21
“I think I’m buzzed,” Ruby gasps. Wide-eyed delight shines on her pretty face as she wobbles on her bare feet.
Crossing my bedroom floor, I grin and pull her against me. “Baby, I think you’re drunk.” Wiggly and giggly, she’s the cutest lightweight I’ve ever seen.
“What’re we doing now?” she asks.
“Sunrise, remember?”
Three shots, two beers later, several spins around the dance floor, we closed the Neon Grizzly down and came back to my place.
“But that’s not for hours.” She stands on tiptoes, slides a hand up my chest, nips at my throat. My resolve weakens, and my cock swells in my jeans.
I brought her back to my place because I didn’t want her to be alone and drunk. I didn’t bring her back to get laid.
“What until then?” she breathes. The heat from her core radiates off her in waves.
I frame her face and frown down at her. “You had some drinks. If you’re not okay with this ...”
She bats long lashes at me and giggles, a melodic lilt that has my arousal spiking. “I may be buzzed, but I am very, very okay with this.”
“You sure?” I warn roughly. “I don’t want you doing anything you’re not up for.”
“Cowboy, stop talking and kiss me,” she says, right before crushing her mouth to mine.
Every ounce of blood in my brain, every protest, drains down into my cock.
I pull back. “That dress needs to come off.”
She pretends to pout, her smoky-shadowed eyes fluttering. “You don’t like my dresses?”
“I love ‘em, baby.” I give her a grin. I like this side of Ruby. Playful, flirty, sweet. Every side of her I see, she keeps getting better and better. “I just love ‘em better on my floor.”
“Cowboy laying down the law.” A hint of a smile plays on her lips. She shimmies, lifting the hem of her dress to flash a peek of creamy white thigh. Purple panties. The apex of her sex.
My cock flexes at the teasing tone in her voice. Any willpower I had to go slow flies out the window. I don’t want to wait. I press her back up against the wall and grab her ass.
“Fuck, baby,” I growl, burying my face in her neck as I drag off her panties.
Her back arches, and her breasts plump against the heart-shaped bodice of her dress. She whines and tears at my shirt, running her small hands over my body. Greedy. I goddamn love it.
I yank her sweet pussy against my thigh. She grinds against it, soaking through my jeans, and I fucking lose it.
With a growl, I tug the front of her delicate dress down, exposing her bare breasts and perky pink nipples. With both hands at her waist, I lean low, sucking in the creamy white swell of her breast, letting my tongue tease her nipples, whipping them to hard peaks.
A delirious cry escapes Ruby. She shudders and tilts her head back, her eyes fluttering, lips parted.
Arousal glistens on the inside of her thighs. I run my palm through the slick moisture, then dip my fingers inside of her. Teasing. Toying.
She lets out a low moan, her nails digging into the meat of my shoulder. “Charlie ...”
She’s tight, wet, hot.
Mine.
No one’s ever going to have another chance with this girl. Never. Seeing her tonight with another man damn near ruined me. I had to restrain myself from killing the guy, because if I go to prison, not only can I not run my ranch, it means I can’t fuck Ruby. And that’d be a goddamn shame.
With that thought, I slide my hands up her body, taking her dress with me, stripping her bare.
I cup her supple ass and lift her up. She hooks her legs around my waist I capture her mouth, inhaling every kiss, every ounce of air she blesses me with.
I want more of her.
I need to taste her.
Because this girl’s my favorite fucking flavor.
Setting her on her feet, I lean in. “Stay,” I order.
“Yes,” she breathes.
“Good girl.”
Her bedroom eyes have me on my knees so fast I get whiplash.
I spread her legs, then, hands gripping her waist, pin her back against the wall. I lick the inside of her thighs, lapping the slick trails of arousal like a lovesick puppy dog. Because it’s true, I’m a fucking famished man.
I push her legs farther apart, eating her sweet pussy out so deep heaven could be on the other side.
Ruby slumps against the wall, body shuddering, thighs trembling around my ears, her eyes squeezed shut in ecstasy. Her pussy flexes against my mouth and I let out some strangled sound.
Christ, she tastes like strawberries. How is this fucking possible? Once again confirming my suspicions she’s a literal angel.
Pulling back, I trail a finger in her damp folds and she sucks in a breath. I put my lips to her clit and suck.
She gasps. “Charlie ...I can’t ...I ...”
I growl, loving the sensation of her tugging at my hair.
Changing it up, I lick the bead of her clit, press my mouth hard against it, and rotate my tongue.
Any way I can devour this slick, sexy pussy, any way I can keep my girl satisfied is my end goal in life.
I take her ass in my hands and jerk her forward, riding her on top of my tongue.
“Oh god. Yes. Yes.” Ruby’s lower body lurches, her thighs tremor uncontrollably and then she screams. Her orgasm moves over her like a wave and I can feel her flesh swell and plump.
