5
“Yes,”
Travis admitted.
“So your family knows?”
“No,”
Travis replied irritably. “What am I going to tell them, Ally? They’ll think I’m as crazy as my father.”
“No, they will not,”
Ally answered, her voice infuriated. “They’d never think that. Travis, you have a gift, a gift that saved both Mia’s life and Asha’s. It’s nothing to be ashamed about.”
He looked up at her dubiously. “My father was certifiable, Ally. And it isn’t a gift. I think it’s a goddamn curse. It’s not predictable. It doesn’t always help—”
“It has helped. I understand your frustration over not having control over it. But it saved your sister and your sister-in-law. “
“It makes me different. Separate from everyone else. I’ve always hated it,”
Travis growled. “But yeah, since it helped Mia and Asha, I’d rather have it and be different than to see either of them harmed.”
“It makes you special. And you allow it to separate you. Especially from your family,”
Ally argued. “I’m not saying you have to tell the whole world, but the people who care about you will understand. I think they’d accept it better than you think.”
Would they really? Travis thought about what he imagined Ally’s reaction would be to him, and he’d been totally wrong. Was it possible that he was so afraid that people would think he was as crazy as his father that he was overreacting? “I’ll think about it,”
he grumbled.
“Thank you,”
Ally said, her face lighting up in a smile.
Travis felt like he’d just gotten sucker punched in the gut. He wanted to tell Ally how much it meant to him that she could accept him as he was, but he didn’t know how. “I’m glad you didn’t leave me,”
he told her in a husky voice. Not exactly what he’d wanted to say, but he meant those words too. Really, he was more than glad. His whole world had crumbled when he thought he’d never see her again, that he’d never see her sweet smile directed at him in the future. Her take-charge attitude and naughty words this morning had nearly made him come unglued, and she was actually becoming a cock teaser, which he loved. As long as the only cock she teased was his. Ally was starting to recognize her own sexuality, and he found that budding boldness erotic as hell. The fact that she hadn’t rebuffed him because of his peculiar ability of precognition, and had in fact accepted it quite easily, had sealed her fate. She was his forever. She just hadn’t entirely realized it yet.
“You’re worth fighting for, Travis, even if it did test my boundaries a little.”
He hated the vulnerability in her voice. “Baby, there are no boundaries between us. You can cross any lines with me at any time. Especially like you did this morning,”
he rasped, trying not to remember watching her go down on him with such rampant enthusiasm.
“I want you to trust me,”
she said, slightly forlorn.
“I do. It’s me I didn’t trust. Forgive me?”
Travis watched as she pretended to contemplate his words for a minute, a period of time when he didn’t even breathe.
“Mmmm…I suppose. But it might take a little making up on your part.”
She gave him a sultry smile.
“Name it,”
he agreed eagerly, finally taking a breath. There was nothing he wasn’t prepared to give Ally.
She pulled a bound manuscript from its place beside her from her chair. “Read the next book and give me your honest opinion. I had time to finish it while I was on vacation.”
Travis hadn’t even noticed that she’d brought it into the office with her, probably because he’d been too busy noticing her cock torture device of a dress. He snatched it eagerly, excited that she’d finished the next book. “That’s not a make-up, sweetheart. That would be my pleasure.”
“Then can I have one more thing?”
she asked hesitantly.
“Tell me.”
“Will you let me touch you like I did this morning more from now on?”
Travis nearly groaned aloud. Ally would kill him, but in a good way. He was giving her anything she wanted, and her only request was to be able to touch him more? He was a damn billionaire, capable of making her every dream come true, yet all she seemed to want was…him. “If you do it, you’d better be ready for a quickie,”
he warned her dangerously.
“No problem,”
she told him with a wicked smile. “You recover very quickly.”
Now that was the truth when it came to Ally. He had another erection within five minutes of fucking her. “I’ll try,”
he grumbled.
Her face lit up so joyously that Travis decided he’d let her do any damn thing she wanted to do to him, as long as she looked at him exactly that way for the rest of his life. She might be the death of him, but he’d die a very happy man.
Their trip to Colorado the next day was uneventful, but for Ally, it was spectacular. She’d never been in Travis’s private jet, and the luxury of the aircraft was unbelievable to her. Of course Travis had wanted to spend most of their flight time showing her the bedroom, which she gladly enjoyed right along with him.
She leaned back in the leather seat of the BMW she’d rented for him, unable to find him the Ferrari he’d requested. “Sorry you have to slum it with the BMW,”
she told him facetiously.
“I guess I’ll just have to be a regular guy,”
he answered with a grin.
She snickered, knowing Travis Harrison would never be just a regular man. “Yeah, just a real average Joe,”
she agreed, nodding her head. “With two security vehicles following us from the minute we left that luxury jet.”
“Tate’s guys,”
Travis said, disgruntled, maneuvering through traffic once they left the city limits of Denver. “You’ll be pretty safe once we get to Rocky Springs.”
“Me? It’s not me they’re protecting, Travis.”
“Of course it is. That’s the only reason I told Tate to send more than one. I wanted to be alone on the flight, so I left your security at the airport back in Florida, and told Tate to send some of his guys to the airport here. I don’t worry much about my own security. I worry about yours.”
“I’ve never had security before.”
She looked at him, puzzled.
