Once Burned Read online

  He told her to wait in the truck a moment while he hauled her two suitcases up to the deck and opened the front door. When he returned to open her door of the truck, she understood why. Ever the gentleman, aren’t you, Mr. Hammond?

  Her heart hummed with anticipation as she slipped her and into his and slid out of her seat.

  Lindsay had been in his house before but only briefly, and while she had appreciated the simple, open layout, she hadn’t paid as much attention to the details as she did now. It was a distinctly masculine space, and she couldn’t discern anywhere that Mel might’ve had an influence. Artifacts of ranch life—an old wagon wheel, horseshoes, weathered barn wood, and various other odds and ends likely dating back to the Lazy H Ranch’s beginnings—were scattered through out the house not with a decorator’s artful hand but by a collector’s loving eye. Hunter green and rich, dark blue accents added splashes of cooler color to the earthy tones of the artifacts and golden tones of the walls paneled with tongue-and-grove slats of knotty pine. The furniture—a plush, stone-colored microfiber couch, log coffee and end tables, and a log dining room set—was all newer. If she had to guess, she’d say the log pieces were all locally handcrafted, and if Henry hadn’t built them himself, he knew their crafter personally.

  No television, she noted. She liked that. With all there was to see and do here, who needed TV? A tall, narrow bookshelf stood in the back corner and was filled with worn paperbacks and a few hardcover novels, painting an interesting picture of Henry wiling away cold winter nights with a good book. Nothing sexier than a man who likes to read, she mused.

  The woodstove in the front corner of the living room was cold and dark, and it was too warm to light a fire, but Lindsay smiled as she imagined curling up on the couch with Henry to watch merry flames dance behind the glass. It was a Rocky Mountain fantasy for sure.

  Inevitably, she was drawn to the small but well-appointed kitchen. Like the furniture, the appliances were all newer, brushed stainless steel, and the counter tops were solid granite. Granite! More golden pine added some warmth to the otherwise utilitarian coldness of the granite and steel. Despite the limited room, it was efficiently laid out with a snack bar separating it from the living room and adding more counter space. Oh, the meals she could cook in here. It put her tiny kitchen back home to shame.

  “Considering your previously mentioned enjoyment of cooking, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that it’s the kitchen that has stolen your attention,” Henry remarked. “Now that I think about it, I’m kicking myself for thinking I had to treat you since it was your vacation because I imagine you’re one hell of a cook.”

  “I can make a decent meal without burning anything,” she replied coyly.

  She spotted a tri-folded letter and envelope resting on the snack bar and nosily stepped over to see what it was. In a tidy house with no other papers visible, it seemed to her that this one must be important enough to warrant being out in plain sight. Upon closer inspection, she decided it was in fact something official.

  “The results of the paternity test,” Henry said quietly, joining her. He picked up the letter and handed it to her. “Mom was up here the other day and wanted to see it, and I haven’t gotten around to putting it away again.”

  “You kept it?” Lindsay asked after reading the confirmation that Dylan wasn’t Henry’s son. “Why?”

  “I wanted to keep it in case I get to thinking I should go back.”

  “You think you would?”

  “Not to Mel… but I still love Dylan. His paternity doesn’t change that. Should it?”

  “I don’t know, Henry. I can’t even imagine what that feels like.” Setting the results on the counter, she loosely folded her arms around his neck and combed her fingers through the soft hair at the back of his head. There was a startling unguarded vulnerability in his gaze, and she realized he wasn’t questioning her reaction as if she were wrong. He was asking her honest opinion, so she gave it. “No, it shouldn’t change how you feel about him. Kids can use all the love they can get because they’ll find out soon enough how cruel the world can be.”

  He pulled her close, touched his forehead to hers with his eyes closed, and let out a sigh. “It’s been a lot harder to break those habits than I thought it would be. It’s been almost a month, but sometimes I still wake up expecting to hear him crying. And there’s only silence.”

  She said nothing but hugged him tightly for a long while, and he relaxed quickly, almost as if he’d consciously closed the door on his pain. She leaned back in his arms to find him watching her with that sexy lopsided grin.

