Page 14 of Roped By the Cowboy
“Is that an offer? Because if it is...grab that rope and let’s go.”
Tossing his head back, he laughs, and I just watch. Lord, he is a beautiful man. His hat is off, his thick, dark hair damp from sweat. Overhead the sun shines bright on us, skin gleaming from exertion. His muscled arms coil and flex as he twists the rope, smirking at me with a tilt of his head.
“Get over here, Jilly Bean,” he rasps, tossing the rope at me. I laugh as it loops around me, a tug pulling it tight. With a tug, he drags me close.
“Well, you got me, cowboy. Now whatever will you do with me?”
His throat works as he keeps me lassoed in the rope, his eyes eating me up. Suddenly, the words I said earlier hit me hard. I want him. There is no hiding it, no pretending, no ignoring how badly I want him.
Elliot teased me about having a weekend affair with a hot cowboy. I admitted I had those exact intentions. Admittedly I expected him to be upset. All he had to say was to go for it. To follow what my head, my heart, or even just for now my body, wanted. He compared our romance to others, saying one of the wisest things I ever heard him say about our marriage.
“Our marriage was not a failure. We loved each other hard, deep, until there was nothing left. Thatis nota failure. That is a triumph. We won at love. I still love you. I always will. Both of us have it in us to love again so we should. Just as hard, just as deep. It is not wrong to let it go. I think it is the best thing we cando for each other. No blame, no resentment, no holding back. Love again, Jillian. This could be the start of another triumph. At the very least he best make you feel good the way you deserve.”
“Jillian,” his voice is so deep, his head dipping to brush his next words against my ear. “I want it to be you. I want you so bad it hurts. One night, two nights, anything I can get. Let me take you to bed, honey. Please.”
“Yes,” I pant back, my entire body on fire at his words. “Yes, I want you, Jacob.”
Looks as if my hot cowboy roped me in just as I hoped he would.
Chapter Nine
Jacob
Starting something I cannot finish is an awful idea.
There is no way I can finish this thing with Jillian the way I want to. Because I want to spend days in bed, touching, kissing, adoring every single inch of her. I have one night. Two, if I can make her spend another night with me. Neither of us want her to go, even if we know she will have to soon.
Riding away from the ranch after agreeing to camp out again, I watch her guide her own horse as the sun sets in the distance. This is our final night together, so I want to treasure each moment. As we ride, we talk about how perfect it is here together. How warm the air is, how sweet magnolia trees scent the breeze.
“Would you ever...could you see yourself on a ranch, honey?”
We both go quiet after I say the words I have been thinking since last night.I want her. I want her at my side, on my horse, and in my bed. Well, tonight it will be in the sweet grass beneath the stars. I would build her a bed, a house, a damn castle on a hill if she gave me a chance to be hers.
“Why so thoughtful cowboy?”
“Thinking about castles,” I answer before I reach over to kiss her neck.
Jillian’s soft body trembles visibly and I smile. I love how she shows how I affect her, how she never holds back or hides it. Just the same as I can’t stop kissing her skin or her sweet mouth. Once I get inside her, I don’t know if that will be enough for either of us.
We’re both addicted to how good we feel together.
“About building us one? With a stable of horses to tend to. Don’t forget a princess suite for our little princess.”
Sliding off my horse, I pause. Nodding at her, I hold her gaze. “I could never forget her. We would give her ponies, castles, camping under the stars, whatever her tiny heart wanted. I would give youanything, Jilly Bean.”
Between us the air shifts. It has been hot with want, with hunger. Playful with teasing, laughter, playing in the lake or at the paddock. This is different. Pulling her down from her horse, letting her soft body slide down mine, I slip my hand to the back of her head, tilting it back gently.
“You would,” she whispers, voice trembling. “Give everything to the ones who matter to you. Could you give me tonight, Jacob? I can’t...can’t promise tomorrow or any days after. Will you give me tonight, even if I don’t deserve it. Even if I should not be the one you....”
“Yes,” I growl, lifting her against me hands beneath her ass, grunting as she locks her legs around me. “Said I want it to be you. Imeantthat. I know it might not be forever or some dream romance for you but for me....it is.”
There, I said it. I admitted it to both of us. I want her—more than some rent-a-cowboy weekend. I could build something with her. Castles if she wanted it. A cabin on the mountain, a cottage here in Iron Hills. Anything for her. For her daughter, who deserves everything the same as Jillian does.
With that in the air between us, we set up camp. I start a fire while she lays out thick, woolen blankets beside a hill, providing us coverage. What I said won’t stop tonight. Nothing can. We both know that. Reaching out for her as the sun sinks in the skies, I dip my head to touch my brow to hers.
“Can I take my time with you? I want to see you in the firelight, Jilly Bean. I want to touch you for hours. Want to get sodeep inside of you I can’t find my way out. Could you let me do that, honey?”
“Yes,” she breathes, hands rubbing up my chest. “Take all the time you want, Jacob. I am all yours now. Every single part of me is yours.”