“Sweetheart, your beautiful ass has been tailed ever since your ex showed up at your house. You just didn’t know it.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re my woman and whether I like it or not, I’m a high-profile man. I want to make sure you’re safe.”
He shot her a look not to argue with him.
“I didn’t know,”
she murmured, not sure how she felt about being watched all the time, but touched that he was thinking about her safety. “I’m sure it’s not necessary.”
“It is,”
Travis replied harshly. “Don’t argue with me on this one, Ally. I want you safe.”
Deciding she could deal with security because it was just part of who Travis was, she replied, “Okay.”
She watched the scenery out the window, marveling at the high peaks of the mountains, the top of which still had snow. “Oh my God. Are those bighorn sheep?”
she asked excitedly, looking at the rocky terrain by the side of the freeway.
“Yep,”
Travis replied. “You’ve never seen one?”
“Never,”
Ally replied enthusiastically. “I’ve rarely gotten out of Florida.”
She rummaged in her purse for her phone to take a picture.
“Don’t bother,”
Travis advised. “You’re too far away. Don’t worry. You’ll see plenty of wildlife here.”
“You know, that’s one of the things I was really excited about when I took this job. I wanted to travel, see other places. I was disappointed once I realized you’d never take me. But I guess it all worked out because I needed my other job.”
She put her phone back in her purse.
“I wanted to,”
Travis answered hoarsely. “But I couldn’t, Ally. It wasn’t possible. Even then, I wanted to fuck you. And to have you that close to me would have killed me.”
“It’s so hard to believe you were really attracted to me for that long. Travis, there are so many women who—”
“Didn’t matter. I haven’t fucked another woman since I met you. I didn’t want a single one of them,”
he said irritably.
Ally gaped at him. “You haven’t had sex in four years?”
“Nope. Just me and my fantasies about doing the only woman I wanted. But they were pretty hot fantasies,”
he said jokingly, trying to lighten the conversation.
“Why didn’t I ever notice?”
Ally muttered to herself.
“Because I didn’t want you to. You were engaged to another man. I thought you actually had the perfect life. But if I had known he was a dick, that he wasn’t making you happy, I would have started taking you with me,”
he answered angrily. “I would have done everything in my power to get you away from him.”
Ally felt tears well up in her eyes, the knowledge that Travis had been there all that time wanting her nearly breaking her. She knew how she felt about him now, and if he’d felt even a small portion of what she felt for him, it had to have been difficult. “I wasn’t happy. Rick and I hadn’t even tried to have sex in two years. He made excuses, but I knew—”
“Don’t, Ally. Don’t think about him,”
Travis barked.
“I don’t hear his voice anymore, Travis. And I’m actually grateful he made me leave him. It doesn’t hurt anymore,”
she told him honestly.
“Whose voice do you hear?”
he asked in a voice cracking with emotion.
“Mine.”
Ally looked at his profile, his jaw clenched tightly. He obviously still couldn’t stand to think about her ex. “And sometimes I hear yours. Especially the naughty things.”
She watched as he relaxed in his seat, his face softening.
“I wanted to kill the bastard for what he’d done. He’s lucky he just lost his job and his woman—if you can even call her that. Christ! She was barely eighteen,”
Travis grumbled.
“How do you know that?”
Ally inquired, slightly stunned that Travis knew about the other woman in Rick’s life.
“Because I filtered the right information to the head of his practice to get him fired, and then I bribed the woman to leave him.
She was young, and dazzled by the fact that an educated man was interested in her.
He’d fed her some line of bullshit about you, and she believed it because she was young and clueless.
She never really knew the truth about you.
She was mortified, Ally.
I didn’t want her to destroy her life with an asshole.
She was too damn young. I paid her tuition to go to college, provided she stayed away from him. She took the deal, and she told me she’d never see him again anyway.”
Ally stared at Travis for a moment, completely blown away.
It was hard for her to feel sorry for Rick since she’d worked her ass off for years for him.
And he’d get another job.
Just not one as prestigious as the one he’d landed after college.
But the fact that Travis had saved a young woman from Rick’s manipulative behavior touched her.
“I knew she was young, but not that young.
Thank you. He would have destroyed her.”
Rick had nearly destroyed her, and she was older and wiser.
She could imagine what damage he could do to a woman that young and naive.
“You’re not pissed off?”
“No. Rick will get another job, but he might have to work a little harder. I can’t be sad about that. Maybe he’ll be too busy to go after barely legal women. But what you did for that girl is amazing. You’re amazing,”
she breathed softly, knowing this wasn’t the first young woman he’d rescued. He’d also helped two young Indian women escape a bad fate when he’d been helping Asha.
Travis shrugged, looking almost embarrassed. “I thought it was the right thing to do.”
“It was,”
Ally agreed, her chest tightening when she looked at Travis. He had so much integrity, so much hidden compassion inside him. And he never sought anything in return, never wanted recognition for the good things he did. In fact, he avoided the attention. Travis Harrison did what he thought was right, because of his sense of honor. “You’re one hell of a man, Travis Harrison.”
“I’m an asshole, Ally. And everyone knows it. But if you think that, I’m glad you’re delusional,”
he said with a smirk. “Whatever it takes to keep you,”
he added in a more serious tone.
Ally rolled her eyes. “And you think I’m delusional?”
