STORY EXCERPT

Charly’s mind swirled with images of the Hotel Cactus burning, of Darren Blue outside her room, and of Seth atop a horse. Had any of it actually happened, or was she only drifting in some imaginary haze?

“I think she’s awake.” Tobias’s voice wasn’t from a dream. He was actually with her.

She opened her eyes and saw all the Strong brothers surrounding her.

“We’re here, sweetheart.” Drake touched her cheek.

“I’m confused,” she admitted, realizing she was in a hospital. Then she felt pain in her chest.

“What’s the last thing you remember, honey?” Nate asked her.

“I don’t know. It’s all mixed up in my head.”

Seth stepped up beside Nate. “More importantly, how are you feeling?”

“My chest hurts, Seth.”

“On a scale of one to ten, how’s your pain?”

“A four or five,” she said, trying to be tough, though it might’ve actually been a six or seven.

“I can tell by your grimaces it’s more than that, Charly.” He hit the call button.

A female voice came over the speaker. “Yes?”

“Nurse, Charly is awake and needs something for pain.”

“I’ll be right there.”

“Seth, you were on a horse, right?” Charly asked.

“Yes, I was. What else do you remember?”

“That’s the last thing I...wait. Did I fall down?” She couldn’t clear her head for some reason.

“You did,” Seth answered.

“Did I trip? I can be a bit of a klutz.” She tried to sit up, but the pain in her chest kept her from it.

“Easy, honey.”

“Did I land face first and hit my chest on a rock or something?” She moved her hand up her body, trying to discover what contraptions she was attached to.

Nate spoke softly, “Relax, sweetheart.”

Charly couldn’t relax. Besides the IV in the back of her hand, she discovered a tube that was under her arm. “What’s this?”

“A chest tube,” Seth stated calmly, moving the hair out of her eyes. “Your lung collapsed, Charly. There are still some bubbles in it, so the doctor needs to leave it in.”

Panic ripped a wide path through her body, causing her to tremble. “Why? What happened?” And then it all came flooding back into her mind. Seth had been on his horse. She had gone to see him to talk about Heath’s idea, her dream, of the six brothers and her forming a family. Seth hadn’t been receptive at all, and his temper had flared. Then it had happened. She’d been shot.

“Here we go.” The dark-headed nurse pushed her way to the side of Charly’s bed. “You know, gentlemen, we’re breaking hospital rules allowing so many of you in her room at one time. There should only be two of you in here.”

Seth shook his head. “We’ve got this covered, Pamela. We all wanted to be here when she woke up. We’ll keep it to two from now on.”

“Thanks, Seth.” Pamela turned to Charly and smiled. “This’ll help you rest, Ms. Wynn.”

As the nurse sent the medicine into the IV tube, Charly shook her head. “I was shot.”

“Yes, sweetheart,” Seth answered. “But you’re fine now. You’re going to be okay. I’ll make sure of that.”

“We all will,” Heath added.

“Who shot me?” she asked as the medicine took hold of her, softening her pain and making her eyelids so very heavy.

“We don’t know, but we will find out,” Seth answered, with a tone that told her he meant business.

“Gentlemen, you do need to pick who stays and who leaves. You’ve got five minutes.” Nurse Pamela walked to the door. “The patient needs her rest.” Then she exited into the hallway.

Charly tried to force herself to stay awake. “My...mom...does she...”

Seth leaned down and gently kissed her on the lips. “She’s on her way, sweetheart.”

He kissed me! As the medicine pushed her over the edge into slumber, one last thought spun in her head. Maybe I can have it all.

ADULT EXCERPT

“So, I must punish you for teasing me,” he stated flatly.

Trepidation inched through her, but past her anxiety was a deep-seated craving.

Seth continued, “What kind of punishment should I give you?”

He wasn’t asking her, and it was clear he already knew what kind of punishment he wanted to give her. Still, he was having fun drawing it out, making her wait and shiver.

