Page 23 of Ropers Can’t Tie Knots (Kissing Ridge Cowboys #3)

He’s been patient with my moods and put up with far more than anyone should. He married me at the drop of a hat when we didn’t even know much about each other. Most importantly, though, he fits here.

With me, with the ranch, with rodeo. With my entire life.

Our hands and lips roam while more clothing hits the floor, and our want for each other never falters. Reaching into the walk-in shower, I step away from Gabe long enough to run the water and get steam forming in the stall before pulling him in with me.

He holds up a finger and places his glasses on the counter before stepping into the shower fully with me.

Water runs down his face, and it’s odd not to see him with glasses like this.

His long lashes clump together, and his hair sticks to his head under the spray, and I bring my mouth to his, desperate to keep tasting him for as long as I’m awake .

“Hunter…are we getting off in the shower?” His lips brush mine as he speaks. “I’m fine if we are. I just don’t want to get caught under a cold spray.”

“You’re right. The hot water doesn’t last that long.” My hands slide down his arms as I take a small step back. “Clean up and we’ll take this to my bed.”

“I won’t say no to that,” he says, and quickly reaches for the soap.

We both laugh like kids and race through a shower to avoid the blast of cold water when my aging hot water tank runs out.

We fight over the soap and tease each other until I force myself to just stop touching him for the next five minutes, not because I know the hot water will run out, but because I don’t want him to be cold.

He hates being cold.

We dry off in the steam-warmed bathroom, and Gabe rubs a towel over his hair while I stare.

I should be embarrassed at how I’m ogling him, but he’s too fucking gorgeous to not.

Broad shoulders, lean build, and defined arms all catch my attention.

He has the most adorable soft belly, with a sparse sprinkling of hair that’s not a typical straight line treasure trail.

It’s more like a beacon towards the entire beach, throwing light in a wide swath to encourage you to find all his sensitive spots and not just one.

When Gabe stops drying his hair and catches me drinking him up, he licks his lips. Those plump lips that stretch so well around my cock I leak just thinking about it.

He lets the towel around his hips drop to the floor.

“If you keep looking at me like that, we won’t make it to the bed, doll. ”

I suck in a breath. There’s that name again. Why does it sound so good from his lips? “Would that be so bad?” I ask, my voice hoarse, and Gabe shakes his head.

“Not really, but Hunter…I don’t just want sex. I want you.”

He’s next to me in a few steps, sliding his hands up my chest and wrapping his arms around my neck.

“I want all of you. Sex, tears, broken promises with awkward apologies, and long days where you forget to come inside and eat. Your quirky cleanliness in the kitchen and the way you’re looking at me right now.

” He presses a kiss to my throat. “I want all of you, not just these bits you think I want.”

“I…I want to hold you all night and never let you go.” The admission scares me, but once I’ve said it out loud, I wish I’d have done it sooner.

Gabe hums and presses a kiss to my lips. “That sounds like heaven.”

“But I want to make us come first,” I add with a laugh, and Gabe laughs, too.

“Thank fuck, because this hard on is gonna kill me if it’s not taken care of soon.”

With a final kiss to my lips, Gabe turns and takes off across the hall to my bedroom, leaving the warmth of the bathroom behind. I’m hot on his trail, and he’s under my blanket in seconds.

“I have a hard time warming up once I get cold.” He burrows further into my blankets, and I think I might like the winter just a little more this year if I have a snuggler in bed with me.

“How am I supposed to get close to you like that?” I ask from the side of the bed .

Gabe laughs and holds up a tiny corner of the blanket. “Get in quick.”

I jump in next to him and immediately pull him against me. “How are you so warm? You just had a shower, and it’s cold out, but you’re like…a human furnace.”

“I guess I run hot.” I laugh, but Gabe falls silent.

“At the risk of killing the mood,” Gabe whispers. “You are hot. But Hunter, I…” Gabe swallows hard and runs a finger over my right eyebrow. “I really like you. Whatever happens tonight or tomorrow or three months from now…I won’t regret a single thing.”

I don’t know what to say to that, so I kiss him instead and hope he understands my feelings are bigger than anything I’ve ever known.

Our legs tangle and hands explore in new ways.

Not with the passion-driven lust we’re used to, but something closer to the intimacy of knowing how to touch a lover that reaches their heart.

A well-placed caress to commit to memory and the soft sighs of pleasure to go with it.

I could spend hours mapping every inch of his skin with my fingers and watching each reaction he gives. Gabe has woken something in me I’ve never experienced before. At one time, I thought I knew what it was like to care for someone, but this is something new and exciting.