But her whole body flushed with pleasure. “Oh look! We’re coming up on the Eisenhower Tunnel,”
she exclaimed, seeing the sign that they were getting close.
Travis shook his head, and smiled. “I didn’t realize you’d get excited over a big hole in a mountain.”
Ally gave him an admonishing look. “You’re cynical because you’ve traveled all over the world. The tunnel is incredible. It will take us right underneath the Continental Divide. And it tops out at over eleven thousand feet high. It’s one of the highest and longest vehicular tunnels in the world, Travis.”
“You did your research.”
“Of course I did. And it wasn’t research. It was fun. I’ve never been to Colorado. It’s beautiful here.”
“You might not think so when the snow starts to fly,”
Travis answered wryly.
“I’ve never seen snow,”
Ally answered wistfully.
“You will. You’ll be going everywhere with me from now on.”
His statement sounded almost like a warning.
Ally thrilled at Travis’s possessive tone of voice as they entered the Eisenhower Tunnel. “This is incredible. We’re actually going right through a mountain,”
she mused, thinking about how surreal it seemed to be in another part of the country, an area so different from Florida. “What’s it like in Rocky Springs? How big is the ranch?”
She’d only met Tate Colter a few times in passing, occasions where he stopped into the office to see Travis. He was blond, big, and gorgeous. But the only thing she’d really remembered was his incredible gray eyes and how polite he’d always been to her.
“Ranches,”
Travis corrected her. “The town is small, but the Colters own over a thousand acres right outside of the town. They all have a ranch there. And then there’s a guest ranch, a spa, and ski resort. They have hot springs that run through the area.”
“Exactly how many Colters are there?”
Ally had never known Tate even had siblings.
“Tate’s father is dead. But his mom still lives in the old homestead ranch near the resort with his sister. And he has three other brothers.”
“All wealthy, I’m guessing,”
Ally mused.
“The Colters have been wealthy for generations. Their ancestors settled the town during the gold rush, and they were all innovative and started up some very prosperous ventures. So yeah, they’re all obscenely rich.”
He hesitated for a moment before adding, “But they’re great people, too.”
Ally was nervous. This wasn’t a world she even came into contact with outside of Travis’s office. “I hope they like me,”
she said tentatively. “But at least they think I’m just your assistant.”
“That’s not what I told Tate. And you’re not just my assistant,”
Travis answered irritably as he exited the freeway and started navigating through a quaint mountain town.
“Then what did you say? We’re just…dating.”
“I told him I’m bringing my woman,”
he answered matter-of-factly. “He put us up in one of the guesthouses on his property so we could have privacy. I think Sutherland is taking the other one.”
Ally hadn’t realized Jason was attending, but she was more concerned about what Travis had told his friends. “But I’m not really your woman. Not really.”
“If you say that one more time, I’ll pull this vehicle off the road and show you just how much you belong to me,”
Travis said dangerously, leaving the small town and staying on a two-lane highway, navigating the twists and turns like they were nothing. “Don’t say it, Ally. That isn’t an empty threat. I’m more than ready to show you exactly what I mean right here and right now.”
Oh, God. Ally had never wanted to call him on a threat this badly. Her body ached for him, and she wanted him inside her so desperately that her panties were drenched. But it wasn’t exactly a safe area for him to be pulling off the road. And she had no doubt he’d do it. “Show me later,”
she told him breathlessly.
“Count on it,”
he warned darkly.
Ally was speechless, thoughts of what exactly Travis would do to her later drifting through her mind. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, visualizing Travis’s powerful body over hers, his fierce look of longing that he always had in his eyes whenever he was inside her.
“What are you thinking about?”
Travis asked curiously.
“Nothing,”
she squeaked guiltily. “Just plotting my third book.”
Liar. Liar. I’m so not thinking about a young adult plot at the moment.
“When is it going to be done? You left me hanging again,”
he grumbled.
Her eyes shot open. “You already read the second book?”
“Yesterday. And it was fantastic, but you need to end this with a trilogy or you’ll drive me crazy.”
“I plan on it. And I think you’re biased. The publishers hated it,”
she answered with a sigh, but pleased that Travis seemed to genuinely like the story.
“I don’t give a shit what they said. It’s fantastic,”
he grunted. “I’m a reader. So my opinion is much more important,”
he said arrogantly. “You need a good agent who can submit to the bigger publishing houses. Or you can publish them yourself. I know a good businessman who’d be more than happy to help.”
Ally already knew who that good businessman was, and she smiled. “So you’d let Kade help me?”
She laughed when she heard the predictably unhappy growl from Travis that she’d expected. When she stopped laughing, she told him more seriously, “Just the fact that you believe in me is enough. I think this is something I need to accomplish on my own.”
“Stubborn woman,”
he complained mournfully. He nodded his head to the right. “There’s a herd of elk.”
Ally marveled over the field littered with elk. “They’re huge.”
A few were right beside the road, and Travis slowed down through the area to avoid hitting any of the animals.
After they passed the herd, Ally asked Travis curiously, “So why were you so insistent that I was coming with you to Colorado? You’re obviously comfortable with the crowd here. You know the Colters well. Why is this any different than any other charity function?”
She’d been wondering that for a while now.
“It’s an auction and a ball,”
Travis answered grimly.
“So? You attend auctions,”
she shot back at him.
