Ride: A Bad Boy Romance (37 page)

T
his is not a good idea
,
Jules thought.

Not that it mattered, because she wasn’t about to stop what she was doing.

You’re leaving town in two, maybe three days, and then you’ll be miserable
, she thought.
Better to not do this
.

Already, she was moving onto her knees, Seth’s hand warm and strong on her back, pressing herself against his hard body in a way that made her whole body feel like it had just come alive.

His brother’s downstairs
, she thought.

Seth’s hands hovered on her shirt, right above the waist of her jeans, and for a moment, Jules moved her lips away from his, their foreheads leaning together, both of them panting. Jules kept her eyes closed, like that would make this less real.

“This might be a bad idea,” she said. As she spoke, she traced the hard outlines of his stomach through his t-shirt, each muscular bump raising her heartbeat a few notches.

“It might be,” he said, his voice low and teasing, with a hungry note she’d never heard before. “After all, I barely know you.”

“Hey, that’s supposed to be my line,” Jules said.

One of Seth’s fingers found the place where her shirt rode up by a centimeter, the skin on her back exposed, and he ran his fingertip against it. Warmth flooded Jules’s body, and she could feel her rational thought processes shutting down, one by one.

She was pretty sure that if Seth were doing this purely for his own profit, he wouldn’t look at her quite like
that.

Besides, there was no way she was going back to the horrible RV when
this
was here.

“As long as it’s established that we’re not being smart right now,” she said, leaning her hips into him, inviting his hand to move along the skin of her back, under her shirt.

“Not even a little,” he agreed.

Jules kissed him and reached for the top button of her own shirt, moving quickly down the line of buttons until the whole front was open, and almost immediately, Seth had pushed it off of her shoulders, tossing it somewhere in the attic with a growl.

“Hey, I have to find that later,” she gasped as he kissed her jawline, then nibbled the delicate skin down her neck and to her collarbone, making her eyes slide shut in pleasure.

Seth just shrugged, one hand tight around her ribcage, the other still on her back, his mouth at the hollow of her throat. Jules heard someone heave a deep sigh of pleasure, only to realize that it was her.

Moments later, her bra was off, and she yanked it off of her arms, throwing it behind her as Seth moved his mouth to her rosy, pebbled nipples, swiping his tongue along one as Jules gasped.

“You should be quiet,” Seth said, his voice low and gravelly. “My little brother’s asleep downstairs.”

“Shut up,” she gasped, and Seth chuckled for a moment before closing his teeth around her nipple and biting, just barely.

Jules’s back arched. By now she was on the attic’s cool wooden floor, Seth on top of her as he licked and sucked at her nipples. She wrapped her legs around his waist and hips. The feel of his bulk between her legs, even if she was still clothed, made her a little dizzy with anticipation.

What the hell is happening?
She thought.
This is so fast.

Is it?
Part of her whispered back.
I’m pretty sure you wanted to do this yesterday, the first time he kissed you.

She tugged his shirt over his head and Seth got up on his knees, tossing it to the side, and hesitated for a moment.

Jules thought he might have the most perfect body she’d ever seen, and for a moment she was totally speechless. The only thought in her mind was
I want
.

Then he reached for the waistband of her jeans
and pulled her even closer to him, and Jules squealed, just a little.

“Shh,” Seth said with a grin.

Then he unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans, tugging them down to her hiking boots along with her underwear.

“Shit,” Jules said, laughing at her pants stuck against her boots, the rest of her totally naked.

“I was almost so smooth, too,” said Seth, as he yanked at the laces of her boots. Moments later, they were off, thumping against the floor as he tossed them, her pants following in a heap, and before Jules could blink his lips were on her belly, then her belly button, then the inside of her upper thigh, his hands pushing her legs apart, her knees over his shoulders.

“You don’t have to—” she started to say, and then Seth’s tongue slid along her with an intensity that made her gasp and shudder, her back arching again.

