Page 71 of The Cowboy Comes Home

And so was he. He wasn’t sure who pulled what off of whom, but when they went down to the bed they were both naked and breathing hard. And he now knew exactly how long that silken fall of hair was, because it was sliding over him, stroking him like her hands did, and it was driving him mad.

He tried to slow down but it had been so long, and he’d never in his life wanted a woman the way he wanted her.

“Finesse is going to have to wait,” he ground out rather fiercely.

“Don’t want it,” she said, stroking her hands over him as she kissed him again. “Next time.”

And there was no finesse in it, just the urgency of near-desperation as they kissed and touched. And when her hand slid down to touch that rigid, aching part of him he nearly lost it right then. But she guided him and he drove forward, feeling a thrill like none he’d ever known when she gasped his name as she surrounded flesh with flesh, taking him into that incredible heat.

And when just a few strokes later he felt her body convulse around him, taking him with her on a flight to someplace he’d never been, he let out her name in the tone of a heartfelt oath as he shuddered, feeling he had found where he belonged at last.

*

It was funnyhow much brighter her world seemed these days. Texas was rarely short of sunshine in summer, but somehow it was more intense now, more brilliant. Dazzling, even.

In the two weeks since Kane’s heartfelt show had turned the tide for them, she’d never been happier. Hadn’t even realized she could be this happy. Tucker still went to work at Jackson’s therapy setup while she was on shift, but every other waking minute they spent together.

Emily grinned to herself, thinking that if she could whistle worth a darn, she’d be strolling along Main Street letting out that love song Kane had closed his show with.

She didn’t even feel a qualm as she thought it. She loved him, and she didn’t care at this point who knew it. Although it was a small enough group, this soon. Nic knew, but she’d known before Emily had admitted it to herself. Which meant Jackson knew, which in turn meant Tris and Logan.

And don’t forget Lily,she told herself. Which meant the chief. Who thankfully had tactfully said nothing at all when he’d caught her singing—badly—that song not quite under her breath walking down the hall of the department.

She nodded and smiled at everyone she passed, even the tourists who were frequenting Last Stand in these last days of July. She stopped in at the saloon to let Lobo get a drink from the bowl Slater kindly left near the door for passing dogs. He wasn’t there at the moment, probably home with his wife and new baby, she thought. And even that thought sent a little ripple of anticipation through her. Because for the first time she could understand it, how a woman could want a child with one man so very much.

As Lobo drank, she looked around the room, her gaze stopping on the piano Tucker had played that Friday night before rodeo week. The first time she’d been stunned into seeing him as a person in his own right, not as the star rodeo champion who had nearly died, or the friend of the famous Hollywood actor.

Her phone rang, and the custom ringtone told her it was him before she pulled it out.

“Where are you?” he asked.

“At the saloon, getting Lobo a drink.” She smiled when, as she’d hoped, he laughed. “Then it’ll be time to load him up and check the perimeter. Rip—he’s the guy I trade patrol shifts with—is off today, so we get to cruise for a while.”

“In air-conditioned comfort, at least.”

“Exactly why I’m not complaining. And I’ll pick up dinner from Valencia’s on my way home.”

“Sold,” he said with a laugh that made her stomach do a little flip.

“How’d the new kids do today?” He’d told her they had a small group coming in from San Antonio. And he’d said it with such happiness it had given her joy. He was building his place here in Last Stand.

“Great. Jeremy is really good with them.”

“I think that helps him, too,” she said. “Just knowing he’s not alone.”

“Yeah.” There was a pause, and then in that tone that made her shiver with anticipation, he added, “They’re the last for the day, so I’ll be home when you get there.”

When she slipped the phone back in her pocket, she lingered for a moment on how sweet that sounded. Home. Their home. Because he was pretty much living there now, because neither one of them wanted to be apart from the other. It was a feeling unlike any she’d ever had, and she treasured every moment.

She was still smiling as she and Lobo headed back for their unit, to start heading out toward the outer edges of Last Stand, to help protect the center of this place she loved.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Tucker’s heart washammering by the time he got there. He felt as if he were back in the days after the crush, when every breath had been an effort. He needed more oxygen, but he couldn’t seem to bring in enough air to get it. Yet he kept running, his gaze fastened on the glow of the lights through the glass doors of the hospital emergency room.

He shoved the doors open and burst through. People turned to look at him as he finally slowed. He knew he probably looked frantic as he scanned the waiting room, but he didn’t care. The only thing that really mattered was that Emily wasn’t there.

So she was behind those damned closed doors. And he knew too well what that meant.

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