Wrapped Up in You - Jill Shalvis Page 0,71
into one big bundle of need.
“You okay?” he asked, opening the passenger door for her.
“Yes. Why?”
“Because you just moaned. When I touched you.”
She glanced up at him and bit her lower lip.
He met her gaze and stilled, his eyes heating as they held hers. “Let’s go,” he finally said, a husky quality to his voice now. “There’s something I want to show you.”
“I really hope that’s a double entendre,” she said as she slid into the truck.
He laughed and . . . didn’t drive her home. Instead, he took her over the bridge and north.
“Where we headed, cowboy?” she asked, watching the city vanish in her side mirror.
“Sonoma.”
She turned from taking in the dark rolling hills to stare at him in surprise. “Wine country?”
“Also horse country.”
She blinked and he flashed her a smile in the dark, intimate interior of the truck. “Are you looking for another cowboy bar?” she asked. “I’m not sure I’m up for bull riding tonight.” Because it wasn’t a bull she wanted to ride . . .
“My buddy Donovan owns a ranch up here. He’s been wanting to expand, but doesn’t have the capital. A ranch right next to his just went on the market.”
“But you just said he doesn’t have the capital.”
“He doesn’t.” He slid her a quick look. “He’s looking for a business partner.”
She blinked again. “You want a horse ranch.”
“I have a horse ranch.”
There was a warmth in her chest now. She wasn’t quite sure, but she thought maybe it was hope. “So . . .”
“What I don’t have is a horse ranch near San Francisco. What I do have is my own capital from years of being badgered by Caleb to invest wisely.”
She sucked in some air. “And you like San Francisco.”
“A whole lot,” he said. “But more than the city, I like who’s in it.”
“Your family.”
“Yes.” Eyes on the road, he reached out and took her hand. “And . . .”
“Cowboy bars.”
“Ivy.”
She let the warmth spread. “Me,” she breathed.
“Yes.”
Forty-five minutes from the city, they were leaning against the front of his truck. The headlights were still on, revealing what looked like endless land. The stars above had never seemed so bright. “It’s beautiful,” she said quietly in the night air. “You’d live out here?”
“No,” he said, surprising her. “At least not full-time.”
She turned and looked at him. Cupping her face, he smiled. “I find I’m feeling the city again. It’s exciting there, and I want to work with Caleb.” He ran the pad of his thumb over her lower lip. “But I like this for an investment. Donovan would run the day-to-day. I’d oversee and manage.”
“You like to manage a lot of things,” she said. “Your sister said you’re naturally bossy.”
He smiled. “What about you, do you think I’m bossy?”
“You can be.” She smiled back. “In bed. Which, just FYI, is the only place I like you a little bossy.”
Pulling her into him, he kissed her for a good long time. When he lifted his head, she was shocked to find they were still out in the middle of nowhere. “Home,” she said. “Bed.”
“I’m not the only bossy one.” He nipped at her lower lip. “And FYI . . . I like you bossy wherever you want.”
The tension in the air on the drive home was palpable, and all erotic heat. She didn’t speak, and neither did Kel, he just drove with a quiet intensity that had her all revved up. She watched his hand on the wheel, the sinewy muscles of his forearms whenever he moved, and utterly unable to contain it, a small sound of longing escaped her.
Kel glanced over at her and then took a second, longer look. “What are you thinking about?” he asked, voice low. Sexy.
“The ways I intend to pay you back for the tree house.”
His eyes darkened and heated, and he picked up the speed a bit, swearing roughly beneath his breath when she put a hand on his hard thigh. After that, there was touching, lots of touching, and by the time Kel found a spot near her building, Ivy was near combustion.
After pulling the keys, Kel put a hand on her arm, warm and steady. “Wait for me.”
Everything about him was warm and steady, and she’d never considered those traits a turn-on before, but in Kel they were incredibly arousing. She watched him round the front of the truck as he came to her side to let her out, nerves on fire for him. When he opened her door, she slid down,