Home For a Cowboy Christmas(73)

“Zane?” Cady urged. “You don’t want to tell me your brother’s name? Your name?”

He drew in a deep breath and slowly released it, preparing himself. “It’s Taylor.”

“Charlie Taylor,” she said, thinking. “I don’t think I’ve heard of him. Then again, I’m not from here. Though, I’m not up to date on who holds office in my own state.”

He couldn’t believe it. Could she really not know the Taylor name? Or was she playing him? Had the car in the snow all been a ploy? No, he didn’t think that. Maybe in any other season, but not winter when it was so cold. Cady had been in real danger. She’d had no idea that he or anyone else would come upon her. Had he not, she likely wouldn’t be alive now.

So, if that hadn’t been a setup, then she might really not know who he was.

“I’m Cady Adams, in case you didn’t remember,” she said with a smile and stuck out her hand.

It took him a second to realize what she had done and shook her hand. “Nice to meet you, Cady Adams.”

“So, Zane Taylor, I take it you’re a real cowboy.”

He nearly spit out his coffee, he was so startled by her comment. He wiped the dribble from the corner of his mouth. “As a matter of fact, I am.”

“Do you enjoy it?”

“Unequivocally.”

“Even in weather like this?”

He glanced out one of the windows. “There isn’t a season in Wyoming I don’t love. In spring, you have everything blooming and breaking free of winter. Summer, everything is alive, and you can enjoy the warm temperatures. With fall, you have the leaves changing and crisp morning air. Then there’s winter and the wonderland of white that blankets everything.”

Zane swung his gaze back to Cady to find her staring at him with an odd expression. He’d never said anything like that to anyone before.

“You make me wish I could see every season,” she said in a soft voice.

His gaze lowered to her lips, and he recalled how she had fit against him so perfectly. How smooth her skin had been. How she had smelled of lavender. He hadn’t allowed himself to look at her breasts when he’d disrobed her, but he had glimpsed the black satin and lace of her bra.

And damn if his balls didn’t tighten at the thought.





Chapter 5


With one look, the atmosphere in the cabin shifted. The air was rife with tension—the sexual kind. Cady licked her lips to get the last of the peanut butter from them and saw Zane visibly swallow, his gaze locked on her mouth.

She had never felt such a rush of … hunger before. It took her by such surprise that she didn’t know what to do. She ended up on her feet, putting everything away from her snack. She felt his eyes on her the entire time. How she wished she knew what to say in a situation like this. She knew what she wanted—Zane.

Cady wasn’t sure when she had comprehended that fact, only that the truth was there. And she accepted it. Maybe it was because she knew she’d never see him again. She’d never had a one-night stand before. That could be the appeal.

Or perhaps it was because of the situation that’d put them both into forced confinement when they would have otherwise never stayed in the same room together.

The whys didn’t matter. So many times, she had done what others wanted or would approve of. That hadn’t gotten her very far. It was time to do what she wanted, to follow her heart. And right now, everything screamed at her to take Zane. To let him know that she wanted him. Wanted whatever it was between them. It would be her Christmas present to herself. A way to close out one year and start the new one fresh, with a different outlook on everything.

Cady turned around to find that Zane was on his feet. She hadn’t heard him rise. She rested her hands on the counter on either side of her. Even with the heat of the fire warming the place, the cold seeped through the floor into the thick socks on her feet, causing her to shiver. Or maybe that was because of the way Zane stared at her.

“I-I don’t have a right to ask this,” she said.

“Ask it,” he said before she finished.

Cady licked her lips again, unsure of how to put it into words.

Zane’s hands clenched at his sides. “Ask it,” he urged again.

If you’re going to do it, then do it. Stop being a ninny!

Cady lifted her chin. Action was better than words. She pushed away from the counter and started toward him. She didn’t stop until she reached him. Then she rose on her tiptoes, put her hands on either side of his face, and brought his head down to her lips.

The moment their mouths touched, he let out a groan and wound his arms around her. Cady was unprepared for the onslaught of passion. He teased her lips, lightly pressing small kisses over and over, lingering longer and longer as his hands ran over her back. Then his tongue slipped between her lips to tangle with hers. He let out another low moan and grabbed her butt with both his hands, pulling her tight against him so she felt the length of his arousal.

Cady melted against him, her body throbbing with desire so intense, she wasn’t sure she could stand on her own. Going for what she wanted had flipped some switch. Need and hunger for Zane unlike she had ever experienced before overwhelmed her, drove her.

Consumed her.

Her fingers slipped into the cool locks of his light brown hair. His breathing matched her ragged breaths as they clung to each other. He deepened the kiss, igniting flames of desire that threatened to scorch her. She eagerly reached for them, sought them.