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  She made a little pout of protest, but she knew she would not move him from his chosen course.

  Looking at her, he unfastened the rest of the snaps on his shirt, shrugged out of it, each motion slow and deliberate, while his gaze trapped and held hers. His slight smile showed he knew how she enjoyed looking at him.

  C.J. feasted her eyes on his muscular chest, lightly dusted with golden bronze hair that circled small tan nipples and then darted down to vanish behind his belt buckle. While he did not have the bodybuilder’s defined structure, his muscle was built by work. The effortless way he had carried her proved his strength because she was no dainty little bit.

  Cam’s hands moved to his belt buckle, flicked it open, lowered the zipper of his pants, then hesitated. She licked her lips, anticipating the first sight of his ruddy cock, springing free from confinement. He lowered the trousers carefully, taking his briefs down with them. Sure enough, his erection sprang free, standing straight out from his body, from the mat of reddish gold hair at his groin, bobbing with each beat of his heart.

  Although she had never before studied a man’s penis quite so keenly, C.J. decided he had the best looking one she had ever seen. The vitality and energy radiating from it sent still more moisture to flood her pussy. But first perhaps she would taste it and learn the texture with her lips and tongue. The very thought of that heightened her excitement. How she could get hotter, needier and more aroused she didn’t know, but it kept happening.

  What do I want first? Everything, but that’s not possible. Maybe I just have to trust Cam and let him set the pace, lead the way.

  Chapter 8

  Cam wore moccasins tonight instead of boots so they kicked off easily as he stepped free of his pants. Now totally naked, he prowled toward her, sleek and graceful as the big cats he hunted, powerful as the strong mules and horses he rode. For a big man, he could move very fast. One moment he was standing at the side of the bed, about even with her knees. The next he had a grip on both her ankles, spreading her legs apart as he shifted onto the mattress to kneel between them. Releasing his grip on her ankles, he slid both hands up her legs, the touch light but with iron inside the velvet clasp of his hands.

  C.J. trembled from the combination of the fierce passion in his gaze, the reined power of his touch and the anticipation raging through her veins. When his hands finally reached the tops of her thighs, he paused, bearing down firmly as if to pin her to the bed. He bent forward then, a slow descent until the heat of his breath fanned across her, stirring the fine golden curls that sheltered her cunt. He nuzzled into the crevasse between her moist labia and inhaled with a slow, deep breath.

  “The sweetest scent in the world, a woman’s heat for her man. Nothing excites me more.”

  With another fast move, he lifted her legs to settle them over his shoulders. Then his tongue slipped out to trace a moist, fiery track from her ass to her clit and back. She whimpered. The sensation was exquisite, painfully intense. The next lick he paused to plunge into her pussy as far as he could reach and pump his tongue in and out, once and again. Then he moved to her clit and flicked across it with a feather-soft lick. She bucked helplessly in response to that stimulation, unbearable tension twisting in her abdomen as her whole body drew tight.

  For several minutes he teased her with lips, tongue, and hands, always stopping when she was on the verge of coming, waiting or changing the form of his caresses until her body subsided minutely from the very apex. She writhed on the bed, tears of frustration leaking from her eyes as she felt control and almost sanity slipping away. She would swear her nerves were stretched to the point of snapping. It’s the most horribly wonderful feeling I ever experienced.

  “Cam, please! I’m going to die. I can’t take much more.”

  He sat back on his heels for a moment, but finally took pity on her. “All right, Carole-mine.” He moved up over her, bracing his arms on either side of her body as he bent down to kiss her, his lips slippery with her juices. Ordinarily that would have repelled her, but tonight, it seemed right.

  His cock nudged at the opening of her cunt. She arched to thrust her hips up, seeking to sheath him inside her. Then, all at once, he thrust down and in, his weight settling over her, just short of crushing, yet only adding to the wealth of sensations flooding her body. Within mere seconds, her climax exploded through her, a cataclysmic burst of unleashed tension. He slowed, waiting for a dozen heartbeats, then picked up his rhythm again. Incredibly the whole spiral of arousal began anew for her. This time when she came, he did as well, a strong burst she felt deep inside as he ejaculated. He rolled to one side, gathering her close in his arms to turn her with him so they ended up face to face, limbs entwined as his quiescent cock still lingered within her.

