Outrageous Offer Page 4

  He was a lean man, but more packed with muscle than she would ever have imagined under a light smattering of hair. Only years of rigorous, hard work could have cut such grooves in his chest and abdomen. Showing signs of needing more decent meals, his waist narrowed dramatically, ridged muscles to either side leading her eye toward his groin.

  Helpless but to follow where his body led her gaze, Hyacinth’s cheeks heated. Offer’s cock stood out boldly, thick and long and not similar to what she’d remembered Jonathan feeling like at all. She swallowed heavily and reminded herself that it hadn’t felt so terrifying when Offer had put that thing inside her on the road, so it surely wasn’t as fearful as it looked.

  Offer reminded her, too. “You took it before—and you’ll take it again.”

  She said nothing as he moved toward the bucket and filled the dipper. He beckoned and she came, allowing him to pour the water over her until she shivered under the dual sensations of cool air and warm liquid. She heard his breath catch and the dipper wobbled a bit, but he only refilled it and kept wetting her down. When half the bucket was gone, Offer reached for the rose-scented soap resting on her pile of clean clothes, and twirled his finger.

  “Turn around, darlin’. If I keep watching the water trail over your pretty nipples, I might have to take a taste, then we’ll never get clean. Well, not while the water’s still hot.”

  Obeying, Hyacinth didn’t know what Offer was going to do until his soapy hands caught her shoulders, kneading and rubbing before slipping down her arms and back up. Hyacinth’s lungs squeezed at the soft touch and the tingles Offer dragged over her skin in his wake. He drew a circle on the inside of her elbow that sent a tremor through her lower belly and threatened to weaken her knees.

  Offer chuckled and moved on to concentrate his full, soapy attention on her breasts. He cupped both mounds and slid his hands over them, washing every inch as thoroughly as Hyacinth had ever been washed before. His touch was completely different from what it had been previously—more familiar perhaps, or, Hyacinth thought, more possessive. He had privacy and the time to enjoy it, and stroked her long enough to have her leaning back against him as she moved restlessly.

  He readjusted her body against his, sending his cock sliding along the seam of her behind. “Feel good, darlin’?”

  She wasn’t sure what he was asking about, but the answer was the same. “Yes.”

  He thumbed her nipples and laughed darkly when she arched. But his breathing was rough and his touch became a little more hurried. Not as hurried as Jonathan’s had ever been, which suited Hyacinth’s need to adapt to the sensations perfectly well, but Offer’s hands swooped lower with more speed than he’d used while caressing her arms and chest.

  Hyacinth levered her eyes open and looked down to watch Offer trail soapy circles over her waist and navel. Long sweeps had her nerves jangling and brought his fingers close to the curls at the tops of her thighs. Hyacinth held her breath, but kept her eyes wide open as he circled closer and closer.

  “Here, Hyacinth?” he whispered against her temple. “Should I wash you here, too?”

  “Um…” Any other words got stuck in her throat as his slippery fingers stroked into her curls. All that was allowed to escape was a frayed squeak as Offer found the knot of nerves he’d touched before, the swollen peak Hyacinth had never expected to be so sensitive, and had barely known she’d even possessed.

  One quick flick was all he gave her before retreating to lather his hands again. Hyacinth’s breath rushed out in a sharp huff of frustration, which only made Offer chuckle. “Patience, darlin’.”

  When he returned a few seconds later, he rewarded her silent wait with a direct touch that brought her to her toes. No more leisurely soaping of her body, his fingers went straight back to what they’d been doing between her legs—stroking and rubbing, flicking gently as she heated from the inside out. Offer banished the cold of the air with the heat of his body and the rush of pleasure from his touch. His hands were slick between her legs, and as he played, Hyacinth grew slicker too.

  Offer curled one arm around her waist and hauled her closer to his chest. His other hand ran free, high and low over her sex, circling and swooping until his fingertips prodded her entrance.

  “God almighty,” he breathed. Then he released her mound, though he still maintained his hold around her waist, and reached for the dipper. His struggle for breath matched hers as she rocked against him and waited for the water to wash away the suds.

