CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Saying she was going to confront Dustin was easier than actually doing said confrontation, Annie decided.

She tried to seem calm, but her heart was fluttering a mile a minute in her breast, and she couldn’t concentrate. She was distracted all through dinner, absently smiling when the cowboys teased one another or Cass tried to engage her in conversation. It wasn’t their fault she was just completely out of it. They were trying to make her welcome.

She was trying to figure out the best way to broach the subject of “Do you still like me” with Dustin.

To be fair, he wasn’t making things any easier. He was affectionate, sure. He’d touch her back or pull her chair out for her and make her feel doted on, but then he’d charge to his feet to get the door for Cass, or offer to take over a chore for Old Clyde and she’d wonder if he was just kind and giving to everyone and she was misreading it.

Really, the man wasn’t all that easy to make out. If he’d just grab her and kiss her hard, she’d be able to blurt out all the things she was feeling. As it was, she picked at her dinner and worried.

“So . . . have you decided if you’re staying?” Cass asked her as they cleared the dinner plates from the table. The men had to go out and take care of the horses before calling it a night, and Cass said they usually used this time to repair the equipment and fix saddles. In Annie’s mind, it was probably a big bro-fest in the barn, but that was all right. It gave her and Cass time to chitchat while cleaning up the kitchen. Girly work, sure, but it was something she could do easily and with how pregnant she was, she didn’t plan on fighting anyone over the right to oil a saddle.

“Not yet,” Annie admitted. “The shoot wrapped today but . . . I don’t know.”

Cass made a noise that might have been agreement.

“Do you think the dogs really need training or do you think Dustin’s just trying to come up with stuff to make me stay for a while longer?”

Cass smiled and looked pointedly over her shoulder. There, behind them in the kitchen, was every single one of the ranch dogs except Moose. Cass’s Joy, Jim, Gable, Leigh, and Bandit were all sitting waiting for scraps, their tails wagging, eyes hopeful. Spidey was there, too—he loved being part of the pack—but Annie could have sworn the look on his face was confusion. She never gave him scraps so he didn’t understand the begging. “It drives Eli crazy that I ‘ruined’ them,” she told Annie. “We have to put everything away now or they counter-surf, and they never did before. So training them to break those habits would definitely be welcome. Is it all a ploy to get you to stay longer? I can’t say that it’s not. Would it be the worst thing, though?”

“No. I like it here.” Annie picked up a towel and a wet plate and began to dry it. “But . . . it’s complicated.”

“It always is,” Cass said softly. “I’ll support whatever decision you make, you know. It doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.”

Her eyes pricked with tears. “You’re going to make me cry.”

“You’re pregnant. That’s all we do. Cry and pee and cry some more,” Cass teased. “Plus, it’s nice having around someone else that knows what I’m going through. Sometimes I swear Eli looks at me like I’m a space alien inhabiting his wife’s body.”

Annie giggled at that.

---

•   •   •

She and Cass had hot cocoas and talked babies and pregnancy while waiting for the men to return. Cass showed her the nursery and they oohed and ahhed over the little onesies and swaddling blankets she’d received from distant family so far. All of her stuff was blue—she was having a boy and both her and Eli were terribly excited. It made Annie anxious for her own baby to arrive. Sometimes the waiting was the hardest part of being pregnant. Of course, then she’d have to pee for the ninetieth time that day and realized she was lying to herself.

The back door thudded, letting them know the others were returning, and Annie’s anxiety hitched up a notch. They left the nursery, and Eli found his wife and immediately gave her a kiss on the lips. “You want to watch some TV with the boys? Jordy got a war movie from that newfangled thing in town.”

“Redbox?” Cass just shook her head at him. “I swear you’re an eighty-year-old trapped in a hot thirty-something body. But I’ll watch a movie if I get popcorn.”

“One popcorn for my woman, coming right up.” He kissed her again and then headed to the kitchen.

Annie could hear the others in the kitchen, too, arguing about John Wayne versus Russell Crowe. A moment later, Dustin emerged and gave Annie a polite kiss on the forehead. “You up for a movie with the crew or you want to call it a night?”

“I’m tired,” she told him, and it wasn’t entirely a lie. She was making herself completely on edge with worry, and the kiss on the forehead hadn’t helped things. Sure, it was a kiss, but it was the kind of kiss you gave your granny, not your pregnant girlfriend.

But maybe she wasn’t a girlfriend. The thought made her stomach clench miserably.