“It’s not a typical auction. Tate thought it would be interesting to have a billionaire auction to raise more money. Bastard! And he has the connections to gather a very wealthy crowd.”
“So only billionaires will be there?”
Ally asked, bewildered.
“No. Billionaires are the auction items. Women are bidding on the billionaire of their choice to be their escort for the ball.”
Travis visibly shuddered. “I can’t believe Sutherland showed up. Poor bastard. I hope he knows what he’s getting himself into. Tate’s own brothers conveniently had to be out of town.”
“So you’re going to be auctioned off?”
“Hell, no. I’m exempt because I have a woman. It’s just the single guys.”
“So you brought me along as your cover?”
Ally asked, biting back a laugh, knowing that was probably initially the reason he’d needed her.
He hesitated for a moment and then answered, “Yeah. I’m not going up on some auction block like a damn antique or a prize show horse for sale.”
Ally snickered. “Well, you are priceless and a stud. That’s hilarious. And I think it’s very unique. I think it will be fun. And the men who are participating are good sports. Is Tate going to do it?”
“Yeah. Some unsuspecting woman will have to put up with his ornery ass all night,”
Travis grumbled. “He got a surprising number of men who volunteered. We should raise a lot of money.”
“So I’m going to be in the same place as many of the world’s most eligible bachelors?”
Ally asked teasingly.
“No. You’ll be there with me,”
Travis told her gravely.
“Jason Sutherland will bring a hefty price. So will Tate. I know women who would give anything to spend an evening with either one of them. And I imagine there will be women there with very deep pocketbooks.”
“And are you one of those women who would love to spend an evening with Tate or Jason?”
Travis questioned, his voice harsh, but a little vulnerable. He turned off the highway and onto a paved road that had a “Welcome to Rocky Springs Resort”
sign beside it.
Ally looked at Travis in surprise. Was he serious? Not another man even existed for her anymore. Jason was certainly handsome, and so was Tate. But there was no other guy in the world like Travis. She found it incredible that he could even ask that question, that he still had any doubts. She panted after him like a woman in a perpetual state of heat. It was amazing that Travis had any insecurities, but apparently…he did.
Just like I do.
“No. I’m not.”
She reached over and gently stroked his rough jawline. “I’m already living my fantasy with you, and I’m lucky enough that it’s been more than just one night.”
She sighed as she stroked the hair at the nape of his neck. “If anything, I wonder why you want me. You’re a brilliant, incredibly handsome man who gives to others without any recognition for doing so. I’m just a regular woman, and I’m nothing special. My butt is too big, I’m much too curvy, and I’m not anything out of the ordinary, yet you still want me. Sometimes I’m afraid I’ll wake up and realize everything that’s happened with you was just one very long, one very hot wet dream. So no…I don’t dream or fantasize about any other man but you.”
Travis grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing her palm reverently. “Jesus, Ally. Sometimes I feel exactly the same way.”
Time stopped for just a moment, as though only the two of them existed. Ally’s breath seized in her lungs, the beauty of Travis leaving himself wide open to her making her heart flip-flop in her chest. Her connection to him was so strong, so right, that she wanted to cry just from the joy of being with him. “I’ll never hurt you again, Travis. Not willingly.”
She released the tremulous breath she’d been holding. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to convince you of that. Even if I have to get out your ‘naughty boy tie’ and tie you up and ravish you until you’re completely convinced.”
Travis grinned at her wickedly. “I’m suddenly feeling incredibly insecure.”
She shot him an equally naughty grin. “Then I guess we’ll just have to work on that.”
Travis pulled into the driveway of an enormous, beautiful mansion with a circular driveway as he replied, “I’m going to take a lot of damn work.”
Even though Ally had butterflies in her belly at the prospect of meeting so many of Travis’s peers, she smiled.
“I think you’ll be comfortable here. Travis has stayed here before, so he knows where everything is. Make sure you stay well hydrated and take it easy tonight. We’re a little over eight thousand feet here, and you’re a flatlander. You might feel the effects of the altitude for a while,”
Tate told Ally with a charismatic smile. “I’m glad you’re here, Ally. I hope you have a good time.”
Tate Colter was probably what Travis would call his best friend aside from his brother Kade, but he still wanted to punch him every time he turned that admiring smile toward Ally. “We’re fine. You can leave now,”
Travis told him gruffly, looking around the guesthouse. He had stayed here many times before, and it was a nice place. But all he wanted was for Tate’s ass to leave. A ranch hand had brought their bags over earlier, while they’d sat and chatted with Tate over dinner. Now all Travis wanted was to be alone with Ally.
“Glad to know you missed me so much, buddy.”
Tate slapped Travis on the back with a smirk.
Travis glared back at him, knowing Tate was just trying to push his buttons. It hadn’t taken long for Tate to realize that Travis was feeling territorial about Ally, and he’d immediately started paying as much attention to her as possible just to irritate Travis. Bastard!
Ally stepped forward and offered Tate her hand. “Thank you so much for having me. It’s beautiful here.”
“I’m very happy to have you,”
Tate answered, putting his emphasis on the word “have”
intentionally as he shook Ally’s hand much longer than he needed to.
“If you don’t leave, I’m gonna fucking kill you,”
Travis growled.
Tate let go of Ally’s hand and let out a choked laugh. “Okay, okay. I’m going.”
Tate obviously noted that Travis was getting close to his tipping point.
