The Rough and Ready Rancher (9 page)

“We'll wait it out at the old Circle S line shack,” Flint said, making a snap decision. Sheltered on three sides by rolling hills, the sturdy little cabin was only a quarter of a mile away and their best hope for shelter. “Follow me.”

He turned his horse and spurred it into a gallop. Jenna kicked the buckskin into a run and fell in behind him. Stinging needles of rain pelted them from all sides, and huge gusts of wind began to whip the grass and mesquite into rolling waves. Arriving at their destination just in time to tie the horses inside the shed, Flint grabbed the saddle-
bags and hustled Jenna toward the cabin as hail began to beat down.

When they reached the door, he shoved her inside. “All hell's going to break loose!” He slammed the door, caught Jenna in a flying tackle and, protecting her with his body, rolled to the floor. The wind outside built to a deafening roar. “Tornado,” he said close to her ear. “Stay down.”

Her fingers gripped the front of his chambray shirt, and his muscles flexed in response. He wanted her with every fiber of his being. Wanted to…

And then it was over. As quickly as it began, the storm moved on.

Her legs moved against his, and it took a moment for him to realize she was trying to get to her feet.

“It's okay, darlin'.” He rose and brought her up with him. “It's over.”

“Thank goodness,” Jenna said, her voice shaky.

Flint stared down into her flushed face and felt a flash of white-hot desire. Having her beneath him had been heaven and hell rolled into one. He wanted nothing more than to remove their clothes and take the final step toward ending the torment.

To keep from pulling her to him and doing just that, he forced himself to look around the shack. “I haven't been here for some time, but it looks pretty clean.”

“I've seen worse,” she agreed.

He walked to the door and peered out. The twister had hit the ridge above them and skipped over, just as he'd hoped. But lightning still flashed, and the driving rain showed no signs of letting up.

He needed his head examined, but he wasn't the least bit sorry they were stuck here. He had reached his limit, and he was man enough to admit it. Biting the inside of his lip to keep from smiling, he tried to think of a way to tactfully break the news he was sure Jenna wouldn't want to hear.

Deciding there was no better way than straight-out, he turned to face her. “We're going to have to spend the night here, darlin'.”

“You're joking, right?”

Flint shook his head. “I'm afraid not. Even if the lightning stops right now, there's no way to get back across the wash. Rain like this turns that ravine into a raging torrent.”

Jenna didn't doubt Flint's word. She knew a wash could be dry as a bone one minute and a deep, swift river the next. She glanced around the cabin and groaned. There was only one bed.

She looked back at Flint. “No way?”

“None.”

Dazed, she watched him make a quick call on the cell phone to let Whiskers know they were safe, then start for the door.

“I'll go tend to the horses.”

Incapable of speech, she watched him leave.

 

Flint entered the cabin a half hour later to find Jenna reading labels on some canned goods. He crossed the room and sat down on the bed. “There were some sandwiches left from lunch.”

“Yes, but I thought it would be nice to have something to go with them,” she answered without looking up. “Do you think the owner will mind?”

“Nope.” He removed his boots and stretched out on the cot. “He's glad there'll be a little variety added to his next meal.”

She arched a perfectly shaped brow. “I thought you said this was the Circle S line shack.”

“It used to be.” He pulled his Resistol down over his eyes, then clasped his hands behind his head. “My dad bought the Circle S about thirty years ago from Jed's father.” He saw her eye the can skeptically. “Those should
be pretty fresh. The boys use this for a base camp during hunting season.”

From beneath the wide brim of his hat, Flint watched her nod, then turn back to the table. She fumbled with the can opener. Her nerves were as frayed as his. They both knew there were no more obstacles—no meddling old men, no talkative little boys, no sinister eyes watching. Tonight nothing would prevent them from exploring the chemistry between them.

When she dropped both the can and the opener, he sailed his hat across the room like a Frisbee, sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. His forearms propped on his knees, he watched her struggle with the gadget for a few seconds longer before he rose to his feet, took it from her trembling hands and pulled her into his arms.

“Flint—”

“Hush, darlin'.” He ran his hands down her stiff spine and kissed her temple. “I want you. You know that. But I'm not going to jump your bones just because we're alone. I've never taken anything a woman didn't readily give. And I'm not about to start now. When we make love, it will be because you want me as much as I want you.”

