Hunted Love Box Set: Big Game, Bounty, Captured by Aden Lowe Page B

him. The world rocked around her at the amazing rasp of his tongue across hers.
    God in Heaven, how had she existed twenty-eight years without experiencing that? Her entire body quivered against him, in search of something more.
    One of the horses stomped and snorted, breaking the spell and the kiss. Jakob drew back only far enough to rest his forehead against hers, breathing hard. "Woman you are a puzzle. A very sweet puzzle I fully intend to solve."
     
     

Chapter Nine
     
    Jakob adjusted his seat yet again in a vain attempt to ease the pressure of his hard-on against his jeans. Much to Ajax's displeasure, he'd reined the big horse back to allow Kate and Sunny to take the lead. The original intent had been pure. Since Kate knew the land, it followed she would also know the best route to where her man had found the dead horses. However, within seconds, his purpose devolved into a purely selfish desire to study the way the saddle hugged the perfect curve of Kate's gorgeous ass.
    What the hell was he thinking? Chasing after a woman when he was supposed to be deciding the course of his future. If he'd had a brain, other than the one in his cock, he'd have insisted she stay safely at home where she belonged. But something about the beautiful Kate beckoned to him, some irresistible quality. He hoped he didn't regret allowing her to come along.
    He also had to be careful of her emotions. She was hardly some stripe chaser, working her way up through the ranks at the local off-post club. Kate was altogether different from any woman he'd ever encountered, a strange mix of innocence and experience that drew him like a moth to flame. Maybe he'd better be careful of his own emotions, too.
    Ahead, the mare topped a small rise and Kate rose in the saddle to gain a couple of inches perspective as she surveyed the way ahead of them. Jakob had little interest in what she saw. Instead, the way the snug denim of her jeans molded to her hips and thighs held him mesmerized.
    How the hell was he supposed to hunt a lion when he couldn't look away from a shapely ass? If he had half a brain, he'd have taken what she freely offered back there at the stock tank, and got her off his mind. But no, he had to be a nice guy and go easy and slow in consideration of her seeming innocence. Hell, she could probably teach him a thing or two.
    The thought of Kate having that sort of experience, of another man touching her, created a vague knot in his chest. He'd far rather imagine her as virginal and untouched, waiting for him to be her Prince Charming. Damn, he had it bad.
    The hours passed, and much to his shame, Jakob barely noticed. Rather than become tired of watching her, he became more fascinated with each new detail he discovered. The way her hair escaped the twist she'd tucked under her hat to curve around the tender skin at the nape of her neck. Her ability to communicate her wishes to her horse with the slightest shift of her weight in the saddle or movement of her leg. In fact, he could probably study her every moment for a year and still not know everything about her he needed to learn.
    The sun rode low on the horizon when Kate finally called a halt. Dismounted, she waited for him to close the distance and join her on the ground. When he approached her from behind, his hands ached to test the curve of the ass he'd watched all those hours.
    "Over there is where Brady found Chaser's remains." She pointed to a small outcropping shaded with scraggly brush. "He must have been injured or sick. I just don't see a cougar being able to take him in normal circumstances, or even trying to."
    Jakob wrestled his thoughts away from how Kate's neck might taste to the problem at hand, figuring out how and why a mountain lion would attack a stallion in his prime, and manage to bring such prey down. A young or inexperienced horse wouldn't pose much problem, but a stallion ready to fight to protect his herd? Not likely.
    "Wait here. I'm going to take a look and see