Hold Me Close (Bridgewater County 4)

She was so beautiful. No, not a swimsuit model, but better. Her chestnut hair was pulled back into a simple ponytail, showing off her high cheekbones, her full lips. She wore only a little makeup. She didn’t need more. She was perfect as-is. “One thing you’re going to learn now, baby, is that we’re protective.”

“And possessive,” Ethan added.

“And a little obsessive.” I stroked my finger down her soft cheek. “I admit, I’ve been obsessed with you since you walked up to me, all hot and sassy at the rodeo.”

Her shoulders relaxed and she let out a little laugh. “Sassy? I am not sassy.”

I winked at her, glad she was getting back to her usual self. I’d rather have her spitting fire than blinking back tears.

“I couldn’t help but watch the soft sway of your hips beneath your jeans, the way your breasts were lush in your pale pink shirt as you approached me.”

Her mouth fell open. “You remember what I wore?”

I nodded, continued to stroke her skin, slid my fingertip down her neck. “I remember everything about you.”

“Oh.”

“One thing, baby.”

Her green eyes lifted to meet mine. “I’m like a little boy with a toy sometimes. If Ethan gets to kiss you, then I want a kiss, too.”

I had no idea how to approach a woman with blatant trauma in her past. We could go get some food, woo her over the next few weeks, even months, and hope she’d slowly come to trust us. But I didn’t think trust was an issue. I’d seen the heat in her gaze at the rodeo. My words had turned her on. And pissed her off.

She just needed to be coaxed, led, literally hand-held until her mind caught up with her body and decided it wanted us.

The corner of her mouth curled up. “You feel neglected?” she asked.

I nodded. “It’s not fair he’s gotten to taste those pretty lips and I haven’t.”

Ethan laughed behind me.

“Yes, I see.” She put a hand on my chest and there was no doubt she could feel my heart beating frantically. “I definitely have to be fair with my kisses.”

I lowered my head. Kissed her, just a soft brushing of my lips over hers, then lifted my head.

“Okay?” I asked, studying her closely. The tenseness of her muscles, her breathing, the color in her cheeks. Everything.

Her eyes fluttered open. Yeah, she wasn’t unaffected. “Oh yes,” she breathed.

I nudged the corner of her jaw with my nose. “You’re in control.”

“Will you just kiss me already?” she countered.

I grinned then. “Yes, ma’am.”

I kissed her again, this time with less caution and a whole lot more heat. I tucked my fingers into her hair, angled her head just the way I wanted. My tongue flicked over her lower lip and she gasped. I took that opportunity to plunge into her, to taste her fully for the first time.

She whimpered and I felt the vibration of it in my palms.

Ethan moved to stand behind her so she was between us, feeling both of us. His hands slid up and down her sides. When I closed my eyes, I couldn’t see what he was doing, but I knew he was gentle. Cautious.

She didn’t balk, didn’t become scared. No, just the opposite. She melted into me like an ice cream cone in the sun.

It was so good just to kiss. Something simple—although not all that innocent—made me harder than I’d ever been in my life. Knowing she wanted us, that she knew of our need for her, made it even better. There was nothing between us now. Except for our damn clothes.

“More?” I asked, lifting my head, finally. Ethan had slid the neckline of her shirt to the side to expose the line of her neck and part of her shoulder. He was licking and laving that tender skin.

Her eyes were dark and stormy, her lips red and shiny. “More,” she breathed.