Wanted!

“Maybe.” He had to concentrate on his steering because the rutted road wasn’t maintained, but the image of her flushed cheeks made him want to kiss her there … and everywhere else that turned pink when she was aroused. “I have a feeling you’ll be worth it.”

“Do you have a girlfriend?”

“Would you believe me if I said no?” The prospect of holding a naked woman in his arms was wrecking his driving skills. He’d hit a couple of deep ruts he ordinarily would have missed.

“I want to believe you. I’d feel horrible getting involved with someone else’s sweetheart.”

He bet she would after what that a-hole boyfriend had put her through. “Trust me, there’s no one in my life right now. I don’t cheat.”

“I’m not asking because I expect anything to come of this.”

He laughed, which helped release some of his tension. “You should expect something to come of this. Or someone to come of this. That’s why I’m driving back into the trees, so we can have a little privacy. You could get loud.”

“You think so, do you?”

“I’ve known it to happen.” This was the most exciting damn thing that he’d ever done. He was shaking with anticipation. He didn’t even know her name, and he liked it that way. He’d never had stranger sex.

Realistically, he’d probably find out who she was later on today. She was staying in the main house, so they’d be introduced at some point, maybe even at lunch. That could be fun, too, when she learned he was one of the owners. She wouldn’t expect a Chance to be out digging postholes. Jack’s insane work ethic was turning out okay for once.

Nick didn’t kid himself that today would be the start of something big. She’d already told him she was a tourist who’d come to Wyoming to get over her crappy boyfriend back home. Once he’d helped her with that, she’d return to Indianapolis and continue with her life. In the meantime, his long dry spell was about to be over. Hot damn.

He reached the small clearing where he used to bring his dates back in high school, before he’d become sophisticated enough to rent a room. It was a great spot, drenched with hot memories. The sound of the creek was louder here, although it still wasn’t visible.

Birdsong echoed through the trees, and wild roses bloomed, their dark pink petals startling against the lush ferns sprouting beneath the branches. Pine needles crunched under the truck’s tires, enveloping them in a woodsy fragrance. The ground would still be damp after the rain, but all the ranch trucks carried a folded tarp in the back for emergencies. This qualified.

Cutting the engine, he turned to her. “Here we are.”

“It’s beautiful.”

He looked into brown eyes that reminded him of a doe poised for flight. After six years of veterinary work and a lifetime of caring for frightened animals, he guessed that she was rethinking her decision to allow herself this moment.

“You’re beautiful.” He reached for her, cupping the back of her head. Her glossy hair slid between his fingers as he leaned closer.

Her spicy scent was temptingly unfamiliar. He noticed a tiny mole near the corner of her mouth and the tangerine color of her lipstick.

She took a breath. “Don’t you want to know my name?”

He caught a whiff of peppermint. “Does it matter?”

“No.”

“That’s what I thought.” He was about to kiss a nameless woman he’d met twenty minutes ago. What a rush.

DOMINIQUE FIGURED SHE HAD about two seconds to call a halt. Once he kissed her, there would be no stopping. The air in the truck’s cab was thick with lust.

Then her two seconds were up. His mouth found hers, and the storm hit. She’d never kissed a man she didn’t know. If it was always this exciting, she’d have to do it more often.

Although technically he started the action, Dominique quickly became an equal partner, giving as good as she got. His kisses were supple, talented and sexy as hell. With a grateful sigh, she surrendered to his probing tongue and the heady feeling of passion fueled by mystery.

Gasping, he leaned his forehead against hers. “I love your mouth.”

“I love your tongue.”

With a moan, he resumed the assault with ravenous kisses, but they were no more ravenous than hers. He kept his mouth on hers as he began unbuttoning her blouse. She didn’t know how they would manage to have sex in the cab of his truck, but she’d let him worry about that. She reached for the waistband of his jeans.

He drew back, breathing hard. “This is nuts. We need to get out. We also need …” He popped open the glove box in the console and grabbed a small foil packet. “Wait right there. I’ll come around and get you.”

Before she could reply, he’d bolted from the truck. Dear God, she hadn’t even thought about condoms. Not once. Maybe everyone was right, and left to her own devices, she’d head into a ditch.

