“Come join me after your shower. Don’t bother putting on clothes.”She grinned. “If you insist.”“Towels are under the sink.” He climbed into bed and admitted that he did need rest. He was almost unconscious the moment his head touched the pillow. He heard her close the bathroom door. A moment later, the water started flowing. He considered joining her as he drifted toward oblivion. Next time.Aggie’s scream woke him. “Get out of here, you f**king pervert!”The bathroom door closed. “I told you she’d go Brazilian, Eric. You owe me twenty bucks.”Jon.“How do I know you’re not just saying that?” Eric said.“Have a look.” The bathroom door opened again. There was a loud thud. “Hey, baby, don’t throw stuff. We’re just settling a bet.”Jace leaped from the bed and stalked down the hall. He grabbed Jon by the arm and spun him around. Jace’s left-handed uppercut to Jon’s chin sent him flying. Jon landed on his back at Eric’s feet. Eric stared at Jace in astonishment.“Do you want a piece?”
Brian punched him in the ribs. Hard. “You ass! What in the hell did you do that for?”“Totally worth it,” Trey murmured, lying in the bottom of the shower rubbing his ribs with a blissful grin on his face. Brian climbed to his feet and shoved everyone out of his way on his way to the bedroom.“Trey’s getting desperate,” Eric said.“He’s wound up tighter than your snare, Eric,” Jon said. “That boy needs some pu**y. Why don’t you help him out, Aggie?”Aggie did not like this guy. It had nothing to do with how Jace felt about him either. Jon Mallory was slimy. She knew an eel when she saw one. “Why don’t you? I think he likes guys anyway.”Eric shook his head. “Trey likes both.”Both? Now that had possibilities.Loud voices woke Jace from a deep sleep. Someone was certainly having a good time. From the feminine pitch of one of the voices, it seemed one of those someones was Aggie. He rubbed his face with both hands, scrubbing the sleep from his eyes, and searched the darkened room for so
What started as an affectionate brush of his lips soon deepened into something that made her ache. She leaned on him for support, blaming the alcohol she’d consumed earlier for the sudden weakness in her legs.“Isn’t that the sweetest thing you’ve ever seen, Jon?” Eric said from just inside the door. He took off his motorcycle helmet and set it down on the driver’s seat. “Little man has a girlfriend.”“If by sweetest you mean the most nauseating, then I’d have to agree,” Jon, acting as Eric’s shadow, said.Aggie extended an arm in their direction and gave them the finger.“Did you see that, Eric? She propositioned us,” Jon said.“All right!” Eric clapped his hands. “You bang her. I’ll watch.”Jace eased away, his eyes drifting open slowly. “Did you hear something, Aggie? Sounded like a couple of pussies crying for something they’ll never have.”“Or be able to handle.” She slapped Jace’s ass hard and then squeezed until his breath caught with excitement. “There’s a paddle in the bedroo
Aggie tumbled off the couch, still laughing. She lay on the floor on her back, holding her midsection with both hands as she tried to catch her breath. “Stop. Stop, I’m gonna throw up.” “Now look what you did to Aggie, Eric,” Brian said with a grin. “She’s damaged goods.” “She looks healthy to me,” Trey murmured, looking down at her from his perch on the arm of the sofa. “Mmmmm, incredibly healthy. Of course, I could be mistaken. We could go play doctor for a couple hours. I’ll examine you thoroughly to make sure.” “Help me up.” She extended her hand in the air, and Jace knocked Trey’s hand out of the way to help her to her feet. She forced herself not to hug him when she noticed the twinges of jealousy sparking in his deep brown eyes just before he lowered his gaze to the floor. She knew he didn’t like public displays of affection, but it was so hard to keep her hands to herself. The guys always seemed to be around. “Do you need your bandages changed?” she asked hopefully. If she g
Aggie clutched the gold-painted plastic heart between her br**sts and blinked back tears. “I had no idea you felt that way, Mom,” she said, her voice hitching. “You’re always saying how much you want to get me out of the club. I thought…” I thought you hated me. “So will you train me to hit men?” Aggie laughed. “Not a chance.” “Why not?” “I’ve specialized. If you really want to do this, you need to be trained by someone who’s good at everything.” “Sounds hard.” “It is hard.” “Speaking of hard. You should have seen how hard Gary got when—” “Don’t say it!” Aggie felt her face flush. She didn’t know she was still capable of blushing. A gray-haired woman entered the room and fixed herself a cup of coffee. She smiled sweetly at Aggie, who returned her smile and turned to face the other direction. “I can’t talk about this right now, Mom. I’m at the hospital with Jace.” “I thought he was out of the hospital.” “He’s back in. I can’t get him to rest.” “Is that why you fell for him?