More freeing than confining, and that’s another barrier he’s blown away.

Gabe frees a hand and pushes the cover down after several minutes of us making out. “Now I’m too hot. ”

I blanket my body over him, bracing myself on my arms. “I bet I can make you hotter,” I whisper, and Gabe lifts his hips, grazing our cocks together.

“I know you can,” he breathes, and I slide down his body, pushing his legs back so I can eat his ass. “Oh, fuck…”

I laugh softly at his exclamation and nip at his ass cheek. His fingers curl into my sheets at his side, and I don’t know why that’s such a turn-on, but it is. To know Gabe loses his refinement with my mouth on him is headier than any drug.

“Jesus, Hunter…” he pants as I spread his cheeks wider and tongue his hole. The moans he makes…damn. “Gimme more, please…”

“More what, counsellor?” Lifting my chest, I bring a finger to his entrance and trace a circle as Gabe’s chest heaves.

His hand goes to his dick when I push my finger inside, and he arches his head back into the pillow with a sigh.

“That. More. You.” He gasps each word on an exhale, and when his gaze finds mine, the world stops spinning.

If a single glance could brand my skin, this was it. Gabe wants more, and it’s not just the action between the sheets.

Crawling up his body, I reach over to the nightstand for the lube. Gabe pulls my neck down to kiss me before I can slick myself up, and he sidetracks me with more deep kisses. While I’m under the spell of his tongue in my mouth, he’s taken the lube from me and now strokes me with a slippery hand.

“Counsellor…you’re sneaky,” I mumble against his lips.

“Just wanted to help,” he says as he lies back, and the air in the room crackles as I settle back over him. “Hunter… ”

He reaches for my shoulders as I press into him.

His fingers dig into my flesh as he puffs out a long breath.

“Fuck….” His heels dig into my ass, holding me in place, and I’m okay with that.

My lips find his neck, and Gabe releases his grip enough for me to rock my hips.

“God, yes…” he moans, and allows me a little more room to move.

Sex has never felt this charged for me. I thought the first time with Gabe was a fluke.

Both of us were just horny and up in our heads.

But that’s not it at all. His legs wrapped around me as his leaking cock slides across my stomach is like a key fitting the lock you thought you’d never open.

Maybe it’s love, or maybe it’s just because he’s a wildly attractive man, but whatever’s making this feel so much more grips me in a way I can’t ignore.

“I want to come in you.” I breathe across his ear and snap my hips harder.

“Fuck…yes.” His hands grab my ass cheeks and urge me forward, harder but not faster. Gabe wants this slow, and he deserves it. “Let me feel you, doll.” He stretches his head up for a kiss, and I can’t resist those plush lips. “Get lost in me, Hunter.”

Pressing down into him, I chase his lips and try to do just that. Our bodies, now slick with sweat, slide together as I keep the pace Gabe wants. His fingers dance over my back before sliding into my hair.

“Hunter…” Gabe tugs on my hair and kisses me. It’s a kiss that feels like home.

And then my orgasm hits me unprepared. “Fuck, Gabe…” A hot flash of pleasure surges over me.

I unload into him so hard and fast I’m panting for breath.

How can his kiss be what sends me over the edge like that?

It takes me a moment to realize he’s still hard as a rock between us and I’m crushing him into the mattress with my full weight.

My arms gave out with that kiss. When I pull away, he brings his hand to his dick, but I grasp his wrist with a shake of my head.

“Let me,” I whisper as I kneel between his legs and spread him wider. Gabe’s breathing is so fast, I’m afraid he might hyperventilate if I don’t finish him quickly. “You’re close?”

He nods with a swallow and raises his hips.

I get it. Sliding two fingers in his ass, his eyes roll back.

“I’m right there, doll. Fuck…” My other hand wraps around his leaking cock as I find his sweet spot.

Gabe arches off the bed with a silent scream as he comes over my fist. He’s fucking beautiful like this.

A thin layer of sweat coats his skin, and his entire body glows.

There’s an intensity right now between us that takes my breath away. His body relaxes fully into my mattress, and he closes his eyes with a sweet smile as I lower myself next to him.

Placing a kiss on his shoulder, I tell him I’ll be right back. Once in the bathroom, I wet a few washcloths with warm water to clean Gabe up. When I return, he’s snoring softly, and I can’t wipe the big, stupid grin off my face.

This man is the one for me.

But how do I know if I’m the one for him?