Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

MATTHEW

W aking up with my arms wrapped around Jessica feels like a dream. I’ve longed to have her back in my life—and my bed—for years. Now that she’s finally here, I never want to let her go.

Her face is buried in my chest and her soft, sleepy breaths tickle my chest hairs in the most delicious way imaginable. I give her a gentle squeeze and brush the hair from her face. She lets out a low moan that hits me right between the legs. I just opened my eyes, and my morning wood is already aching for a release.

Her hand trails across my chest then down my abs, stopping dangerously close to my cock. My arms tense around her as her fingers run little circles on the sensitive skin near my thigh. One of her fingers lightly brushes up my hard shaft and I suck in a breath. She instantly giggles.

“You’re awake?”

She lifts her head up and rests her chin on my chest so she can look at me. “Yep. I was so comfortable I didn’t want to move.”

Her hand wraps around me and gives me a tug. I growl before I kiss her forehead and hold her tighter. “And what about now?”

She swings her leg over mine and sits up so she’s straddling me. She’s still holding onto my cock, gently stroking it up and down. In the morning light, her naked body hovering over mine just might be the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen .

“Now … I think I’m ready for a little ride. What do you say, cowboy?” Her sweet smile turns devious and my cock twitches in her hand.

My fingers dig into her hips and my growl turns positively feral. “Fuck, woman. Whatever you want. I’m yours to use.”

“That’s what I like to hear.” She pushes up on her knees and aligns my tip with her entrance. Moving at an agonizingly slow pace, she slides down on me. This time we both moan as she takes all of me in. She grinds her hips, giving them a little swirl, forcing my eyes closed. “Fuck, baby. You feel so damn good. Do that again I might explode.”

She chuckles. “Go ahead. I like seeing you lose control.”

I growl, something she’s made me do often in the last twenty-four hours. “Not a fucking chance. You first. Always you first.”

I tighten my grip on her hips and slam up into her until she tosses her head back in pleasure. She lifts her arms to brush her hair out of her face and when she does, her slender body stretches out on top of me—every one of her curves on display. Her breasts bounce and I get a perfect view of my cock thrusting inside her. It’s almost my undoing. I force myself to think about anything else except how amazing she feels.

She slips her hand between us and starts rubbing her clit, and all thoughts are on her. Her mouth forms a little O, and I feel her body clench around mine. “That’s it baby. Come on my cock.”

I love seeing her let loose like this and give in to her needs. She always was uninhibited during sex, and I’m glad to see that hasn’t changed. A few more hard thrusts into her and she falls onto my chest, her release completely taking her. I chase after her, finally letting my own body go. It’s quick, hot, and fucking amazing.

We both lay there for a minute, catching our breath, before Jessica hops up and runs into the bathroom to clean up. When she returns, she curls into my side. She fits perfectly next to me like she’s always been there.

“Do you have a busy day today?” She looks up at me and grins.

“No, I need to go check on a horse that stayed overnight but other than that, my day is clear.”

“So,” she waggles her brows at me, her grin turning mischievous, “you can play hooky today? ”

I flip her over onto her back and hover over her. I pepper light kisses around her face and down her neck. “What did you have in mind?”

A shiver runs through me as she drags her hands up my chest and over my shoulders. When her fingers weave into the hair on the back of my head, I groan my approval.

“If you don’t need to get Emmie anytime soon, I was thinking we could ride out to the lake. Spend a little time swimming and hiding out under the waterfall like old times.”

She captures my mouth before I have a chance to answer her. She kisses me fast and hard like she’s trying to lure me into her web so I can’t escape. What she may not fully understand is that I don’t want to escape her. She owns me. Completely.

When she finally breaks the kiss, we’re breathing heavily again. “Damn woman, you’re killing me.”

She laughs, securing even more ownership of my heart. “No, just trying to steal a day alone with you.”

“I’d love nothing more.” I kiss her again before hopping out of bed. “Let me go check on this horse, then I’ll make us something for breakfast.”

I tug on my jeans then sit on the edge of the bed to pull on my socks. She sits up on her knees and leans against my back. “I can make breakfast.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind cooking if you want to wait.”

“I can cook, Matt.” She kisses the back of my neck, sending another shiver through me. “I still remember your favorites.”

I pull her around so she’s sitting on my lap. “All right. This shouldn’t take me more than twenty minutes.”

“Perfect. That’s plenty of time for me to pull something together.” She slips off my lap and grabs one of my button-down shirts thrown over the chair. My dick gets hard again just watching her put it on. She looks so damn sexy with the way my shirt hangs just past her ass, showing off her long shapely legs.

“You better hurry up and get before I pull you back down on this bed and we never leave this room.”

She chuckles and hops out of my reach. With a slight shimmy, she shakes her ass at me. “What’s the matter there, cowboy? See something you want?”

I growl and jump off the bed to grab her, but she runs out of the room squealing. By the time I reach the door, she’s halfway down the stairs, laughing the whole way. “Go ahead and run. I’ll catch you soon enough.”