Travis gave him a hard shove, moving Tate closer to the door, not an easy feat since he and Tate were about the same size. But Travis had irritation on his side. Opening the door, he motioned Tate impatiently through the entrance, and slammed it behind him, flipping the lock noisily. He could hear Tate’s booming laughter as he walked away from the guesthouse. “Son of a bitch!”
“Travis. He was just giving you a hard time. He isn’t interested in me,”
Ally said soothingly behind him. “Show me the house. It’s gorgeous.”
“I know what he was trying to do. I swear I’ll repay the favor someday.”
He couldn’t wait until Tate had a serious love interest now.
The guesthouse was an expansive ranch, all on one floor. He took Ally by the hand and led her around the various rooms, stopping when he finally reached the master bedroom and slid open the sliding door to the patio off the bedroom. “My favorite part of this house.”
Ally stepped outside and sighed, a sound that had Travis’s hard cock twitching, wanting to hear that sound as he buried himself inside her.
“It’s lovely. And the skies are so clear here. The stars look incredible,”
she said with awe. “What is this?”
She waved toward a small pool with a waterfall that trickled down several ledges of rocks.
“It’s the hot springs. They have an incredible flow on this land that allows them to divert it to several places. The biggest one is in the resort and spa.”
Ally sniffed loudly. “It has a different smell.”
“It’s the minerals. This is a natural hot springs. It has like fourteen or fifteen different natural minerals.”
“It’s beautiful. Is it warm?”
“It is,”
Travis said casually as he grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head. “And relaxing.”
Travis nearly groaned as he saw the look of longing on Ally’s face as her eyes roamed over his chest. “I’ll go get us some water. Tate is right. You need to keep drinking water.”
“I’ll get it,”
she answered quickly, licking her lips as she watched him flip the top button of his jeans. She backed up slowly and headed for the kitchen, as though she didn’t want to take her eyes away from him.
Travis quickly stripped off his jeans and briefs and slid into the pool, groaning as the warm mineral water sloshed over his body. He submerged himself, letting the warmth soothe him as he dunked his head and then sat on one of the lower rock ledges, leaning back so the water trickled over him, relaxing his muscles.
How often had he sat in this exact place, dreaming about Ally? He’d left the patio light off, leaving only the light from the bedroom on. He looked up at the sky, marveling at the miracle that she was finally here with him. Unconsciously, he gripped his hard, pulsating cock, stroking it as he stared up at the sky, both exhilarated and terrified at how Ally had changed his life. Let’s face it, he wasn’t a guy who’d had a whole lot of happiness in his life, and it was intoxicating. But he still had fears of losing Ally. And he knew that now he’d never survive the loss.
A small, needy moan came from beside the pool, and Travis looked up to see Ally with two giant bottled waters in her hand, looking at him with so much longing that his heart accelerated like a race car taking off from the starting line. Finally realizing that he was stroking his own cock, he froze.
“Don’t stop,”
Ally begged him quietly. “Please. You look so hot.”
She set the waters down next to the pool and pulled her delicate short-sleeved shirt over her head in a slow, seductive move.
At that moment, Travis couldn’t have stopped if he wanted to. He watched as she slowly stripped for him, her bra coming off next in languid, sensual motions of Ally’s upper body. Travis’s hand moved up and down his shaft, gripping himself tightly as he watched her, knowing her every movement was meant to arouse him, and it did. Painfully. Her unabashedly sensual movements drove him mad. “God, you’re beautiful,”
he told her hoarsely, their gazes locked on each other.
She cupped her breasts, running her thumbs over the nipples, gasping as she watched him jerking his hand up and down his cock. “God, yes. Touch yourself, Ally.”
Watching her pleasure her own body nearly broke him.
He saw her bite her bottom lip, trying to hold back her moans of pleasure. She was standing directly in front of the light coming from the bedroom, and she looked like a fucking goddess.
She moved her hands and slowly undid the button and the zipper of her jeans, shimmying out of them, revealing her body slowly, taking her panties with them. Finally, she stood in front of him boldly and beautifully naked, no longer shy about revealing herself to him completely.
“Come to me,”
Travis ordered, unable to stand another second without touching her.
She slid into the pool silently, the water rippling over her breasts. Placing her hands on his thighs as she arrived in front of him, she slid her hands up and down the muscles, massaging him.
Travis moved his hand from his cock and reached out for her. “Come ride me, Ally. Convince me that you’re really here with me,”
he told her in a pleading but commanding voice.
For once, he wasn’t going to hurry this moment. It was too magical, and he wanted to savor Ally the way he’d always needed to, but had never been able to accomplish.
“I almost just wanted to watch you come. You looked so amazing,”
she told him breathlessly.
Travis’s heart skipped a beat, his arousal growing even hotter. What woman said something like that? Only Ally. And it made him want to please her even more. “You’re coming with me, baby,”
he told her adamantly as he lifted her onto the ledge and into his lap. She straddled him, and he reveled in the slick heat of her pussy as she nudged her hips into his groin. Locking his arms around her waist, he put his lips to her neck, nipping and stroking her skin with his tongue. He took his time, relishing every touch, feeling her body quiver in his arms as he latched onto one of her nipples and then giving the other one the same attention. Lifting his head, he demanded, “Kiss me.”