But she’d lucked out again and found a guy who was more practical than she was. That was a very good thing, because she’d never been this aroused in her life. She was so hot she was panting. Her panties were drenched and her nipples ached. She wanted her clothes gone.

She heard him rummaging around in the back of the truck and then something soft hit the pine needles on her side of the vehicle.

Instead of sitting here stewing in her own juices, she could do something to move things along. In moments she’d pulled off both boots and tossed them on the floor of the cab. She’d finished unbuttoning her blouse when he opened the door.

“I’m ready,” he said.

Judging from the fit of his jeans, he most certainly was. His boots, she noticed, were on the ground next to a tarp. She swallowed. “Me, too.”

His hot gaze moved over her. “Your boyfriend is an idiot.” Tossing the condom packet to the canvas tarp, he circled her waist with his hands and lifted her down.

Her bare feet touched canvas, and then she was lost in the sensation of his palms sliding up her bare back, followed by him unfastening her bra. He undressed her with the practiced ease of a man who knew what he was about, and in seconds she stood before him wearing only her ivory lace panties. A breeze caressed her skin, but his smoldering gaze reheated every inch the breeze touched.

Cupping her breasts, he stroked his thumbs over her taut nipples. “To think I’d considered this a wasted day.”

She clutched the solid warmth of his shoulders and closed her eyes, the better to savor the sensation of those calloused thumbs ramping up the tension.

His breath feathered her lips. “You are so delicious. Thank you for this unexpected gift.” Then he settled in for another toe-curling kiss. She’d always thought “toecurling” was only a quaint expression, but this cowboy literally made her toes lift off the canvas.

Impatient, she reached for his zipper.

“Mmm.” His groan of approval vibrated against her mouth.

She shoved the jeans down over his hips, and as they dropped, he stepped out of them without breaking their kiss. She shivered in anticipation. And gratitude. Fate had sent her a cowboy with all the right moves.

When he hooked his thumbs inside the waistband of her panties and sent them sliding to the ground, she borrowed his strategy and stepped out of them. She’d wondered if she’d have the nerve to carry through, but here she was, naked in the forest with a ruggedly handsome man. And that man was kissing her in some very interesting places. Dominique Jeffries was back, baby!

Ah, she’d forgotten how much she loved foreplay. This cowboy seemed to love it, too. He moved slowly from her mouth to the sensitive spot behind her ear before making his way along the curve of her neck and across her shoulder. After kissing his way down the inside of her arm all the way to her wrist, he repeated the process on the other side.

Her collarbone got its share of attention, and the indentation at the base of her throat. By the time his moist caress reached the swell of her breast, she was a ball of fiery need, flushed and craving … everything.

And he gave it. After paying homage to her breasts, he moved slowly to her navel. When he circled it with his tongue, she felt an orgasmic tug that made her tremble.

On his knees now, he caressed her thighs. With his warm breath on her curls, he wrapped a supporting arm around her hips as he slid his other hand up, seeking. Finding.

She gasped as he pushed two fingers deep inside at the same moment his tongue made contact with her flash point. One stroke, one flick of his tongue, and she erupted. Crying out, she clutched his head, both to keep her balance and to hold him there … right there.

Then she lost her battle with gravity as he urged her down to the tarp. Vaguely she was aware of the rough canvas against her back and the cushion of pine needles underneath that perfumed the air she dragged into her lungs in great gulps. Somewhere nearby a creek splashed over smooth stones. But her main focus was this man, divesting himself of his last bit of clothing.

Dazed as she was by her recent climax, she still possessed enough brain cells to appreciate the wonder of her cowboy’s package. If this was an example of Wyoming manhood, the state had much to be proud of.

As he moved over her and braced a hand on either side of her shoulders, he smiled. Then with one smooth thrust, he shoved home. “Welcome to Wyoming.”

“My goodness.” She reveled in the sensation of being filled to the brim, almost to overflowing.

“You okay?” he asked softly.

Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. “More than okay.”

“That’s what I like to hear.”

She gazed up at him, anticipation sending tremors through her. If this connection felt so amazing, what would happen when he began to move? Every nerve ending in her body was on alert, waiting.

