Claire's Story: Chapter 14

“Y’all were terrific!” Brooke exclaimed as she hurried down the narrow aisle toward the stables occupied by Sean and Ryan’s horses. “Congratulations!” She high-fived a whooping Bryce and did the same with Sean. When she approached Ryan, he grabbed her extended hand and pulled her into a full-fledged hug instead.

“Just what Brooke needs, someone who’s not afraid to show a little affection,” Claire thought, genuinely happy for her lovesick friend.

Claire approached Sean and without hesitation wrapped her arms around his neck. He slipped his muscled arms around her back, lifting and spinning her in a quick circle, her boots kicking excitedly. “You were great!” she praised as he placed her back on solid ground. Sean kept his hands on Claire’s waist, his long fingers resting just above the back pockets of her jeans. “You are so talented,” she continued, her blue eyes mesmerized by the full curve of his lips as she moved her palms gracefully up his bare forearms toward the rolled up shirt sleeves at his elbows.

“Guys, you’ll have time to do this later. But if we don’t hurry, we’re gonna miss the awards,” Ryan shouted in Sean and Claire’s direction as he and Brooke passed, his arm casually draped across her shoulders.

Claire squeezed Sean’s forearms, and her eyes pleaded for him to ignore the interruption. She didn’t want to wait until later, didn’t know if she could. But Sean laced his callused fingers through her slender ones and led her back toward the arena where he and Ryan would accept their first place buckles. Afterward there would be a dance and even more fraternizing with rodeo friends. Claire still had several more hours before she and Sean could finally be alone.

***

The country music blasted from the speakers at the corners of the covered pavilion. The dance floor was packed with two-stepping cowboys swinging their dates in every direction. Claire had not laid eyes on Sean in more than thirty minutes, and her second whiskey and coke was running dry.

“Claire!” Brooke was shouting over the music. “Hey Claire! Ryan, Bryce, and I are all heading over to Ryan’s place for a while. Do you wanna go?”

“No, I’ll wait for Sean. Have you seen him anywhere?”

“Nope, sorry. It’s too crowded and loud and I’m getting closterphobic. So I guess I’ll just see you at Ryan’s later?” Brooke asked, in a hurry to leave.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Claire said with a nod. “We’ll catch up with y’all later, have fun,” she said with a wink.

“Oh we will, don’t worry!” Brooke smiled mischievously, and turned on her heel to leave with her handsome new date.

“Oh Brooke,” Claire thought, “you’ll talk the talk but that’s as far as it’ll go.” She sometimes knew her friend even better than she knew herself. And what was keeping Sean? She’d been ready to leave even before the dance started. Now her best friend had ditched her too and the last thing she needed was another drink, as she headed to the bar for a refill. After another swallow of sweet coke and the familiar burn of whiskey in her throat, she felt a familiar hand grab her by the waist. She looked up to see his face and her head began to spin a little, the buzz hitting her at the same time as Sean’s cologne.

“Sorry babe, let’s get outta here,” his throaty voice said in her left ear. Sean hurriedly led them through the mass of dancers, clouds of cigarette smoke, and the smell of barbeque. When they reached the openness of the parking lot between the pavilion and arena she felt like she could finally breathe again.

“Wow, that was a little too loud and crowded for me,” Claire voiced as they headed to the horse barn.

“Me too. And sorry for leaving you for so long. The association organizers caught me; they’re already planning for next year.”

“It’s ok, you’re here now,” she said gratefully.

“Yep, and we’re finally alone,” Sean whispered, pulling Claire’s slender waist toward his own. They had reached the barn entrance, illuminated by a single street light in the vast darkness of the West Texas sky. “And you’re going to dance with me now,” he said quietly as he wrapped her left hand in his right and placed his left palm low on the curve of her back. “Good thing the music’s loud, or it wouldn’t be perfect for us right now,” he whispered in her ear as he slowly began to sway back and forth. Garth Brooks’ voice crooned from the pavilion speakers: “If tomorrow never comes…” Sean pulled her hand to his lips and lightly kissed her knuckles.

