The Way We Loved Read online

  If she wants a replay of earlier times, I’m all for it. This time, I won’t make the same mistakes. No feelings, no pain.

  I find her bent over, taking a photo of Samson’s hooves from under the stall door. My first instinct is to yell at her to get the hell away from him, but that would give away my presence. I sneak up behind her, getting as close as I can. “What are you doing?” She bolts upright, startled, just like I’d hoped. I hadn’t realized how close I was standing until the round cheeks of her ass graze my crotch.

  It’s been too damn long since I had a woman if all it takes is a brushing of flesh for it to come alive. I take a step back and turn to adjust myself.

  “What the hell, Calvin? Do you just enjoy scaring the shit out of me?” Blake screams at me, her voice full of injustice. I love seeing her frazzled.

  I wrap my fingers around her shoulder and spin her around so I can check her pants. My hands refuse to release her once I have her in my grasp.

  “What the hell are you doing?” she asks, her own hands slapping at me until I let her go.

  “I don’t see any shit stains, but I can wait here if you need to go change.”

  She slaps my arm. Hard. “Har-har. You think you’re funny, don’t you?”

  “Nah, Sugar, you’re the funny one.” I take a step closer, invading her personal space. Her breath hitches and her arms drop to her side. I lean in, passing her lips with nothing more than a wisp of air between ours, and whisper in her ear. “Beau? Really?” I ask and then turn on my heel and walk away, leaving her a sputtering mess.

  “Ahh!” she yells, stomping after me. “I’m going to kick your ass for that, Calvin Hunt.”

  I stop and spin around so fast she runs straight into my chest. “Would you like me to strip? I can give you better access,” I offer. The sweetest rosy tint creeps up her neck and spreads across her cheeks. Grinning, I reach for my belt buckle.

  “Screw you,” she says, pushing away from me.

  Letting go of my belt, I reach out and grab her arm. My hand slides down to her wrist, then her hand that I take in my own. “What do you think I’m offering, Sugar?” It takes great strength to keep a straight face.

  “Ahh. Shut up and stop twisting my words.” She stomps her foot on the ground, and dust billows up around us. I laugh because it’s such a Blake thing to do. She’s never been able to handle someone getting the best of her.

  “Would you rather I twist you around?” I ask and spin her around. When I pull her flush against my hardened body, she gasps. “You always did like it best like this,” I whisper in her ear, causing her to shiver.

  Chills erupt along her arms, across her chest, and up her neck. I run my tongue along her ear before letting her go. “Calvin!” She tries to sound indignant, but it sounds more like a breathy moan than an angry protest.

  “Wow, Sugar, already screaming my name and I haven’t even touched you yet.” I haven’t had this much fun in a long time. Seeing her flustered lightens my spirits. I don’t know what that says about my character. Nothing good, I’m sure. But it is what it is. I take two steps out the door, leaving her in the middle of the barn alleyway. This time, when I walk away, she doesn’t follow me.

  “I hate you,” she yells and then stomps her foot again. “Argh!”

  Sure you do, Blake. You hate that you want me. I understand. A part of me hates that I want you too. I don’t understand how any part of my body could still crave the woman who destroyed me, but the bulge in my pants is a clear indicator that some parts of my body don’t hold grudges.

  Ten minutes later, I’m starting to wonder if I pushed too hard or came on too strongly with Blake. She hasn’t reappeared. Maybe I should take her absence as confirmation that she isn’t interested in playing around, but then she walks back into the barn yard and all thought scatters in the wind.

  Gone are the boot-cut jeans and worn-out T-shirt. In their place are shorts so tiny that if she were to bend over, I swear I’d be able to see her panties. If she has any on. Shit. Now I’m thinking about her lack of panties, and the boner I thought I had under control is making its reappearance.

  She’s wearing a white crop top that shows off every sweet morsel of skin between the waist of her shorts and the hem of her shirt. I want to run my tongue along that skin over and over again. She’s let her hair down, and it falls in dusty blonde waves across her shoulders. The only thing she hasn’t changed is her boots, and to be honest, I kind of wish she had.

