Tempting Love
Book 3 in the Cowboys and Angels series
Copyright © 2017 by Kelly Elliott
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-943633-36-4
Visit my website at www.kellyelliottauthor.com
Cowboys and Angels Series website www.cowboysandangelsseries.com
Cover photo and design by Sara Eirew Photography
Editor: Cori McCarthy, Yellowbird Editing
Proofer: Amy Rose Capetta, Yellowbird Editing
Developmental: Elaine York Allusion Graphics
Interior Designer: JT Formatting
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products, bands, and/or restaurants referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Table of Contents
Title Page
A Note to Readers
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Preview of Love Again
Playlist
Thank you
Preview of Untouched Perfection
Other Books by Kelly Elliott
A Note to Readers
Tempting Love is book three in the Cowboys and Angels series. The books in this series are not stand-alone books. Stories intertwine between books and continued to grow within each book. If you have picked up this book and have not read Lost Love or Love Profound, I strongly suggest that you read them in order.
For a list of characters in the series as well as other fun extras, please visit the series website: www.cowboysandangelsseries.com
Dragging my hands down my face, I dropped my head back against my truck seat.
What in the hell did she do to me?
I lifted my head and glanced over to Corina’s house. The last twelve hours had been the most amazing of my life. The feel of her lips on mine, moving in and out of her body… Fuck. It would forever replay in my mind.
“What in the hell did you do, Mitch?” I whispered as I stared at her door.
It was pretty fucking clear what I did. I spent the night with Corina like a greedy bastard. Took everything I could get from her and seared it into my brain…and now I was going to walk away, too damn afraid to admit I had feelings for her.
With a shake of my head, I started my truck and headed home. The sound of her sweet moans was still vivid, and the feel of her hands moving over my skin had left a burning trail in its wake.
“Fucking hell,” I yelled, slamming my hand against the steering wheel.
I made a U-turn and headed to Cord’s. He lived above his bar, and I knew he would be home. It was too early for his ass to be up and gone.
After parking, I made my way around back and hit the intercom.
It didn’t take long for him to answer.
“This better be good!”
“It’s me…Mitch. Can I come up?”
“Jesus. You slept with her, didn’t you?”
“Can I come up or not, asshole?”
The door buzzed, and I took the steps two at a time. Cord had remodeled the historic building. The bar took up the first two floors, the third and fourth housed Cord’s bachelor pad—except I was pretty sure he’d never actually brought a girl up here.
The door to his place was open slightly, so I walked in. I could smell coffee brewing as I met Cord in the kitchen.
“Coffee?” he asked, holding up a mug. “Or something stronger?”
“Coffee and something stronger,” I mumbled, sitting at the countertop island.
He poured some whiskey into my mug and set it in front of me. “You know Tripp called dibs.”
I blew out a long sigh, and I took a drink.
“Fuck Tripp and his damn dibs. He knew I liked her and that was the only reason he called dibs. Don’t make me feel any guiltier. Just remembering her face this morning as I left is killing me.”
“What do you mean?”
I shrugged. “I mean she had that look, like she hoped for more.”
“Did you give her the impression that it was more than a one-night stand and wait a fucking second, did you say this morning?” His eyes widened. “Dude, you didn’t. Please tell me you didn’t stay the night with her.”
“I was only going to walk her to her door and one thing led to another and…yeah, I stayed all night.”
Cord’s head dropped. “Aw, hell. Mitchell, Paxton’s gonna kick your ass. Dude, you can’t be playing around with a girl like Corina. She’s not like the ones who are happy with a quick piece of you. She’s the long-term, want-to-settle-down-with-a-nice-guy kind of girl.”
I groaned. “Fucking hell. The worse part about all of this is I wanted to stay with her. I stood at her door this morning and stared into those blue eyes and had to force myself to leave.”
Pushing off the counter, Cord walked closer. “What do you mean, you wanted to stay?”
I dragged my hands down my face. I felt like shit. “I mean I didn’t want it to be a one-night stand. I wanted to spend the whole fucking day with her. Find out every single thing I could about her. Go to breakfast and all that stupid ass shit a guy does when he’s attracted to a girl. Take her somewhere fun and devour her again later when we got back to her place.”
His brows pinched together. “Then why didn’t you? You can’t say it was Tripp because we both know he would have gotten past the whole claiming dibs.”
“I can’t. As much as I wanted to stay with her…I couldn’t do it.”
“Why the fuck not?”
“Why haven’t you?”
