Sweet Water Vet: Taking Rachael Part 22

She removed her jacket and gently tousled his hair as she walked around him to release him from the cuffs. Rachael crouched next to him and put her arms around his sweat-sheened body, raining soft, light kisses on his shoulder, his neck and his hair. As he slowly recovered, he hugged her to him. The emotional release cause by such a euphoric climax and the declaration of love from the woman in his arms had him desperately blinking back the tears threatening to engulf him. Never, ever had he felt this way. When he was sure that he had a handle on himself, he pulled back and looked at his woman.

"You'll have to marry me now, Rachael."

"Are you proposing to me? You could just be a little affected by recent events." She gently grinned, tenderly stroking his face.

"I'm definitely affected by recent events, and, yes, I am proposing."

"No, you can't. Do it later. Otherwise, what will we tell our kids when they ask about how Dad asked Mom to marry him?"

"Okay, I'll pick a suitable setting." He grinned like the Ches.h.i.+re cat because she'd really just said yes.

They went back to the house and spent the rest of the night wrapped in each other's arms. In the dark late hours, she had stroked his body and whispered, "I've waited my whole life for you."

"I'm older, so I've waited longer," he'd whispered sleepily in reply.

"You know, Josh, I've an awful lot of fantasies concerning you and me."

"I've got more."

"That's certainly one of the many reasons why I love you."

It was nine thirty in the morning when James strolled into the kitchen and found Rachael and Joshua finis.h.i.+ng breakfast. He knew it 167.

was childish, but he just couldn't stop the huge smirk that was developing on his face.

"Good morning, all. I've just been seeing to the horses. You really should be more careful what you leave lying around, Josh." He placed the cuffs on the table. "Very careless of you, brother, tut-tut." He turned to Rachael. "I'm scolding Joshua because it appears that you were a little tied up last night."

He couldn't wait to see her reaction. Such moments made life more enjoyable. Odd though, it was Joshua who was blus.h.i.+ng, staring at the cuffs looking lost in thought. Rachael looked him directly in the eye.

"Oh, dear, but I can't let Josh take the blame. You see, I wasn't the one tied up." She smiled sweetly at him as she leaned over to retrieve the evidence.

What? His amused smugness took a nose dive as shock at the implication of Rachael's words sank in. He stared at them both with his mouth open. Joshua raised his eyes to meet his, and in an unspoken communication, James knew that his brother was in deep.

Rachael got up from the table.

"I'll just put these away, shall I?"

"You lucky b.a.s.t.a.r.d," he muttered to Joshua.

She trailed her hand over Joshua's shoulders as she walked pa.s.sed him toward his rooms. Josh smiled and said only a characteristically short "Yep," then pushed his chair back and followed her.

"Rachael," James called, "you don't have any single friends, do you?"

Later that day, Joshua took Rachael riding to a beautiful spot near the river. When they dismounted, he looked like he was about to give a speech.

168.

"Wait." She backed away from him slowly, feeling mischievous.

"I'll only listen to you if you can catch me and make me listen."

Not giving him a second longer to react, she spun around and ran, dodging through the trees. He'd have to work for it because she was fit and fast. After two minutes of hard sprinting, she slowed a little and looked over her shoulder. Where was he? She was sure that the chase would be a favorite fantasy of his, but he'd disappeared. She scanned the area and tried to bring her breathing under control so that she could listen better. Suddenly, she heard a twig snap and saw a blur of movement up ahead. How the h.e.l.l had he managed to get around and ahead of her? She reacted quickly, dodging around a fallen tree.

He easily vaulted over it. She adopted a zigzag pattern to avoid capture as she heard his heavy breathing and the thud of his feet on the ground. The gap between them was closing.

Strong fingers gripped her shoulder and yanked her back. For a brief moment, she was airborne as he pulled her roughly to him with an arm locked firmly around her waist and her feet off the ground.

Rachael struggled in earnest, twisting her body and flailing her arms and legs. Joshua dropped them both to the ground, sat on her, yanked her arms above her head, and held them in a viselike grip to avoid her punches and slaps. She bucked and squirmed. He covered her body with his. She was pinned.

"You're f.u.c.ked now, Rachael," he snarled.

She was panting and her face was flushed, but it wasn't the physical exertions that had her nipples pebbling and her c.u.n.t creaming. It was the embodiment of her s.e.xual fantasies lying over her.

"You will submit."

She still struggled as he crushed her lips with his mouth and forced his tongue inside. He clasped one hand around both wrists and used the free one to hold her jaw while he took her mouth with a brutal kiss. The wildness inside of her clawed to get out. A switch tripped, and she found herself meeting his tongue with her own, 169.

pus.h.i.+ng back; grinding her hips against his groin. He lifted his weight a little, and she wrapped her legs around him.

"No, Rachael, that's not submitting. If I was prepared, I'd have you staked by now," he growled.

Staked? Oh, my G.o.d. Rachael moaned at the erotic image and Joshua smiled wickedly when he heard her response.

"Another time, darlin'. I promise. Now, do you give in?"

He looked down at his adorable, beautiful woman. All that struggling, grunting and cursing had left her flushed and looking aroused. By G.o.d, he loved her and her little games. He especially appreciated the chase. It fed his base desires.

She nodded.

"Don't move."

He pulled her jeans down and opened his own, then flipped her over. She couldn't help wiggling her a.s.s and grinding up against him.

Slap. "Ow!"

"I said, don't move. Don't speak, either. Only yes or no."

Her white b.u.t.t blossomed red where he had smacked her. Her succulent folds glistened, and he didn't need to check her readiness.

