Isabella
The night Ijust spent with Tucker was a… revelation. I’ve never considered myself an overly physical person. I hug my friends, I love animals. I like kissing and even to some extent, P.D.A.
But sex.
Sex has never made much of an impression on me. Good, yes. Like a sneeze, or a nice dessert. Sometimes it felt more like a three-mile run. So, yeah. I’ve had some good sex– satisfying, I suppose. I’ve had some sex that felt more like a chore. I’ve experienced some really pleasant orgasms induced by something battery operated.
The thing is.
With Tucker. Sex brings me to life. It’s difficult to reduce sex with Tucker to just one word. It’s more like… spectacular, fucking, soul-shattering, mind-altering lovemaking…
Yeah. That.
So, when I wake up my first morning at Bear Creek Ranch, although I have a few bruises on my thighs, I also have this huge smile on my face.
Tucker’s already out of bed, dressing. I glance at my phone on the bedside table and grimace. “It’s not even six, babe.”
There isn’t much light in the room. Just a hint of sunlight. But I can still make out the slow sexy grin sliding across Tucker’s mouth.
In nothing but a pair of unbuttoned, low-slung jeans, he comes back to the bed and hovers over me. Watching his mouth, just inches from mine, reminds me of all the lurid exploring he did with it last night. I cannot have his mouth so close to mine without it touching me.
I wrap one hand around his neck and tug.
Hot, firm, smooth. His tongue dances with mine, licking, tasting, and teasing.
“Come back to bed,” I murmur, not sure if I’m begging or demanding.
“I gotta check the herd. It’s finally stopped raining, but I need to make sure none of them slipped through before we got all the fences back up.” All kind of regret in his words. It’s only partially comforting.
I pout against his lips, and he climbs into bed beside me.
“Can I come with you?” This is a cop out on my part. I know it is. I’m just wanting to avoid the James clan for one more day.
He growls. “Soon, sugar. We need to get you outfitted first.”
I probably could have worn something of Jessamine’s, but I’m not sure how she’d respond to such a request at this point…
“Don’t you have some wedding planning to do? Maybe you and my mom can figure out some of the details?” His face turns all sheepish when he asks me this. Like he knows this isn’t going to be easy for me.
But he has a point. Maybe she’ll warm up to me a little if we can work on something together.
“And Cassidy?” I venture into this hornet’s nest without thinking. “What are we gonna do about her?”
Tucker pushes up from the bed and I can tell he’s annoyed by my question.
Apparently, we failed to really address this last night.
He…distracted me.
His jaw ticks a few times before he speaks. “Isa. It’s just that… I can’t exactly kick her off the ranch. She’s Jessamine’s best friend, and she’s done so much for the boys over the past few months. I’m sure, whatever you think you’re seeing as far as her and me… Isa, there simply isn’t anything there.” He’s walking away from me. Jamming his arms into a long sleeve shirt and tucking the tails into his pants. “A crush maybe.”
He buttons them up without looking at me.
“Babe.” I’m more awake now. I hate that he’s dismissed my concern so easily. “I’ll try to be open minded. And I realize this isn’t easy for anybody…but will you at least consider the possibility that I’m right?” God, I hate this. I hate how jealous I sound.
It’s just that I can’t fight another woman when it comes to trying to build a family. I need to be at home. I want this to be my home. I know these things take time, but I need a little help here.
Tucker looks out the window and then glances over his shoulder at me. A golden strip of sunlight slips between the drapes and bathes his face in the warm morning light. No man should be this good looking. It’s not fair.
