Chapter Twenty-Six

Harper

The rain had started by the time we got inside the house. Travis led me into the house and into his room. I looked around in surprise when I noticed how sparse it was. Other than the bed, closet, and desk there really wasn’t much inside. Not even any photos on the wall. I got the impression that Travis was not the sort of guy that spent money on unnecessary things but this still seemed a little extreme. I turned to look at him.

“Uh, nice room. Very… minimalist,” I said.

He smiled. “Oh, this is Mike and Allison’s home. I’m just staying here while the group is here,” he said. That made more sense. I wondered where his house was and what his real room looked like. I suddenly wanted to know everything about him, but just as I was about to say something he spoke first.

“You’re a natural with the horses. I’m impressed with how you handled the whole thing with Jackson.”

I smiled. “Thank you. I’m pretty pleased that I didn’t panic, even if I did think he was some bandit for a few minutes.”

“If I didn’t know better I’d say that you were born to work on a ranch and not in PR in New York City. This life suits you.”

I smiled. “Thank you. I never thought anyone would ever say that to me. It’s good to know I have this side to my personality. I had no idea. Although, I’m not quite as dedicated as Jackson. Did that really happen tonight? Was he really going to try and steal a cow?”

Travis shook his head in amazement as he thought about what had happened. “I’ve seen a lot of crazy things in my life but I never for one minute thought I’d see something like that. He actually changed clothes from morning to night so that he could play the good guy and the bad guy? The whole thing is so crazy.”

“So crazy. It would be entertaining if it wasn’t also so completely insane. That could’ve all gone so wrong.”

Travis nodded. “I know. I’m really glad we were out there. I would hate to think what would’ve happened. Can you imagine the chaos? A man dressed in black coming out to steal a cow in this storm? It would’ve been bad. It’s going to be one of those stories that we talk back on and laugh one day. But probably not just yet.”

“It really is the craziest story. I still can’t believe it. I wonder if Jackson is going to feel remorse for it, or whether he still wishes he could be out there fighting some imaginary battle?”

“I have a feeling it’s the latter. I just wonder how long he had been planning all of this. Poor guy. I sort of feel sorry for him even though I’m also annoyed like hell with him.”

“I feel the same way. Like he must have a bit of a sad life to come up with all of this. So, uh… do you think this storm is going to be bad?”

He nodded. “I think so. I hope it just passes over, but I’m not sure. The clouds looked ominous out there, and that rain is starting to come down now.”

“So, uh, what do you want to do?” I asked. I felt suddenly shy around him, like I was only just realizing that the two of us were alone in his bedroom.

“I found that kissing helps a lot if you’re scared of a storm.”

I grinned. “Oh yeah? I didn’t know that.”

“Are you scared?” he asked as he walked up to me.

“Petrified.”

Soon we were kissing again. There was something incredibly romantic about kissing with the sound of the rain outside. It felt like we were cocooned in our little bubble of safety together, and I realized that I never wanted to be anywhere else but there. It was going to be hard to leave Travis behind, and maybe even hard to leave the sweet simplicity of life at the ranch. But I would have to worry about that another time. For now, the only thing I wanted to think about was the way his mouth felt against mine. It was perfect. He was perfect.

He eagerly pulled my t-shirt over my head and tossed it aside. I kicked off my boots and shimmied out of my jeans and then slowly took off my bra and panties while his eyes roamed over me. The room in the light flickered and suddenly switched off, and we were plunged into darkness. He reached out for my hand and led me to the bed to lie down while he took off his clothes. I could feel him parting my legs, and I gasped as I felt him enter me in the darkness. Every now and again the light would turn back on, but only for a few seconds before switching off. In that time I’d get a glimpse of his handsome face, or look down and see his body on top of mine. I wrapped my legs around the bulk of his body and pulled him in toward me, allowing him to thrust even deeper than before. I had no idea if there was anyone else in that house. I wasn’t sure where Allison’s room was or whether Mike had come back. It didn’t matter. The rain was coming down even harder now, and I was sure that nobody could hear us. I lost myself in the darkness. Without the light, I found myself more in tune with my other senses. Every touch was heightened. Even the smell of Travis was elevated. My hands dug into his back as I arched and shivered against him, moaning aloud as the waves of orgasm crashed over me. I locked my legs around him, holding him inside me as I savored the moment—a moment I wished could last forever. Was this what sex was supposed to be like? I’d been missing out all these years.

Afterwards, as I closed my eyes and fell asleep beside him I wondered if I would ever have sex like this again. Perhaps only country men knew how to do it this way, while I was going to be surrounded by city boys. It was almost a pity that I would have to go.