Where Have All the Cowboys Gone? (20 page)

She screamed as she spasmed around him, her body determined to milk every drop of pleasure he could give her. He kept pumping and made her come again and again until she couldn’t stop moaning his name. His final thrust pushed them and the chair over the edge.

Grayson wrapped his arms around her, protecting her from the fall, taking their combined weight on his forearms. Lauren lay still for a moment until Grayson rolled to one side and helped her up.

He smiled down at her and took her hand. ‘How about we try and have sex in a bed for a change?’

Lauren reached out and touched his cock. ‘Don’t you mean make love?’ She circled her thumb in the slick wetness as his cock began to fill out again.

‘Yeah,’ he said hoarsely. ‘Making love sounds good too.’

She led him into her bedroom. He stopped at the door and looked around. ‘Holy cow, have I died and ended up locked in a fairy tale?’

Lauren removed his suit jacket and started work on his cuffs. ‘I’ll explain later.’ She pinched his nipple to force his fascinated gaze away from the frothy pink drapes. Grayson stepped out of his boots and pants. He ran a hand over his erection as Lauren bent to unroll her stocking and then kicked off her shoes.

‘Let me do that.’ Grayson moved up behind her, the heat of her body driving him wild. She arched her back and pushed against him as her stockings pooled on the carpet. When she tried to turn in Grayson’s arms he held her fast, his hands on her waist.

‘Christ. You look beautiful.’

Lauren was framed in the mirror above her vanity unit. Grayson’s hands looked large spanning her narrow waist and hips. He rested his chin on her shoulder.

‘When I saw you sitting at your desk in your office, I wanted to spread your legs wide and push inside you.’ His left hand came up to cup her breast while his right travelled lower and rested over the triangle of dark hair at her crotch. Lauren relaxed her thighs and allowed his fingers to slide downwards.

‘I was praying you’d wrap those long legs around my waist and let me come inside you.’ He slid his long middle finger inside her. She bit back a moan as he used his thumb to caress her with slow even strokes.

‘I even hoped one of your employees would come into your office and you wouldn’t even notice because you’d be so caught up in taking your pleasure from me.’

Lauren shuddered as he slid two more fingers inside her. She rocked into his hand as he increased the tempo.

‘I don’t think that would be a very good image for the director of a business to portray to her staff, would it?’ Lauren managed to gasp as Grayson bit down hard on her shoulder. He licked the sensitive spot his teeth made and smiled at Lauren in the mirror.

‘If you were my boss, I would have enjoyed it. I would’ve been praying you’d try it on with me next.’ He guided her forwards until her hands clasped the high back of the wrought-iron chair in front of her vanity unit. With easy strength, he turned the chair at an angle to the mirror so that she could see both of their bodies.

Lauren couldn’t stop staring at herself. She looked wild and aroused. Grayson worked his fingers back inside her and she put her left foot up on the chair seat. She could see how deep his fingers were going inside her now. His cock pressed against her buttocks, a hot hard presence which made her whole body throb with need. She knew what he wanted her to say.

‘Grayson, will you make love to me please?’

He smiled then and allowed his erection to probe the slick entrance of her sheath. He barely entered her and yet she climaxed again almost immediately, clenching around him with a week’s worth of pent-up need. He kept his stroke shallow until she almost begged him to let her climax.

When he pulled out, she wanted to howl. He led her to the bed, pressed her down on the covers and crawled between her legs. He held his shaft around the base and positioned it against her. ‘It’s your turn now, Lauren. Tell me how you want it, slow or fast?’

She reached up and grabbed him around the back of the neck. ‘Just do it, Grayson.’

He chuckled against her mouth as he slid inside her. ‘Do you still want to call Ella, then?’

Lauren aimed a weak punch at his muscled bicep. ‘Grayson . . . just finish making love to me and then I want to go to sleep in your arms. Does that sound OK?’

Grayson picked up the pace and grinned down at her. As she opened her eyes after yet another exquisite orgasm she felt his hot come right at her centre. He kissed her mouth with infinite care. ‘Honey, that’s the second best thing you’ve said to me all night.’

‘What was the first?’ Lauren whispered as he settled her in the crook of his arm. A rumbling snore was her only answer.

Lauren woke up to the persistent sound of the phone ringing in the kitchen. She stumbled out of bed, grabbed Grayson’s shirt and tiptoed out. Bright sunlight hit her eyes as she made her way across to the phone. Last night she’d been so preoccupied she’d forgotten to close the drapes. She wondered if her neighbours had enjoyed the show

She squinted at the miniscule phone display which revealed her father’s private cellphone number.

‘Daddy, it’s eight in the morning and it’s Saturday. Why are you calling me?’

His trademark hearty laugh boomed down the line. ‘You should be up and about making your fortune, sweetie, not lounging in bed.’

Lauren flopped onto the couch and pulled one of the large cushions against her stomach. ‘Don’t tell me, you’ve already made yours and you’re moving on up to world domination.’

‘You’re too funny, darling.’

He laughed again. Lauren squeezed the cushion hard. Why was he being so nice? He rarely called her sweetie any more, only when he wanted something.

‘I had a call from my old friend, James Cook, last night. He says you have an interesting new boyfriend. Some kind of cowboy.’

Lauren clutched the phone hard in her fist. She should have realised Mr Cook would call her father.

‘He’s not really a boyfriend. He’s more of a client.’

A slight movement to her right made her look up. Grayson stood framed in the bedroom doorway, his expression chilly. Had he heard her? From the hard set of his mouth, she guessed he had. She tore her eyes away from his as she realised her father was still speaking.

‘. . . So bring him by for dinner this evening will you? Your mother would like to meet him.’

‘Daddy, we’re busy, I’ve already made plans –’ She gasped as Grayson snatched the phone out of her hand.

‘Mr Redstone? Yeah, that’s correct. I’ll bring Lauren over at seven.’ He tossed the phone back to Lauren, a challenge in his eyes.

Lauren nodded, forgetting her father couldn’t see her as he said goodbye and hung up. She glared at Grayson.

‘Don’t you ever do that to me again.’ She dropped the phone on the couch. ‘It’s my phone and I was having a private conversation.’

Grayson towered over her, his hands on his hips. ‘What’s the problem? I’m going to have to meet the in-laws some time. What’s wrong with tonight?’ He scowled at the cushion she had pressed to her breasts. ‘Don’t you think I’m good enough to meet your folks?’

Lauren drew a deep calming breath. ‘That’s not what this is about. I’m not that much of a snob.’

Grayson backed up a couple of steps and sat on the arm of one of the paisley-patterned chairs. ‘You could’ve fooled me.’

‘I was trying to protect you, dammit!’ Lauren knelt up on the couch and launched her cushion at him. ‘The last person I want you to meet is my father. He’s like a piranha. He’ll strip away everything you value about yourself and then serve you up for dinner with a smile.’

Grayson crossed his arms across his bare chest and studied her. A slow smile crept over his face. ‘You were trying to protect little ol’ me?’

Lauren gathered his shirt to her breasts and got up. ‘I don’t know why I bothered. You’re just going to tell me that you can handle him fine by yourself, aren’t you?’

‘Hell, no, I’m not that stupid,’ Grayson said quietly. ‘I was hoping we could handle him together. And I shouldn’t have taken your phone.’

Lauren walked into the bedroom and sat on the side of her bed. She pressed her hands to her flushed cheeks. Grayson came in and sat beside her. The mattress gave under his weight.

‘I’m not going to let your father destroy me, Lauren.’

‘You don’t know him,’ Lauren whispered. ‘He’s ruined every real relationship I’ve ever had. He only tolerates Ella because her father is as rich as he is.’

Grayson took her hand and squeezed her fingers. ‘Perhaps he thinks he’s protecting you. Any man who truly wants you will have to prove to your father that he’s tough. I reckon I can do that.’ He kissed her fingertips and Lauren tried to relax. Perhaps Grayson was right. She should’ve known she could never hide him from her father.

In an effort to change the subject, she pushed him backwards until he sprawled on the bed, arms spread wide. She shook her head as he looked hopeful and his cock rose to brush her stomach.

‘We have a busy day ahead. I thought we’d do touristy things this morning and then I’ve arranged a business lunch. I’d like you to come with me.’

Grayson reached up and stroked her arm. ‘It’s OK about your dad. We’ll deal with him together.’