She could swear she felt him grin, but then his tongue began making slow circles around her, teasing at her lips and channel, then flattening against her nub.

It took all of Jules’s self control not to grab Seth’s hair as he licked at her, each stroke of his tongue driving her higher and higher, her body responding to him like she’d never felt it respond to
anything
before.

“Seth,” she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut. She could feel herself getting closer and closer, about to pass that point of no return.

He didn’t respond, but circled her clit with his tongue, making Jules claw her hands along the wooden floorboards.

“I’m close,” she gasped. “I’m gonna finish if you don’t stop.”

He flattened his tongue again and then swiped it across her, pressing hard against the small, sensitive nub, then did it again and again until Jules finally felt like she’d reached the edge and she was falling over it, no longer in control of her own body as the pleasure swelled throughout her, exploding as her fingers and toes curled against Seth.

Jules lay on the floor, gasping for air, waiting for the world to feel like it wasn’t tilting anymore, and then she looked down to see Seth resting his head on her belly, grinning.

“What?” she asked.

“That was so sexy,” he said.

Then he grabbed her by the hand and pulled her upright, so she was sitting on the horse blanket again. Without pausing, she kissed him again, hard, tasting herself on his lips just a little, and then reached for the button and zipper on his pants, yanking them open ferociously and reaching inside, bringing out his long, thick erection and sliding her hand from root to tip.

Seth sucked in his breath, closing his eyes. He put his hand on hers, and Jules bit her lip, feeling the fire inside herself rekindle.

Then Seth kicked off his shoes, and Jules grabbed his jeans and pulled them, tossing them across the attic and straddling him with her knees, his shaft between them as she moved in, pressing their bodies together completely, Seth sitting up against the huge, heavy trunk. His hands moved over her deftly, surprisingly gentle for being so rough and calloused.

Jules rocked against him, listening to the gasps and grunts that Seth made.

“I want you,” he growled.

She couldn’t resist any longer. Jules took his length in her hand, then raised herself on her knees, sliding the head against her wet lips, and slid herself down, letting him fill her completely as she buried her face in the nook between his head and shoulder, moaning softly.

Seth growled, and Jules began to rock back and forth gently at first, feeling him move back and forth inside of her, hitting every sensitive spot there. Gradually, she moved harder and faster, and the pressure inside her built and built.

He nuzzled her neck and then bit it, gently, making her yelp, and then he moved their foreheads together. For a moment, Jules was nearly knocked backward by the intensity of his gaze, his gold-brown eyes gleaming.

Seth held the sides of her face, moving together with her like they were one being.

“I’m close,” he whispered.

Jules just nodded and swallowed, trying to find her words.

“Me too,” she whispered, and already she could feel that white-hot sensation coming on, starting in her core and radiating outward, threatening to take over her whole body.

“Is it okay?”

“Yes,” Jules whispered, and then she bit her lip and the heat exploded through herself, swimming through her veins and taking her over completely, her forehead still against Seth’s as she writhed against him, her hips moving out of her control, the white heat flooding through her fingertips and toes until she was utterly spent. Seth growled, his hands tightening on the soft flesh of her hips and before she knew what was happening, she was on her back again, Seth over her.

He thrust inside her twice, then three times, her legs wrapped around him and then she could feel him stiffen and jerk inside her as he emptied himself, his whole body going rigid with the effort.

Then he slumped against her, and Jules realized that they were both a disgustingly sweaty mess, half-covered in attic dust to boot. She kissed the top of Seth’s head, feeling oddly possessive of him in that moment, like she never wanted to leave that attic.

After a long time, he rolled off, lying on the floor next to her, and Jules laced her fingers through his, her forehead against his shoulder. Finally, he turned toward her, kissing her on top of the head again.

“We should just go to bed,” he said. “I don’t think we’re going to find the deed up here.”

Jules threw an arm across him and snuggled in, ignoring the cool hard floor.

“You’re probably right,” she said.