I lean against the door frame, unable to hide my smile. God, I missed this with her. I hope like hell it’s a sign of more good things to come. Now that she’s back in my life, I can’t lose her again.

This might have been the longest twenty minutes of my life. I’m starving, both for sustenance and more of Jessica. I’m ready to devour whatever she made us for breakfast then take her back to bed.

I finish up with the wounded horse that arrived two days ago. She’s a lively mare, not fully broken. She’d gotten herself tangled in some barbed wire fencing and then took a tumble down a rocky hillside before the owners were able to get her free. She’s damn lucky she didn’t break anything. Just lots of deep cuts, bruises, and a nasty sprain that already seems better.

I update the file and leave a note for Naomi that she can be released today and that I’d be taking the rest of the day off. That’s something I haven’t done in a really long time. Even if I don’t have patients, there’s always stuff to do around here, but one day off won’t hurt. Plus, I need this time with Jessica.

I head into the mud room just off the back porch and kick off my boots. Jessica’s voice filters through the door, and I stiffen at the sound. She doesn’t sound happy.

“That makes no sense. Our second quarter numbers are solid, and this quarter is looking even better. Why do they care where I am?”

Her voice rises higher and higher with each word she speaks. Whoever she’s talking to is not making her happy. I hate hearing her upset like this, and I want to rush in there and hold her close. But this sounds too important to distract her with my own selfish needs.

“Well, they don’t get to make that decision. There’s nothing in the company bylaws or articles of incorporation that dictates where I have to live. It’s my company for fuck’s sake.”

I cringed at her last words. She finally made the decision to stay, and now that’s being threatened by someone in her company. The idea of her leaving, even temporarily, makes my stomach turn.

I step into the kitchen and lean against the wall opposite where she’s standing. She’s next to the stove with her back to me. Her back is ramrod straight and even underneath my too big shirt, I can see the tension in her shoulders.

“Since when does the board call emergency meetings? They’re stepping out of line.” I can hear someone responding to her through the phone, but their voice is too muffled to make out the words. “Fuck, this is such bullshit.”

She tosses her hands in the air and spins around. Her eyes meet mine. Her anger wanes and is replaced with panic. She clearly wasn’t expecting to see me standing here listening to her conversation. I can’t tell if her shift in emotions is because I’m listening or the result of whatever the person on the line is saying. She lets out a long sigh, and her shoulders sag. “Fine. But this is happening on my terms, not theirs. You understand?”

She nods a few times before she continues, “Okay, I’ll be there. Send me the itinerary when you have it … You, too … Bye.”

Her eyes are still trained on mine. Neither of us speaks for a few seconds until the silence finally becomes too much for me. “When do you leave?”

She drops her head, breaking eye contact.

“Today,” she whispers.

I huff out a deep breath, push off the wall, and walk toward her. “Why today?”

“My board called an emergency meeting for 8:00 am Monday to remove me from my position. I have to be there, and I need time to prepare.”

When I reach her, I place a finger under her chin and lift her face so she’s looking at me. “Can they even do that?”

“No.” She leans into my hand and her shoulders relax a bit from my touch. “But they’re still gonna try.”

“If they can’t do it, then why are you rushing back?” She jerks her head back at my question and pushes back with a firm hand on my chest.

“It’s more than that.” Her voice is just as firm as her hand on my chest. “I’ve poured everything I’ve got into this company, and there’s no way in hell I’m going to let them, or anyone, attempt to destroy it. If I don’t go now, I’ll look weak. They may not be able to remove me from power, but they can certainly taint my reputation. And in business, reputation is everything.”

“Hey, hey, hey.” I wrap my arm around her waist and tug her closer to me. “Don’t pull away. Not now.”

She squirms in my arm until she breaks free and steps back, putting too much distance for my liking between us. “Then stop acting like I have a choice here.”

I sigh and lean against the counter. “I’m not. I’m just trying to understand what’s going on. You leaving today is a complete one-eighty from where we left things thirty minutes ago.”

Her expression softens and she leans against the counter next to me. “I know, and I’m sorry. I have to go.”

“I understand.” I did, and I didn’t. I know she’s worked hard for her career, but if she’s planning on staying in Watercress Falls, why is she running back so quickly without including me in the decision? I thought we had a breakthrough and agreed to work on our relationship. Is this how it would always be? Her with one foot out the door, ready to run at the first sign of trouble? Maybe I’m not being fair to her right now, but her leaving scares the shit out of me. “I don’t want you to go. If you leave, I’m afraid you might never come back.”

“Matt.” She spins so she’s in front of me and wraps her arms around my waist. She presses a light kiss against my lips before she drops her chin to my chest. “I told you I plan on moving back, and I meant that. I just have to take care of business in Seattle. I will come back.”

I nod and kiss the top of her head. I want to believe her. I really do. But she left once before and never came back. What’s to stop her from making that same decision again? I hold her close and try like hell to push all the fear and negative thoughts out of my mind. I can’t help but feel like a new wedge has just worked its way between us again.

I need her. More than she’ll ever know.