“You’d better go faster than that,” he growled.

Lori was both grinning and panting as she decided to mess with him just the teeniest bit. “I’m going as fast as I can,” she said, even as she let her hands linger across him, her hips bump just a little against his, the tips of her br**sts slide over his rock-hard pecs as she fiddled with the condom.

“Like hell you are,” he said, and then he was taking the job away from her, his hands moving to her hips a moment later to hold her tightly as she finally took him inside, sliding down over his thick length one perfect inch at a time.

Her eyes fluttered closed, her breath rushing from her body as pleasure overtook her. When she finally figured out how to breathe again and opened her eyes, she found Grayson staring at her with such desire—and such wonder—that her chest clenched so tight that she could actually feel her love for him throbbing between them.

The only way she could keep from saying the words aloud to him was to cover his mouth with hers and focus every last cell, every last muscle in her body, on pleasure, on filling herself with his hard heat again and again and feeling him grow even bigger, even harder inside of her with every stroke.

“Grayson...” She couldn’t see anything but him, couldn’t think anything but his name, couldn’t feel anything other than the deepest pleasure she’d ever known in her life. And as the ocean waves crashed behind them into the jagged rocks along the coast, Grayson was her anchor as he held her so tightly on his lap that she could no longer move. She could only hold on as he thrust up into her again and again until she was crashing hard into a climax so beautiful she was nearly sobbing at the pleasure he gave her.

And as he called out her name, then exploded inside of her as she held him just as tightly as he’d been holding her, she didn’t have to wonder if her body had just told him of the love she hadn’t let herself speak aloud.

All that was left to wonder was whether he’d heard it, too.

* * *

The next afternoon, the sun was already starting to set by the time Grayson found her in the pigpen. “You’re just getting their stalls mucked out now?”

Lori remained amazed both by the way he managed to infuse each word with so much irritation, and by how cute she found it. Not rushing as she finished the final stall, she carefully washed off her rake and hung it up before saying, “I would have finished earlier, but someone made me late for work this morning by not letting me get out of bed.”

As she walked over to him at the gate, he made a face. “You really need a shower.”

“Well, you really are cranky,” she retorted even though she completely agreed with him about how nice a shower would be right about now. “Think a shower can wash that away, too?”

“You think this is cranky?” he growled as he took hold of her and dragged her around the side of the barn. “I’ll show you cranky.”

Before she knew it, he had her standing fully clothed under the outdoor shower. He stripped the wet clothes, hat and boots from her so fast that all she could do was stand there in shock and let him. Only to be doubly shocked when she realized his jeans and boots were already off, too, and he’d put a condom on.

A moment later, he picked her up and drove into her, both of them utterly ravenous for each other despite the fact that it had barely been eight hours since they’d last made love. She didn’t need foreplay, didn’t need anything but his strong arms around her and his fierce desire to drive her straight to the edge, and then all the way over as his lips landed on hers and he drove his tongue into her mouth just as he thrust his hips forward.

Later, when he soaped her up, then made her feel good all over again with his hands and mouth, Lori made a mental note to remember to call Grayson names more often than she already did.

* * *

A few days later, Grayson had just stepped in the back door when he heard Lori’s voice coming from the kitchen.

“Hey Soph, time for my daily check-in so that you don’t think an axe murderer has gotten to me.”

He hadn’t realized Lori and her sister spoke every day. Despite opening up to each other about their failed relationships after their first night together, by tacit agreement since then, they hadn’t pushed each other hard for anything. Instead, they’d both simply enjoyed their time together.

But it was getting harder and harder for Grayson to deny that he was starved for more of Lori. Not just her body. Not just her laughter. But to know her better.

All of her, inside and out.

So even though he knew he shouldn’t listen in without her knowledge, he didn’t head back outside to let her finish her call in private.

“Oh!” he heard Lori exclaim. “Is that a baby laughing? Really, it’s two babies laughing at the same time?” He felt the wonder in her voice deep in the center of his heart. “What could be better than that?” she asked on a sweet little laugh of her own. “I can’t wait to see them on Sunday. I’ve missed my little niece and nephew so much.”

He’d known since that day he’d taken her to the General Store to pick up boots that she’d be leaving him for lunch this Sunday.

Unfortunately, he also knew that the odds of her coming back to his farm—and to him—after that were slim to none. Because once she re-entered her real life, she’d see how ridiculous hiding out on his farm was. Lori was a world-class dancer. She had a family who loved her. As much a part of the land as she seemed to be every time he looked at her, the truth was that she didn’t belong on his farm.

It was why he’d been careful not to get too close, telling himself again and again that it was smarter just to fill up on pleasure so that it wouldn’t hurt as much once she was gone.

But Grayson knew better: It would hurt like hell.

And he would have to let her leave anyway, because keeping Lori hidden away on a farm would deprive the world of her truly special gift. He’d known from the first second she showed up that she wouldn’t last very long. But he’d thought she would leave because she hadn’t been able to hack the hard work.

Now he knew the truth. Lori Sullivan could do anything she set her mind to. But while there could be plenty of great farmhands out there, only a few people were meant to be dancers.

“Yes,” she said to her sister, “I do feel better.” She gave a contented little sigh. “Lots better. What can I say? Being a farmhand obviously agrees with me. Oh,” she added on a playful note, “and lots of super awesome sex with a hot cowboy doesn’t hurt, either.”