[Cowboys Online 01.0] Cowboys for Christmas

by Jan Springer

  “Smells good,” Rafe commented as they both kicked off their boots and then their winter coats and hung them on the hooks lining one wall of the mudroom.

  Suddenly he heard the woman curse and Rafe nudged Dan and smiled.

  “She’s our kind of lady,” Rafe quipped. He dragged his blue wool hat off his head, then quickly combed his fingers through his medium-length, dark-brown hair, looking a bit self-conscious.

  “She sounds feisty,” Dan said with a laugh.

  They opened the glass storm door that separated the main ranch and the mudroom. A moment later they entered the kitchen. It was eerily gray inside without lights.

  JJ stood by the stove, a frying pan in her hand. A thin wisp of blue smoke trailed from it. She continued to curse as she stared longingly at the light fixture in the kitchen.

  Yeah, she was a pretty one. Her hair was dark brown, shoulder-length and a mass of curls. She wore snug blue jeans and a tight blouse that silhouetted perky breasts. She was thin and he supposed that had to do with lousy prison food.

  “It’s a good thing the electricity went out when it did. The smoke alarms would have kicked in soon.” Dan said as he eyed the wispy smoke drifting out of the pan.

  At the sound of his voice, her brown eyes widened in surprise and she screeched as if she’d seen a couple of mice.

  “A good thing she’s not jumpy, or lunch would be all over the floor,” Rafe commented with a grin.

  Her brow furrowed and she frowned, suddenly looking shy.

  “Sorry we scared you. I’m Dan, this is Rafe. We’re partners in the ranch.”

  Dan stretched out his hand.

  She smiled. His breath caught as dimples popped out in her cheeks making her even prettier. She deposited the pan on the stove, rubbed her hands on a towel, and then slipped her palm against his and squeezed his fingers.

  Her smile widened and her handshake was firm and confident. He liked that.

  “Hi, I’m JJ and I apologize for last night,” she said quickly.

  Dan liked the way her cheeks suddenly flushed a pretty pink.

  “Sorry for what? Exactly what happened between you and Brady last night?” he teased.

  She pulled her hand from his grip, acting as if it was suddenly on fire. Huh, interesting reaction. So, something did happen between the two of them and that’s why Brady was acting so weird and not wanting to come into the house.

  “Ignore Dan’s rudeness. Pleased to meet you, JJ,” Rafe said and quickly shook hands with her.

  Yep, that was Rafe, always the diplomatic one.

  She really was pretty. Not one ounce of makeup on her and she looked fresh and smelled a whole lot better than any other woman he’d ever met. And there had been several women here over the years who enjoyed ménages with the three of them as well as one on ones. He wondered if JJ was that kind of liberated?

  He doubted it, from that blush still lingering on her cheeks. He found it difficult to comprehend she’d been in prison for murder, but that’s what the application had said.

  She looked quite young. She would be inexperienced sexually, so there was no use in even thinking about her in that way. Despite those thoughts, he couldn’t help but fantasize about teaching her how good sexual pleasure could be at the hands of three experienced men instead of just an awkward teenage one. That was, if she’d any experiences before she’d gone to prison.

  Besides, he might never find out much about her, because if Brady had his way, she was leaving on the next flight out. If they could get an answer from Jenna, who’d conveniently not answered her cell last night—which made him wonder if maybe she had been telling the truth in her letter and she really had gone off on vacation. As far as he could remember the only other vacation she’d taken in years was last Christmas when she’d come to visit them here.

  “I’m a little inexperienced in the cooking department,” she admitted shyly. Her eyes glistened with enjoyment and apology. Innocent amusement. It appeared she had no idea how a man could perceive a comment like the one she’d just given.

  Beside him Rafe cleared his throat, and Dan had the impression Rafe was thinking exactly the same thing. She’d been out of the sexual loop for quite some time and that idea was making him react.

  “I hope you don’t mind. I found my suitcases in the upstairs bedroom and I took a shower.”

  Oh man, visions of her standing naked in the shower, water droplets cascading over perky breasts and… His cock hardened inappropriately and he managed to stifle a growl of excitement before it hit his throat.