“All right. I’ll grab a quick drink in the kitchen and then join you for some early bedtime.” Dustin gave her arm an affectionate squeeze.

“You don’t have to,” Annie told him. “You can watch the movie—”

“I can watch a movie anytime,” Dustin said, then winked at her before sauntering away. “Quality time with you is important.”

Okay, that had to be a good sign, right? She hoped? More confused than ever, Annie murmured her good nights to the others and then slipped away down the hall to Dustin’s room. She didn’t have sexy clothes, so she went to the bathroom and gave her hair a quick combing and brushed her teeth, just in case. Then, she slowly crawled into bed and squeezed pillows around her belly, getting comfortable.

Then, she got up, because she couldn’t exactly seem sexy with a pillow fort around her, could she? No wonder he didn’t want to do more than hug her. Annie went to the rocking chair, instead, and adjusted her clothing, waiting.

Dustin entered the room a moment later with a bottle of water in hand. “One for you, too. I know you get thirsty.”

She smiled at him. “Thank you. That’s very thoughtful.”

He paused at the sight of her sitting in a chair instead of in bed. “Everything all right? Your back hurting?”

“No, I’m fine.” Boy, it was going to be difficult to make him see her as sexy if he thought she was constantly hurting. This was so tricky, damn it.

Annie resisted the urge to wring her hands like a damsel. “Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?” An amused smile curved his gorgeous face.

“Like I’m going to break if you look at me sideways.” She scowled at him. “I’m not that fragile.”

“I know you’re not. What brought this on?” He gave her a curious look, then pulled off his flannel overshirt, revealing a sweaty T-shirt underneath and the equally sweaty chest it clung to.

Her mouth went dry. “I just . . . I’m tired of being treated like a china doll. I’m pregnant. That’s all. Lots of people are pregnant all the time and they don’t snap like twigs.”

“I know that. I’ve been around Cass for the last year and seen every stage she went through. If I’m hovering too much, I’m sorry.” He shrugged. “It’s just . . . different for you.”

“Because it’s your baby?”

“Because you’re Annie.” Dustin’s beautiful mouth quirked with amusement, as if that explained everything.

It made her flush with pleasure and also left her confused. She was even more confused when he gave her a wink and then stripped off his belt, heading toward the shower as he did every night. Part of her wanted to push the bathroom door open and fling herself at him, to lick the beads of sweat off his chest like the wanton she was feeling like . . .

But what if he didn’t want that?

She thought about what Katherine had said—how men didn’t know how to treat a pregnant woman. Her funny story about her sister and her sister’s husband. Maybe Dustin didn’t know and she did have to tell him how she felt. How she ached every day because she wanted more than just a chaste kiss or two. She wanted to lick him all over and she wanted him to lick her all over, too. Heck, she’d settle for just some quick sex. It didn’t have to be earth-shattering, it just had to ease this itch in her body.

And it had to ease the worry in her head that he didn’t find her attractive anymore.

If she was going to say something, it had to be tonight, she realized. The movie reshoot was over. If he told her that he really didn’t like her that way anymore, then she could pack her bags and be gone in the morning. There’d be no reason to stay. But if he did like her, then everything changed.

She just needed to be brave enough to take the first step.

Sucking in a breath, Annie rose from the rocking chair and crept toward the bathroom door. The sound of running water told her that he was in the shower, and thoughts of him naked and gorgeous were enough to propel her into action. She’d open the door and join him in the shower. She’d soap his lean, tanned body up and tell him all about how she felt and he’d give her one of those passionate kisses that made everything in the world tip upside down in the best way.

Annie put her hand on the doorknob and turned.

Locked.

Well, shoot. There went that idea. Flustered, she retreated to the bed. She sat down on the edge, wiping her sweaty palms. The urge to just crawl under the covers and ignore it for another day was strong, but no. If she was going to confess her feelings, it had to be tonight.

Time for a new battle plan. She eyed the blankets and the mountain of soft pillows that were on her side of the bed. She looked down at her floral, unsexy nightie and stripped it off. The panties went, too, and so did the bra. Naked, she crawled into bed, adjusted the pillows, pulled the blankets up to her chin, and waited.

When he pulled her against him, he’d feel her naked body against his and . . . well, hopefully he’d be overcome with desire and kiss the heck out of her. Yeah, that sounded good.

So she waited.

And waited.

