His fingers slid to the strap of her dress. His T-shirt was hanging on a hastily erected frame, drying near the fire. She was wearing her dress, of course, but for the first time today, she was acutely aware of how much skin it exposed. And it was exciting.
“This?” he asked, and tugged on the strap.
She could have sworn his voice dropped a husky note that made her pulse flutter with longing. “This,” she agreed. “I’m going to be me, and if it takes twenty years, I’m going to do all kinds of things that no one would expect from me.”
His fingertip lightly traced the skin under the thin strap of her dress. “Such as?” he said huskily.
Her entire world now seemed to be focused on that graze of his finger over her skin. It felt wonderful and ticklish and exciting and utterly alarming all at once. Beth Ann suddenly felt like a teenager on her first date again.
And she rather liked the feeling. “All kinds of things,” she whispered.
“Like what?” He grinned down at her. “What does Bluebonnet not expect sweet Beth Ann Williamson to do?”
She looked up at him leaning over her, beautiful and hard in the shadows, his face all angles. Her body was aching with need—need that hopefully wasn’t one-sided. She gathered her courage—she’d never know unless she asked. “I’ve never had a one-night stand.”
FIVE
Colt stared down at her, surprised. His erection was rock hard in his pants, yet he paused. What the hell was she thinking? Beth Ann was beautiful, and funny, and so incredibly sweet she made his entire body ache with need.
And here she was propositioning him?
Below him, she licked her lips and looked suddenly uncertain. “I’m guessing that request was not a flattering one?”
What, was she crazy? “Ain’t that,” he said softly. “Just trying to figure out what’s going through this thing right about now.” He tapped a fingertip to her temple.
He liked her. He liked her a lot. But he sure as hell didn’t want to be part of some revenge plot to get even with her ex-boyfriend.
Even if he did hate the guy.
Beth Ann suddenly looked chagrined. “You can tell me no, you know. You won’t hurt my feelings.”
God, she thought he was turning her down?
“I mean, I don’t normally proposition men,” she began in a rush.
He put a finger over her lips, silencing her. “I just want to make sure…” Well, hell. How to put it delicately. “That this isn’t something you’re going to regret.”
She gave him a wide-eyed look. “I’ll regret it if you’re lousy at it.”
He snorted, amused. “You know what I mean. Didn’t you say you didn’t want a relationship without trust?”
“This is a one-night stand. That’s different.”
So she wanted no-strings sex with him? Avoid the relationship thing entirely? He stared at her dubiously.
“I know what you’re trying to ask me,” she said, and reached for him. Her fingers danced along his shoulder, and slid down his arm, tracing a vein in his biceps, and he was effectively distracted once more. “You want to make sure I’m not doing this to get back at Allan.”
“The thought did cross my mind,” he admitted. He wanted to touch her back, explore her the way she was exploring him. But until she told him what he wanted to hear, it was a no-go. He wasn’t that big of a dick.
“It’s not about Allan,” she said softly. “It’s about me, wanting things and actually going after them instead of caring what others think.”
“And you want a one-night stand?” Damn, if his dick got any harder, he was going to lose his mind.
“I want you,” she admitted. “We can start with one night and see how it turns out. But if you’re not interested, let me know.”
“You slept curled up against my hard-on last night, and you’re going to sit here and tell me that you’re not sure if I’m interested?” He could feel the smile stretching his mouth. “Platonic, not dead, remember?”
Her hand slid to his tattoo, and she brushed her fingertips over it. “So is that a yes?”
Of course it was a yes. Hell, he wasn’t stupid. A beautiful woman that he found himself intensely attracted to was offering him no-strings-attached sex. Of course he was interested. He’d been thinking about her mouth all day, or how it’d feel to have her legs wrap around his hips and sink deep into her warmth. Feel her pussy tighten around him as she came.
He’d been thinking about that sort of shit all night, even as she talked about peas and carrots and things like that.
But she looked flustered, and he had to admit that he liked seeing her a little off guard. “We haven’t even kissed yet,” he teased her. “Don’t you want to try before you buy?”