“I haven’t met the person who makes me want to stay the night, and have breakfast in the m
orning, and spend the day with. If I did, I sure as shit wouldn’t have walked away from her for no goddamn good reason.”
I jumped up, nearly knocking the stool over. “I have a goddamn reason!”
“What is it, Mitch? Why did you leave Corina when you really wanted to stay?”
My heart pounded, and I fought to find the answer. Why had I left the person who woke up my heart for the first time in my life?
My phone buzzed with a text. Pulling it out, I said, “I’ve got to go, I just got called in. Looks like they found a body earlier this morning in the Frio.”
Cord frowned. “Life of a cop.”
“Yeah. Sometimes I get tired of it.” I headed to the door. “Thanks for the coffee and ear.”
“Hey, Mitch?”
Stopping, I glanced over my shoulder. “Yeah?”
“Don’t lead her on. She’s a sweet girl, and she deserves more than a guy playing with her feelings.”
I swallowed hard and stared at the floor. I knew my brother was right. When I looked back up, I nodded. “Guess it’s a good thing I didn’t stay then, huh?”
The moment I shut the door I felt sick.
Corina Miller deserved someone who wouldn’t end up destroying her heart. A guy who was willing to give her the life she wanted.
I wasn’t that guy.
“So, this is your place, huh?”
I dropped my keys on the coffee table. “Yep. This is it.”
Cassidy spun around and took in the loft apartment I owned in the building above Lilly’s restaurant. I had bought the entire fourth floor and had it remodeled two years ago.
“I’m glad you finally invited me back to your place and not the back seat of your truck,” she said.
A sharp pain hit me in the middle of my chest.
Cassidy grinned as she placed her hands on my chest. “It’s been awhile since we fucked, Mitch. All that teasing at Cord’s Place the last few months has been driving me crazy. I was glad when I got your call tonight.”
I forced a smile and stepped back. “Want a beer?”
She nodded and made her way to my sofa. “Sure.”
Entering the kitchen, I took a deep breath and opened the refrigerator. What in the hell was I doing? I had tried this once already—with this same chick. It hadn’t worked then, and I was fooling myself to think a redo would change things.
I pulled out my phone and sent a text.
Me: What are you doing?
Robert and I had been best friends since high school, so I knew it wouldn’t take him long to respond.
Robert: About to castrate a bull. You want in on it?
With a smile, I replied.
Me: Yes. On my way. Do me a favor and call me.
Robert: Why? You want to hear my sweet voice?
Me: Something like that.
I grabbed two beers and headed back into the living room. It was time to get rid of the mistake I had almost made.
As I handed the beer to Cassidy, my phone rang. I was going to owe Robert big time.
“This is Mitch.”
“Okay. So I called. Now what?”
“Yes, sir. I understand.”
“Aw, we’ve got a chick we don’t feel like sticking to?”
I turned away from Cassidy and rolled my eyes. “That’s affirmative.”
“You owe me, you prick. Get your ass over here. Mary will be glad to feed your face.”
I nodded. “Leaving now.”
I hit End and looked back at the woman sitting on my sofa. “Sorry, Cassidy. I’ve got to go into work.”
She jutted a lip out. “Are you serious? Can’t we just…you know? Really quick?”
Jesus, how do I get myself into this shit?
Grabbing my keys, I headed to the stairs and motioned for her to follow. “Sorry, duty calls.”
She groaned and snatched her purse off the table. “Seriously, Mitch? I’m tired of this. You feel me up at the bar and then you switch off when I mention sex. Are we ever going to fuck again?”
I laughed and placed my hand on her lower back. “Cassidy, you know there is no chance of an us. Ever.”
“That’s fine! But my panties are tired of being wet and not getting any relief. I don’t need a relationship, Mitchell. I need your dick.”
By the time we got to her car, she was finished giving me hell
“I’ll see you around?” I said, kissing her on the cheek.
“Fine. Be careful.”
She slipped into her car and a part of me felt guilty that she thought I was going to work. I sighed as I walked to my truck.
Fucking hell. I needed to stop this shit. For the last six months I kept getting close to fucking, only to throw on the brakes.
I couldn’t get her out of my head.
Corina.
I closed my eyes and went back to the night we’d spent together. I’d only slept with one person since the night I’d spent with Corina. And that was Cassidy, a failed attempt at meaningless sex to wash away the memory of Corina.
All it did was make me feel worse.
By the time I pulled up to Robert’s, Cassidy had sent three pictures. Fuck, I hated selfies. What did she think I did with them? Jack off to her tits and duck lips?