He put a hand behind her neck and guided her mouth to his.
He explored her mouth with his tongue slowly, loving the way she followed his lead, entangling her tongue with his, bringing them closer than they’d ever been before. Moving his hand down to his cock, he groaned into her mouth when he parted her folds and his fingers found nothing but hot, wet need between her thighs. He guided his cock to her tight channel, pressing his hips up to enter her. She moved then, bearing down on his cock until he was completely buried inside her.
She moaned into his embrace and threaded her hands through his hair, neither of them moving for a moment. Travis luxuriated in the feel of her lips on his, her inner muscles gloving his cock with warmth. Hot mineral water flowed over them as they lost themselves to sensation.
Ally rotated her hips slowly as she fisted his hair, breaking off their kiss to pant beside his ear. Travis grasped her hips, thrusting upward, wanting to fill Ally so completely that she’d crave him forever. In that moment, Travis realized he wasn’t just fucking anymore; he was making love with the woman who melded with him so perfectly that he never wanted it to end. Truth was, he’d always been making love with Ally, and it had always been so much more. She was fucking perfection. “Make love to me, Ally. I can’t believe you’re really here.”
“Yes,”
she moaned as she rotated her hips faster. “I’ve always been making love to you. And I never want to stop.”
Travis pulled her body against his, felt her heart hammering in the same rhythm as his, their bodies both jolting every time they joined together.
They climaxed at the same time, both of them groaning as their lips locked together, Travis feeling her milking his cock as he exploded deep inside her, rocking his world totally and completely.
They stayed locked together, panting as they recovered from the earth-shattering lovemaking they’d just experienced together. Finally, Travis slid down into the water, sitting on the lowest ledge, taking Ally with him to sit between his legs. She rested her head back on his shoulder and he tightened his arms around her waist. “You were meant to be mine, Ally,”
he whispered into her ear hoarsely.
“I know,”
she answered simply, gazing up at the sky. “Look, it’s a shooting star. Make a wish, Travis.”
He’d never been the type of guy to do something as silly as wish upon a star. He was pragmatic, an asshole. He didn’t believe any wish on a star would come true. But one wish came immediately to mind:
I wish Ally would fall in love with me and stay with me forever.
Okay…maybe he was a realist, but he could use all the help he could get.
“Did you do it?”
she asked excitedly. “I did. But you can’t tell. You can only tell me if your wish comes true.”
“I did,”
he confirmed. “Did you?”
“Yes,”
she answered quietly.
He wondered what she’d wished for, and he fervently hoped that someday he’d be able to tell her that his wish had been granted.
“Hope is getting married.”
Jason Sutherland downed another slug of his drink, his voice full of despair. “What the hell? She went back to the same asshole she was with in Aspen. I thought I was giving her time to heal, and she went back to the bastard. All he wants is her money. Doesn’t she get that? Christ! I should have just pushed her harder after what happened between us at the holidays.”
Travis actually felt for the poor guy. He’d walked up to Tate’s house after putting Ally to bed because she was tired and had a mild headache, probably the result of the altitude. He’d have to head back soon and check on her. But he and Tate were currently wrapped up in trying to get the distraught Sutherland to calm the hell down.
Tate barely knew Sutherland, but he said sympathetically, “So what are you going to do? If you’ve been crazy for this woman for years, don’t you think it’s time to make your move?”
“It’s complicated. Her brother Grady is one of the East Coast Sinclairs. And one of my best friends. I’ve known Hope for years and none of the Sinclair brothers know I want to fuck their sister. Bad,”
he answered unhappily. “We had one fucking incredible night together at the holidays…and then we had a disagreement. I was going to just bide my time, wait until she was ready. But I’m done waiting. I’m going after her. She’s not marrying this asshole.”
Tate whistled quietly. “The Sinclairs are a pretty powerful family. You sure you want to tangle with one of their own?”
Jason gave Tate a disgruntled look. “I want to do more than tangle with her.”
Travis couldn’t help but feel sorry for Sutherland. He’d been in the exact same boat with Ally when she was engaged to another man. “I’m sure your friends would rather see her with you than some guy who just wants to drain her bank account.”
“Honestly, it doesn’t matter what they think anymore. Hope is the only one who matters,”
Jason confided angrily.
“You think she’s really in love with this guy?”
Travis asked curiously, relating Ally’s situation to Hope’s, and it annoyed the hell out of him. Obviously, some loser was latching onto Hope Sinclair for her money, using her like Ally’s ex had used her.
“No. But Hope has a huge heart. She’s likely to fall for just about any sad story.”
Travis watched a slow smile form on Tate’s face, a smile he’d seen before, and it scared the shit out of him. Tate was forming a plan, and it was likely to be trouble.
“I have an idea,”
Tate confirmed. “But it would be questionably illegal and pretty damn devious. How far are you willing to go to get this woman?”
Jason shrugged. “As far as I need to go. It doesn’t matter.”
“She could end up hating you,”
Tate warned.
“Better than her being indifferent and marrying some other guy. Let’s hear it.”
Travis listened as Tate outlined a plan so outrageous that even he was surprised. The crazy thing was…it just might work. Tate was ex-military Special Forces, and he had balls of titanium sometimes in the crazy shit he was willing to do. But he was also an excellent strategic planner.
“You ready to take that kind of risk?”
Tate asked Jason bluntly.
