Fantasy for Hire

“Austin, please,” she begged.

He lifted his head, a wholly sinful grin slashing across his features. “But I’m not done ravishing you, darlin’. Any cowboy worth his chaps isn’t gonna leave his lady so worked up.”

Just when she thought she couldn’t stand any more of the dizzying sensations, he slipped down on the bed, used his palms to nudge her thighs apart, and claimed her in the most intimate kind of caress of all. His fingers filled her, sliding deeply. The heat of his mouth engulfed her. And the silky, rhythmic glide of his tongue sent her soaring straight into the realms of bliss.

Her release was swift and powerful, her cries lusty and unabashed. Her fingers twisted in the covers in an attempt to keep her grounded, but she flew apart anyway, reveling in the luxurious climax that seemed to go on and on. And when she finally tumbled back to earth, panting for breath, her body limp, she opened her eyes to find Austin standing by the side of the bed, sheathing himself in a condom.

“Wow,” she whispered, awed by her body’s ability to melt and surrender at Austin’s whim—first in his car earlier, and now. “Twice in one night. Incredible.”

Finished with the necessary protection, he knelt between her spread knees, then moved over her, settling himself between her still-quivering thighs. Bracing his forearms on either side of her head so they were face-to-face, he allowed a devilish grin to claim his lips. “Darlin’, we’re going for a third.”

Her pulse quickened, and leaped again when his thick sex slid against her damp cleft, the velvety tip of his erection finding the entrance to her body. She was primed and ready, but he didn’t penetrate more than a teasing inch. “I couldn’t…”

“Oh, yeah, you can.” His fingers wove through her hair, cradling her head in his big hands as he eased his chest against her breasts, crushing her with the delicious weight and heat of his body. His dark green eyes glittered with hunger, and powerful emotions that seemed to touch her soul. “And this time, I want to hear my name on your lips when you come…”

And with that demand, he filled her with one smooth, hard thrust. She gasped as her body stretched to accommodate him. He let out a low, animal groan as her sleek, inner muscles clenched him tight. Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his hips and arched into him. He growled in response to her seductive move and surged against her, sliding deeper still.

She saw his restraint in the tight clenching of his jaw, felt it in the taut line of his body. Sliding her hands down his muscled back and over his firm ass, she urged him to take what he wanted and give in to those primal desires. “This ride is all yours, cowboy,” she murmured in a husky whisper.

He shook his head, humor dancing in those smoky eyes of his. “Ladies first,” he said, male arrogance tinging his deep voice. “I insist.”

She laughed lightly, but the playful sound ebbed into a moan when he bent his head and captured her lips with his, kissing her in the same erotic manner he fucked her. He had a point to prove, and set out to demonstrate the wonders of a female body, and just how well he already knew hers.

He continued to kiss her, ruthlessly maintaining a steady rhythm designed to push her closer to that sublime ecstasy. Her heart raced, and incredibly, with each slow, measured stroke, each primal lunge, she felt the gradual building of yet another climax. Intense pleasure coiled inside her, urging her to move with him, toward the promise of something lush and wild and spectacular.

She was close…so, so close.

He lifted his head, sliding his mouth from hers to watch her expression. His gaze locked with hers, demanding and fiery. There was no way she could hide anything from him, he wouldn’t allow it. He coaxed not only her physical surrender, but an emotional one, too…and she found the feelings swirling within her thrilling, arousing and terrifying, because she’d never given a man what Austin silently asked for…her complete acquiescence, heart, body and soul.

“Let it go, baby,” he rasped, as if he understood her fears. “I’ll catch you when you fall.”

Helpless to deny him, she closed her mind to everything, ceasing to exist past the feel of him moving in her, over her…and then it happened, a blinding rush of sensation that stole her breath and spilled through her like liquid fire.

The orgasm was so intense, she grasped his shoulders for fear of flying apart. And just as she reached the peak and her body convulsed with the exquisite, sensual gratification, she gave him what he’d ultimately wanted.

“Austin…” she moaned huskily, raggedly.

A satisfied light glimmered in his eyes. “Yeah, just like that…”

In a series of hard, swift strokes he thrust into her, and as she watched him toss back his head and give himself over to his own violent release, she realized she’d gone and done something utterly foolish…. Something that would only lead to a wealth of heartache for her, false expectations from her parents, and a string of disappointments for the man who’d possessed her body so thoroughly.

She’d fallen hard and deep for Austin McBride.

Standing by the side of the bed, Austin stared down at the woman sprawled on her stomach amidst the tangle of sheets and blankets, unable to help the lazy smile tipping his mouth, or the warm inner glow chasing away the chill still clinging to his skin from his predawn quest through the misty, rainy morning to find Teddy a special Christmas surprise. No easy feat, considering every tree lot he’d driven to had sold out the night before.

Finally, his persistence had paid off. He’d found a lone, solitary tree in an abandoned lot, a scrawny five-foot Douglas fir with a broken limb and a crooked trunk that wobbled haphazardly on the wooden base it had been nailed to. Knowing how effortlessly Teddy could transform such imperfection, he’d claimed the tree. While he was trying to secure the five-foot shrub to the top of the Mustang, it had started to rain, a cold drizzle that gradually soaked through his shirt and jeans.

The slight discomfort would be worth seeing Teddy’s face light up with joy when she saw her surprise. Her very own Christmas tree, to decorate as she pleased, and to share with him. This year, she wouldn’t be alone on Christmas morning. This year, he’d give her every reason to celebrate.

He had nothing to wrap and put beneath the tree for her. The thought had crossed his mind on the drive back to her place, but he’d decided that he wanted to give Teddy something more personal than a tangible gift, something precious and priceless, something all the money in the world couldn’t buy. Something she was in dire need of, even if she didn’t realize it yet.

His love.

Yeah, he loved her. The emotion had snuck up on him when he’d least expected it, stealing into his heart and making him realize he needed this feisty, stubborn, too-independent woman in his life. He wanted a wife to come home to at night and share his life with, and he wanted children to bring love and laughter to a home that hadn’t experienced much merriment since his parents had died. He imagined all those things, and more…and in every mental picture that projected in his mind, Teddy played a central part in his future.

His feelings for her were crazy, nothing he’d ever prepared himself for, yet there was no denying what he felt for her exceeded anything he’d ever experienced. And despite their different backgrounds and her parents’ uncertainties about him, the only person’s opinion that mattered to him was Teddy’s.

He knew that needing someone didn’t come easily to Teddy, but he harbored enough confidence to believe her feelings for him were just as strong as his were for her, which, at the very least, gave them a solid foundation to build on. He’d seen the emotion in her eyes when he’d made love to her last night, the uninhibited way she’d responded to him told a tale of its own. But he’d also sensed her uncertainty after that first joining, felt the barest hint of reservation. And he wasn’t going to give her time to come up with any regrets.