Honey Kisses

Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Mud Madness

Ann glanced at the ominous sky. Swirling clouds released droplets that splattered her forehead as she rushed from her cottage to the main house. She'd forgotten the bag of snacks she'd promised Spike. She wanted to grab them before the downpour.

A thunderbolt ripped through the clouds when she unlatched the gate and sprinted toward the back door. Hurrying through the mud room, she pushed the laundry door open and grabbed the kitty treats. As an afterthought, she decided to check the refrigerator for eggs to see if she needed to bring a carton from her cottage in the morning. She entered the kitchen and stopped dead.

Jackson, barefoot, naked to the waist, and leaning against the island, gave her a startled look. His belt was gone and his Levis road low on his hips. Standing beside him lifting a beer to her mouth and wearing his shirt, and nothing else, was Pritzy Purvis.

"Hi Annie," said the tall, leggy beauty, and giggled.

Ann looked from Pritzy to Jackson and her heart shattered into a million pieces. Any ridiculous hope she'd harbored for the two of them, no matter how often she'd vanquished the feelings, faded with the sight of Jackson and Pritzy half unclothed. The kitty snacks fell to the ground and she covered her mouth with her hand. A whimper escaped and she ran back through the mud room. Pelting rain drenched her and lightning split the sky again as she rushed through the gate. Thunder roared and vibrated the earth. The pasture had already turned into a mud bowl that sucked at her feet and legs, the same way finding Jackson and Pritzy together sucked at her soul.

* * *

"Shit!" Jackson shouted.

"Hon, what's the problem? She's just the housekeeper."

Jackson turned a frustrated look on Pritzy. "Get dressed and go home! This was a stupid idea, anyway!"

Pritzy opened her mouth to respond, but he was already running toward the back door. "Go home!" he shouted over his shoulder.

The sky had opened and was pouring buckets when he stepped outside. He saw Annie, slipping and sliding in the pasture. She fell and righted herself. He yelled her name, but the sound was lost in a thunder clap. He ran through the gate and into the field. She fell again, this time flat on her stomach. He watched her push to her knees and then freeze in that position.

He slopped through the mud, rain stinging his nakedness, and circled Annie, going down on his knees in front of her. She was staring at the ground. He yelled her name above the storm and she slowly looked up. The heartbreak in her eyes twisted his gut. Rain plastered their hair to their faces and washed the mud from their bodies. Jackson shouted, "Nothing happened, Annie. I sent her home."

She looked blankly into his eyes and blinked against water droplets on her lashes.

He leaned down and cupped her face with his hands. "Annie, why do we keep fighting our desire for each other?"

Suddenly, a cry escaped her throat and she threw her arms around his neck, plastering her lips to his. Jackson moaned and kissed her like he'd dreamed of since their first dance. On their knees in the mud, they finally gave in to years of frustration and suppressed longings. His tongue found hers in a mating dance and then he strung kisses from her mouth to her eyes, her cheeks, her nose, her ears, and back to her mouth.

Lightning flashed, closer now, and he stood, pulling her up with him and reaching under her legs to lift her into the shelter of his arms. Still kissing her, he walked as quickly as he could through the slop to her cottage. Shoving the front door open, he strode to the bathroom and turned on the shower. While the water heated, he kissed her fiercely and removed her clothes. He released the zipper of his jeans and stepped out of them. He again lifted Annie and entered the steaming shower with her. Shifting her body until her legs were around his waist, he backed her against the shower stall. She locked eyes with him and placed her small hands on either side of his face, staring into his soul. "Kiss me, Annie," he begged.