Claire’s lips parted and her breathing quickened. What was she doing? She hated dancing. It was so embarrassing. She always felt like she looked too tall and clumsy and stupid. But not with Sean, not right now. She wasn’t the least bit self-conscious dancing with him. She felt graceful and elegant in his arms.

“If my time on earth were through…”

Sean spun her in an easy turn then released her hand to pull her hips closer to him. Claire wrapped her hands behind his neck and sighed contentedly as she laid her head on his chest, their feet still moving slowly to the fading music. “Will she know how much I love her…”

When the song finally ended, Sean regretfully moved his cheek from Claire’s forehead and released his hands from her hips. He slid his hands slowly up and down her back, his fingers trailing her spine from the bra strap under her shirt to the belt on her low jeans. She reflexively arched towards him, and her fingers played with the loose waves of hair at the name of his neck. With a low sigh he said, “Let’s go load Sully, then we can get out of here.”

They released each other and walked toward Sully’s stall where the huge buckskin stood waiting patiently. “Here, I’ll give you a boost. The trailer’s parked a good ways off, and Ryan already loaded all our tack into his trailer.”

Sean cupped his hands and bent his knee for Claire to step onto. She grabbed Sully’s mane with her left hand and placed her right on Sean’s shoulder, then stepped into his hands and easily swung her right leg over the horse’s bare back. Sean nimbly climbed the gate of one of the stall doors and slid onto his horse close behind Claire, their hips and bodies rocking in perfect unison as Sully walked out of the barn into the parking lot. With small shifts of his legs Sean faced the horse in the direction of his truck and clucked for him to go. They began walking slowly through the dimly lit parking lots with only the sound of the horse’s shoes clicking rhythmically on the asphalt.

Ever so slowly and lightly, Sean reached around to place a work roughened palm on Claire’s abdomen, and let his other hand work its way down her hip to rest on top of her thigh. She covered his hands with her own, relishing in the heat from his palms that felt as if they were burning straight through her jeans. What was meant to be an innocent ride of convenience had turned intimate due to the rhythmic motion of the horse’s gait, and hands that couldn’t be contained. The sensual feeling was unexpected but welcomed by both riders, and Claire couldn’t help herself when a small moan of pleasure escaped her lips. Sean’s hat pushed on her temple as she tilted her head to allow him to nuzzle her neck with his mouth.


The ride to Sean’s trailer was much too short. Before Claire knew it Sean had slipped off of Sully, and she suddenly felt chilled in the places where his body heat had made her feel so warm. She leaned forward and slung her right leg over Sully’s back, Sean steadying her with his hands on her waist as she slid off the gelding. With her feet back on solid ground, Claire turned to face the dark, handsome cowboy whose strong hands were still fixed upon her. Claire spread her fingers upon his broad chest, and they stood frozen in rapt anticipation, feeling one another’s hot breath mixing just inches from their mouths. She could hardly stand it any longer, she longed to know how their mouths would align, how he would taste. But she resisted the temptation, and allowed Sean to decide if, or how, or when to proceed.

He roughly moved her backwards, pinning her back against Sully’s tall shoulder. As he pressed his muscled chest against her soft one, his hands moved to the sides of her face. The tip of his right thumb brushed her chin and lips softly, and his left hand swept into the hair at the nape of her neck. Claire’s breathing was quick and shallow. As if Sean couldn’t wait another even another second, he delved assertively into their first kiss, his fingers tangling in her hair as he pulled her toward him.

He kissed her intensely, his lips hard in passion and his tongue finding hers immediately. She kissed him back deeply, met his passion, and encouraged it further. He was hungry for her, insatiable for her taste. He kissed her mouth over and over, deeper, and with more aggression until both were breathing heavily. As they paused to catch their breath, both of their chests heaving, it was as if all the sparks that had been flickering for the past month had suddenly burst into a blazing flame, more passionate and fierce than either could have imagined.

Sean’s horse turned his head and whinnied softly at his owner, breaking the intense moment with a bit of humor. Sean sighed deeply, pulling Claire to him in a warm embrace. She could feel his heart beating, like thunder inside his chest; her own felt as if it would gallop away at any second.

“Thank you for dancing with me,” he whispered, his lips lightly brushing her ear.