Blinded by You Read online

  Damn woman didn’t get it.

  “Time isn’t the issue.”

  Her confused expression hardened. “What did I do?”

  Nothing but make me feel way too possessive. I couldn’t say that. I glanced over her shoulders at the ranch hands. She turned and saw who I was staring at. Her cheeks flushed.

  “You do realize you’re the only female on this ranch other than Jamie, who’s just a little girl? I don’t like the idea of them thinking about you when they’re alone.”

  *** Honey ***

  Realization dawned on me, but he wasn’t finished.

  “These are good men, but they work hard all week without a woman in sight. And you’re a temptation they don’t need.”

  He pointed at me like I was a pile of horse shit he’d stepped in.

  I aimed a finger right back at him. “You’re an ass.”

  As I turned to march away, he caught me by the arm. The withering glare I gave him should’ve been like a kick to the gut. As I slapped his hand away, the peanut gallery made sounds of painful groans that turned into raucous laughter.

  Jake didn’t take the hint. He dragged me toward the house—I assumed so we wouldn’t be seen by our audience.

  Safely hidden, I pulled free from his grasp and he sighed. I said nothing and continued my stare down.

  “Honey.” He sounded weary as he closed his eyes.

  “Sugar,” I snapped.

  When his gaze landed on me, I shouldn’t have been affected by him after he was a jerk. But I couldn’t stop myself from licking my lips, afraid I might have drooled some. He was gorgeous, this big man with a big heart based on how he treated his family, not to mention his … My eyes drifted downward, trailblazing a path to the part of him that had blown my mind on our first meeting.

  I shifted my gaze, embarrassed by my thoughts.

  He moved, caging me in against the house. He leaned forward and captured my mouth like he was a man starved.

  The girly whimper that escaped my lips couldn’t be helped. The man may not be good at words, but his actions spoke volumes.

  7

  Jake

  Her body was soft against mine, her lips sweeter than honey. I hadn’t meant to kiss her. But that sassy way she had about her broke my control. I’d wanted her mouth since she’d walked through my door.

  I’d expected her to slap me or push me away. But her hands dug into the back of my scalp and pulled me closer. My body hardened like hot steel dipped into a bucket of water. I let my hands drop from her hair to explore her curves, landing to cup her ass.

  She was easy to lift and she did me a favor by winding her legs around me. Not here, I thought, and carried her around to the front of the house. I stopped and listened. The house was quiet. I climbed the few stairs and opened the door, barely pausing as Honey consumed me.

  Her room was out. Dad was back that way. Jamie was in her room playing music. She loved to sing. According to her, it was the one time when her words flowed.

  I walked us down the hall and prayed my daughter didn’t come out. I wasn’t ashamed of Honey, but I wasn’t ready to explain the birds and the bees.

  The door to my room opened easily. We plowed in. Honey giggled and I wanted to kick the door closed, but I opted to take my time and lock it before I let her slide slowly to her feet.

  Guileless eyes met mine.

  “We—” I began.

  She placed a finger over my lips, silencing my need to give her an out. Taking control, she lifted on her toes and pressed her mouth to mine again. Heat flared in me like wildfire, and there was no putting out the flames.

  I ran my mouth over her throat and cupped her breasts until desire took over. I grabbed the fabric of the short bra thing she wore and pushed at it. She stepped back and easily whipped it over her head and tossed it to the side.

  Her brow lifted in challenge. I worked at the buttons on my shirt. Then she was there, parting the fabric for me. Her hands slid over my chest to the top of my jeans. I pulled her tight against me and slid my hands over the stretchy material that clung to her ass.

  She worked my fly and pushed my jeans to my knees. We stepped back, never letting our eyes part as we finished ridding ourselves of our clothes.

  There she stood, gloriously naked with a body like the pinup girls in old calendars Dad had in the attic. I wrapped my hand around my cock, trying to tame the beast that had no patience for waiting. It had been far too long.

