Horse Play (Horse Play #1) (15 page)

“
H
ey,” Dane said, his honey-brown eyes appearing hopeful.

“Wh—what are you doing here?” I stammered, still shocked to see him here.

“Can I come in?” He took a step forward before I could answer, so I moved to close the door.

“No,” I replied through a dry laugh. “Definitely not.”

“I think I forgot my cell phone charger. Can I at least look for it?” he asked quietly, his eyes silently begging. It was the polar opposite to how he acted the last time I saw him. My dad made me leave the ranch when Dane came to pack his things, because he didn’t want me in harm’s way should Dane lose his cool again.

With an exasperated sigh, I stepped aside and allowed him through the front door, closing it behind him and following him to the kitchen. I didn’t want him here; I hated even being around him. Just seeing him again reminded me of the look on his face when he shoved me against the wall and punched a hole through it just outside my bedroom.

I leaned against the stove and watched as he began rifling through the drawer of the island before looking over his shoulder at me. “You wouldn’t take my calls.”

“I had nothing to say to you. Still don’t, actually.” My annoyance and anger were slowly flaring up, pushing away the gut-wrenching hurt and disgust that seeing his face brought up.

“Well, I have plenty to say. I’m so sorry, Madison.” Funny. He didn’t sound sorry. No, he sounded like a guy who thought I was naïve enough to take him back. I’d be willing to bet the girl he’d been screwing might have caught a glimpse of his true nature and wanted nothing to do with him either, so he came crawling back to the moron who didn’t see his cheating ways for months.

“You find it yet?” I asked, trying to hurry this process along before Jensen got out of the shower. That plan wasn’t in the cards, though, because as soon as I spoke I heard the water turn off.

Dane perked right up, hearing it also. “Is there someone here?” he asked, completely astonished. “Are you fucking somebody else?”

My jaw actually dropped. Not quite to the floor, but it had to have been pretty damn close as I stood there while he asked if I was “fucking somebody else.”

“Are you?” he demanded, slamming the drawer shut before completely turning around to face me. I jumped as the contents clattered, but then fought the fear that was clawing its way up my body and confronted him.

“Are you seriously asking me this, Dane?” The look in his eyes told me that he most definitely expected an answer. “What would it matter if I was? It’s not like I would be cheating on anyone.” I narrowed my eyes accusingly at him as I spat out my venom-laced words. “Look, have you found the damn charger yet? I need you to leave before—”

Before I could get another word out, he interrupted me, taking another step and getting in my face. At five-ten, Dane had to look down at me. “What? Before your new fuck-toy comes out and sees me here? No, I think I want to meet him,” he snarled as he walked angrily over to the table and plopped down in Jensen’s chair. Dane was pissed, and I felt really,
really
happy about that. Even just the thought that I had moved on seemed to get under his skin.

I only rolled my eyes and turned away from him to move the vegetables from the fridge to the island so I could make a salad to go along with dinner. “Dane, just leave. Anything that goes on in my life doesn’t concern you anymore.” He didn’t budge, though. Instead he sat there, with his arms folded over his chest and waited—not for long, however.

“Smells good out here, love,” Jensen called out as he approached the kitchen.

“Thank y— Wait, what?” Clearly I was hearing things. Before I could question him further on this whole “love” nickname, I gasped when I saw him enter the kitchen with nothing more than a towel wrapped around his waist. “Jensen … we have com—” I wasn’t given the chance to finish my sentence before he wrapped his arms around my waist, being careful when he pulled my body flush to his.

The look in his eyes was the same one he had given me earlier at lunch and the first time we had almost kissed. They were dark and stormy, his lids hooded with lust as he closed the gap between us. There was no time to protest his actions as his lips connected with mine, setting fireworks off all around me. My central nervous system was lighting up like the Fourth of July.

I had imagined this moment multiple times, but never had I expected his lips to be this soft. Soon, nothing mattered other than the way my body softened in his arms, and I gave in to whatever he wanted.