  The water provided a new web of sensation to cover her skin. Offer was hot at her back, his cock hard against her ass, and the water trickled over all her body’s valleys and curves. Hyacinth’s pulse pounded low in her belly and something in her core tightened and released in a maddening rhythm. When Offer rinsed more soap from her body and slicked the last of the suds away with long swipes of his hand, she couldn’t hold back her moan.

  Offer cursed. Hyacinth barely cared when he swept out an arm and knocked her clothes off the chair. He twisted her around as he sat, tugging her leg up until her foot came to rest on his knee. Off balance, she reached for his shoulder, and only then realized he could see her most private flesh in the light of the lantern.

  “Offer—” Hyacinth tried to move her leg, acute embarrassment cooling the heat he’d been building inside her.

  “Hush,” he puffed against her knee. “I’m gonna get my way.”

  With Hyacinth standing on one foot and forced to brace against him, Offer was correct. He put his lips to her knee and kissed—and kept right on kissing as he moved up her thigh. The caresses weren’t soft, as she’d expected, but nipping things interspersed with quick licks. She forgot to be embarrassed as a series of delicious little shivers shot up her leg.

  At the same time he kissed a path up her thigh, Offer reeled Hyacinth in, closer and closer until she was leaning forward at a precarious angle. In a move that proved all the strength she’d already seen in him, he gripped her thigh and her behind, lifting her off the floor and only letting her back down once her knee was hooked over his shoulder.

  Hyacinth clutched his head without thinking. She was on her tip-toes with no way to hold herself up and Offer’s dark hair had provided a convenient handhold, though it didn’t do much to help her balance problem. Offer’s hands solved her dilemma by curving under her bottom and holding her weight.

  She felt his words drift over her curls as he looked at her face. “I’ve wanted to do this for a real long time. You ready, darlin’?”

  He gave her a moment to evaluate. If she were to be honest with herself, she’d have to admit that it was thrilling to be held by him. The sensation of being open to him and his sight was stirring fire in nerves below and anticipation in nerves above. She had no idea what he wanted from her, but their interlude on the road was less than an hour ago and her memories were excruciatingly clear.

  “What are you going to do, Offer?”

  “This.” He leaned forward and licked out.

  Hyacinth froze at the feel of his tongue pushing against her intimate flesh. His fingers on her bottom grew harder and dragged her against his mouth. She hadn’t expected that. Then her paralysis dropped away as the sheer heat of him spread over her, the softness of the intrusion, the boldness of the liberty he took. As he stroked her in new ways, crowding closer to capture the swollen peak emerging from her folds and sucked, Hyacinth melted completely.

  From between her legs, she heard him mutter, “Ride my tongue, darlin’.”

  He thrust against her, hot and wet and rasping. He licked straight up her folds and around her throbbing clit. Pleasure grew and built until Hyacinth’s entire concentration was trained on Offer’s outrageous caress. She threw her head back with a groan and arched into his mouth. Offer sucked harder, licked further and pulled her against him until her sex was fully resting on his face.

  He plunged his tongue into her pussy. Soft pressure and velvet friction had Hyacinth screaming softly, bucking against his mouth madly. In and ou
t, over and over, Offer licked everything he could find as his moans rumbled over her flesh. All the nerves between her legs pulled taut and Offer strummed over them. It seemed he tormented her for hours before Hyacinth exploded, heat washing through her and carrying her forward.

  Offer caught her and smoothly switched places, planting her in the chair as he stood up. Hyacinth dazedly observed his reddened cheeks, wet mouth and flared nostrils without a single thought in her head. She lounged in the chair easily, too caught up in the small aftershocks working through her lower belly. Even as Offer stepped close and gripped his dripping shaft, she had no clue what more he wanted.

  “It won’t take long, darlin’. You tasted so good—felt so good—as your pussy squeezed my tongue that I won’t last but a minute. Open your mouth.”

