Authors: Jennifer Lowery
He wanted her to get on with her life.
She deserved that happiness. She and Abby both. Was he ready for this to be
over and for her to leave?
Murphy scowled. Of course she would
leave. She had a life to get on with. He didn’t have anything to offer her. He
was a broken man. With a nice sized bank account and a cabin in the mountains.
He’d retired from Special Forces and had no prospects for his future. He had
yet to share his experience with his mom and sisters, and he still woke up in a
cold sweat every night because of what happened.
He wasn’t husband material and he sure
as hell wasn’t the settling-down type. Best to let her go. Then she could find
a nice guy to settle down with, have a few more kids and a house with a picket
fence. He couldn’t offer her children and he knew she would want more. She was
a good mother. He would only hamper that as Abby grew older and Sara longed for
more.
The thought of her living with another
man made him want to punch something, but he tamped it down. He couldn’t give
her the life she wanted, so why worry about it?
Sara’s hand skimmed his chest. He’d be
damned if anyone else was going to have her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her
on top of him in one swift move. He scowled and she smiled, not bothered in the
least by his roughness. If he didn’t know better he would almost believe she
liked it. Her nipples were hard against his chest and he wanted her naked. Now.
“Is your mother still at the party?” she
asked softly, her lips moving lightly over his jaw. Murphy’s hands tightened on
her waist.
“She’s been in bed for hours.”
Sara stilled. “That’s too bad,” she
murmured, letting her head drop on his shoulder. Murphy couldn’t agree more. He
knew where Sara stood when it came to doing anything that would disgrace
herself under his mother’s roof. It hurt him as much as it did her. Hard and
aching with her lying on top of him, he exercised impressive control in order
not to tear her clothes off and surge inside her.
They lay there in silence trying to
ignore their rapid breathing.
Against his neck, she whispered, “I need
you, Murphy. Do you think…maybe if we’re quiet?”
“My mother is a sound sleeper. Besides,
she’s in the other wing of the house. There’s no one to hear us, Sara.”
Her pupils dilated and color flooded her
cheeks. She was the most innocently beautiful woman he had ever seen. In the
soft light of the lamp, she looked delicate and feminine.
She sat up to straddle his thighs and
slowly, shyly, took off her shirt and tossed it on the floor. Murphy drank in
the sight of her and forced his hands to remain clenched at his sides so she
could set the pace. She spread her palms across his chest and gently kneaded
his flesh. He watched as she explored her bolder side and experimented with
what he liked, which wasn’t a hard task. He liked everything Sara did to him.
“I’m going to miss this,” she murmured
as she rose to her feet above him and slipped out of her jeans shorts. Murphy
forgot how to breathe when she took him inside her with one hesitant tilt of
her hips.
He would never let her go. Not without a
fight. She belonged to him, and he wasn’t letting any other man have her.
Only one thought filled his head as he
drove into her and took them both to the edge.
Mine.
* * * *
Sara opened her eyes and looked around
at the masculine colors surrounding her. A slow smile spread across her face as
what had happened the night before flooded back. She had never acted so bold or
so free. It had been enlightening and rejuvenating. One experience she hoped to
repeat. Murphy had let her take the reins during their lovemaking, making it
more erotic, empowering. She had done things to him she’d never thought
possible. Recalling his reaction, he liked it too. She’d never made a grown man
beg.
A blush crawled up her cheeks as she
rolled over to face Murphy’s side. Not surprised to see he was already up and
gone, she slid her hand over the sheet and found it cool. She glanced at the
bedside clock.
Sara gasped and bolted up in bed. Abby.
How come no one woke her? Thank goodness no one did. She couldn’t be found in
Murphy’s bed. Rolling stiffly to her feet, Sara found her clothes and headed
for her room. She tiptoed across the hall, chiding herself, and quickly dressed
in a pair of jeans and t-shirt, sore from being thrown into the wall and the
intense lovemaking session with Murphy. She had exercised plenty of muscles
during that little interlude.
After pulling her hair into a ponytail
and putting on shoes, she went downstairs, following the sound of voices into
the kitchen. Alice and Justine were making sandwiches for lunch. Both smiled
over their shoulder when she walked in.
“’Bout time you got up,” Justine said
with a knowing smile. Sara tossed her a fierce glance, but Justine only rolled
her eyes.
“How are you feeling, dear? I’ll have
that glass cleaned up in no time.”
Sara dropped into a chair. “Mu-Jon told
you about that?”
Alice nodded. “Of course, dear. Your
safety is the most important thing to us. Is your back all right?”
“It’s fine, just a little scraped up.
I’m sorry about the mirror.”
Alice waved it away. “Don’t worry about
the mirror, we’re just glad you and Abby are all right. That’s what’s
important.”
“You must have been terrified when you
found those men waiting for you,” Justine said.
Sara nodded, suppressing a shudder.
“Stephen I recognized, but the other one I didn’t. I’m lucky Mur-Jon was there
to save me.” She looked at Justine. “Was everything okay at your house?”
Justine smiled in reassurance.
“Everything was fine. Don’t worry, she had a great time.”
“I know, it’s just that I worry about
what I’ve brought into your lives. I don’t want to see any of you hurt.” Her
voice hitched on the last sentence.
Both Alice and Justine moved to her
side. Alice sat down beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Sara
leaned into her and accepted the comfort she offered. It made her miss her own
mother and that only made matters worse.
“We can take care of ourselves. It’s you
we worry about. This is a bad man after you and Abby. The important thing is
that you let Jon and the boys deal with him. They have experience in dealing
with this kind of thing and will protect all of us.”