  “What are you waiting for, soldier?” she asked.

  My dick stood at attention and I stopped pussyfooting around. I claimed my woman, backing her up to my bed. She licked her plump lips so I kissed her sexy grin and tumbled us onto the mattress.

  I left her lips in favor of her breasts, taking my time sucking each bud as my hand worked between her thighs. Her gasps came quicker.

  “I can’t,” she whimpered.

  She rubbed her body against my fingers as I worked them inside her. I could tell she was close and I’d yet to taste her. I moved a foot lower and buried my face in her heat. Her nails scraped over my scalp as I lapped and sucked, tongued and flicked until her back bowed off the bed. Her pussy clamped around my fingers like a vise.

  I had to cover her cries with my free hand. When she went limp, I pulled back, licked my lips, and had the urge to shove my dick deep inside her. I resisted and moved around to the bedside table and took out a foiled package. I tore it with my teeth and sheathed myself before going back to her.

  Her eyes were closed, but they opened when I pressed my mouth to hers, seeking entrance. I stroked the head of my cock over her entrance, once, twice, before I sank inside her. She was tight, her inner walls still vibrating from her orgasm. I groaned, afraid I wouldn’t be able to last, she felt so damn good.

  I tangled my hands in her hair and found a rhythm. I held her gaze as I pumped inside of her. At one point, I pulled back enough to look down between us. Seeing me slide in and out of her only took me to climax faster. I bit off a curse and ran a thumb over her nub. Her eyes closed and she drew me down for a feverish kiss.

  One of her legs hooked around me and the heel of her foot dug into my ass as she urged me on. I hadn’t wanted to hurt her, but power fueled my next strokes. The way she flung her head back, an expression of bliss on her face as her pussy convulsed around me, sent me over the edge.

  Several more strokes, each longer than the last, and I’d spilled every last drop of my seed inside her. Thank God for the condom or she’d be pregnant for sure. Though the thought didn’t exactly scare me. There was something primal about filling her belly with my kid that kept me hard. In fact, I was sure I could go another round.

  I collapsed on top of her for a few seconds before rolling to my side. I was about to coax her to my side when a piercing scream had me on my feet and shrugging into my jeans. I was halfway out the door, pulling my shirt on when I spotted Jamie pointing at a corner in her room.

  “Sp–sp–sp,” she stammered.

  She aimed at a corner where the ceiling met the wall. There, a spider the size of a half dollar hung out. I resisted the urge to say the word for her. The speech therapist we’d seen instructed that doing so wouldn’t be helpful. Jamie clung to my leg and I sighed. The black, eight-legged creature held no telltale signs that it was of the venomous variety.

  With Jamie at my side, I walked over and lifted a hand. It took a few moments but the spider finally crawled into my open palm. Ranch life came with more than a few creepy crawlers and I didn’t want her to be afraid. I crouched and held out my hand.

  “This one isn’t venomous. He’s more afraid of you than you are of him.”

  Jamie hadn’t run, but she wasn’t exactly trying to pick up the spider, either. It tickled my palm as it moved to the back side of my hand. I wasn’t afraid of it, but I didn’t want it crawling up my sleeve. I blocked its path with my other hand.

  “You don’t have to touch it, but you don’t have to be afraid, either.”

  She nod
ded. “Let’s take him outside and set him free.”

  I held the spider in one hand and took Jamie’s with my other. We ran into Dad in the hallway.

  “Who’s that doing all that screaming?”

  If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. Dad had slipped back into the past since he hadn’t asked why Jamie was screaming. He blocked the hallway.

  “Dad,” I said.

  If he didn’t remember me, calling him that would set him off. Although Jamie had been going through this with me, at times I saw the hurt in her eyes when he didn’t remember her.

  Dad blinked. “Jake.”

  I expelled a breath, grateful that hadn’t lasted long.

  “Yeah, Dad. Jamie and I are going to take this spider outside.”