“We can start with a kiss,” she said, almost eagerly. Her hands went to the sides of his neck and she pulled him down toward her slowly, not wasting any time. But just before she pulled him in for the kiss, she hesitated, her nose brushing against his lightly, as if trying to make sure this was, in fact, what he wanted.
He’d just have to show her, then. He leaned in, closing the distance between the two of them, and brushed his lips against hers. They were warm and soft, just barely slick from when she’d licked them in her nervousness.
At the feel of his lips against hers, he felt her body tense slightly, and he liked that. He kissed her gently, simply pressing his lips against hers in small, polite kisses. Because that wasn’t what she’d expect from him, and he liked surprising her. Her lips began to part a little more under each kiss, and on the last one, he grazed his tongue against the parted seam of her mouth. He felt her intake of breath, felt her fingers tighten against his neck. And he leaned in to press another soft kiss against her mouth.
This time it was her tongue that stroked against his lips. It shot a bolt of heat straight to his cock, and he suddenly wanted to push her back in the dirt and fuck the living daylights out of her, until she was crying out his name, and she’d lost track of everything but his cock thrusting inside her.
His tongue found hers, and he stroked into her mouth. When she made a small noise of pleasure in her throat, he slanted his head slightly and began to kiss her even more fiercely. If they were going to be together tonight, she wasn’t going to think of anyone but him.
He was going to fucking ruin her for Allan and any other man, he decided. And he realized that was a dumbass territorial thing to be thinking, and he didn’t give a shit. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, mimicking the thrust he wanted to do into her sweet warmth, and he felt a full-body tremble sweep over her.
That was more like it.
He broke off the kiss and noted with pleasure that she’d been reluctant to do so. Her mouth lingered on his even as he pulled away, as if she craved his mouth on her own. He liked that. Her eyes opened and she had a glazed, almost sleepy look that was incredibly sexy. Her mouth was full and pouting and wet with his kiss, too.
“How was that for a test drive?”
Beth Ann gave a small sigh of pleasure and smiled up at him. “I’m pretty convinced, but I might need another round before I decide for sure.”
And her gaze fell back to his mouth.
He didn’t need to be told twice. He kissed her again, this time lingering on her full lips. He tugged at her lower one, teasing the plumpness with his mouth until he’d had enough, and licked deep into her mouth again. This time, she whimpered, and he could have sworn her hips rose up off the ground. Nice. She was responsive. He liked that about her.
“And now?” he murmured against her mouth.
“Sold.”
“Good,” he replied, and placed his hand back on her shoulder. That thin, slinky strap to her dress was tormenting him—had been tormenting him all day. He slid his fingers under it, feeling the softness of her skin even as he dipped low for another kiss. She arched under his touch.
He kissed her until she was breathless and panting, making small little noises of excitement every time his tongue thru
st against her own. He moved down to her chin, tasting her there, then traveled along her jaw. He moved to the shell of her ear, and heard her gratifying intake of breath when his tongue traced it.
“Oh, that feels good,” she murmured, her fingers finding his hair and rubbing the short, stubbled hair on the back of his head, where his hair was closely shaved.
His hand slid down, skimming along her thigh. Not heading straight for her pussy, but exploring her legs, the smooth feel of them, the curve of her knee. He lifted his head as he touched her, watching her face.
Her eyes had fluttered shut, but she was incredibly expressive, and he loved observing every flicker of desire flash across her face. Loved watching that flush sweep over her cheeks when his fingertips grazed the inside of her thigh. That flick of disappointment when he moved back to her knee again.
Oh yeah, he liked seeing that disappointment. Because it meant that she wanted this as badly as he did. He did it a second time, just to watch that fleeting glimpse of frustration pass over her face.
Her knee nudged against his fingers, and he knew she was spreading her legs wider. “Want to lose the dress?” he asked her huskily.
“If you promise to lose your pants.”
