9. Cole

9

COLE

C arrie’s lips are as soft as I imagined they would be. Her lips part for mine, and tender warmth flows between us. My hand snakes around her head and tangles in her hair, pulling her closer to me.

A moan escapes her lips and the sound fires through my body, making my blood race. I kissed her on a whim, not being able to control myself, and now that we’ve started, I can’t stop.

The rustle of grass has us springing apart, and I glance up to see Gran trying not so subtly to sneak past us.

I stand up quickly and Carrie turns away wiping her lips, probably regretting kissing the grumpy asshole mountain man.

“Don’t mind me,” says Gran, practically jogging across the yard. “The girls are asleep. I’ll head home now.”

She throws a wave over her shoulder and scurries down the driveway to her cabin, no doubt silently congratulating herself.

Carrie has her hands over her face, peering out from between her fingers. “I’m so embarrassed right now.”

“Why?” I say gruffly, “It’s not like we were naked.”

Carrie’s eyes go wide, and she glances down at my pants which are at her eye level. It’s dark, but there’s no hiding the fact that my pants are tenting in a painful hard-on.

She looks back up at me in surprise, and damn, her wide-eyed look make me ache even more for her.

“I better go.” She stands up, and I catch her wrist before she can scurry away too.

“Stay.” I keep my gaze on her, and her mouth pops open in surprise. She knows what I’m asking her. She knows what I want. The tenting in my pants makes that obvious.

Her pulse races under my fingertips, and she swallows hard and nods once. “Okay.”

Fireworks of anticipation explode around my body. She leans forward to get around the tree stump and her scent of flowers and sunshine fills me up and makes me lightheaded. But she needs to know what this is. I need to make sure she’s not as delusional as Gran.

“I’m not looking for a wife, Carrie,” I warn her. “I want you to stay. But it’s not going anywhere.” There’s a flicker of something in her eyes, disappointment maybe, but then it’s gone, replaced by a determined look.

“And I’m only looking for an adventure, Cole. Nothing else. If I wanted a grumpy mountain man, I would have stayed on Wild Heart Mountain.”

The words sting more than they should. I pull her to me and her body presses against mine, soft and pliant.

“As long as that’s agreed.”

She nods curtly. “Agreed.”

My chest squeezes at the words even though I’m the one setting the rules. A wave of emotion wells inside me, and I kiss her hard before it consumes me.

Carrie responds with the same intensity, yielding to my hungry lips on hers. Her hands wrap in my hair and we pull at each other, not able to get enough.

“Wait.” I pull back, breathing hard. I should take her inside to my bed, but the urgency to possess her is too strong.

My coat’s fallen off her shoulders, and I spread it on the ground then pull Carrie down to her knees. We kneel together, kissing and touching and pawing at each other like a couple of teenagers.

I’ve never felt lust like this before, an all-encompassing need to possess this woman. To make her mine.

My hand slides down her dress, the same cotton one she had on earlier, and I cup her breast. A sigh escapes my lips as I finally get my hands on her voluptuous curves.

“Are you wearing the same underwear I saw you in today?’

Carrie bites her lips shyly and nods. “It’s really comfortable.”

I chuckle as I lift her dress over her head. How did I get so lucky to have this woman fall at my door? I throw it over a stump and marvel at the vision before me.

Carrie kneeling in her tiny lacy underwear, her skin glowing pale in the starlight. A breeze brushes past us, and she shivers.

Her hand shoots out to cover her belly, and I grab her by the wrist. “You’re beautiful. Don’t hide it.”

I drop her hand, and she lets it fall by her side.

My finger traces a line from her belly button over the curves of her stomach and to the thin fabric of her bra.

“Do you always go around wearing underwear this sexy?”

She shakes her head and hides a giggle. “I bought it especially, just in case.”

I raise an eyebrow, knowing what she means but wanting to hear her say it. “Just in case what?”

She bites her lower lip. “Just in case you weren’t a grumpy asshole and I wanted to show you my breasts in real life.”

I throw my head back and laugh. Usually it’s only my kids that make me laugh, but this woman is affecting me in all sorts of ways.

“Sometimes I’m a grumpy asshole…” I trail my hand over the fabric and finding a nipple, tweak it between my fingers. Carrie gasps and the smile slips off her face, replaced by a dark-eyed look of desire. “But I am going to see your breasts.”

