Page 37 of The Bride's Desire

“Oh, hell, yeah. She loved the idea.”

Joe tilted her head up and started to kiss her. He hadn’t planned on making love to her, but the desire grew so quickly and got out of control, they were both mostly naked, and he was sliding into her.

“Jesus, nothing feels this good,” he said, and bent his head to kiss her lips again.

The inferno blazed but was appeased quickly, leaving them both breathless and shaky.

When he got his strength back, he got them dressed and then lay down, pulling her against him. They lay quietly for a long time. At one time, he thought she’d go to sleep, but her fingers never stopped making circles on his chest.

It seemed they talked for hours. He glanced around at the sunlight and realized it was late afternoon.

“We need to get back to the house, Love,” he said.

She nodded and tried to sit up, but he caught her and kissed her hard. He didn’t make it last and let her go. He knew what would happen if they kept doing it.

Joe took her hand, got them into the truck, and they started to go home. Halfway there, he got her attention. “I love you, Naomi.”

She smiled sweetly. “I love you, too.”

That’s all he needed.

Chapter Twenty

Naomi sighed silently as she stared out the bedroom window while lying in bed with Joe wrapped around her. She knew it was past midnight, but she couldn’t get the turmoil inside her to diminish enough to go to sleep. She couldn’t get out of her mind the fact that she still had a lot going on in her life, and she didn’t want to put it all on Joe’s shoulders. She was terrified he’d get so mad he wouldn’t want to marry her anymore, and that would crush her soul.

Joe stirred behind her as she carefully slipped from the bed. She closed her eyes and pretended to sleep. She didn’t know what she would say if he asked her questions because she had no idea what she would tell him.

After getting dressed and making the bed, she moved down the stairs and into the kitchen. There was still some coffee in the pot, so she poured it into a cup. The edge of it touched her lips, and she grimaced and tossed the liquid into the sink. Some smells turned her stomach, and coffee was one of them.

She made herself a piece of toast and ate it while looking out the kitchen window, trying to find Joe. Then, she turned away and started the laundry.

A knock on the front door got her attention. She went to answer it and found one of the ranch hands.

“Boss told me to give these to you.”

Naomi smiled and reached for the mail. “Thank you.”

He tipped his hat and left.

Naomi barely glanced at them and was surprised when she saw one addressed to her. She pulled it from the pile and opened it. It was from Elliot Stevens, her lawyer, telling her that her stepmother was trying to get money from the house account. She’s also been looking for her and even hired a private detective. That sent chills down her spine. She knew she didn’thide her tracks very well, so if a person was the least bit competent, he’d find her.

She felt nausea burning her throat and breathed through her nose to calm her stomach. She didn’t have a choice. She’d have to tell Joe about her situation, and she couldn’t put it off another day.

Naomi tried to keep busy because every time she thought about what he might say, her stomach twisted. By the time he came in for dinner, her nerves were shot. Joe took one look at her, and she knew he could tell something was wrong.

He came to her and put his arms around her. “What’s wrong, Love?”

“Can we wait until after dinner?”

He nodded and kissed her lips. “I’ll be right down. I’m going to shower. I know I smell like cow dung because I slipped and fell on my ass.”

She smiled. “I’ll have dinner on the table.”

Naomi was setting the glasses of milk down when he came back into the kitchen.

They sat and ate, asking each other about their day. It helped to settle her nerves a bit.

Naomi stood and grabbed some of the plates. Joe followed her with some more. He pressed a kiss to the back of her head.

---