Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
B oone once thought of Wild River Ranch as heaven on earth, but he’d been wrong. He knew now that lying beside his Little bluebell and watching her sleep was the closest to heaven he’d probably ever get. The closest he ever needed to be.
He’d do anything to keep her safe and by his side. Almost losing her in the storm crystallized his feelings for her in a way he could no longer deny. He longed to be home, but nowhere would ever be home again without Tildi by his side. She was someone he could no longer live without. Was it fair to her, though, to take her with him when the danger they’d escaped weeks before would follow him?
They’d be docking in Seattle tomorrow. Once he’d brought Sev up to speed about everything that had happened, they’d be on their way back to Wyoming. If he were a better man, he’d let her go for now.
Revenge no longer drove him. He’d let those feelings go with Tildi’s help. And how had he repaid her? By putting a target on her back the minute he’d rescued her. She would never be safe as long as Midnight was alive.
She snuggled closer to him and breathed out a sexy sigh. He loved waking up early in the mornings and watching her sleep. She was the most gorgeous woman he’d ever known. She was perfect, and he was going to do everything he could to convince her to make Wild River Ranch her home.
Shifting in his arms, a flash of pain crossed her face, and she whimpered. The storm had left bruises all over her body. She no longer had to fear boats. He was never letting her set foot on one again. He would be seeing the water snatching her from his arms forever. Right now, he couldn’t stand the thought of her so much as stepping in a puddle.
Fate, or God, or the universe… whatever name you wanted to give it… gave this precious woman to him. She was his, and he was hers. Her days of believing she had to earn love were over.
She was a gift he would treasure until his time on this earth was gone. He would make it his mission to make sure she knew he believed in her. And that he loved her exactly as she was.
It wouldn’t matter if she were Little, Big, or anything in between. He accepted every part of her. She’d find her safe place in him. Always. He was ready to spend a lifetime showing her how special she really was.
A soft knock on the door interrupted his thoughts.
“Yep,” he called out.
Grif cracked open the door and looked in. “She doin’ okay?” he asked.
That was the million-dollar question now, wasn’t it?
“She’s doing okay,” he answered. “She’ll be better once we finish Midnight.”
Grif lost his grin, and when he spoke, Boone knew why. “Midnight’s going to be a problem.”
Boone rubbed his chest, soothing the ache Grif’s words caused. He refused to accept them. “Midnight is a dead man walking.”
Grif didn’t look convinced. “It’s one thing to take out the head of the Midnight family halfway across the world on an island where we can control the situation. It’s completely different to go to war with the Cosa Nostra in the States. Not to mention the position it puts Sevin in.”
The man was not wrong. Boone would have words with Sev. Nico hadn’t remained Boss of the Midnight family by being stupid. Even though he didn’t know the extent Sev was involved, he had to suspect his son was the one who’d provided intel and access to the island.
But more importantly, Sev had to know that if Nico Midnight came after Boone’s Little girl or his family, he would put him down like the feral wolf the man was.
“Sev will deal,” Boone said. “Call the ranch and tell them we’ll be heading straight there once we turn Sev’s ship back over to him. We should be there by the end of the week.”
Grif’s grin returned. “I’ll let them know.”
After Grif closed the door, Tildi shifted to look at him. The pain in her eyes was a punch to the gut. “So, no extra time to take me anywhere? What, are you just going to drop me off at the first bus stop you see?”
Her assumption she was that unimportant pissed him off, not at his bluebell, but at her miserable excuse for a family. If he ever had the misfortune to stumble across that father of hers, they were going to have a discussion about child abuse.
A very physical discussion.
“No, babygirl. I have other plans. But even if I didn’t, I wouldn’t put you on a bus. Those buses aren’t safe for Little girls.”
She eyed him with suspicion and maybe a little guarded hope. That might be wishful thinking on his part.
“But you said you were going straight to your ranch.”
“No, Bluebell. I said we will be going straight there. I meant all of us, including you. That’s what I want, but you have to decide if it’s what you want.”
The fear and hope that warred in her eyes almost broke him. He held her gaze, letting her see the truth and desire in his own.
Hope won. She threw her arms around his neck and cried, “Yes, Daddy! Yes, yes, yes, yes. YES!!” She leaned back and asked, “Can I ride a real horse?”
He grinned. “Don’t have many fake ones there, Bluebell.”
He reached for her but stopped himself. She’d had a traumatic morning. She didn’t have to tell him to be careful because her bruises spoke for her.
Evidently, his babygirl had other plans. She grabbed his hand and placed it on her cheek. “Don’t pull back from me, Daddy. I want you to touch me.”
His brows furrowed. Did she understand what she was starting? There was no way he’d be able to stop at caressing her cheek.
“Please, Daddy,” she begged. The rise and fall of her chest sped up. “I said the magic word. Don’t you want to touch me?”
