Bushedwhacked Bride (17 page)

He smiled in pleasant surprise. “What brought this
about?”

“We need to talk.”

“Whatever you say, sugar.”

They walked about a hundred yards from the house, through the trees into a clearing with a large stump at its
center. Cole turned to face Jessica. “What’s on your mind, sugar?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and eyed him in re
proach. “Your continuing bad influence on your brothers.”

“That’s to be expected.” He dimpled. “What I’m still hoping is I’ll be a bad influence on you.”

“Cole, be serious for once.”

“I am.” He reached out, straightening one of the straps
on her overalls. “Jessie, do you have to spoil all the
boys’ fun? Those sidewinders we robbed deserved what
they got. Can’t you let my brothers revel in their exploits
a little?”

“So you think I’m just a big spoilsport?”

“I think you mean well, but you need to loosen up on
the reins a bit.”

She sighed. “Actually, on that very subject, I have—
well, a confession to make.”

“Ah. I’m fascinated. Tell me.”

Her guilty gaze locked with his amused one. “What we
did today was wrong—there’s no doubt about it. Neverthe
less, I enjoyed today’s exploits more than I should have.”

He howled with laughter. “Hot damn! I knew it.
I am
a
bad influence on you.”

She shot him a chiding glance. “Speaking of bad, I
have a very bad feeling about what we did.”

“Why? Why would you have any sympathy for those snakes?”

“Because you’re only getting them all worked up, Cole.
Now they’ll probably hire bounty hunters to track you.”

He shrugged. “We’re not afraid.”

“You should be. What about the danger to your broth
ers, your mother—to me?”

He pulled her close. “Sugar, you’re safe with me. And, damn, do I love how you look in those trousers. Give me
a kiss.”

She shoved him away. “Stop it.”

“Why are you so riled?”

“Because you’re not helping.”

“Oh, I’ll help you a lot when you do what I want.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.” Jessica began to pace.
“Cole, all this lawbreaking has got to stop. I think we should begin by going to church—and we should start
this Sunday.”

He groaned. “Not church again.”

She shook a fist at him. “You promised you would
help me.”

“No, I said I would think about it. I have, and I’ve de
cided we should have nothing to do with Mariposa.”

Crestfallen and angry, she turned. “But why?”

He squared his jaw stubbornly. “My mind’s made up.”

“Not good enough,” she retorted. “You must tell me
why.”

Now anger sparked in his eyes. “Because three years ago, I let my guard down over at
Colorado
City
. As a result, I got thrown in the hoosegow, and if the boys hadn’t sprung me, I would have been hanged.”

“Cole, I’m sorry about that. But you’re making no
sense. There’s no sheriff in Mariposa.”

“Which still doesn’t give us leave to get cozy with the
town.”

“But you still go to
Colorado
City
, which, from what you’re telling me, must be even more dangerous.”

“It’s different.”

“How is it different?”

“The old sheriff is gone now.”

She laughed ruefully. “You’re still taking one hell of a
risk.”

“It’s not the same, Jessie. In
Colorado
City
, I know
where to go and how to watch my back. I don’t get too friendly with anyone, much less sit around gabbing and eating fried chicken like you want us to do. And I don’t trust anyone. Especially not females.”

“Maybe you don’t trust
me,”
she accused.

He hesitated, then admitted, “Maybe I don’t. Not
completely.”

“Well, thanks a lot!”

He shook a finger. “Look, you asked me to be honest, and now I have. I sure don’t trust what you’re suggesting.
You’re going to have us cozying up with that town, invit
ing everyone to mind our business, and you’re going to
get us all hanged.”

“And I say you just don’t want to give up your life of
crime.”

“Maybe I don’t,” he retorted.

Fuming, Jessica stalked away a few paces, then turned.
“That’s it, then,” she declared, waving a hand. “I give up
on you.”

Cole sat down on the tree stump and eyed her with con
cern. “Uh—Jessie, I think you’d best move.”

Assuming he was ordering her about again, she re
torted, “No.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Uh, sugar, you’d best come
here if you know what’s good for you.”

“No.”

“Woman, you’d best rattle your hocks,” he ordered
harshly.

“What’s wrong with you?” she shot back. “Why are you
all of a sudden turning so belligerent, giving me orders
and—”

Her words ended in a muffled scream as Cole leaped
up and made a dive for her, grabbing her about the
waist and hauling her back to the stump with him. She
kicked and screamed as he threw her face-down across
his lap.

“What in the hell are you—”

Her words ended in another cry as Cole began thrash
ing at her legs and tearing off her overalls! Even as she struggled, outraged at his brazen actions, he yanked off her boots and then her britches.

Livid, stripped down to her shirt and drawers, she
somehow managed to grab his pistol. She felt him freeze
just as she leaped to her feet.

Trembling, she pointed the weapon at Cole’s chest and
hoarsely ordered, “Stop it right now, you bastard, or I’m blowing off something
very
essential.”

Cole stared white-faced at the pistol quivering in Jes
sica’s hands. His voice was deadly calm. “Jessie, give me
that gun—
now
—before you hurt one of us.”

“No!” she shouted. “What in hell were you just trying
to do? Spank me? Rape me?”

Cole nodded soberly at the pile of her discarded clothing. “How ‘bout get the blamed ants off your britches?”

