14. Chapter 14
Chapter 14
River
G ray made good on his promises last night. We’d barely made it through the door before he had me pressed against the wall, his rough hands shoving my panties aside to slip his fingers inside me. I’d never been so grateful that I was wearing a dress.
We were nothing more than a frenzy of panting breaths and bodies as he fucked me against the front door, on the living room floor, and then against the stairwell, because we still couldn’t make it to the bedroom. Every punishing thrust was a reminder of how much he wanted me. My body’s response confirmation that I am his.
It’s terrifying how much I’ve come to need him so fast. How connected I feel to him beyond the physical. Even though we slept together on day one, we’d connected first. Those hours spent talking at the bar set a foundation I’m not sure I’ve had with others. Maybe because no one gets to see the real River except my grandmother.
With everyone else, I have to be the tough version I curated when I chose orthopedics. A man’s field. A man’s game.
I’m not a small woman, but it’s impossible to forget the number of times I’m reminded I need unprecedented strength to do trauma ortho and sports medicine. Forget doing joint replacements. Dislocating the hip to then shave off the old head took brute force. Muscle power and a build I couldn’t possibly possess.
So I made myself unbreakable. I proved every single one of them wrong, and I became one of the best female orthopedic surgeons on our side of the country. I’ve attended conferences where the organizers praised me, but still, my coworkers undermined my abilities. Gray believes they are just threatened by me, and maybe that’s true, but it doesn’t change who I have to be around them.
It’s nice to just be a light-hearted River in Gray’s presence. I obsess about cows and tell the horses what type of surgeries I would do on them. I laugh and am goofy. That’s the girl I was before I became a surgeon. But no one knows her anymore.
Gray groans loudly, pulling me closer to his side, his nose nuzzling into my hair. I’ve been trying to let him sleep. After we’d had sex all night, we were both exhausted going out to do chores this morning. A post-nap was the only option. We both fell asleep before the opening credits of the movie could roll, but I’ve been awake for the past hour trying not to move.
He looks so peaceful, with the soft speckling of freckles across the bridge of his nose and his wavy hair wild on the pillowcase. Those obnoxiously long lashes fanned across his tanned skin. Emotion stirs in my chest, staring at him. I refuse to acknowledge the feelings. It’s too soon, too much.
It’s terrifying.
“Why are you staring at me?” he grumbles. That gravely sleepy voice making my panties wet—well, they would be if I were wearing any.
Running my fingers through his thick hair, I scoot down so we’re eye to eye. “Just appreciating the view.”
“Mmm,” he hums. “Then please keep staring.”
A soft chuckle escapes before he briefly presses his lips to mine. “You should go back to sleep. You’ll be busy at the ranch tonight.”
“I’ll be fine.” His exhale through his nostrils heavy.
“How’s the hand?”
His eyes widen as he stares back at me, our noses only an inch apart. I can tell he doesn’t want to give me the whole truth. I’ve watched him flex it repeatedly and put on the brace when the pain becomes unbearable, but it’s not frequent enough. “Hurts.”
“Baby, look at me.” My fingers now trailing over his bearded cheek. “I’m not saying this as your doctor. I’m saying this as someone who cares about you. Would it be so bad to take a few weeks off? Just give it time to heal better?”
He turns his face, pressing a kiss to my palm. Those deep amber eyes find mine. “I don’t know who I am if I’m not doing all the things that make me Gray.”
A small piece of my heart breaks. In so many ways, we are the same—an exterior image crafted to combat the impression others have of us. So set in our routines and our way of life, it’s hard to see something different. Different means we may not be us anymore.
“I understand.” Inching closer, I press a kiss to the tip of his nose, his eyelids fluttering shut. “But you are always Gray, with or without those things. The man who makes me laugh and cares so much. The stubborn mule and the passionate lover. The rescuer and daredevil. Taking a few weeks for yourself changes none of that.”
“River, I—” he pauses just as one of our phones vibrates on the nightstand. Both side by side after we plugged them in this morning.
Reaching past him, he grabs hold of my arm. “Ignore it. Just stay here with me.” So I settle back into my spot, curling into his side.
We’re silent for a time, the vibrating long since over. “Tell me what to expect tonight?” The question has been swirling through my head all week. Every new themed night at the ranch is a surprise. We only ever went to the competition nights growing up.
