It was her turn to moan as he sampled both delights, squeezing her breast gently, savoring the heft of it in his hand, using his thumb and forefinger to play with her nipple until it was as hard as he was. He set up a rhythm with his hand between her legs and soon Sunshine rocked against him, echoing that rhythm unconsciously. Cole loved the look of his hands on her body, and he loved watching her expressions as he teased her. When she panted his name—half a cry, half laughing, Cole gripped her hip, and pushed inside of her.
Sunshine cried out softly and bit her lip again. He knew she was trying to keep it down out of respect for Luke and Mia. Cole couldn’t care less about anyone else; he was too far gone. He crushed Sunshine to him, thrust inside her again and kissed the back of her neck, her hair tickling his nose. Sunshine pushed back against him, her eyes closed and her expression so blissed out, Cole knew she felt as good as he did.
He’d meant to pace himself and drive into her with slow, steady strokes, but Cole lost control, thrust into her again and again, and Sunshine arched against him, her breasts slipping through his fingers as they rode the wave of his desire to crash-land together in an orgasm that shook both of them simultaneously.
By the time he’d pulsed out the last of his release, Sunshine had folded over to rest her forehead on her arms. She was shaking so hard that Cole became concerned. Was she…
Crying?
“Sunshine?” He pulled her upright, slid himself out of her and turned her around. “What’s wrong?”
But she wasn’t crying—she was laughing.
And she couldn’t stop.
Cole watched her, bemused, but in short order he became uncomfortable. Was she laughing at him?
“What’s so funny?”
“Us,” she managed to say. “I don’t know about you, but I was aiming for a long, drawn-out, passionate night. That took us what—five minutes?”
“We could do it again.” Cole was affronted.
“Of course we’ll do it again.” Sunshine flung her arms around his neck. “I love the way we’re always in sync. I love the way you make love to me. That was one of the best—”
Cole cut her off with a kiss. He knew exactly what she meant. Slow or fast, hard or soft, every time they touched each other was magic. He moved her toward the tub. “Better get in there before it gets cold.” He steadied her as she stepped into the water and then joined her there. He sat down and pulled her into his lap as he sat back against the wall of the pleasantly deep tub. Locating the soap, he lathered up and began to wash her body, paying particular attention to her breasts. Sunshine’s breathing hitched.
“Oh, that feels good.” She lay back against him, relaxed and for a moment Cole knew true contentment. His eyes drifted closed as he explored Sunshine’s body and he couldn’t help smile. This was his definition of heaven.
He was well along to being ready for another round of lovemaking when Sunshine spoke again.
“Cole, about what I asked you…”
When Cole stiffened behind her, his hands stopping mid-stroke, Sunshine knew she had his attention. She hadn’t meant to spoil the mood, but things needed to be said and now was the time to say them.
“I’ve thought about that a lot,” he said, his deep voice rumbling against her back.
“I know,” she hurried to say. “I know that I was asking you a lot. I’ve realized I don’t—”
“I’ll do it.”
Sunshine twisted around to look at him. “Really?”
“Really. There’ll have to be compromises, though. If we’re both working full time, we’ll need help.”
“Of course.” She hadn’t realized how much it would mean to her for Cole to say what he’d said. “But do you really mean it?”
“I just said I did.” He chuckled. “Don’t you believe me?”
“Of course I do. It’s just—”
“It’s just nothing. It’s what I want to do. There’s something else we need to talk about, though.”
“What’s that?” Worry gripped her again. Cole sounded so serious.
“We need to set a date for our wedding. I was going to wait until Christmas morning to ask you when you wanted to get hitched, but I can’t wait any longer. I’m ready to move ahead with our lives.”
Sunshine couldn’t wait either. Suddenly she wanted Cole—all of him—and not just between her legs but in her life, signed, sealed and delivered with Montana’s stamp of approval on it. “When?”
“Whenever you want. How about on New Year’s? We can throw together a wedding in a week, can’t we?”
Sunshine didn’t care if they could or not. “Yes. New Year’s. We’ll invite everyone. I’ll ask Mia for help.” She reached up and kissed him under his chin. He turned her back to her original position, lifted her up and settled her more firmly on his lap. It was obvious he was ready to make love to her again.
She was ready for him, too.
She lifted her hips and sank down again as he pushed inside. The water rippled with their movements and Sunshine sighed, knowing what bliss was to come. Once again, Cole made good use of his position to stroke her body until Sunshine was burning with desire. Cole thrust in and out of her slowly until he had her writhing against him, wanting more. Her position gave her no control over the situation, so all she could do was lie back and let Cole love her, which he did with a skill that brought her to an earth-shattering climax before too long. As he pulsed into her, his groans mingling with her cries, Sunshine knew she’d found the man she was made to spend her life with. Their lives would be complicated, but she didn’t care; not as long as she had Cole.
“I guess this is as good as it gets,” Cole said cheerfully as he and Luke prepared to leave the restaurant the next afternoon. The youngest Matheson son, Luke, was every inch a cowboy, and reveled in running the Double-Bar-K. He had offered to lend Cole a hand to finish up the last-minute details at the restaurant, and he’d brought his daughter, Pam, along so that Mia could finish preparations for the Christmas Eve celebrations.
Luke had managed to help a lot while Pam played with the toys he’d placed inside her portable playpen. Every twenty minutes or so, he lifted her out and carried her piggy back around the place to check things out. The little girl crowed with laughter every time he lifted her to his shoulders, using her tiny fingers to twist his short hair into reins which she used to guide him around. Cole had to laugh to see the cocky cowboy at the mercy of his daughter, but Luke bore it all with a sense of humor and good grace. “Can’t raise a pushover,” he said to Cole at one point. “I know what men are like. If I have anything to say about it, she’s going to be one formidable lady.”
“I think the place looks great,” Luke said now. He pushed open the front door and let a swirl of cold air blow in. Still holding Pam in one arm, he picked up her portable playpen, hefted it through the opening, and set it down on the sidewalk outside.
Cole agreed. The place was clean, all traces of the former 80s décor gone. The floors looked great and the walls had been painted a warm modern tone that would give Sunshine a hint of the possibilities the place held. While it lacked tables and chairs, he knew she’d want to pick out those herself. The space was clean and open. He felt sure Sunshine would love it.