Before I can answer, he reaches for me and guides me onto his lap. I happily go, and I straddle his hips. He grabs my hand and brings it to his lips, kissing my wrist. Goosebumps spread across every inch of me. My skirt rides up even higher, and his thumbs guide it up further until he can see my black panties.
“Don’t you dare rip these. They were expensive.”
He doesn’t respond. His hands are rough as he grabs my chin, fingers digging into my skin as he pulls me down to him like he’s claiming me, marking me, and I fucking love it. There’s no hesitation—his mouth is on mine. His tongue slides against my lips, and I open for him because I’m just as desperate, already moaning into his mouth like I’ve been starving for this. His tongue is hot, wet, and fucking relentless, tangling with mine in a way that makes my pussy throb. I can feel him everywhere—his hard chest, his cock heavyand straining against his jeans, nudging me like it’s begging for attention.
It’s instant every damn time—the heat between us, the ache, the way my body answers to his like it doesn’t even belong to me anymore.
“Tristan,” I whisper, my fingers curling into the muscle of his shoulders.
His voice rumbles low, right against my skin. “You know what hearin’ you say my name does to me.”
I shift, leaning down until my head finds his chest, his heartbeat pounding steady and rough against my ear. He lets me settle there, his arms tightening around me without a word. I don't know if now’s the right time to bring this up… but I do it anyway.
“I need to know something.”
His jaw brushes the top of my head. “What do you wanna know, darlin’?”
“Why’d you kiss me that day? At the blind auction.”
For a moment he doesn't say anything, like he’s weighing whether or not to tell the truth. Then his hand slides up the back of my neck, his thumb tipping my chin so I can’t look anywhere but at him.
“Because I couldn’t fight it anymore. I’d been wantin’ to kiss you so bad it damn near killed me. I almost kissed you in that barn during that first storm—took everything I had not to, but I was trying to play nice for Knox. And once I had the chance without anyone knowin’?” His lips ghost mine, his voice rougher, lower. “I had to take it. Any time I’m not kissin’ you, Sawyer… I’m wantin’ to.”
I shake my head, my voice barely above a whisper. “You say all the right things… make me feel like I’m the only woman in the world. How can you be this man one minute and the next be ready to put someone in the ground?”
His eyes darken, steady on mine. “Out here it ain’t about bein’ gentle or cruel… It's about survival. When you’ve got land, and a name worth somethin’, there’s always somebody waitin’ to take it from you. A ranch like ours? It puts a target on our back every damn day.” He leans in closer, his voice rough and honest. “There ain’t no right or wrong out here. You protect what’s yours, however you gotta. That’s the only way you keep it.”
I stare at him, my chest tight, my mind spinning. He can be so dangerous, and yet here he is, holding me like I’m something important he has to protect.
“Tristan…” My voice cracks, softer than I want it to.
His thumb brushes my cheek, rough and careful all at once. “Don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?” I breathe.
“Like you see more in me than you should.”
“I do. Now how about I show you exactly how much today meant to me?”
I lean in first, but he meets me halfway, his mouth crashing onto mine. My hands fist in his shirt, pulling him closer.
His thighs are solid under mine, his cock hard against my thigh through his jeans. The way he’s looking at me—like he wants to devour me whole, like he’s memorizing the way my lips part just for him—sends a slick pulse of want straight between my legs.
“Show me, baby.” he says, fingers tightening on my hips.
I don’t answer with words. Instead, I drag my nails down his chest, slow and possessive, watching the way his abs tense under my touch. His shirt rides up, revealing that perfect V of muscle leading down to where I desperately want to be. I lean in, pressing my mouth to the hot skin just above his waistband, tasting him. His breath hitches, fingerstangling in my hair—not pulling, not yet, but threatening to.
I undo his jeans slowly, popping the button, dragging the zipper down inch by torturous inch. His cock springs free, thick and flushed, already leaking at the tip. I lick my lips, watching the way his jaw clenches, the way his throat works as he swallows hard.
"The moment I saw those pretty red lips of yours tonight, I thought about this," he says.
I grin devilishly and wrap my fingers around him, stroking once, twice, just to feel him throb in my grip. His hips jerk, but he holds himself back, letting me take what I want. I lean in, dragging my tongue up the underside of his shaft, savoring the way his breath turns ragged.
"Yes, baby?—"
I take him into my mouth as I sink down, my tongue swirling around the head before I swallow him deeper. His fingers tighten in my hair, finally giving in to the urge to push, to guide me down until I choke. I gag just a little, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes, but I don’t pull away. I breathe through it, letting him feel the way my throat flutters around him.
"God—fuck,” his voice is wrecked, his hips twitching like he’s fighting not to thrust.
