“Get out here, you two,” Taylor said.

Finding the girl’s energy contagious, Alix couldn’t help but smile as she waded out, Amanda staying close beside her. When they reached Taylor, Amanda dipped low to soak her body, her long dark hair, now wet from the river, cascading down her back.

“It’s so refreshing,” Amanda said, her plump lips curling upward. Alix dipped lower, but when she felt cold water fall over her breasts, she yelped.

Taylor laughed and cupped her hands to pour the cool river water over Alix’s body to rinse it. Amanda joined in, both girls splashing water over her and laughing as Jag watched from the deck. She touched herself, running her hands over her body, not really to rinse it, but because she liked the idea of him watching.

She stilled at that admission and looked up at Jag as he stood. The instant her eyes met his, heat moved through her.

Amanda nodded toward Jag. “Looks like your cowboy is waiting for you. You should head on up.”

“Jag is a very patient man,” Amanda added, her eyes twinkling. “But something tells me that when it comes to you, even a patient man has his limits.” She turned from Alix and said, “Besides, Taylor and I are going to take a swim.”

When the two women touched each other intimately, Alix nodded in understanding. Her weak legs carried her the few feet to the shoreline. At the top of the stairs, she found Jag waiting for her.

“Hey,” he said, his voice deep and husky with desire.

“Hey,” she returned breathlessly.

“So what do you think, Alix?” he asked, his voice rough with desire. “Have these cowgirls given you what you needed to make the switch?”

She frowned, her gaze moving over his face before dipping lower to take in the hard ridge pressing against his pants. Her body came alive. Yeah, there was no way she could ever switch teams. Not when she craved the taste, texture, the hard length of a man inside her—the hard length of Jag inside her. And judging by that impressive bulge, he had a whole lot of length to give.

“It’s tough to make that call,” she said, her desire for him making her bold, urging her to try new things. With him.

He ran his thumb along her jawline, and she shuddered. Heat moved through her, the warmth of the sun nothing in comparison with the warmth of his touch. “Why is that?”

Feeling bolder than she ever had before, she lifted her chin a little higher and said, “Because I’ve never been with a real cowboy, and I believe I should sample one before committing to one team, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I do.” He stepped close, his body crowding hers. “And I can help you out with that.”

Heart beating wildly, she poked her finger into his chest and said, “That’s what I was counting on, cowboy.”

Chapter Three

Jag couldn’t believe how fast Alix had loosened under his watchful eye. He didn’t want to push too fast or too soon, but taking her to Katy’s had been one hell of a good move. He’d watched as she touched herself in the water. At first, he thought she was doing it to tease him. But then their eyes met and he saw what was really going on. Sweet little Alix might like to watch others, but she also had exhibitionist tendencies. Damned if his day wasn’t getting better and better.

After Katy’s he’d taken her back to her room to get changed, and now here they stood, high on the mountaintop overlooking the ranch below, him tending to the horses and her trying to put a tent together as Colt took the others off on a hiking excursion.

“They didn’t teach this in political science,” she grumbled as she sorted through the poles.

He laughed as he finished with the horses. “Need some help?”

She bent to pick up the instructions, put her hand on her waist, and jutted one hip out as she read. He nearly swallowed his tongue. Jesus, she was sexy, and he wanted her in the worst way, but she’d been hurt and he needed to be careful. She thought this week was about sex, and while he wanted her underneath him—hell, he was a red-blooded male—he also wanted to build things slowly and see if there could be more between them.

But fuck, if she kept twisting and turning and bending over like that, he was going to lose his shit big-time.

She dropped the paper and grabbed the ropes, tangling herself in them. Instead of helping, he pulled his camera from his bag and snapped a picture of her. Her head jerked up.

“What are you doing?” she asked, blowing a loose strand of hair from her mouth.

He grinned and snapped another picture. “What does it look like?” he asked as her body stiffened.

“Don’t take my picture,” she said, her breathing changing slightly.

He bit back a wry grin, loving the fire in her eyes. “Why not?”

“I don’t like it.” Despite her protest, he took another one. “Jag, don’t.”

“What, you like to take sexy pictures of others, yet you don’t like to be photographed yourself?” he asked, deciding to push her just a tiny little bit. A flush crawled up her face, and when she didn’t answer he added, “If you ask me, I think you like to be watched as much as you like watching.”

Her eyes widened as she stared at him, and the hunger inside him nearly consumed him as heat backlit her baby blues.

Snap.

“Jag—” she began, sounding even more breathless as she tried to untangle herself. “How did…how do…?”

Snap.

Her chest rose and fell erratically, the rope tightening on her breasts.

Snap.

“Tell me something.”

“What?” she asked softly, like she could no longer fight the desire rising in her.

“When you touched yourself in the water today, did you like me watching? Is that something that turns you on, baby?” She hesitated and averted her eyes. “Do you trust me, Alix?”

Her gaze shot to his. “I…I do.”

“Good. Then I want you to be honest with me, but more importantly I want you to be honest with yourself.”

She darted a glance around the clearing and answered quietly with, “Yes.”

Snap.

“If you liked it, we could do it again.” He struggled to keep his voice level, keep a measure of calm when all he wanted to do was toss the camera and take her the way he wanted to.

It’s too soon, dude.

Her throat worked as she swallowed, and she freed her hands, leaving her capable of fleeing and putting a stop to this game if she wanted to.

As fire raged between his legs, he pushed her even more. “If you want to touch yourself, I could watch.”

Equal amounts of heat and nervousness stole over her face, and she stood there staring at him. Damned if she wasn’t debating her next move. A branch cracked nearby and her eyes widened. She peered into the surrounding woods and went quiet, thoughtful, like she was waging some internal war.

“What if someone…”

Jag scanned the woods, but there was no one around. “If there is someone out there, maybe you’d like it if they watched, too.”

A low, sexy moan caught in her throat. Christ, he couldn’t wait to explore all her needs. “Jag.”

Snap.

He took his sweet time to tease her, wanting to draw out this verbal foreplay, because well, it was fun, for both of them. “I’d really love to see how you touch yourself when you’re alone. That is if you want me to.”

She visually quivered.

Snap.

She stood still for a long moment, heat coloring her cheeks. “Touching myself in front of someone is…”

“Something that turns you on?” he asked, finishing her sentence.

“Yeah,” she said, her voice a breathless whisper.

“If you’re open to exploring, we can. Totally up to you. You’re the one in charge here.”

Her chest rose and fell. Was she considering it? Jesus, he sure as hell hoped so.