“She's a lot younger than me,” he pointed out the obvious.

Colt and Ford stared at him with nothing to say.

“Colt went to school with her. I didn't know her at all.”

“I never dated her, man. I hardly spoke to her at school growing up. She took care of her family, worked, and kept her head down in class. She was brainy, not exactly the party girl I went for back then.”

“Back then,” Rory and Ford said in unison.

“Shut up.”

“So let me get this straight, you two are fine with me asking her to marry me after only the short time we've been seeing each other.”

“Intense situations lead to intense relationships,” Ford said. “You love her. She makes you happy. That's good enough for me.”

“That's all we want for you,” Colt added. “You smile when she's around. You laugh.”

“You're like the guy you used to be before Mom and Dad died,” Ford added.

“Did you get her pregnant?” Grandpa Sammy asked, standing in the open office doorway.

“No.” Rory let his outrage show and scowled at his granddad. “But that would probably please you to no end. All you talk about is getting a great-grandbaby from all of us.”

“I want you settled with loving wives and kids, but you better do it right. You marry her, then have a family. When she's ready,” he added. “Women choose those things. You get all the fun, but they do all the work.”

“Trust me, she'll have fun, too,” Rory said, in a rare show of humor. His brothers were right; he did let loose more since he'd met her.

“What will I have fun doing?” Sadie walked in behind Colt and stared at Rory.

Rory, along with his brothers and granddad, startled.

“Are you blushing?” Sadie asked him, scanning him and the others, her eyes narrowing. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Nothing.” Maybe he said that too quickly.

She frowned and pressed her lips together, a blush blooming on her already rosy cheeks from her ride in the cool morning air.

“How are you this morning, pretty girl?” His granddad drew her attention.

Sadie's sharp gaze hadn't left Rory's. “I'm fine, thank you. The ride was exactly what I needed.”

Colt coughed to cover a laugh. Ford turned his head to hide a smile. After all, they had been talking about him riding Sadie and getting her pregnant.

“I have stalls to clean.” Colt bolted for the back door.

“I'll help.” Ford followed Colt out.

“If there's anything you need, pretty girl, just let us know. We're here to help.”

“Thank you, Sammy. I appreciate it.” The words she spoke didn't match the angry look in her eyes she cast Rory's way.

“I've got business in town.” Granddad walked away to get his keys from the hook in the kitchen.

Sadie waited for the back door to close before she said anything. “Did you tell them we slept together?”

“We didn't sleep together.”

“That's not what I asked.”

“Why the hell would I tell them anything about what you and I do together in private?”

“It seems to me that when I walked in you were discussing sleeping with me.”

“We were, but not in the way you think.” He couldn't tell her they were talking about him marrying her, that his brothers and granddad expected and accepted it. Those two things meant the world to him, but he and Sadie weren't there yet. He wanted them to be, but rushing her could backfire. He needed more time to forge
a stronger bond. He needed to know that she wanted a life with him. Forever.

She folded her arms across her chest, pushing her breasts up. “Rory, what is going on?”

“I'm sorry. I'm not explaining well enough.”

“You haven't explained anything. Why would you talk to them about sleeping with me?”

“I wasn't. I didn't. My grandfather reminded us, me, that I need to be responsible and do the right thing always for you.”

Her gaze softened, but not by much. “Don't you think you guys are a little old to be getting the talk?”

Rory shook his head, smiling at how ridiculous this conversation had become when all he wanted to do was kiss her good morning and savor his memories of what they shared last night. “Trust me, we got it a long time ago. Granddad has been harping on us for the past year to settle down and start a family before he dies.”

Her hands fell back to her sides and alarm replaced the perturbed look in her eyes. “Is he not well?” The concern in her voice touched him.

“He's fine. But he's getting older and wants to see his boys happy and not alone like he's been these last thirty years.”

“That's a long time.”

“I'm not saying he didn't step out with a lady now and again. Always discreetly, you see, because he had three boys to raise.”

“So he wants you married with babies.”

“Yeah.”

“That's kind of sweet. He loves you and wants you to be happy.”

“What about you?” he asked, hoping to somehow feel her out about marriage and children.

“I want those things, too. With the right person, because when I make a promise like that, it will be forever.”

Her gaze never left his.

“Anyone in particular you see yourself with forever?” he asked boldly.

She closed the distance between them, wrapped her arms around his neck, and went up on tiptoe. “Except for the whole you-and-your-family-talking-about-me-behind-my-back, you're looking real good this morning.” Her lips brushed his in a soft kiss. She smelled of horses and grass from her ride.

“I hated waking up without you this morning.” He traced his finger over her soft cheek and kissed the tip of her nose.