W
hen Jules woke
up the next morning, she realized two things pretty quickly. One was that she wasn’t in her RV: her back didn’t hurt from the lumpy mattress, and instead of staring at an ugly ceiling, she was looking at a real wall, with real windows.

The second was that Seth had his arms wrapped around her, one leg over hers, his face buried in the back of her neck, his chest rising and falling against her back.

Jules grinned into the pillow.

Maybe if we don’t save the mesa he’ll move to Dallas with me
, she thought. She didn’t particularly like Dallas, but it was where Quarcom headquarters were.

Or maybe I can quit Quarcom and get a job that isn’t evil, and we can move somewhere else, and we’ll get married and he can be a stay-at-home dad.

For just a moment, she let herself imagine Seth walking around the house, a grinning, red-haired-and-dimpled toddler holding onto his fingers as he bent over.

You might be getting a little ahead of yourself
, she thought.

Behind her, Seth stirred and then yawned, wriggling his body against hers, shaking the whole bed a little.

“Morning,” he grumbled, turning over onto his back. Then he sniffed the air. “Who’s making bacon?”

Jules sniffed too, then sat up on her elbows.

“Must be Zach,” she said.

“Why isn’t he at work?”

“He’s probably still looking for the deed or something,” she said.

“I don’t think he ever sleeps,” grumbled Seth. He flung both arms over his eyes and kicked the blanket away, revealing a sculpted chest and six-pack abs.

Jules didn’t mind the view.

“Okay. I’m up,” he said, and heaved himself out of bed. “You can sleep in if you want.”

“Nah, I’m awake,” said Jules, swinging her legs over the side of the bed.

Z
ach had indeed made
bacon in the kitchen, along with toast and a whole box of pop tarts. As Seth walked in, Zach tossed him one, and Seth caught it, taking a bite.

When Zach saw Jules, he raised his eyebrows a little, but didn’t say anything.

Yes, we did it, and no, you don’t need to comment,
Seth thought, frowning.

“You like blueberry pop tarts?” Zach asked her.

“Sure,” Jules said, and caught one as it flew through the air.

Her catch seemed to please Zach.

Seth walked to the coffee maker. The pot was full.

“Is this from yesterday?” he asked.

“Nope. I made another pot maybe ten minutes ago,” said Zach.

I thought he was a little too awake
, thought Seth. He poured two cups, then handed one to Jules.

“So I was thinking,” said Zach. He took the bacon out of the pan and put it on a plate, then carried the plate to the kitchen table, putting it down next to a half-empty box of pop tarts.

I can’t believe I’m serving this breakfast to a girl,
Seth thought.

“Do you remember those stories mom used to tell us about Grampa Otis’s treasure?” asked Zach.

Seth thought, furrowing his brow, and took a piece of bacon.

“Barely,” he said. “He had a stash of gold or something, somewhere that no one could ever find it?”

“Right,” said Zach, taking a piece of bacon himself. “In the story, it was worth more than all the gold and jewels in the world, and the thing he always told people was ‘you can always see it’ or some poetic version of that, right?”

“Oh, I hated that story,” said Seth. “Mom always said the treasure turned out to be love or something, which was a terrible way to end a fun story.”

“It was her favorite, though. She told it to me all the time, like she was really into this treasure. Or,” Zach said, pointing his bacon at Seth, “Like she was trying to tell me something.”

Seth narrowed his eyes, trying to remember his mom’s story. They all mingled together, to be honest, and he’d liked the ones more about the things his ancestors had seen and done, flying over the desert.

Besides, as the oldest, by the time he’d been old enough to really listen to stories, there had also been Garrett and then Zach, so his mom hadn’t had as much time to sit with him, spinning tales. But since Zach had been the youngest, he’d been the recipient of more flights of fancy.

“She
also
used to tell us how Grampa Otis was always bringing her and her sisters stuff from the mesa when she was really little. I think he died when she was four or something, but she said she saw him up there once, just walking around. She swears it was him.”

