Stony Creek Cowboy [Stony Creek] (Siren Publishing Classic) (16 page)

Lying flush along the top of Jackson’s body, she sighed in satisfaction. He was perfection in so many ways to her. She quickly hoped he didn’t break her heart.

As though sensing her thoughts, he started to rub his hands over her back and cheeks soothingly, as though to calm her.

“See what you do to me, baby? I cannot control my body or the direction of my thoughts around you,” Jackson said with a wicked grin.

“First of all, you don’t have to be a doctor to know that some of that was the morning wood stuff. Secondly, I was the one who couldn’t get it under control there and threw myself onto you. You cannot take credit for this time, mister!”

Liking her saucy response, he just grinned and squeezed her cheeks apart while running a finger up and down the inner edge of the crack, causing her to pause in her speech and shiver. He pasted an innocent look on his face and just shrugged his shoulders.

He felt as Billie snuggled back over into his side and prepared to nap with him after their latest pleasure session.

“Jackson?”

“What is it, baby?” he mumbled back, already half into his napping state.

“What did your father whisper to you last night as we were leaving the bar?” she asked.

He opened one eye and chuckled. “He told me not to step foot on the ranch again until Monday morning, with the exception for Sunday dinner.”

It really was nine o’clock in the morning. Jackson couldn’t remember the last time he had slept that late or slept so well. He sat lazily at the island in the kitchen listening to Billie hum in blissful contentment while making them pancakes and sausage. Jackson was enjoying his own sense of satisfaction over looking at her beautiful self. She wore a simple white silk halter chemise that fell to her knees. It hugged her luscious figure without being too overt. He could practically feel himself sigh with happiness and satisfaction at this woman who had claimed his every thought. He felt more alive than he had in years with an eagerness that felt foreign to him. She smiled over at him and he gave her a huge smile back. As she turned away, he stood and sauntered over to her at the stove. Gently embracing her from behind, he leaned down and nuzzled her neck.

“Behave yourself, sir, or I won’t be able to give you the nourishment you need to keep up activity like that. Now that I finally have gotten to sample some Powell love, believe me, mister, I am going to be requesting some serious repeat performances quite frequently, so eat up,” Billie said with a laugh.

“You are all the nourishment I really need, baby. However, it is I who will decide when we participate in mutual pleasuring, and trust me, you are going to be sore and sleepy all the time,” he said cockily as he took her lips in a hard kiss. She half turned in his arms while still brandishing the spatula as he began his heavenly assault on her mouth. He thrust his tongue into her warmth to mate with hers in an erotic caress. For several moments, they indulged in his sensual assault. She broke the kiss and leaned against him with a sigh. He turned her back toward the stove but started to rub his boxers-covered groin against her backside.

“It would be a shame to waste all that delicious food you are making. Please try to concentrate, baby. I am a hungry man! Focus!” he said with a wicked smile while running his hands over her soft mound. Billie tried to keep her attention on the cooking food, but Jackson knew that his hands were causing her to squeeze her thighs together as he fueled her new arousal.

They ate at the island with a happiness that Billie hadn’t known in years. They talked about the construction of the house, her motivation to move out here after Matthew’s death, and his connection to his land. As expected, he raved about the bathroom, promising of the naughty delights that were in store for her there later that day. Jackson had quickly showered before he came down with the intent of just briefly cleaning up, but as Billie had started breakfast, he got sidetracked in his idea of breaking in her tub together. Promising to be no more than a half hour, Jackson jumped into his truck to get some clothes for the weekend and feed the horses quickly.

Billie sat down on her couch and watched the dust rise as he pulled away down the lane. She laid her head back and sighed with pure happiness. Her soul felt whole for the first time in perhaps…forever. She decided that she wasn’t going to try to analyze her feelings right at that moment.