“Yeah. It would give me exactly what I want,”
Jason answered in a dangerous tone.
That clenched it for Travis. Jason really was in love with this woman. Either that or he was as crazy as Tate.
“I’ll help you any way I can.”
If the guy loved the woman that much, he’d do whatever he could to help Jason. God knew he could sympathize with his situation.
“I will need a favor,”
Jason answered slowly.
“What is it?”
“I’m going to have to leave in the morning. And I’m scheduled for the auction. I can’t leave them hanging now. Can you take my place?”
Travis balked at the thought. “I can’t. I’m here with Ally.”
He wouldn’t mind the humiliation to help Sutherland out, but he couldn’t do that to Ally, and he didn’t want to be with any other woman for an entire night except her.
“I’d be more than happy to entertain Ally for you,”
Tate said wickedly.
“You’ll have your own date. And if you touch her, I’ll kill you,”
Travis grunted, just the thought of leaving Ally unclaimed for the evening making him irritable.
“Just have her bid on you and win,”
Jason suggested. “I’ll cover the tab.”
That could work. Travis might have a few moments of humiliation, but Ally would do it. “I’ll cover it. I’d pay anything for a night with Ally.”
“Thanks. I’ll owe you, Travis,”
Jason told him gratefully.
“No, you won’t. Just get the woman and I’ll consider us even. No woman deserves to marry someone who’s just out to use her,”
he rumbled, thinking about Ally. He wanted Sutherland to be successful, both for the guy’s sake, and Hope Sinclair’s.
Travis stood, ready to get back to the guesthouse. “I need to get back and check on Ally.”
“I told you to take it easy because of the altitude, Trav. You do something to leave her breathless?”
Tate asked in a pseudo innocent voice.
Travis thought about their earth-shattering lovemaking earlier in the hot springs pool. He glared at Tate as he answered, “I sure the hell hope so.”
Turning to Sutherland, he added, “Good luck. I hope it all works out.”
He shook Jason’s hand and headed for the door, silently hoping that this woman Jason cared about was as smart and had a heart as big as Jason claimed she did. She was definitely going to need it.
Ally couldn’t remember an occasion when she’d been more nervous in her entire life. She smoothed down the silky material of the black cocktail dress, wondering if she should change. It was sexy and dressy, but the hem ended at mid-thigh, and exposed way more of her legs than she usually showed. The black stiletto heels were extremely high, and the neckline plunged down to the valley of her breasts, making it impossible for her to wear a bra with the ensemble. Luckily, the top portion that covered her breasts had heavier material and pleats that covered everything. Still, she felt naked without a bra.
She took one last stare at herself in the mirror, murmuring to herself, “You can do this. They’re just people.”
But those people would be looking at her because she was bidding for Travis. He’d explained to her this morning about what had happened with Jason Sutherland, and what he needed her to do. She wasn’t exactly comfortable bidding with Travis’s money, but he’d looked so vulnerable that she would do anything to get him out of an obligation he obviously hated. And it really touched her that he was doing it for Jason.
They’d had a quiet day, Travis hovering over her and plying her with fluids and carbs—just what her hips didn’t need—to help her weather the altitude issue. She’d honestly felt just fine since the morning, her reaction obviously mild, and Travis’s concern had been way over the top. Strangely, she didn’t mind, finding it more sweet than irritating.
“Holy Christ! Please tell me that’s not what you’re wearing tonight.”
Travis’s growl sounded from the doorway of the bedroom.
Ally looked at the displeasure on Travis’s face and her heart plummeted to her feet. “I don’t look good in it. I knew I should have picked something else,”
she told him, disheartened.
“No, sweetheart, you don’t look good. You look like every man’s fantasy, a sensual goddess. I’m not sure my heart can take it.”
He walked over to her and turned her to face him by taking her hand. He caressed her palm with his thumb, his eyes roaming over her body and finally stopping at her face. “There won’t be a man in the room who won’t want to fuck you. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings with that comment, or your confidence. It’s my confidence that’s in jeopardy. How am I going to keep a horde of horny men away from you?”
Ally rolled her eyes. “It’s not that revealing, and the only man who gets horny when looking at me is you,”
she assured him, quietly pleased that he thought she looked hot. “And you’re looking incredibly handsome yourself, Mr. Harrison.”
And he did. She saw Travis in a suit all the time, but in a tux, he was absolutely devastating. No doubt he’d have women panting all over him. And she’d definitely be one of the many. “How am I going to keep the women away from you?”
“All they have to see is the way I look at you and they’ll get the message loud and clear,”
he answered, kissing the palm of her hand tenderly.
Ally nearly melted to a puddle right there on the bedroom floor. God, this man could make her feel like the most desirable woman on the planet. And she knew his assessment wasn’t even close. But it still made her want to howl with happiness.
“I don’t like your earrings, though,”
Travis said thoughtfully.
Ally fingered the small studs in her ears. They were the best pair of studs she had, and as she was putting them on she was wishing she had got a prettier pair. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think to pick up—”
“I think these would look better.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, velvet box.
“Travis…you didn’t.”
She took the box with a shaky hand, flipping the lid with a gasp. Nestled in the velvet interior were the most exquisite bracelet and earrings she’d ever seen. They were unique and beautiful, and she instantly suspected who had made them. “Mia?”