  “It’s been a lot easier this last week, though,” he said.

  “Oh? And why do you supposed that is?”

  “Well, you see, I’ve had this smart, beautiful, and marvelously independent redhead distracting me.”

  Lindsay smiled playfully. “Tell me more about this woman. She sounds pretty incredible.”

  “She is. She’s a selfless and devoted mother who’s given up a lot to make sure her son has everything he needs, she’s funny and fun to be around and loves football with a passion that makes her light up like the sun, and she’s shown me time and again that good women do still exist and that someday, if I’m lucky, I might find one to call my own… not just for a week-long game of make believe but for the rest of my life.”

  Her heart fluttered. Was this part of the game or did he really mean that last part? She didn’t doubt the rest, but could he be thinking they might have a future beyond this week? She doused the hope that flared. She wasn’t going to wonder or worry about any of that tonight because tonight was for enjoying the moment, so she drew herself up to kiss him. Their kisses to this point had been somewhat restrained or playful, but she let loose now, pressing her body to his and demanding more and more as he responded in kind.

  “I guess we’re done talking,” Henry whispered hoarsely. “Hold on for a minute, though. I left the damned condoms out in the truck.”

  He disappeared out into the night, and Lindsay briefly contemplated stripping out of her yellow and navy MSU Gold Rush T-shirt and jeans and greeting him when he came back wearing only her bra and panties but decided against it. She didn’t want to take away the fun and pleasure of him undressing her. She wanted every moment and every pleasure tonight because the memory of it was going to have to last her a long time.

  When he walked back through the door, closed it behind himself, and looked up to see her leaning against the snack bar, he laughed.

  “Now, that’s a look of pure mischief if I’ve ever seen one.”

  “Mmm. I imagine so because I was just pondering how quickly I could strip down to my underwear.”

  Before she realized what he had in mind, he leaned down and swept her off her feet with one arm behind her knees and the other behind her shoulder. “Shall we find out?”

  Lindsay could only nod and press her lips together to keep the giggles locked inside. When he carried her back to his bedroom and tossed her lightly onto the springy mattress, those giggles erupted. She’d been waiting all week for this, and now that the moment of her initial proposition had arrived, she couldn’t stop laughing. It was absurd, and she had no hope of explaining it other than to admit she was so entirely comfortable with Henry that it made her giddy and lightheaded.

  He stepped away for a moment to click on the bedside lamp, and that dizziness faded, and doubt unfurled. She lay on the bed and watched as her soon-to-be lover tossed the condoms onto the nightstand.

  “Is that tiny box going to be enough?” she inquired, hoping the desire quivering through her edged the nervousness from her voice.

  “If you want me to live long enough to drive you to the airport, it is. I’m not exactly a spring chicken anymore.”

  “Coulda fooled me.”

  “All right… you’ve got a long day tomorrow, so you should probably try to get some sleep tonight.”

  “Right you are.”

  He sat on the edge of the bed and b
rushed her hair back from her face with his brows knitted. “You’re still sure about this?”

  Nodding, she asked, “Why? Do I not look sure?”

  “A second ago, you got this look like you might be having a few doubts.”

  “I still have zero doubts about this, Henry. I’m just feeling a tad self conscious.”

  “Whatever for?”

  “Having a baby… changed my body in ways I’m still not entirely comfortable with. Ways I’ve been made to feel uncomfortable about.”

  His frown of concern darkened into a scowl. “By Max?”

  “And a couple others.”

  With a twitch of his fingers, he beckoned her to sit up, and hesitantly, she complied. Gently, he lifted her tank top up her body, over her head, and off. He motioned for her to lie down again, and again, she obeyed but had to fight the urge to cover herself with her arms. Instead, she watched as he traced the fading stretch-mark scars with his fingertips, and the expression on his face was entirely different than the ill-concealed revulsion Max and Logan had both regarded them with. A faint smile, almost of awe, graced his handsome face, and something shifted inside her. She let out a breath and relaxed a bit.

  “Are these what all the fuss is about?” he murmured.

  “It’s silly, isn’t it?”