“You need that release, Jace. It’s the fifteen seconds out of the day that you actually let go of everything. I want that for you.”“I need the pain more.”“I don’t believe you. Besides, watching you jack off is really turning me on.”He glanced at her over his shoulder again, his brows lifted. “It is?”“Oh yeah.” She peeled her red T-shirt off and then tossed her bra aside. “I want you to come on my tits, baby. Do you see how hard my ni**les are?”He saw them, all right—wanted those taut tips against his tongue. She tapped his ass with the belt again.“Keep going. Stroke it until you come.”He kept going. Mostly because she wanted him to, but a part of him liked the pleasure blended with the pain, liked that it made her hot—couldn’t get enough. He wondered why it had never occurred to him to jack off while someone hit him. Stroking himself as vigorously as he was, it didn’t take him long to find his peak. When he shuddered and gasped, Aggie turned him around, dropped to her knees in
“You don’t mind him watching?” Jace asked.“You knew he was there?”“I’m not that groggy in the morning.” His grin widened, and his hand slipped down her belly.“I think it will be sexy. I want him to watch.”“Me too,” he murmured.She rolled over in his arms and brushed her fingers through his hair. He hadn’t been putting gel in it recently, and she loved its silky texture beneath her palms and between her thighs.She kissed him and directed his hand between her legs. “I never got to come last night,” she whispered. “I want your mouth right here.” She squeezed his hand against her mound.“I think I can handle that.”He slipped her panties from her body. He surprised her by rolling onto his back. When she crinkled her brow at him in confusion, he grinned and said, “Come up here, baby. Sit on my face.”She climbed from the covers and moved up his body to straddle his face. He wrapped his arms around her thighs and lifted his head to suckle her clit.“Wow,” she gasped.He suckled every
“Okay, ready when you are,” Eric said.Aggie laughed. She felt the head of Jace’s c**k touch the rim of her pu**y, and her laugh became a groan of torment.“Slow,” Eric coaxed. “Slide it in real slow.”Jace slid it in real slow. Aggie watched Eric’s c**k jerk excitedly in response.“God, look at it stretch and swallow you. And she smells so good.”Eric lifted his hands to rub his fingers up and down her belly. Aggie shuddered.“Deep, Jace. Take her deep.”Jace was already fully inserted, but he ground against her to drive himself deeper.“Give her pleasure, Eric, or you’re leaving,” Jace said.Eric’s fingers found her ni**les and stroked them persistently.“Does that feel good, Aggie?” Jace asked.“Y-yes,” she gasped, grinding her hips to stimulate herself on Jace’s cock. She pulled forward and then rocked back to bury him deep again.“I think she wants you to f**k her, Jace.”“Yes.” She groaned. “I want it.”Eric’s c**k lengthened and thickened as Jace began to move. Jace’s finger sl
Ava gave Hannah an arch look. “Besides I know how damn good the man looks in chaps?"“Smartass. But really, what’s the point after Chase’s meltdown last night?”Her heart seized, thinking about how Chase had lost it on live TV. She’d wanted to jump through the screen and drag him off to comfort him. Assure him that not every wreck would have the same outcome as Ryan’s. Assure him she’d be there for him no matter what.“I know you can hear me, Ava, so stop ignoring—”“Ssh… They’re giving the injury report on Dirk.”The camera cut to an interview with the head of the sports medicine team. When he finished detailing the bull rider’s injuries, the announcer asked his opinion on Chase McKay’s comments about mandatory safety helmets. The doctor looked directly into the camera and said, “Helmets save lives. Period.”The camera returned to the main announcers. Their on-air banter circled to rider standings on tour and current matchups with bulls for the final round. When the list of the fifte