“Yes. She makes every item unique and I wanted them to be different from what any other woman would be wearing,”
Travis answered gruffly. “Put them on.”
Ally was torn. She didn’t want to reject anything Travis gave her, but as she looked over the glittering stones—black opals and diamonds—she knew they were very valuable and rare. She looked at Travis, his eyes filled with anticipation and anxiety, and pulled the jewelry from the box. Did he really think she wouldn’t like them? She pulled out the studs and put in the dangling earrings that had two long strands, alternating the black opals and diamonds. Silently, she handed the bracelet to Travis and let him fasten it around her wrist.
“I wanted to get the necklace, too—”
“No,”
she told him emphatically, fingering the diamond unicorn around her neck. “I haven’t taken this off since you gave it to me, and I never will.”
“I figured you’d say that,”
Travis said with a boyish grin.
Ally looked at herself in the mirror, the sophisticated bracelet and earrings setting off the dress perfectly. “I don’t know what to say right now, Travis.”
She was speechless, unable to express herself past the huge lump in her throat. Nobody had ever given her something so beautiful or so thoughtful…except Travis. “They’re so beautiful and I’ll be so afraid I’ll lose them.”
Travis shrugged. “Just tell me you like them. And if you lose them, I’ll get you some more. It’s just jewelry, Ally.”
“Anything you give me is special.”
She turned and stroked his cheek. “And I want to give you something in return. But what do you give a billionaire?”
He took her hand gently and placed it over his bulging cock. “You give me this. And that’s pretty special,”
he told her with a mischievous grin.
She couldn’t help herself. She burst out laughing at his unexpected action. “Pervert,”
she accused him.
“You gave me your writing, Ally. And you gave me your faith. You give me yourself, sweetheart. Next to that, pieces of jewelry mean very little. So take the gifts I desperately want to give you,”
he said huskily. “I just want to make you happy.”
She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him tenderly. “You already do.”
“I can see your breasts.”
He nudged the fabric of the top aside. “Holy shit! Do I have to think about you being almost naked under that dress all night?”
He reached down and slowly lifted the hem of the skirt, hissing as he saw the black stockings and skimpy black panties. He groaned and dropped the skirt. “I’ll never make it through this night.”
“Of course you will,”
she answered, her body flushed with pleasure.
“Watch how you sit down. And don’t let anyone close enough to see down the top of that dress,”
Travis ordered in a graveled voice.
“Does that include you?”
she asked innocently.
“Hell, no,”
he exploded. “I’ll be leering like a horny degenerate every damn chance I get.”
Ally chuckled softly and picked up her black clutch bag. “Showtime for you, billionaire bachelor stud.”
“You know what to do?”
Travis asked for about the one hundredth time that day.
“Yes. That was a very kind thing you did for Jason,”
she answered as Travis ushered her out the bedroom door and they descended the stairs hand in hand.
“I wish I would have kept my damn mouth shut,”
he said grumpily.
Ally smiled, knowing he didn’t mean a word of what he’d just said. Travis referred to himself as an asshole, and maybe there were many who were afraid of his sometimes icy exterior. But she knew better. Travis Harrison had a huge heart. It was just unfortunate that most people didn’t see him the same way she did.
“Bid high and get it over with,”
he demanded as he closed the outside door and locked it. “And for God’s sake, don’t get too close to anyone or bend over. I’ll have a heart attack.”
Ally shivered at the possessive note in his voice, his concern more about somebody seeing her undergarments than the discomfort he was about to experience.
“Would you like me to find a trench coat to wear?”
she asked him jokingly.
As he opened the car door for her, his face lit up hopefully. “Would you?”
“I was kidding, Travis,”
she said as she laughed delightedly.
“Damn!”
he exclaimed unhappily. “I wasn’t.”
Ally snickered as Travis buckled her seat belt and closed the door, striding around to the driver’s side and getting in.
“Thank you for the beautiful gift, Travis.”
She fingered the bracelet in the dim light, still overwhelmed by the things that Travis did for her that just seemed ordinary to him. “Tell me what I can do for you in return.”
“I don’t want anything,”
he told her simply as he started the engine. “I just want you. But if you’d let me rip that dress off you and examine your sexy underwear later, I’d be a happy man.”
“Done,”
she agreed readily, her body already heating just from the thought.
“Best gift ever,”
he answered with so much excitement and enthusiasm that he sounded like a kid at Christmas.
Once they were on the road to the resort, Travis grasped her hand and placed it on his thigh, as though he just needed to feel her touch. Ally let out a happy sigh and relaxed back into the leather seat, thinking that maybe her introduction into Travis’s world wouldn’t be so very difficult after all.
When the bidding got close to six figures, Ally started having palpitations. Yes…it was Travis’s money she was bidding, but he’d already given so much to this charity, and was generously managing it along with Jason Sutherland and Kade.
The ballroom at the resort was magnificent, but everyone was currently crowded around the small stage in the corner, women practically shoving to get closer to the platform. Travis stood up there, looking calm with his hands in the pockets of his pants, but his eyes never left hers. He kept nodding subtly, encouraging her to go on.
Had he known the bidding would get this high? He’d ended up being the first man up, so Ally had no idea what kind of money this event was going to raise, or how much each “date”
was going to bring in.
Bid high and get it over with.
That’s what Travis had asked her to do. But how high was high?