  “Nice boots.” The words squeak out. I can’t think of anything else to say. I’m surprised I was able to form a thought at all.

  “Photo shoot time,” she says, tossing me a camera I hadn’t even noticed she was carrying. I twist it around and try to figure out what is where and what the hell she wants me to do with it.

  “Photo shoot?” I ask.

  “Yep, and you’re the cameraman. But don’t worry, I’ve done this a hundred times so I’ll walk you through it,” she says, laying a blanket down across a few hay bales. When she climbs on them, she faces me on her stomach, her legs crossed behind her, her face propped in her hands. The picture of innocence. But I know better. I can see the gleam in her eye, daring me to give up. To call a truce.

  Eleven years ago, I might have let her win.

  “How do I work this thing?” I ask her.

  “Aim it. You can see the picture on the back of the camera, and then press the fat button on the top.”

  I line the camera up with her and press the button. The shutter whines and then clicks, taking the picture. I take a few more of her lying there facing me. I kind of enjoy this. If offers a new angle, a new perspective of Blakelynn Smith.

  She’s always been a confident woman. I don’t think a day went by that she didn’t know what she wanted or have a plan to get it. I used to think I was part of that plan, but then she left and I was still here, picking up the pieces.

  Blake sits up on her knees, her legs tucked behind her. She grabs a handful of hay and tosses it in the air. Her shirt rides up, showing off a jeweled belly button ring. Tilting her head back, she laughs, watching the hay fall. I’ve never seen someone so fucking beautiful. She literally takes my breath away and fills my lungs with life. It’s simultaneous. It’s perfection.

  We go through several positions, each one sexier than the last. I’ve never taken so many pictures in my life, and yet I could take a hundred thousand more if it was of her and still not have enough.

  “Your turn.”

  “My what?” I ask, sure I’ve misheard her.

  “Oh, come one. Just sit there and relax. It’ll be fun.”

  “Fun?” I swear I can string together more words, just not right this second. She grabs the camera and gives me a shove toward the hay bales. I don’t have the slightest clue of what to do.

  “Just relax. Pretend you’re taking a break or thinking about something important.”

  I stare straight ahead, my eyes locked on hers behind the camera. She’s got to be kidding me. I can’t think of anything important right now. My every thought is on her. And all the ways I want to peel her out of those shorts.

  “Seriously?”

  “What?” I ask.

  She sets the camera down and grabs my shoulders, rubbing her hands up and down them. “Relax. You’re so tense. Try to loosen up.” She shakes me back and forth and I let her.

  “Good. Now open your legs up a little,” she says, pushing my legs apart with her own. “Now lean forward. Try resting your elbows on your thighs.” I follow her lead and wait while she takes a few pictures.

  “Okay,” she says, pushing my shoulder back. “Now lie back and put one arm over your face like you’re shielding the sun.” I toss my arm over my eyes like I would if I were hiding from the light, and she huffs out a sigh of annoyance.

  “Not like that. I want to still see your eyes.”

  “Well, then, I’m not shielding from the sun, then, am I?”

  “Pull your arm up,” she says, leaning across my lap
, her body pressed to mine. When she moves my arm, I open my eyes to find her staring at my mouth. This time, I don’t think twice about it. I lean forward and capture her mouth with my own, wrapping my arms around her. Her lips part, her breath rushing out. I slide my hands under her short shirt along her back. She spreads her legs, straddling my lap. When she feels my erection, she moans into my mouth and I almost lose what’s left of my sanity right then. I pull her in tight, lifting my hips to grind against the warmth between her legs. My leg bumps against something hard, and I push it to the side until it falls to the ground with a shallow thump.

  “Shit, the camera,” she says, sliding off my lap and trying to twist around. I slide my palms up her thighs and squeeze her ass hard. Fuck the camera.

  9

  #hayinmyass

  Blake

  “There are other things far more interesting than that damn camera. Let me show you,” he says, running his fingers under the edge of my shorts. The smirk that heats my core spreads across his face. He’s always been able to light me on fire with nothing more than a look. A fact he seems to have remembered. His finger slides under my panties and the sparks ignite.