Gosh, the man could take a long shower. She wondered if the door was locked because he was touching himself in there, and then she wanted to cry because she wanted to be the one doing that. Unfair, unfair, unfair.

The door finally opened, and Annie tensed. She could smell the warm steam in the air and the scent of his soap as he moved into the room and she heard the rustle of clothing as he dressed for sleep. She wanted to tell him not to bother, to come lie next to her completely naked, but all she managed was an awkward squeak.

“Annie?”

She cleared her throat. “I’m fine. Sorry.” Gosh, why was she so very shy around him? She’d known him in every sense, even the biblical one, and yet now that she was pregnant with his baby, she couldn’t seem to string two words together when they were alone. It was like her brain short-circuited around him.

The bed creaked in the dark and she felt it sag under his larger weight. He reached for her, and Annie held her breath. His hand encountered bare skin, and she felt him hesitate.

“Are you too warm?” he asked, ever solicitous.

“No.”

A long pause. “Uh.”

“I want to have sex,” Annie blurted. “Like we did before. But only if you want to.” And then, to her horror, she burst into tears.

“Whoa, whoa, hey,” Dustin murmured, shoving the fortress of pillows aside and pulling her against him. “What is it? Are you all right?”

Sobbing, she punched his arm lightly. “Are you deaf?” She managed to choke out. “I want to have sex. Please.”

“Then why are you crying?” His voice was full of tender amusement and that just was all the more infuriating. He stroked her hair, and she was torn between cuddling against him like a greedy kitten and smacking him in the chest with her fist for being so freaking hard to read.

“I’m crying because I’m pregnant and emotional,” Annie snapped at him. “And because I don’t know if you like me anymore.”

Dustin was quiet for a long moment. “You think I don’t like you?”

“I don’t know.” She dug her fingernails into her palms because she was doing her best to stop crying. Crying never led to sex, she was pretty sure, especially not pregnant crying. “You don’t act like it.”

“Don’t I?”

“No,” she wailed. “You kiss my forehead when you should be giving me French kisses! You hold my hand when you should be grabbing my butt. You’re nice and kind and polite but you’re like that to everyone. I don’t know how you feel about me because all you do is treat me like I’m your grandmother instead of your girlfriend and I don’t know what I am to you.”

He was silent. The only sound in the room was her sniffling.

“Say something,” she hiccup-demanded after a tense moment.

“You think I treat you like my grandmother?”

“Well, you don’t treat me like you did before.”

“Before, when you weren’t pregnant? Annie, you’re carrying my baby. The last thing I want to do is hurt you or make you more uncomfortable than you already are. You spend all day rubbing your lower back and turning green at smells. You run to the bathroom every twenty minutes. Of course I’m being careful with you.” He paused and then continued in a lower voice, “It’d kill me if I hurt you in any way.”

“You’re killing me right now with kindness,” Annie whispered. “I want what we had before. If the way you feel has changed, I need you to let me know now, so I can figure out how I feel—”

Before she could finish speaking, he took her hand and placed it on his body.

Right on his cock.

His very hard, very erect, clearly aching cock. It strained against the material of his boxer briefs, and even through the fabric, she could feel pre-cum wetting the head.

“You think I don’t want you?” His voice was husky with need. “You think I haven’t been fighting how bad I need you every minute of every day?”

Annie sucked in a breath, utterly entranced by the feel of him in her grip. Unable to help herself, she slid her hand up and down his rigid length, caressing him through the fabric. “You never told me.”

“You never indicated that you wanted me. I didn’t want to push you. I was waiting for you to give me a sign.” He reached up, caressed her breast and lightly thumbed the sensitive nipple. “You think we’re sleeping in the same bed out of coincidence?”

“Oh.” Okay, she had thought it was a little odd. “I guess I’m just as willfully blind as you are.”

Dustin chuckled. “I figured I’d give you time to get settled so I could romance you proper. It’s been hell trying to keep my hands off you, though. I have to practically tie them behind my back so I don’t grope you while you’re sleeping.”

Her heart thrilled to hear that. “Even though I have the world’s ugliest nightgowns? They don’t exactly make tons of sexy maternity wear.”

“I don’t care what you wear. I find you sexy. I’d find you sexy if you were wearing a burlap sack.” His thumb lightly stroked over her nipple, and oh, she ached so badly that she could scarcely stand it. “I think you’re utterly beautiful. I always have.”

“But I’m fat now,” she began.