Jessica glanced down, only to shriek in horror at the
sight of large red ants swarming all over her boots and
overalls. She glanced at herself, screaming at the sight of yet more ants crawling on her drawers and her bare flesh
beneath. Then she yelped as the ants began to bite her.

“Ouch!” she wailed, dropping the pistol and frantically
beating at her drawers. “Cole, please, help me.”

At once Cole fell to his knees, his hands shooting up
under Jessica’s shirt and yanking at the waist of her
drawers.

She screeched. “No, Cole, you can’t take off my—”

“Damn it, Jessie, quit fighting.”

Though Jessica was mortified, further resistance
proved futile as Cole had already managed to pull the
drawers down around her ankles.

“Step out of ‘em!” he ordered.

Jessica gratefully hopped out of the drawers, and she
and Cole frantically slapped away the remaining ants on
her legs and feet.

Suddenly it was all over, and Jessica stood totally defenseless, all but nude, with only a skimpy shirt to hide her nakedness from Cole, and with him so close that he
could see all her charms if he wanted to. One look into his
eyes made her wince as she glimpsed an anger and lust
that made her shudder.

Oh, God, she was in deep, deep trouble.

“Cole—” she whispered, trying to back away.

He grabbed her knee, preventing escape. “Don’t you have something to say to me, woman?”

His touch burned her. His voice sent shivers down her
spine. She nodded convulsively. “Of course. Lord, Cole,
I’m sorry. So sorry. I didn’t know about the ants, honest
to God. Will you please let me go?”

He glanced up, eyes smoldering. “No. Jessie, you’ve
got to be the most stubborn woman I’ve ever met. I tried
to warn you, but obstinate you, you had to go stand
smack dab in the middle of the biggest anthill I’ve ever
seen in my life.”

Jessica twisted around to look at the anthill, grimacing
at the sight of thousands of ants swarming about. She
turned to face Cole, intensely conscious of the heat of his strong, rough fingers gripping her flesh, and the passion
burning in his eyes. “You’re right. Again, I’m sorry.”

“You were going to shoot me,” he accused.

“No. I mean, I don’t think I was. I misunderstood.”

“This has got to stop, Jessie.”

Alarmed, she asked, “What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean,” he whispered, looking her over in slow, scorching fashion. “We’re gonna have us a reckoning, you and me.”

Sensing his meaning, Jessica panicked. “Cole, please,
isn’t it enough that I got bitten?”

His fingers reached upward to stroke a welt just above
her knee. “Yeah, sugar, you sure did.” Abruptly he hooked
an arm about her thigh and pressed his mouth to the welt.

At the touch of his hot lips, Jessica’s senses went wild,
needles of desire shooting up between her thighs and
piercing her with stunning intensity. “Oh, God, Cole, please don’t—”

It was too late. His mouth was on her thigh, kissing her
tenderly, while his other hand slid brazenly up her bare
leg coming to rest on her bottom. “My God, do you have
any idea how soft your bottom is?”

Jessica was on the verge of collapsing against him. “Cole, please, I can’t take this.”

His mouth continued its relentless ascent. “I can’t ei
ther. I’m on my knees, sugar. And I want you down on
your knees beside me. It’s time, Jessie.”

Half collapsing, Jessica fell to the ground beside him.

He stared into her dazed face, his hand touching her
cheek. “Lord, you look so lovely, cheeks flushed, hair
tumbled—”

“Cole, this is crazy—”

“Yeah.” He began unbuttoning her shirt. “You’re driving me crazy, woman. You already have.”

“I feel—”

His hand closed over her bare breast. “What do you
feel, sugar?”

Wincing, she blinked back tears. “I feel powerless over
this. I can’t fight it anymore. You’ve got me, Cole. Please
don’t press it.”

His voice was rough. “Sorry, sugar, but I’m not in a
mood to give quarter.”

Then his hard mouth closed hungrily over hers, and she
would have screamed with the sheer rapture of it had she
been able to.

Cole clutched her closer, his hands moving freely
down her body, kneading her breasts. When he boldly stroked her between her thighs, she sobbed at the keen,
aching pleasure that shot through her. Her hands ripped at
the buttons on his shirt. She caressed the smooth, muscled flesh with its covering of coarse hair. Abruptly he
pushed open the folds of her shirt and held her so her
bared breasts brushed against him. “Feel me, love.”

Jessica groaned helplessly and bit his shoulder.

His hand took her wrist, pressing her fingers to his en
gorged manhood. “Unbutton the rest of me.”

“Cole, we mustn’t—”

“Unbutton me.
Now.”

Helplessly she complied, reaching inside his trousers
to touch him, her fingers curling about him almost greed
ily. Her caress was rewarded by a drowning kiss. Heavens, he felt huge, smooth, so warm, so hard. Though she
wasn’t a virgin, she shuddered at the prospect of having
all of him sunk to the hilt inside her. And his wicked
tongue in her mouth left no doubt as to the brazen coupling he desired.

He lowered her to the ground, smiling into her eyes,
watching her reactions as he parted her thighs and
stroked her again until she shuddered. Then he replaced
his fingers with his manhood and pressed inside her. Jes
sica was in heaven, as if she’d waited forever to feel him
like this, to feel herself opening up to his passion. Her
soft gasp snapped his control; his mouth ravaged hers and
he thrust upward powerfully.