Capturing The Marshal's Heart (Escape From Texas) (17 page)

And her body instantly warmed. She snuggled close and rested her head on his shoulder. “You feel so good.”

“And you’re still chilled.” He massaged the length of her upper arm and rubbed a leg over hers. “See what happens when you get riled?”

She wanted to tell him when she was good and riled, he’d know. Instead, her breathing deepened into a sigh. “Maybe you’ll grow tired of my rants.”

“Maybe.” He brushed his lips over her forehead and kissed her temples.

She stilled and held her breath.

“But I doubt it.” His words ruffled the hair near her ear, as he ran gentle nibbling kisses along her earlobe.

Every place their bodies touched heated in that instant. Jazzy burrowed close against him as the warmth began to chase away all the bad memories of her past. She kissed his neck and inhaled the mixture of scents she would always remember as being Slade’s—leather and fresh air with a touch of bay rum. His skin was salty, his jaw rough with stubbly whiskers.

Her arms inched around his neck, and she pressed her breasts against his chest, their hardened tips tingling at the contact. Her fingers tunneled into his thick hair and she pulled him closer.

Slade’s hand rubbed her shoulders, her back, then cupped her rump and squeezed. He broke off from planting kisses along her jaw to bury his nose in her hair. “Jazzy girl, you feel so good in my hands. You don’t know what I went through when you were shot.”

She kissed a line down his jaw, enjoying the prickle of his beard. “Oh, maybe I do. When I was hauled away by those thugs, my last sight was of you, bloody and beaten, sprawled in the dirt. Out cold but still breathing. I didn’t know if you’d live or how badly hurt you were.” Her heart clenched. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

“Not see me again?” He eased back and his gaze connected with hers. “But then why did you leave that colorful trail of petticoat scraps?”

“I was hopeful, but not sure.” She shrugged and caressed a finger down his jaw. “I’ve been on my own for so long, I’m used to relying on my own wits.”

He brushed his fingers along her cheek and kissed her brow then her temple. “Be sure of this, Jessimay Morgan. You are not alone. Not anymore and never again.”

The whisper of his lips on her face and the impact of his words dissolved the last vestiges of her fears. He did want her the same way she wanted him. Suddenly, too much cloth separated their bodies and she needed to show in her own way that she felt the same. Her hands trailed down his chest and tugged on the buttons at his waist.

“Mmm, are you trying to tell me something?”

“Shuck your drawers. I want to touch your skin.”

A snort of laughter escaped. “My ever-forthright woman.” He rolled to his back and raised his hips to slide off his clothes.

Jazzy rose to her knees to undress, but couldn’t drag her gaze from the tented blanket over his groin. Suppressing a moan of anticipation, she dropped the chemise straps over each shoulder and wiggled the thin garment down to her waist.

“That was nice.” His words were raspy with desire. “Move like that again.”

She glanced at him, as her nipples budded in response to his heated gaze. Slowly, she lowered her rump to her heels and rested her hands on her knees, plumping her breasts between her arms. “Do you want me to dance for you?”

He breathed in sharply and his gaze narrowed. His face seemed etched in stone. “Don’t say that.”

She hesitated, unsure of his change in mood. “What?”

“I’m not one of your old customers.”

Her past again
. “I’m sorry.” She reached out a hand to stroke his rigid arm. “I won’t do it again.”

The bed jiggled from his sudden movement. “That’s how I learned about you.”

She stilled at his words and her stomach tightened. From the tone of his voice, she knew what he was about to say was important. “I don’t understand.”

He angled his chin toward the window and stared at the ceiling. “When I first reached the cabin, I saw you trying to keep that bandit from pawing you. The provocative sashay you did was the same as the one you did in the room at Ella’s the night we were together.”

Leaning back on her heels, she sucked in a breath. “But I had to with the bandit. I was trying to save myself and the others.”

He reached out an arm and drew her close, fitting her along his length. “After a few seconds of shock, I realized that.”

“And you stormed through that door anyway…even though you knew then what I was.”

He brushed his lips across her forehead. “I had to get to my Jazzy girl.”

Would she ever get tired of hearing the pet name he used? She swallowed against a dry throat and ran a finger through the hair on his chest.