“Don’t say that,” Dustin murmured, pulling her closer to him. “You’re pregnant with my baby. You’re beautiful. Saying you’re fat is ridiculous.” He leaned in and his nose brushed against hers. “And if you want deep tongue kisses, sweetheart, all you had to do was ask.”

His mouth closed over hers and she moaned against him, her fingers curling at his nape. It felt like it had been a hundred years since he’d touched her, and the need in her was aching so fiercely that she could barely contain it. Dustin’s tongue stroked lightly against her own, teasing, and her body clenched in response. Oh wow. Even kissing him felt heightened while pregnant. With a little whimper, she kissed him back, losing herself in the feel of his mouth possessing hers. Nothing had ever felt so good, so very right. She was drowning in a sea of sensation.

Dustin pulled away from her mouth and she made a little sound of protest. But he only nipped at her lower lip. “I don’t know anything about pregnant ladies,” he admitted in a low voice between kisses. “So if there’s something you can’t do or something I shouldn’t touch, you should tell me.”

“Touch everything. Kiss everything,” Annie panted, and then blushed at how desperate she sounded. “I . . . I can’t lie flat on my back, though. It’s bad for the baby.”

He nuzzled at her neck, and she thought she would die from the pleasure of it. Then he nipped the lobe of one ear and she nearly cried out. “So . . . standing? Hands and knees? On your side? You on top? You tell me how you want it, and I’ll give it to you.”

And oh, didn’t that sound wonderfully filthy? Annie moaned again.

“I’ll give you time to decide,” he teased her, and then he was caressing her breast again. “You’re so beautiful. Look at how pretty these breasts are. I thought they were perfect before, and they’re perfect now. Are they sensitive?”

“Very,” she breathed.

“I want to taste one,” he told her, and heat pulsed between her thighs. Annie wanted to roll onto her back so she could experience this in full glory, so he could move over her, but she remained carefully on her side as he tucked a flat pillow gently under her belly and then slid forward in the bed, curled against her so he could nuzzle at her breasts. It didn’t matter that she was very pregnant, she realized. He’d make this work. He’d take good care of her.

He always did.

The thought made swift tears rise in her throat again. Stupid pregnancy tears. Even when she was losing her mind with how turned on she was, she was still weepy. But then Dustin’s lips closed over her nipple and desire clawed through her, fast and hard. She gasped, clutching at his head as he lapped at the peak, teasing it with his tongue and then gently sucking on it.

Oh, heaven help her, she was going to come if he kept doing that. He wouldn’t even have to touch her again. She’d just spontaneously combust from his mouth on her breast. “Dustin,” she panted. “I need . . .”

His tongue flicked against one hard tip.

She cried out, her sex clenching tight in response.

“Are you close?” he murmured, his hand skimming down her belly even as his lips toyed with her breast. “Let me feel how wet you are, sweetheart.” His fingers brushed over the curls of her sex and then he grazed her folds lightly. “So damned wet. Look at that.”

“Please, Dustin. I need you.”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll give you everything you need. I promise.” His fingers danced along her folds and then he slipped deeper, exploring her with gentle touches. “You’re so damn soft. I love this. I want to kiss you all over, touch you everywhere. Will you let me?”

For once, her voice failed her. Annie nodded helplessly.

“My beautiful Annie,” he murmured, and stroked one finger gently into her.

She gasped, arching against him. It had been so long since he’d touched her that his caresses felt downright shocking. Then his mouth closed over her nipple again and he suckled as he stroked into her. His thumb brushed over her clit and that was enough—her entire body clenched in a spasm of bliss and then she was coming, her mind lost to the pleasure of it all. Gasping, crying out his name, Annie seemed to climax for forever. When she finally came down, she was panting and exhausted . . . but gosh, she felt good.

So, so good.

Dustin shifted in the bed and then he was kissing her again, his mouth hot and urgent on her own. She lost herself in his drugging kisses, letting the sweet pleasure of his embrace take her away again. His lips slanted over hers, and the kiss grew in urgency until she felt desire pooling in her belly again. She moved her hands over his chest, felt his shirt, and tugged at it. “I’m naked and you’re not,” she panted. “That hardly seems fair.”

“You want me to get naked for you?” He kissed the tip of her nose.

“Absolutely.”

