Cowboy Take Me Away(160)
“This time we’ll both be sober. And we’ve got plenty of lube.”
She looked up at him. “If you wanted to poke me in the rear, why didn’t you say something?”
“I dunno. Wasn’t like our sex life was lacking. It took twenty-three years for you to want to try it at all so I didn’t push it.” He grinned. “I’m just glad it ain’t gonna be twenty-three years before you wanna try it again. Maybe you oughta buy one of them gag things too so you can’t argue with me.”
“And with that, I’m calling it a night.” Carolyn disentangled from his arms and went to the dresser for a nightie. As she was about to pull it over her head, she noticed Carson had a strange look on his face. “What?”
“How about you practice that wild streak and sleep nekkid?”
“Does that mean there’s a chance you’ll wake me up with your mouth between my legs?”
“I can pretty much guarantee it.”
She threw the nightgown behind her.
He laughed.
They slipped beneath the sheets together and she admitted it’d be nice sleeping skin to skin with him all night.
Carson’s lips brushed the top of her head. “I don’t ever want you to think the passion between us is a thing of the past. It might not be as urgent as it once was, it may’ve grown and changed and ain’t as frequent as either of us would like it to be, but sugar, it’s still there. It always will be if I got anything to say about it.”
“I remember you told me once that you’d still want me when you were a hundred-and-five-year-old man. At the time I thought that was sweet. As well as vaguely creepy.”
“I meant it. I still mean it. There are folks who think a grandma and grandpa havin’ a hot sex life is creepy, but I don’t give a damn. Let them think we’re whittlin’ and knittin’ in our spare time. Only we’ll know that we’re wearin’ out the mattress and testin’ out the sturdiness of all the furniture in this old house.”
“Guess we’d better remember to start locking the door during the day.”
She hated that the memory didn’t fade to black like in the movies. Her head screamed as she pushed against the tide, her hands blindly reaching out to hold on to the moment only to spiral back down into that void again.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Hospital, Day 5—afternoon
“Of course you’re bringing him cookies,” the nurse said. “That’s pretty much been his diet. You’re good to go in.”
Carson watched as Chassie Glanzer came around the corner, holding a paper bag.
She smiled and passed it over. “I’m sure you heard what’s in here.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty quiet up here.” He peeked inside. “These are gigantic. What kind are they?”
“Rancher cookies. They’re a mix of chocolate chip and oatmeal with butterscotch chips, peanuts and M&Ms. They’re a favorite in our household.”
“I can see why. Thanks, darlin’, now supper is covered.”
“I’ll be honest; I wish I wasn’t bringing them to you at all.” She sat next to him. “Any news from the docs?”
“Nope. Still the same.”
“I figured. India has kept me updated.”
Usually Keely passed on news to her West relatives. “Indy stopped by. But she wasn’t bearing cookies.”
“Trust me, Uncle Carson, if she had you wouldn’t want to eat them. I love her, and she has many talents, but cookin’ ain’t one of them.”
“That description fits me too.” He set the bag aside. “How’re the kids?”
“Healthy, first off, or I wouldn’t be here. Enjoying the summer. They’re pretty involved in 4-H. It sucks we had to start our own club since no one wanted us in theirs. But with Colt and Indy’s kids and ours, and now the Anderson triplets from up the road wanting to join, we’re making inroads.”
“It sucks that you gotta make inroads at all. People oughta mind their own business and not worry about what someone else is doin’ behind closed doors.” While he didn’t understand two guys wanting to be together, he also didn’t understand why half the damn couples in the county were together either.
Chassie leaned her head on his biceps—a very un-Chassie-like reaction. She’d always been a sweet and shy girl, thoughtful, kind, nothing at all like her asshole father. If she’d acted anything like Harland West, Carson would’ve put his boot down and kept Chassie far away from Keely.
“I’m sorry,” Chassie whispered. “Sorry this happened to Aunt Carolyn and sorry that you’re goin’ through hell.”