Page 19 of At the Rancher's Pleasure

“You feel amazing.” Sarabeth just managed to form the words before he hit a spot deep inside her and a wave of intense pleasure, crashed over her.

She chanted his name, lifting his hips to get closer, wanting more, needing to ride that bright light again.

“Yeah, baby, again...”

She felt the wave build, swell and then she was flying. Short moments later, from a place far, far away, she heard Brett’s satisfied shout. Yep, a multiple orgasm was exactly what she’d wanted, and this one was bigger and brighter than the few she’d had before.

Nice.

Nice, as in too freaking fantastic for words.

Brett fought off another yawn and felt his eyes closing. If he intended to sleep in his own bed tonight, he needed to get going. But it was exceptionally hard to pull his hand off Sarabeth’s truly excellent butt, to stop dropping kisses into her hair.

After a second round christening the rug next to her couch, they’d stumbled upstairs to her loft bedroom to clean up in her en suite shower, and that had turned into a heavy petting session. When they finally made it to her bed, they picked up where they left off in the shower...

He was fit and had stamina but, hot damn, he was exhausted. She’d worn him out. Brett really wanted to close his eyes and drift off, but there was the broken bottle on her porch and they still had to have a chat...

They needed to have a conversation so that they could reach a solid understanding...

Sarabeth lifted her head off his chest, and he turned his head to look into her deep, blue eyes. She was, in every way, truly beautiful and he felt honored to have explored her body, to be the one to make her squirm and scream with pleasure. But pleasure was all he could give her...

“Can we have a quick word?” Sarabeth asked.

Brett frowned as she rolled away, not giving him time to answer. She reached for a silk bathrobe and pulled it over her slender body, efficiently tying the belt into a floppy bow. The color was a brilliant blue, close to the shade of her eyes, and he felt himself twitch, once again interested in sliding it off her body...

Three times, dude. You’re good but not Superman!

Brett watched as Sarabeth fiddled with her hair, raking her fingers through the thick, shiny strands to create some order. He thought about telling her not to bother, that he’d just muss it up again before reminding himself that he was on his way home. As much as he wanted her underneath him again, he was battling to keep his eyes open. And sleeping over wasn’t an option as it tended to give women the wrong idea.

Sarabeth gestured to the bed. “This was fun.”

Fun?What a weak word for what they’d done to, andforeach other. Hot, explosive, set-the-sheets-on-fire were far better descriptors for the sexual heat they’d generated.

“I’d like to do it again but—”

Here it came, the I-need-more-and-I’m-not-the-type-who-does-this-without-a-commitment spiel. He’d heard it all before. Brett swallowed his sigh of irritation. It was just sex—the best sex of his life—why did women always have to complicate a good thing?

While he waited for Sarabeth to continue, Brett constructed a few responses of his own...“I’ve just broken up with my fiancée,” “I’m not ready for a relationship”and“I’m a long way off committing to anybody and I might never again.”

He’d be as kind as he could be, but he’d make his position clear. He refused to give her false hope.

“I hope you’re not offended, but that was great sex and I’d like a repeat performance but—”

Anotherbut. Brett lifted one eyebrow, waiting for the shoe to drop.

“But I’m not looking for a relationship.” Sarabeth rushed the words out, so fast he wasn’t sure if he’d heard her correctly. Maybe he’d imagined her “not.”

“I’m terribly independent and I like being on my own,” she continued. “I’ve been on my own for a long, long time and I don’t see myself being in a relationship. It’s too confining, too restricting, so if you’re looking for that—and you shouldn’t be, you know—then maybe you should look somewhere else.”

She didn’t want a relationship? Why the hell not? And, excuse me, he wasn’t the type of guy who restricted, controlled, or crowded his partners. Relationships were a partnership, not a dictatorship.

Brett opened his mouth to argue and then remembered that she was giving him what he wanted, on a silver platter. So why was he feeling irritated instead of jubilant, annoyed rather than relieved?

Honestly, he was losing his shit...

Sarabeth pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and released it with a little plop. “And, if you don’t mind, I’d prefer it if you didn’t stay over.”

Ah, and because he was a stubborn, contrary man, that was exactly what he now most wanted to do. Snuggled down under her down duvet and crisp sheets, his head supported by this truly exceptional pillow, he felt warm and comfortable. And he didn’t...

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