She was killing him. He tucked her hair behind her ear. “Of course, I want to touch you, Bluebell. But I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t, Daddy. It looks way worse than it feels. I don’t hurt at all. And I’ll feel even better if you touch me.”
Little minx. How was he supposed to stand up to that? He cupped her cheek and leaned forward, brushing his lips lightly across hers. “All right, babygirl. I promise I’ll be gentle.”
“I don’t want gentle, Daddy. I want real. I want to celebrate. We can’t celebrate if you’re being a big ole fraidy cat.”
The pout she gave him was cute. He’d warm her bottom later. Right now, his girl had made it clear she had other, more important needs.
He let the predator in him out in his smile. “Are you saying you want Daddy to fuck you, babygirl?”
A pretty pink blossomed across her cheeks, and she squirmed at his crass words. She sucked in a deep breath, nipples already pebbling to tight points.
“Yes, Daddy.”
“I want to hear the words, Bluebell. Tell Daddy exactly what you want.”
A shiver raced over her. She notched up her chin. “Fuck me, Daddy. Please.”
“What a good girl, always doing what Daddy says.”
A spark of mischief lit her eyes as he reached for her. She pulled her arm away and rolled to the other side of the bed.
Seemed his Little girl wanted to play. Well, he wasn’t one to deny her what she wanted. He put plenty of gravel in his voice when he demanded, “What are you doing, naughty girl?”
She grinned, excitement pinkening her cheeks even more. Rolling the rest of the way off the bed, she bounced on her toes and said, “Catch me if you can!” Quick as a wink, she ran to the other side of the room.
He’d seen frightened Tildi, caring Tilde, tearful Tildi, and now she was showing him playful Tildi. He looked forward to a lifetime of exploring every one of her facets and moods.
“Last chance to come peacefully, naughty girl,” he growled. Never let it be said he was a Daddy who didn’t know how to play his part.
But there were a few things his Little girl didn’t know about him yet, too.
He could see the refusal in her eyes before it ever left her mouth, so her “No!” didn’t surprise him.
Reaching into his pack on the floor next to their bed, he pulled out a long line of soft rope. That would work nicely.
“You know, Bluebell…” Boone worked the rope as he spoke. “There’s still so much we don’t know about each other. For example, I don’t know what your favorite song is, or your funniest joke, or even whether you eat your grits with milk and sugar or butter and salt. And as for me, you don’t know if I pull for the Grizzlies or the Spuds, or the name of my favorite pet growin’ up, or if I ever won an award at the county fair. Now, the answer to that last one would be yes. I’ve won several, and do you know what for?”
He waited for her to shake her head, which took a while because she seemed hypnotized by the loops he was tying in the rope. When she looked up to meet his eyes again, he finished his tale. “I was the blue ribbon winner five years in a row for calf ropin’, darlin'. You know what that means?”
Her eyes widened as she shook her head again. He let her see the predator inside him again and growled out, “Run.”
She gave the cutest squeak he’d ever heard and took off for the door. He had her lassoed before she took three steps.
She resisted as he slowly pulled her back toward him, making sure the rope didn’t tighten too much. He made quick work of shifting the lasso to her wrists and then tying them together over her head.
“Boone!” she yelled as he tossed her back on the bed.
After tying the rope to a bar that ran along the headboard, he pressed a finger to her lips. “Quiet now, Bluebell. I believe you said something about wanting to be fucked. I’ve decided to give you exactly what you asked for.”
She laughed and struggled to get away as he flipped her over onto her stomach. He’d put her in one of his t-shirts after the storm and, lucky for him, didn’t want to take the time or trouble to look for another pair of panties. This made yanking the shirt up over her head and puddling around her wrists an easy task.
“Now, let’s get this out of the way,” he said and commenced smacking her bottom with his hand.
She tried to evade his spanks, but he was quick, and she was laughing too hard to give it her best effort. This wasn’t really a punishment anyway. As far as he was concerned, she could wiggle that fine ass all she wanted.
When he’d warmed her bottom to the perfect shade of pink, he pulled her up so she was face to the bed, ass in the air, and admired his work.
She glanced over her shoulder at him, and the sinful smile on her face made his dick pulse. Pushing her knees further apart, he squeezed one perfect globe of her bottom with each hand before pulling her cheeks even further apart and spearing her pussy with his tongue.
She screamed in shock and pleasure. He loved the taste of her and took his time working his babygirl into quite a frenzy.
“Oh, god. Boone,” she said, her voice breathy and filled with need. “I… I… oh, please, Daddy. Please!”
He fucked her relentlessly with his tongue until she was almost to the point of tears. She was so hot and wet that her juices painted his face. He pulled out one last time, licking higher to flick his tongue across her sensitive pucker hole.
