Page 41 of The Cowgirl's Secret Love
He lifted one brow. “This isn’t a pity fuck, is it?”
A sharp burst of laughter escaped her before she covered her mouth, glancing toward the hallway to make sure the door was still closed. She twisted back to offer him a classic Whiskey Creek expression. The one halfway between serious andwhat the hell?
“Who said anything about fucking?” she deadpanned.
He still had hold of her hand and used it to tug her closer, sliding his free hand up her arm to wrap his fingers around the back of her neck.
She came forward willingly, thank God, because an instant later her lips were inches away from his.
He stared into her deep brown eyes. “We’ll take our time. There’s no rush, but I will be there for you. Going to make you remember every little thing that was so fucking fantastic about us. Need to taste every inch of you, talk with you for hours, stare into your eyes as I drive you wild with my fingers and my tongue. And when the time is right, when you tell me that it’s time, that’s when I’ll sink my cock deep into your body where I belong. Wherewebelong,ma chérie. Exactly how we belong. Connected. Together.”
She barely blinked. Hadn’t swallowed.
Finn lowered his voice and growled out his final point. “And we won’t be fucking.”
He closed the distance between their lips. Or maybe she did, because his hand wasn’t around her neck anymore but cupping her cheek. Lips moving together, tongues exploring gently as if for the first time.
Dear God, every inch of his body ached, but he was still one step shy of heaven. That’s what being with her was. What it meant.
Karen trembled slightly, but her mouth was on his, a willing and eager participant. Soft murmurs of pleasure teased his ears as her taste swirled into his system.
When they pulled apart, she was panting heavily. Her eyes glowed with heat and something else.
Hope.
10
With an unknown amount of hospital time ahead of Finn, everyone agreed it made more sense to save the visiting for the end of the day and keep work on track as best as possible.
Karen rose early and got into her tasks. When her meetings with contractors and potential employees were done, she joined the work crew, swinging a hammer to put up stalls and finish tasks in the barn.
She rode Starlight and found a new trail, and all of that was as perfect as a workday could be.
Then she and Zach made the hour-plus trip to Black Diamond. That part wasn’t as perfect, because seeing Finn in pain and clearly struggling to stay alert wasn’t good for anyone. Karen held his hand because he demanded it, but other than that, it was a wearying evening.
Zach was the one to suggest a change after the second trip out. “Would you think I was an asshole if we skipped the visits for the next couple of days? If us being there lifted his spirits, I’d be all for it. But I think we’re wearing him out.”
Karen thought back to the first days after her injury and how sometimes company had been more of a pain than pleasure. “We should let him rest and get better. If he wants company, though, I want to go.”
The following morning, Zach followed up, and an official pause was called. Confirmed by a call from Finn to Karen only a few minutes later.
“Hey, you.”
Karen stared over the windswept field beside her, the kitten rubbing past her ankles. “Hey. How’s your day?”
His voice rumbled over the phone, softer than usual and slightly strained. “I might have a second nap after I finish waking up from my first nap. My to-do list is hell right now.”
The ache inside her was rock-hard. “You’re also healing, Finn. That’s on your to-do list in three-foot-tall letters, got it?”
“Got it. Hey, chatted with Zach. I think it’s smart for you to skip the trip out for the next couple of days. I’m still loopy most of the time from the drugs. I have no idea when I’ll be coherent. I’d prefer you spend time with your sisters than my comatose body.”
“I don’t want you to be alone.” Admitting it was hard but good.
Then he knocked her knees out from under her, his voice gone soft. Laced with pain but even more with kindness. “Chérie, I know how much you hate hospitals. I don’t want you hurting yourself coming to see me. I mean it. Stay home.”
She spoke around a throat gone tight. “Okay. But when you’re coherent and bored, call. Or text. You’renotalone, okay?” The need for him to know that was vital.
“I hear you.” Finn’s words faded toward the end. “Now go get in Zach’s way since I’m not there to bother him.”