  “No, it’s not. They should never have made you feel ashamed of your body. This body worked hard to bring your son into this world, and these are a reminder of that, which makes them beautiful. Max, especially, is a damned fool if he thinks differently because you are exquisite, Lindsay.”

  From anyone else, she might have thought such a comment was a come-on—which, considering where they were and what they were about to do, would be redundant—but she knew Henry believed every word he uttered. She clasped his face and pulled him down to her for a kiss, wishing she could find the words to thank him and tell him how much his sentiment meant to her. Her eyes burned with the force of her gratitude, but she determinedly held the tears back, and when he slid his hands over her bare skin with a potent demand, desire re-ignited and burned away her self-consciousness.

  She deepened the kiss and swept her hands under his T-shirt, delighting in the firmness of muscle beneath smooth, warm skin. She let her primal hunger for more guide her and override her mind. After a week of waiting, she was ready for this and boldly yanked Henry’s shirt over his head, then pushed him over and onto his back. Straddling his waist, she skimmed her hands over his chest, stomach, shoulders, arms, and neck, and over every inch of bare skin she could reach—lightly at first and then with increasing pressure as her attention was captured by each and every toned line of his body.

  He let her play for a while, watching her with his pupils so dilated by pleasure that she thought she might get lost in his eyes. When she leaned over him to trail kisses from his navel to the hollow of his throat and her hair brushed across his skin, he shivered and goose bumps rose. Lindsay sat back, entirely pleased with herself.

  “You know, you’re pretty cute when you’re smug,” Henry said with laughter in his voice. He rolled them over with an effortless strength that left her breathless, and the playful glint in his eyes vanished, replaced by an intoxicating intent. “My turn.”

  With deft fingers, he unbuttoned her jeans and slid them down her legs, then pushed the heels of his hands up her thighs and smoothed them around the curves of her hips. Instinctively, she rocked her pelvis into his touch, and when he trailed his fingertips with startling tenderness across her belly, she whimpered. How could he make her feel so fragile and delicate and so powerful and beautiful all at once?

  Wanting to have only skin against skin, she unbuckled his belt, unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans, and shimmied beneath him to drag them down his legs. He paused briefly in his investigation of her body to kick them off. Then his touches turned more feverish, and their limbs tangled as they sought to satiate ravenous need.

  “Feel good?” he asked, his voice rough.

  “Amazing. I’m pretty sure I’ve never felt like this before.”

  “Yet more proof that you’ve dated the wrong men. Taking a little time to warm you up will make it better for both of us. Didn’t they know that?”

  “They did, and they tried, but… they didn’t care like you do. You’ve managed to excite my emotions as well as my body, and you make me feel more desirable than anyone else ever has.”

  He kissed her, tugging on her bottom lip. “You aren’t just desirable, Lindsay. You’re irresistible. You also have a valid point.”

  “And what is that?”

  “That an emotional connection makes it even better. I never realized that before—not like this—so you could say this is new territory for me, too.”

  “Does that mean you have an emotional connection to me?”

  “You’ve undeniably captured my heart’s attention.”

  She didn’t know how to respond to that, and he didn’t give her time to figure it out, kissing her so fiercely that she had no choice but to submit to the passion of it. He returned his attention to her body, massaging each limb and everything in between, and it didn’t take long before she felt as pliable as clay in his hands. Soon, her need for more became insatiable.

  “Much more of this and I’m going to start begging for the rest,” she murmured. “So let’s get to it while my dignity is still intact.”

  The rest of their garments were shed in a rush, and Henry hastily tore open the box of condoms and sheathed himself before positioning his arousal teasingly between her legs. Fire exploded in her core, and she moaned, angling her hips in readiness, but he didn’t act on the invitation. Instead, he braced his hands beside her lower ribs and lowered his head to kiss her neck. Shivers coursed through her body, and she pressed her fingers into his back with a blatant demand.

  At last, he pushed inside her.

  “Finally,” she sighed.

  As sensation overwhelmed her, there was no room for conscious thought. Her body tingled pleasurably, and she moved with him, driven by pure, spontaneous instinct, and gasped when he drove deep. She gripped his hips with her thighs and shifted her body to take him deeper, glorying in the groan that escaped him.