Hardly.
I got out of the truck and walked up the drive.
“Well, look who the cat dragged in. Mitchell Parker. To what do we owe the honor?” Mary stood on the front porch of their small farmhouse. Her hands were resting on her seven-months-pregnant stomach.
“Well, I was about to screw a girl and needed an out so I had Robert call me. Pretended it was work and all,” I said with an evil grin.
She laughed. “Why do I think you’re telling the truth?”
Leaning down, I kissed her cheek. “Because I am.”
With a blank look on her face, she stared into my eyes for the longest time. “You’re in love with someone, Mitchell Parker. Admitting that to yourself saves a lot of rescue calls in the future, ya know.”
Frowning, I laughed. “Yeah, no. This was a random hook-up that I wasn’t into.”
She shook her head. “You weren’t into her because you’re in love with someone else.”
I let out a groan. “Oh, man. Mary, you always were the matchmaker. Not this time, sweetheart.”
She waved her pointer finger back and forth. “Tsk-tsk-tsk. If you think you can hide it from me, go ahead. I know that look, Mitchell Parker and even if you aren’t ready to admit it, your heart already has. Those ‘random hook-ups’ you aren’t that ‘into’ are going to become more and more frequent, just you wait and see.”
“Is my wife giving you hell, Parker?” Robert called out.
I stared into Mary’s light brown eyes before I let a smile cross my face. Giving her a wink, I replied, “Nah. She’s trying, but it’ll never work.”
She simply shrugged and turned to Robert. Giving him a kiss, she said, “I’ll make us up some biscuits and gravy. I’m craving it.”
“Sounds good, baby. We’ll be down in the barn.”
I followed Robert over to his Mule and jumped in the passenger side.
He started it up and we headed down to his barn. Jumping out, I followed him into his office. Robert ran the dairy farm that had been in his family for the last two generations. His daddy had an office built into the barn and spent most of his time there; he pretty much lived in the damn thing. That was until Robert’s mom finally had enough of it and divorced him.
“Beer?” he asked, tossing me a Bud Light.
“Thanks,” I replied as I sat down in one of the chairs.
“Want to talk about it?”
“No.”
He exhaled a gust. “Seriously, Parker? You need to figure this shit out. When was the last time you got laid?”
Pressing the bottle to my lips, I took a long drink before answering. “February.”
His mouth dropped open. “Dude! It’s fucking August.”
I stared at him. “That’s why I had Cassidy F
rench in my damn living room earlier.”
“Why couldn’t you go through with it?”
“Because I don’t want Cassidy. And I don’t want the bleach blonde who had her tits all pressed up against me the other night at the club in San Antonio. I don’t want the girl who offered to blow me in the bathroom at Cord’s Place. I don’t fucking want any of them.”
“Because you want her.”
“I don’t know what in the fuck I want, Robert. That’s the problem.”
Robert and Cord where the only two people I’d talked to about Corina, and I’d mentioned it to Wade once. Fuck if I wasn’t driving myself mad.
“What are you going to do when she moves on, Mitch? When she gets tired of you waiting to figure out your shit?”
Taking another drink, I half-shrugged. “She was with some asshole at Steed and Paxton’s shower. Philip, or some pussy name like that.”
Robert laughed. “Damn, dude. Harbor any ill feelings for the guy?”
I rolled my eyes.
“She’s better off without me. At least, I keep telling myself that.”
“Why?”
With a look that said he should already know, I replied, “My job, for one thing. The fact that commitment scares the piss out of me. Plus she deserves a guy who hasn’t slept with nearly all the single women in Oak Springs.”
Now he really laughed. “For Pete’s sake. All of you Parker boys have slept with all of Oak Springs and beyond. I wouldn’t doubt if one of you put the moves on my wife at some point.”
I held up my hands. “That was Tripp who put the moves on Mary. Not me.”
He frowned. “Are you kidding right now? When the fuck did he do that?”
Oh, shit.
“Um, what?”
He lifted his brows. “Did Tripp fuck my wife? I mean, before she became my wife.”
Aw, fuck. “What?”
Robert stood. “I’ll kill him.”
I walked over and put my hand on his chest. “Christ, Robert. Tripp was in a bad place, Mary had just lost her parents. It was one time.”
He let out the breath he was holding. “I wasn’t dating her then.”
“No joke. You know Tripp wouldn’t do that, and you know damn well Mary isn’t the type to cheat. Dude, please don’t bring it up to her. She’s married to you now and expecting your first child. Leave the past in the past.”