Mary Baxter - At The Texan's Pleasure

Heat pooled between her thighs as their eyes remained locked.

She saw him swallow with effort, causing his Adam’s apple to bob up and down as he slowly, but surely pushed away from the post and made his way toward her, his fingers busily unzipping his jeans.

All of that seemed to take place in slow motion as she lay unmoving, her heart pumping so loudly she could hear it in her ears. By the time he reached her, Molly’s eyes were no longer on his face but rather on the juncture at his thighs where his erection was thick and hard.

She couldn’t speak; her mouth was too dry. She could only watch him lift his arms and pull off his T-shirt, then toss it aside. A gasp slipped past her lips as her eyes covered every inch of his big, beautiful body, settling on his erection that seemed to be increasing by the moment.

Blood pounded from her heart into her head at such a rapid rate that it made her dizzy. Yet she couldn’t have removed her eyes from him if someone had threatened her life with a gun. It wasn’t as if that had been the first time she’d seen him in the buff, either.

It hadn’t. Far from it, actually.

Since her arrival that summer at his ranch, she and Worth had become an instant item. It had been lust at first sight.

When that lust had turned to love, Molly couldn’t say. Maybe it had been after he’d taken her that first time. From then on, he hadn’t been able to keep his hands off her and vice versa. With summer coming to an end, nothing had changed. Every time Worth looked at her, or came near her, her bones melted.

That day was no exception.

“You’re a beautiful man,” she said in her sultry voice that now had a crack in it.

He merely grinned, then knelt beside her and promptly removed her clothing.

“Not nearly as beautiful as you,” he rasped, his gaze now covering every inch of her flesh.

He bent over and latched onto an already burgeoning nipple and sucked it until she couldn’t keep still. Finally releasing it, he moved to the other one and did likewise. Only after he left her breasts and began to lick his way down her stomach did she take action, latching onto his erection, rubbing her thumb in and around the opening.

Worth let out a loud groan as he nudged her legs apart and gently inserted two fingers inside her.

“Oh, yes,” she whimpered, her hips going crazy.

“Baby, baby, you’re so wet, so ready.”

“Please, now. Don’t make me wait.”

Propping himself on his hands, Worth leaned further over her, then entered her with unerring accuracy. For a moment he didn’t move, seemingly to enjoy the way she formed a tight sheath around him, his eyes burning deeply into hers.

Then he pumped up and down until the fiery explosion hit them at the same time. Moments later he lay limp on her with her arms clasped tightly around him.

“Am I too heavy?” he whispered at last, his breath caressing her ear.

“No.”

“Oh, but I am.” He chuckled, then rolled over so that she was now on top of him.

She leaned down, kissed him, and said in an awed voice, “I can’t believe you’re still inside me.”

“Me, either, especially since all the lead’s gone out of my pencil.”

She giggled and kissed him again.

Suddenly his gaze darkened on her. “Know what?”

“I know lots of whats,” she said in a teasing voice. “One of them is that I love you.”

“I love you, too, so much that I got carried away and didn’t use a condom.”

For several seconds, silence fell between them.

“Are you mad at me?” he asked.

“No,” Molly responded, feeling her brows gather in a frown. “It takes two to tango, as the saying goes.”

“Right, but I should’ve been more responsible.”

“Shh. It’s okay. It’s not the right time of the month for me.” Molly paused. “At least I don’t think so.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t you dare say that. I loved every minute of it. There’s nothing to be sorry about.”

It was the thought of those words that jerked Molly out of the past back into the present. Back to reality. To the pain and hurt that had resulted from that passionate afternoon of lovemaking.

Knowing her face was drenched with tears, Molly went into the bathroom and wet a washcloth with cold water. Though the cloth felt like ice against her skin, it did what she’d hoped it would and that was clear her fogged mind.

She couldn’t change what had happened between her and Worth. All she could do was change how she reacted to him now. Though the aftermath of their affair had left deep and lasting scars, she wasn’t sorry because out of it had come the blessing of her life—her son.

For that she would never be sorry.

It was then that Molly suddenly heard the sound of an engine. Hurrying to the French doors, she walked onto the porch where she saw Worth sitting in his truck. She was still standing in the cold when the taillights disappeared.

With her teeth chattering, she went back inside, not stopping until she was in her mother’s room, facing her son’s animated face.

“Mommy, Mommy, come see what Granna gave me.”

Squaring her shoulders, Molly shoved the past back under lock and key deep in her soul.

“Oh, Doctor, thanks so much for returning my call.”

“Not a problem,” Dr. Roy Coleman responded. “I know you’re concerned about your mother and well you should be.”

Molly winced under the doctor’s direct words, but then she was a nurse, for God’s sake, so she shouldn’t be surprised. Most doctors nowadays didn’t tiptoe around the rose bush. They called the problem as they saw it and let the chips fall where they may. Her boss Sam Nutting was cut from that same bolt of cloth.

