Compromised Cowgirl (14 page)

“Oh.” He heard the shuffle of feet on rock. “Sin?”

“Yes, sweetheart?”

“Did you say two, or four?”

“There were two in front of me, but they’re gone now.”

“Um, I see another two, and there might be a tail curving around the corner.”

Sin jammed his teeth together so tight his jaw ached.

“Don’t move. I’m going to look from this end.”

He moved another three feet, just until the curve. He set his staff with his left hand to balance and leaned forward. He swallowed though his mouth was dry. Jessie was above him, and could see two snakes from her angle. There were at least four here. Unlike the first ones, they were too close together for him to take care of individually.

The only way he could think of getting rid of them was to toss round rocks above them, so they’d roll down and scare the snakes. They’d slither toward him, of course. He pulled himself back around the corner and straightened. His heart couldn’t decide whether to stop dead or pound so hard his chest would explode. But he would keep Jessie safe. He’d do anything for that.

“How many, Sin?”

“Four.”

“Plus my two?”

“I think so.” He croaked the word.

“Oh.” Sin waited as she thought. “They’ll go away when the sun gets hot. I can wait.”

Sin scrunched up his face. “Bad news, sweetheart. The sun might drive them toward you.”

“I’m willing to take that chance.”

“I’m bloody well not!”

He froze after the stupid yell. He leaned forward. Yes, the snakes were coiled, flicking their tongues in his direction. He waited for Jessie to think it out. She knew the danger and had guts. He would help her, but not take over.

“I’ll climb down the ledge, then.”

A vision of her splattered on the rocks hit him.

“You sit your sweet little ass down and bloody well wait for me to walk around!”

The snakes turned and began shaking their tails at his bellow. They flicked their tongues as if already tasting him. The sight and sound would haunt his nightmares for weeks.

“Charles bloody Statham, I can take care of myself!”

The snakes swiveled their heads uphill again. He drew a deep breath, then let it out.

“I know you can, sweetheart,” he said gently. “But I’m going to walk around under you. Promise you’ll wait until I get there.” Silence. “Jessie? Promise me.”

“I promise I’ll wait,” she grumbled.

Sin shuffled down the path as if the snakes were slithering after him. He raced around the rock on rubbery legs and looked up. Jessie sat on the ledge swinging her feet as if she hadn’t a care in the world.

In spite of the way his heart threatened to burst, he grinned. This was a woman! She may be scared as all get-out, but she wouldn’t let it show. Blood pounded into his cock. The urge to make her his, to prove he was worth her, throbbed through him.

She was no longer a virgin. There was nothing to stop him. He could show her how a man pampers a woman he loves.

The drop was about sixteen feet. He kicked away the rocks that had split off over the years, clearing a safe landing area. His raised arms would be at least seven feet above ground. If Jessie could hang off the edge, she would be five feet closer. It left about four feet for her to fall. At a hundred pounds, plus gravity, he should be able to catch her safely. If necessary he’d make sure she landed on him.

Jessie glared down at him. She thrust out her jaw and darn near growled. “You called me sweetheart!”

He nodded, grinning as hard as she was glaring.

“Why?”

“Because I think you taste as sweet as honey. And I’m going to find out, Jessie-girl. We’re going to get better acquainted as soon as I touch you.”

“Dammit, did Ace tell you?” She hauled herself to her feet. “I’m going to kick his ass into next week! Making me wear all this when he already told you I wasn’t a boy.”

Sin shook his head, marveling at her. She stamped her foot like a ferocious pixie. He couldn’t wait to wind that passion up until she released it in one huge orgasm.

“Sweetheart, I figured that out the day you started at the Double Diamond.”

“How could you tell? I kept my voice low and wore this damned belt and corset.”

She pulled up her shirt and unwound a thick roll of fabric. He was so busy hoping to see her breasts that it hit him in the face. He managed to catch her long coat, which she had been sitting on.

“You can work like a cowboy all day, but you’re all woman to me.”

“Now I won’t have to wear this contraption anymore.” She put her hands to her neck and started undoing her buttons.

“Whoa, let’s get you down from that ledge before you take any more clothes off. We don’t want any part of you to get scraped on the rock.”

She looked down, biting her lip. She kicked the edge of the ledge with the toe of her boot. Bits of rock rained down on Sin.

“I won’t be able to hold on to the ledge for very long without it cracking off,” she said.

“I know. I’m going to catch you.”

She scrunched her nose and frowned. “No,” she finally said, shaking her head. “I’ll wait until the snakes are gone.”

He shook his head back at her. “No, Jess. Trust me to catch you.” He held out his arms, low with palms up, like a bishop talking to God.

She wrapped her arms around herself and leaned over. He could see her calculating the distance and thinking about what could happen.

“Can you trust me to catch you, sweetheart?”

She shrugged. Her face looked like the stone behind her. White and hard.

“You’re not used to trusting someone to take care of you.”

Her lower lip trembled. She shook her head.

“You’re a strong woman, but everyone needs someone to hug them now and then. Give me your trust. I would never let anything hurt you.”

She looked over her shoulder. Her eyes widened. She gulped and turned back. “I don’t think I have a choice,” she whispered. “They’re coming closer.”

“Lie on your stomach and let your legs dangle. I’ll be underneath. Hold on as long as you can. When you’re ready to let go, tell me.”

She nodded, her chin trembling. She sat on the edge and then rolled onto her stomach. She inched backwards, her bottom wiggling. He stood underneath, wishing her feet weren’t so far above him. He tossed his hat aside to see better. She wiggled further, pointing her toes as if that would make a difference. She bent her arms and laid her palms flat on the ledge, fingers pointing away.