Jenna drew back to look into his deep-brown eyes. When she'd been younger, she'd convinced herself she wanted Dan. But their few fumbling attempts at making love had resulted in embarrassing shame for both. Now she recognized what she'd felt for Dan had been the pure, innocent love of a young girl. But her feelings for Flint were those of a woman.

She'd never experienced a woman's need, a woman's passion for a man. Not until Flint held her, kissed her.

In that moment she realized she never would again. Not with any other man. Only Flint.

Her mind raced with the complications her actions could
cause, but she shoved them aside. The minute Flint had taken her into his arms, the decision had been made.

Mother Nature had placed them here in this desolate, little cabin. And
she
was drawing them together now.

“I do want you,” she whispered.

“D
arlin', you don't know what that does to me. I've been on fire since the day we met.” Flint's hands stilled and, groaning, he buried his face in her hair. He brought his hands up to capture her face. “Are you sure? If not, say so now. I don't think I'll be able to stop if you change your mind later.”

Jenna saw the raw hunger, the deep need in Flint's intense gaze. “You'd better not stop, cowboy. You're the one who made me feel like this. You better do something about it.”

He grinned. “I always put out the fires I start.”

His lips claimed hers in the most tender, poignant kiss she'd ever experienced. When his tongue swept over her mouth, then darted inside to stroke her, sparks of pleasure raced to every nerve in her body. She savored the taste of him, reveled in his hungry lips moving across her own. Excitement, sultry and provocative, flowed through her.

Flint slid his hands from her shoulders to cup her breasts.
He supported the heaviness he'd created there, teased her nipples with his thumbs. Jenna thought she'd go up in flames.

“Does that feel good?” he whispered, his breath feathering her ear. “Or do you want me to stop?”

“Please…”

He raised his thumbs from her shirt. “Please stop?”

“No! If you stop now…I'm not sure I'll survive.”

Flint's gaze captured hers and he slowly drew her shirt over her head. Pulling it from her arms, he tossed it at the chair. He smiled and ran his finger along the lace-edged top of her bra, but when he released the clasp and slid the straps down, his smile vanished and his breath caught.

He bent to press a kiss to each breast. “You're perfect. So soft. So sweet.”

Tossing her bra on top of her shirt, he took her hands in his and guided them to his shirt. “Your turn, darlin'.”

Jenna quickly unsnapped the garment. She'd yearned to touch him like this again, since that first night in the hall. Now as she placed her hands on his firmly muscled chest, the crisp hair tickled her palms. The sensation caused sparks of excitement to skip along every nerve in her body, and passion stronger than she'd ever known rose within her.

A smile curved her lips when the tips of her fingers found the tiny nubs buried beneath the thin curls. Flint's groan of pleasure escaped on a ragged sigh, and it thrilled her to know he was as sensitive to her touch as she was to his.

When he brushed her hands away to crush her to him, the feel of skin against skin, the nestling of her nipples amid his chest hair made her moan. Certain her hunger had reached its peak, she gasped when he cupped her bottom to lift her close. The evidence of his hard arousal, pressed into her lower belly, sent ribbons of desire weaving their way through every part of her.

“Flint—”

The passion in her voice aroused him as little else could. “When you say my name like that it drives me wild.”

He kissed her, letting her taste his need, the depth of feelings he no longer wanted to hide. Somehow finding the strength to set her from him, he broke the kiss, quickly shed his shirt, then bent to remove her boots. He swung her up into his arms and ground his teeth to maintain the slender thread of control he had left.

He wanted to go slow, to make their first time together special. But when he carried her to the small bed in the corner and stretched out beside her, he realized just how difficult that would be. The feel of her breasts in his callused palms, her warm heat nestled against him, nearly sent him over the edge.

Gazing down at her, he realized he was hotter than he'd ever been in his life. “Darlin', I can't stand much more of this. I need to feel all of you against me.”

When he unbuckled her belt, released the snap of her jeans and slowly lowered the zipper, he watched her grasp the quilt in tight fists. As he eased her jeans and panties from her slender hips, then down her thighs, she moaned his name. He'd never been so turned on by a woman's excitement. But then, he didn't think he'd ever excited a woman this much before.

