thought when Jake took him to the root, wet lips clinging to his shaft. “Fuck, oh fuck.” Shea cried out, pumped his hips, and came, Jake’s swirling tongue lapping up every last drop.
When Shea was able to open his eyes, he saw Jake with his hand on his cock. He crouched, knocked it away, and pushed Jake to the fluffy rug beneath their feet. “Mine.” He returned the favor, sucking Jake while rubbing around his hole, and within minutes, Jake erupted down his throat, his long, sculpted body writhing beneath Shea.
Jake pulled him close, and he burrowed his face in Jake’s neck, once again inhaling that special smell of his skin. Forget the cologne. Shea needed nothing else but Jake’s scent to turn him on. He wondered if they’d be able to spend the night together.
“I’d better get back. It’s Stacey’s first night here, and even though Terry’s with her, I want to be close by, in case she wakes up.”
That answered his question.
“Okay. Let’s get dressed.” He found his socks and put on his briefs and jeans. Jake took his arm.
“Hey. I’m sorry.” Pure honesty shone in his eyes, and Shea’s momentary funk vanished. “I know you planned this to be a special evening for us, and I really loved it.” He brushed their lips together. “But we have six more days and five nights together, and I plan on spending all my time with you.” Jake stroked his cheek. “Every day. And hopefully the nights as well.”
“Don’t be sorry. Part of what makes you who you are is your devotion to your little girl. You don’t know how much I admire you for being the man and father you are.”
Fully dressed now, Jake slipped both arms around his neck and kissed him. “Thank you for understanding. I take it back. You were right before. You’re pretty much perfect.”
“Come on. Let’s get you back.”
Their ride to the ranch house was a quiet one. Jake held him around his waist, and contentment settled inside Shea as he drove the ATV.
“So seven for breakfast?” Jake asked. “Then we’ll spend the day together. I can’t wait to show Stacey everything. I’m afraid once she sees it all, she won’t want to ever go home.” Jake kissed him.
Watching Jake walk to his room, Shea’s fear was that he wasn’t sure he wanted to let them.
Chapter Fourteen
The past few days, Jake had witnessed Stacey unfurling like one of Patty’s yellow roses in the sunlight. Each morning they’d gone horseback riding—well, Shea had taken her, while Jake watched safely from the fence of the paddock—and Patty had gone with her and Terry on a picnic in the field of forget-me-nots. One morning was spent with the donkeys and the baby goats, pigs, and chickens. The afternoons were for baking cobblers, pies, and cookies, and making ice cream. That morning after breakfast, he left Terry with Patty planning another picnic lunch. They both shooed him, Stacey, and Shea out of the kitchen.
Jake had never known such peace in nature and breathed deeply of the fresh, clean morning air. He hadn’t once thought of the office, and when he glanced at Shea and found those blue eyes on him, it hardly seemed possible that he hadn’t known Shea until two months earlier. The thought of leaving, even though that was still a couple of days away, was like a fresh cut to his skin. So when Stacey broke free of his hand and ran to the barn, then stopped in front of the stall where the pony she’d been riding stood patiently as he was being saddled, Jake allowed himself the luxury of thinking in what-ifs.
What if they didn’t have to say good-bye?
“Mornin’, folks.” Cody, the young ranch hand, greeted them with a broad smile, interrupting his thoughts. “Hello, princess. Are you ready for a special day?”
Stacey nodded, and Jake’s heart squeezed at the brightness he now saw in her eyes. She reached out to pet the pony’s soft nose, and as if he knew his special mission, the horse remained steady and quiet. When Stacey hugged the patient animal around his neck Jake’s eyes filled with tears. He’d despaired of her ever showing emotion like she used to, and the sun shone brighter, the forget-me-nots seemed bluer, and the birds’ melodies sounded all the more sweeter to him.
“Well, looky at my little Rose of Texas.” Shea’s arms slipped around his waist, and it seemed as natural as breathing for them to freely touch. Jake settled into