Slade rolled on top of her, grabbed her wrists, and held them over her head. “Are we done talking? Because there’s a certain part of me”—he growled and rocked his erection against her abdomen—“that needs your special attention.”

In an instant, he’d gone from concerned listener to passionate lover. Her pulse leapt, like her heart and soul recognized Slade was the last man she’d ever know…in a carnal way.

Her gaze tangled with his and she shivered. “But I don’t want to do the wrong thing.”

“Just do what feels right.”

“I’m scared, Slade.”

He loosened his grip on her hands and trailed his fingers along the side of her face to cup her cheek. “Tell me why.”

A woman could just lap up this man like the sweetest of chocolate syrups when he turned his dark gaze her way. “I’ve never made, um, I mean, had sex without knowing what the man expected.” Her heart raced at what she’d almost revealed.

“What about the night we were together? That was certainly unexpected.”

A giggle erupted and she watched a grin spread on his lips in response. “Well, I was doing anything and everything to keep you from finding my stash of coins.” She shrugged and her gaze focused on his chin. “And I was using all my routines.”

“Routines?” He pulled away, brows raised.

“You know, figuring out what a customer wanted. One fella gets buck naked and likes lots of hand motion, another comes at me with only his fly unbuttoned, and another—”

“Hey, Jazzy.” Slade rolled to his back and laid an arm across his eyes. “I get the picture.”

“Don’t get high-falutin’ on me. You came to my room looking for the bank money. Yeah, I figured it out.” She leaned on an elbow and poked him square in the chest. “You thought I was a bank robber, yet you jumped into bed with me.”

“Guilty as charged.” He reached out a hand and caressed a voluptuous, bare breast. “You were irresistible, no matter which side of the law I thought you are on.”

For a moment, she closed her eyes and savored the roughness of his callused thumb in the valley between her breasts. Then her eyes popped open. “Are?”

A grin slid along his lips and he winked. “I meant to say
were
.” He leaned close, his gaze intent on her lips.

Out of habit, she turned her head and offered her cheek, her hands twisted in the bed sheets.

“Look at me, Jazzy.”

His raspy words drew her attention and she connected with his lusty stare.

“No games and no playacting. Right now, this is you and me in this bed—Jazzy and Slade.” His gaze caressed her lips then rose to meet hers. “I’m going to kiss you…on the mouth. Next, I’m going to taste your lips. Then I’m going to open your mouth and taste your tongue.”

Oh, my stars!
Just listening to him made her nipples bead and an ache throb between her thighs. She shivered.

“Relax.” He lowered his head and briefly brushed his lips across hers.

His actions were gentle and the sensation against her mouth was as soft as a rose petal. The ladies were right—letting a man kiss your lips gave away a bit of your heart. But doing so warmed her from the inside out like hot cocoa on a winter’s morning. As her resistance relaxed, so did her tight hold on the fabric.

He skimmed gentle fingers along her neck and kissed her again and again, lingering longer with each contact.

The sensation was as heady as fancy French champagne. Jazzy pressed against his lips and was rewarded with a groan from Slade. After a moment of hesitation, she raised a hand to twine her fingers into the hair at his neck. The luxury of touching him for her own pleasure was new. She enjoyed it wholeheartedly.

This time, when his lips captured hers, she almost forgot to breathe. He nibbled, he ran his agile tongue along her teeth, then delved inside the warmth of her mouth. She’d only kissed two boys in her life and neither had kissed the way Slade did. His kisses heated her blood and made her lightheaded. She couldn’t think, she could only react—and that doubled her excitement.

Slade broke away from her mouth and touched his lips along her jaw. “Touch me, Jazzy. I like the feel of your hands on me.”

The familiarity of those words hit her hard. She stilled, then trailed her hand down his chest, slowing to caress his stomach and then stroked down toward his erection.

He grabbed her hand and placed it on his chest, covering it with his much larger one. “I like your hands other places, too. That comes later.”

A man who took his time…a man who enjoyed kissing…a man willing to delay his own pleasure.

The muscles under her hand were firm and warm, part of a solid, reliable man. But she was looking for adventure and a new life. Although, there was certainly something to be said for dependable.