That he could do. He stood up abruptly, watched her prop up on her elbows so she could watch him undress in the firelight, her lips gleaming from his kisses, her legs sprawled open as if waiting for him. He groaned at the sight of her, so eager, and rubbed his hand against the front of his pants. “You are fucking beautiful.”
She smiled up at him. “Don’t distract me. I want to see this.”
He undid his belt—pretty much ruined from the rain anyhow—and flung it aside. His hand went to his zipper and he noticed her eyes flash with excitement. He slowly tugged it down, and dropped his trousers. Her eyes went wide with appreciation at the sight of his erection jutting from his briefs. “Very nice,” she said lightly.
So he dropped his briefs, too.
Her gasp of delight turned into a purr of pleasure. She sat up, and her hands reached for him. “Your cock…is gorgeous.” Her hands reached for him, and then she pulled back, clasping them to her chest, as if concerned. “May I?”
He gave a short, clipped nod. Colt wasn’t stupid. If she wanted to put her hands all over him, he’d gladly let her. The breath in his chest went tight as she sat on her knees and lightly brushed her fingertips over his cock. It bucked against her touch, and it took everything Colt had not to grab her by the hair and force her mouth down on it, fucking her lips and mouth the way he’d daydreamed about all day today as they’d walked.
Time for that later. So he gritted his teeth and thought about other things while she explored him.
“It’s so…thick.”
A guy could get used to a girl saying things like that. “You’ll like how thick it is,” he told her, unable to resist brushing the hair off her shoulder and exposing those thin dress straps again. Those straps were just fucking with his head. He was going to get rid of them, and soon.
As if sensing his thoughts, Beth Ann sat back on her haunches and smiled up at him. “Deal’s a deal.” She tugged at the hem of her dress and pulled the entire thing over her head. As he watched, her breasts were revealed. Small but tight, he stared at them, then reached out to brush his fingers over one erect nipple. “Gorgeous,” he growled. “Thought you were beautiful before, but this is the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.”
She smiled up at him, and gave a shy little laugh. Was she…nervous? At being with him?
He wondered if she’d ever slept with anyone other than that dick Allan. He didn’t want to think about that cockroach touching her. Colt took her by the hands and lifted her to her feet.
“It’s not too late to back out,” he told her softly, brushing a stray lock of hair from her shoulder.
She gave a small, anxious chuckle and reached down to grasp his cock in her hand. “Something tells me that this part of you won’t understand if I say no.”
He took her hand and placed it over his heart. “This part of me will, though.”
Her mouth trembled a little and she smiled up at him. “I want this,” she admitted. “I’m just a little…”
“Nervous?”
“Can you tell?”
Oh yeah, he could tell. But he suspected she’d be mortified to hear that. So he said, “Nah.” And leaned in to kiss her again. Her hand squeezed on his cock as his tongue slicked into her mouth and he groaned. “We gotta kiss like this more often,” he said against her mouth. “Your hands on my cock and your tongue in my mouth.”
“Oh?” she said breathlessly, and squeezed his cock again. “Feel good? Why don’t you tell me about it?”
“I’ll show you,” he said, and slid his hand to the front of her small thong, and slipped his fingers under the fabric. She was slick and wet, and his entire body jolted at her gasp of surprise. He parted the lips of her pussy with his fingers and slid them to the front of her sex, searching for her clit. When he lit upon it, her fingers spasmed on his cock and she whimpered.
“Feel good?” he asked, unable to stop licking at her mouth. The woman was so fucking erotic.
“Y-yes,” she breathed, her voice coming out in little gasps and whimpers. He leaned in to kiss her again, and when he lightly pressed a kiss against her full, parted mouth, he tapped his finger against her clit. Her lips parted in response, even as her fingers clenched around his cock, subconsciously squeezing and milking it as she responded to her own pleasure. She was so slick and hot that he wanted to bury his face there. Watch her responses when his mouth was deep in her pussy. Would he get those gasps of delight that he was getting right now? He couldn’t wait to find out.
