Carrying the Rancher's Heir / Secret Son, Convenient Wife: Carrying the Rancher's Heir / Secret Son, Convenient Wife

“This is nice, Tagg. I see what you mean about stretching out.”

“The Worth men like space.”

Tagg showed the bellboy where to deposit the luggage, directing Callie’s bag to the master suite and his to the bedroom beside it. Then he glanced at his watch. “We have just enough time to get settled before dinner.”

Thirty minutes later, they arrived at a small hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant that only the locals knew about off the Las Vegas Strip. The second Tagg walked in, the rich scent of olive oil and garlic and freshly baked bread perked up his appetite. John had raved about the food and Tagg was grateful to get away from the crowd of tourists in hotel row.

He found the Cosgroves sitting in a corner booth lit with candles and decorated with a flower arrangement. Tagg made the introductions and helped Callie to her seat before taking his. John Cosgrove and his wife, Sadie, were in their early sixties but could keep up with anyone half their age. Tagg had always considered John not only a friend, but also a mentor back in his rodeo days.

They talked horses and rodeo and Penny’s Song. Callie and Sadie had both grown up on a cattle ranch, so they had a good deal in common.

“Not only is John a horse rancher, but he owns his own rodeo,” Tagg said to Callie.

“That’s how I met Tagg here,” John said. “He busted a few of my prize stallions in his day. He knows horses. And what about you? How did you get involved with this guy over here?”

Callie’s face colored. “Oh, uh …”

Sadie sent her husband a warning look. “John.”

“Callie is a neighbor. She’s Hawk Sullivan’s daughter,” Tagg announced.

John grinned. “Is that so?” He darted a glance at both of them.

Callie nodded. “Yes, that’s right,” she said, then turned to glare at Tagg.

He returned her look with a simple smile. He liked honesty. He wasn’t into pussyfooting around an issue.

Callie cleared her throat. “I’ve just returned home from going to school and working in Boston. I found out about Penny’s Song and knew I wanted to be a part of it. Tagg and I, we are … are working together on the project.”

“I’ve had some dealings with your father,” John said, catching Tagg’s eye before focusing on Callie. “He’s a smart negotiator.”

Callie blew out a breath. She was uncomfortable talking about her father. “Thank you for that. I know you’re being kind.”

Sadie steered the conversation back to a more amiable subject. “Tagg, did you know that Blue Yonder sired a stallion? I hear he’s a beauty, too.”

“Is that so? I bet he’s spoken for already.” Tagg inhaled deep. He’d wanted to buy that Arabian for the past three years, but the owner wasn’t selling. The stallion had pure bloodlines and ancestry that could be traced back to Spain. “The Kents refused to even talk to me. Can’t say as I blame them. If I had that horse, I wouldn’t let another horseman get within a hundred yards of him.”

“There’s a list a mile long and an acre wide bidding on the foal.”

“What’d they name him?”

“Wild Blue,” John said.

Tagg pursed his lips. “Great name. I guess that ship has sailed. I’d bet my last dollar they keep him themselves.”

Sadie shook her head. “You never know.”

Tagg shrugged it off. He didn’t think so, but he wouldn’t argue with her.

The food was delivered to the table—pasta with scallops and shrimp and about a dozen other things in a lemon wine sauce. There was no shortage of garlic, either. Tagg couldn’t remember eating a better meal.

He glanced at Callie. She’d ordered an antipasto salad that overflowed the plate. He was glad to see she’d eaten more than half of it already. She wasn’t shy when it came to eating, but she did tend to eat lighter fare. And she’d refused the red wine that flowed into everyone else’s glasses.

He watched her sip a glass of water carefully, then say something to Sadie. Callie looked elegant tonight. Dressed in black, her creamy skin glistened under candlelight and the play of light skin against dark hair and eyes made him stir with desire. He remembered how she looked minus the dress. It was a memory never far from his mind—a memory he’d like to duplicate.

After dinner the Cosgroves drove them back to the hotel and bid them both good-night. They made arrangements to see the horses after breakfast the next morning.

He entered the penthouse suite after Callie and walked straight to the bar. “Are you tired?” he asked.

“Not really.” She set her purse down on the sofa and looked out the window to the bright lights below.