“I hated to leave you. You are so sexy when you're asleep, but your brother caught us and I didn't want the rest of your family seeing me lying on top of you.”

“Why? They don't seem to care. In fact, they really like you. They actually expect you to stay here with me.”

“Well, I like them, too. It's nice here. It feels like a family.” The kind of family she'd had a long time ago, too many years and bad days ago to remember if it was real or imagined now.

Rory wanted to give her the family she hoped for and wanted, the happy life she deserved. “You're a part of it now, you know?”

“I want to be.”

Not a definite
Yes, I am
. So, maybe she was still on the fence. He'd give her time. She'd settle her father's
affairs and he'd keep her close and show her that he meant to remain by her side. Forever, like she wanted.

“So what's with your brothers?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, if your grandfather wants you all happily married, why does Colt act like he murdered someone every time Luna's name comes up? I asked her about it, but she's uncharacteristically close-lipped about him.”

“You said Colt used to be friends with Luna's ex. Whatever happened between them, it wasn't good.”

“And Ford. He watches the TV news about the war like he's missing something and will only find it in those bombed-out towns.”

“The girl he dated after high school joined the army and left him. I never thought about it, or saw what you see, but maybe he's looking for her.”

“Those two may not admit it, especially to your grandfather, but they want something lasting and permanent.”

“Maybe seeing me with you has made them look back at their lives and the women they've known and wonder what might have been.”

“Or what could be,” she suggested. “Maybe we should set up a double date with me and you, and Colt and Luna.”

“I don't want them interfering in our relationship, so I'm not getting involved in Colt's life. They can get their own girls. After all we've been through, I'm ready to focus on you and me and some normal, drama-free days together.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes.”

“Well okay then.”

“Good, now come here and kiss me good morning.”

She looked behind her.

“We're alone. All they want is you and me together.”

She walked into his arms and smiled up at him. “Is that right?”

“Yes. Now about last night.”

“What about it?”

“That thing you did . . .”

She flushed pink to the roots of her hair.

“You are so pretty when you blush.”

“You didn't like that thing I did. It was too much. Too soon. I didn't do it the way you liked—”

He cut her off with a long deep kiss that took her breath away. His tongue slid along hers in an urgent sweep. She went up on tiptoe and pressed her body against his, her softness crushed against all those hard muscles as his arms contracted around her. He broke the kiss, sucking in a deep breath, and pressing his forehead to hers. His hazel eyes held a depth of need that matched her own.

“I've never done that thing, so if I did it wrong—”

He cut her off with another kiss, this time softer, more coaxing. She settled into him again, trying to relax and let her nerves go. She didn't have a lot of experience with other guys. She hated to think she'd done something he didn't like, or that he thought was too forward. The last thing she wanted to do was give him the wrong idea about her. Rory had a deep sense of family, responsibility, duty, and honor. She loved those things about him and didn't want to do or say anything that made him think less of her.

Rory pressed another soft kiss to her lips. His hand came up, his fingers softly brushing against her
cheek. He leaned back just enough to look down into her eyes.

“Damn, sweetheart, I really can't get enough of you.” He brushed his fingers through her hair. “You are and were perfect. Have mercy on me if you decide you want to practice and repeat what we did last night.”

The blush intensified, heating her cheeks and ears. “Rory . . .”

His finger settled beneath her chin to prevent her from looking away. “What we share in private is just that, Sadie. Private. You never have to be embarrassed or nervous or hold back. I don't want you to. I want exactly what we had last night. You and me completely lost in each other and the way we make each other feel.”

“I'm sorry. I thought you thought I was—”

“Kind. Generous. Unbelievably amazing.” Rory slid his hands down her back and over her round bottom, pulling her snug against him. He held her there, trapped in his embrace, a soft smile on his lips. “What I was trying to tell you before you went off on that tangent is that I want more of last night and more of you. Not on the couch, but in our bed upstairs. Stay with me tonight. For a few days at least. I don't want you to be alone at your place, because you miss your father, but also because the police haven't caught your brother and his friends.”

Disappointment made her heart sink. “So, you want me to stay here because you're afraid they'll come back to my house and maybe hurt me?”

“If giving you a reason to stay here makes you want to stay, then yes, stay so I can protect you.”

Despite the hold he had on her, she backed out of his arms, ready to say yes, but wishing for so much more.

Rory reached out and pulled her back before she got more than a step away. His eyes grew dark with worry. “Stay because I want you here with me. Please.” That vulnerable “please” melted her heart. This wasn't easy for a man like Rory to ask because it meant something deep to him. As much as it did to her. “I don't want to lose what we shared last night. I don't want to see it fade when all I want to do is keep that fire burning.”