The Reward Read online

  “I want to make sure you have time to make it back to Rancho Zarza, Malcolm. And you need to deliver the message to Diego for me. You said you would, remember?”

  “I will. I said I will. Okay, I’ll go. But I can come back right? I like it here.”

  His young face was so hopeful, she couldn’t tell him they might not be here after tonight. It tore at her that the boy had so little waiting for him, aside from his overworked mother. She wanted to tell him he could come over any time he wanted. Instead, she took the coward’s way out again.

  “We’ll see. Now it is time for you to go. Andale, chico.”

  “I’m going. And I told you and him enough times, I don’t speak no Spanish. And don’t call me boy.”

  To her utter shock, he gave her a quick hug then banged out the back door, headed for the barn at a dead run.

  She stared after him, completely poleaxed by little Malcolm’s affection. It was going to be so hard for her to get used to being touched all the time. The boy held a firm place in her heart.

  “Will he be okay?”

  “Diego will make sure he’s okay. Don’t worry, amante. That boy has lived through a lot in his life. He’s a tough little man.”

  Leigh was surprised to realize she was worried about the boy. That she missed him already. Having a family, even one that wasn’t related to you, was definitely going to take some getting used to.

  “Are the windows boarded?” Malcolm asked as his hand rested on the small of her back.

  “Yes, Nicky and I finished.”

  “Then perhaps you can put the nail bucket down?”

  Sheepishly, she grinned and set the bucket down outside the door.

  “Bueno.” Malcolm drew her into his arms and hugged her tightly.

  “The others are scouting around to make sure no one is watching the house.” Leigh spoke into his shoulder, breathing his scent into her body.

  “Good idea.”

  She started to melt in his arms, forgetting everyone and everything. It was an indescribable feeling, being in love. Like warm sunshine on your face after a long, cold, rainy spell. His big hands rubbed circles on her spine.

  Nicky cleared her throat. “I, ah, think I need to find Tyler.”

  Malcolm and Leigh didn’t acknowledge her exit. They continued to touch and caress as if no one else in the world existed.

  “Mmmm…you feel so good,” Leigh said.

  “So do you.”

  The unmistakable feel of him growing hard and pressing into her softness was enough to drive her temperature up five degrees.

  “Amante.” His whispered endearment tickled across her ear, raising goose bumps and her nipples. “I need you.”

  “Yes.”

  They headed for the door at the same time, hands entwined like lovers going for a walk on a Sunday afternoon.

  ———

  There was so little time. The sun was setting and night was crawling in like a snake on its belly.

  She needed him. She needed to feel life, to feel alive, to know for this bit of time in her life she loved him and had someone to call her own.

  They reached her bedroom in record time. She started pulling at his clothes, yanking and nearly tearing his shirt off. She needed to feel his skin against hers, to have him buried deep inside her. He stopped her by grabbing her hands.

  “Easy, amante,” he whispered against her temple.

  “I can’t. I need you. Please, Malcolm, please.” She was surprised to hear her own voice pleading with him. She never pleaded, but her need was so great it controlled her.

  “I know, I know. I need you too,” he said as he held her. “This must be…perfect for us. Comprende? I want it to be a memory to hold.”

  Oh, yes, she understood. It might be the last time for them together. The night was bringing not only darkness, but death and blood. Someone was going to die, and it could be either one of them. Now was a time to savor.

  Leigh pushed aside the frantic clawing need for him and concentrated on savoring this time together. With her pulse beating a strong rhythm, she pressed herself against him and reveled in the feel of his hardness touching her softness. He growled from deep in his throat, sending a shiver through her. His hands slid down and kneaded her ass, pulling her close enough to rub his cock on her mons. Combined with her own body’s movements, it was enough to heat her blood to a near boil. Her nipples scraped against her clothes, eager to be touched and licked.

  “I think we’ve got too many clothes on.”

  Malcolm chuckled hoarsely and let go of her. “Let me.”

