Page 20 of Kentucky Nights (Dead Man’s Ranch #1)

A strong scent of pine and coffee wakes me up.

My eyes blink open in sluggish flutters. The cool drying of drool has me wiping my mouth, only for my hand to hit a body.

A very firm, large body.

Oh, no.

I jolt into a sitting position, my vision still blurry with sleep. Sliding my eyes down, my mind begins to whirl with possibilities as to why Kentucky is in bed with me. He isn’t wearing a shirt. I’m able to see every square, sculpted inch of his abs, and the wide detail of his chest.

A chest that has dried drool on it.

The familiar heat I felt yesterday begins to build, but it isn’t as bad since Kentucky is next to me. The fever is more like a low simmer preparing to boil over. That’s fine. I need to buy more time to fight the way I’m beginning to feel about him.

His black cowboy hat is hiding his face, and his legs are crossed at the ankles. His feet hang off the four-post bed, showing he is too big for this queen-sized mattress.

“You’re thinking awfully hard, Darlin’.” His voice is deep and smoky with the edge of morning.

I scoot away from him, needing to give myself a small amount of breathing room because I am too close to throwing myself at him. He smells so good. His being so close to me has my heart racing, but there’s no way I’m having a conversation with him with morning breath.

He lifts his hat from his face, his tired gaze finding me.

I’ve never seen him so attractive. The way his eyes hood, the faintest hint of red in his irises from either hunger or waking up, the way his lips seem still yet full, waiting to be awakened with a kiss.

Oh, I can’t think like that.

“You’re still thinking so loud, I can almost hear your thoughts. What’s on your mind, Dru?” he asks, his voice rough as if he just took a shot of whiskey.

“What are you doing in my bed?” I scratch at the dried drool on my hand.

What the hell happened last night? I can’t string two thoughts together until I have a cup of coffee, then maybe I’ll be a functioning adult.

Maybe. Depends on how good the coffee is.

“You were having a nightmare last night.” He sits up, lifting his arm to hang his hat on the bedpost. “I came in here and held you to calm you; that’s it. I promise. I didn’t pull any funny business. I’m not that kind of man,” he states, crossing his arms over his chest.

“But—” I scratch the side of my head, remembering he wasn’t in the house last night. “But you were in the barn. How could you hear me?”

He taps his right ear. “Part of being a vampire, Darlin’. I have enhanced abilities that include strength, speed, and hearing. I heard you. I came here as quickly as I could, but I jumped into a mud puddle and had to change, as you can see,” he chuckles, then yawns, showing straight white teeth.

As a dentist, I can’t stop staring at them. Gums are healthy, teeth are white, and from what I can tell, no visible cavities.

He covers his mouth with his hand. “Sorry. My breath must be terrible.”

“No, no, that doesn’t bother me. I’m a dentist, and I was admiring your teeth. You take care of them.”

“I’m afraid I can’t take credit for that. I’m not prone to human diseases, so I don’t get cavities or gingivitis. Unfortunately, bad breath is still common.” He smirks. “A dentist? No wonder you have the most beautiful smile I have ever seen, in all my years.”

I bite my lip, twisting a piece of hair around my finger. He is a smooth talker. Charm oozes from him without effort. It’s getting harder to fight him. I don’t even find myself afraid of him anymore. Wary, yes, but afraid? No.

He won’t hurt me. I don’t know how I know that. I just…feel it.

“Can I make you some coffee?” The bed dips as he stands, the mattress squeaking from the weight change. “I’d like to talk to you, get to know you if that’s alright.”

“I’d like that. Do you have cream? I like a lot of cream in my coffee.”

“I can do that for you, Darlin’.” He stretches his arms over his head, my eyes falling to his torso. His body becomes leaner in that moment, his sweatpants falling enough to show the beginning of his dark brown bush. The V is carved on his hips, giving me a paved pathway to his cock.

I want to lick the ridges of his hips, kiss my way down, and suck him down my throat.

His cock presses against the thin material of his grey sweatpants, leaving nothing to the imagination.

He is long, the shaft pressing against his thigh, and the crown outlined.

I toy with the blanket to keep my hands busy.

I’m one more ‘Darlin’ away from losing my shit and curling my fingers in his waistband to yank his pants to his knees.

He growls, his hands falling to the bed. Kentucky’s eyes burn crimson. His nostrils flare. He tilts his head, those dangerous eyes sliding up and down my body.

