She stepped out on the narrow walk in front of the house and just like that, lighting streaked overhead. Thunder rumbled through her body all the way down to her toes in her four hundred dollar boots. She hurried toward the barn, wanting to beat the rain.
Why are you drenched, Shellie? My God, you look like a drowned rat. I don’t want you touching me looking like that, why would you think anybody else would?
Shellie froze and fought against her mother’s words. She stood still in the middle of the yard and waited for the drops to pour down. And then those damn cows ran past, bumped her side, and sent her flying into an icy cold puddle.
Chapter Two
Riley flung open the door to the feed and went after a bucket. He scooped grain and vowed to stop thinking about Shellie in any way but as a friend. Like he had in high school. That’s all she was then. A friend. It shouldn’t be any different now.
Why he had to start noticing her curves, the heavy ring of her laugh, or her floral perfume, he didn’t know. He groaned and rested his hands against the feedbox for a moment. He was like a damn buck in rut. She’d stepped out of her car in his driveway early this morning and he was blown away by miles of legs, hair kicking out in the wind, and the sway of her walk. Oh, and then there was her smile, bright eyes, and breathy voice as she’d called his name before pulling him into a hug.
It was Shellie, but at the same time…it wasn’t. Shellie Chambers had grown up. No longer was she an awkward, boney girl in desperate need of teasing. The woman who would be sleeping two doors down from him was all curves and sex appeal. And she did the teasing. He’d like to think she really wasn’t as attractive as he was finding her. Not getting laid in the past few months was clearly what affected him, but he knew that wasn’t it. His main problem was, Shellie was from his past.
Simply seeing her made him want to behave in ways he hadn’t in years. Watching her back off in thought, knowing she was thinking of her mother made him want to grab her hand and go toss her in a pile of hay just to make her laugh. Too often he’d done that sort of thing just for Shellie, but he didn’t behave that way anymore.
And he most certainly did not think of Shellie and have ideas of putting her on the nearest wall or bending her over the porch handrails. It had never been sexual with her. She’d been a source of fascination to him growing up. He’d always known she’d itched to be bad, but knew she’d never do it alone because of her harebrained mother.
So, just because he could, he’d pulled Shellie after him, got her into trouble and usually always managed to get her out without her mom finding out. It started out with him tempting fate to see how close he could find himself in trouble, but it quickly turned to doing it for Shellie. She thrived on it.
He knew she came here looking for some of those good old days from high school, but he wasn’t going to give in. There was no one, not even Shellie, who he would risk falling into his past for.
No matter how much he knew she’d like jumping off the loft to land in a pile of hay or risk a fever for a cold-ass swim in the pond. Picturing her swimming filled his head and coated his body in heat. Suddenly taking her swimming seemed like a damn fine idea. He cursed and dropped his head.
He would not be that boy again No matter how nice she smelled and how much he watched her, and knew she didn’t realize her appeal, he wouldn’t touch her, wouldn’t lead her astray.
Thunder pounded and shook the thin plywood walls of the feed stall. He grabbed the bucket. Best to get the calves put up before the rain started. He scooped enough feed to shake to draw the calves in and started back toward the house. He made it as far as the barn door and froze.
Shellie stood in the middle of the yard. Her arms were stretched out to the side and head tilted back like she was waiting to be beamed up. She didn’t see the calves running right at her.
He yelled, but his call was smothered by another boom of thunder. He ran, unable to do anything as the two reached her. One ran wide, but the other didn’t veer quite enough. The calf caught her against her side and flicked her away like she was nothing. She screamed, her legs kicked and body twisted, as she looked for the ground. His pounding heart clogged in his throat. Legs filled with sand as he tried to reach her, but couldn’t run fast enough to get there before she fell in a huge mud puddle. Water exploded up around her, her scream silenced, and she lay still.
He yelled after her, but she didn’t move. Didn’t sit up. Oh, God, she’d broken something. Had she landed on her head? He couldn’t remember. He crossed through the puddle, dropping to his knees and sliding over the slick bottom. Icy cold water soaked up his jeans and he stopped at her side. She blinked. Mud and grass was on her face. She stared up at the sky.