Sara nodded. It was true. Murphy was the
best man for the job, and as long as she followed his instructions he would
keep her safe. Last night she’d dropped the ball and she regretted it. She
shouldn’t have gone to the house without telling him. It was pure luck Gabe had
been there to let Murphy know she had gone to bed. If he hadn’t walked her up,
no one would have known she was in the house, and Stephen would have gotten the
information he wanted.
“I’m sorry for all of this,” she said.
“Don’t be. You brought my son home and
have given him a reason to join the world again. Do you believe in fate, dear?”
Sara lifted her head. “I never really
thought about it. Why?”
“Well, I believe you ended up on that
mountain for a reason, and fate brought you and Jon together. You’ve helped
each other and things like that don’t happen every day.”
Tears filled Sara’s eyes. Murphy’s
mother was a very special woman. She would miss her when she left.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “I owe him so
much. He saved my daughter’s life and now he’s saved mine.”
“It’s what he does best, just like his
father.”
“Where is Jon?”
“Out in the corral with Abby, giving her
first riding lesson.”
“Abby is on a horse?”
“And doing a fine job. Why don’t you
take them a couple sandwiches and see how she’s doing, if you feel up to it.”
Sara rose from her chair. “I’m
definitely up to it. Abby is so much braver than I ever was.”
“Don’t underestimate yourself, Sara,
you’re stronger than you think. You protected your daughter from those people
and you’ve kept her safe. That takes a strong woman.”
Sara hugged Alice and cherished the kind
words. She had never considered herself to be strong. She may have made a
lifetime of mistakes, but she was quickly making them right. And she would
start by telling Murphy how she felt about him. No matter what happened between
them, she owed it to him to let him know.
“You know, Sara,” Alice said, handing
her a sack full of sandwiches. “You and Abby are welcome to stay here as long
as you want. Even after this is all over. Until you decide what you’re going to
do next.”
That stopped her dead in her tracks. She
couldn’t imagine staying here if things didn’t work out between her and Murphy.
The offer was so generous, she couldn’t think of a thing to say. No one had
ever offered her their home. It touched a deep part of her. This was a safe
haven for her and Abby, and she could easily see them spending more time here.
They both loved the wide open space and big blue skies, not to mention Murphy’s
family. They had all been so kind, leaving would hurt.
She may as well face it. She didn’t want
to leave. She wanted the fairy tale. Like she had when Kent walked into her
life and swept her off her feet. She had fallen for the fairy tale then, and
she would be a fool to do it again. No matter how tempting the prince this
time, scars and gruff attitude included.
One thing was for sure: Murphy hadn’t
swept her off her feet. Not in a romantic way. He would have thrown her over
his shoulder and stomped away if possible. The thought made her smile.
“Thanks, Alice, I’ll keep that in mind.
Abby and I have enjoyed being here, we aren’t in any hurry to leave. I’ll just
take these sandwiches down.”
* * * *
Sara found Murphy holding the end of a
long rope in the corral with a small, tan colored horse on the opposite end and
Abby beaming from the saddle. Relieved to see Abby safe and happy, she stopped
for a minute just to watch her. When Abby saw her, she waved before refocusing
her attention on her task.
Murphy glanced over his shoulder as she
approached. She set the bag on the ground beside the railing and leaned over
it.
“How’s she doing?” she asked, a little
self-conscious with last night’s events hanging between them.
“She’s a natural. She’ll be riding alone
in no time.”
“Really? Well she must have a good
teacher, because she doesn’t get it from me.”
Murphy pivoted as Abby and her horse
circled between them. Abby looked ready to burst with joy as she followed
Murphy’s instructions.
When they’d passed, Sara said, “About
last night…”
“There’s nothing to discuss.”
Heat crept into her cheeks. “I…acted a
little out of character with you. I don’t know what came over me.”
“Sara.”
“What?”
“I wasn’t complaining.”
Her blush deepened. “Oh. Good. Um, did
you find Stephen?”
“No.”
“Did you get anything out of his
partner?”
“No.”
She nodded and smiled at Abby as she
passed. “What happens next?”
“We wait.”
Letting it drop, she motioned to the bag
on the ground. “I brought you some lunch. Is the lesson almost over?”
“Yeah, I have work to do. I want you and
Abby to stay close to home today and don’t go anywhere alone.”
Home. What a beautiful word. She
wondered if Murphy knew he had said it.
“We won’t.”
Murphy met her eyes as he reined in
Abby’s horse.
Unable to read his thoughts, she shifted
her weight on the rail. “I learned my lesson.”
He looked away and lifted Abby out of
the saddle. She hugged his legs before running over to Sara and ducking under
the fence. Sara swung her into her arms and hugged her tight. Murphy approached
the fence and braced an arm over. He looked like he was going to say something,
but instead gathered the reins and led the horse away. Sara watched him go,
wondering what he’d been about to say.
She followed his long strides as they
carried him out of the corral, envying his ease with animals. She had grown up
with a cat or two, but nothing like this. He handled horses and cattle with
ease and looked good doing it. She couldn’t help scanning his broad shoulders
and nice backside. The man was built, she couldn’t deny that, and she couldn’t
wait to get her hands on him again. She wanted to feel that muscled body
sliding over hers.
Murphy glanced over his shoulder and
quirked a brow at her. The corner of his lips lifted as if he could read her
thoughts. She had to turn away. He’d probably read her thoughts, and judging by
the look in his eyes he didn’t mind. How embarrassing to be caught ogling his
behind.
She smiled at Murphy and picked up the
sandwiches. He may have work to do, but they were going to have lunch first.
All three of them. And she was going to ogle him the entire time.