CHAPTER 11

	Blake swallowed hard as he looked as her.  She stood in front of him wearing
nothing but a towel, and the view was incredibly inviting.  And that smile! It was enough
to melt a man if the sight of her soft bare shoulders hadn’t done so already. He forgot
completely what he was doing at her door, and shuffled uneasily as he attempted to
regain his composure.
	“Oh!” the little gasp of surprise escaped her was barely audible, but he heard it,
and it aroused him even more.  She had shown incredible courage out in the storm,
searching alongside him for the missing boy.  She had shattered the last of Blake’s
stereotypes about city women the moment she had marched past him with Candita’s
saddle and refused to stay in the stables and do nothing.  Somewhere in the back of his
mind he remembered that he had come to tell her something about that, and to see if
she was doing OK, but foremost in his thoughts was the desire to take her in his arms
and remove that pesky towel.
	He cleared his throat and glanced into the room behind her, trying to keep his
eyes off of her.  “I just wanted to see if everything was alright, and tell you that Reggie is
settled in his bed and glad of the warmth.”
	Joey regained her smile.  “Blake, I’m so glad we found him.  I don’t know what I
would have done if—” 
	“Shhh,” he interrupted her, returning his gaze to her face. “I promised I’d find him,
didn’t I?” He smiled at her, and she felt her knees shake.
	“Some things are beyond a man’s control,” she said. “I’m just glad this didn’t turn
out to be one of them.”
	He groaned under his breath. If she only knew what was beyond this man’s
control right now as she stood there wrapped in her towel.  It took every ounce of his
control to back away from the door and begin to turn towards the hallway. 
	“I’m glad too,” he said, with a grin.  “Now I should really let you go to bed.  You’ll
welcome the soft warmth I’m sure.”  He winced at his choice of words.  It was the soft
warmth of her body he was imagining.
	She giggled nervously and clutched at the towel, as if conscious for the first time
that she was standing there with nothing on underneath. “Thanks Blake,” she said.  “I’m
sure I will.”
	He took a step away from the door, and she began to close it between them.  
Another step, and the door was nearly closed. With a groan, he stepped and turned
back towards her. 
	“Joey.” 
	Her hand gripped the door and moved it open a little again, a questioning look on
her face. “Blake?”
	He moved with purpose now, gently pushing the door aside and scooping her
into his arms, his lips claiming hers in a matter of seconds. He heard her gasp, but it was
not a distressed sound as he kissed her deeply.  Far from it, it was the sound of one who
wanted to be kissed, and it made him pull her even closer to him.  With a few tiny steps
he moved out of the doorway and firmly closed the door behind him.  
	As he kissed her, one hand found itself tangled in her wet hair, while the other
roamed down her back, feeling the scoop of her back under the plush fabric of the towel. 
Lower, and his fingers found leg, and pushing the towel away, he caressed the softness
of her skin.  He felt her catch her breath more than heard it, as she lifted on to her toes,
her arms moving upwards until she was clinging to his neck.   As he pressed her closer
to him, she could feel his masculinity pressing against her, and she felt shivers run
through her body.
	“Joey!” he whispered against the corner of her lips.  She made a noise in
response, but dared not attempt to speak.  Her legs grew weaker as his lips trailed their
way down her neck and over her bare shoulders.  When he straightened she was
momentarily afraid that he was going to let her go and leave, and she held her breath,
and lifted her eyes to look at him.
	Leaving her was the last thing he had on his mind at that moment, however.  As
he looked down at her, he slid his hands across her shoulders and over the towel and
gently loosened it, sliding his fingers beneath it and letting it drop to the floor.  He
caressed her breasts, thumbs running gently over her nipples, and bent to kiss her once
again.  
	“Oh God, Joey, I want you!” he groaned, as he drew her against him again.
	Joey’s mind was spinning as she clung to him, shivers rippling through her and
centring deep inside. Her thoughts were racing a mile a minute, and she seemed
incapable of forming anything coherent to say.  Instead, when she opened her mouth to
speak, the only thing that came out was a softly whimpered “OK”.
	But that was enough, and he lifted her effortlessly into his arms and carried her to
her bed, laying her on the soft sheets.  As she lay there, black hair fanned across the
creamy pillow, legs bent slightly, looking shyly up at him, he groaned and pulled his shirt
over his head and tossed it on the floor.  Joey found herself looking at his muscular
chest with a quickening heart.  She watched as his strong fingers unbuckled his belt and
slid his trousers down equally muscular legs, then he pushed his briefs away and she
felt a heat growing inside her.  He stood looking down at her for a few seconds, and
Joey wanted to beg him to join her on the bed, but still there were no words that would
form themselves in her mind.  
	But when she raised her hand towards him he didn’t hesitate, and climbed onto
the bed above her, letting her outstretched hand slide across his bare back.  He kissed
her again, and lowered between her legs, finding his way, and pressing.  Instinctively
she moved her legs, and he moved inward, but when he felt her tense and heard her
gasp under her breath, he stooped.
	“Joey?”  he lifted his head and looked down at her, preparing to pull away, but
she pressed her hand firmly against his back and her words finally found themselves.