  He slid off her glasses and set them on the dresser. Button by button, he slowly opened her shirt. By the time he popped the last button, Leigh was panting. He bared one shoulder, then kissed and licked the exposed skin. He repeated it with the other shoulder. As he pulled her shirt down her arms, he bit each nipple lightly through her chemise. A shudder of desire wracked her body.

  “Did you like that?”

  “Mmmm…yes,” she responded. “More. Bite them.”

  “My wolf. You like teeth, eh?”

  He threw her shirt on the chair. As he straightened back up, he gave one more quick bite to each nipple. His eyes glittered like black diamonds. The leashed passion in their depths was enough to set her knees knocking. He held back so much.

  He peeled her chemise up inch by inch, alternately licking, kissing and biting the flesh as it came into view. When he got to her breasts, the chemise was up around her face and her arms were raised. She was effectively trapped as he feasted on her. And, oh sweet Jesus, he was a starving man.

  His tongue circled each nipple, then he gave it a bite. He kissed every square inch of one breast followed by the other. His hot lips and wet tongue stroked and licked until she thought she’d go mad from not being able to touch him. She tried to free her arms, but he held her in place. When he closed his mouth over one nipple, she almost screamed. He pulled and tugged with his mouth, deeper and deeper, swirling the nipple with his tongue. Leigh moaned and struggled again to get free. She needed to touch him.

  He let the nipple loose with an audible pop. When he sucked in the other nipple, the intense tugs and talented tongue drove her over the edge. Unbelievably, Leigh felt herself heading toward an orgasm. Before he even touched her pussy. She couldn’t see, she couldn’t touch. All she could do was feel.

  “Oh, God, Malcolm. Please…” Now she was begging. Hell, she didn’t care.

  He pushed his hand down her pants and cupped her pussy. When he spread the lips with his thumb and fingers, she shook with anticipation of his touch. When his thumb flicked her once, twice, three times on her clit, she came like a tornado in June. Hard and fast.

  While she tried to stay upright, Malcolm pulled the chemise the rest of the way off, then he kissed her. Fierce and deep. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hung on. Her bare nipples, so incredibly aroused, rubbed on his shirt, inciting them once more. His tongue danced with and caressed hers until she knew the depths of his mouth better than her own.

  With one last bite on her lip, he pulled back and smiled at her.

  “That was the first time.”

  “First time?”

  “The first time you will come. Now comes number two. Are you ready?”

  She wasn’t sure if she was ready but there wasn’t anything in the world that would stop her. Malcolm walked her backwards to the bed, kissing her, stroking her hot skin. He knelt in front of her and unbuttoned her jeans, kissing and biting her belly as he shimmied the fabric down. Her throbbing pussy ached for his touch. She was dressed only in a pair of cotton drawers, a pair of wet cotton drawers.

  “Hurry up, Mal. I need you,” she pleaded. She’d never felt such an aching want.

  He looked up at her and his expression was, as usual, unreadable.

  “You take my breath away, amante.”

  Before she could respond, he pushed her drawers down. When she was finally naked, he kissed all around her pussy without touch
ing where it pulsed and burned. Now she was completely naked and he was completely clothed. It was enough to make her even wetter.

  Oh God, oh God.

  “Please,” she heard herself gasp.

  He kissed his way back up her legs and again circled her aching mound without touching it.

  “Please.”

  “Do you want me to lick you? To kiss you?” He nipped at her trembling inner thigh. “To bite you?”

  “Malcolm. Please. If you don’t touch me soon I’m going to shoot you.”

  “My wolf…” she thought she heard him say as he eased her thighs open. He started with one long lick from bottom to the top. She almost stopped breathing. “Mmmm…you taste like honey.”

  He reached up and spread her lips. His tongue snaked out and licked her clit over and over while his thumbs slowly sank in and out of her pussy. Then he pulled her clit into his mouth and started sucking it as he had her nipples. She rocked on her feet, nearly falling, her legs like jelly. His strong hands held her up as his tongue plundered her hot box.