He drew slowly back, and the sweet friction intensified the climactic hum building inside her. Forward again, and she started losing her mind. Three strokes later she came, filling the clearing with her hoarse scream of joy.

But still he didn’t stop. Instead he increased the rhythm and shifted his angle. “Again,” he murmured. “Once more.”

She was nothing if not obliging. That new angle was finding all sorts of places where she hadn’t known she had places. And she was dripping with sweat, glorious sweat.

“Good?” He was breathing heavily, but seemed in complete control.

“Oh, yes.” She, on the other hand, had absolutely no control. He was driving this bus and she was merely a very ecstatic passenger.

As she tumbled into her third orgasm, he groaned and moved in tight. The steady pulse of his climax kept time with the waves of completion rolling through her. It was, without a doubt, the best sex of her life.

Sated and relaxed, she wondered dreamily if she should catch the first plane out of Jackson. This experience had surpassed her wildest hopes and dreams. Her vacation could only go downhill from here.

3

NICK HAD EXPECTED GOOD. Good would have done nicely to bind up her psychological wounds and scratch his temporary itch. Good would have made her fairly easy to forget when she left Wyoming. But just his luck, she’d turned out to be great.

Worse yet, he’d told her so as they laughingly searched for their clothes, both of them staggering a little from the effects of incredible sex.

“You were great, too.” She smiled as she reached behind her back to fasten her bra.

He’d always adored watching a woman do that, and this woman was especially graceful at it. He had the urge to unhook her bra so she’d have to refasten it. But if he unhooked it, he’d want to touch her, and that would lead to more of what they’d recently shared. He wasn’t sure where she stood on that issue.

“I can’t tell you how this has improved my outlook,” she said.

That statement had a ring of finality, of completion, as if one session had fixed her right up and she had no inclination for another round. Bummer. “How long are you here for?” he heard himself ask while pulling on his boots.

Damn, he’d probably tipped his hand with that dumb question. And an unnecessary question at that. He could find out when he returned to the house. Ordinarily his mom welcomed the Bunk and Grub overflow guests, but she was staying in town while Grandma Judy recovered from a hip replacement. Jack must have handled getting this woman settled, and would have all the details.

“Five nights,” she said. “It was all the time I could spare from work.”

“Which is?” He shouldn’t have asked that, either. He was behaving like some lovesick fool desperate for information about the object of his affections. That was so wrong. They’d had terrific sex. Period. Sex wasn’t everything. But.he’d never had any better than this.

She buttoned her blouse. “I guess there’s no harm in saying. I own a photography studio. And before you get all impressed, let me assure you it’s strictly a meat-and-potatoes operation. I specialize in family portraits, graduation photos and weddings. The basics.”

“Nothing wrong with that.” But unless he was reading her wrong, she thought there was something wrong with that. Her description of her studio invited him to dismiss it as pedestrian. “My mom treasures her wedding pictures,” he said. “Especially since my dad passed last fall.”

His mystery woman had leaned against the truck’s front fender so she could pull on her boots. She paused in midmotion. “I’m so sorry. Was it sudden?”

“Yeah.” And he wished to hell he hadn’t brought up the subject. Way to put a damper on the proceedings. “Rollover.”

“How tragic. How long were they married?”

“Almost thirty years. They got married after I was born. I guess it makes sense, considering the times. All that free love and flower power. But then my mom got pregnant again, and that must have tipped the scales toward matrimony.” Sheesh. Maybe next he’d trot out the history of the Last Chance Ranch and regale her with that. He needed to shut up and take her back to. the road? Or the ranch house? Dilemma. He hadn’t thought past the sex, but he’d better start thinking tout de suite.

A gentleman would take her back to the ranch house. He liked to think of himself as a gentleman, despite having just had sex with a woman out in the woods, a woman whose name he didn’t know. But that had been gentlemanly, hadn’t it? She’d needed something from him, and judging from her response, he’d provided it.

Turns out it was also what he’d needed, and would probably need again soon. That was the thing about good sex. It reminded you that sex was a lot of fun and should be enjoyed more often.