He had her strung so tight her thighs quivered. She arched her back and pressed her bottom high. Flipping her to her back, he shoved inside her all the way to the hilt, burying himself in her slick heat and pressing against her.
“What did you want me to do to you, dirty girl?” he demanded.
She whimpered, then said, “Fuck me, Daddy. I need you to fuck me.”
She did not have to ask him again.
He pulled almost all the way out, then drove back into her. Starting slow, he gradually built the rhythm.
She was so damn tight. And her internal muscles gripped his cock like a vice with each thrust. He kissed her, mimicking the movement of his hips with his tongue.
She sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and nipped it with her teeth. It was just enough pain mixed with overwhelming pleasure to make his cock stiffen that much more. The sound he made was somewhere between a moan and a growl, and he wasn’t sure which he’d intended to make.
Pulling back his head, he gazed down at her. Her lavender-blue eyes had darkened to almost violet, and passion had warmed her cheeks. Her eyes were filled with lust and challenge as she gazed back at him.
“My babygirl is feeling brave, isn’t she?” he rasped, his voice deep and husky.
“Uh-huh.” She tried for sassy, but the gasp that escaped her when he shoved his cock in extra deep ruined the effect.
She wanted to play the bad girl though, now, didn’t she? He could work with that.
“It’s not nice to tease Daddy.” He pushed deep inside her again and stilled.
Balancing on one arm, he pinched her nipple—not worrying about being gentle—then dragged the tips of his fingers slowly down her abdomen, not scratching, but making sure she could feel his nails.
She arched up with a scream when he reached her clit and pinched that swollen pearl as well.
“Daddy!” His name sounded as if it had been ripped from her as she bucked her hips against his groin. The sight of her straining against the rope binding her hands to the headboard was so fucking hot he almost came right then.
She shook her head back and forth as if that might calm the sensations that had hardened her nipples to diamond points. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she pressed her heels to his ass and tried to make him move, but he kept himself completely still inside her.
Was it possible for her to make herself come without him moving at all? That might be an interesting experiment for a different time, but the fire consuming him right now wouldn’t allow for that. She was the most glorious creature he’d ever known.
When she finally whimpered and relaxed back onto the bed, he leaned down over her again and breathed words into her ear. “That’s a good girl. Now tell Daddy who’s in charge of your pleasure.”
With a sob of need, she said, “You are, Daddy.”
“Damn straight,” he growled.
Then he nipped the lobe of her ear the way she had done his lip and thrust into her again, just as hard and deep, but this time fast. It took only seconds before her inner muscles quivered, then clamped down on his cock as her orgasm rolled through her.
His chest swelled with primal need as she screamed out his name again and again. That was all he could take. His balls tightened, and fire ran from his cock to his abs, then surged throughout his body. His muscles locked, and the noises escaping him were nothing more than primal growls and grunts.
It was the most incredible experience of his life.
He rolled to the side and collapsed on the bed. Untying her wrists, he tucked her close, her back pressed to his front. He needed to take care of the condom and clean them up, but first, he needed to check on his babygirl.
Curling her in tighter, he asked, “You okay, sweet girl?”
She didn’t answer with words. She purred and wiggled her butt in for a tighter fit. Yeah, his girl was okay. Tucking the covers around her, he walked to the bathroom, took care of business, and came back with a warm cloth to clean up his Little girl.
When he rolled her to her back and pulled apart her legs, she smiled… until she saw the rag in his hand.
Twin flames kissed her cheeks when she realized what he intended to do. Clamping her thighs together, she tried to push away from him. “I can do that,” she said as she stretched out her hand for the rag.
“Of course, you can,” he said. “But you aren’t going to. This is part of the way Daddy takes care of you. Now relax your legs and let Daddy get you clean.”
She started to protest again, but he sent a stern, determined look her way, and she changed her mind. She was a smart girl.
“So, you said you want to learn to ride a horse when we get to the ranch. What else would you like to do?”
She wouldn’t look at him as he cleaned her up. They’d work on that. But at least she answered his question. “I’ve never been to a dude ranch before. What kind of things are there?”
“So many things. Do you like to fish?”
She scrunched her nose. “I used to eat fish until I tried fishing with some of my friends once. I told the General I was going to the library for some tutoring, and I met them at the creek. I lasted right up until they handed me a worm and told me I had to eviscerate it with a hook and then plop it in the water to either drown or be eaten alive by the fish.” She shuddered at the memory.
“Well, you’ll be happy to know that we have fly fishing on the ranch. No worms or any other living critters required.”
“I can’t wait to meet everyone in person. They’re all so nice on the phone.”
“Yeah, they’ll do in a pinch,” he teased. “You know, when you get settled, you could call your sister and invite her out for a visit.”
She froze at the suggestion, staring at him with her mouth shaped in a perfect O. Then she burst into tears.