Somehow, though, she was reluctant to hear the truth because it was her mother, who had always been Molly’s lifeline and still was. Her dad had died from heart failure when she was young, leaving them without ample resources. Hence, Maxine had had to work her fingers to the bone for other people in order for them to survive. However, she never forsook her daughter; Maxine always found time to spend with Molly no matter how exhausted she was, or how much she had to do.

“Are you still there, Ms. Bailey?”

The doctor’s crisp voice brought Molly back to the moment at hand. “Sorry, I was woolgathering about Mother, actually. Now that I’ve seen her and the condition she’s in, I’m really concerned.”

“As I said earlier, you have good reason. She took a nasty fall, which did major damage to her back, as you already know, of course. The main plus, however, is that she has no fractures.”

Even though Maxine had slipped in the hallway two weeks ago, it seemed much longer to Molly because she hadn’t been able to leave work and come immediately. Her mother had insisted that she not, making light of the accident.

Only after Dr. Coleman talked with her, then sent copies of the MRI did Molly know the extent of the damage to her mother’s back. Ergo, she lost no time in rushing to Maxine’s side.

“I appreciate you keeping me posted at every turn, Doctor.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way. As I told you, Maxine’s special, a rare breed. I know she’s in pain, yet she suffers in silence.”

“Only that’s not good.”

“You’re right. It’s not. I don’t want her in pain. But Maxine is one of—if not the most—hardheaded patients I have.”

“That’s why I’m here, Dr. Coleman, to see that she does like she’s told and behaves herself.”

He chuckled, and Molly liked that. Although she’d never met him, they’d had countless phone conversations. Each time she was more impressed with his sense of humor and his care of her mother.

“I’d like to get another MRI soon, so we can see if the severely strained muscles are beginning to heal on their own. Meanwhile, I’ve ordered a corset for her to wear. In fact, I don’t want her even sitting on the side of the bed without it, much less walking.”

Molly tried to remain upbeat, but under the circumstances that was becoming more difficult by the second. “That sounds like she’s going to be incapacitated for a good little while.”

“Because of her osteoporosis, she will be.”

Molly’s heart sank. “So we’re looking at long-term recovery instead of short-term.” A flat statement of fact.

“Not necessarily. Maxine is so determined that she could rebound much quicker than most, I suspect.” Dr. Coleman paused. “However, work of any kind is out for now.”

“What about physical therapy?”

“That’s coming, but it’s too soon. The corset is enough for now.”

Molly fought back the unknown fears that were festering inside her. For the moment, the picture was dismal. What if her mother never regained the full use of her body? Maxine had always worked, had always been full of energy. She didn’t believe in resting on her laurels, she’d told that to Molly all her life. An honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay had been Maxine’s philosophy.

“You’re going to have to help me convince her that she can’t work, Doctor. So far I don’t think you’ve gotten that across to her. She thinks she’ll be mopping floors next week.”

“Someone will be mopping floors, but it won’t be Maxine.”

“Thank you for being brutally honest with me.” Molly’s sigh was shaky. “Now, I have to be brutally honest with her.”

“If you want to wait, I’ll drive out to the ranch. We’ll gang up on her.”

A doctor who made house calls? No way. Yet he had offered, though Molly wasn’t about to take him up on that offer. She could handle Maxine, but it wouldn’t be easy. No matter. Her mother had no choice but to comply.

“Thank you for your kindness, but let me have a go at it first. If she bucks me, you’ll be the first to know.”

“Call me any time.”

When the conversation ended, Molly held the receiver for a few moments longer, then replaced it, feeling as though she was moving in a daze.

She had dreaded having this session with the doctor because she knew it wasn’t going to be encouraging. Since her arrival yesterday, she had come to realize her mother was indeed in dire straits, with no easy fix.

Now this morning, she had the unpleasant task of breaking the bad news to her mother. Molly was just thankful Trent was with Maxine. Bless his sweet heart, he had rarely left Maxine’s room since they had arrived, seeming to have forgotten the horses and cattle with which he’d been so fascinated. But then Maxine had played with him non-stop. Knowing Maxine was exhausted, Molly finally had to call a halt to their togetherness.

Putting off the inevitable wasn’t going to make things any easier, Molly reminded herself. Squaring her shoulders with resolve, she left her room and headed toward Maxine’s, though not without first taking a furtive look around. While she certainly didn’t expect Worth to be lurking in the shadows waiting to pounce on her, she still found herself somewhat rattled every time she left her room.

She had no idea what time Worth returned home last night, but she knew it was late, having heard him open the door to his room. It didn’t matter where he went or what he did. Their relationship was past history and she had no right or reason to care about his whereabouts. Her aim was to avoid him at all costs.

Only problem with that, she was staying under his roof.

Pushing that unsettling thought aside, Molly knocked lightly on Maxine’s door, then went in, only to pull up short. Her mother was asleep while Trent lay sprawled beside her, coloring in his coloring book.