Page 82 of The Cowgirl's Forever Love
“True,” she agreed. “But not more than I’m used to. Not when I consider what I used to juggle. Why am I being utterly floored when it comes to deciding what happens next?”
She played with the bread crust in her fingers, looking up to find Josiah watching intently.
“I did a lot of stuff behind the scenes,” she admitted. Some of the family had finally figured it out—but only a few while she was orchestrating it. “Most ranches divide up when they reach a certain size, or as sons grow up. That’s what happened to our family too, but in the end, the Coleman land wasn’t distributed right. Not after more kids were born, and died, and left. Add in that the Whiskey Creek part of the ranch only had girls and my dad was not easy to work with, it meant things got tough. Tamara rebelled and left, deciding to become a nurse. Karen just fought with our dad on a daily basis but kept working with him. I didn’t want to fightorleave.”
Josiah was slipping the leftover food into the bag, listening intently. “But you did something.”
“I organized. Dropped hints and made suggestions in times and places where eventually it all sank in yet never seemed like it was my idea. Now all four ranches are back together, sharing operations and making the workload easier for everyone. I don’t need to be there anymore. I don’t need to be there to run interference between Karen and my dad.” She looked up at Josiah. “This is great news, and yet I’m panicking now that Tamara doesn’t need me anymore. I always thought the next thing I would do was something for me, but it seems I really like running other people’s lives for them.”
“I don’t doubt that you did a lot of behind-the-scenes work, but I’ve come to know Tamara,” Josiah said. “Trust me. She needs you. Maybe not in the same way she needed you a month ago, but you girls have got some pretty strong bonds between you. That’s important.”
“It is,” she agreed. “But warm familial feelings aren’t enough for me to base my life direction on, or so my brain says.”
He kept listening intently, rubbing a hand over her thigh in a comforting motion.
Lisa shrugged. “I’m a tiger who’s spent too much time in an undersized cage. The walls are suddenly gone, yet I don’t know how to step out any farther than I’ve gone all my life.”
Josiah nodded as he stared out the window at the sunset. “Your drive to go away and do something different makes sense. It’s not necessarily theaway, it’s thedoingthat you love.”
“But I’m almost always doing for other people,” Lisa said. “At some point in my life, aren’t I supposed to do things for me?”
He caught her fingers in his. He raised them to his lips and kissed them. “If you’re doing what makes you happy, why define it more than that? It’s okay to have the kind of heart that thrives on giving to others.”
Lisa had to think about that more. In the meantime—
She swung her legs over the edge of the hammock, stealing away the wine bottle and tucking it safely against the wall.
Josiah folded his hands behind his head, smiling at her. He looked completely at home in the swinging contraption. “I take it I’ve had enough to drink?”
She grabbed the food bag and hung it from a nail beside the window, high enough Ollie couldn’t get at it, although she probably didn’t need to worry. The dog was curled up and snoring happily. Ollie had gathered their footwear into a pile and was sleeping on top of the lumpy mass, completely content.
Lisa stepped in front of the window, undoing the buttons on her shirt one by one. She shimmied the fabric off, then reached behind her to undo her bra.
Josiah squirmed.
She paused. “Troubles?”
He eased his legs a little. “You’re blocking the sunset.”
Lisa threw back her head and laughed.
A second later he was out of the hammock, stripping off his shirt and tossing it aside. Hands flew to the button of his jeans. He pushed off the fabric and his briefs at the same time.
Lisa rushed to catch up. A second later they were both naked.
Cool air brushed past her and her nipples tightened, but she wasn’t sure if she should blame that on the temperature or the way he was looking at her. Hungry. Needy. His cock hard and waiting.
“Oops.” She scrambled for her jeans, pulling a condom out of the pocket the instant before he picked her up. Heated skin met heated skin, then their hands were stroking, lips connecting. He held her off the ground in his strong arms, walking to the hammock as they kissed.
Lisa wiggled so when he sat, she was straddling him, the condom tucked between the firm muscle of his thigh and the hammock material.
Hands once again free, she pressed her hands to his chest, caressing her way up, leaning over until her breasts touched his torso. His fingers skimmed her butt, adjusting so he could rock her sex over his hard length.
Kisses. Caresses. When he cupped her breasts and teased, she sat upright and let her head fall back, sounds of pleasure escaping her lips without fear of being overheard.
When he covered himself and lifted her, carefully lining them up, Lisa sank onto his thick length with a contented sigh.
It was a precarious thing, having sex in a hammock, but as they moved together, she gave herself over to his protection. As his slow languid touches drifted over her breasts and between her thighs, she let the pleasure rise.