She heard her cell phone ring in her purse and padded over to see who was calling. She wasn’t on call so she didn’t think it would be Julia calling with a patient issue. She looked at the screen but all it said was private number. As she listened to the message, she got chills. The message contained a garbled voice that was undeniably male. It threatened that she didn’t know who she was dealing with and that she should weigh her choices carefully. What the heck was going on here? Who would want to threaten her at the office and now got her cell? Gwen? She saved the message and sat on the floor to hug Zeus’s big, furry body to her own. Nobody was going to easily scare her. She wasn’t going to allow some wacko to upset her or undermine the happiness that she felt was emanating from her pores.

Ten minutes later, a very handsome cowboy returned with a cocky grin on his face. As she opened the front door, she was pushed aside by another female desperate for Jackson’s attention. Madison stood on her hind legs and planted her paws on his chest, trying determinedly to kiss his face.

“Down,” he commanded in a steely voice dripping in that male strength that made women wet and weak in the knees. Madison reluctantly sat to his side as he patted her head and swept forward to his originally intended female. Billie felt herself lifted high into his arms and swung around as he planted a hot kiss on her open mouth.

“Now, that was the kiss I was hoping for! Not being licked by your lovable guardians,” he groused at her with a grin.

Forming a smile of her own at her lofty perch, she said back, “Licked, kissed…whatever. Madison and Zeus cannot seem to figure out which is which.” She saw that he had an overnight bag with him and a bouquet of flowers that he must have stopped quickly for on his way back over.

“I was gone less than an hour and I already missed you, woman. What have you done to me? I feel like a besotted suitor.”

He placed her down so she could smell her flowers and hug him tightly. She didn’t want to respond to his comment and make him question his actions. She just appreciated that he missed her. So much that she wrinkled her brow when she remembered the disturbing call on her cell.

“What’s the matter, baby? You don’t like the flowers?” he asked quickly.

“No, it’s not that, they are just so lovely and thoughtful, Jackson. I love them. It’s just that I got a weird message on my cell while you were gone and it unnerved me a bit. That’s all.”

Jackson immediately gave off a different energy of cold control as he asked gently, “May I listen to the message, please?”

She handed him the phone and watched his face while he listened. His features gave off no information as to his thoughts as he closed it and handed it back to her. “Save the message, baby, but I don’t want you to worry. I will deal with this and no one is going to upset you. I won’t allow it.”

He spoke with such authority and concern that she didn’t have the heart to get annoyed at his high-handed comments. She had been taking care of herself for years. It rather felt like a blanket of comfort and relief to know that she wasn’t alone and this Neanderthal of a man was acting like one. Billie inwardly laughed at the thought that every now and again, a woman needed a Neanderthal for protection, comfort, and sex. Jackson appeared even more appealing the more she thought about it.

Jackson seemed to arrogantly presume that her smile was one of compliance to his command. She let him think it. It was good for him, she supposed with a laugh. The fact that he let her go up to shower alone told her volumes as to where her thoughts were. She was glad, in a way, as she didn’t want him distracted over the call when they used the decadent bathroom together the first time. As she showered, memories of the morning and previous night bombarded her like the sheets of warm water running over her skin. She kept passing the soft, lathered soap over her breasts, trying to imitate Jackson’s passionate touches.
Nope, not going to work.
In the past, she was able to try to imagine up a mystery man while masturbating for her pleasure, but now that she had a master of sensual pleasures waiting for her downstairs, well, nothing but the real thing would satisfy. As she stepped out from the steamy enclave of stone, she was startled by the man waiting for her. As if to watch over her, as his sexy expression indicated he had been doing, he now held a bath towel to wrap her up in. With a soft kiss, Jackson carried her into the bedroom and smacked her butt.

“Get some clothes on this fine ass, Billie. I want to go riding with you and see your land,” he said with a smile. As she pulled out her bra and thong, he lay down on the bed that he must have thoughtfully made and extended his hand.

“What?” Billie asked, unsure of why he was wiggling his fingers at her.

“I want to see what is on the menu today so I know how it is going to feel in my hands later,” Jackson said with a serious face.