  “Shit.” My body leans into his hand. I abandon all thoughts of the camera. For a fleeting second, I question whether this is a good idea. I’ve only been back here for a few weeks. Things between Cal and me were just now settling into a norm that I was happy with. Would sleeping with him ruin that? Am I willing to risk it?

  His finger curls into me. The callused tip rubs against the slickened flesh between my thighs. My legs shake, almost giving out. My head falls back, my eyes closed. I’ve never wanted to be consumed as much as I do at this moment.

  And then all thought vanishes, leaving nothing but desire in its wake. He pulls me onto his lap so I’m straddling his hips once again. I lean forward, taking his mouth with my own. His rock-hard cock juts against my belly through our clothes. Not close enough. I need more.

  “See?” he says, grabbing my ass and aligning my core with his bulging cock. Wetness pools between my legs, and our mouths collide, tongues searching, demanding, claiming each other. Calvin gathers my hair behind my neck to twist it around his wrist and then pulls my head back, exposing my neck. His lips and then tongue kiss a path down my throat. His teeth graze my flesh, and I shiver, my nipples hardening. Panting, I close my eyes again and move my hands under the hem of his shirt, sliding them up his hard abs and exploring his smooth chest.

  When he pulls back, releasing my hair, I open my eyes to protest. There is no need, though. He’s only making space between us to gather his shirt and pull it over his head. He wastes no time in doing the same with mine. My blood pounds in my ears as he removes my bra. I hope like hell he’s not speaking to me right now because his words would be falling on deaf ears. That flash of awareness that we’re in the barn where anyone could enter at any time flashes through my thoughts but dissipates just as fast as it developed.

  Pressing my warm, naked breasts against his bare chest, a sigh escapes me. He groans, thrusting up against my willing core while flicking his tongue over the edge of my nipples, first one and then the other.

  When he sucks the puckered tip into his mouth, I shudder and arch my back, begging for more. I can feel him gazing at me and hold my breath until he circles my waist with his powerful hands, pulling me down flush with him. He nuzzles my cheek with his nose, and I feel him smiling.

  “What?” I whisper.

  “You hate me.” He tosses out my earlier retort still wearing that damn smirk that he doubles with a wink. It’s confirmed. I’ve melted on the spot.

  “Oh, well, what had happened was . . .” I reply with a teasing grin, lifting myself back up. I scratch the tips of my nails down his chest over the sharp ridges of his abs to the top of his jeans.

  “Stand up,” he orders, nudging his hips against mine, and it’s all I can do to remove myself from the heat of his body. Standing over Cal with the hot sun warming my back through the barn door opening, I should feel anxious or self-conscious as he devours me with his eyes, but all I feel is desired.

  Cal reaches up to unbutton my shorts. I place my hands on my hips and shake my head back and forth. He drops his hands and his face twists in confusion. Shooting him a wicked grin, I begin the process of unbuttoning and peeling them off myself, taking my sweet time. I shake my hips from side to side in an exotic dance as old as time. I leave my panties hanging off my hips and kneel to remove his jeans, never taking my eyes from his.

  Dark lust floods his bright brown eyes, turning them black. His need matches my own.

  The glory of Calvin Hunt naked is unmatched by any sight I have ever seen. His body at eighteen was beautiful, familiar. Now, he’s a piece of art. I could sit and study the hard lines and muscular dips for hours, days, years, and still never tire of him.

  My thick blonde hair blankets my body in a curtain of soft waves. I rise from my knees slowly. Never losing contact with my skin, he slips his fingers into the edge of my panties and drags them down my legs. The path his finger takes blazes.

  I step out of them and closer to him.

  He closes his eyes as his hands travel the length of my legs from my ankles to my ass where he stops to pull me astride him again. I hover over the tip of his steely length, every muscle in my body trembling as I grip his shoulders and sink down, impaling myself on his throbbing head. Slowly, I stretch to accommodate his size. Our eyes close for only a moment as I take him inside me. A guttural moan from deep in his throat escapes his lips.

