A Long, Sweet Ride

The mare finally reached the end of the arena and slowed to a walk, and then stopped altogether. Diana leaned against the horse, afraid if she let go her legs wouldn't be able to support her. Her heart pounded so hard it hurt, and each breath brought a sharp pain to her side.

Corey's arms slipped around her, He pried her hands from the saddle horn, picked her up and carried her to the mounting block. She clung to him, her arms around his iron-hard shoulders cheek pressed against the soft fabric of his shirt. She clenched her teeth to keep them from chattering in the wake of the tremors that shook her.

He started to sit her down on the mounting block, but she couldn't pry her arms from around his shoulders. His warmth seemed to be the only thing keeping her from freezing, his arms her only refuge against the panic that lurked on the edge of her senses.

He sat, cradling her in his lap. He stroked her back and made soothing noises in his throat. She closed her eyes and forced herself to think of something—anything—but how close she'd come to being trampled beneath iron-shod hooves.

Her breathing slowed and the pain in her side eased. Weariness settled over her in place of panic. Her brush with death had reduced other worries to pettiness. She was safe, warm and sheltered and the temptation was strong to hide here for a while from harsh realities.
She realized the steady thumping in her ear wasn't her own heart beating, but Corey's. She opened her eyes and stared up at him. His face was patterned with shadows in the fading light, his eyes like bottomless pools. She could not name the emotions she saw there, but they stirred great longing within her. Her breasts felt heavy and tender, and an ache began to grow somewhere deep within her.

She watched, mesmerized, as Corey moistened his lips. She opened her mouth, inhaling the warmth of his breath. A faint voice in the back of her head tried to tell her to stand up and walk away, but she ignored it, savoring the new sensations that swept over her.

Corey bent his head, and she closed her eyes as their lips met. The first touch was slight, the barest brush of skin to skin. She leaned toward him and he pressed his mouth more firmly to hers, warm and eager.

At the first touch of his tongue, she parted her lips. He tasted of coffee and a tangy sweetness all his own. The velvet stroke of his tongue across the tender recesses of her mouth left her dizzy and breathless.

She brushed the tip of her tongue across the slick smoothness of his teeth and trembled as a low moan rose up from his throat. Had anything else ever felt so good as the gentle pressure of his arms around her and the warmth of his body pressed against hers?

A horse snorted and stamped its foot, loud as a gunshot in the night stillness. The noise jerked Diana from her trance, awaking her to the realization of where she was and what she was doing. Panic flooded her senses. She struggled in Corey's arms. "Let me go. Please let me go!"