	“Don’t you dare think of leaving me now!” she sputtered.
	“But...”  his eyes searched hers, still unsure, but she held his gaze with purpose.
	“Don’t stop,” she repeated, softer, more pleading, and he could resist her no
longer.  Slowly he advanced, but this time with more care and less animal need in his
actions. He felt her arch upward under him, and listened to her breathing.  She wrapped
her arms around him, and he reclaimed her lips and picked up a steady rhythm with his
hips.  Her feet slid along his calves, and her hands roamed across his back, caressing
him, as she met his every motion with her own.
	Finally he raised his head and pulled back, smiling as he heard her catch her
breath and felt her fingers gripping against him. “Don’t worry,” he reassured her, “I’m not
going anywhere.”   Instead, his lips kissed a trail along her cheek, down her neck, and
over her breasts, and he revelled in the sweet whimpers that escaped her as he teased
her with his kisses on her heated flesh, while his fingers slid between her legs and
explored her warmth.  Eventually, he kissed his way lower, and his lips replaced his
fingers, and she gasped louder.  Her fingers entwined in his hair, pressing him into her
as her hips arched upwards to him.  Staying still was impossible, and she found herself
in constant motion as he made love to her with his lips. Then, as she spread her hands
flat across the bed sheets, the first wave hit her, and she gripped at the sheet as she
cried out. 
	He kept her on the crest of the wave until he sensed she could take no more,
then at last he swooped upward again until he was lying on his side beside her, feeling
her heavy breathing with his hand on his chest, and rolling her over on top of him. 
	“I want to see you,” he said softly, as he guided her with his hands on her hips,
until she was above him and he felt himself once again buried deep within her warmth. 
She began to move, and his hands caressed her hips, her stomach, her breasts, her
face, then bringing her down to kiss her once again as she moved seductively on him. 
His hands found her hips once again and guided her movements as he met her with his
own upward thrusts.
	When he could take no more, he lifted her and returned her to her back beside
him, moving over on top of her once again.  This time, he did not hesitate, but delved
deep into her depths and grunted as he began moving with a single purpose.  To his
delight, she shivered again, as a second round of waves rippled through her, and
instantly he followed with his own, punctuated with a long throaty groan. 
	Some time later, as he lay with her cradled in his arms, her head on his chest, he
looked down at her and smiled.  Her eyes were closed, and she looked so incredibly
peaceful. He sighed, and looked up at the ceiling. In the morning he had to fly the kids
back to Billings, but when he returned there were things he was going to have to tell her. 
	She shifted, nuzzling against him, and he wrapped his arm around her.  There
were things he was going to have to admit to himself too, he thought, beginning with the
fact that the lovemaking they had just finished was definitely not a spur of the moment
thing.  He had wanted her for a long time, and now that he had made love to her all he
could think about was when he was could do it again.  
	He was certainly no stranger to lovemaking, he had taken women to bed before,
but none had ever affected him this way.  Usually he either got up, got dressed and left
afterwards; watched the woman get up and get dressed and leave, or rolled over and
went to sleep. He had never found himself lying there afterwards, imagining what it
would be like to take that same woman to bed every night, and wake up with her every
morning. It was awakening within him a feeling he had never allowed himself to
acknowledge before, and it was somewhat unnerving, to say the least. 
	Carefully he pulled the blankets over them and rested his head against the top of
hers, glancing at the clock on her bedside table. He would have to get some sleep if he
was going to be awake enough to fly down to Billings when the sun got up. 
	Joey opened her eyes in the dim light of the early morning to find Blake asleep
beside her.  Memories of their lovemaking washed over her as she lay watching him
sleep — living proof that she had not dreamt the whole thing.  Ever-so-gently she moved
her fingers across his chest, and he opened his eyes.  When he saw her, he smiled, and
greeted her with a kiss.
	“It’s morning,” she whispered softly.  He lifted his head slightly to see the clock,
then shifted onto his side and rested on his elbow facing her.  Twirling a strand of her
hair around his fingers, he smiled at her. 
	“I want to make love to you again with the sunrise,” he announced softly, and she
grinned at him.
	“OK.” she said simply, and he laughed.
	“You said that last night too,” he reminded her.
	“Well,” she wrinkled up her nose. “I didn’t know what else to say.  It’s not like I’ve
had much practice accepting propositions from men you know.”
	He grunted teasingly. “I can’t imagine there have never been any men who
wanted to make love to you!”
	“There’ve been a few,” she agreed, straightening her shoulders, not wanting him
to think men were totally disinterested in her.  The fact was, she had had her fair share
of boyfriends over the years, but none of them serious enough for her to want to sleep
with them.  There had always been something missing. “Usually when I’m propositioned
like that, I just say no,” she added.
	He moved his hand deeper into her hair, and his gaze searched her face.  “But
you didn’t say no to me,” he said softly
	She shook her head. “No,” she agreed.
	“Why not?” he asked, as he leaned in so close to her she could feel his breath on
her face. 
	Because I love you, she said to herself, but she dared not say it out loud. It was
still a complete shock to her, there was no way she was going to tell him!