  He nuzzled against her neck, pressing his face into the tangle of her hair. “Wasn’t that worth waiting for?”

  “Ummm, I guess so.”

  “You guess so?”

  “It was pretty spectacular. I never came twice that close together before. I wasn’t sure I’d survive the second time, but it was…different. Better in some ways, but not as fierce. My God, I would never have believed I could feel like this. Wasted, melted, boneless and weak, and yet still like I’m flying up there with the jet stream.”

  Almost mid-word, C.J. fell asleep. When she awoke, she was spooned against the solid warm wall of Cam’s body. His cock nestled between her buttocks. Reaching back, she wrapped her hand around it. She felt him buck in her clasp as blood surged into his dick in response to her caress. Catching him still coming awake to a growing hard-on, she slipped out of his embrace and knelt beside him. He settled onto his back as his shaft came to full attention.

  C.J. marched her fingertips from the tip to the base, lightly scratched his balls, then clasped her hand around him again. “It’s my turn now, mighty hunter. I am going to get even for the torture you put me through.”

  “You loved every minute of it.” Cam growled the words, yet a laugh lingered there also.

  “So I did, but that’s beside the point. And speaking of point…” She bobbed forward, brushing her mouth over the tip of his erection. Her tongue flicked out to take the clear droplet of pre-cum poised on the slit. A shudder wracked Cam’s body. She smiled at him. “What a lovely ice cream cone. I mean to savor it, lick by lick.”

  He groaned.

  He was far too big for her to take all of him in her mouth, but she did the best she could and used her hand to stimulate the rest. He tasted salty. He smelled of man and sweat and his unique musk. That scent would stay with her forever. Just as he had done with her, she teased him to the brink and then stopped, let him slip back, only to do it again.

  Finally he would take no more. He grasped her by the waist and swung her astraddle his hips, settling her down on his erection. She gasped as she slid down his length, felt him stretch and fill her. The sensations were different this way and, if possible, even more intense. Bouncing and wiggling her hips, she rode him until they peaked together in an explosive simultaneous climax.

  The sky was lightening the sky to the east when she finally slipped into her clothes and crept back to her room. This morning she did not get up early. It was past lunch time before she found her way downstairs. The dining room was vacant and quiet.

  Hmmm, I may have missed a ride today, but those I had last night more than make up for it.

  * * * *

  From that point on, the days seemed to accelerate. They made the trip to the northeastern corner of the state, accompanied by a young man from France, who wanted to become the next Ansel Adams, and a couple from Boston fascinated with the Indians and everything about the desert southwest. There were no opportunities for intimacy, and Cam treated her the same as the other guests during the four-day expedition. C.J. took lots of pictures and enjoyed the sights, but a keen sense of loss dimmed her pleasure.

  All too soon the final days approached. Back from the reservation trip, Cam suggested one more day trip, this time to a b
eautiful scenic canyon, which held several ancient cliff dwellings and some unusual geological formations. Of course, the Boston couple at once grasped the mention of the ruins and insisted on going, so once again, C.J. had to share Cam with others and no intimate private times were to be had. More pictures and more memories were made, but not the ones she most wanted now to take home with her.

  Then the final day came. C.J. prayed Cam would find a way to spend a few hours with her and her alone, but that was not to be. New guests arrived and demanded his time in several different activities. Finally, after dinner in the crowded dining room, she gave up and dragged off to her room to pack. The thought of returning home and trying to pick up with the life she’d interrupted to make this trip left her dispirited to the extreme. Somehow any appeal it had ever held was quite gone. Would there ever be further adventures for her? It looked less likely than ever now.