In fact, maybe there was a second condom … no, that was pushing it. This area was secluded, but not so secluded that someone might not show up. Like Jack, for instance, checking on his posthole digging. That thought prompted Nick to grab the tarp, fold it quickly and toss it in the back of the truck.

“You look worried all of a sudden.” She fingercombed her short hair, which was still damp with sweat. “If it has to do with me tattling on you, then relax. That would be extremely ungrateful of me, to spill the beans and possibly get you fired.”

“I appreciate that.” He glanced down so she wouldn’t see his smile. No matter what his transgressions, Jack was stuck with him. Although Jonathan Chance Sr. had specified in his will that Jonathan Chance Jr., aka Jack, was in charge, their dad had also dictated that his other two sons have jobs for as long as the Last Chance continued in operation.

Besides, Jack needed him. Nick was a damned good vet, and the horses bred at the Last Chance were valuable and required a vet on the premises. The Last Chance herd didn’t take up all of Nick’s time, so he had other clients in the Jackson Hole area, but his primary duty was to the LC horses. Even without the terms of the will to guide Jack’s decisions, he wouldn’t trust those animals to anyone else.

That wasn’t to say Jack would let this little incident go if he found out. There was a time when he would have laughed about it, but he seemed to have misplaced his sense of humor. Nick would love to fix that problem, too, but so far all his attempts to get Jack to lighten up had failed. If his brother found out what had happened here, it could get awkward.

As if all this thinking about Jack had pulled him in Nick’s direction, he heard the sound of hoofbeats. A few seconds later, Jack rode into the clearing on Bandit, a handsome black-and-white paint who’d been named for the masklike markings around his eyes. The ranch’s topearning stud, Bandit looked as if he could have belonged to a Shoshone chief.

Jack had some Native American in him on his mother’s side, which explained his dark hair and eyes. Today he wore his don’t-mess-with-me black Stetson, although it was covered with dust, as were Jack’s jeans, his leather chaps and his long-sleeved shirt. He’d probably just finished a training session with one of the horses and was looking for something else to wrangle. His gaze swept over the scene, and his jaw tightened.

Nick did his best not to look guilty as hell. “Hey, there, Jack. What brings you out here?”

“Curiosity.” His tone was even but his eyes narrowed as he focused on Nick. “I figured you’d be done with the postholes by lunchtime and it’s nearly noon.” Turning in the saddle, he touched two fingers to the brim of his hat. “Nice to see you again, Miss Jeffries.”

Just like that, some of the mystery disappeared. Nick knew the last name of his previously anonymous lover. Soon enough he’d learn her first name, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. What if it didn’t fit his image? A woman who had stood naked and eager in the middle of a pine-scented clearing with the sun dappling her smooth skin deserved a really great first name.

He noted that Jack was behaving with polite formality by using her last name. No doubt Miss Manners would approve. Nick wondered what Miss Manners would say about using no name at all, particularly during the activity Nick and Miss Jeffries had engaged in. Nick didn’t think there was a rule of etiquette to cover that situation.

The woman now partially identified beamed at Jack. “Nice to see you again, Mr. Chance. You’ll have to blame me for the postholes not getting finished this morning. I was looking for Wyoming wildlife and your ranch hand was kind enough to escort me into the woods, where I’d have a better chance of finding it.”

Nick almost choked as he swallowed a laugh. Damned if she hadn’t told the truth. He was really starting to like this woman.

“I see.” Jack folded his hands over the saddle horn and studied the scene. “In my experience, wildlife tends to come out at dawn and dusk.”

Nick shrugged. “Usually, but it was worth a shot to accommodate a ranch guest.”

“And it’s a lovely spot,” added Miss Jeffries.

“Yes ma’am, it is.” Jack gave Nick another dirty look. When Nick and Gabe were in high school, they’d each claimed a make-out spot on the ranch. Jack had been their accomplice back then, supplying condoms from his personal stash and handing out sexual advice from his lofty, nonvirginal perch.

Nick wished the old Jack had shown up in the clearing instead of this new version. The old Jack would have smiled knowingly and headed back to the ranch house.

The new Jack glared at Nick with obvious disapproval. “I’d like those postholes dug today. The posts and wire should arrive this afternoon.”

