Page 22 of Falling For Her Cowboy
“Here we are.” He slipped out of the truck and walked around the front of the vehicle.
Melah tracked him with her eyes. The confident way he handled himself had her squeezing her legs together. The man was the epitome of sexiness. He arrived at her door and opened it, then held his hand out for her.
The man was a complete gentleman. Pierce hadstopped opening the door or assisting her in his car about six months into their relationship. After they’d broken up, she’d thought of all the red flags in their relationship. There were so many she’d ignored because she’d tried to give him the benefit of the doubt.
“Thank you.” She slid her small hand into his larger one and allowed him to help her down. She tilted forward and lost her balance slightly. Her body fell into his. “Oops. I’m so sorry.”
Her body was flush against his as he helped lower her to where her feet rested on the ground. His hand remained on her hip, and he hadn’t stepped back from her. She tilted her head back to meet his gaze. The moon was high, set against the perfect nighttime backdrop with a few stars scattered across it. The sounds of the night greeted them. The occasional cow lowed, but otherwise nature’s orchestra was in full swing off in the distance.
“I got you.” His voice rumbled in his chest.
She inhaled sharply. The scent of his cologne had been teasing her all night. She didn’t know what it was, but she wanted to nuzzle her face into the crook of his neck and breathe it in.
“You all right?”
“Yeah. I think my foot got caught on something,” she whispered. She couldn’t look away from his bright-blue eyes. Her hand came to rest on his chest above his heart. The gentle beat thudded against her palm. Melah’s moved it up his hardened chest. She didn’t know what was coming over her, but she wasn’t going to stop now.
She cupped his cheeks. He didn’t shy away from her. She studied his face as if to memorize every inch of it. He leaned into her touch. She stood on her tiptoes while he stared down. She guided his face to hers. She touched her lips to his in a soft kiss. She groaned the moment her mouth opened for him. She may have initiated the kiss, but Ridge took over. He gripped her to him, holding her firmly while the kiss deepened.
Melah held on to him as if her life depended on it. She hadn’t been kissed like this in so long. Ridge’s tongue boldly thrust forward and swept inside her mouth. She closed her eyes and relished the moment of being in his arms. The warmth of his body, the hard planes, and the bulge pressing into her stomach had her whimpering.
He moved them to where her back was flush to his truck. She didn’t care at the moment.This had her feeling desired, wanted, and needed. She was tempted to rip her clothes off and climb this man so he could take her. Her heart slammed against her chest as a groan was ripped from him.
Ridge tore his mouth from hers. The only sounds that greeted her was their panting. The kiss had affected both of them. Ridge rested his forehead on hers.
“Melah. I’m?—”
“Don’t apologize. Please don’t.” She opened her eyes and met his gaze. She was the instigator of the kiss. She had been wanting it from the moment she’d met him and she refused to have it ruined because of an apology. He hadn’t done anything wrong. “I wanted to kiss you. I’ve been thinking about it for a while now.”
His eyes darkened, and he brushed his thumb along her bottom lip. Her mouth still tingled from their kiss. Her body ached in places that hadn’t been awakened by a man in a long while.
“I’ve been wanting to kiss you, too.” His voice was low and sent a wave of desire through her.
“Is that so?” Her heart skipped a beat. When one accused their superior of sexual assault, everything private was brought to light in a trial. She’d had all of the intimate details of her life brought to theforefront. Even though she was not the one on trial, everything about her had been put on display. Her sexual encounters to her job performance.
As if she had welcomed the assault.
Afterwards, she had gone into a dark place. Terri, Issac, and Cora had stood by her side through it all. It was because of them that she was able to even smile. They refused to allow her to fall into a dark depression that she may not recover from. They’d ensured she’d enrolled in therapy. They’d taken care of her and ensured she’d got dressed daily.
Those were her real friends, and she missed them fiercely.
Now, here with Ridge, and his one look had her feeling like a woman. Someone who was desirable. Someone he wanted. The heat in his eyes stole her breath. She hadn’t even thought of being with a man until she’d met him.
“Well, if you want to do it again, you can,” she whispered playfully.
His lips curled up in the corners with a smirk.
“Is that so?” He lowered his head again, and this time, he pressed a soft kiss to her lips. He lifted his head and stared down into her eyes.
Melah would swear he could see into her soul.
This man was dangerous.
She wasn’t here for relationships. She was here as part of a plan to find herself and to figure out what the hell she was going to do in life.
She’d be gone in about six months.
Finding a man hadn’t even crossed her mind.