  “You’re so tight. You feel so fucking good, Blake,” he says through gritted teeth.

  I nod my head, agreeing, unable to form the words. Gripping my hips, he glides me off him until I am suspended just over the tip of his thick cock. I inhale, ripe with anticipation, and follow his gaze to where our bodies connect. We watch together as he eases me back down, gripping my hips, his fingers digging into my flesh. I know he’s grasping at the last threads of his control. I am too. I can’t even remember the last time I had sex, and this, well, I haven’t been touched like this in even longer. Maybe ever.

  He’s holding back for me, waiting, the model of patience, but that’s not what I want. Taking over, I push down on him, drawing him deeper and deeper. When I reach the base, I circle my hips, grinding into him and creating the friction I need to make me soar before sliding back up his steely length again in a delicious rhythm. We grip each other tightly, skin blazing, climbing, climbing, climbing.

  Calvin takes my mouth in a deep, winding kiss. I whimper in bliss and manage to string together enough words to form an intelligible sentence. “I’m going to come,” I groan into his mouth.

  “Wait for me.”

  “Can’t,” I shout and then fall, fall, fall over the edge. His hands circle my waist, his hips lifting, pounding into me over and over as my legs clench, tightening around him. My body pulses with the waves of my orgasm. His cock thickens even more, and his teeth nip at my bottom lip, a guttural moan escaping as he spills into me. We cling together, our bodies slick with the remnants of the act coating my thighs.

  “Holy fuck.”

  “Yeah,” I reply. There’s not much else to say. I lean back across his thighs and wait for my pulse to return to normal. His cock jumps inside me, already hardening again, but this time, my own cravings aren’t clogging my thoughts. I sit up and glance around, making sure we don’t have any visitors, and then I stand and shimmy back into my shorts before grabbing my bra and shirt. His cum is sticky between my legs. Calvin watches me through half-closed eyes. His confident smirk is back.

  “God, that was . . .” I search my vocabulary for an adjective to fit but come up empty. There are no words to adequately describe what that was. I’m more relaxed than I have been in the better part of a year. This could have been a huge mistake. An inevitable mistake. Two people with the past we share can’t remain as only friends. I knew that coming here, but it doesn’t change the facts. Neither of us wants this. We t
ried once already, and it ended in heartache and loss. Calvin may desire my body, but that’s all he will ever want from the girl who crushed his heart.

  Once I have my clothes somewhat arranged, I grab the camera from the ground. After checking to make sure it didn’t break in the fall, I snap a few photos of Cal lying naked on the bales of hay. He reaches for the camera, but I back away, snapping more.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Don’t worry. I won’t share them with anyone.”

  “Fine, but I get all of yours and you can’t share them either.”

  “Seriously? I needed those.”

  “Deal or Delete. Your call,” he says, sliding his jeans on and standing.

  “Ugh. Deal,” I say, sticking out my bottom lip in a pout. He leans forward, capturing my lip in his teeth and pulling gently. My pulse jumps like a car going from zero to sixty in two point five. I don’t want him to stop, ever. But like all good things in life, even this must come to an end.

  He releases my lip, and I pull it into my mouth, nursing the swollen, bruised edge. “Good. Now let’s go handle these horses,” he says, swatting me on the ass.

  “Okay,” I say, meanwhile thinking about pulling him back to the corner and stripping his clothes from his body with nothing but my teeth. He bends at my feet, and for a second, I think he’s going to torture me with kisses along my legs, but he picks something up off the ground.

  It takes a few seconds longer than I’m proud to admit before I realize he’s stuffing my panties into the front pocket of his jeans.

  I follow behind him, snapping a few more pics of his delicious backside before putting the camera away and getting started on our day. There was still a lot I needed to learn about the way the ranch ran and the people who worked to make it run efficiently in order to find other things we could add to make it better.

  “Have you ever thought of offering horse riding lessons?”