Nick met his gaze. “It’ll get done.”

“I surely do hope so. We’ve needed a fence out here for a long time.”

Nick was willing to argue the point, but not at the moment.

Jack glanced up through the trees at the sun. The guy never wore a watch, never needed to. “It’s late. Mary Lou’s probably dishing up. You two better head back or you’ll miss lunch.”

“We’ll do that.”

“See you there.” Jack touched the brim of his hat again. “Ma’am.” Then he wheeled his horse around and cantered down the narrow road.

Nick wished she wasn’t standing there watching Jack go with such apparent fascination. Jack might be bossy and abrupt these days, but women were still drawn to him. They always had been. For all Nick knew, Miss Jeffries might wish she’d thrown her loop at Jack Chance instead of some nameless cowboy wielding a posthole digger.

She turned to Nick. “What do you call that color horse?”

“Bandit’s a paint. That’s what we breed on this ranch.” So maybe she’d been admiring the horse instead of the man.

“Show horses?”

“Can be. But we train and sell them as cutting horses, which means they—”

“I know what that is. I saw City Slickers.” She ruffled her hair with her fingers again. “I think Mr. Chance had a pretty good idea what we’ve been up to.”

“Probably.”

“The way you talked back to him, I’m amazed you still have a job. Or maybe he didn’t want to fire you in front of me. I’m perfectly willing to cover for you, but an employee needs to watch his attitude.”

“Guess so.”

“Yours was kind of belligerent, if you don’t mind my saying.”

Nick decided the game was over. “He can’t fire me. I’m his brother.”

Her eyes widened. “You’re one of the Chance boys?”

“‘Fraid I am.”

“But.you were out here slaving away as if…”

“I know. It’s a problem these days. Apparently Jack grieves by working around the clock, which is fine, except he insists the rest of us do the same. I’d rather not have a showdown with him, which wouldn’t help morale, either.”

She groaned. “And I’ve only made things worse between you during a tough time for your family. I’m so sorry.”

“Hey.” He rested his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. “I’m a big boy and I make my own decisions. I don’t for a second regret what we just shared. In fact, I was thinking that since you’ll be here for five nights, we might—”

“Oh, no.” She stepped back, out of range of his touch.

“What do you mean, no ? Didn’t you enjoy yourself? Scratch that. I know for a fact you enjoyed yourself. You couldn’t fake that kind of reaction.”

“But I thought you were one of the hired hands. Sure, I knew I might see you again while I’m here, but we’d pretend nothing happened so you wouldn’t get fired for dallying with a guest.”

He was picking up the drift of her comments, and he didn’t like the implication. “So you bagged your cowboy, and now you’re done?”

Her brow furrowed. “I told you I didn’t expect anything to come of this.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean it has to end with one brief moment in the woods! Hell, we’ll be sleeping under the same roof!”

“Even more reason not to take this any further, especially with your brother monitoring everything that happens on the ranch. I don’t want to be the cause of more friction between you two.”

“Why don’t you let me worry about that?” Nick was wondering if he could manufacture a necessary business trip for his dear brother, who was becoming an obstacle to all things happy.

“Let’s just leave it alone. What we had today was perfect. I don’t want to spoil it by turning it into some … some complicated maneuver.”

Nick blew out a breath. “It doesn’t have to be complicated. It could be very simple. I become your date for the time you’re here and I inform my overbearing brother that it’s none of his business what goes on between us.”

“I don’t think—”

“Look, I understand that you’ll return to your life in Indianapolis in five days, and I’m cool with that.”

“I’m not so sure I’d be. I don’t trust myself not to get in over my head. I can’t take that risk.”

Nick gazed at her. “But you were willing to have outdoor sex with an anonymous cowboy.”

“Yes. But now I intend to rein myself in.”

“That’s too bad. Plus, what else are you going to do while you’re here? The skiing is lousy in June and I’m way more fun than a horseback ride or an all-day hike.”

Her lips twitched, as if she wanted to smile but wouldn’t quite let herself.

“Think about it, Miss Jeffries. In the meantime, let’s hightail it to the ranch house before all the food’s gone. I don’t know about you, but I’ve worked up an appetite.”