  With Uncle Rene gone, safaris and treks were difficult to imagine. In her circle of acquaintances she had about as much chance of meeting a man who appreciated adventure as one who would fly her to the moon in a rocket.

  I suppose I might as well resign myself to marriage with a son of one of Dad’s cronies and becoming a dull society matron. Can I force myself to endure that? Gnawing on her lip, she blinked back stinging tears of pain, loss, and frustration.

  * * * *

  With a heavy tread, Cam climbed the steps from the main floor, finally done for the day and able to seek his own quarters. He needed some peace and quiet. There were days when he almost felt like giving this all up. If I cut back to just guiding a few hunts and photo expeditions and let the dude ranch part go, it wouldn’t be so bad. I never intended to be a goddamn baby sitter!

  Outside the door of Carole’s room, he paused. She’d been begging with her eyes all day, speaking glances that pleaded for a little more time together before they parted for good. Temptation tugged at him. One more time to hold and kiss her, one more time to sink my cock into her hot and welcoming pussy, feel her clench and convulse around me. One more time to hear her eager whimpers and moans, and feel like a man among men.

  She was one of the sexiest and most uninhibited women he’d ever known. And in that lay the danger. He was already far too fascinated with her, far too reluctant to let her go, even knowing it was necessary.

  A combination of temptation and courtesy won. He could not let her go without saying goodbye. He’d already detailed Rusty to drive her to town because he’d be off with a new party for a hunt early in the morning. This would be the only chance. He knocked on the door with a light tap.

  “Who is it?”

  Her voice sounded muffled, a bit ragged, almost as if she was holding back tears.

  “Cam. I wanted to say goodbye.”

  She swung the door open and looked up at him, her green eyes suspiciously pink around the edges. “G-g-goodbye? Already?”

  He nodded. “I have to take a party out tomorrow. We’re leaving early. A lion’s been seen up in Cave Creek by a rancher who’s lost a couple of calves this spring. We need to get on its trail right away, and I have two new guests who want to be in on the hunt. Rusty will drive you to catch your train.”

  Her gaze fell away from his as she backed a couple of steps into the room. “I see,” she said. “Very well.” Her head came up then and she stiffened her back, letting pride and innate dignity sustain her past the hurt he sensed. “It’s been a marvelous adventure, everything I could’ve asked for. I’ll recommend it to my friends, if any of them want a real western experience.”

  Her tone bordered on chilly, very correct, and contained. She clasped her hands behind her and backed a couple more steps. Although she was making it easy for him, perversely he didn’t like it.

  What do you want, fool? Her to beg and cry and carry on? Cling to you until you have to pry her hands off? Greenway, you’re dumber than dirt. She’s just another woman, one who came and now is going to go. So let her.

  He took a deep breath, shaping his words before he spoke. “You’ve been a model guest, and a pleasant surprise. I had my doubts about a woman who wanted to ride, hunt, and rough it, but you managed it all with aplomb and élan. If you ever want to do it again…”

  Watching her expressive face, he could see her consider that and also reject it. “No, I expect my life is going to move back into the pattern my parents want for me. I’ll no doubt soon become engaged and then marry in a year or two and settle down as a proper lady.”

  He shook his head, a slight smile twisting across his face. “Such a waste.”

  At that her gaze flew up to clash briefly with his. “What?”

  “Nothing. I wish you well. What else is there to say?”

  She took the first step, a half-step towards him, yet her body seemed to yearn much closer. He hesitated all of ten seconds as her glance danced to meet his, darted away and then returned.

  She came willingly into his arms when he held them out to her, but burrowed her face into his shoulder instead of lifting it for a kiss as he’d expected.

  He nudged a hand under her chin and lifted her head. Her lower lip trembled ever so slightly before she sank her teeth into its lush softness to quell that tell-tale sign. Still her gaze met his squarely and this time did not falter or withdraw.

  “You’re a remarkable woman, Carole. Don’t ever let anyone convince you there’s anything you can’t do because of your gender or your place in society or any other artificial limitation. Some man is going to be very lucky. I—I envy him.”