A satisfied smile turned up the corners of his mouth. Jenna's response to his slightest touch and the unbridled passion he saw clouding her eyes was something that couldn't be faked. She didn't need just any man. She needed
him.

The knowledge sent a surge of heat straight to his groin. He had to grit his teeth against the sudden rush and, quickly rising, he removed his jeans and briefs.

Jenna's first impulse was to cover herself. But Flint's sharp intake of breath, the hunger darkening his eyes made her feel truly beautiful for the first time in her life. His gaze caressed her, and a heavy coil of need settled in the pit of
her stomach. Had a man ever made a woman feel more special?

He pulled off the rest of his clothing, then turned to face her. Her heart pounded against her ribs, and her breath caught. Flint was the perfect specimen of a man in his prime. Broad, heavily muscled shoulders tapered to a flat, rippling stomach and lean, narrow hips. Her gaze drifted lower. Her breathing became shallow, and her pulse began to race. He was heavily built and thoroughly aroused. She lifted her gaze to meet his, and the empty ache inside her tightened unbearably. He was looking at her as if she was the most desired woman in the world.

In a short time she would belong to Flint in every sense of the word. And he would be her man. At least for tonight.

Flint tucked the small packet he'd retrieved from his jeans pocket beneath the pillow and lay back down beside her. When he pulled her to him, he closed his eyes. The shock of his skin finally touching all of her and the thought of no more barriers between them nearly proved to be more than he could take.

He'd never wanted to please a woman as he wanted to please Jenna, but his body throbbed with anticipation, and the tension arcing between them turned his blood into a molten flow of need.

Her curious hands smoothed down his back, and his lungs ceased to function. “Darlin', don't get me wrong. I love the way your hands feel on my body…” Her fingers skimmed the curve of his buttocks, and a strangled sound emerged from deep in his throat. When he regained his voice he finished. “…but if you keep this up, I'm going to embarrass both of us.”

He smiled at the blush of passion on her cheeks, the hesitancy of her breathing. Not sure how much longer he could endure the torture of holding her without taking the final step, Flint slid his hand down between them to cup her tawny curls.

Her readiness for him, her startled gasp as he stroked her, inflamed him further. When she arched against him, he knew he couldn't stand much more. “Easy, darlin'.”

Reaching for the packet beneath the pillow, he took care of their protection, then nudged her knees apart. He clasped her hands in his and pinned them on either side of her head. “What is it you need, Jenna?”

“You.”

She looked a little hesitant. “Are you sure?”

“Yes!”

At her impassioned admission, Flint claimed her with one smooth stroke. But his elation turned to shock at the resistance he felt, the unusual tightness surrounding him and the flash of pain clouding her soft eyes.

He froze. “What the hell—”

She bit her lower lip, and Flint felt her body involuntarily try to resist the foreign invasion of his. He hadn't even considered she might still be a virgin. The woman was twenty-six years old, and these days it was unusual to find a girl of eighteen who hadn't experimented in the back seat of a car. At least once.

“Why didn't you tell me you'd never been with a man?” he demanded, his voice sharpened by the thought of causing her pain.

“What made you think I had?” Her voice was little more than a whisper.

Flint watched a tear slip from the corner of her eye. He felt like a complete ass. He'd hurt her, and now all he could do was complain about it.

Holding the lower part of his body still, he gathered her to him and kissed the droplet away. She had just given him a special part of herself, and the very last thing he wanted to do was make her regret it.

“I'm sorry, Jenna. You didn't deserve that.” Buried inside her as he was, his body urged him to complete the act of pleasuring them both. But he knew she needed time to
adjust. He took a shuddering breath and fought for control. “I just wish you'd told me. I would have been more careful.”

“I'm fine. Really.”

Just as he reached the limit of his endurance, he watched her eyes soften and knew the pain was giving way to the ache of unfulfilled desire. “I'm going to love you now, darlin'.”

Flint moved slowly, watchful for any sign of her discomfort. His body urged him to unleash the tight rein he held on his control, but he didn't want to hurt her more than he already had. She was new to lovemaking, and he was new to being with a virgin. How long did the pain last? What could he do to lessen it?

