Page 41 of The Runaway and the Rugged (Dusty Meadows #1)

GARTH

A fter tellin’ Grace the news that Emelia and I were together, I swear I ain’t ever seen my girl so happy before.

Her eyes bulged out the sockets of her head and she immediately squealed in joy.

Jumpin’ up and down, listing off all the things she and Emelia would do, sometimes throwin’ my name in the mix, causin’ a chuckle to escape.

“And you promise we’ll go get a coffee in the morning?” I was tryin’ to get Grace to lie down. It was late, and it was the first night Emelia was stayin’ over and I wanted her in my bed.

Now.

“Yeah, already told you I would, didn’t I?” I gently nudged her into her bedroom with Emelia softly giggling behind me. She knew why I was so eager to put her to bed, and of course she wasn’t doin’ anything to help me.

“Emelia, make sure Dad keeps his promise, will you?” Grace peered back, her signature pout and puppy dog eyes on full display.

“You know I will, honey.” She flashed her a bright smile, Grace clearly soaking it in. Moments later, Grace flew past me and tossed her arms around Emelia’s waist, huggin’ her as if at any moment she might disappear.

It made my heart gallop watching them collide. I never thought Grace would have this with someone other than her family. All she really, truly wanted was a mother, and I prayed that one day, Emelia would open herself to the idea of bein’ a mother figure to my daughter.

I watched them intently, the sight warmin’ my chest. When Emelia dropped a gentle kiss onto the top of Grace’s head, I knew in that exact moment, without a doubt, that I loved this woman.

“Good night, Grace, I hope you sleep well.” And just when I thought Grace would walk past me and slip into bed, she threw her arms around my waist, pulling me into a tight hug.

“Love you, Dad,” she whispered softly into my chest, reminding me of a young Grace who would hold on to me every night.

“Love you too, bug, always.” I rubbed my palm along the length of her back, and when she finally pulled away, I suddenly wanted to yank her back in for another one.

I think I had forgotten just how complete her hugs made me feel, like I was doin’ something right in life even when I felt like I wasn’t.

Once she was settled in bed, I gently closed her bedroom door and reached for Emelia’s hand. I drew her in tight, sweeping back the wild, copper hair that I dreamed about every night since I met her.

“Ready for bed?” Cradling each side of her face, I pressed a short, delicate kiss onto her nose.

“I’m ready to see what kind of bed you have.” She laughed, the tone all airy and light.

I smirked.

“Only got the best, Outlaw, nothin’ less.”

One light eyebrow lifted high.

“Guess I’ll have to be the judge of that, won’t I?”

Fuck, I’ll make sure we test it nice and thorough, show her just how supportive it really is.

With a quick, rough movement, I hooked one arm behind her knees and the other on her back, haulin’ her up in our signature hold. She didn’t flinch, probably so used to me holdin’ her like that by now.

“Never had a woman in there before,” I confessed, although I’m sure she already knew. “I only want one woman in there now, only you.”

My heart suspended in time watching her entire features soften.

“Why me, Garth? Why out of every woman would you choose me?”

It was a fully loaded question, but I was more than ready, more than equipped, to answer that question now.

“Why not you, baby? Why wouldn’t I want you?”

Her eyes dropped, refusing to meet mine.

“Because I’m the woman who nearly married another man in the place you live? Because I’m a freshly twenty-five-year-old woman with nothing to my name? Should I go on?”

The mention of her marrying that asshole had my blood running icy cold, my hands pulling her in tighter as if he’d suddenly materialize out of nowhere and snatch her away.

“I don’t give a damn about who you almost married, you didn’t for a reason and now you’re with me. That’s all that matters. And why would I care that you don’t have anything? What's mine is yours now. If you want the ranch, this house, Grace, it's all yours if you want it.”

“You’d so easily give me everything?” Her voice cracked, thick with emotion.

“Everythin’ and more.”

Through a sheen of tears, a smile broke through.

“What if you decide you don’t want this anymore? Want me?” It was a ridiculous fuckin’ question, almost offended me. But instead I leaned my head against hers, silently telling her all the things I couldn’t put into words for how I felt about her.

“It’s the three of us now, baby. You’re with us, you ain’t leavin’, you ain't goin’ anywhere, I won’t allow it.”

Fresh tears coated her cheeks, and soon, I was walkin’ us in the direction of my bedroom.

