Chapter Twenty

Brandy

I felt at home on the back of Bandit, mostly chasing after Ghost when he got bored and wanted to run. It was so much fun that I barely even noticed how much time had passed until I realized I was starting to squint to see Collin in the darkness, riding ahead of me. He slowed down and circled back, having let Ghost gallop again and get his energy out.

We’d made it back to the little creek that ran through the western part of their land. It was the first place Collin had shown me, it being one of his favorite places in the world, he’d said. Then we’d moved on, traversing over a lot of the massive ranch before making our way back.

Now it was evening, late evening at that, and the sun had set, leaving the remnants of daylight in the west and the dark beginning of night in the east. There was a peacefulness about the evening on the ranch that I didn’t think I’d ever experienced before.

Collin hopped off of Ghost, taking his reins and tying him to a tree nearby, then helping me off Bandit to do the same. He rustled in a pack on Ghost for a minute and pulled out a blanket and a couple of bottles of water. He offered me one, and I took it while he laid the blanket out by the water.

“I told you before I love this spot,” he said, “but it’s the best at night. If it’s a clear night, and tonight looks like it will be, you can see every damn star in the sky.”

“That sounds amazing,” I said. “Plus it’s nice and warm today.”

“That also helps,” he said. “I was worried it’d be too cool for this. I love camping out here. Don’t even bring a tent a lot of times; I just come out here with a sleeping bag and sleep. I had to stop for a while when I woke up with a snake one time, though.”

“Oh no,” I laughed.

He grinned. “It was fine. He was just a little guy. But I needed to make sure I didn’t get one of those big ones in there with me.”

“Well,” I said, settling onto the blanket now that it had been laid down, “I wouldn’t mind a certain snake in my sleeping bag.”

The grin got wider, and he dropped down to his knees and lay beside me.

“I got a feeling I’d be all right with that too,” he said.

Slowly, he leaned in for a kiss, and I lay back, letting him hover over me. After a moment, he pulled away, propping himself up on his elbow.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing’s wrong,” he said. “I just… I like to be very clear about things. I don’t do well with ambiguity. Does that make sense?”

I smiled as I nodded. I figured I knew where this was going, but it was so damn cute watching him get there.

“It does,” I said.

“So, well, I know how I feel about it, but I wanted to know where you were on… well, I mean, I know we’ve really only been out on one date, unless you count this as a date, which I guess you could, but that’s beside the point. I mean, I just don’t want to jump the gun or anything, certainly, but I feel like we click really well and…”

“Yes,” I said.

“Yes?”

One eyebrow rose as he looked at me curiously.

“Yes,” I repeated. “I will be your girlfriend.”

The genuine smile that spread across his face made my heart skip. The corners of my eyes even stung with a joyful tear that wanted to come spilling down my face, and I fought hard to pull it back.

“Good,” he said, then seemed to get serious again for a moment. “It’s just, I didn’t want to assume anything. I mean, you’re gorgeous. You could have other men you are seeing.”

“No.”

“Well. Good. Heh. I’m not either. Seeing anyone, that is. I haven’t actually. Not in a long time.”

“How long is a long time?’

“Fifteen years, ish?” he said. “I had a girlfriend in high school. Mary Stanley. She moved to Ohio for college, and we broke up. I haven’t heard from her since, other than seeing a social media post once in a while. She seems happy.”

“How old are you?”

“Thirty-five,” he said. “She was a year younger than me. I went and joined the military when we broke up. Not because I was broken-hearted, just because I kind of always wanted to, and figured it was now or never.”

“I didn’t know you were in the military,” I said. “Did you go overseas?”

It was the delicate way of asking a much harder question.

“I did,” he said. “I wasn’t in the service long. About a year, all told, from basic to coming home.”

“Oh,” I said. “That’s not a long time.”

“No,” he said. “It wasn’t. I would have probably been a career man, but they sent me home after I got hurt. Honorable discharge, a medal, and some walking papers. Then that dream was over. I dated a couple of girls after that, but it never got more than a couple dates. No actual relationships.”

“I see,” I said. “Well, I was married. Very briefly.”

“Oh,” he said.

“We met in culinary school. He was a great cook. I was a great baker. It seemed destined to work. But he left me for a new girlfriend and a TV show in Thailand, and I lost everything. I ended up moving back home after that.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said. “Your ex seems like an idiot.”

I laughed. “That’s one of the words I would use to describe him.”

“I’m glad, though. That he left. I’m sorry he hurt you, but I’m glad you’re here. Right now.”

“Me too,” I said. “All right. That’s enough about exes for now.”

“Fair,” he said.

“So you went to Iraq?”

His face fell, and I could tell he didn’t like talking about it but was trying to force himself to. I felt bad prying, but if we were going to get to know each other, that would be a pretty important thing to know about.

“I did,” he said. “I don’t like talking about it. Things… happened.”

“You said you were hurt.”

He grimaced, clearly upset at himself for letting that slip.

“I’d like to talk about this some other time, if that’s okay,” he said. “It’s just… I don’t want to ruin tonight.”

“No pressure,” I said. “That’s fine. Just know I won’t judge you. I just want to know about you.”

“I know,” he said. “Anyway, that’s why I don’t get out much. Probably why I had trouble dating too. I have difficulty with crowds, or people, or people in crowds. You get the idea.”

“I do,” I said. “It’s weird that you say that, though.”

“Why?”

“You’ve always seemed so funny and outgoing,” I said. “At the shop, at the wedding, every time I’ve seen you, you’ve been charismatic and cool as a cucumber. I never would have guessed you had anxiety about it.”

“Ahh, well, there’s a simple reason for that,” he said.

“And that is?”

“I like you a lot.”

“Ahh.”

Slowly, he moved toward me again, and our lips touched. This time when I lay back, he came with me, settling his body between my thighs. His lips moved down my cheek to my collarbone as his hand slid up my shirt. I gasped when the pad of his middle finger brushed across my nipple, and he groaned. Pulling my shirt up to my neck, he exposed my chest and took one of my breasts in his mouth.

Touching his chin with my forefinger, I brought him back up to my lips and rolled so he lay back and I was on top. I grinned as I opened his belt and unzipped his pants. He grinned back in anticipation, and I slid down his legs until I could kiss his stomach. I pulled down his boxer-briefs, and his thick, hard cock sprung out at me, resting against my neck as I slid my tongue over his body.

He groaned in pleasure as I took him in my mouth, swirling my tongue over the head and then letting him deep into my throat. He squirmed under me, and it only made me more enthusiastic to please him. I stroked him as I bounced my head up and down, driving him deep into my mouth until he clenched, and I took his essence down my throat.

“Oh, I’m not done,” he said as I released him from my lips, and I giggled as he swung me onto my back.

I kicked off my clothes in a frantic desire, and he entered me, stretching me and claiming my body for himself. I cried out into the grass as the night enveloped us, and we made love by the stream. Sweat rolled down the small of my back as I rode him, letting my head fall back and stare into the starry sky as he guided me up and down by holding on to my waist with his massive hands.

The climax that built was earth-shattering, and as I bucked over him, he came with me, both of us howling into the night sky like wolves. It was carnal and intense, but intimate and unique just to us at the same time. My whole body shook, and as I collapsed onto him, his cock twitching inside me as it emptied completely, I knew I’d never even dreamed of a lover like this.

So that’s what that is supposed to be like.

I couldn’t wipe the smile from my face as I settled beside him, my head in the nook of his shoulder and chest, taking in his smell as it surrounded me and letting my thundering heart slowly calm to a steady beat, taking its cues from his.

Above us, the stars shone on. And for a little while, nothing else mattered.