With a soft mewl, her eyes glaze over and she goes limp, sliding down the wall with buckled knees.
I stand and gather her close. When I pull her against my chest, I freeze.
“Jesus.” I laugh without humor and place a hand over the channel of her breast. “Your heart’s racing.” It feels unnatural, overly fast.
Her head falls back as she looks up at me. She inhales a shaky breath, her eyes going momentarily sad. “Because of you, Charlie.” She lays her hand over mine and keeps it against her heart. “You see what you do to me?”
“What I do to you?” I growl. “Baby, you got me on my goddamn knees just for a taste of you.”
She smiles.
I kiss her mouth, her tongue diving deep inside of mine. When I pull back, her face is flushed. She sways in my arms and I hook an arm around her waist to keep her steady.
“Fuck, baby, you good?” I rasp the question, winded.
Not done.
She looks at me and grins. Then she says the most beautiful word in the English language. “More.”
I lift her, she’s featherlight in my arms, and set her on the edge of the bed.
“Shit,” I swear, searching the nightstand drawer. My balls are heavier than lead. “I’m out of condoms.”
“I’m clean. I’m on birth control. I’ve barely been with anyone except you,” she whispers. Her eyes meet mine, not a trace of doubt on her face. “I trust you, Charlie.”
Trust.
It sends a fireball up inside of my chest, has my cock surging.
Fucking Ruby bare. Taking care of her. Giving her what she wants.
Jesus, I don’t stand a fucking chance.
I’m on the bed fast, growling with approval, grabbing her to me. “I’m clean too.”
“I need you, Charlie,” she whimpers. Her body arches toward me, pushing those sweet breasts against my chest. “Tonight, fuck me fast.”
“Are you sure?” I ask, looking her in the eye.
I’ve always gone slow like she’s asked. But with her permission, I can’t wait to ride that perfect pussy hard and fast.
“So damn sure.”
My pants are off. I pin her body to the bed.
At the rough contact, she gasps.
“Fuck,” I moan as I slip into her slick pussy. She’s so wet she draws me inside without a fight. “I’m gonna make you fucking shake, baby. Spread those legs.”
She does, and I burrow deeper. “Christ,” I growl through gritted teeth. “Every inch of me fits you perfectly. Perfection, baby.”
Whimpering, she spreads her legs and arches her back, her fingers twisting in the sheets. A slow, innocent smile spreads across her face. “I love it. I love it, Charlie.”
I’m ruined.
Absolutely wrecked.
“Faster,” she whines, writhing like some magical creature, beautiful and reckless. “Faster.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, yes .”
This time, I pump ruthlessly, ramming my hips, driving my cock into her slick, hot channel. Hard thrusts that have her body tensing. The way she sucks me in, the way she pulses around me and keeps me there has me losing my mind.
I need to go deeper.
She gasps, her small body trembling beneath me. “Oh. Ohhhh ,” she pants, her breath turning erratic.
“Fuck, you break me, Ruby,” I grunt, thrusting deeper than ever, my balls so goddamn heavy as my peak grows closer.
I never want to let her go. Never felt anything like this before. She’s small and warm and perfect, stripping me of my control so easily I can’t even fight it. The way she fits me, Jesus, I’m a desperate goddamn man.
Blood pounding in my temples, I glue my mouth to hers and I pump hard. I pump fast. Our heartbeats thunder.
“Fuck, baby, I’m gonna come,” I gruff into the nape of her neck. The bedsprings squeak wildly. Our bodies connect with unleashed fury. Every slam of my body against hers drives her tiny form several inches up the mattress.
“Charlie,” Ruby pants, digging her nails into my back. Her eyes lose focus, sweat beads her brow. Then she trembles, bucking violently, as her orgasm crashes over her. Her melodic voice is a chant on high.
“Oh my god. Oh my god, Charlie ... Charlie ...yes—”
I snap.
With one last thrust, I drive my cock hard into her. Her walls clench around me, keeping me there, and the second I feel Ruby’s slender arm on my back, feel her going limp beneath me, it pushes me past my breaking point. I come as fast as quicksilver, bellowing my release.
Panting, I collapse on top of her, burying my face against her neck, breathing in the strawberry scent of her skin. “You fucking wrecked me, baby.”
Silence.
My frame locks. Fuck. If I was too rough with her, I’ll never forgive myself. Kissing her bare shoulder, I push up.
Ruby lies there, eyes closed, lips parted. Hair spread out like a blanket of gold.
“Ruby, you okay?” I rasp, but her body remains limp on the bed, unmoving.
Panic twists in my chest like a knife.
“Baby, you need to open your eyes,” I order roughly, pulling her into my arms and cradling her head in my palm.
She doesn’t respond.
I can’t think. Can’t breathe.