She was always ready for him, and he was perpetually aroused by her.

He positioned his rock-hard c.o.c.k and plunged into her all the way, b.a.l.l.s deep. She gasped.

"Now I'm making you listen. We are gonna spend the rest of our lives together, and it's gonna be f.u.c.king fantastic. Agreed?" He spoke through gritted teeth as he forged into her repeatedly.

"Yes," she cried.

"We'll get married soon, at Sweet Water, within the next two months. That should allow your friends and family time to make preparations for getting here. I'll pay for the flights. You will not concern yourself about the cost."

170.

"But"- slap-"ow! Yes, okay, yes."

"You can work full- or part-time, whatever you want."

"Yes."

"We'll give ourselves a year or two before babies. In that time, I'll f.u.c.k you like the b.i.t.c.h in heat that you are." His voice broke with a groan as her slick channel tightened around him.

"Yes," she panted.

"You'll be a professional at the practice, a lady in livingroom, and a complete s.l.u.t in our bed."

"Yes."

"We'll live at Sweet Water until we build a house either for us or for James and Janet."

"Yes," she shrieked, her legs trembling and her c.u.n.t beginning to clench spasmodically.

"I f.u.c.king adore you, woman. You'll always be mine." His b.a.l.l.s tightened, and he shot his sperm into her, claiming her body as his words claimed her soul.

"Yes!" she howled, shuddering with her own release.

He clutched her to him as they came down slowly from their climax, keeping her firm a.s.s pressed against his muscular thighs.

"Well, I must say, Rachael, you are being very compliant," he drawled, tapping her lightly on the a.s.s. He sounded smug and satisfied.

"You won the right...this time."

He chuckled. There she was with his c.o.c.k buried deep inside her, still challenging him. She was perfect.

They headed back to the horses and stripped off their clothes to cool down in the fresh, clear river water. Isabella, the housekeeper, had packed a picnic with lots of tasty treats. They sat on a picnic blanket. Joshua was propped up against a boulder with Rachael between his legs leaning against his chest. Half dressed, they ate and chatted, lazily enjoying the late afternoon.

"Okay, now I'm going to do this right."

171.

Joshua s.h.i.+fted, standing up and pulling her with him. He held her hand, got down on one knee, and presented her with an empty box.

"Er, it's traditional in England to actually have a ring," she said, biting her cheek and failing to keep a straight face.

"Well, darlin', I'm having a ring made, but I didn't want to wait."

She leaned over and fondled his b.a.l.l.s through his jeans. "These are the only jewels I'm interested in."

"That's certainly one of the many reasons why I love you," he echoed her words of the night before. "Now, Miss Harrison, will you do me the honor of marrying me?"

"Mr. Ryden, yes. I love you so much. How could I not? Now, about those field tests you wanted to conduct..."

172.

Epilogue.

Roy Crossling was going to get his hands on his oil no matter what. Janet Ryden was under the watchful eye of the deputy and she disliked him now anyway. He'd have to try another way and he had a plan. Meantime, he was p.i.s.sed that he'd had to sell his best horse cheaply. Secretly in the night, he'd delivered the animal to an address out of the county, and all for nothing because the b.i.t.c.h was now a fully licensed vet, still working with Colin and still living at Flora's Place. The only positive thing was that if she married Ryden, she wouldn't be around the cabin and near his land so much. He didn't want her to discover the illegal drilling he'd started. The sooner she was gone the better. Frustration and hatred smoldered in his belly.

Janet was over the moon for her brother and the family. Rachael would not only be a great friend but also a great sister. All this love in the air had her thoughts constantly meandering back to Deputy Mitch Mathews. Things were getting very interesting in bedawell, not only in bed but all over the house, actually, and she knew it wasn't possible to be more satisfied than he made her. She couldn't get enough of the man, but she would soon have to go back to college, and for the first time ever, she didn't relish the thought of leaving. She consoled herself with the fact that it wasn't for long. Her final exams and dissertation would be finished in July, just in time for the wedding.

Then she planned on being home, for good, in Meadow Ridge County with Mitch.

173.

Shannon O'Reilly was both shocked and delighted to receive a phone call from her best friend Rachael, informing her that she was getting married and wanted Shannon to be the Chief Bridesmaid. She really needed a break from her hectic work schedule and this would be a great opportunity to do just that.

Rachael had sounded excited and very much in love. She wouldn't let it affect their friends.h.i.+p but darn it, why did Rachael have to be marrying a Texan cattle rancher and oil man?

For a few years now, Shannon had laid down her jacket of environmental activism and donned the respectable cloak of an environmental consultant. She thought that she could better instigate changes and promote environmental awareness by lobbying for tighter legislation to protect the environment and educating businesses, rather than chaining herself to railings. It was certainly more comfortable.

She just hoped that this Ryden fellow wasn't an ignorant redneck whom she hated on sight. No, she didn't think that would be Rachael's type. But what did she know? She wouldn't have said that a whirlwind romance was Rachael's modus operandi either. Rachael had mentioned some pretty strange relations.h.i.+p arrangements in the county. It made her quite hot and bothered just thinking about it.

James was pleased for his brother. Joshua had been lonely for far too long and had thrown himself into the business to compensate, but now he had a really great woman who seemed to somehow complete him. James couldn't remember seeing his brother so happy. If only he and Luke could find someone like that. A wedding was as good a place as any to do a little p.u.s.s.y hunting. Lots of single ladies at a 174 romantic occasion. Finding Ms. Right would be like hitting the jackpot while playing the slots. Things may be about to get interesting.

THE END.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR.