Love Her Better (Kaid Ranch Shifters Book 4) Page 6

  “Pshhhh,” Hunter scoffed. “I wouldn’t.” But his tone was completely uncertain, and Bryson was already laughing at him.

  “On Friday, we need to cook,” Sam said, standing.

  “Cook what?” Maris asked from the couch. The girls had all twisted around on the couch to stare at him.

  “Cook something good,” Sam said. “For someone.”

  “Soooomeone you need to impress?” Bryson asked low.

  “Oh, God, if you need to impress someone, don’t bring them here,” Maris muttered.

  “I have to bring her here. She has to meet you.”

  “Her?” Wes coughed out.

  And this was the moment Sam could’ve heard a piece of hay hit the ground. “What?” he asked to everyone staring at him.

  “You’re bringing a girl here?” Hunter asked.

  “Is she a blow-up doll?” Wes demanded. “Oomf!” he wheezed as Bryson whacked him in the stomach.

  “Not a girl,” Sam muttered. “A woman. A nice woman.”

  “And you tricked her into dinner at a wolf den?” Summer asked in a high-pitched voice. “With you as her date? Is she a weretiger?”

  “She’s…” Sam didn’t like scrutiny. He cleared his throat. “She’s human.”

  “Haaaaaaa!” Wes brayed. “There he is. There’s our old brother back. The jokester. Sam is joking again. Clearly.”

  Fury boiled through his blood in an instant, and he swiped all the breakfast dishes off the table with a tremendous crash when they hit the wall. “Your old brother is dead.” He held up his paycheck. “I’ll buy groceries. All you have to do is show up and not scare her away.”

  The others were completely frozen in place by his outburst as he strode for the door, yanked it open, and gritted his teeth against a retort when Bryson muttered, “Well, this should be fun.”

  Chapter Ten

  Cassidy popped out the camp chair and sank into it, smiled at her dad’s grave marker and said, “Hi, Daddy. It’s me again, back to tell you every detail of my life, like you ain’t watchin’ me from up there.” She opened her notebook and cleared her throat, crossed her legs at the ankles, and snuggled deeper into the chair as she began reading.

  “Day one of me knowing motherfreakin’ werewolves existed and day three of Asshole’s rehabilitation. Or perhaps it’s Sam’s rehabilitation? Sam made scrambled eggs and toast in the kitchen before my alarm even went off. Does that man even sleep? I woke up to the smell of bread, butter, and thick peach jam. He smiled twice at the breakfast table. Made my heart pound really fast, but I won’t let him know that. Or maybe he could hear it? Sam sat with Asshole for an hour before he mucked out all the stalls with me and fed the horses. He went out and caught the two I was using for lessons this morning. Asshole only kicked at him twice.”

  She grinned at her dad’s grave marker.

  “You’re gonna like where this goes. Day two of werewolf shock. Day four of Asshole’s rehabilitation. Or Sam’s. I paid him back for breakfast. Went to sleep early last night and set my alarm a whole hour ahead. I had a stack of fresh-made pancakes for him when he walked through the door. Three smiles at breakfast today. One hour with Asshole, and the horse actually walked over to him and let Sam touch his nose. Then Sam left and said, ‘That’s enough for today.’ He was quiet and went to work on the car. I don’t know where he’s finding these parts, and it looks like a mess right now, but progress is being made. The engine almost, almost turned over today. Lessons were good. I got a new client coming in at the end of the week. Asshole and Sam are doing good. I really like him. Sam, that is. And Asshole, but Sam…he’s special.”

  She paused and cocked her head at her dad’s gravestone. “I wish you would’ve been able to meet him. And I wish he would’ve been able to meet you. I think you would’ve gotten along.”

  She cleared her throat and continued.

  “Day three. Dear lord, day three, and werewolves really exist. How do I know I wasn’t just imagining it? Sam changed into the wolf again today. I don’t think he meant to. He kissed me after breakfast (cherry turnovers he brought from the bakery in town) and then looked panicked and strode right out of the house. A few seconds later, I heard the wolf. Couldn’t see him though, even though I looked out the window as fast as I could. It was too dark, and he’s so fast. He came back as Human Sam a couple hours later and muttered an apology. The whole day, he was quiet and spent a few hours with Asshole, who let him pet him through the fence for a long time. And then he worked on the truck before he said he had to go move cattle on the Kaid Brother’s Ranch. I asked him if they needed any help, and he said he had it. It’s his job. I guess I assumed he wasn’t working because he spent so much time here, but nope. He explained he goes back after he's done at my place and works until sundown. Every day. No days off. That’s insane. He’s working fifteen-hour days and doesn’t even seem tired. He’s a very hard worker and quiet about it. I don’t know if I’ve ever respected someone this much.”

  She paused suddenly and read what she’d written again. I don’t know if I’ve ever respected someone this much. Huh.

  That was big. She naturally had trouble trusting people, letting them in. Look at her making progress. Sure, he was a dangerous wolf man who had definitely hinted that he’d killed people before, but that was probably just bad guys.

  “Uuuuh…” She frowned down at the page and tried to find her place. “I’m going to surprise Sam tomorrow and show him the work I’ve been doing with Asshole while he’s away.” Her frown deepened. “Dad? You once said love is about wanting to make someone else happy above yourself. He doesn’t smile much, but when he does? I know I’ve earned it, and it makes my heart feel things. Joy, maybe. I never really understood when you used to talk about how much you loved Mom because I’d never felt anything like that. But maybe I’m on the right track now because things you said are starting to click into place for me.”

  The alarm on her phone beeped, and she turned it off. “I have to go, but I’ll be back next week, same as always. Love you, Dad!”

  Now, Cassidy didn’t know if visiting graves was supposed to be a sad thing, but for her? She made it a happy thing. She put aside time every Friday morning to go have a chat with her dad, just like they used to do for their Friday morning father/daughter coffee dates. She dumped the thermos of steaming coffee beside his gravestone and kissed the top of the marker, said her goodbyes, and dragged her camp chair and notebook back to her old truck. Then she sang an old Hank William’s songs at the top of her lungs all the way back to her place because Dad had always loved Hank. It was tradition.

  When she pulled up to the house, the south end of Sam was hanging out from under the Chevelle. He rolled out from under it when she parked.

  Hanging her head out the window, she did a cat call whistle, only she was pretty terrible at it because she was a C- whistler. Clearly. Because Hotman Sam’s dark eyebrows rode low over his eyes in an expression of utter confusion as he wiped his hands on a rag.

  “That sound means you think something looks good,” he said as she climbed out of the truck.

  Ignoring the burn in her cheeks, she feigned confidence and said, “Yep, it sure does. I like your jeans.”

  He looked down at his grease-smeared wranglers.

  “And also your shirt,” she said, gesturing to his stained blue T-shirt that clung to his sexy muscles just right.

  And there was the smile. It was tiny, but it counted. “What else?” he asked softly, standing to meet her as she reached him.

  “Smile. Always the smile.”

  His grin got a little bigger. He brushed a knuckle against her cheek, but then his eyes went wide. “Shit. I got grease on you. Here let me fix it.” He rubbed it off with his thumb, but uttered another curse. “It’s even bigger now.” He grabbed the rag and wiped at it. “Dammit, it’s getting worse.”

  Cassidy swatted his hand away and pushed up on her tiptoes, rubbed her cheek against his. Yep, she left a smear on his skin. “Beard, cow
boy hat, even though it’s sitting on the porch right now. Scuffed-up giant boots, strong hands, abs, scars, your truck—”

  “Which is actually Wes’s truck, and everything you just listed is dirty as hell. You like filth,” he accused, pulling her in by the waist.

  “I like no such thing!” she squealed as he picked her up and settled her on his shoulder like a sack of chicken feed.

  “Dirty girl,” he growled, swatting her ass.

  With a yelp, she stretched down and swatted his ass right back. “Wrangler butt looks good on you,” she mused.

  “Looks better on you. Puffy hair, greasy cheek, shit-covered boots, you smell like hay and horses, curves, soft tits, and I will never get tired of tasting you.”

  “You just gave me butterflies!” she cheeped as he stomped up the porch stairs with her. “Where are we going?”

  “To wash you off. Your face is too pretty to hide it behind grease.”

  Butterflies, butterflies, butterflies. She needed to add this to her notebook.

  “I went to visit my dad,” she blurted out.

  He set her down at the door and searched her face, all smile gone from his. “At the cemetery?”

  Cassidy nodded. “Might sound weird, but I go talk to him on Fridays. Just catch him up on my life. Today I told him about you.”

  The corner of his lip twitched. “Maybe someday take me. We’ll show him the Chevelle together.”

  “You’d want to go there? To the cemetery?”

  Sam shrugged. “Sure. I want to meet your people. And you can meet mine. Tonight. Kaid Ranch. My brothers will be total dipshits, but I think you’re supposed to meet them.”

  “Supposed to?”

  He clammed up and pursed his lips, lowered his gaze to the general vicinity of her tits.

  “Hey?” she whispered. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”

  “My wolf likes you and so do I.” And with that, he pushed the door open and disappeared inside.

  The butterflies were now dragons.

  Stunned, she followed him inside and back to the bathroom. He was warming up the tap water as he held a washrag under it.

  “You like me?” she asked.

  “I like everything. Everything here, nothing out there.” He jerked his chin in the direction of the front door. “Nothing out there in the world, but you are…”

  “I’m what?”

  “People say home is where you sleep, but it ain’t. Home is where you can breathe and your head goes quiet.” He lifted a lightened gaze to hers. “You make my head quiet.”

  He’d just called her “home.”

  Her. Cassidy. The girl who thought she would never find a person who saw her like that. Why? Because after her dad died and her brother had let her down a hundred times too many, she’d become scared. Scared to get close to anyone. Scared of loss. Scared to let someone in and then they leave, let her down, or something would happen to them, so she’d done this. She’d slowly frozen. She’d gone cold to men and learned to depend on herself. She’d thought maybe she wasn’t meant to be with anyone, and she’d put all her energy and focus into building her father’s legacy. Her legacy. With her horses. And then Sam had come along and thawed her cold heart and made her believe in men again. Maybe he’d even made her believe in people in general again and opened her eyes to a bigger life outside of training horses.

  “You make my head loud,” she murmured. “In a good way.”

  Before she could change her mind, she made her way to the shower and hit the hot water. Without turning around, she pulled her tank top over her head and let it slip from her fingers onto the ground. She pushed off her shorts next and left them in the growing pile. All that was left was her pink lace set of bra and panties. When she turned her head to the side, she could see him in her peripheral. He was standing just where he’d been, a wicked smile on his face.

  “You gonna let me watch you get clean?” he asked in a low, gruff voice.

  Chills rippled up her spine as his words caressed her skin. “No.” She twisted so she could look right at him. “I’m gonna ask you to get clean with me.”

  Sam pushed off the counter he was leaning on smoothly, and pulled his T-shirt over his head. He sauntered to her, the jingle of his belt buckle loud as he unfastened it.

  Her body was heating up with every inch he grew closer, and when his fingertips reached out and traced her bra strap, she inhaled sharply from the fire that sparked against her sensitive skin. She leaned back against him, and they swayed as one, his hands finding her hips. His lips brushed her earlobe, and then he leaned down and clamped his teeth on her neck. Against her skin, he murmured, “You gonna let me take you? There’s no turning back if you do.”

  “I’ll be yours?” she whispered.

  “In more ways than you even understand.”

  “Will you be mine, too?”

  His lips pressed against her neck, and she could feel them stretch into a smile there. “We already are.”

  We? Sam and the wolf?

  Her head was foggy from his affection. God, this man could touch a body. His hands were so confident as he turned her toward the mirror. He held her gaze in the reflection and slid his hand around to the front, under her bra, and cupped her breast. She gasped and rolled her eyes closed as he massaged her, still swaying.

  “I’m gonna make you watch me take you,” he growled against her ear. He slid his hand out of her bra, down, down, to the front of her panties and right under the elastic. His fingers slid through her wetness there. He moaned softly, just a rattle of animal in his throat that made her arch back against him.