	“Because I didn’t want to,” she whispered.  “Say no, that is. I — I ...”  He seemed
not to care what explanation she had, for at that moment her words were cut off by his
kiss, and soon they were wrapped in each others arms again, and he was rolling up on
top of her.  He laced his fingers in hers and lifted her hands up onto the pillow above her
head, kissing her deeply, his hips moving with the same rhythm as her own. Lovemaking
in the morning was just as wonderful as it was in the night, Joey decided, when at last
they untangled themselves from each other. 
	“I have to take the kids back today,” he groaned, as he lay his head back on the
pillow beside hers. 
	“I know,” she acknowledged.
	“I don’t want to,” he announced.
	“Why not?”
	He turned his head toward her and grinned at her. “Because I want to stay here
and make love to you all day.”
	She laughed. “Don’t you think people would miss us?”
	He shrugged. “Maybe, but Harvey and Clayton can run this place without me.” 
He was tracing wiggly lines along her arm as he spoke, and she giggled under her
breath. It was the happiest sound he had ever heard.  The only other time he had heard
it was when he had walked into the living room earlier in the week and found Joey and
Jill giggling together like a pair of schoolgirls.  It had been a sight and sound that had
stopped him in his tracks, for they were completely foreign to the Silver Star, and his
heart had ached to have it happen again, as often as possible. 
	“What are you thinking about?” she asked him. She had lifted onto her elbow and
was watching him with interest. 
	“Hmm?” he looked at her, startled.
	“You were in some far away place. You didn’t hear what I said so I thought you
must be deep in thought about something important,” she ventured.
	“Just thinking how empty the house is going to feel when the kids are gone.”   As
if on cue, the sound of little voices was heard in the rooms across the hall, and Blake
sighed.  “And it looks like we’d better get dressed before somebody catches us.”
	He climbed out of bed, gathered up his clothes and disappeared into her
bathroom.   She heard water running, then moments later he emerged again, fully
dressed.  As Joey searched for her own clothes, he slowly opened the bedroom door,
then quickly slipped out into the hall. Moments later she heard a knock on the door
across the hall, and his voice calling good morning to the girls, followed by another
knock and the same greeting called at the boys’ bedroom. For a split second Joey held
her breath, then she heard two distinctively separate voices calling back to him, and she
sighed and smiled.  Reggie was there, safe, in his bed.  For a moment she had worried
that he might have snuck out again.
	Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, Joey tapped on the girls’ door and peeked her
head in.  “Can I come in?” she asked, with a smile.  She was greeted by two bobbing
heads, and slipped inside while the girls bounced across the bed to get from one side to
the other, haphazardly packing their belongings and pulling on their clothes at the same
time.  Kiesha tossed her things into her small suitcase and quickly struggled into her
clothes, while Jill carefully folded each article of clothing and placed them neatly into her
bag.  On the top, she placed her scruffy teddy bear, then she sat looking up at Joey. 
	“Would you do my hair, Joey?” she asked, holding out her hairbrush.
	“Of course I will!” Joey gave her a bright grin and slide onto the bed behind her,
taking the brush and running it through the little girl’s long blond locks. 
	That was where Blake found them when he returned to announce that Mable had
breakfast ready.  Kiesha made a quick exit, obviously eager to eat, and nearly bumped
into Blake as she sped out the door.  When she was through, he looked into the room,
and his heart stopped for a second.  There she was, brushing the little girl’s hair so
lovingly that it struck him as one more scene he wanted to see again and again at Silver
Star.  And when she turned to look at him, the smile in her eyes made him groan.
	“Don’t be too long, you two,” he said, smiling back at her. “Mable has everything
ready, and if we’re not careful the boys might just have it all eaten by the time we get
there.”
	Jill laughed, and Joey patted her on the shoulder. “All done, Sweetie.” she said,
handing her the brush, which Jill tucked neatly into her bag before heading out of the
room to join the others for breakfast.  Joey sighed, and brushed her fingers over the old
teddy bear in the top of the bag.
	“You’re going to miss that one, aren’t you?”  Blake asked from the doorway.
	She hadn’t realized he was still there, and she glanced his way with a melancholy
smile and nodded. Yes, she would miss Jilly a lot, but not half as much as she was going
to miss one Blake Winters when it was finally time for her to fly out of Draper and out of
his life. Especially now, after last night!
	“C’mon.”  He held out his hand to her, and she stood up and walked to the door. 
Taking her hand and squeezing it reassuringly, he bent to plant a soft kiss on her lips
before drawing her out into the hallway.  “Everything ill work out fine,” he assured her, as
he gave her hand an extra squeeze before letting go and heading down the hall towards
the stairs. 
	“I wish I could be so certain of that,” she said under her breath, but he didn’t hear
her, and she was just as glad.  She watched him striding down the hall, a walk she had
come to recognize so well these past few weeks, and sighed before following him down
to breakfast.  Once her book was done, she would go back to Elmdale and would never
see that walk again.  Suddenly she didn’t mind that Blake was taking a long time
opening up his life history to her.