Ava gave Hannah an arch look. “Besides I know how damn good the man looks in chaps?”“Smartass. But really, what’s the point after Chase’s meltdown last night?”Her heart seized, thinking about how Chase had lost it on live TV. She’d wanted to jump through the screen and drag him off to comfort him. Assure him that not every wreck would have the same outcome as Ryan’s. Assure him she’d be there for him no matter what.“I know you can hear me, Ava, so stop ignoring—”“Ssh… They’re giving the injury report on Dirk.”The camera cut to an interview with the head of the sports medicine team. When he finished detailing the bull rider’s injuries, the announcer asked his opinion on Chase McKay’s comments about mandatory safety helmets. The doctor looked directly into the camera and said, “Helmets save lives. Period.”The camera returned to the main announcers. Their on-air banter circled to rider standings on tour and current matchups with bulls for the final round. When the list of the fifte
“After a few years, we started having you boys and… Well, my life was busy. Good. Happy. But I never forgot about that sweet baby boy I held in my arms for one short hour. Not a single day went by that I didn’t wonder about him. Pray his life was good. Pray he was loved.”*****Gavin’s eyes were on the shot glass he rolled between his fingers.“So I was shocked when your Aunt Kimi confronted me after your grandpa Jed died. She said one night Jed was loopy on pain meds and he told her that my father told him that I was pregnant. My father bragged to Jed I’d rather give the baby up than have it raised in a godless home as a McKay. Which was a total lie, but Jed must’ve believed it. After Kimi told me that, I finally understood why Jed never liked me and why he refused to live with us.”“Aunt Kimi never told Uncle Cal?” Chase asked.“No. But she told your Aunt Carolyn.”Gavin said nothing.“When did you tell Dad?” Ben asked gently.“Right after Quinn and Libby got back together.” She loo
Quinn? Yes.Ben? Yes.His folks? Absolutely.And probably any other McKay relation he called.They were just that way. They might fight like cats and dogs, but when it came down to it, family was everything. And he would do everything to reclaim his place in his family.“Chase?”“I’m here. Just figuring the logistics. If I leave now, I can be there by noon tomorrow. Is that early enough?”“You’re really not gonna compete in the final round and you’re coming home?” Ben said with total shock.“Hard to believe, but yeah. I’ve realized there are more important things than those eight seconds I spend on the back of a bull. I ain’t gonna be the one who lets Mom and Dad down.”Ben was very quiet.“What?”“You have changed. I’m looking forward to seein’ you. Drive safe.”Immediately after Chase hung up he called Elroy.“You’d better not be calling me to bail you outta jail, McKay,” Elroy barked.“Good morning to you too, sunshine. I’ll keep this brief. I have a family emergency in Wyoming and
“Me.”“And who are you?”Gavin took a deep breath. “I believe I’m your son.”****The crowd roared behind him, ready to party at the PBR on a Saturday night.Chase braced himself. The PBR’s newest female reporter, a fiery redhead named Lissa, stuck the microphone in his face as soon as he cleared the contestant gate. He’d been expecting it since he’d avoided an on camera interview last night. To ensure his cooperation, the cameraman blocked him in. Bastard.“We’re here with Chase McKay after that amazing ninety-one point ride on Devil’s Due. Congratulations, Chase, that’s gotta feel good to be back on top.”He focused on the woman and not the camera. “It does. Especially after an extended break and such a poor showing in Dallas.”“Tell us about the ride.”“Well, Devil’s Due is an ornery little cuss and highly unpredictable, so I wasn’t sure if he’d go into spin mode tonight or hopscotch around. Luckily I was able to stay with him no matter what he did.”“So the past few weeks you’ve b