  ”How does one cook without electricity around here? Do I use the fireplace?” she asked. She gazed with wide eyes at the nearest fireplace, which still had some glowing embers.

  “Propane generators, and I’ll get one of them started. It’s just outside the back in a shed,” Rafe muttered and made a quick exit, leaving Dan alone with the woman.

  Bastard. What was Rafe thinking leaving Dan to fend for himself around a gorgeous, do-not-touch, sexually inexperienced woman?

  “We use the fireplaces to cook as a last resort. Since a fire adds a bit of cheeriness during snowstorms, we keep one going in here during the day and each of the bedroom fireplaces during the night.” Dan replied as he gazed at her. Yup, she was very pretty and he needed to keep his mind off the sexual things he’d like to do with her. Time to get that fire going and he didn’t mean the one that was already igniting within him.

  “That’s rustic, and this house is gorgeous too,” she said with a smile as he brushed past her and headed for the fireplace.

  “All three of us had input in the designs of the entire ranch, so we’re pretty proud,” he said as an inner glow flowed through him at her compliment.

  He tossed some birch bark, a few pieces of dry kindling and a split pine log on the fire. Orange flames immediately crackled along the birch and lapped at the wood. The fire breathed back to life, heating his hands.

  “Oh! That’s how it’s done,” she said from immediately behind him.

  Shit! He hadn’t heard her approach.

  He straightened and faced her. Curiosity and excitement flared in her eyes. She had very dark brown eyes with pretty little flecks of gold in them. The defiant tilt to her chin gave him the impression she was eager to learn about their ranch, and her sexy, flowery scent whispered beneath his nostrils, awakening nerve endings. His cock throbbed achingly. He hadn’t felt like this since he was a teenager.

  He frowned. This was not the reaction to her that he had expected. Not at all.

  Oh man, now he understood why Brady was acting like an irritated black bear. The three of them never mixed business with pleasure, knowing the consequences would not be good. Having JJ around was sorely going to push their limits and their self-imposed law.

  Brady was right. Maybe it was best if she was on the next available flight out of here.

  * * * * *

  Rafe and Dan were so extremely helpful and polite that JJ immediately fell in love with them. It was as if she’d known them her entire life. They were easy to be around and nice eye-candy. She also found it difficult not to blush and to not think about the ménage dream she’d experienced, with them as her star lovers.

  Rafe was the taller of the two men. His hair was a medium-length dark brown with wisps curling along his neckline. He had dark-brown eyes, a nose slightly off-center—which most likely meant it had been broken at one point and not set properly.

  What drew most of her attention to Rafe was his quiet, peaceful nature. He calmed her with his soft voice and casual attitude.

  Dan was cute too. And funny. He made her laugh a lot. He wore his hair a bit longer than Rafe, but Dan’s hair was wavy and a light brown and he had dark-green eyes that reminded her of forest green. Both men had scruffy five o’clock shadows that lined their cheeks and jaws.

  They wore plaid flannel t-shirts and tight blue jeans that cupped very sensuously curved asses. Butts that reminded her of the missing cowboy. The one who’d kissed
her so sweetly last night that she continued to blush even into the early afternoon every time she thought about the kiss and him.

  But where was he? She didn’t want to appear interested, so she made it a point not to ask Rafe or Dan as they showed her around the ranch house room by room. As it turned out last night she’d slept in her boss’ bedroom.

  Gosh, he probably thought she was some kind of drunk and hated her for stealing his bed. She had so much to apologize to him for that she almost wished she’d never have to see him again.

  Rafe and Dan showed her where the food was located in the pantry, as well as the small root cellar in the basement and the two large freezers in the mudroom. They also gave her a quick tour of the generator shed just outside the ranch house, where one of two huge generators purred quietly.

  The laundry room came next. It was located just off the mudroom, beside their office and down the hall from the bedroom she’d slept in last night. The laundry room had plenty of windows, two washers and two dryers. She noted an outdoor clothesline that stretched from an outside platform and disappeared into the swirling snow.

  Odd, too, that being trapped here in a snowstorm didn’t set off a panic attack or the feeling of claustrophobia. She hadn’t felt this free since—well, she didn’t know since when.

