The Ashtons - Cole, Abigail & Megan

arm around me?”
    He cleared his throat. “Actually, I was going to rest it along the back of the couch, but—”
    Her eyes widened. “Don’t you think you’re taking what you said this afternoon to the extreme?”
    “Not really.”
    He’d keep his word, even if it killed him. And with her sitting so close, it just might.
    “Well, I do.” She shifted on the couch to face him. “You mean you aren’t even going to try to kiss me?”
    He shook his head. “I gave you my word. The only way I’ll touch you is if you tell me to.”
    Abby stared at Russ for several long seconds, her heart hammering against her ribs for all it was worth. Could she really be that forward? Did she have the nerve to tell him that she wanted him to modify his promise?
    After walking back to the carriage house, she’d spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about what he’d told her. And he was right—she wasn’t her mother, nor was she anything like her.
    Grace Ashton was weak-willed, hedonistic and selfish. But her daughter was a strong, capable woman who was just coming into her own. A woman who was learning to trust her instincts and determine exactly what she wanted. And heaven help her, at the moment she wanted Russ to hold her, wanted him to kiss her like she’d never been kissed before.
    But he’d made that dumb promise and she was going to have to do something she wasn’t exactly comfortable with. She was either going to have to ask him to kiss her, or she was going to have to kiss him.
    Deciding that action spoke louder than words, her heart skipped a beat when she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. She’d never in all of her twentyfour years done anything like this, but as she nibbled at his firm, warm mouth, she found the experience extremely exciting and, to a degree, liberating.
    When he groaned and shifted toward her, she expected him to put his arms around her and take over. But other than kissing her back, he just sat there. Apparently, Russ was waiting for her to verbalize what she wanted.
    She leaned back and noticed that both of his hands were balled into tight fists at his sides. He wanted to hold her as badly as she wanted to be held. But he wasn’t going to make a move until she let him know that she was ready for him to take an active role.
    “Russ?”
    “What, Abby?” His eyes were still closed and he sounded as if he was having trouble breathing.
    “Will you please touch me?”

Chapter Four
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    A bby watched Russ’s eyes fly open a moment before he groaned and reached out to pull her into his arms. “Good Lord, woman, I thought you’d never ask.”
    “I have something else I want you to do.” A shiver raced up her spine at the feel of his hard body pressed to hers.
    “What’s that, honey?” he asked, nuzzling the side of her neck.
    “I want you to forget about that promise.”
    She felt him go perfectly still a moment before he drew back to look at her. His expression was a mixture of relief and confusion.
    “Are you sure?”
    Taking a deep breath, she nodded. “I’ll let you know if something makes me nervous or uncomfortable.”
    “That works for me.” He lightly kissed her cheek. “But do me a favor.”
    Her skin tingled where his lips had been. “And that would be?”
    “Just keep in mind that I’m not Harold.” Giving her a grin that made her stomach flutter, he added, “All you have to do is tell me no. It doesn’t take a knee to the groin to get my attention.”
    “I’ll remember that,” she said, putting her arms around his wide shoulders. “Now, kiss me like you mean it, cowboy.”
    His wicked grin caused her insides to quiver. “I aim to please, ma’am.”
    Abby’s heart raced and her stomach felt as if it did a backflip when he slowly lowered his mouth to cover hers. Circling his neck with her arms, she savored the feel of his firm lips teasing hers, reveled in the contrast of their bodies. Honed by years of physical labor, Russ had muscles strong enough to crush her, yet he held her to him as gently as if he held a small child.
    But when he slipped his tongue inside to stroke hers with infinite care, she ceased to think and tentatively met him halfway. As she tasted and explored him as he did her, she was rewarded with his groan of pleasure, and afeminine power that she’d never experienced before began to fill her. For the first time in her life, she was exploring her own sexuality, beginning to understand what it meant to be a woman. And