Page 15 of Cowboy Daddy
She pulls back enough to look at me, her big blue eyes shiny with unshed tears. "You don’t know him. He’s mean. Persistent. He won’t stop until he drags me back or... or worse."
I cup her face with both hands, my thumbs brushing away the tears that escape. Her skin’s soft and warm under my rough palms. "Look at me, Sunny. I do know men like him. I spent years dealing with worse in the service. He comes here, he meets me. And I promise you, he won’t like what happens."
Her hands slide up my chest, fingers curling into the open flannel. The touch sends heat through me despite the situation. Even scared, she fits perfectly against me. The chemistry between us simmers underneath everything, charged and ready to ignite. I lean in and kiss her forehead, then her cheeks, tasting the salt of her tears.
"Daddy," she whispers, the word breaking something open in me. "I’ve never had anyone keep me safe like this. Not really. It feels too good to be true."
"It’s true," I growl softly, pulling her closer so her chest presses against mine. I can feel her heartbeat racing. "You’re mine now. This mountain is yours. Haven 7 is yours. I’m yours. No one takes that away."
I kiss her then, slow and deep, pouring every ounce of my need and promise into it. She tastes like sleep and sweetness and trust. Her lips part for me, soft and yielding, and I slide mytongue against hers, claiming her mouth the way I want to claim every part of her. My hands slide down her back to grip her ass under the flannel shirt, pulling her tighter against my growing hardness. Even now, with danger knocking, I want her. Need her. The feel of her warm bare skin under my palms grounds me.
She moans softly into the kiss, rocking against me instinctively. The friction of her bare pussy against the rough denim of my jeans makes me groan. "That’s it, sunshine. Let Daddy feel you. You’re safe right here."
We stay like that for a long time, kissing and touching, my hands roaming her body under the shirt while I whisper promises against her lips. I tell her how I’ll keep watch. How the men at Haven 7 will help patrol. How I will teach her to shoot if she wants. How no one will ever hurt her again. Her fear slowly melts into something warmer, trust and need mixing together.
Eventually I carry her back to bed, stripping off my clothes and pulling her naked body against mine under the quilts. The sheets are still warm from earlier. I hold her close, one leg thrown over hers, my cock nestled against her soft stomach. Not for sex this time, just for the comfort of skin on skin.
"Tell me more about him," I say quietly, my fingers tracing patterns on her hip. "Everything. So I know what we’re dealing with."
She talks for a while, her voice soft in the dark. I listen to every detail, committing it to memory. The way Derek controlled her. The yelling. The times he found her. Each story makes my blood burn hotter, but I stay calm for her, stroking her hair and kissing her temple. Sensory details ground me. The silk of her hair between my fingers. The warmth of her breath on my chest. The faint scent of berries still on her lips from breakfast.
When she finally falls quiet, I tilt her chin up and kiss her again. Deeper this time. Hungrier. "You are staying right here with me. Forever if you want it. I’ll make sure of it."
She smiles against my mouth, that quirky sunshine peeking through even in the dark. "I want it, Daddy. I want all of it. The horses. The family dinners. You. Every grumpy protective inch of you."
We make love slowly after that, my body covering hers, moving deep and steady. I whisper dirty praises in her ear the whole time. How perfect her pussy feels. How she’s such a good girl for Daddy. How I’m going to fill her every night so she never doubts she belongs here. She comes twice, clinging to me and calling me Daddy in that sweet broken voice that undoes me completely. When I finally spill inside her, marking her as mine, the release washes away some of the rage, leaving only fierce determination.
Afterward I hold her as she drifts toward sleep, my arms locked around her like a shield. The cabin is quiet again. The wind has died down outside. I listen to every creak and whisper, my senses alert even as my body relaxes around hers.
Everything will be okay. I’ll make it so. Derek can ask all the questions he wants in Timber Creek. He can poke around the B&B and the diner. But the second he steps one foot toward Wedding Cake Mountain, toward my woman, he’ll learn what real fear feels like.
Sunny sighs happily in her sleep, nuzzling closer. I press one last kiss to her hair and close my eyes, but sleep comes slow. My mind runs through plans. Extra patrols. Talking to the other men at Haven 7. Making sure Sunny stays within sight until this is handled.
She’s my sunshine. My future. And I’ll burn down anything that tries to take her away from me.
The night stretches on, the fire popping softly in the other room, and I hold her tighter, feeling her heartbeat sync with mine. This is only the beginning of us. And no ex is going to ruin it.
ELEVEN
SUNNY
The mountain air feels like freedom today, crisp and clean with that sharp pine bite that makes my lungs tingle every time I breathe in deep. Mabel moves steady beneath me, her warm flanks shifting with each step through the snow-dusted field, and I can’t stop smiling even though my cheeks are numb from the cold. Harlan rides Buck right beside me, his big body relaxed in the saddle like he was born there, all rugged lines and quiet strength that makes my heart do those silly cartwheels it has been doing nonstop since I met him. The sun sparkles off the fresh powder, turning the whole world into a glittering wonderland, and for a moment everything feels like the perfect romcom scene. The grumpy cowboy and his sunshine girl on a peaceful ride, falling deeper in love with every hoofbeat.
"Look at that view, Daddy," I say, my voice bright and bubbly even with the nervous flutter in my chest from everything Silas told us last night. I point toward the distant valley where Timber Creek nestles like a cozy little secret. "It’s even prettier than yesterday. Like the mountain decided to put on its best sparkly dress just for us."
Harlan grunts, that low protective rumble I love so much, but his eyes scan the tree line constantly. He has been extra vigilant since the knock at the door, his hand never far from the rifle strapped to his saddle. "Stay close, sunshine. No wandering off."
I nudge Mabel a little nearer to Buck until our knees almost brush. The contact sends that familiar charged spark through me, the one that’s been on fire between us since the first time he pulled me into his arms. "I’m right here. I wouldn’t dream of leaving my favorite grumpy protector. Not when you look this good in the saddle. All strong and commanding and... well, mine."
He glances over at me, and even with the worry etched in his rugged face, heat flares in those dark eyes. The kind of look that promises he’ll have me naked and moaning his name the second we get back to the cabin. I love how much he wants me. How safe he makes me feel. How he’s the Daddy I never knew I needed, the one who holds me after, who whispers that everything will be okay while his rough hands stroke my skin like I’m something precious.
We ride deeper into the open field, the snow crunching softly under the horses' hooves. Mabel's mane tickles my hands where I hold the reins, and the leather smells rich and oiled from Harlan's careful care. The wind whispers through the tall grasses poking up through the white blanket, carrying the faint scent of distant woodsmoke from the compound. Everything feels alive and beautiful. I can picture our life here so clearly. Morning rides like this turning into evening cuddles by the fire, family dinners with Rafe and Harper and all the others, lazy days where Harlan teaches me more about the horses and I make him laugh with my silly stories.
"Harlan, I keep thinking about last night," I say softly, guiding Mabel around a small drift. The memory of his body moving over mine, the way he filled me so completely while calling me his good girl, sends warmth pooling low in my belly despite the cold. "About how you held me after. How you promised you would keep me safe. I have never had that before. Never had a man who made me feel like the world couldn’t touch me as long as I was in his arms."
He reaches over and catches my hand for a moment, squeezing it tight. His grip is strong and sure, calluses rough. "You’re safe, Sunny. I meant every word. Derek comes near you, he’s done."
I squeeze back, letting his warmth seep into me. The chemistry between us crackles in the air, that on-fire pull that makes every glance feel like foreplay. I’m about to tease him about sneaking in a quick kiss when the sharp crack of a gunshot splits the peaceful quiet.
