The Maverick's Holiday Masquerade. Caro Carson
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stirring the evergreen sent of the spruce trees, blowing a few strands of her loose hair over her cheeks. Ryan brushed them back, those bedroom eyes making the touch of his hand on her hair as sensual a feeling as she’d ever experienced.
As Ryan tamed her hair, she stayed still, wishing, wishing. His body was so much larger than hers, his muscles moving under the polished cotton of his shirt with the gentle motion of his hand.
Kiss me.
He let the last lock of her hair go, and his fingers brushed the bare skin of her shoulders, then higher, a smooth, light run up the length of her neck, a barely there brush of fingertips on her jaw.
Kiss me, kiss me.
The gentle touch of his fingertips was replaced by the sure warmth of his palm as he cupped her face in his hand. Her eyes closed.
Kiss me.
“Kristen Dalton.” When he spoke her name, she felt the whisper of his breath on her lips. “Where have you been all my life?”
“Right here, waiting for you to find some happiness.”
He kissed her, and, oh, it was a glorious feeling of soft lips and restraint, a tender you-may-kiss-the-bride moment. He ended it too soon, and she opened her eyes. Behind him, the sunset had come into its full colors over the snow-capped mountains that had defined the horizon her entire life.
Had she expected the kiss to make him happy? He wasn’t smiling. His gaze was direct, his face so serious it was almost a frown.
Before she could say something, anything at all, he let go of her hand to hold her face between both of his palms. Words fled. He pulled her to him for a kiss that rocked her world. Rougher, more greedy. Possessive, more passionate.
Her fingers slid into the hair at the nape of his neck as he pulled her into him more tightly than any dance had allowed. She felt the hard planes of his body, and everything soft in her wanted to give in and melt in the safety of his arms.
She kissed him until his arms felt more sexy than safe. She kissed him until the only reason she was standing was that he held her up.
If he could have laid her down, if they hadn’t been hiding in plain sight in a corner of the town park, she would have gone willingly. It would be madness, but finally, she understood the crazy things couples did. Love at first sight, undeniable desire, life-changing decisions made in a split second—it all made perfect sense.
He ended the kiss when she would not have, could not have. As they held tightly to each other, she could feel every breath that filled his chest. She panted softly herself, as if she’d run a mile. Run a mile, and won the race. The endorphin rush, the thrill of knowing that this had happened, that she’d found the one man with whom she connected more strongly than she’d known was possible, was almost frightening.
He placed gentle kisses on her temple and at the corner of her eye, little echoes of the passion that had just obliterated all her thoughts. “You smell fantastic, by the way.”
It took her a second to remember what they’d been talking about before the kiss. “Not like a stable?”
“Like summer.”
“Your favorite.”
And then they were kissing again, hungry and intense. She wanted him with a desperation that threatened once more to make her shameless. He broke off the kiss but clutched her closer. His breath was harsh in her ear. “That was damned...”
“Scary?” she whispered.
“Powerful.”
She pulled back a little bit. All the emotions overwhelming her were reflected in his expression, too. It made her feel even closer to him, to the one person who was weathering this unpredictable storm with her.
“I think...” She didn’t have any clear thoughts, only feelings. Crazy, uninhibited feelings today, here in the town park. She looked up at him through her lashes, hoping to lighten the intensity. “I think we just found a great way to pursue happiness.”
His smile was brief. “I still have to leave tomorrow. The fact that I’m falling for the most beautiful girl in the world doesn’t change the fact that I have people depending on me.”
Falling for her. He was falling for her, and everything was right in the world—except that he had to leave tomorrow. She didn’t like it, but she understood it. The rodeo wasn’t so different from the theater in many ways.
“The show must go on,” she said.
“And on, and on. I get to enjoy the victories for about five seconds before the next challenge begins. But we still have tonight. How would you like to spend it?”
He had to ask?
She kissed him this time. He responded instantly, perfectly, opening his mouth to her demands, anchoring her to him with his hands. He kept the kiss from exploding into desperation this time, setting a slower pace, a more luxurious exploration. It was divine to kiss him, the sensation so perfect that it was like seeing a new color she’d never known existed or hearing a beautiful piece of music for the first time.
He broke off the kiss with a softly spoken damn.
“Ryan,” she begged.
“I know.” He tucked her securely against his chest. She breathed in the warm skin exposed at his throat. “I know.”
Where are you staying? Let’s leave the park now. The words wouldn’t come, too many years of that good-girl upbringing preventing her from saying what she wanted.
“I have to leave tomorrow,” he said, so quietly that she wondered if he was speaking to himself. “It would be...we should just...we shouldn’t.”
There was nothing else to say. A part of her wanted to plead childishly, Don’t you want to? Or more importantly, Don’t you want me?
She stayed silent, her cheek to his chest. He was older than she was and almost certainly more experienced, but she trusted herself to answer those questions. Yes, he wanted to. Yes, he wanted her. She could feel the muscle tension in his body. He was deliberately keeping himself under control. His breathing was steady only because he was requiring himself to breathe steadily.
He was being a true cowboy, one with all the courtesy and respect that a gentleman traditionally showed a lady. Hadn’t she vowed she’d settle for nothing less?
Frankly, she wished the universe hadn’t listened to her quite so thoroughly on that point. This man was hers, and they would be together sooner or later, and her body was certainly eager for sooner. With a sigh, she lifted her head and stepped back just a tiny bit, keeping her arms looped around his waist.
“I guess it’s too early for fireworks,” she said.
The corner of his mouth quirked in that hint of amusement she was coming to love. When the breeze blew her hair forward again, she tried to toss it back with a shake of her head, refusing to let go of Ryan.
He pushed her hair back for her and kept his hands on either side of her face. “I can hardly believe you’re real.”
“Wanna kiss me again to be sure?”
He laughed at that, a much needed break in the tension. “I know you’re real. Amazingly, incredibly real. But today hasn’t been. This isn’t my real life.” He let go of her face.
“But it could be. That’s what you came here to decide.”
He stepped back, and she let him go. Desire that could not be satisfied wasn’t a desirable state to be in. But then he turned away from her—and from the sunset, the mountains, everything. He braced his hands on the fence and looked down at the railing.
As if the man hadn’t already stirred up enough emotions in her, she now felt the tender tug of sympathy. There was some pain in the way he bowed his head as well