His hand touched her shoulder and squeezed. “The first thing that I want to happen is for you to strip for me, sub. That’ll help me make up my mind. Do a good job and I might not make you suffer too much.”

“Yes, Sir,” Charly choked out. “I’ll do my best.”

He gently stroked her hair. “I know you will. Now, stand up and give me a show.”

She instantly obeyed, rising to her feet while he remained on the sofa.

Looking down at what she wore made her cringe. While she was in the hospital, her mom and Jessie had gone shopping to replace her wardrobe, which had burned in the fire. They’d bought her plenty of clothing, but only basic items. She was still in the flannel pajamas they’d selected. There wasn’t anything sexy about them. How in the world was she going to give her cowboy Dom a striptease in these?

“You’re making me wait again, sub.” His eyelids narrowed into a clear warning that he was losing patience. “Not good. Not good at all.”

I’ve got to work with what I have. Think sexy. Be sexy. Tingles danced over her skin as she lowered her flannel pants to her knees and then pulled them back up again. His eyes zeroed in between her thighs. She had slipped on some pale-pink panties and a bra after her bath this morning. They had some sexiness to them, definitely more than her oversized pj’s. She thought about ripping the flannel off, but thought better of it. Think burlesque, Charly. Getting a man on the edge of his seat had more to do with the tease than anything else, she believed. With that in mind, she unbuttoned the top half of her pj’s as slowly as possible, which wasn’t hard since her hands were shaking.

She glanced at Seth. His fingers were curling and uncurling, from fist to open hand and back again. She was getting to him, which got to her. Her body was tingling and getting really warm.

She opened the flannel top to reveal her bra to his fixed stare, and then she closed it fast. His nostrils were flaring, and she could see the bulge in his jeans growing. Wiggling her hips slightly, she once again slipped down her PJ bottoms, but this time stepping out of them, leaving her lower half covered by only her panties.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Seth lick his manly lips. Now, even her sex began to tingle. Again, she flashed him her bra, and again, she closed her top around her breasts.

“Nice tease, sub,” he growled. “Very nice indeed.”

His words went deep into her, igniting a ton of sensations. She felt dampness between her legs, which spurred her to take off the top and throw it into his lap. His smile was her reward.

Standing in front of him in only her bra and panties, with Seth fully clothed in a T-shirt, jeans, and boots, put her at quite the disadvantage. She didn’t care. Being exposed and vulnerable with him only added to her desire.

His eyebrows shot up. “Are you done, sub? Am I going to have to rip off your underwear for you?”

Though the idea of him doing just that was quite exciting, she wanted to finish what she’d started. “No, Sir.”

She unfastened her bra and lowered it down her arms. When it fell to the ground, she covered her mounds with her hands. Then she looked up at him, seeing the impact her striptease was having on him. He had moved forward on the sofa and was literally sitting on the edge of his seat, which made her giggle.

“Something funny, sub?” he asked with a grin.

She shook her head and removed her hands from her breasts, allowing him full view of the upper half of her naked body.

“Very nice, pet. Those are the most gorgeous tits I’ve ever seen. And your nipples are like little berries. I can’t wait to suck on them. Now, what about those panties?”

“These, Sir?” Charly asked, trying to continue the illusion she had any skill at stripping.

He nodded, and then his demeanor changed from observer to director, and a sexy, dangerous one at that. “Take them off, now.”

She didn’t go slow, willing to obey his every word. Instead, she was out of the pale-pink fabric in a flash.

“Get on your tiptoes, sub.”

Again, she obeyed, but wasn’t sure why he’d asked her to do that.

He stood up and walked behind her. “Stay on your toes, pet.”

When she felt his hands cup her ass, a tremble rolled through her and her sex got even wetter. His control and force stoked a roaring fire inside her. From the moment she’d met him outside the chapel on the night of Jessie’s rehearsal, she sensed he could blow the doors off her most secret places. Can I close them once he’s done with me? She didn’t think so, but refusing him anything at this moment wasn’t even conceivable.

“Time for your punishment, sub.”