“While I love you looking at me like that, I want to remind you that I smell everything. Your fear, nervousness, uncertainty…” He inhales again. “Lust.”

I cover my body with the blanket as if I’ve been caught naked.

“I know you don’t want that right now.” He runs his index finger across my jaw, humming in appreciation.

“But I need you to know, that’s the best fucking scent I’ve ever had the pleasure of pulling into my lungs.

” He lifts my chin with the same finger, the slight scratch of the callous causing me to swallow.

“You are a temptation I never knew I needed,” he whispers, brushing his thumb over my lips.

“You dare my control, Dru.” He leans in, his lips mere inches away from mine, causing me to hold my breath.

With a snarl, he is gone in the next blink. The small breeze he creates when he rushes out of the room cools my heated cheeks. I hear him tinkering in the kitchen to make the coffee, leaving me with uneven breath and messy, tangled thoughts of us rolling in these sheets.

I use the time he is in the kitchen to go to the bathroom.

The walls are painted dark green with crown molding.

A vintage white claw-foot tub sits in the corner by the window, where the view of the pasture is.

The floors are warm under my feet, extinguishing the slight chill in my body.

A lamp sitting in the corner is the only light source.

Flicking the switch, a warm glow is gentle on my eyes as I use the restroom, brush my teeth with a spare toothbrush I found in the cabinet, and wash my face with cold water to help wake me up.

A knock at the door makes me jump, grabbing the sides of the vanity. I can’t remember the last time I was scared by the simplest noises.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. Coffee is ready, and I’m fixing breakfast if you want to join me.”

I swing the door open, this time startling him. I grin. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Smartass. Come on. I could hear your belly rumbling from the kitchen. You must be starving.”

“I could eat a horse—” I slap my hand over my mouth, horrified. “Oh my god, I didn’t mean an actual horse. It was just a figure of speech.”

“You’d better hope Romeo didn’t hear you.”

I stop dead in my tracks in the middle of the doorway. “Are you serious?”

“He has vampire abilities too. I’m sure he heard you.”

Panic grips me again. I catch myself on the wall, my head becoming dizzy with violent images of his damn horse running me over, or worse, eating me.

“Hey, whoa, Darlin’, look at me.” Kentucky’s touch brings me back to reality, away from the mess of my mind, and I’m left staring into his chestnut-colored eyes, the vampire red vanished from his irises.

Why do I miss looking at them already?

“I was joking. I’m sorry. It was too soon to make a joke like that.

He isn’t going to hurt you. He isn’t paying attention to you anyway.

He is hunting in the woods right now.” Kentucky’s hand finds my lower back, the gentle guide easing me down the hallway.

“I’m sorry to scare you like that. Forgive me? ”

“Only if you tell me what he is hunting,” I murmur.

“Squirrels, rabbits, deer, small bears, animals like that. He doesn’t eat humans. That I promise.”

Kentucky’s answer settles the worry I had because if I lived through all this and ended up dying by a damn vampire horse, I’d be pissed.

“That’s a relief.”

He grins. “Forgive me now?”

I wave him away, pretending not to notice the first-place ribbons on the wall for barrel racing. “Don’t worry about it. I’m still getting used to a horse being a vampire. He scares me.”

“He’s nothing but a mush, believe me.” The baritone of his voice is so soothing, calming my racing heart.

The fragrant smell of bacon has my mouth watering when we enter the kitchen. This is the room that is lived in the most. He has a top-of-the-line antique stove that is royal blue with gold knobs. Hashbrowns are sizzling in the pan, the steam rising high above the skillet.

Kentucky pulls out a high, leather-cushioned barstool from under the kitchen island. “Come on.” He pats the seat. “Let me take care of you, Darlin’.”

Take care of me? I can’t remember the last time someone took the time to be so thoughtful. Why does Kentucky care? Why does it matter to him if he feeds me or is kind to me? Why won’t he hurt me like the other vampire?

I have endless questions, and I hope he will answer them.

I sit down in the chair, and he pushes me closer to the countertop.

“Your kitchen is gorgeous, Kentucky.” I run my hands over the wooden countertop, noticing more hand-carved details.

Wild horses are running through a field with long grass under the night sky.

There is a thick, clear coat of epoxy to protect it.

“Did you carve all this? The door to the bedroom, the coffee table, and now this countertop? They are beautiful.”

“I did.” He throws me a confident smirk over his shoulder. “Thank you for noticing. I like to do it in my downtime. I’ve been woodworking for more years than I can count. I don’t keep track of time.”