I pull the lace down over her right breast, and it springs out of the bra. I catch it in my hand and palm her soft skin. “I’m going to touch your breasts…” Carrie ga sps as my fingers tug at the soft bud, making it harden. I lean forward, and my breath tickles her tender skin. “…and I’m going to taste your breasts.”

My mouth encloses over her nipple and Carrie moans, a low guttural sound that makes me ache for her. Her hand slides into my hair and she holds on as I explore every part of her delicious breasts, licking and sucking and tasing her until she’s writhing against me with her head tilted back to the stars.

I unclasp her bra and it falls away, leaving her exposed and open and vulnerable in a way that makes my chest squeeze.

“Lie down.” I gently push her onto the ground, adjusting the coat so she’s lying on it and not the hard earth. Her body is a wonderland, and my hand and mouth move down every part of it.

She claws at my shirt and I shrug it off, enjoying the sensation when her fingers trail over my body. I keep myself in shape, a holdover from my military days, and I’m glad now as she bumps up against every hard part of me. Her soft body contrasts mine in the most delicious way.

My hand slides between her legs, and her panties are hot and damp. The tiny bit of fabric pushes aside easily, and then my fingers graze her slick folds.

She’s wet and ready, and I long to be inside her. But I need to warm her up first to take my girth. My finger trails rings round her slick entrance, and then I slide inside her. Tightness grips me in a sticky wet heat that makes my dick drip with longing .

Carrie gasps and sits up on her elbows. She’s breathing hard, and her eyes are deep pools and wide. I long to plunge into her and take her, but I also love watching the way she reacts to every touch with intensity and wonder as if it’s her first time.

The thought has me pulling up short. My finger pauses inside her.

Carrie’s flushed face turns to mine. “Why did you stop?”

Her pussy tugs at my finger and she’s breathing hard, an erotic vision that will stay with me forever.

“Carrie, have you done this before?”

She bites her lower lip and sticks her chin out in that defiant way she has. “Does it matter that I’m a virgin?”

Holy fuck. She looks both innocent and like a temptress looking up at me with wide lust-filled eyes. It shouldn’t matter. She’s here in front of me ready and willing, and we’ve agreed it’s casual. I should lay on top of her and plunge into her like I long to.

But it does matter. I can’t take something so precious from Carrie.

I pull my hand away from between her legs. “Your first time should be with someone special.”

She rolls her eyes, and I’m reminded of the ten year age difference between us.

“Not necessarily. I came for an adventure, Cole.” She takes my hand and puts it back between her legs. My fingers twitch involuntarily at the sticky sweet flesh I find there. “Give me an adventure.”

Her voice is breathy, and I’m trying really hard to resist. Then she brings a finger up and trails it over her breast. I watch, mesmerized as she takes a hard nipple between her fingers and tugs. She gasps at the pleasure she’s giving herself, and my dick twitches.

“It’s my choice, Cole.” Her hand slides down her body and then over to mine. She pulls at my zipper, and my dick slips out and into her soft palm.

Carrie gasps and sits up to use both hands. I’m big and I’m rough, and there’s no way I’m taking this woman’s virginity. Carrie deserves better than that. She deserves to be with a man who loves her, not one who wants a quick fumble.

I won’t sleep with her, but there’s no reason we can’t give each other a little relief. I’m aching to pleasure her, to watch her come undone under my touch.

So I lay next to her, and while Carrie tugs inexpertly on my cock, I roll my palm over her pussy.

She moans at every touch, and when I find her sensitive nub, she loses it completely. Her cries carry over the yard and up to the starlit sky, turning into a whimper when I slide two fingers inside and press hard against her clit.

Her hands tug at me wildly, and she rolls me against her thigh as another orgasm racks her body. Her body shimmers as the climax crashes through her, and her grip on me tightens. Then she’s pulling hard at my aching cock, giving me all her attention. I grab her breasts with one hand while rolling slow circles over her clit with my other.

This time when she peaks I climb with her, and we fall over the edge together. My seed spills out in thick ropes over her belly, reaching the glorious peaks of her breasts.

We lie together for a long time afterward, watching the stars and basking in the warm afterglow of release until finally Carrie stands up and slides her dress back on.

I help her pull grass out of her hair and then watch her go down the yard and to her cabin. The warm feeling is replaced by something cold and bereft.