  “Oh, God, Malcolm!” She tried not to scream but that was impossible. The orgasm started in her toes and her head, traveling down and up her body to converge in her pussy. He sucked harder and fucked her with his thumbs as she pulsed with incredible pleasure.

  She felt the prick of tears in her eyes. Every experience with Malcolm was as amazing as the last and this as no exception. She never knew how much pleasure a person could give or receive with someone they loved. Until now. Until Malcolm. With one last lick, he stood and cupped her face with his big hands.

  “You are so beautiful.”

  He kissed her and she tasted the muskiness of her pleasure. The sensation was too much for her knees because they let loose. As she sank toward the bed, he caught her and laid her down gently. Letting her mouth go, he licked each puckered nipple again. Her body responded with a shiver of desire that traveled from her head to her toes.

  “That was the second time. Now comes number three. Are you ready?”

  Leigh wasn’t sure she would be conscious for the third time, but she was ready. She scooted back on the bed to watch him undress.

  “Show me,” she commanded.

  Malcolm was a beautiful man. A bronzed god with black hair and black eyes. As he removed his shirt, she marveled again at the fact he was here now with her. With her. Leigh Wynne O’Reilly. When he removed his trousers and his cock sprang free, her hunger for him ran rampant anew. Lord have mercy. He looked bigger every time she saw him.

  He crawled on the bed like a big cat, a panther circling her. She felt a chill of goose bumps march up her spine at the predatory look in his eye.

  “Amante. Are you ready?”

  “Oh, yes. Bring it to me, Mal.”

  He rubbed and caressed her body with his own. From his hard, hair-covered chest to his enormous erection, he traveled up her body slowly. By the time he got to her lips, she was just as ready and panting for him as she had been before her first two orgasms.

  He stared into her eyes and she saw something in them she hadn’t seen before. Not just passion and desire, but something that almost looked like love.

  When he spread her legs and slid into her, her body took control. Her mind was gone. He was so big, so perfect, so right. He trembled as he held his position for a minute. She clutched his shoulders as he filled her.

  “Malcolm?”

  “Momentito.”

  He squeezed his eyes shut and seemed to force himself back under control. Then he started moving in and out using deep, long strokes, pulling completely out of her every time before plunging back in. Her hungry pussy wanted more. It was incredible, it was bliss, it was…heaven.

  Sweat beaded on his upper lip and forehead as his pace increased. The sounds, the scents of their lovemaking, filled the room. She spread her legs wider, making him go even deeper.

  “All of you. I need all of you,” she commanded.

  And so he gave it. Stroke after stroke. Again and again. Faster and faster. So close. Oh, Jesus, so close again.

  “Malcolm!”

  “Sí, mi vida, mi corazon. Te amo. Te amo.”

  My life, my heart. I love you. I love you.

  He sat up on his knees and shoved a pillow beneath her ass. Completely exposed, Leigh waited for Malcolm to complete their circle. He grabbed her hips and plunged in so deep, she actually saw his soul.

  She came with a thunderous sound that stole her voice and her breath. Wave after wave crashed down on her as she pulsed and clenched around him. Over the roaring in her ears, she vaguely heard him call her name as he pumped into her. This time, she did see stars. She saw Leigh and Malcolm—two souls merging into one.

  ———

  Malcolm felt the wall around his heart give way. There was no going back now. Leigh was in his life to stay and he’d told her he loved her. Twice.

  He was shaking like a baby. Dios mio! He had never, ever had an experience like that. It was enough to kick him out of the shadows into the sunlight. He knew now he would never be happy without her.

  He eased himself out of her and lay down on the sheets. He was covered in sticky sweat and felt like he’d run to the Gulf and back. The hairs on his legs were wet and there wasn’t even a hint of a breeze to cool him off. Leigh was as warm as a brick oven next to him. She still breathed a bit heavily, but she hadn’t moved an inch.

  “Amante?”

  She didn’t answer. He hauled himself up on one elbow to peer down at her. She stared straight up at the ceiling, her hazel eyes focused on the cracks. Her fists clenched at her sides and her skin was covered in a sheen of sweat.