“You’re thinking too hard. Kiss me, Jazzy.”

She slid her hand up to his bristly jaw and anchored his face. Her mouth clamped on his and she sucked and nipped at his lips, surprised at the vigor of his response.

Slade slipped his arm under her neck and cradled the back of her head as he returned her kisses. His other hand molded her breast, inching closer to the center, until he rolled the nipple between two fingers.

With a gasp, she arched into his hand, wanting to increase the delicious friction any way she could. This was a feeling new in her experience and one she wanted to savor.

Slade rocked his hips, pressing his length against her thigh.

Looked like savoring wasn’t in his plan. Jazzy kissed his neck and inhaled his musky scent deeply. Her fingers smoothed a circle on his chest, hesitating at the nub buried in his crisp hairs.

He sucked in a breath through his teeth. “Oh, yeah.”

She pushed off the bed enough to scrape her nipples across his chest and belly. A twinge shot through her side and she winced, pressing a hand over the bandage. “We need to move slow.”

“I’ll be gentle. I thought I could wait, but, honey, I need you now.” His hand covered hers and with a slow move, he rolled her to her back. A groan rumbled in his chest. “You remember that move you did with your hand…”

With a sly smile, she slipped her hand between them and caressed his length, touching him like the previous time. The tempo of his flexing increased. She pressed her lips to his chest, flicking her tongue over the tight bud of his nipple.

“That feels great, but I can’t see your face.” He shoved the pillows against the headboard and scooted up until he reclined against them. “Sit on my lap.” His hands claimed her hips and eased her down, rising in a smooth movement to meet her. With long slow moves, he plunged deeper with each stroke.

Resting her hands on her thighs, she rode him, holding him tight when he was deep inside and loosening when his tip teased her entrance. She watched the tension grow in his face and felt the stiffening of his thighs under her bottom. He didn’t have long now.

A feather touch of his thumb on her bud startled her. Two circles around the sensitive button and sparks lit up her insides. Her gyrations in his lap increased and she grabbed onto his shoulders for support. Hair tumbled around her shoulders and dangled along his skin.

He grabbed a fistful of hair and tugged. “Come here. I need to taste you.” Slade captured her mouth and plunged his tongue inside in rhythm with their strokes.

Deep in her throat, she moaned, unable to keep quiet about the pleasure coursing through her body. This man’s kisses sent her blood pumping. Heat flashed over her skin and the tight control she held on her body’s reactions broke. Waves of release rolled through her and she sagged against Slade’s chest.

He grabbed her buttocks and rocked her hips back and forth, increasing the friction. For several more strokes, he strained upwards, and his fingers tightened. “Awww.”

A sense of peace enveloped her and she wanted to stay here in this ramshackle cabin forever. No one could hurt them and they had each other.

Slade exhaled and whispered, “My Jazzy girl,” before dropping his hands and falling back against the mattress. “That was better than peach pie. And peaches are my favorite.”

Using the ends of her hair, she traced lazy circles on his shoulder. He liked pies? More new information she’d learned about him, not that it really mattered. “There’s something else I have to tell you.” Afore she could stop it, a sigh escaped.

“More talking?” He groaned.

“I’m hopeless in the kitchen.”
There, now he knew all her secrets
.

“I can cook some.” He rolled his head to the side and winked. “You’ll learn.”

“What will we do?”

“We’ll get by.”

“I don’t want to just get by. I’m looking for a new life.”

He nuzzled her neck and whispered, “I’ve got some ranch land and a few horses. Plus I just happen to know a lady looking to invest her life savings. We could put that money to good use and make the ranch a real success by working together.”

Jessimay gasped and her heart raced. He was talking about a future with a real home she could spruce up anyway she pleased. A normal life and… Her body tensed. Weren’t all ranches big, flat pieces of land, like the poor dirt farm her daddy used to work? She might have to give up her mountains.

But that would be a small concession because she had Slade. Still… With a twist, she leaned on her shoulder and laid her hand on his bare chest. “Tell me where your land is.”

A chuckle sounded before he grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing each fingertip before he answered, “About an hour’s ride from Denver.” He connected with her gaze and grinned. “Deep in the heart of the Rocky Mountains.”