Billie looked at him momentarily shocked and then, deciding to play along, handed him her intimates. Last night in the few moments in between the intense sexual episodes, he had remarked on how much he loved her obvious pleasure in her sexy lingerie. She had chosen a soft-rose satin bra and thong to go under her ribbed turtleneck and riding pants. She had forgone the idea of wearing a sports bra, like she ought to, instead deciding to wear something to distract him. No matter what she wore, she knew that either he would be imagining what she looked like in them all day or her breasts bouncing around so much it would distract him plenty. No matter what, she was sure of her success!

Jackson handed them back to her with an evil grin on his face. She had no idea what he had planned, but she had a feeling that she would like it, based on the look. She felt flushed and warm as he watched her dress. It was a very intimate thing to do and she felt a wash of pleasure.

* * * *

“I do know how to saddle my own horse, Jackson!” Billie grumbled as he quickly tacked up both Danny and Sheeza.
Sheesh!
Jackson moved around the inside of her tack room with a fluidity and gracefulness that indicated his expertise from a lifetime of repetition. Instead of fighting for the privilege, she leaned back to survey her surroundings. Her barn had the scent of the new wood from the build mixed with hay, almost a comforting odor. In it were two new members of her family and a man who was rapidly sucking her into his world and hopefully his heart. As if he could read her mind, he turned just then to give her a condescending smile of reassurance.

“Just because a man opens a door, puts you in a car, or saddles a horse doesn’t mean that he thinks you can’t, darlin’. It just might indicate that he thinks you are a lady, in this case
my lady
, and should be treated as such. Sorry, but that’s just the way it’s gonna be with me.” Jackson didn’t even turn around as he said his little speech. The man definitely didn’t have any difficulty being in charge, that’s for sure! She tried to feel annoyed but found herself outwardly grinning at his high-handedness. She came out west for a change. Well, this certainly qualified. It definitely would be nice to be on a pedestal for a while.

When he was finished, she walked over to Sheeza and swung herself up without so much as a step into the stirrup. She turned back to look at him up on Danny, only to see his eyebrow lift and make a smirk at her antics. With that, they both took off at a trot.

Billie took a deep breath and momentarily closed her eyes. Alive. Free. Home. She felt those words vibrating through her body. Waves of happiness surrounded her as surely as the wind that was lightly whipping her hair. Another feeling started to permeate her brain, too. Love. What? No, it couldn’t be. She had wanted all her life to feel an overwhelming love that could fulfill her, but obviously that wasn’t meant to be in her first marriage. She snuck a quick glance at Jackson. He rode with as much confidence as he did everything else. He and Danny seemed to gracefully move as one unit. He exuded raw masculinity that made her wet and squirm slightly in the saddle, even as she looked at him now. He met her gaze and rewarded her with a heart-melting smile.

“What are you thinking of, baby, that has you looking so happy?” he inquired.

Billie just shrugged her shoulders and gave him a soft smile back. She rode ahead of him for the moment, not wanting him to read her thoughts as he often was so able to do. She would have to try to protect her heart a bit as she suspected Jackson was enjoying himself with her but hardly likely to fall on his knees declaring his love for her. She let out a low chuckle at the image of him on his knees in her head.

If she knew Jackson’s thoughts, she might be blushing a bit more. He was at first slightly surprised at the ease she exhibited around the horses and riding, as though she, too, had done it all her life. He would have to ask her how she learned. He originally thought that she was more of a high-maintenance kind of girl, but she kept proving him wrong. It was the long work hours, cooking, cleaning, house calls, mucking out the barn, and now her riding skills that changed his perception of Billie. Yep, she was intriguing, more to him every damn day. Being the man that he was, he couldn’t help but notice how fine her ass looked from behind in that saddle. He watched her use her strong thighs to glide with Sheeza and couldn’t help but feel a bit of envy for her saddle as he watched it mash up into her hot pussy. He felt the stirring of his erection as he shifted his attention to watching her breasts bounce with the horse’s movements. Ugh, it was going to be a long day before he could sink into her wet heat again. He should have made her wear that sports bra. Thinking about her lingerie choices had his cock pressing against his jeans painfully. He was going to have to distract himself, he thought with chagrin.