  Still clueless, Hyacinth did as she was told. Offer leaned closer and ran the wet crest of his cock over her bottom lip. Startled, Hyacinth flicked out her tongue and grew even more surprised with the earthy taste of him. He breathed out roughly and she did it again, licking over his tip as he held still. She decided she liked the taste of him, liked the softness of his skin.

  Slowly, Offer pressed against her lip, then pushed deeper. He gave her only a moment to register the fact that he was inside her mouth, rubbing against her tongue in subtle jerks before he withdrew and thrust back in. Hyacinth’s lips stretched but reflex had her tightening them. Offer grunted.

  “Suck, darlin’. I need to feel you sucking my dick.”

  While he spoke, Offer rocked. In and out like men do when bedding a woman, and Hyacinth finally caught on. She lifted her tongue against his shaft and drew with gentle suction. Offer gave another groan and grabbed for her hand, wrapping her fingers around the length that she couldn’t enclose with her mouth.

  Hyacinth rolled her eyes up to watch Offer. He didn’t notice, as his eyes were closed. His teeth were bared in a snarl that piqued Hyacinth’s curiosity and his chest worked hard. Tendons in his neck stood out and a vein throbbed in his forehead.

  He pushed in again and shuddered. Emboldened by his reaction, Hyacinth sucked him harder and tightened her hand around him. She stroked what she could and relished the fact that she could steal his wits as he’d done to her with the simple action. She threw herself into pleasuring him.

  As Hyacinth grew wild, rubbing her tongue over him, sucking and stroking, his movements picked up speed. His hips arched and his thighs tensed, the corners of her mouth began to burn as he pushed ever deeper. But she refused to stop or slow as Offer’s moans grew loud in the small space and his face scrunched up into an expression of pure agony.

  True to his word, Offer lasted a minute. With a harsh noise and a sudden jerk that took Hyacinth by surprise, he pulled from her mouth and spilled his seed over her chest. The faint flavor of him still filled her mouth, and she swore that, one day, she’d taste his pleasure the way he’d tasted hers.

  Offer staggered, though he managed to somehow pull her up as he did, and clutched her to his chest. His breathing continued to be labored as he lifted a hand to the mess he’d left on her breasts, but his eyes sparked in the way Hyacinth was coming to know so well.

  “Hyacinth, darlin’, we need another bath.”

  Chapter Six

  Offer cursed at the sight of the familiar silhouette cantering toward him over his browning fields. It wasn’t the horse he had a problem with, but the man on top of it. Joe Raines was the bane of Offer’s existence, the giant thorn in his backside he couldn’t get rid of.

  Raines owned the higher ground north of Offer’s, and therefore the water rights to the stream that should have passed through both their acreage. Adding irony to insult, Offer couldn’t even pray for rain to help sustain his miserable herd without his neighbor appearing like some great cosmic joke.

  Offer whipped off his hat and swiped his forearm across his head. He called out to Bill, just a few feet away and fidgeting in his saddle—a sure sign the old man was beginning to feel the morning’s work. “We’re about to have a rainy day, old man. Prepare yourself.”

  Offer tried to prepare himself too. Raines was never a visitor he wanted to see, but four days of little sleep made the timing even more unpalatable. Though his belly was comfortably full with Hyacinth’s surprisingly good biscuits, he still wasn’t used to sharing his bed. Offer wouldn’t be surprised if he’d woken up every hour on the hour for the past four nights—and waking up next to soft skin and sweet curves didn’t help him get back to sleep.

  On the other hand, he was willing to trade a little shut-eye for the bone-deep pleasure he found in Hyacinth’s hot pussy. She grew bolder every time they fucked, and Offer was reaping the benefits in more ways than he could count. The last thing he wanted was to ruin his good mood, but Raines’ presence was a sure-fire way to do just that.

  Bill lifted his gaze to the heavens. “I sure wish you were right, Offer. We could use a little moisture down here, but there ain’t a cloud in the sky.”

  Offer shook his head before he nodded toward the approaching figure. “Raines is coming.”

  Bill snarled and spat, then rubbed his knee with force. Offer would have liked to order the aching old man back to the homestead, but he knew Bill’s pride would never let him go while Raines was on the property. To that end, he’d have also liked to send Jack back, but the boy was just as stubborn as Bill, and abandoned his watch over the calves to draw his nag up on the other side of Zeus just as their neighbor reached them.