  “Leigh?”

  That’s when he saw the tear. One solitary tear trickling out of her eye. Before this week, he had never, ever seen Leigh cry, and here it was again. Even when she was a little girl, she’d get hurt, then get mad. There were never any tears. Until now. The second time in as many weeks.

  “Are you all right?”

  With a wail he was sure they probably heard at Rancho Zarza, she launched herself at him and hung on for dear life. Her fists dug into his back as she held him so tightly, he heard his spine creak.

  Malcolm cupped the back of her head, letting her hang on. Her heart thudded against his chest. He felt her nipples, still rock hard, pushing against him. He didn’t dare move. Whatever Leigh was going through was enough to squeeze tears from her normally dry eyes. Malcolm was determined to hang on and help her through it. He didn’t even want to think about being the cause of it. His arm anchored her to him as he tried to figure out what else to do.

  “Amante, please tell me.”

  She took a deep, shuddering breath and pushed her nose into his neck. When she spoke, her voice was wavery and even huskier than usual.

  “You told me you loved me.”

  “Sí.”

  “No…no one has ever told me that before.”

  Malcolm forgot how lucky he was. His mother had told him every day when he woke up in the morning. She had told him when she kissed him goodnight every night. She had hugged him and kissed him and never let him forget he was loved.

  Leigh had never had that. Her father practically ignored her except to make a comment about how he wished he’d had a son. She never knew her mother. All she ever had was her “family” at Rancho Zarza. It was hard to imagine growing up without someone loving you. He had always loved her, now he was in love with her. And it had taken him thirty years to say it.

  “I love you, I love you, te amo, mi corazón. I will tell you every morning and every night.”

  He kissed her shoulder and neck until she let him loose and he was able to start kissing her in earnest. And kiss her he did. A long, slow kiss with dueling tongues and a lot of moaning. When he came up for air, she stared at him with her heart in her eyes.

  “Malcolm, I think I was born loving you. I never stopped. All those years you were gone, you were still in my heart. I will die loving you. Only you.”

  He h
adn’t realized the depth of her love before. He should have known. Leigh never did anything halfway. She was an all or nothing kind of girl.

  “Will you leave again?”

  The question popped out of her mouth like a bullet and slammed into him. He jerked and she immediately scooted out of his arms. She jumped out of bed and glared down at him with her hands on her hips, a challenge in her eyes.

  “Will you leave again?”

  He opened his mouth to answer, but didn’t. Was he ready to stay with her forever? To never leave her? To wake up in her arms every day?

  “I guess that’s my answer.”

  She picked up her clothes and stalked across the room to her washstand. He hadn’t moved from the bed or answered her. She nearly dropped the pitcher of water trying to pour it into the basin, sloshing half the water on the floor. He saw her hands tremble.

  “Shit!”

  He hopped out of bed and crossed to her in two strides.

  “Don’t you touch me now, Malcolm. I’ll get my goddamn gun and shoot you.”

  He grabbed her arms as she started to run and forced her up against the wall. He tried to kiss her, but she turned her head.

  “Let me go.”

  When her knee headed for his balls, he moved his leg so she got him in the thigh instead, leaving him with a painful charley horse.

  “Let me go.”

  “Never, amante. I will never let you go. I will never leave you.”

  She bucked against him, and unwillingly his cock began to grow again as her curves slammed into him.

  “I love you. I won’t leave you. Do you hear me?”

  She stopped fighting him and looked at him in surprise, the anger and hurt fading from her eyes.

  “What?”

  He smiled and kissed her lightly on the lips.

  “No, I won’t leave again. I will always be yours.”

  “Really?”

  He let her arms loose and stepped back a half-step. He spread his arms wide.

  “I am all yours, amante. For as long as you want me.”

  This time when she launched herself at him, he was ready. His arms closed around her tight as hers did on him.

  “Oh, God, Malcolm, I love you.”

  Malcolm’s response was cut off by loud banging on the bedroom door.