Wanted!. Vicki Thompson Lewis
side more difficult. The zipper of his fly pressed uncomfortably against his ever-expanding interest in the hot woman sitting in the passenger seat.
“If we’re not going back, where are we going?”
“I know a place.” He’d grown up on the Last Chance, after all, and that meant he’d been a teenager here. Teenagers always knew a place.
“Pam said there’s a sacred Native American site on the ranch. She talked about a huge rock that glitters in the sun. Are you going there?”
“No.” Hanging his hat on the gun rack behind his head, he put the truck in gear and continued down the road until he found the dirt track that veered off to the left into the trees. “That site is all about finding solutions to problems.” He glanced over at her. “Not to brag, but I have a solution for yours.”
Her cheeks turned a becoming shade of pink. “I’ve interrupted your work. Will you get in trouble?”
“Maybe.” He had to concentrate on his steering because the rutted road wasn’t maintained, but the image of her flushed cheeks made him want to kiss her there … and everywhere else that turned pink when she was aroused. “I have a feeling you’ll be worth it.”
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
“Would you believe me if I said no?” The prospect of holding a naked woman in his arms was wrecking his driving skills. He’d hit a couple of deep ruts he ordinarily would have missed.
“I want to believe you. I’d feel horrible getting involved with someone else’s sweetheart.”
He bet she would after what that a-hole boyfriend had put her through. “Trust me, there’s no one in my life right now. I don’t cheat.”
“I’m not asking because I expect anything to come of this.”
He laughed, which helped release some of his tension. “You should expect something to come of this. Or someone to come of this. That’s why I’m driving back into the trees, so we can have a little privacy. You could get loud.”
“You think so, do you?”
“I’ve known it to happen.” This was the most exciting damn thing that he’d ever done. He was shaking with anticipation. He didn’t even know her name, and he liked it that way. He’d never had stranger sex.
Realistically, he’d probably find out who she was later on today. She was staying in the main house, so they’d be introduced at some point, maybe even at lunch. That could be fun, too, when she learned he was one of the owners. She wouldn’t expect a Chance to be out digging postholes. Jack’s insane work ethic was turning out okay for once.
Nick didn’t kid himself that today would be the start of something big. She’d already told him she was a tourist who’d come to Wyoming to get over her crappy boyfriend back home. Once he’d helped her with that, she’d return to Indianapolis and continue with her life. In the meantime, his long dry spell was about to be over. Hot damn.
He reached the small clearing where he used to bring his dates back in high school, before he’d become sophisticated enough to rent a room. It was a great spot, drenched with hot memories. The sound of the creek was louder here, although it still wasn’t visible.
Birdsong echoed through the trees, and wild roses bloomed, their dark pink petals startling against the lush ferns sprouting beneath the branches. Pine needles crunched under the truck’s tires, enveloping them in a woodsy fragrance. The ground would still be damp after the rain, but all the ranch trucks carried a folded tarp in the back for emergencies. This qualified.
Cutting the engine, he turned to her. “Here we are.”
“It’s beautiful.”
He looked into brown eyes that reminded him of a doe poised for flight. After six years of veterinary work and a lifetime of caring for frightened animals, he guessed that she was rethinking her decision to allow herself this moment.
“You’re beautiful.” He reached for her, cupping the back of her head. Her glossy hair slid between his fingers as he leaned closer.
Her spicy scent was temptingly unfamiliar. He noticed a tiny mole near the corner of her mouth and the tangerine color of her lipstick.
She took a breath. “Don’t you want to know my name?”
He caught a whiff of peppermint. “Does it matter?”
“No.”
“That’s what I thought.” He was about to kiss a nameless woman he’d met twenty minutes ago. What a rush.
DOMINIQUE FIGURED SHE HAD about two seconds to call a halt. Once he kissed her, there would be no stopping. The air in the truck’s cab was thick with lust.
Then her two seconds were up. His mouth found hers, and the storm hit. She’d never kissed a man she didn’t know. If it was always this exciting, she’d have to do it more often.
Although technically he started the action, Dominique quickly became an equal partner, giving as good as she got. His kisses were supple, talented and sexy as hell. With a grateful sigh, she surrendered to his probing tongue and the heady feeling of passion fueled by mystery.
Gasping, he leaned his forehead against hers. “I love your mouth.”
“I love your tongue.”
With a moan, he resumed the assault with ravenous kisses, but they were no more ravenous than hers. He kept his mouth on hers as he began unbuttoning her blouse. She didn’t know how they would manage to have sex in the cab of his truck, but she’d let him worry about that. She reached for the waistband of his jeans.
He drew back, breathing hard. “This is nuts. We need to get out. We also need …” He popped open the glove box in the console and grabbed a small foil packet. “Wait right there. I’ll come around and get you.”
Before she could reply, he’d bolted from the truck. Dear God, she hadn’t even thought about condoms. Not once. Maybe everyone was right, and left to her own devices, she’d head into a ditch.
But she’d lucked out again and found a guy who was more practical than she was. That was a very good thing, because she’d never been this aroused in her life. She was so hot she was panting. Her panties were drenched and her nipples ached. She wanted her clothes gone.
She heard him rummaging around in the back of the truck and then something soft hit the pine needles on her side of the vehicle.
Instead of sitting here stewing in her own juices, she could do something to move things along. In moments she’d pulled off both boots and tossed them on the floor of the cab. She’d finished unbuttoning her blouse when he opened the door.
“I’m ready,” he said.
Judging from the fit of his jeans, he most certainly was. His boots, she noticed, were on the ground next to a tarp. She swallowed. “Me, too.”
His hot gaze moved over her. “Your boyfriend is an idiot.” Tossing the condom packet to the canvas tarp, he circled her waist with his hands and lifted her down.
Her bare feet touched canvas, and then she was lost in the sensation of his palms sliding up her bare back, followed by him unfastening her bra. He undressed her with the practiced ease of a man who knew what he was about, and in seconds she stood before him wearing only her ivory lace panties. A breeze caressed her skin, but his smoldering gaze reheated every inch the breeze touched.
Cupping her breasts, he stroked his thumbs over her taut nipples. “To think I’d considered this a wasted day.”
She clutched the solid warmth of his shoulders and closed her eyes, the better to savor the sensation of those calloused thumbs ramping up the tension.
His breath feathered her lips. “You are so delicious. Thank you for this unexpected gift.” Then he settled in for another toe-curling kiss. She’d always thought “toecurling”