He cupped her cheek. “Shellie?”
She looked at him, bewildered. And then she laughed. And rolled. And hee-hawed until she was clutching her belly. With a blink, he sat back on his heels watched as she basically rolled in the mud.
Her dress was soaked and hiked to her hips. Her thighs, her long, long creamy thighs, were exposed. As she chuckled, her knees parted just enough, giving him a full view of the center of her. The thin black strip of her thong slipped between her opening. Shame, that. It looked painful and he just bet a kiss would make it better.
He swallowed and jerked his gaze back to her face, only to veer back down. Without trying, his head filled in images and thoughts of him lying there. He would start out saying, “let me warm you” and then his kisses on her lips and neck would move down her body, to her breasts, waist, hips…and down he’d move. Already, he knew how damn good the heat of her thighs would be against his cold ears.
He reached out and jerked her skirt down, taking away the temptation. Or so he’d hoped. Covering her didn’t take the image out of his mind.
“Shellie.” God what was so wrong with him that he was distracted by the idea of sex that he couldn’t at least make sure she was all right first?
She sobered for only a moment and met his gaze. Her eyes were watery. Wet hair clung to her flushed cheeks. She lifted her hand. He saw it coming, but not enough time to stop it. She threw a handful of mud at his chest and then broke out in chuckles all over again.
She was simply amazing. And she had no idea. “If your momma could see you now.”
“I know!” She rolled to her side and propped her head up on her palm as if she lounged across a fluffy bed in a five-star hotel. “That’s what I’m laughing about. I was waiting to get rained on. I know she would hate that and then the cow pushed me in the mud instead. It’s better!”
He shook his head and stuck his hand out to help her up. She grasped his hand, her lips kicked up and she tugged.
“Shellie!” He fought for traction, but in the slick mud, he fell and landed across her chest. His hips were between her thighs, right against what he desired most. She laughed all over again. Her body shook against his. As if he wasn’t aware of her enough.
“Come on, Riley!” She grabbed his shoulders and gave him a little shake. “You used to live for this kind of stuff.
You
used to be the one to pull me in the mud.”
He froze as she squirmed under him. Her breasts pressed against his chest, her thighs squeezed his hips, her pelvis raked his quickly hardening cock. He’d pulled her in the mud a time or two, but never like this. He focused on her blue eyes. The only thing that had not changed on Shellie. “I’m not a kid anymore.”
She stopped her laughing and stared up at him. Her hand lifted and cupped his face. Her brows dipped over her eyes. “What happened to you, Riley?” Her thumb rubbed his cheek in a sweet soft caress he didn’t deserve. Not if she knew his thoughts when she was just having fun. “You’ve changed so much from what I remember.”
He shrugged. He didn’t miss he wasn’t making any move to push off her. Because moving would make him feel more, he told himself. Yeah. That was why he wasn’t peeling his hips out of the cradle of hers. It wasn’t because her body fit against his better than he remembered any woman’s before. Or that her thighs seemed to be squeezing him or her breasts were pressing to his chest.
It wasn’t just her body that was calling to him, it was her. He was the one who had changed? He nearly snorted aloud. She didn’t have clue just how much
she’d
changed. Her former shy self had morphed into confidence that was hard to resist.
He swallowed. “You’re not how I remember either. I can’t believe you’re rolling in the mud without changing your clothes first.”
She smiled. “While I was standing on the porch I decided I’d had enough of doing what my mom would want. While I’m here, I’m just going to have fun and do whatever I want, like I used to do when we hung out.”
“You used to be concerned about your mother even when you were with me before.”
She shrugged a shoulder, causing her breasts to lift and press firmer against him. “She’s not here to catch me at all. I can do whatever I want without having to hear about it later. It’s part of the reason I came here, I think. I just didn’t realize it until now.”