He remembered Callie had been drinking rum during that time in Reno, so he poured her a rum and cola and spilled two fingers of whiskey in a tumbler for himself. He brought the drink over to her. “You should be. It’s been a long day.”

She turned from the window and stared at the tumbler in his hand. “Oh, no. No, thanks. I’m not … thirsty.” Her shoulders stiffened.

Tagg raised his brows. She seemed pensive and nervous for some reason. “Okay.” He set the drink down on the cocktail table behind him and when he turned back to Callie, she was staring out the window again. “Everything all right?”

She nodded.

He edged up beside her and glanced out the window, sipping his drink. “You’re not drinking tonight. Is that because you don’t want a repeat of Reno?”

She turned to him, her gaze warm and soft. “I didn’t sleep with you because I’d been drinking. If that’s what you think.”

He furrowed his brows. “Seems I wasn’t doing much thinking that night at all.”

A low self-deprecating laugh escaped her throat. “So I’ve been told.” She turned back to the window, her arms folded around her middle. “You’ve made that very clear,” she said quietly.

Tagg grinned. “That wasn’t an insult, Callie.”

“Was hardly a glowing review, either.”

He set his glass down and walked in front of her, blocking her view from anything but him. He lifted her chin with his thumb and gazed into her beautiful eyes. She flinched, not in fear but with surprise, then lowered her arms to her sides. The anticipation on her face gave him pause. She blinked and inhaled a sharp breath.

“It was a compliment.”

She searched his eyes. “How so?”

“You made me forget things I’m damned determined not to forget.” He glanced at her mouth and saw her tremble. “Why are you so nervous?”

“I’m not,” she blurted, lifting her chin up and taking a step back. “I have nothing to be nervous about.” She turned then and reached for her purse sitting on the sofa. “You know, I think I am tired. I’m going to bed.”

Tagg reached his arm out and snaked it around her waist, pulling her close. Her intoxicating scent destroyed his patience.

“What are you doing?” she whispered.

“Are you really tired, Callie?”

She shook her head no. Then gazed deep into his eyes.

He set both hands on her waist, enjoying the lush feel of her hips in his outspread palms. Silence filled the room. Fading dusky beams of starlight filtered through the window to cast them in shadows.

He angled his head and moved closer. His legs met with her thighs. An ache of need began growing. He gave in to the sensation and brought his mouth down on hers. She froze, her lips refusing to respond for a second, and Tagg was ready to back off, lest he seduce an unwilling woman. But then she moved closer, wrapping her arms around his neck, crushing her breasts to his chest. She gave into the kiss then with effort and passion, the way he remembered her. The way they’d kissed before.

She was sweetly alluring, tentative yet fiery. Tagg relished having her in his arms.

They came up for air a full minute later, both breathing hard. Callie reached her arm around to move her hair to her right side, the locks falling freely on one nearly bare shoulder. It was a reflective move, one to give her time to think, he surmised. Their lips still close, she softly spoke. “I didn’t think you wanted this. You said it would never happen again.”

Tagg closed his eyes briefly. He had said that. And he’d meant it at the time. “I guess I was fooling myself.”

She shook her head slightly, her eyes questioning. “What changed?” she asked.

You, he wanted to answer. Or rather my perception of you. He’d gotten to know her, and liked what he saw. She loved horses. She loved Arizona and small-town life. She even begrudgingly loved her miserable father. Her story about Amber and Georgie tugged at something primal and protective in him. But he wouldn’t tell her that. He wouldn’t tell her that she’d gotten to him. That maybe meeting up with her in Reno had been the best thing that could have happened to him.

There’d be no purpose in that. He had no place in his heart for another woman. He’d closed himself off emotionally. There was no going back. So he told her a half truth and one she would understand. “Jed.”

Her eyes snapped up. “Jed?”

“He was panting after you, plain as day.” He lifted a curl that rested on her chest, watching it fall from his fingertips. “I came to the rescue.”

“And you stepped in to save me?”

Tagg looked away before peering into her eyes. “Yeah, something like that.”

She seemed a little baffled. “Were you jealous?”

“No,” he lied. He’d seen more green than his pasture after heavy rains.

She narrowed her eyes, a skeptical look on her face. Then with determination, she moved closer to him and brushed an air kiss to his mouth. His groin tightened. “Not even a little?”

