Kissing Her Cowboy (4 page)

He felt the breath inside her lungs catch
and then slowly release. She pressed closer. The warmth of her body
against his caused a groan to form low in his throat, and Daisy
laid her head against his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his
waist. She answered him in hushed tones.

“I think about you when we’re not
together.”

Gladness filled him at her words, and fire
lit his veins as her breath whispered over the skin on his neck.
He’d long forgotten how it felt to be happy. He closed his eyes to
savor the emotion.

“Me too,” he whispered.

Trey kissed her then and got lost in
tumbleweeds of sensation. Arousal. Comfort. Connection. Joy. He
pulled Daisy tighter against his chest and touched his tongue to
hers. She responded in kind, dragging her tongue over his bottom
lip before nipping it with her small, white teeth. And that’s when
Trey heard the unmistakable snort and whinny of another horse being
led to the corral from the meadow.

He gently let Daisy go, indicating they were
no longer alone. She smoothed back her hair and ran a palm down the
front of her shirt, and by the time the ranch hand looked over and
saw them, they looked like they’d only been talking. If Juan got
closer he might notice her kiss-swollen lips and whisker-grazed
cheeks, but he simply nodded hello.

Trey tried to keep his facial expression
neutral when he nodded back, not wanting his coworker to feel
awkward about the interruption. He quickly held out a hand to Daisy
and said, “How about tomorrow we give Big Blue another try?”

Riding Big Blue wouldn’t be half as
dangerous as the emotions they were giving rein.

Chapter Five

“Never walk behind a horse!” Trey warned.
“Remember I said that horses kick?”

Big Blue shook his head as if to say,
Who
me?
The horse’s dark mane fluttered and he let out a grunt.

Daisy pursed her lips with chagrin. “Sorry.
I lost focus.” Of course, the last time that happened, her partner
died. She curled her hands into fists. “It won’t happen again.”

She’d determined to make a go of this, even
buying herself new boots. Now Daisy stepped toward the saddle, took
a determined hold of the horn, hooked her foot into the stirrup and
pulled herself astride the horse. By the look of approval on Trey’s
face, she knew she’d finally done well after her half dozen
tries.

“Perfect,” Trey said. “You made it look like
you’ve been riding your whole life.”

Bolstered by success, her optimism grew. His
praise pleased her. She took the reins and Big Blue shifted,
waiting for instructions, while Daisy looked past the corral to the
meadow and trees beyond. She breathed in the scents of wild grasses
and flowers, saddle soap and leather, and sighed with satisfaction.
From her elevated view, the world looked more inviting than ever.
“Thanks for saying so.”

“I don’t give compliments that aren’t
earned.”

Trey next gave her a refresher on how to
post, then led the stallion around the corral. “You’re really
starting to catch on. Most important, you’re not acting skittish.
Your control will keep your animal calm. You’re going to be ready
for everything you have to do.”

Relief flooded her, and her confidence
rebounded. What Trey said was true. She did feel more relaxed and
controlled. Mounted Patrol equestrian training started in a few
weeks, and she’d be ready for the advanced lessons. She truly
believed that now.

“Let me take Big Blue around the ring by
myself,” she blurted.

Trey let go and stepped back, clearly
trusting her, and she had the sudden urge to gallop into the wind.
Instead, she walked the horse twice around the ring and finished
with a sensible trot. She’d learn to gallop soon enough.

Trey watched her with a grin on his handsome
face. A breeze lifted the strands of his hair, dazzling her as the
gold streaks caught the sun, and she grinned at him in return,
thinking this smile might become a permanent fixture. She couldn’t
remember the last time she’d felt this good. And it was all
Trey.

She brought Big Blue back to the starting
point, dismounted and handed the reins to Trey, who tied them to
the corral post. “Officer Phillips reporting for duty, sir.” Daisy
saluted, and they both laughed.

Suddenly, the atmosphere changed. The look
in Trey’s eyes was wholly different. Was it because she’d ridden
Big Blue? Admiration shone there, and pride, as if her
accomplishment was also his. And there was something else as well.
Something he’d mentioned the other day. Something she felt too.

She reached out and took his hand to let him
know she understood. She gave it a squeeze. “Meeting you has
changed my life.”

Suddenly, the words weren’t enough. The
prospect of a real future in Texas took her straight into Trey’s
arms. She kissed him and wrapped her arms around his neck to just
hold him close.

A moan escaped his lips, and Trey’s hands
glided down her sides to caress the swell of her hips. At his
touch, the muscles in her stomach and abdomen rose and fell like
gently rippling waters. She leaned into him, seeking more friction
as he returned her kiss. Behind them, Big Blue chomped his teeth
and sneezed.

