Page 31 of Pay Dirt

Chapter 15

“Nathan, I need my…” My words died on my lips as Nathan crushed his lips to mine.

He eased the kiss to whisper, “If you’d gotten hurt, I never would have forgiven myself for dragging you down here.”

“You talk too much,” I whispered and took over the kiss, a warm slide of our tongues as he pulled me closer. He gathered me into his arms and gently laid me on the hay, following me down. His hands caressed my body. I don’t know if it was the adrenaline we were both swimming in or something else, but I didn’t just want him; I needed him.

His warm palms sent tingles down my spine as they rested, touching skin just below the hem of my shirt.

“We shouldn’t…” he said, breaking the kiss.

“We are,” I answered, resuming the kiss, only this time moving his entire palm to touch my stomach skin to skin.

As if that little contact lit a fire beneath him, his lips left mine, kissing a trail down my neck as his hand lifted my shirt and landed on my bra. He leaned over me and lowered my bra with his teeth, sending shockwaves through my body.

My heartbeat raced as I watched him take my nipple into his mouth. My head dropped back, and I moaned, lifting my body into his. I needed to feel him. I needed his hands and mouth all over me. My body was on fire and in a sexual haze of need.

He’d finished with the right one and then worked his way to the other as I pulled the shirt over my head. His fingers toyed with the button of my jeans as I grabbed his shirt at the shoulder blades and pulled his off too.

In a hurried state now, the rest of our clothes came off within minutes. He was poised at the juncture of my thighs.

He paused. “I don’t have a condom, but I’m clean.”

“Me too, and I’m on the pill,” I whispered, taking his lips again.

He eased into me, slowly until seated to the hilt. The hay poking my skin was forgotten. He stared down at me with heat in his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“I will be when you get moving, cowboy.” I grinned, nudging him with my heels.

It wasn’t long before he took us both over the edge. He grunted my name when we both found our release.

We lay unmoving, a twisted pile of limbs. Our chests rose and fell in rhythm. “That was... whoa.” He let out a breath.

“Amazingly hot,” I answered. “Next time I’ll wear nothing but cowboy boots and a grin.”

He rolled over me and pressed a tender kiss to my lips. His warm palm lay heavy on my stomach. “Next time I’ll hold you to that, and it will be in a bed.”

I chuckled as he pushed up from his spot. I took my time drinking in his amazing body. Heat flushed my cheeks from thoughts of wanting him again.

He slid first his boxers and then his jeans up his long powerful legs before fastening them at the waist. “Wait here, and I’ll go find something to clean us up. I know where they keep their supplies.”

He gave me a salacious wink before he slipped out of the stall, returning a few minutes later with towels to clean away the evidence of our hot and dirty deed. I slid back into my clothes and lay in his arms.

“Get a few hours’ sleep. The crews will come in early, and I’ll borrow a phone and get us a ride back to the ranch.”

My eyes were already closing. The night was nothing like I’d expected, but I settled into the warmth of the crook of his arm. My palm rested over his heart, and I proceeded to fall asleep.

I was dreaming. I knew I was. In the dream I sat next to a fire, the subconscious flames hot on my cheeks. My sister Talia and my parents were on the other side of the firepit. It could have been a memory of our last camping trip. I eased my seat back, and it was as though the flame was following.

Panic raced my heart, and my eyes flew open.

“Nathan,” I whispered.

We were no longer in the stall but in his bedroom. Sheets covered my body while an icepack rested on my forehead.

“Cassie,” he answered and hurried to my side, dropping to his knees. Dark stubble outlined his strong jaw, and his hair was mussed, as if he’d raked his fingers through it repeatedly. “I thought I’d lost you twice.”

“What happened?” I asked, my throat dry and scratchy.

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