Wind River Wrangler (Wind River Valley #1)(71)

She was petite against him. A slight smile pulled at one corner of Roan’s mouth as he sat there, absorbing the shallow rise and fall of her breasts. Once again, he felt himself stir. Even now, as he inhaled deeply, he could smell her fragrant scent. The blanket and sheet had gathered and bunched around her waist and hip, the soft slope of her spine, that curve of her back calling to him. She was so slender against him. And yet, pound for pound, Shiloh was a fearless scrapper and that made Roan’s mouth flex into a tender line. Reaching out, not wanting to disturb her sleep, because they hadn’t gotten much last night, he lightly touched her shoulder, caressing her upper arm.

Roan desperately wanted to remain with Shiloh. Sleep at her side until she woke him up, those drowsy green eyes of hers filled with such shining love for him. And Roan knew she loved him. He’d seen it last night a number of times, almost as if the words were on her sweet lips to whisper to him, but she didn’t.

He was content with the progress they’d made with each other, despite the hurdles that still stood between them. He eased the sheet and blanket up across her shoulders to keep her warm. Shiloh stirred, frowned slightly, and then burrowed her face more deeply into the pillow.

Another day, Roan promised himself. He rose without a sound, picked up his clothes, and opened the door. He’d get showered, shaved, and dressed in the bathroom, allowing her to sleep as long as she needed. His heart felt soft and tender within his chest, happiness thrumming through him as he padded down the hall.

Throughout the shower and shaving, Roan’s mind leaped over the many issues Shiloh faced. If the stalker weren’t standing between them, always a distracting and dangerous threat to her, he knew he could woo Shiloh into staying here in Wyoming. Even more important, living with him at his cabin. It was almost finished and in another two months, it would be ready to live in. He visualized Shiloh in the granite counter kitchen, looking out one of those large windows at the sink, taking in the beauty of the valley spreading out before the cabin. Or in the office he’d created, working on her next novel, happy and content.

His lower body remembered her ability to love him fiercely, freely, like that wild filly he thought of her as. Never had he met a woman so uninhibited, so fully confident of herself, her sexuality, as Shiloh. Whatever her wounds, they weren’t in that direction. What they’d shared last night was beyond anything he’d ever experienced with another woman. He wondered if it was the same for her.

By the time Roan walked down the hall and to the kitchen, his mind was kicking forward into reality and what had to be accomplished this morning. As he made enough coffee for both of them, he decided he was going to eat over at the dining hall and then pull Steve and Maud aside, explaining the stalker issue in detail with them.

“Roan?”

Turning, he saw Shiloh rubbing her face, her thick red hair tangled around her shoulders, standing in her lavender bathrobe.

“Hey,” he murmured, walking through the living room, sliding his arms around her waist, drawing her into his arms. “I thought you were asleep.”

Shiloh nuzzled her face against his neck and jaw, her arms sliding around his waist. “I woke up and you weren’t there,” she mumbled sleepily. “I missed you. . . .”

Her drowsy, whispered words sliced right through Roan’s heart and he pulled her close, inhaling her scent, her hair tickling his nose and cheek. “I didn’t want to get up this morning and leave,” he admitted gruffly, taming some of her hair away from her features, smoothing it across and down her small, capable shoulders. “You smell so damn good that I want to lift you into my arms, carry you back to the bedroom, and stay in there with you for the rest of the day.” He felt Shiloh’s arms tighten around his waist, a wordless agreement. Felt her lips brush his jaw as she looked up at him through sleep-ridden eyes.

“Would Maud get angry if you took the day off?”

Roan smiled a little. “She’d figure it out pretty quickly. She wouldn’t get angry, but it would leave the crew short-handed and that wouldn’t be fair to the team.” He heard Shiloh make a muffled sound of protest, pressing her face into his chest, her hands sliding across his shoulders, his flesh tightening. Wanting her.

“We’ve just found each other. . . .”

More like he was waiting for her to discover them, but this wasn’t the time to bring it up. “Darlin’, I’ve got a lot on my plate today. As much as I want to stay with you, tie you to that bed so you can’t leave it, it isn’t going to happen.”

Lifting her chin, Shiloh smiled drowsily into his darkened, narrowed eyes. “Then some other time? Maybe at your cabin? You almost have the bedroom and the kitchen finished.”

He chuckled and dropped a quick kiss to her smiling lips. Because if he really, honestly kissed Shiloh deeply and hungrily like he wanted, there would be no turning back. Roan would take her to bed and pay the consequences for his selfish decision with Steve and Maud. “Sounds like a plan to me, wild filly.”

She laughed, content to be held, burrowing into his chest. “My new nickname, no doubt.”

“No doubt. You earned it last night,” Roan promised, his voice thick with emotion. Shiloh was so damn warm, pliant, and curvy beneath that flimsy, silky robe she wore. His hands itched to pull it off her shoulders and allow it to fall to her feet, so he could hungrily stare at her beautiful, proud body. And then run his hands all over her in exploration, missing nothing. Nothing. Already, his erection was painful, pressing against the fabric of his jeans. “Would you like some coffee? It’s about ready.”