Lauren winced and wished she could just crawl back under the covers and pretend she was five again. Except with Grayson there with her, the games she got to play might be a lot more exciting. So much for her attempts to change the subject. She rolled off the bed and headed for the bathroom. ‘Seeing as we’re up so early, we might as well make a start.’

Grayson stayed where he was and contemplated the pink gauze bed curtains sewn with tiny rosebuds. He felt like an awkward Prince Charming. Despite Lauren’s fears, he looked forward to meeting her father and setting him straight about a few things. He knew all about fathers who used the ties of love to make their kids behave.

His own father, Beau Turner, a legendary football player turned oilman, was an expert in manipulation. As a boy Grayson had idolised him. As an adult, he’d come to despise him and ultimately turn his back on everything his father held dear. It looked as if Lauren might need some help to get out from under her father’s long shadow.

After a quick shower, Grayson headed into the kitchen. Lauren sat perched on a stool nursing a glass of orange juice. Her soft brown hair was tied back in a ponytail. She wore a pink leather miniskirt, a white crocheted top and white platform boots. Pale-pink lipstick and thick black eyeliner completed her city look.

‘I’m taking you out for breakfast,’ Lauren said. ‘We’ll go to Kate’s Kitchen in Lower Haight. Is that OK?’

She looked too tense for his liking but he decided to give her some space. According to the tattered magazines he was forced to read at the dentist’s, women were big on personal space.

Grayson took her orange juice out of her hand and swallowed the rest in one gulp. He opened the refrigerator to get more and pretended to blink at the startling expanse of white emptiness. The orange juice sat next to a carton of fat-free milk and that was it.

‘You weren’t kidding about the cooking were you?’ He refilled her glass and handed it back to her. The kitchen walls had been stencilled to death to resemble a magical woodland scene. He pointed at an elf peering through the foliage. ‘Do fairies appear when you’re at work, clean up the place and leave you delicious meals?’

Lauren’s answering smile was more genuine this time. ‘I didn’t choose the décor, all right? It was my father’s idea.’

Grayson grinned. ‘He probably thought it would scare all your boyfriends away. Personally, I quite like it. I feel like a horny prince awakening a virgin princess.’

Lauren gave him a wry smile. ‘You would.’ She sipped at her orange juice and then passed him the glass. ‘My father makes it difficult to refuse his gifts. He came in here while I was away on business and had the place redecorated without consulting me. When I complained, he acted as if I’d hurt his feelings.’

Grayson grimaced. ‘My father preferred to let his fists do the talking, and do the hurting for real, but the results are the same. Some fathers just don’t know how to keep out of their kids’ lives.’ Grayson put down the orange juice on the countertop and wiped his mouth. Where the hell had that come from? He didn’t usually share his feelings about his father with anyone.

He stole a glance at Lauren’s face. She didn’t seem surprised, she just looked interested. Her lack of reaction helped him relax and finish off the juice.

‘I’m not trying to say that makes your father any better than mine, Lauren. I’m just saying that parents can sure as hell mess up their kids.’

Lauren slid down from the stool and took the empty glass across to the dishwasher. She looked at him over her shoulder. ‘Sometimes I think it would’ve been better if I’d had siblings. I didn’t really start to grow up until I realised I would never please my father and that it was stupid to keep trying. To him, I’ll always be a second-rate boy.’

Grayson walked up behind Lauren and wrapped his arms around her waist. ‘I’m sure glad you’re not a boy.’

She looked up at him and they shared a moment of deep understanding that startled him.

‘I’m beginning to be glad about that too,’ Lauren whispered.

After a morning spent revisiting all the tourist spots of San Francisco – something she hadn’t done in years – Lauren glanced up at Grayson as they crossed the road. He’d reclaimed his Stetson and jeans and yet still managed to look at home in the busy crowded streets.

‘How come you know the city so well?’ Lauren asked.

Grayson looked down at her. ‘I lived and worked here for a while during the nineties.’

‘Doing what?’

His gaze slipped away. ‘This and that. Nothing I’m particularly proud of.’

Lauren waited, but he didn’t add anything to his comments. She checked her cellphone messages and then pointed to a restaurant along the street.