Amateur night is for anyone who wants to perform in any of the rodeo events. To me, it sounds like a recipe for me to be bogged down with horrid injuries, but then again, in places like this, we all grew up on this kind of thing. We all rode horses or whatever other livestock we had at our homes or friends’ houses.
My family never had any on our property. We kept our horses at a stable fifteen miles away, near the border, making visits inconvenient and thus infrequent. The moment they left, they sold them all—even mine.
“It’s an open floor. A lot of the old timers come out to prove they still got it.”
“Oh no,” I giggle.
“You know Old Man Wilber, right?”
“Who doesn’t know the Crawley family? Please tell me that he’s not going to go out there?”
“I’m betting he does. Always trying to show us young guys we’re not as tough as we think we are.”
A loud groan leaves me, my face burrowing into Gray’s naked chest. “I’m so not ready for this.”
“It’ll be fine. Usually only minor injuries.”
“Good to know,” I deadpan, propping my chin on his pec.
A thud sounds at the closed door. Likely Bronc wanting to be let in. The damn dog can be so needy sometimes. I’d insisted Gray let them in when we came in for a nap, but he was sure we’d get no sleep if those two fur balls got in bed with us.
Slipping out of Gray’s hold, I stand on the mattress, ready to step over him and let the babies in.
Callused palms grip my thighs, holding me in place as my body stands over his, one foot planted on either side of his hips.
Those dark eyes stare up at me. Not at my body, but at my face. So much passes behind them. Messages I tell myself not to read into.
It’s too soon .
“Do not let them in here.”
“My boys miss me,” I pout. I’ve grown very attached to his dogs. Though we hadn’t seen each other much this week outside of sleepovers, I’ve grown obsessed with loving on those two mongrels.
“Sit.” The single word is a command. The bass in Gray’s voice is not meant to be questioned.
Taking a small step forward, his fingers flex against my bare thighs. My knees slowly bend as I lower myself to sit on his stomach. The bare skin of his torso hot against my naked core, more torturous than it should be.
“Better?”
“Not there.” My brow arches high. The low, growled words shooting straight to the clenching muscles of my core.
Leaning forward, I capture his lips in a kiss. Our mouths slanting together and hungry. Lust burning behind his gaze when I pull away. “Where?”
He doesn’t answer me, only gripping my waist to guide me forward until I’m perched on his chest. “Up.” Standing slightly at his command, he drags me forward again, this time my naked pussy shoved onto his face.
The flat of his tongue immediately laps at my swollen flesh. “Fuck, Gray. St—”
The words die on my lips as his tongue enters me. His hold on my hips forcing me to grind down onto his face. The rock of my pelvis involuntary as he devours me.
My fingers dig into his forearms, my entire body alive.
A slight extension of my legs allows me to almost hover over his face, but his grip on me tightens. His strength enough to impale me on his tongue.
My hand slams into the headboard, grinding into his face so hard I might smother him. Yet, I can’t find it in me to care. He feels too good. That tongue unraveling me while riling up a violent storm in my lower belly.
“Gray… You… Can you…” The words are barely more than panting breaths.
The tip of his nose brushes my clit. The added sensation shoving me closer to the edge of falling to pieces.
My teeth dig into my lower lip when he lifts me just enough to speak.
“Boss, I’m fine. You taste so good. Make a cowboy happy and keep riding my face.”
I nearly come from his words alone. The filth that exits Gray’s mouth is enough to make a woman combust. But I do as he says, riding his face while he sinks his tongue into my core while rubbing tight circles against my pulsing clit.
“Fuck, Gray… I’m going to—” He only doubles his efforts. My orgasm is right there, ready to burst forward and send me tumbling over the edge when my phone rings.
A ringtone specific to the hospital numbers.
Reaching for it, I expect Gray to stop, but he doesn’t as I answer with a breathy, “Hello.”
Only the doctor on the other end of the line stops me. Her voice strained, stealing every bit of pleasure for that forty-second recap. “I’ll be right in.”
Still, Gray doesn’t stop, my release barreling through me seconds later. As my body collapses onto my side of the bed, I can barely breathe. Gray’s face and soaked beard coming into view above me mere moments later.
That boyish grin spreads, his fingers brushing my hair off my face. “Now you can go be Dr. Thompson.”
Fuck. Me.