He shook his head, keeping his eyes trained on her mouth.

She came even closer, until their mouths were almost touching again, then licked at his lips with her very skilled tongue. “Are you sure?”

Tagg smiled. This was the bold, sexy woman he remembered from Reno. They’d done wild things together. “Callie,” he warned and then didn’t give her a chance to protect herself.

He hauled her hips into his, making his point with one flush move against his straining erection. His hands went into her hair and he planted his mouth on hers in a rough, desperate kiss that brought a soft moan of pleasure up from her throat. Their openmouthed frenzy sped his heart rate, and when Callie whimpered again, it was all he could do not to rip her dress off. They fought with each other’s clothes, unfastening, unbuttoning, unzipping, hands clumsy but efficient until she was naked in his arms and he was almost there. He picked her up, carried her to the master bedroom and set her down on the oversize bed. He took a minute to look at her, beautifully bare, her hair spreading out like a glorious fan around her upper body. Her breasts round and full enticed him with two inviting upturned peaks.

She smiled coyly and turned on her side, her hip curving up from her waist, shadowing the V between her long shapely legs. He rid himself of his briefs and Callie beckoned him with a look at his manhood, her gaze bright with anticipation, ready for their long sexy ride.

Tagg reached into the bedside drawer and came up with a condom packet.

A tremble ran through Callie’s body. She stared at the silver packet as Tagg ripped it open. They didn’t need protection. They’d already made a baby. But Tagg didn’t know that and the cold, hard reality came crashing down on her. Guilt coiled in her stomach and pounded in her brain. What was she doing? She hated deceiving Tagg. Hated that the condom itself signified her deception. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him. To lay out the truth, that she’d conceived a baby with him in Reno. That she’d been lying to him all along.

Could she be that brave? Could she ease her guilt and own up to her pregnancy? Tagg was going to be a father, yet she had withheld that information from him for weeks. One little mistake, one slip of the tongue and she could lose Tagg forever. If she told him now would it be all over between them, before it really had a chance of beginning?

She bit her lower lip and closed her eyes, wishing that everything would just turn out okay. Somehow. She needed a miracle, but she wasn’t that big an optimist to believe she’d be granted one.

The bedsheets rustled and she sunk into the mattress when he lay down beside her. His warm breath caressed her cheek. “Callie? Did you go somewhere?”

He smelled of whiskey and lust and Callie’s body reacted, her bare nipples pebbled at the sound of his voice. She opened her eyes. He was there, his beautiful face against hers, his nose in her hair, breathing in her scent.

“I’m here, Tagg,” she whispered, losing her nerve. She couldn’t tell him. She had to give them more time. It wasn’t selfish on her part, she told herself. The baby’s future was at stake. Was it so wrong to hold out for the brass ring? To hope that given time, Tagg would come to love her? Was it so wrong to hope for a happy ending?

He nibbled on her throat, his lips drawing moist circles all the way down to the hollow between her breasts. “That’s good. Stay with me.”

That’s what she intended. To stay with Tagg. To be his for the rest of her life. But at the moment, the goal seemed out of reach and the guilt she felt also stayed with her. Even as he kissed her. Even as he ran his hands along her body, making her moan with pleasure. Even as he parted her thighs and stroked her with deft fingers, until her first orgasm slammed into her with enough force to make her cry out.

“You came so quickly,” Tagg said with a note of male satisfaction.

Callie let go of her mental fight and gave herself up to physical bliss. Her remorse would have to wait. She was with Tagg, naked on his bed, and there wasn’t anywhere else she’d rather be. She gave him a little shove and he fell onto his back, a deep chuckle coming up from his throat.

“You do that so easily to me,” she whispered.

“You saying you’re easy?”

Callie lifted up on her knees and straddled his lower legs. She took his penis in her hand. “Only with you.”

Tagg gazed into her eyes. His were pure liquid fire as she stroked his erection. “Nice to know,” he gritted out.

Callie loved bringing him satisfaction. Tagg’s grunts of approval as she slid her hand up and down his shaft again brought shivers of heat to her body. She wasn’t through with Tagg. She’d make love to him all night.

