Sea Of Grass (30 page)

“Claire, Claire,” Tess whispered tenderly as she watched her. Claire looked up into the blue eyes with an astonished look.

“Tess! I-I…” she nearly screamed as they never lost eye contact.

“Now, Claire,” Tess whispered in a low voice. Working her fingers faster, Claire bucked her hips in rhythm with the passionate thrusts.

“Oh, God,” Claire cried out in amazement. “Don’t stop!”

“Never,” Tess whispered in a ragged voice. “I’ll never stop loving you.” She kissed her deeply, her tongue plunging deep. Claire was shaking with the onset of her orgasm. Tess pulled back and gazed.

“Claire,” she whispered her erotic command. “Come for me, please.” She placed her thumb over the engorged clitoris and stroked in rhythm with her thrusts. Claire arched her back and became completely still. Then she cried out, clawing at Tess’s back, knowing she must be bruising her.

Tess winced but continued loving her; how could she stop? Claire’s body surrendered completely. She came, helpless to stop, for Tess—only for Tess. As she cried out her name, Tess kissed her deeply, swallowing her cries of ecstasy.
  

Tess slowly brought Claire down, her body still trembling with the aftershock of the most powerful orgasm she’d ever known. Tess clung to her as she lay on her back, taking Claire in a warm embrace. Both women were perspiring and breathless.

“Oh, my God, Tess,” Claire’s voice was a mere whisper. She cuddled into the hot body and threw a shaky leg over Tess’s thigh. “I love you,” she said tenderly and kissed the salty neck.

Tess moaned and pulled her close. “I love you, too.”

Claire reached up and placed her palm over the larger breast. Tess arched her back into the touch. Immediately, her breathing became ragged and her body shook.

“Relax. It’s my turn.” Claire quickly straddled the muscular thighs. Tess looked up and grinned. She reached up to cup her large breast; Claire held her hands over her head, kissing her deeply. She kissed down her neck, to the top of her breast. All the while Tess’s body jerked with anticipation.

“Claire.” She sighed and closed her eyes. Claire wasted no time. She eagerly took the aching nipple into her mouth and suckled. “Yes!” Tess hissed through clenched teeth as she writhed beneath her.

“I believe you left your mark a few weeks ago, Tess Rawlins. I think it was right about here,” she added in a seductive whisper and sucked the warm flesh into her mouth. Tess wriggled and groaned as Claire hungrily feasted.

“Ah!” Tess cried out. “
Geezus
, woman.”

Claire released the bruised flesh and gently licked the area, causing a deep groan from Tess. She then proceeded to feast on the other breast, leaving Tess gasping and aching for more.

Lowering herself, Claire kissed her way down the long muscular torso, flicking her tongue against the quivering stomach muscles. She hesitated at the top of the dark blond curls. Tess had her legs spread so far apart she thought she’d break something, still Claire hesitated. Tess could feel her soft, warm breath on her and moaned helplessly.

She opened her eyes to see Claire gazing at her with a questioning look. She gently prodded with her smile and Tess groaned and flopped back. Claire teased her mercilessly with her warm breath and light kisses around the curls and upper thighs. With every touch, Tess twitched uncontrollably.

“Damn it, Claire,” Tess hissed as she bucked her hips into the elusive tongue.

“Hmm?” Claire mumbled her question. Tess looked down once again to see the evil grin on Claire’s face. Her tongue appeared and made a licking motion in the air.

Tess groaned and nearly whimpered as the throbbing between her legs became unbearable. She knew what Claire wanted.

“Your tongue, please,” Tess begged, and she got her wish. Claire licked her like a starving cat. Her tongue snaked in and out, invading every inch of Tess’s overheated flesh.

Tess was a mass of quivering flesh as Claire feasted, bringing her to an unbelievable height. Soon the exquisite feeling became too much to bear. With her last ounce of strength, Tess grabbed Claire and tossed her on her back, pinning her arms over her head and breathing as if she was having a mild stroke.

“Enough! My God,” Tess exclaimed in a ragged voice. She slumped over Claire’s smaller body and let out a deep groan.

Claire grinned as she wrapped her arms around the strong sweaty shoulders. “You made me beg,” Tess’s muffled voice called out quietly.

Claire chuckled and ran her fingers through the damp hair. “Yes, sweetheart. Yes, I did,” she agreed, earning a chuckle from Tess.

For the rest of the glorious afternoon, Tess and Claire thoroughly explored each other’s bodies and the rest of the mansion.

Tess walked onto the porch, her chaps slung over her shoulder. She set her Stetson on the back of her head and took a deep happy breath.

Claire followed her out and spun her around. “We still have three bedrooms to go,” she reminded the chuckling Tess.

“I don’t know, the way you were screaming, we might have scared the poor cattle,” Tess teased.

“Cattle nothing. Every ranch hand…” She stopped abruptly and gave Tess a wild-eyed look of horror. Tess laughed and pulled her into her arms.

“I don’t care. At this very moment, I don’t have a care in the world but you,” she said, and Claire sighed helplessly.