Now that was a change he liked to see. She’d chained herself to her mom’s direction for far too long with the excuse of it was easier. And it was, but it always made Shellie sound weak and she was not weak. He forced a smile. At least she’d have her time here to just have fun and maybe she could take that back with her and not stand to live under her mom’s thumb anymore. He could even help her, encourage her to have a little wild time.
He shook his head. No. Because he wasn’t that trouble-making guy anymore. He was responsible now.
Shellie was staring at him and he realized he’d been silent for a long moment. He forced a smile and recalled she’d said she was getting away from her mom to misbehave. “Like standing in the rain.”
“Yes! I played in the rain once and she filleted me over it.”
He remembered. It’d be the first time he’d noticed her. He’d been across the street walking home. She’d been a little girl then, standing in her front yard with her tire swing and huge three-story home. She’d been spinning circles. He’d been jealous that she was so spoiled she had nothing to do but stand there and get wet, whereas he was going to help old Mr.
Gregor
down the street for money. Then her mother had come outside, grabbed Shellie by the arm and yelled in her face. He’d been across the street but had clearly heard Shellie’s sobbing. He’d hurried along to Mr.
Gregor’s
, thankful that while his parents were shitty and poor, they never once told him what to do like that.
He picked a piece of grass off her forehead. “So what’s next?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I’m thinking of something crazy right now I’ve only done once before.”
“Sounds like a good idea.” And it was an excellent one. Shellie could dream up all sorts of things she wanted to do on her own. He could even help since he officially wouldn’t be the one sniffing out the trouble. Only making it happen for her. That was something he could definitely live with.
She grinned, her hands slid up his arms. “Oh, I think it is the best idea ever.”
“What then?”
The corner of her lips kicked up. Her blue eyes he could have sworn had not changed over the years, seemed to do just that and darken. She wound her hands around his neck and pulled him down. Her lips touched his and he didn’t move. Oh, God. Yes, they had done this one painfully awkward time before. To this day he still couldn’t explain what had come over him that had him lean over and kiss her. When she’d stiffened, he quickly realized his error and pulled back.
She smiled against him now. “I’ve never forgotten that one quick kiss you gave me in high school. I think I acted then like you are now. Stunned.”
“I shouldn’t have kissed you.” His lips brushed hers as he spoke. Because she still had him pulled down, of course, not because he wasn’t pulling his own body off hers.
“And now?” Her heart beat against his chest. Her hands that had been tangling in his hair were still.
He cupped the back of her head. To get her out of the mud and cold water. Wouldn’t want her getting sick. “I’m pretty sure I shouldn’t be kissing you now.”
She blinked. Her eyelids slowly lowered and lifted again as a complete temptress. “Then why don’t you get off me?”
She didn’t say it in anger or irritation. It was more matter of fact that she stated the obvious and he knew he couldn’t keep making lame shit up to tell himself.
“Because you feel too damn good underneath me.”
He crushed his mouth over hers and kissed her exactly as he’d wanted since he saw her this morning. She groaned and her legs parted, allowing him to settle deeper, to bring his hard cock firmer against her. She tightened her arms around his neck, angled her head and opened her mouth for him.
He should get off her.
He shouldn’t be kissing her with this devouring need. Just a quick peck was all he should have given, but he couldn’t stop. The warmth flowing from her lips into him was too good. The sweet taste of her mouth from her sugary tea reached in him and he became drunk on the flavor and lost in the sensations.
Thunder cracked overhead and the downpour started. Sheeting rain slanted across them and laughter spilled out from her all over again.
He pushed off her and stood. This time, he grabbed her under the arms and hauled her to her feet. It was too cold for this and that worked as a perfectly good excuse. The boy he used to be would have lain in that puddle until his body was too numb to feel. So he had a small lapse with Shellie, but he was still responsible and an adult, not some out of control boy because he had stopped things before they had taken off.
She took his hand and pulled him toward the house. Against his better judgment, he followed after, chasing her if for no other reason than she was laughing again. She wound around the corner, toward the front steps. A pile of cow shit lay in the yard in front of the house and he stopped.
“Ah, fuck.” He stroked down his face. How could he have forgotten his cows? His responsibilities? He ground his teeth. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.