She watched his face twist and contort with pent up desire as her hand ran up and over the length of him, her thumb pressing the sensitive tip. A rumble emanated in his throat and Callie smiled. “Let’s see how easy you are.” She bent her head and licked the moisture off with long fluid strokes, circling the tip like she would an ice cream cone.

Then she took him into her mouth.

His body stiffened; his erection went rock hard. She set her hands on his thighs and drank him in. She sensed his eyes on her, watching. She remembered from the last time they’d been together that Tagg never closed his eyes during sex. He liked to watch. It turned him on. Through the curtain of her hair resting on his belly, she looked up and their eyes met for an instant. The delicious expression on his face stilled her. She loved him so much that she physically ached. All she could do was show him. She slipped his erection back into her mouth and loved him with her tongue. She stroked him with both hands until she knew the exact moment he was ready for release.

They were in sync that way.

She moved off him slightly. He grabbed the unnecessary packet, ripping it open and she helped him slide it down onto his erection. He reached for her then, lifting her up on her knees so that she was directly over him. With skilled hands, he guided her hips down and impaled her with his swollen shaft.

“Tagg,” she breathed out. The first initial thrust filled the tip of her. She wanted more. She moved on him then, undulating her hips, grasping him, letting him fill her slowly, taking in one pleasurable inch at a time. He felt so good, so warm, so right. She’d dreamed about this, about having him inside her again, feeling his body rock under hers.

She heard him curse in a way that brought a smile to her lips. He watched her, she knew, and that turned her on as well. She sank farther down, taking him in fully, and moved without thinking now, lifting her hair off her shoulders and letting it fall back down again. His eyes followed the flow of her hair. And then she touched her breasts for him, cupping them slightly, fingering the pebbled peaks once, twice. His eyes glistened with deep hunger and his expression was pure sin.

She rode him hard, sinking and lifting, both of them uttering deep throaty sounds of pleasure. She moved faster now, with his encouragement, the pressure building inside her. He reached for her breasts and caressed her with his palms, rubbing the insides of his hands over her nipples. The contrast of rough to delicate sent shooting jolts of electricity through her body. She loved his hands on her. She loved him touching her.

“Stay with me, Callie,” he whispered, barely getting the words out. “We’re … almost there.”

They were close. So close. “Hurry, Tagg.”

It was all he needed to hear. Splaying his fingers out, he grabbed her waist and pushed her down onto his shaft harder than she could have alone. He filled her completely now and took control, thrusting up with potent, powerful force. It felt good to let go, to give in to him fully and take the sexy ride.

“I’m ready,” she moaned, holding back the waves that wanted to shatter within her.

He lifted his body, coming half off the bed, and held her bottom with both hands, moving her forward and back hard, harder. Then with one last deep, powerful thrust, their release came, together, forcefully, each of them huffing out guttural sounds of completion.

He held her tight until the last shreds of pleasure were wrought out of both. It was beautiful and satisfying, but now that it was over, Callie couldn’t look him in the eye for fear of him seeing her every emotion.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She nodded, then swallowed, but words wouldn’t come.

He kissed a path up her throat, working his way to her mouth. She kept her face turned away.

He put a finger under her chin and applied slight pressure to turn her toward him. She met his gaze finally. “Are you sure?”

She noted the concern in his eyes and managed to answer, “Yes.”

He let go a relieved sigh, cradling her to his body. “That was pretty damn good.”

She nodded again.

“Callie?”

“Just … good?” she blurted. She was in love with him and had given up her head and her heart for just good. It wasn’t about sex for her. It was about feelings and emotions and love. While she knew she should be thrilled and delighted that they’d made love, she only felt empty inside and guilty about her secret as well.

Tagg lay back, holding her as they fell onto the cool sheets. “Great. Awesome. Perfect. You don’t disappoint, Callie.”

“Neither do you,” she said. She lay her head down, snuggled into his chest and closed her eyes. He stroked her head, running his fingers through her hair. “But do you think it was a mistake?”

The muscles of his arms tensed and he hesitated long enough to worry her. “I don’t think I could’ve stayed away from you, so no. Not a mistake.”

But he’d stayed away after Reno. He’d left her with a note and had gone home. And never called her.

“What about you? A mistake?”

She shook her head. “Definitely not.” Being with him could never be a mistake. Callie knew men always said nice things after a satisfying night in the sack. After-sex talk was usually warm and cozy, until the light of day shined through and reality set in.