  “O’Neal.” Raines tipped his hat in the barest show of respect he could get away with.

  Offer did the same. “Raines. What brings you out to the Double O?”

  “You know what brings me here. Heard you got married.”

  “No.”

  “I thought you brought home a woman? Whole town’s talking about it.”

  Offer elevated his chin. “I did, but we aren’t married.”

  “Give it a little time and you will be, under Common Law.” Raines shrugged his broad shoulders. “Wives aren’t cheap. Women need things.”

  “Did you come out here to gossip about my woman?” Offer rolled his lips together, irritated, though he knew that wasn’t the reason his neighbor had dropped by. Sheer orneriness had him playing stupid, however.

  “No.” Raines turned his slate gray eyes toward the huddle of cattle doing their best to eat half-dead vegetation. “That’s the sorriest herd I ever saw. They’re skin and bones.”

  Offer tightened his grip on his reins in an effort to keep from punching his neighbor’s teeth out. “Hard to be anything but, when there’s nothing for them to eat. You came out here to comment on the condition of my cattle, then?”

  The other man’s steely gaze veered back to the three men facing him. “I came for my money.”

  “I’ve got another two weeks.”

  “You owe me for three months, O’Neal.”

  “I’ve paid some of it.” Every dime he could afford to give away, in fact. Offer wished he had more to give Raines, if for no other reason than to keep the man off his land, but the Double O was proving to be a money pit.

  Without thought, Offer stroked a hand over Zeus’ neck. In two months, his Army contact would be back in town and looking for a good stallion to breed for their Cavalry. The War Between the States had taken its toll on horses, their sudden scarcity driving up prices and breeding fees. Offer just needed to hold out for a little while longer, then he’d have enough money to pay his neighbor what he owed, with a little left over to buy some much-needed supplies.

  Raines snorted. “You paid some? Your measly installments of fifty dollars here and twenty dollars there don’t even begin to cover your bill. I have half a mind to dam up the whole stream until you pay me all of what you owe.”

  Offer’s temper stretched beyond his ability to control. Then it snapped completely. “What’s the goddamned difference, Raines? You’ve already blocked so much of that fucking stream the town floods every time it rains up north. Soon you’ll put them
all underwater. Block the whole fucking thing and see if I care.”

  “Maybe I’ll take you at your word!”

  Offer gritted his teeth and tried to lower his voice. “You’ll never get your money if you do.”

  “I was upfront about the cost of using that stream. You knew the arrangement.” Raines shifted as his horse sidled sideways.

  “And you knew I didn’t have a fucking cent to my name after buying the Double O.”

  “But you picked up a woman that you now have to care for. Buy her things and feed her. You can spend your money on her, but you can’t pay your debts?”

  Offer stabbed the air with a rigid, trembling finger. “You agreed to wait for the money, then you went back on your word.”

  Raines’ chin shot up. “I’m a businessman.”

  “No, you’re a greedy bastard,” Offer spat. “You took one look at my horse and knew how much he’s worth. You figure you can sell him to the Army for top dollar.”

  “They need horses now more than ever, with the westward expansion,” Bill piped up. “A good trail horse for the Cavalry could fetch up to three thousand dollars.”

  “Ten times as much as what we agreed on for water rights for a whole year,” Offer growled.

  Raines’ horse shied again when the man threw out his hand. “Then sell me the damned stallion, O’Neal! Give me your horse and I’ll have papers drawn up that give you access to the stream for a decade.”

  “That’s been your game this whole time, hasn’t it?” Offer’s muscles clamped down on his bones and held him still while his eyes raked the other man. “You cheating bastard, you’ll do anything to get Zeus, won’t you?”

  Raines’ lips thinned and he wheeled his horse around in preparation for a hard gallop home. “Two weeks, O’Neal. I want the full amount you owe me or I’m damming up that stream for good. I’ll never offer you the rights to it again if I don’t get every fucking cent.”