married and the men congratulating him for holding out. Hours of celebration and family togetherness and it felt like torture, because he wanted to be with her. Only her. She’d said yes. And he hadn’t given a single goddamned thought to what might come after. Hadn’t thought about Alicia being alone at Christmas because she regretted or was ashamed of what they’d done together and she didn’t want to take the chance of running into him. Hadn’t thought about the baby’s birthdays or graduation or wedding. Not until Frank had to go and open up his damn mouth. He’d fire the bastard if he weren’t like a second father to him. If he didn’t care so much about his opinion. He swore when he reached the stable and made a beeline for Old Man. He’d leave. He’d get back on that damn plane again tomorrow and do his business and his thinking on the fly. Alicia deserved to have this time with her sister. To see her niece or nephew come into the world. She didn’t need him or his desire for her to do that. He’d just gotten the horse saddled when he heard her voice. “Are we leaving now?” Tracy tightened the cinch without looking at her. “I am. You can stay as long as you like.” “I can?” He nodded, spending more time then he needed to gathering up the reins. “You might need a ride up tomorrow if you decide to stay the night. I’ll be in the air on my way to Texas for business. Not sure if I’ll be back in time for the baby, but I’d still like it if you stayed at my place for the duration.” “Wow.” The way she said it made him turn his head. Her arms were crossed and she was studying him as if he’d just sprouted an extra head. “Wow what?” She shrugged. “Nothing. Fine. Thank you for the offer and I hope you have a successful business trip. Before you leave, maybe you can get me a list of men in the area who might be willing to take over our experiment for you. I’d really appreciate it because I hate leaving things unfinished.” Tracy looked around to make sure they were alone in the stable before he pulled her into the stall with him and pressed her against the wood. “Out, Old Man.” The horse walked out of the stall and stood like a sentinel, his ears twitching as he listened to the laughter outside. Tracy turned his attention to Alicia. “A list? That won’t be happening.” She lifted her chin and glared up at him. “You think so? You wanted to control my body not my life, remember? And now it looks like you changed your mind. Which is fine, except that I haven’t. You’ve piqued my curiosity, Mr. Reyes. Now I’ll just have to find a substitute to fill in the blanks. If not here then when I get back to New—” He kissed her. He hadn’t planned on it but he was sure that if she kept talking he’d have her bound and gagged and thrown over his horse for his whole family to see. Whatever it took so he would stop thinking about another man giving her what he’d wanted to. Touching her without his permission. Her mouth opened for him greedily, but her hands were pushing him away. He understood the conflict. Still, he couldn’t let her go. He forced his thigh between hers to spread her legs in the confined space, his hand seeking and finding what he hadn’t been able to get out of his mind. One taste and he’d known he wanted more. One touch and he groaned against her lips, unable to resist filling her slowly with one finger. He shuddered. She was so damn tight. Alicia wasn’t motionless in his embrace. Her hands had reached down and had his jeans unbuckled and unzipped before he could stop her. He tore his mouth away and struggled for breath when her fingers wrapped around his erection. “Alicia, don’t.” “You broke our deal,” she whispered, her hips moving against his hand, forcing his finger deeper inside her while she stroked him. “Which means you’re not the boss of me.” Oh yes he fucking was. He let her go, gripping her wrists and