His heart dropped. Tossing the rag aside, he gathered her onto his lap. “Bluebell, sweetie, you don’t have to ask her to visit. I just thought you might like to.”
“I-I-I d-do!” she sobbed. “I w-want to s-see h-her more than a-anything. I j-just n-never thought I’d s-see her again.”
This girl was going to smash his heart into tiny pieces. “Darlin, she’s welcome at the ranch anytime. If there’s anything we value at the ranch, it’s family. You’re part of our family now. You are going to have all the love and support you can stand and then some. If everything goes according to my plans, we’ll be home in about five days.”
She leaned back to look at him. “Plans? What kind of plans?”
Okay, so here they were. He’d hoped to talk about this after they’d spent a few more days together. Not that he’d change his mind, but she would have a bit more time to feel comfortable with where she was moving. And she was moving to his ranch. Her not being with him every day from now on wasn’t an option. She was meant to be his Little girl. He’d been born to be her Daddy.
Sure, it had only been a couple of weeks. But she was his. He knew it as well as he knew his own name. And even more important, she knew it, too. The question was whether she’d thought through how this was going to work once they left the yacht.
“Well?” Tildi demanded.
“Do you trust me, Bluebell?”
That seemed to startle her. “Yes?” she answered.
“Was that an answer or a question?”
“Um, both? Cause I still don’t know what we’re talking about.”
“I’ve told you all about the Wild River Ranch, and you’ve talked with my brothers and sister. I can’t wait to show you the beauty that we have in Wyoming. Like I said, the fishing is great. You’re going to love it.”
Fishing? Really? He was having the most important conversation of his life, and he led with fishing ?
Damn, was it him, or was it suddenly really hot in here? She was looking at him like he had three horns growing out of his head. He was blowing it.
She placed a hand on his cheek. “Do you need to breathe with me, Daddy? You don’t have to be scared. I’m right here to keep you safe, too.”
Now it was his turn to stare at her. Outside of his siblings, when had anyone worried about taking care of him? That was his role, and he loved it, but for her to realize caring went both ways was one of the eight million, four hundred and sixty-two thousand reasons he was in love with her.
He placed his hand over hers, pressing her soft palm into his cheek. “I want you to come to the ranch with me with the plan to stay there forever, Bluebell. I don’t want to let you out of my sight. I’m damn sure not putting you on a bus. You’re gonna love it. My family already loves you. What do you think? Would you like to at least give Wyoming a try?”
She studied him for a long time. An eternity. He was dying here.
“No,” she said, shaking her head.
His heart cracked open, bleeding out from the wound that one word delivered. But she wasn’t finished speaking. “I’m sure it’s great, and your family is wonderful. I don’t need to give Wyoming a try. But giving us a try is everything I’ve ever wanted. Is that part of the deal?”
His girl. In that moment, Boone made a plan. He was gonna kiss her. Hard. And then spank her even harder. And then make love to her again, this time sweet and slow.
“Yes, babygirl. That is definitely part of the deal. As a matter of fact, it is most of the deal. I just threw the mountains in for free.”
She smiled, and the light was more beautiful than any sunrise he’d ever seen. He took in all she was and decided the most important part was she was his. And then Boone followed his plan.
Tildi stared down at Boone. If her love for him filled her any more she was going to burst wide open. It was settled. She was going to a ranch in Wyoming. With Boone. And not just for a visit. No, she was going to stay.
She was thrilled. Ecstatic. Overflowing.
Terrified.
She ran her hand over his thick hair. There was so much she wanted him to know that she’d never be able to say with him looking at her. So she whispered it to him as he slept. “You’re everything I’ve ever wanted. Everything I never thought I’d have. I probably don’t deserve your love, but I’m so, so glad you think I do.”
He’d taught her that. And not because of the things she did or didn’t do. He loved her for who she was.
He’d seen every side of her and loved her anyway.
And she loved him. Deeply. Completely.
“I never knew what love was before you came into my life. You rescued me from so much more than that compound. I have no clue what will happen tomorrow or the day after that.” No one could predict what life would throw their way. But they’d be okay as long as they faced it together.
“You’re the first man I’ve ever loved, and you’ll be the last. And when this life is over, our love will draw us together, whatever comes next. One lifetime will never be enough.” Their bond was that strong.
They’d never actually said the words to each other. She wanted to practice first, so she could get it just right. The first time you told someone you loved them was important. She should practice, and now, while he was sound asleep, was as good a time as any.
She concentrated on each word as she whispered, “I love you, Daddy.”
Sleeping Boone smiled and muttered, “I love you, too, Bluebell. Top of my heart to the bottom of my soul.” He opened his eyes and rolled to face her. “And nothing will ever separate you from my love. Not time. Not space. Not eternity.”
She should be irritated that he’d been playing possum. But who could be upset after a declaration of love like that?
He was right. The future might hold anything, but they would face it together. And that was all that mattered.