  He didn’t acknowledge her, but after a second gave a stiff nod. I could tell he struggled in that moment to remember, but had presence of mind to realize that he should know who Jamie was.

  I walked by. I would’ve patted him on the shoulder, but both my hands were taken. At that moment I remembered Honey. Though my door was shut. I would apologize for my abrupt departure once I got Jamie, Dad, and the spider taken care of.

  8

  Honey

  Seeing Jake at eye level, soothing his daughter’s fears in his calm voice, made me fall a little harder for him. Good thing I wasn’t in love with him yet or I wouldn’t be able to handle the crushing blow he was bound to give me when he realized his mistake.

  We’d crossed the line again. After dressing, I’d scurried out of his room, quiet as a mouse, only briefly pausing at his daughter’s open door.

  I kept going—something about spiders made me move faster, even if I wasn’t deathly afraid of them. That honor was reserved for snakes. I shivered, catching sight of Ford coming in from the back. I shut my door, afraid he’d see the guilt in my eyes and call me out for sleeping with his son. He wasn’t a man to hold back on what he thought.

  I made a beeline for my bathroom, grateful again it was private and attached to my room. I peeled out of my clothes for the second time that night and stepped in the shower. Now I was alone. The water was warm, but not as hot as Jake. He consumed my every thought. I hadn’t made a wise decision. Sleeping with him again would only make things harder when he put the brakes on a relationship between us. He’d made it clear that first day I’d shown up for the job where the line was drawn. He was the boss and I was his employee.

  Though he’d slipped, my mother had drilled it into my head that men were prone to make such mistakes. According to her, they acted with their dicks and occasionally thought about their actions later.

  My phone rang. I didn’t jump out of the shower to answer. Only a few people had my number—my bestie, my mom, and my grandmother.

  I got out and was disappointed that Jake hadn’t come looking for me. Though I shouldn’t have been surprised. He was probably glad he hadn’t had to give me the this was a mistake, it can’t happen again speech.

  After shrugging into sleepwear, I picked up my phone and dialed back my best friend.

  “Ashley,” I said.

  “Honey, I haven’t heard from you. How did it go? I assume good because you haven’t come back.”

  I’d lived with her the past few months.

  “Good. I like the job.”

  “Oh, great news.” Ashley had a big heart and I knew she was truly happy for me. “I have news too.”

  I didn’t doubt that she was bouncing up and down given the excitement in her voice.

  “What?”

  “Chris is moving in.”

  Chris was Ashley’s longtime boyfriend. They’d been heading in the direction of cohabitation for some time. No doubt my crashing at her place had held things off.

  “Honey,” Ashley said. I’d taken too long to respond. “You can still move back if you need to. It’s not like Chris is going to use the extra bedroom.”

  “That’s sweet of you, but I’m good.”

  “I’m serious,” she added. “With your mom moved out of state and your grandmother in that retirement community, you are always welcome here.”

  “Thanks, Ashley.”

  We talked a bit more. Ashley and Chris were going to get new furniture, not to mention she hoped he would pop the question soon.

  Melancholy settled in as I hung up the phone. I was happy for her, but I was reminded how alone I felt. If not for this job, I would be homeless. No way was I going to be the third wheel in her apartment. I could always go live with Mom.

  That prospect wasn’t appealing. Once I’d graduated from high school, Mom moved with her husband and my six-year-old half-brother to live closer to my stepdad’s ailing parents.

  After Dad died, I’d become the odd man out in my mom’s new family. I was also all my dad’s mom had left. So, I’d moved in with her and went through nursing school. This past year, she’d gotten an offer she couldn’t refuse on her house. She’d wanted to move to the retirement community, and outside of extreme and temporary circumstances, nonretired people weren’t allowed to live there.

  She would’ve been willing to stay in her house for me, but I wasn’t that selfish. I’d temporarily moved in with Ashley, just until I could find a place.

  And now, here I was, on the edge of doing something stupid that could cost me my job because I couldn’t keep my hormones in check.