My hands moved up his arms until they were finally—yes, finally—locked into the hair at the nape of his neck, pulling his face closer to mine. His stubble scratched my chin, but in a good way that only added to the tingles that currently shot through me. The dull ache in my left side didn’t even matter as Jensen’s hold on me tightened, his left hand moving up my right side toward my breast. My breath hitched when he stopped just below it and his thumb lightly grazed it over the thin fabric of my dress. My nipples began to harden instantly, and I shifted my body slightly into his now-obvious arousal. Shockwaves moved like lightning through my body until they stopped between my legs, and I sighed softly into his mouth.

Everything about Jensen was intoxicating, especially how he was constantly aware of my injuries, even as we finally lost ourselves to our urges. I released my hold on his hair and allowed my hands to move down over the sculpted muscles of his back until they rested low on his naked hips. That was when my eyes snapped open. I pulled back from our kiss, licked my lips, and looked down between us. At some point in our impromptu make-out session, Jensen’s towel had fallen to the floor, and I was now being treated to the sight of a very naked, very
hard
Jensen Davis. “Glorious” no longer defined him. He bordered on otherworldly.

Dane cleared his throat, and both of our heads snapped toward him as he stood from his seat. I was thankful for the large island in the middle of the kitchen that kept Jensen’s naked body hidden from view. I bent down, trying to avoid eye contact with Jensen’s junk in the process, and grabbed the towel from the floor before handing it to him. Even wrapping it around his waist didn’t help conceal his huge problem. Not that I really expected it to.

“Oh, why didn’t you tell me we had company, baby?” he asked, and that’s when I heard a slight lilt in his voice that indicated he already knew.

“Well,
baby
,” I said, playing my part. “It’s a little difficult to talk with your tongue in my mouth.”

Winking, Jensen walked around the corner, his erection still straining against the blue terrycloth of his towel. He held out a hand to Dane—whose eyes went wide as they focused on Jensen’s lower half. “Hey man, I’m Jensen.”

Dane blinked a few times before looking back up at Jensen’s face. “Uh, Dane.” He took Jensen’s hand and shook it once before glancing back at me.

Jensen looked over his shoulder at me and smirked, then returned his eyes to my ex. “Dane? Oh! You’re here to fix that hole in the wall, right?”

Looking irritated, Dane huffed, his nostrils flaring with anger. “I should probably go. Sorry to intrude.”

After making a hasty retreat from the house, I heard Dane’s car peel down the driveway quickly, kicking up gravel in his haste to get out of here. I turned to Jensen, who was now sitting on the island in just his towel, picking at the cherry tomatoes I was going to put in the salad.

“So, that was him, huh? He seemed to take the hint.” He looked so smug up there, popping the tiny tomatoes in his swollen and kiss-reddened lips.

“And, what hint was that, exactly?” I inquired, my cheeks sore from the smile I hadn’t realized was plastered on my face.
Jensen Davis just kissed me.

“Indeed he did,” he whispered with another quick wink in my direction. That sure as hell got the smile off my face. I really needed to check my brain wiring before I thought … or spoke … or did, well, anything.

“Ummm …” What was I supposed to say? Thanks? Was it good for you? No, that was dumb, clearly it was good for him. My eyes fell to his lap again to see his terrycloth pop-tent was still very much erect. An entire group of Boy Scouts could have camped out in there. Not that I’d recommend such things. That would be inappropriate.

“Madison, you’re turning blue. Breathe,” he instructed, popping another tomato between his luscious lips. Lips that I felt on mine.
So soft …

Listening to what he said, I took a breath and locked eyes with him. I was just about to ask him what the hell was with that kiss, but was interrupted by the timer on the stove. I went over, removed the pizza from the oven and placed it on top of the stove. “Dinner’s ready. You should go and get dressed.”

He hopped down from the counter.