“Okay. Thanks.”“And if that doesn’t work? Go with plan B.”Her mother, businesswoman extraordinaire, always had a backup plan. “And what is that?”“Track him down, tie him up and force him to listen to reason. It helps if you’re naked. And holding beer.”“Ah, Mom. I don’t think that will work.”“It sure did with your dad. Good luck, sweetie, keep in touch.”Ava packed her bag and booked a commercial flight to LA.“Why am I so nervous?” Ava asked Hannah, two days later.“I’ll tell you what I think after the audition.” Hannah straightened Ava’s miniskirt for the third time.“That’s not helping my nerves.” She tried not to think that Chase would know exactly what to say to her to calm her down. The door to the conference room opened and a long-legged blond strolled out. “We’re ready for you, Miss Cooper.”Ava squeezed Hannah’s hand and followed Corporate Casting Barbie into the conference room. Well, at least this production company didn’t have the clichéd casting couch. Ava chose the c
“No. And here’s fair warning: that is not a topic of discussion. With you. Or anyone else.”“Never thought I’d be happy to hear you say ‘no comment’ and mean it. Warms the cockles of my cold PR heart, McKay.”“You’re a riot. What else?”“The PBR is picking up your transportation expenses. You’re in New York now?”“Yeah.”“I can’t get you to Wichita directly—”“Book me into Omaha. I left my truck there. I’ll drive to Wichita.”“Done. What day you wanna leave?”“Today. As soon as possible.”Ava stared at him with shock.“The event isn’t for another couple days.”“I’m aware of that. But there are other things I need to take care of first.”Elroy sighed. “Fine. Contact me when you get to Kansas. And I don’t gotta remind you no press unless you’re escorted by a PBR media liaison.”“I get it. I’ll keep in touch.”“Good.” Elroy hung up.Chase returned to the bedroom and picked up his bag.“You’re leaving? Just like that?”“Yep.”“No discussion. No yelling, no hashing it out?”“What is there
Evidently he hadn’t realized she’d set up a goddamn camera in their room either.He hit the pause button, his head spinning, his gut churning, his thoughts focused on one awful thing.Betrayal.Yes, he knew she’d been taping all the fucking time, but he had no idea she’d been making a goddamned movie. The whole time they were together. To think he’d invited her to share his experiences on the road. He froze. Wait a second. He hadn’t invited her. She’d invited herself. Offering a convincing argument about wanting to see real life outside her poor, privileged upbringing.But Chase sure as hell hadn’t encouraged her to creep around, sticking that camera in everyone’s face. Capturing their private moments. Having no shame in using them for her own gain. For a woman who claimed to hate the intrusion of paparazzi, she’d become damn good at acting like one of them. She’d promised him she wouldn’t show her home movies to anyone.A new thought chilled his blood. Did Ava have footage of Ryan’s
“So I’ll think of you whenever I wear it.” Like I’ll ever stop thinking of you. Ava tried really hard not to cry, but a couple of tears slipped free. The last man who’d given her jewelry had been her grandfather.“Ava?” Chase tipped her face up. “Ah, hell. Don’t cry. I told you that you can take it back.”She made a sound half-laugh, half-sob. “No way am I taking it back, McKay. It’s beautiful. Perfect. I love it. Thank you.”The guardedness in his eyes vanished. “You’re welcome.”Chase paced in the hotel room, glaring at his phone. He hadn’t minded that the fucker hadn’t worked at all yesterday, since he and Ava had spent the whole day in their room, most of it in bed after they’d returned early in the morning from the penthouse.Dammit. He needed to access his email. Nothing was showing up on his phone. And he’d been in such a hurry to get away from the sorrow in Nebraska he’d accidentally left his laptop in his truck at the Omaha airport.His gaze landed on Ava’s computer on the de