“There’s that goat path that goes to the top,” Seth offered. “Right?”

Zach shook his head. “That crumbled,” he said. “But anyway. What if we’re looking in the wrong place? What if there’s a stash somewhere on the mesa itself, what if that’s where they put stuff they never wanted to lose?”

Suddenly, Seth felt a tingle in the base of his spine. Without answering his brother, he took another bite of bacon, then looked out the kitchen window at the mesa.

“Do we have binoculars?” he asked.

“I’ve got some in the truck,” Jules said. “You want them?”

“Yeah, if you don’t mind,” he said, his eyes searching the big red cliff.

Minutes later, the bacon was getting cold on the table as the three of them stood out in the back yard, Seth searching the mesa with the binoculars, the tingling only intensifying.

This is it
, he thought.
It’s up there. I don’t know how I know, but I’m sure
.

“I can’t see it from here,” he said. “But there’s plenty of places to put something. Eagle nests, ledges, little pockets, all that.”

He felt like the mesa was singing to him, and he couldn’t tear his eyes away, even as he handed his brother the binoculars.

“I’ll climb up there,” he offered.

“You can’t get up there,” said Zach. “The trail fell off.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” said Zach. “You don’t remember that landslide when we were kids?”

Seth just shrugged. Right now, landslides didn’t matter. He’d find a way around it. The sandstone had plenty of hand and foot holds. What mattered was getting up there, the details of how weren’t important.

“Is there somewhere we can rent a helicopter or something?” Jules asked.

Both the brothers looked at her.

“I’m just spitballing, okay?” she said, a little defensively.

“Sorry,” said Seth. “Do we have climbing equipment?”

Equipment would be nice, but it wasn’t necessary. He was trying it either way.

Zach shook his head.

“No,” he said. “Look, it was a dumb idea. We’ve got no way to get up there, and besides, that thing is huge. Unless there’s a giant red arrow pointing at a spot, I think we’re better off going through all the papers one more time. I can go up to Blanding and use the school library to maybe go through the Salt Lake Tribune archives or something?”

It’s not in the archives. You can’t find it by research,
thought Seth.
It’s up there. I know it.

He took a deep breath and nodded, acting like he agreed with his little brother. He had a plan, and it didn’t involve arguing with Zach or even Jules about whether he
should
try to climb the mesa.

“I can keep going through the attic,” Jules offered, as the three of them walked back inside. “We should probably split up tasks, get things done faster.”

They entered the kitchen, but Seth continued down the hall, nerves tingling.

“I gotta use the bathroom,” he said. “One minute.”

Jules and Zach just nodded, still talking about archive searches.

Seth opened and shut the bathroom door, then sneaked to the front door. He put on his boots, then opened the door very, very quietly, and stepped out.

He moved around the house as sneakily as he could, keeping close to the building, ducking underneath the kitchen windows where he could still hear Zach and Jules discussing what sort of database might contain a deed from the 1870s.

I’m glad they’re getting along
, Seth thought, pausing for a moment under the window.
I don’t know what I’d do if they didn’t.

Then he started running toward the mesa. It was at least a mile away, but he was in good shape, even if he was wearing jeans. The dusty air felt like it stuck in his throat and sweat poured down his back, but he didn’t care.

He
had
to get there. He had to.

Seth turned slightly, aiming for the corner where he remembered the path being. Actually, “path” was a generous word — it was barely a way up, sometimes used by mountain goats to get to the top of the mesa, which sometimes had more grass for them to eat. When they were kids, he and his brothers had dared each other to climb as high as they could on it, though none of them ever got all that far.

His heart beating almost out of his chest, Seth stepped on the path with one foot, then the other. He steadied himself against the rock wall with one hand, concentrating completely on staying upright and not falling.

Left foot, right foot, left foot, don’t fall,
Seth thought.

It was slow and terrifying, but Seth gradually made his way up the mesa.