He wanted to tell her not to struggle when she fell, as it would make it so much harder to catch her. But that would mean she’d have to stop a natural instinct. She could only do it if she trusted him completely. He braced himself for a foot in his mouth, or worse.

“I think this is about as far as I can move,” she said.

“I’m ready, sweetheart.”

She crossed her ankles. He heard her panting. Her biceps flexed. She shoved up and out. She fell backwards, her knees slightly bent.

It seemed to take forever. She held her hands across her chest and crossed her ankles. She kept herself loose, flexing as his arms caught under her shoulders and thighs. He let his arms drop to slow her dead weight and pulled her in. He fell to his knees, cradling her against him. She opened her eyes and smiled.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

She scrambled out of his arms, landing on her hands and knees. He let her go, but stayed near. She panted, trying to draw air into her lungs. She yanked at her shirt, trying to pull it over her head. He helped her and then sat back. She fumbled with the strings of her corset, her fingers shaking.

“You want that off now?”

She turned to him, nodding as she tried to inhale. Though his hands also shook, it was in desire now. She’d knotted the laces so he cut them with his knife. Her breasts burst free as she hauled air deep into her lungs. She leaned forward, her smooth back to him. Angry red marks showed where the corset had chafed her soft flesh. He fisted his hands so he wouldn’t touch. To keep his brain from thinking about what he wanted to do, he looked at her back.

He growled in rage when he realized someone had whipped her. The thin white scars, laid next to each other, were unmistakable. He’d seen them on other backs. Strong, male ones, not those of a petite female. When Ace saw what someone had done to Jessie, he’d go berserk.

Her breathing slowed. He didn’t move. She sat back on her heels. He wanted to run his hands through her hair, if he couldn’t touch her breasts.

She looked at him over her shoulder. Gone was the fear he’d seen earlier. He gulped. She rose on her knees and moved around to face him. She held herself erect, proudly displaying her upper body to him.

“Oh, Lord,” he groaned.

Perfect breasts with coral nipples. Small bruises and a few old scars along with the corset marks marred her white skin. But what took his breath away was the way her breasts quivered as she took deep, calm breaths. He crossed his arms over his chest to keep from touching them.

“You called me ‘sweetheart.’ More than once.”

He nodded. She rolled her shoulders. He couldn’t help but watch as her breasts moved as well. They fascinated him. How far would his mouth cover her nipple? Did she like the sharp nip followed by a sensual laving?

“What do you mean about me being sweet?”

“Did Ace taste you between your legs?” He almost croaked the words.

Her face, and her breasts, flushed pink.

“You liked it, didn’t you?”

She nodded.

“Ace doesn’t know you were a virgin.”

She gave a tiny shrug, but her breasts moved like magic. “I let him think that. He wouldn’t have done it otherwise.”

“And you wanted him.”

“I wanted to know about sex. Now I do.” She pouted. “Since I’m not a virgin, my brothers won’t scare off any men I want.”

“You really think what Ace showed you was everything you need to know about sex?”

“He licked me, and he showed me how to ride him. Then he fell asleep. And he hasn’t even looked at me since!”

“Ah, Jessie.”

Sin scooped Jessie into his arms. He sat on the hard rock, soft breasts snug against his shirt. “There’s so much more.” He trailed his fingers over her back. She twitched when he found special spots. He memorized them for later.

Though Ace didn’t know it, he’d taken the virginity of a social equal. He’d compromised her. Ace was a gentleman, and must marry her. Though Trace insisted she was to stay a virgin until after the wedding, it was too late to close the barn doors. The horse had bolted, kicked up her heels, and demanded service.

She inhaled, nipples tightening. His cock throbbed harder as her breasts swelled. An innocent, compromised by the ramrod of the Double Diamond. A man who wanted a large family and deep roots. A friend closer than a brother with whom Sin and Henry had shared many an eager woman.

Sin wanted to show Jessie a gentle seduction.

“Ace fell asleep because he’s been working day and night for months, Jess. After sex, especially a good orgasm when a man’s gone without for a long time, he often falls asleep.” He brushed his lips over her forehead. “Ace doesn’t know who you are, does he?”

“What do you mean?”

“Jessamine Bonham Elliot.”

She blanched, then shrugged and looked away.

“The only sister of six great, big Elliotts and their three killer cousins.”

“That doesn’t matter. I’m an adult with my own money,” she said. The pout belied her insistence on being called an adult. “They can’t make me do anything,” she muttered.

“No, they can’t,” he agreed.

He wouldn’t mention what they might do to Ace, however. The woman squirming in his arms had discovered sex. Like good food, now that she knew about it, she was not going to do without. He would be damned if someone other than the Double Diamond provided it. But he wanted to show her a different side to loving.

“Let me show you a few things Ace missed.”

Her nipples crinkled immediately. He licked a finger and, slowly so she could object if she wanted to, touched one. She arched her back. He groaned and dropped his mouth to hers. Just before touching, he stopped and met her eyes. She closed her own and opened her lips.

He nibbled her bottom lip. She opened for him. He slid his tongue between her bottom teeth and lip. She moaned at his touch on the soft, extra-sensitive flesh. He backed away and let her lead. She started hesitantly, kissing the corners of his mouth.

He placed his hand on her breast, catching her nipple between his fingers. Her groan and the exquisite touch of her flesh on his palm almost made him explode. He dropped his forehead against hers.

“Not like this,” he said. “I want you where I can kiss and suck and nibble every part of you.”

“You promise? You’re not going to tease and leave me all twitchy?”

He leaned back and laughed at her demand.

“I’ll tease, but I won’t leave you wanting. That’s a promise, no matter what.”