He flicked at her clit again, and she nearly buckled against him.
“Why don’t we lay you back down on the jacket?” he said softly, giving that sweet pussy a little pat before releasing it. He could have sworn she looked disappointed when his fingers left her body.
But she nodded and slid back down to the raincoat, lying back down. Her tight little breasts jutted into the air, her nipples like pink pearls on her chest, her tangled hair like a cloud around her head. God. He wanted to run his mouth all over her body.
But first, he had to search the goddamn shed for condoms. They sometimes kept them in the first-aid kits, since they made great water skins in an emergency, but Colt was pretty sure that he hadn’t seen an extra med kit in the cabin. Damn. Of all the things to be out of. They had goddamn buckets of tinder and not one fucking med kit?
“What’s wrong?” she asked, the sensual, glazed look flicking off her face again, replaced with uncertainty. He immediately wanted to push her down and kiss her until it returned, but he needed this first.
“Condoms,” he said, and ran a hand down his face in frustration, feeling the stubble growing in there.
“Oh,” she said, and that soft, secretive smile lit her face again. “I have a whole box of them.”
He looked down at her, eyes narrowing. “What?”
She waved a hand in the air. “That QuestMaster party. When you paid at the gate, they gave you a bottle of rum and condoms. Most messed up party favors ever.”
“The next time I see one of those guys, I’m going to hug him,” he declared. “Where’d you leave the box?”
“In my bag,” she said with a wiggle, and her fingertips slid to her breasts, playing with her nipples.
He paused to stare down at her, dumbfounded, as she touched herself. Fuck, that was gorgeous. He wanted to be doing that for her, though. So he headed quickly to the cabin and got the box. Sure enough. It was soggy from the rain, but the foil-sealed packets inside were intact. He grabbed a few and headed back out to the fire, where Beth Ann was waiting. Sexy, sensual, fucking amazing Beth Ann that he was going to fuck all over that rain slicker in about five minutes.
Provided he could last that long. He was incredibly hard and aching just thinking about what she’d feel like, the tip of his cock wet with n
eed.
He tossed the condoms down on the ground nearby and moved back to her. Beth Ann’s arms lifted as he knelt beside her, and her hands caressed his shoulders, then glided over his pecs. She seemed to enjoy touching him. That was good, seeing as how he almost nutted every time he touched her.
“Found them?” she asked breathlessly.
He gave a curt nod. “No more interruptions.” And with that, he kissed her until she was breathless all over again, until she was making those soft noises in her throat. He pulled away for a moment, gazing down at her, at the flush on her face, the tangle of her hair.
“What is it?” she whispered.
“Just looking at you. You’re mighty nice to look at.”
The smile returned to her mouth and she arched her back under him. “I taste pretty good, too.”
“Let’s find out,” he whispered huskily, and dipped down to taste one beaded nipple. Her little gasp of shock was incredibly erotic. And fuck, but she tasted sweet. The tiny bud was tight and hard, and he licked it, enjoying the feel of it against his tongue, and her little panting responses. His hand moved to her other breast and plumped it, cupping the slight weight and then skimming his thumb over the curve of it.
She moaned and arched underneath him. “Colt…your mouth.”
“Like it?” He lightly kissed the tip of her breast, and then slid to the valley between them, nuzzling the soft flesh there, before moving to her other breast and nipping the tip of it, ready to give it just as much attention as its companion.
Beth Ann’s nails raked over his shoulders, digging into his skin, and she whimpered. Firelight flickered over her creamy skin, and her bellybutton was dipped in shadow. He suddenly wanted to touch it, and brushed his knuckle over it, even as he scored her nipple with his teeth again.
Her hips lifted in response. “Please,” she murmured. “Colt, please. I need you.” As he watched, her hand began to slide down to her pussy, to tease her clit as he feasted on her breasts.
“Naughty girl,” he murmured, and his hand moved to cover hers.
She froze in place, her hand fluttering under his as she tried to pull away. “Sorry,” she said, and her voice was mortified.