Without protest, Dustin sat up in bed and ripped his shirt over his head. She could make out his outline in the darkness, enjoyed the gorgeous flex of his arms and the ripple of his muscles. Was ever a woman so lucky? He was masculine perfection and he was in bed with her. Annie couldn’t help herself, she reached out and caressed one hand over his flat stomach, fascinated with touching him. She made a sound of disappointment when he got out of bed, but then realized he was stripping his boxer briefs off and slipped back under the covers a moment later.

And because she was greedy, her hands immediately went to his cock and she caressed him. Oh yes, she remembered this, how big and wonderful he was. He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again, and she moaned against him even as she stroked his hard, hot length. His hips flexed, as if he were trying to pump into her greedy hands, and she loved the feel of him. She wanted to give him pleasure like he’d given her. “Tell me how to touch you.”

“Forget touching,” he told her with frantic, urgent kisses across her face and neck. “I want to be inside you. Are you too tired?”

For this? “Never.”

With a low groan, he kissed her deeply again, and then she pushed him away, tugging the covers off their bodies and getting on her hands and knees. Annie felt weird and ungainly, but Dustin caressed her hips and breasts as she did, and told her how beautiful she was, and any sense of shyness or awkwardness fell quickly away. She wanted this as much as him. When she was in position on the bed, she settled a pillow under her belly and then tossed her hair back. “I’m ready if you are.”

He caressed her buttock even as he rose onto his knees. “You’re comfortable? You’ll tell me if you hurt?” When she nodded, Dustin moved behind her on the bed, his hands on her hips.

Anticipation and arousal flared as he shifted against her, and his grip teased over her sides and thighs before moving back to her hips. His cock prodded against her core for a moment, and then he pressed against her, slowly, achingly pushing inside her.

And oh, it was so, so good.

Her entire body quaked in response, and she clenched at the blankets, crying out.

Immediately, Dustin tensed behind her. “Sweetheart? Should I stop?”

“No,” she panted. “Feels good. Never stop. Ever.”

“Magic words,” he gritted out, and she felt his hips flex as he drove deeper into her.

He took his time, and Annie was practically itching with impatience as he inched into her. She knew he was being careful, and nothing hurt or felt uncomfortable, and so all she felt was a greedy sort of need. She wanted more of him. She wanted him pulsing into her with short, hungry bursts. She wanted him to lose control.

She needed it.

Dustin groaned deeply, rocking against her. “Still feel good?” When she nodded, he grunted a response and then began to slowly pump into her, starting a rhythm.

And oh, that was nice. So nice. Annie closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of their bodies pushing together as he thrust into her from behind. Her full breasts—so large and alien like her stomach—swayed with every motion, and her belly rubbed against the pillow, but that didn’t matter. His slow, methodical thrusting felt incredible, and she gave a little sigh of pleasure as the slow curl began in her belly. He always knew just how to touch her to make her feel so good. So beautiful.

He reached forward, one hand moving to her hair, and then he twined his fingers into it, anchoring her in place even as his body began to move faster. A little moan escaped her, and she was surprised at how much that simple motion could turn her on. It was like he was holding her against him, and hot need coursed through her even as her body clenched around him.

He bit out a curse, panting. “You feel amazing, sweetheart.”

“Dustin,” she breathed, the pleasure in her body building with every moment. “Go faster. I need more.”

“I won’t hurt you?”

“Never. Please.” She reached back for him, trying to touch him. “More.”

He gave her more. With a groan of her name, Dustin redoubled his efforts, his thrusts harder, his thighs slapping against her own, and she was lost in his possessive takeover. Before she knew it, Annie cried out as the waves of another orgasm pulsed through her, and then Dustin’s movements took on a jerky, wild rhythm. He bit out her name, tensing against her, and then slowed his movements, his breathing heavy and ragged, and she realized he’d come, too.

“Couldn’t last long,” he panted, caressing her hip even as he gently rocked their joined bodies. “Felt too good to be in you bare like this. My sweet Annie. My girl.”

She sighed blissfully, her toes curled with pleasure. “Thank you.”

He chuckled. “Well now, you’re most welcome.” With one last caress, he pulled away from her and then gently helped her to her feet. “Let me help you clean up, sweetheart, and then I’ll get you a drink.” He hesitated, then pulled her against him and pressed another hot, delicious kiss to her mouth. “I’m glad you said something. I’ve wanted you ever since you showed up again, Annie. Never doubt that.”

“I won’t,” she told him shyly, but she knew it was easier to say it than believe it.