  She slid her hand around to the back of his neck, holding him close to her, gripping his hair.

  When Sam pushed her pink lace panties down the curves of her thighs, she wiggled and kicked out of them. Her bra came off next, and she held her hands forward so the straps could slide off her. And there she stood, naked, vulnerable. Sam’s eyes, intent on her, lightened to yellow gold. He dragged his hungry gaze up and down her body, pausing at each curve. He reached to the front of her hips and dragged his fingertips up the sides of her stomach to her breasts. He cupped them, massaged, rocked his hips against her back.

  Sway.

  Sway.

  Sway.

  She was drunk. Or high. Whatever he was doing to her made all her troubles go away. The world disappeared, and all that remained was her, Sam, and the mirror. His lips found her neck again, then his teeth. Gentle bites and scratchy kisses where his beard brushed her skin. The shower was steaming up the room. Foggy, like her mind. She couldn’t help the devilish smile on her lips. With each touch of his hands, she felt more beautiful. She looked beautiful in the mirror. Being coveted did that to a woman. He was worshipping her with his hands, massaging her tits. He slid down to her sex and pushed a finger in deep. God, so deep. She moaned and rolled her hips.

  He pulled out and grabbed her ass in both hands, eased her forward to the sink. Dragged his hands up her waist, her ribs, her arms to her wrists and placed them on the counter. She could see his sharpened teeth through that wicked smile. Sharp teeth. Big. Bad. Wolf.

  When he shoved his jeans and underwear down his thighs, her stomach flipped with anticipation. He gripped her hair in the back and made her arch. It didn’t hurt. It felt good to be maneuvered like this. To be bossed around like this.

  She didn’t have to think, only feel, and this man could make her feel.

  Every nerve ending was sensitive as he rocked his thick, hard erection against her ass cheeks.

  “Need you wet,” he growled, slipping his hand to her front again. Sway. Sway. “Need you ready.”

  She could see the chills on her forearms in the reflection. There was something so sexy about Sam putting her in this vulnerable position. About trusting him.

  He pushed his finger inside her, stroked three times. He clamped his teeth onto her neck gently and added a second finger. When she moaned, he rewarded her with, “Gooooood.”

>   The pressure was already building between her legs. God, this felt so good.

  He kissed her gently over where he’d bitten her. “Can’t break the skin. You would be like me, and I don’t want that. I want you to stay human. Stay soft.”

  His wolf eyes met hers in the mirror, and his grip in her hair tightened just slightly. Sexy, sexy man. She arched back for him, inviting him.

  Sam grabbed his swollen cock and eased it into her from behind by a couple inches. Just that penetration dragged a shuddering breath from her.

  “More,” she pleaded.

  He kicked her ankles wider. Never in her life would she have been comfortable being naked and exposed like this, so close to a mirror, challenged to look at herself, at her man. It forced her to be comfortable in her own skin. Any jiggle didn’t matter. Sam liked it; she could tell. And if he liked it, what right did she have to be self-conscious?

  He thrust into her shallowly a few more times before he went deeper. He placed her hand on her sex. “Feel,” he breathed against her ear.

  And she could. She could feel his thick cock sliding in and out of her, and it turned her on even more. Her fingers were touching her clit, so she put some pressure there. She gasped and melted. And that was all he needed. With a growl, Sam pushed deep into her, filling her, stretching her.

  He gripped her hair harder, grabbed her hip with his other hand and pulled her back against him with every thrust. Harder and faster, he slammed into her, and then she was there. Rubbing her clit, his dick slick with her wetness, gliding in and out of her, his powerful body flexed in the mirror as he bucked against her. It was all too much to try to hold it back. She cried out as she came harder than she’d ever come before. The throbbing was so intense her legs locked.

  With a snarl, Sam released her hair and gripped her hand on the counter with his, wrapped his other arm around her and slammed into her harder, faster, harder…fuck.

  A growl rattled his entire chest, reverberating straight through her as he pushed deep into her and paused. His dick swelled and pulsed, warming her with those hot jets of cum. He thrust into her again, stayed deep. Again, stayed deep, but the growl in his throat softening.