Trey broke away and smirked. “I hope that’s
not an editorial on my lovemaking skills.”

Daisy ran her fingers over his jaw,
laughing. “No, I think he approves. I know I do.”

She looked back at the horse, and an idea
struck. Turning again to Trey she asked, “Is your schedule open for
the next hour or so?”

Trey nodded.

“Good. Let’s go.”

Daisy untied the stallion and stepped into a
stirrup—like she’d been born to it. She mounted Big Blue in one
fluid motion and shifted all the way back on the saddle, patting
the tight space in front of her. This could work. She was sure it
could work.

“You could sit here and lean against me,”
she said. “I’ll support your spine.”

***

Trey had figured he’d know when the time was
right to ride again. Now, staring up at Daisy on his coal black
stallion, with her flaming red hair, he knew that time had
come.

He stroked Big Blue’s neck while his heart
thumped. “Is it all right with you, boy, if we double up? We won’t
stay on long.”

Daisy dismounted to make room for him, and
Trey noted the ease of her movements. He’d always known she could
do this. She patted the saddle and offered an encouraging smile.
Trey nodded.

When she stepped away, he mounted Big Blue
with a grunt, sweat breaking over his brow with the effort. Daisy
followed, using his forearm in place of the saddle horn. She slid
in behind him, and he leaned back against her chest. With her slim
body pressed against his for leverage, his pain eased.

Trey shifted a little and the saddle
creaked. He found his center of gravity and the throb in his spine
disappeared.

Dang. This just might work.

Big Blue chuffed and shook his impressive
head but held steady while Daisy wrapped her arms around Trey’s
midsection. Trey shivered at the intimacy of the contact. He closed
his eyes for a moment, savoring the feel of her body against his.
He’d almost forgotten how much comfort a woman could bring. It had
been a long time.

He took the reins and guided Big Blue from
the corral to the open field. The world had never looked brighter.
From his vantage point looking out over the meadow, with the most
beautiful woman he’d ever met at his back and the greatest horse
that ever lived beneath him, his entire life was opening before
him. All was well.

Daisy pressed her cheek against the base of
his neck. “If this works, maybe this means you’re healing. Maybe
soon we can ride together side by side. Would you like that?”

Trey nodded. “Can’t think of anything I’d
like better.”

Daisy slid a hand up his chest. “I can think
of something. See that stand of trees to the east? Get Big Blue to
take us there. We’ll continue the kissing we started…and maybe
more. I know you’ve been holding off because I’m your client, but…
I think things have changed. You’re not just my teacher but my
cowboy.”

Trey heard the smile in her voice and headed
eastward with anticipation, letting Big Blue have more rein than
he’d done in months. A breeze rippled over the fields to run
through his hair like soothing fingers. Sunlight touched his face
like an old friend. A smile parted his lips, and Trey exhaled with
contentment. Big Blue kept still, as if sensing Trey’s need to hold
the moment close.

He relaxed in the saddle and leaned into
Daisy, savoring the feel of her breasts against his spine. He
clasped the hand she’d cupped over his heart and said, “My house
isn’t far beyond that stand of trees. Would you like to see
it?”

Daisy nodded against his shoulder. She slid
her hand from his chest and brushed his hair away from his neck to
lay kisses there, and Trey sucked in a breath as she pressed one
behind his ear and nibbled his earlobe. Her warm mouth and the heat
of her tongue trailed over his flesh to mark him like a brand,
making him hers.

Daisy might not know it yet, but he intended
to make her his, too. Both his broken back and Daisy’s broken
spirit would heal and grow stronger over time. Their needs to start
fresh had brought them together, and their growing love would see
them through. He’d find a way to finish the porch on his house and
make it ready for a wife. That wife would be Daisy. Together,
they’d build a new life and a home.

Trey clicked his tongue and gave the
stallion the giddy-up.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Adele Downs writes contemporary romance
inside the office of her rural Pennsylvania home. She is a former
journalist, published in newspapers and magazines inside the USA,
UK, and Caribbean.

Adele is an active member of Romance Writers
of America and her local RWA chapter where she serves as a past
president. She has written several articles for RWR magazine
(Romance Writers Report), the trade journal of Romance Writers of
America, and has presented workshops at conferences.

When Adele isn’t working on her current
project, she can be found riding in her convertible or reading a
book on the nearest beach. Visit her website at
http://adeledowns.wordpress.com

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