I was done with this conversation, hearin’ her doubts, seein her cry, I’d finally made it clear that she was mine and she was going to stay that way.

Now, more than anything, I just wanted to show her exactly how damned much she belonged to me.

“I love Grace,” she confessed, her words sinking deep into my heart.

“She loves you too, Outlaw.”

And so do I.

The second we stepped foot into my bedroom, Emelia seemed to have one thing on her mind, and it wasn’t inspecting the surroundings. She spent the short walk kissin’ and nippin’ at my neck like I was her own personal snack, leavin’ her own personal mark on me.

Every swipe of her tongue, every graze of her teeth, sent a surge of electricity down to my cock.

“Can you set me down?” she asked softly, with a breathlessness in her tone. Reluctantly, I lowered her down until she was steady on her feet.

It didn’t take long before she swung those arms around my neck, and lifted onto her toes to kiss me. Nothin’ about it was rushed, just purely a slow, sensual heated pace that our mouths created together. Then running my tongue along the seam of her lips, I pleaded for entry.

Desperate for more.

When she finally let me in, our tongues tangled together in an all-out war for dominance. I snaked my hand through the hair on the back of her head and drew her in closer, angling her to the side to deepen the kiss.

“Need. You,” she panted, when abruptly she pulled back, and dropped to her knees in front of me.

I don’t think I’d ever been so turned on, so fuckin’ tongue-tied, before in my life than I was in this moment.

Hands planted firmly onto my thighs, her glazed eyes swept brazenly over the obvious bulge I was sportin’ in my jeans.

“What are you thinkin’ about?” I asked, my voice ragged and thick with lust.

Her eyes snapped to mine.

“How hot you look,” she responded, nibbling dangerously onto her bottom lip. “How I want to make you feel good with my mouth.”

Fuck.

A rush of nerves and excitement flooded me. Usin’ my hand, and rarely at that, was the only action my cock had been gettin’. The thought of her perfect mouth sliding down my shaft, workin’ her way down to the base before comin’ back up to my piercing, made me feral.

“How long have you been wantin’ my cock in your mouth, Outlaw?”

Cheeks flushed in a soft, rosy hue, she let out a breathy sigh.

“For a while now, but ever since seeing that you had a… piercing, I can't stop thinking about how it would feel,” she admitted with a slight tremble in her tone, but her gaze never strayed from mine.

Attagirl.

“That right, baby?” I went to undo my belt at a slow, leisurely pace until lowering my zipper. Emelia seemed mesmerized by motion, watchin’ closely with a stuttering breath and a lazy nod. “Take my cock out,” I demanded.

Eyes wide, she pulled my briefs down until my cock sprang free.

Tip glistening, veins throbbing, I’d never been so hard in my damn life.

And it didn’t help that the most stunnin’ woman I’d ever laid eyes on was perfectly positioned between my legs, starin’ at my cock like she wanted to swallow it whole.

Moments later, she reached her hand out and wrapped it firmly around my length. A low growl tore through my mouth as I tipped my head back.

“Fuck… your hand, baby,” I hissed, needin’ some friction.

“You like it?”

I nodded, forcin’ myself not to thrust myself into her grip.

“Like it more if you put your mouth on it,” I growled beneath my breath, and before I knew it, she lowered her head and swiped her tongue along the tip.

My eyes rolled.

Christ.

“Can I…?” Her gaze flickered to the ring on my shaft, and my body hummed with an almost painful urgency.

Yes.

Fuck yes, please.

“It’s all yours, never been used.”

The words had her eyes blazin’ with all kinds of satisfaction.

She liked that. Hearin’ no one else had ’em and never would.

Greedily, she tugged on my cock, pullin’ a groan from me.

It felt fuckin’ phenomenal, leavin’ me gaspin’ for air, and just when I thought it couldn't get any better, it did. Wrapping her lips around the head, she sucked me in deep, workin’ her entire way down to my pelvis.

“Oh fuck.” My head fell back, vertically aligned with the ceiling, but I could only see stars. She must have enjoyed my reaction because she took me deeper, firmer, down her throat, all the while moaning.

“You like takin’ this cock down your throat, baby?” I grunted, letting her mouth and tongue work me over until all my restraint collapsed and I formed a perfect grip in her silky hair.