Tagg didn’t want a relationship. And he was just trying to make her feel better. She also knew that men didn’t like to analyze their feelings after making love. So she bit her tongue from saying anything else that would destroy the moment.

“Do you want anything? A drink? Something to eat?” he asked.

“No, but you go ahead if you want something.”

Tagg chuckled and the muscles in his arms relaxed. “Really? I think what I want isn’t in the kitchen.”

Callie smiled and looked into his eyes. “And what is it that you want?”

“You, all night long.” He kissed her then, a warm brushing of his mouth, less hurried, less frenzied than before. Callie returned the kiss, agreeing to his plan.

Tagg woke up before dawn, with Callie sprawled halfway over him. Her long dark hair rested in waves on his chest, her head tucked into his shoulder. The unique erotic mix of musk and flowers that he couldn’t name drove him slightly insane as he breathed in. His hand lay atop the curve of her bare bottom, his palm filled with soft smooth skin. He’d convinced Callie not to put on her nightie last night. He’d wanted her naked next to him through the night and now he thought about the wisdom in that. He would have gotten a better night’s sleep if he hadn’t insisted. He’d woken up hard and ready twenty minutes ago. He wasn’t going to wait much longer.

His erection pulsed and ached like a sex-starved teenager.

She moved on him, stirring a bit, her breasts crushing into his side.

He swore under his breath, wincing at the pain and wondering if he’d made a colossal mistake taking her to bed.

Sure as hell didn’t feel like a mistake. It felt pretty damn amazing.

But he couldn’t forget who Callie was. He couldn’t forget that she wasn’t a woman he could turn away after a night of wild sex. He’d done that to her once and had regretted it.

Callie stirred again and Tagg held his breath, waiting for her to awaken.

He wanted her. She was an indulgence he couldn’t afford, yet one he couldn’t seem to resist.

Her eyelids lifted and she looked at him with a sleep-hazy gaze, her hair in a tumble around her face, her lips parted.

Tagg claimed her mouth in a slow easy kiss. “Morning.” It wasn’t quite. The early light of dawn hadn’t stolen into the room yet.

“Morning.” Her soft breath blew over his chest. She stroked her fingers into the scattered hairs there. “Did you sleep well?”

He ran his hand up and down the smooth sleek skin of her thigh. She cooed from his touch and his erection stiffened. “I’ve been awake for a while. Waiting for you.”

Callie lifted her head to look at him. Her gaze drifted down past his waist. Her smile was sweet, her words a little sassy. “Not my fault. You asked me not to leave. Or put on my nightgown.”

Stay naked. Sleep with me, had been his exact words. “Wouldn’t have mattered.” He told her the truth. “Just having you under the same roof is enough.”

Callie nibbled on her lower lip and a mischievous gleam brightened her eyes. “What are we going to do about that?”

Tagg rolled her over and set her shoulders against the mattress. He rose above her, his erection pressing into her flat belly. “I have a plan.”

Hours later, sated and holding Callie close, Tagg woke to dim sunlight pouring through the curtains. It was nearing time to get up and go about the business of the day.

Tagg could stay in this bed with Callie all week and that realization nagged at him. She was a fantastic lover, the best sex he’d had in a long time, if not ever. That worried him. He didn’t have a plan for this. The truth was, he didn’t have anything to offer her. Not a relationship. Not a courtship. He was done with those things.

So done.

And she was Hawkins Sullivan’s daughter.

He wouldn’t forget that.

When Callie stirred, Tagg draped his hand over her shoulder and rubbed her arms up and down. He felt her fatigue as her body went limp. “That feels … good. I’m … so tired.”

He brushed a kiss to the top of her head. “Go back to sleep. We have a little time.”

“I’m not going to wake up to a note, am I?” She spoke quietly, holding on for his answer before she drifted off.

“I’m here, Callie. I’m not going anywhere.”

Five

Tagg glanced at his watch, a tic working his jaw as he paced the floor in Clay’s parlor. He’d been waiting for fifteen minutes for a meeting he had with his brothers and Callie about fundraising for Penny’s Song. The usual bustling ranch looked like a morgue today. There wasn’t a soul in sight. Normally, Tagg liked solitude but now he was anxious.