  He kept their rhythm slow, increasing the speed of his thrusts so gradually that she figured he must be pacing them for a marathon. One fleeting thought danced across her mind.

  This is going to turn me into mush for the rest of the night.

  Her body trembled as muscles she hadn’t used in months were reawakened, but she was able to match him thrust for thrust, and the build toward climax deliciously consumed her. When it came, the orgasm slammed through her with a new and incredible power, and moments later, Henry uttered a strangled cry, then swore under his breath. He hung his head as they panted for breath, and the muscles of his shoulders and back quivered with the effort it took to hold himself above her, so she pulled him down, comforted by the weight of him and the fullness of having him still locked inside her. They were one as she had never been one with anyone else.

  “Diesel engine,” he mumbled.

  “Huh?”

  “You’re like a diesel engine. Get you warmed up and you run a very… long… time.”

  Inexplicably, she laughed. And then she laughed harder when he pushed himself up to stare at her with one corner of his mouth lifted and his brows drawn together in amused confusion. A comment her mother had once made regarding relationships popped into her head, and she laughed harder still.

  “What is so funny?”

  “My mama once told me that if you haven’t ever laughed during sex, you’re doing it with the wrong person.”

  “Does that mean I’m the right person?”

  “By that logic, I guess you are.”

  His smile widened, and he was soon laughing with her. “I like that. I suppose it means you’re the right person, too, because I can honestly say that I haven’t ever laughed during sex, either.”

  She took his face in her hands and kissed his lips. �
��I think you’ve ruined me for the rest of the night. You do know this wasn’t a competition to see if you could outlast my exes, right? Even if you did win it… by a lot.”

  With his body slackened by mirth, he flopped onto his back. “Just wanted to give you a night to remember, but I may have ruined myself, too. Like I said, I’m not a horny teenager or even a horny twenty-something anymore.”

  “Maybe not, but I’d say you definitely know how to compensate for that. How old are you, anyhow? Since I’ve never bothered to ask.”

  “Just turned thirty-one in August.”

  “Oh, you poor baby. Did it make you feel old when you crossed that thirty marker?”

  “Not really because I don’t feel old.”

  “You don’t act it, either.” She walked her fingers across his chest. “You put the teenager and the twenty-something I knew to shame.”

  “Well, thank ya, ma’am. One benefit to having those idiotic, hormone-fueled days behind me is that I’ve learned not to rush things. Traded rabbit sex for….”

  “Diesel engine sex?” she supplied with a giggle.

  “Exactly.” He kissed her again. “We should probably try to get some sleep, since it’s now after eleven.”

  “It’s that late already?”

  “Yep.”

  “But it wasn’t quite nine when we got home.”

  “Yep.”

  “Um… wow. No wonder I feel like jelly.”

  “We did play around for quite a lot of that time, so it’s not as impressive as it sounds.”

  “Hush up. Now is not the time for modesty, stud.”

  Henry laughed again. Then he climbed out of bed to clean himself up only to return moments later to turn down the covers. Gently, he lifted Lindsay onto the cool sheets, slid in beside her, and yanked the blankets over them to ward off the chill that descended as the heat of their lovemaking faded. Lindsay shifted onto her side while Henry reached to click the lamp off. When he fit his knees in behind hers and tucked his arm around her waist, she sighed happily.

  Worn out by the day’s excitement and—she hoped—contented by holding her close, Henry dozed off. She lay awake with her head pillowed on his arm, which couldn’t be comfortable for him, and listened as his breathing slowed and deepened, soothed by that simple sign of life. She felt entirely relaxed and secure in his embrace, and she thought of their deal to remind her of what it was like to be someone’s woman if only for a little while. It had become so much more, leading to this perfect moment when she wasn’t just someone’s woman but Henry’s. They could only go forward from here because there was no going back. She couldn’t just forget this bond, whatever it was, and hoped he was serious about wanting to remain friends. Henry had altered her expectations about relationships, shown her what they should be, and anyone who could do that was worth holding on to however she could.