Page 45 of Waiting for the Rancher
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Maverick shifted and then groaned. Every bone in his body felt like it had been jerked out of joint and every inch of flesh bruised.
A soft hand smoothed back his hair on his forehead, followed by a gentle press of lips. Hazel’s hands and lips.
He breathed in the floral scent that sometimes lingered in her hair, suddenly needing her more than life.
She seemed to be leaning into him, her body slightly pressed against his chest. And in the next moment, she brushed another kiss to his face, this one to his cheek.
“Am I dreaming?” he murmured.
She drew in a sharp breath. “Maverick? Are you awake?”
He cracked open his eyes to find that he was in bed and she was sitting on the edge of the bed, bent over him.
“Hey, angel.” His voice was groggy, and his smile felt weak.
Her beautiful eyes welled with sudden tears, and before he knew what was happening, she leaned down and touched her lips to his.
No way he was complaining about waking up to one of her kisses. No way, no how. He didn’t know why he was in bed or why she was at his side or why she was so emotional. All that mattered was that she was kissing him.
Her lips plied at his tenderly, as if she might break him if she pressed too hard. Her mouth teased his with the phantom of a kiss, not even the real thing. Even so, the touch of her lips, of her chest against his, of her fingers still in his hair—it awakened himfrom what felt like a deep slumber, and suddenly he was alert and alive and aware of need pulsing in his blood.
Swift longing surged through him—a longing for her that was sharp and keen and greater than anything else. Before she could end the kiss, he lifted his head and took possession of her lips, devouring her mouth as though he wouldn’t ever get enough... because the truth was, he never would, not even if he kissed her every day for the rest of his life.
She didn’t pull away. Instead she seemed to be greedily consuming him in return, her lips melding and molding against his with a desperation he didn’t quite understand.
But he didn’t need to understand anything except that Hazel was his. He’d laid claim to her, and she hadn’t resisted. Instead, she’d capitulated as if she’d been waiting for him and now wanted him forever.
That wasn’t really possible. They’d grown up together. She was younger. And she’d always been off-limits... because she was Sterling’s sister.
Sterling.
He broke the kiss and pulled back.
She hovered above him, only an inch away, her ragged breathing bathing his mouth and tempting him to snag her lips into another kiss and another and another.
His own breathing was shallow, and with her beautiful face above his and her honey-brown eyes peering down at him, he didn’t know why it should matter that she was Sterling’s sister, especially since she was so grown-up and mature.
“How are you feeling?” Both hands were on his face, on his cheeks, on his jaw, then back in his hair.
Her touch was so amazing that he closed his eyes to simply enjoy the sensation. “I’d feel better if you were kissing me again,” he whispered.
She didn’t respond and didn’t bend in the way he’d hoped she would.
As he opened his eyes, he found her still only inches away. Her fair hair was in a single braid with a few loose strands surrounding her pretty face—the lines so elegant and so soft at the same time.
Heaven almighty. She was exquisite. In fact, he couldn’t imagine anything else in all of creation that could compare to her.
“Do you remember what happened?” she whispered.
His gaze got stuck on her lips, so full and softly rounded. Just another small kiss wouldn’t hurt anything, would it?
She moved back, still partially lying on him but far enough away that he couldn’t so easily kiss her again. Her fingers glided from his hair down to his cheeks again, grazing his scruff as if she couldn’t get enough of the feel of him. “You were in an accident.”
“An accident?” His mind scrambled to make sense of what she was saying.
Her hands stilled. “Yes, you fell down an embankment, cut yourself up badly, dislocated your shoulder, and have been unconscious all day.”