She placed her hands on his lower back, then slid them down to his buttocks, and Flint's control snapped. He gave to her as she gave to him, and when he felt her body stiffen, he quickened the pace and drove them both over the edge.

When Jenna cried his name and he felt her pleasure surround him, satisfaction like he'd never known rushed through him. Only then did he give in to his own intense need and, with a final thrust, felt the triumph of his explosion overtake him.

“That was incredible,” she said several minutes later.

“Yes, it was.” Flint moved to her side and covered them with the quilt. Brushing his lips against her temple, he placed his hand on her lower belly. “Are you all right?”

“I'm fine.”

“I wish you'd told me.” He gently caressed her, trying to heal any pain he might have caused. “I could have hurt you.”

“But you didn't.” She nibbled at his shoulder. “Besides, it was my choice.”

Her words flowed over him like a silken caress. She'd chosen him to be the first, and a sudden burning in his gut told him he damned well wanted to be the last. The thought
of another man touching Jenna, making her come apart in his arms the way she had in Flint's, caused the blaze to intensify and his body to tighten with the need to once again brand her as his.

When her hand slid from his chest down to his flank, fire raced through his veins to burn at his groin, and he abandoned all speculation. He could analyze his emotions later. Right now her timid exploration was driving him wild.

“Don't…be shy, Jenna,” he encouraged, his breath coming in harsh gasps. “I promise…I won't break.”

She snuggled closer to his side and her innocent touch when she captured him sent Flint to the brink of insanity. He groaned like a man in pain.

Her hand stilled. “Did I do something wrong?”

“Geez, no!” he growled and turned to pin her to the mattress. “You're doing everything just right.” He pressed himself to her. “Too right.”

Her eyes met his, telling him of her need, pleading with him to end the sweet torture.

When she looked at him like that, Flint felt he might never breath again. Her moan of pleasure, as he made them one, urged him to give her everything he had. He could tell, as their cries mingled to celebrate the joy of mutual release, she gave him all of herself in return.

 

The next evening Flint sat at his desk, his gaze riveted on the large brown envelope in his hand. The investigator had completed his report, but Flint wasn't sure he wanted to know what secrets it held.

Two weeks ago he'd wanted Jenna off the ranch at all costs. Now all he could do was think of ways to prolong her stay.

They hadn't talked since arriving back at ranch headquarters earlier in the day. He'd been busy with paperwork, and she'd been occupied with Black Satin's training. But they both knew things had changed between them. She had
given him something very precious last night, something she could only give once. And he'd never experienced anything like what they'd shared.

Throughout the night they'd awoken to renewed desire, and each time their passion had been more intense than the last. He'd instructed her in the physical act of loving, but she'd taught him much more. She'd drawn emotions from him that he'd never known existed.

He wanted her to know how very special it had been for him and how it made him feel knowing she'd chosen him to be her first. He'd never been comfortable expressing his emotions with the tender words women wanted to hear. He grinned. But he could damned well show her.

His mind on how he planned to do just that, Flint reached for the metal clasp on the flap of the envelope, removed the papers and scanned the information. His expression turned grim, and he leaned back in his chair to stare at the necklace on the mantel. The glittering stones mocked him with their beauty.

He felt like a fool.

Oh, he'd thought there might be something like an unpaid parking ticket in her background, but he'd never dreamed the information about her would be of this magnitude. Nor had he anticipated the report posing more questions than it answered.

 

Jenna switched on the barn lights and peered down the long row of stalls. She could have sworn the brood mares sounded restless. Now that the heat wave had let up a bit, humans and animals alike were less edgy, which made the horses' nervous movements even more curious.

Shrugging, she walked over to the first stall. It was probably her imagination, colored by her own turbulent mood, she decided.

A curious chestnut mare poked her head over the stall door, and Jenna absently rubbed its muzzle. She'd gone for
a walk in hopes of putting things in perspective. Unfortunately, she still hadn't been able to come up with a solution.

She'd made love with Flint, and nothing could ever make her regret what they'd shared. But when the time came, how would she leave the Rocking M without her heart staying behind?

“What are you doing in here?”

Jenna jumped at the harsh sound of Flint's voice. When he continued to stare at her through the scope of a rifle, she glared at him. “Put that gun down.”