Expecting the Rancher's Heir

“Enough,” he said, catching her hands in his to pull her down beside him.

Covering her mouth with his, he traced her soft lips with his tongue. He didn’t think he had ever tasted anything sweeter. When he coaxed her to open for him and the tip of her tongue touched his, he felt as if a charge of electric current coursed from the top of his head all the way to his feet.

He broke the kiss and turned her to her back. Deciding to treat her to a little of the same sweet torture she had put him through, he picked up the bottle of oil. Smoothing the slick liquid over her satiny skin, he paid special attention to her breasts and tightly puckered nipples. By the time he moved down to her flat stomach, he wasn’t certain which one of them was suffering more.

The blood rushing through his veins caused his ears to ring as he stared down at her. Her expressive blue eyes reflected the same hunger that filled him and her porcelain cheeks wore the blush of intense passion. Shane knew for certain he would remember her this way for the rest of his life.

The evidence of her desire fueled his own and the need to once again make her his was overwhelming. Using his knee to part her thighs, he settled himself over her.

“P-please,” she murmured.

“What do you want, angel?”

“You.” She reached to put her arms around him. “I want you, Shane.”

His breath lodged in his lungs as he pressed himself forward and her supple body accepted him. Closing his eyes for a moment in a desperate attempt to hang on to his rapidly slipping control, he held himself completely still. He wanted to make this last, to love her slowly and thoroughly. But when she wrapped her long legs around his hips to hold him to her, Shane knew he had lost the battle.

With his pulse pounding in his ears like a sultry jungle drum, he slowly began to rock against her. The way she met him stroke for stroke, their bodies perfectly in tune, sent a flash fire to every fiber of his being and clouded his mind to anything but the mind-blowing pleasure surrounding them.

All too quickly, he felt her body tighten around his. Her feminine muscles clung to him, driving Shane over the edge, and he felt as if he had found the other half of himself when together they found the release they both sought.

Melissa couldn’t help but smile when she snuggled against the man sleeping next to her. After they made love in front of the fireplace, he had carried her into the bedroom to make love to her again. Then, true to his word, he had rolled over and turning off the bedside lamp, pulled her close and gone to sleep.

As she studied his handsome face, she thought about how wonderful he had been at dinner. He had seemed genuinely happy when he told her family about their upcoming marriage and the baby they’d have in the spring.

Placing her hand on her still-flat stomach, she couldn’t help but marvel at the fact that she was going to be a mother. For as long as she could remember, she had hoped to one day have a precious little miracle of her own to hold and love. She reached out to touch Shane’s strong jaw with her fingertip. He had made that happen and she couldn’t help but love him for it.

Her heart skipped a beat. She had known from the beginning of their affair that she was in danger of getting in over her head. He had been clear that their involvement was temporary and she had wanted that, too. But the attraction she had felt for him was too strong, had been too immediate not to pose a serious threat to her peace of mind.

She had told herself she could control her infatuation and avoid falling in love with him as long as she kept things in perspective. She knew now that she had been lying to herself all along.

If the truth was known, she had fallen in love with him the moment they laid eyes on each other two months ago. He was the most charming, considerate man she had ever met and the longer she was around him the deeper her feelings had grown.

Her chest tightened and a tear slid down her cheek. She quickly swiped it away with the back of her hand. In the coming months, she was going to have almost everything she had always hoped for. She was going to marry the man she loved, have a home in one of the most beautiful places on earth and start the family she had always longed for.

So why couldn’t she be happy and content with that?

Melissa knew exactly what was keeping her picture-perfect fantasy from becoming reality. She wanted it all. She wanted the home, the family and the one thing she wasn’t sure Shane would ever be able to give her…his love.

Seven

“It looks like I’ll just have to take a couple of the appointments myself,” Melissa said as she and Rita went over the afternoon reservations.

“I’m so sorry, Ms. Jarrod,” Rita apologized for at least the tenth time. “I don’t know how I could have made that kind of mistake.”