“Madison, I haven’t been in a relationship in a very long time,” he said.  “I …” He sighed. “I feel like there’s something between us, but if I’m being honest, I’m not ready for anything too serious.” His eyes held mine. “And I don’t think you are either. Am I wrong?”

My heart fluttered like a hummingbird’s wings as he reached out to push a tendril of hair behind my ear. There was no use denying it anymore. There was definitely something happening between us.

“You’re not.”

Jensen smiled, his gaze wandering over my face. “What are you scared of?”

I didn’t even have to think about it. “Of putting myself in a position to be hurt again.”

Jensen’s brows furrowed contemplatively. Then he nodded, understanding. “Maybe we keep things light and casual. Fun.”

His offer was tempting, but it also had the potential to get messy if feelings got involved. However, we were both adults. Surely we could figure out how to make it work.

Pulling my lower lip between my teeth, my gaze holding his, I thought about his proposal. Something about the way he looked at me convinced me to throw caution to the wind, so I slowly stepped into him, placed a hand on the side of his face, and pressed my lips to his.

Chapter 11. Past Meets Present

“
H
ey, you up?” I asked, poking my head in Jensen’s room. He was lying on his stomach with his arms tucked up under his pillow. The contrast of his messy brown hair against his white pillow was almost shocking. Until I looked down a little. The smooth, solid lines of his bare back were visible, and my eyes trailed down the contours of his body until it ended at the white sheet that was
just
barely covering his ass.

Lifting his head and turning it toward me, he smirked. “I don’t know. You want to come over here and check?”

My mouth dropped open, but I couldn’t help smiling at the same time as I went into his room and tore his pillow from under his head before beating him with it. “You’re incorrigible!” I cried out with a laugh, forgetting all about what I originally came in here to do.

Jensen snatched the pillow from my hands and tossed it to the floor before gripping my wrist and pulling me down beside him. Yes, into his bed. He didn’t pull me down hard; he was always so gentle with me because of my side—which actually was feeling a little better. I still took my Oxy three times a day, but the pain between doses was less and less. I was hoping that I was going to be on the lower end of the recovery time scale.

It had been three days since Dane had stopped by. Three days since Jensen and I confessed our attraction to one another. And three days of hot-and-heavy make-out sessions that left us both frustrated and unsatisfied. My injuries always put a damper on our pleasure, my side screaming out in protest just as soon as things started to heat up. It got old, fast.

While initially I was afraid to get involved with Jensen, even in a casual capacity, I couldn’t deny the way I felt anymore. When I found out he felt the same way, I was thrilled. Relieved. Excited. But also nervous and cautious.

I had some serious trust issues because of Dane’s infidelity and violent outbursts, and I couldn’t just let someone else in so damn quickly. I wanted to; I just couldn’t.

There seemed to be something Jensen was holding back from me, but I wasn’t going to push. I wasn’t his girlfriend. It wasn’t my place. Based on what my dad had told me when Jensen first joined the ranch, he’d had a hard few years. How hard? I wasn’t sure. What I did know was that having someone press you for the details of a difficult past only made you want to hide it even more.

“How are you feeling?” Jensen’s fingers lightly brushed the hem of my (his) shirt, tickling the exposed sliver of flesh below where it had ridden up. My breathing was shaky as I inhaled slowly, my skin trembling beneath the heat of his touch. He looped one finger in at my left hip and started to inch it upward, his face moving toward mine until his nose was nuzzling my neck. The scruff of his jaw tickled my shoulder as he inhaled deeply, and a familiar tingle gradually worked its way down my body until it rested between my legs.

In the three days since we agreed to … whatever it was we agreed to, we haven’t had sex. It wasn’t because neither of us wanted to, but because my injuries hindered us from getting too physical. Jensen was afraid of exacerbating the issue. This meant we didn’t get much further than a few fully-clothed make-out sessions, dirty-talking, and stolen glances. We were both desperate for my side to heal.