The world around me tilts and blurs, but before I can lose my mind, a whimper slips from her mouth. When her blue eyes flutter open, my chest caves in with relief.
“Hi,” she whispers.
Sweeping my finger under her chin, I make her look at me, checking her eyes. Glassy, but they’re alert. “You passed out.” It’s a statement, not a question, because that’s what happened.
“I got dizzy,” she admits, her voice groggy. “I drank too much. I shouldn’t have.”
Guilt sideswipes me. I should have paid better attention.
“Come here, baby,” I whisper, gathering her tiny frame against my chest.
Bouncing back and forth between panic and worry, I climb off the bed and reposition Ruby back on it, setting her down gently into the pillows.
“I just need a second.” She gives me a weak smile, rubbing a slow circle on her chest. My stomach churns at her ghost-white pallor. “You wore me out.”
“Stay here.” Kissing her temple gently, I take off to grab a towel from the bathroom.
“You don’t have to do that,” Ruby says when I return and wipe the mess off her legs.
I toss the towel in the hamper and sit beside her. “Yeah, I do.” I keep my eyes on her face. “You scared the hell outta me.”
“I’m okay, Charlie,” she assures me. With a small smile, she slides off the edge of the bed to collect her dress. Her movements are slow, unsteady.
“Where are you going?” I snag her hand. Soft. Warm. My heart clenches.
“Back to my cottage.”
“Not tonight.”
Shaking her head, she sighs, and my gaze latches onto the way she holds my bedframe as if to stay steady. “Charlie. We don’t do this.”
“Yeah, well, we do tonight. Sunrise, remember?”
Her lips flatten. A universal gesture that tells me she’s planning to argue with me.
I sigh, frustrated.
I don’t like it. I don’t like the fact she’s leaving in the middle of the night. And I don’t like the fact she drank so much she passed out in my arms. Worse, I don’t like the fact that I’m close to getting on my knees to beg her to stay.
She looks exhausted and fragile, and I want her to sleep. I want to keep her here and know she’s safe and okay and not fucking worry about her.
I want to protect her.
I sweep a thumb over the inside of her wrist. “Stay. I want you to.”
Her eyes go dreamy. “Okay.”
I don’t give her a chance to reconsider.
Grasping her wrist, I tug her back toward me and sweep her into my arms. A little gasp slips from her lips.
I settle her in bed and climb in beside her.
It feels too intimate, her spending the night, but I don’t give a shit.
I’ve wanted this—craved this—since she left the first night and every night after.
Consider this my battle of wills broken.
Consider the rest of the summer fucked. This woman has a stranglehold on me, on my cock, my head and my heart. There’s no one like her.
With a little sigh, Ruby snuggles against me, placing her head between my collar and chest. I wrap her naked body in my arms. Her heart’s pounding like she’s run a marathon double time.
“Sunflower.” The happy whisper pops out of her mouth.
“What’s that?” I ask.
“This was my sunflower, today. You.”
“Mine too,” I admit. The rock in my throat makes it hard to get any more out.
Her glazed eyes find mine. “Really?”
“Really.” I kiss her temple. “Ruby?”
“Hmm.”
“What’s your middle name?”
“Jane. It was my mother’s.”
“What happened to her?”
She sighs, drowsy. “She died when I was a baby.” Her voice is soft, almost slurred.
“How?”
“Health condition.”
I glance down at her pale face. When she offers nothing further, we lie in silence, leaving me to stew. What does that mean? Health condition? What kind of health condition? It eats at me and I don’t know why.
Because she’s stubborn.
Because I care too damn much.
I trace a circle on her arm. “Why are you here, Ruby?”
“Runaway Ranch, Cowboy,” she breathes. “Then we’ll talk.”
She’s good, I’ll give her that.
It pisses me off.
It scares the ever-loving shit out of me.
Maybe because I find myself wanting to tell her about Runaway Ranch. Maybe because that means I learn more about Ruby. This sweet, gorgeous girl who blows up my heart like an atom bomb.
Or maybe it’s because this is the first time I’ve had a woman spend the night since Maggie. With Ruby in my arms, I don’t feel so hollowed out. I don’t feel so broken.
I’m in too deep. I’m drowning, but the thought of grabbing a life preserver isn’t happening.
Ruby’s dreamy voice breaks the silence. Like she’s read my mind, she says, “You might not have been prepared for me, Charlie Montgomery, but I’ve been ready for you.”
Her sweet words have me by the throat.
I gather her closer to me. “Sleep, darlin’.”
“We’ll miss the sunrise,” she murmurs. I feel her yawn and I smile.
“I’ll wake you up,” I lie. I already know I’m following her down into whatever restless sleep awaits.
Her breathing slows, steadies. I lie beside her, my hand over her thundering heart.
Hard truth is, I can’t stay away from Ruby.
Even worse, I don’t want to.