“You and that Rawlins charm. Get out of here and go do whatever it is you do with your cows.” She gently kissed her, then pushed her off the porch. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

Tess grinned and swung up on Stella without using the stirrups. In one swift movement, she leaned down and pulled the stunned Claire up into her arms and kissed her, then deposited her on the porch steps. “And I didn’t fall off my horse.” She gave her a wink and galloped toward the herd.

“See ya!” Tess happily called out over her shoulder and waved her hat.

Claire shook her head and waved. “Oh, God,” she said with a laugh. “I’m so in love with that goof.”
 

Chapter 22

“Will ya stop that infernal
whistlin
’?” Chuck pleaded.

Tess laughed and slapped him on the back as they rode along the ridge. “I’m happy. In two weeks, you’ll have the herd on its way to Colorado, and I’ve found a way to keep the ranch going. Why shouldn’t I be whistling?”

“You’re going with us on the drive?”

“No. You don’t need me. Jack is doing fine, you’ll have enough with Claude’s men, as well. I need to get everything set to turn this place into a working ranch. I need to get our lawyer in on it. And there’re renovations to be done.”

“And just how are we going to afford that?”

“I’ve been saving over the years.”

“Your dad will not let you use your pension.”

“I’m not. Just my personal savings. We’ll be fine. So there’s no reason not to whistle.”

Chuck laughed. “I don’t suppose Claire Redmond has anything to do with it.”

Tess smiled. “She has everything to do with it. I never thought I’d be this happy or content.”

“I’m happy for ya. And Jack seems to be okay with it, as well.”

“I know. Claire and I are very lucky in that regard.” She saw the glance from Chuck. “What? Has Jack talked to you?”

“No, no. He admires you, Tess, and Jed. He loves his mother. It’s just that…”

“What? Will you spit it out?”

“Tess. He may be only sixteen, but he still considers himself the man of the family. Now he’s said
nothin
’ to me, but I see he wants to make sure his mother is cared for and happy.”

Tess chewed on that for a minute or two. “You’re right. He’s been the only man in her life. I’ll have a talk with him. As an adult. He deserves that.” The idea of actually talking to Jack about this made her insides flip.

 
Mercifully, Chuck changed the topic. “This cattle drive might be the last one the Double R has.” He looked around the landscape. “I remember when I was a kid. Your granddad used to let me ride the herd with him. He told me this would be here forever. People gotta eat and they love beef. His beef was the best in these parts,” Chuck said, and Tess listened as they trotted along. “Jeremiah did good things with this grass. Took a few years, but look at it. Green and healthy and the cattle love it. Look how healthy they are compared to Claude’s.”

Tess glanced at the small herd and had to agree. “But he’ll get Double R prices. Claude will keep his ranch. I don’t know how much time we have left in this business. It’s changing and we have to change with it.”

“Mmm,” Chuck grunted. “Wet
nursin
’ a bunch of New Yorkers.”

For the next few days, Tess and Claire grinned like two schoolgirls every time their gazes met. Claire would grin and look down at her plate, and Tess smiled as she drank her coffee. One afternoon, however, the serious side came out in Tess while she and Claire were sitting on the back porch. She explained her conversation with Chuck.

“Tess, we’re adults. Jack understands perfectly.”

“I know,” Tess said as Jack rode back from the herd. “Here he is.” She waited until he got to the corral. “Jack, I need to talk to you,” Tess called out from the porch. Claire groaned. “It’s fine, sweetie. I have to talk to him.”

“Tess, this is unnecessary, honey.”

“No, it’s not. Now trust me.” She ignored Claire’s sarcastic grunt. “Let me do this. It’s important.”

Jack took off his work gloves and nodded. He slapped Zeus on the flank, sending the black stallion into the corral. Taking off his hat, he wiped his brow with his forearm. In that one gesture, Tess was amazed how much he looked like his mother and how much older he seemed. He was on the verge of going to college, an intelligent young man, and he deserved to be treated as such. He was Claire’s only child.

Claire shook her head. “Tess, really. It’s—”
 

“What’s up, Tess?” Jack walked up to the back porch; he looked from his mother to Tess.

“I, we’d like to talk to you,” Tess said, finding no moisture in her mouth at all. Her hands were shaking, as well. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea…

“Sure,” Jack said and climbed the steps.

“What’s going on?” Jed asked as he walked onto the porch.

Chuck was right behind him, eating a bowl of ice cream.

Realizing too late just how bad an idea this was, Tess hung her head. “Nothing is going on. Claire and I—”

“This was your idea,” Claire reminded her.

Tess rubbed her temples. “All right. I’d like to talk to Jack.”

“About what?” Chuck asked. “Claire, where did you get this ice cream? Is it peach?”

“Yes. Isn’t it great?”

“Okay. Hold on now,” Jed said. “Tess wants to talk to Jack alone.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Tess said with a sigh of relief.

“But that’s not going to happen, so continue,” Jed said and sat in the rocker.
 

Tess looked at Claire, who was trying not to grin. Tess blushed furiously when she saw the confused look on all three men. “I’d like to talk to you about your mother and me.”

With that, Jed and Chuck stood and rushed for the back door. Bumping into each other, they finally got the screen door open and made a quick exit.

“So okay,” Jack said to Tess.