  Sexy as Jake was, I would forget our night together and stick to my duties. I needed this job more than I needed Jake.

  I awoke to the sound of the ranch hands moving about in the early light. The night before I’d fallen asleep early on top of my covers.

  I didn’t feel tired enough to go back to bed, so I got up to get ready for the day. I was making a southern breakfast of grits, bacon, biscuits and gravy, and eggs when Jake came in.

  “Can I talk to you?” he asked.

  I wanted to say no, but the food was basically ready. Reluctantly, I nodded and followed him to the short hall that led to my room and the back door.

  “About last night …”

  Not unexpectedly, he couldn’t finish his words.

  “It was a mistake that we won’t repeat,” I said for him.

  He ran a rough palm over his thick hair. I remembered shivering as his calloused hands roamed over me. I tightened my thighs, afraid I might spontaneously combust.

  “Yeah, right.”

  Disappointment filled me. Though they had been my words, his rejection by agreeing with me stung.

  I pushed on. “We haven’t really talked about the terms of my employment, but I hope I can have Sundays off.” It was a leap of faith to add that so he wouldn’t consider words like, Maybe it’s best you don’t work here.

  “Sundays off is fine. I do the payroll weekly. I can pay you for the last few days if you want, or we can add it on to next week’s.”

  “I’m good with either,” I said, way too quickly.

  My bank account was operating on fumes and needed a top-up. But I was happy to have a job still.

  “All right.”

  “Breakfast is done. Help yourself. I’m going to get moving, if you have this covered.”

  “I did manage before you arrived.”

  I wanted to believe he hadn’t meant to sound mean. Silly me, once again feeling unwanted. I turned quickly, not wanting him to see the shine of tears in my eyes. It wasn’t his fault. Mom had built that wall in me. The fact that she moved on so quickly after Dad died and replaced me with a new family were the building blocks of my insecurity.

  “Honey.”

  I didn’t want to turn around. He was a temptation off-limits to me. Jacque was a better match for a guy like him. That thought steeled my spine and dried up any unshed tears. I faced him.

  “I … um …” He stumbled on whatever he wanted to say. “Thank you.”

  Confusion couldn’t describe what I felt. What did he mean by that?

  9

  Jake

  Again, I’d messed up. Why had I thanked her? For not quitti
ng? Possibly.

  “Thanks for understanding,” I said, quickly realizing I’d stuck my foot in my mouth yet again as she turned and scrambled into her room.

  Personally, I hated that room. I’d knocked on her door the other night and she’d ignored me. So I didn’t knock today. For what? To explain? That I wasn’t good with words was evident. The beguiling woman had me tongue-tied whenever I was in her presence.

  I walked back into the great room. Dad gave me an arched brow, which I ignored.

  “Finish eating and let’s saddle up.”

  “Where are we going?” Dad asked.

  “For a ride. I want to check on the cattle.”

  I had a bad feeling that wouldn’t settle. And maybe I just needed to get away from Honey and clear my head. I’d never acted this way in front of a woman, not even Tara. I may not have had pretty words, but I wasn’t ever at a total loss for them. I chose what I said carefully. With Honey, I couldn’t seem to string the right words together that didn’t make me come off as an ass.

  After gorging myself on Honey’s delicious breakfast, I saddled Jamie with me. She could ride on her own, but we were going out on a long one. I’d have to watch Dad and couldn’t split my attention watching out for her too. I didn’t want to have to make the choice between the two of them if something went wrong.

  Dad actually looked like his old self on his mount.

  “Ready, boy,” he commanded, Stetson firmly on his head.

  I nodded and let him lead us.

  “You said they’re in the north field.”

  “Yes, sir,” I agreed.

  The sky was clear as we took off and cantered to our destination. Eventually, we stopped at a high point on a low hill overlooking the cattle grazing in the pasture.

  My phone buzzed and I pulled it from where I had it holstered on my hip. I checked the screen and saw it was Jacque. I sent her to voicemail.