“Look at me.” I growled, forcing her head back to capture her tear-filled gaze. “You’re perfect, so damn perfect, Outlaw.”

Her mouth tightened from the praise.

“That’s right, suck me dry.”

She found my piercing and gently flicked it with her tongue, before I plunged back in. I found the perfect pace, fuckin’ her throat with a fervor that soon turned frantic. I was gettin’ desperate to come, desperate to fill her mouth, when panic seized my movements.

“Oh hell.” My fist clenched tighter in her hair. I was on the brink of euphoria. So damn close I could taste it on my tongue. Just when my body was about to ascend into stillness, Emelia pulled her mouth away, my panic-struck gaze finding hers.

“I don’t want you to come yet.” Her voice cracked, swollen with desire as she rose onto her feet. “I want you to do that inside me.”

Grabbing the hem of her shirt, she swiftly tore it off her body, then with lightnin’ speed stepped out of her pants until she was standin’ before me in only her underwear.

I wasn’t thinkin’ right, I’d been stripped of an orgasm and all the blood in my body was currently throbbin’ in my cock.

Like a man on a mission, I stripped off her lace bra, tugged the black thong down her legs and once they pooled at the feet, I lifted her off the ground and carried her to where I wanted her.

Placing her onto the foot of the bed, I scooted my ass to the headboard and pressed my back against it before fisting my dampened cock. Her gaze was transfixed on my body, gettin’ her fill before I had her fading in and out of consciousness.

“Do we need a condom?” I asked despite how badly I wanted nothin’ between us. “I have some in my drawer, but they might be expired.”

Her delicate throat bobbed but it was evident in her eyes that she wanted skin-on-skin contact nearly as bad as I did.

“No.” She shook her head. “I have an IUD, and I’m safe. It’s been a while for me too,” she confessed, triggering my chest to puff out from the relief.

“Good, then get over here and ride my cock, baby.” I jerked my cock, and eagerly she crawled over to me, hiking one leg over my waist and repeating the motion with the other leg. Once she was settled, she lowered her ass down and slid over the top of my cock in a slow, deliberate wiggle.

“Fuck, you tryna kill me?” I palmed her ass cheeks, spreading them apart before rocking her onto my length.

“Is that what I’m doing?” She giggled. “Thought I was going to ride you?”

My eyes blazed hot.

“So did I,” I grunted, when without warning she lifted herself and reached behind to grab a hold of me. “Now put it in and put me out of my misery.”

Her mouth curved upward before notching the head of my cock at her entrance and sliding down.

Holy fuck.

We both groaned in sync as each inch disappeared inside of her. Wet, tight heat enveloped me and before I knew it, I was thrusting. Painfully slow, I rocked into her, letting her adjust.

“Garth…” she moaned, planting her palms onto my chest for leverage.

Fuck, she looked otherworldly. Wavy copper hair skimming the tops of her nipples while her trim little body was conjurin’ up the strength to fuck me.

Guessin’ she just needed a little push, I coaxed, “Come on and work that perfect pussy on me.”

With a light slap on her ass, she started to move. Lifting and dropping to the beat of my heart, causin’ my toes to curl.

“Fuck, that’s it. Don’t stop,” I demanded through a hiss, squeezing tight onto the globes of her ass.

This loving, too-good-to-be-true woman was mine. She moved like she was mine. Raked her hands through my hair like she was mine. And kissed my head, my face, my lips like she was mine.

It was everything.

My hips surged upward, and her movements quickened. My vision began to weaken and when Emelia tipped her head back on a moan, I knew she was close.

“Let go with me, baby. Come.” Wet slapping sounds filled the room, followed by an urgent whimper that spurred me to thumb her clit. Swiping up and down, in firm circles, she fell still.

Gasping.

Then with a cry, she screamed my name, “Garth!”

Pussy strangling my cock, I went blind. It was like she was pullin’ the cum out of me and with one final thrust, she wrung me dry as I pressed myself deep and let go.

“FUCK!”

I was spillin’ inside her, groaning her name as she tried to catch her breath.

Despite the whole world spinnin’, I crushed her body to mine once everything came back to. I needed her close, nuzzling into me like some wild, needy cat.

“That was…” Emelia whispered, twirling her fingers through the hair on my chest.

“Amazing,” I finished. “Fuckin’ amazing, Outlaw.”