  He kissed her then, one swift, fierce kiss as he tried to inhale her scent permanently into his lungs and burn the texture and flavor of her lips forever into his memory. When he let her go and stepped back, she didn’t cling. She didn’t whine. She even tried to smile. There was sadness in her expression and a bit of pain, but also a flash of defiance.

  He let himself back out the door and shut it behind him with a soft click.

  Chapter 9

  June 11, 1953

  Pausing at the door of the aircraft as it sat at Sky Harbor airport, C.J. felt as if she was walking into a wall of fire. June in Phoenix rivaled the Sahara. The wash of wind swirling around the big plane might as well have originated in a blast furnace. Squaring her shoulders, she descended the steps and trod with care across the hot tarmac to the relative cool of the terminal.

  At least I’m back in Arizona, just miles and hours away now from the biggest mistake or greatest success of my life. What’s a bit of heat compared to that?

  Two hours later, C.J. headed out of the state capital behind the wheel of the new Ford pickup she’d arranged to buy before leaving New York. Sundown would find her back at La Riata Ranch. She had no idea what sort of welcome she’d receive. She only knew she could not stay away any longer. Whatever it required, she intended to carve herself a permanent spot in Cameron Greenway’s life. If that was not to be, he would have to reject her—very decisively so she would have not the slightest shadow of doubt he wanted no more to do with her.

  Her family thought she was insane. Her friends rolled their eyes and wrung their hands. “C.J., he’s only a man. A westerner, too, and almost a barbarian! What can you be thinking of?”

  One of her blunter spoken girlfriends said, “Really, C.J., he shits between a pair of rubber heels just like the rest of us. Why this fixation you’ve developed? One would think he was your first, but I know you didn’t go to Arizona a virgin!”

  C.J. could not answer any of them because she couldn’t even explain it to herself. All she knew was an aching hollow had developed in the middle of her psyche. She’d acquired a ceaseless, gnawing hunger, a need coupled with a sense of incompleteness, as if she’d left a key part of herself behind when she’d boarded the train to return home. None of the diversions she or anyone else could devise made a dent in her all-consuming desire. Finally, she’d ceased to resist it.

  Armed with a new map and limitless determination, she followed the twisting two-lane blacktop up out of the desert.
Sweat trickled down her body in itchy streams while a matching prickly heat built between her legs. She could not control the truck on the winding road and attempt to ease herself at the same time, or she would have a hand in the front of her jeans already.

  Save it for Cam. I’m not sure he’ll be pleased to see me, but something tells me his cock will be. I know I’ll be more than ready to wrap myself around him and hang on for a wild ride. And once will not be even close to enough.

  * * * *

  Cam saw his latest guests headed for the lodge before he turned to supervise the unsaddling of the stock they’d used today. He’d begun to implement the plan to turn his operation into strictly a headquarters for adventures into the wild. Two more contracts to honor and he’d be out of the regular “dude” business. He delegated almost all of that to Slim and Rusty now, concentrating on people like his current customers, Dr. Gil Harnagle and his friend and colleague Dr. Stanton Goldfarb, a pair of very successful plastic surgeons from Los Angeles who wanted to hunt lions. Both men rode poorly and Goldfarb tended to whine, but at least they weren’t feisty females.

  He’d started the process of selling La Riata to someone who wanted to operate a conventional dude ranch and moving his adventure headquarters to a new location even closer to the most rugged, remote canyons and mesas, where illusive bears and lions were most often found. But that all took time and effort. Meanwhile, he had to keep the business going to pay the bills. He might as well have two full-time occupations. The strain was wearing on him.

  The last two months had been far from easy for other reasons as well. In spite of his determination not to let it happen, Carole VanDemont had wormed her way deeper into his soul than any woman ever had. Now he couldn’t get her out of his mind, nor could he quench his endless hunger for her lush and enticing body, her unique scent, flavor, and feel. He’d even begun to dream about her, waking with an aching hard-on, just short of burying himself in her hot, welcoming depths.