  For lunch, she tossed out the burned bacon and the guys taught her how not to burn it. Then they ate bacon and cheese sandwiches, and as per their request, she brewed lots of coffee. By the time they left to do their respective chores, she felt confident she knew where all the food supplies were stored.

  For supper, she’d been instructed to warm up leftover bear stew in the fridge and to surprise them with dessert.

  The house was quiet without them around and she discovered she really loved the peace. Yes, she wouldn’t mind settling down here and working for these guys. Wouldn’t mind it at all.

  * * * * *

  “What the hell is going on in here?” Brady muttered as he entered the living room and gazed at the miniature Christmas lights blinking at a couple of the frost-encrusted windows and then surveyed green garland woven with twinkling lights cascading over the fireplace mantel.

  He’d remained in the barn most of the afternoon, finding all kinds of things to keep himself busy. He’d helped a cow deliver her first calf and kept an eye on them both until he was sure the cow and calf would get along. Most of all, he tried to keep his mind off the woman in his ranch house. But his growling stomach had finally forced him to find food.

  At his gruff voice, the woman looked up from where she sat on the sofa inspecting the open boxes his sister had sent. When the woman saw him, her mouth formed a sweet o, and guilt chased across her pretty features. She immediately stood.

  “I’m sorry. Was I not supposed to break into the Christmas stuff yet? Dan and Rafe said it was okay, but if it’s not…”

  “It’s fine.” Why the hell did his voice sound so grumpy and loud?

  No wonder she looked startled and uneasy. Damn, this was so not how he wanted her reacting around him.

  “I get in a bad mood when I’m hungry.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. He hoped she didn’t think he meant sexually hungry, because he did.

  Oh great! She was on his mind again.

  “Supper is just about ready. I have it warming on the stove, and the coffee is just brewing. The fellows are upstairs showering.”

  Damn, he really liked the musical sound of her voice.

  She bit her lower lip as a shy look flashed into her brown eyes. She was cute. Too damn cute for a rough guy like him.

  “Listen, um. I’d like to apologize for last night,” she said softly. “I got into the wine because I was hoping it would help soothe my nerves. I just don’t like flying.”

  So that was it. Yeah, she could be lying to cover up, but he could plainly see she was sincere.

  “Don’t worry about it.” Why had he just said that? He’d been rehearsing all day about telling her it wasn’t going to work out and that she would have to leave as soon as he could arrange it. Yet one look at her sweetly shaped body and her eyes full of excitement as she gazed longingly at the Christmas ornaments tucked away in the boxes, and he was folding as if he had a bad hand in a game of cards.

  Shit. If she left here, she’d probably have to go back to prison. That idea shocked him. Her, in the prison system? For ten years? She looked too young to be a convict.

  “How about some coffee?” She said with a smile. His courage to oust her caved as her pretty dimples popped into her cheeks.

  He nodded and strolled toward the coffee machine, pleased that she’d already been trained in the art of having coffee available before they started eating supper. Maybe his devious sister did know what she was doing by sending JJ here. Despite that, he would be giving her a ton of shit when she decided to pick up her phone.

  “Please, you sit at the table and I’ll serve you coffee,” she said softly.

  She’d come up behind him and her fresh scent had him inhaling slowly and savoring her smell. Reluctantly, he moved away from her and took his spot at the head of the table.

  “It’s a beautiful knotty pine table,” she said a moment later as she set a steaming mug of black coffee in front of him. Then she stroked the top of the table with her fingers. He liked the tender way she did that.

  Pride flowed through him. He liked the smooth-planked dining table. It was a good fifteen feet long and three feet wide. It had been polished until the knots shone and then he and his two friends had stained the wood until it gave a golden hue.

  “The guys and I designed it. We made it from a couple of the pine trees off our land. We have a sawmill in behind one of the barns and we enjoy making furniture. We made pretty much every stick of wooden furniture in this house.”

  “I love everything. It’s rustic and very easy on the eyes.”

  “It’s not too masculine for you?” Why had he asked her that question?

  “No, not all. I’ve never seen such beauty in my life. Everything here is just perfect.”

  Huh, she was the first woman who’d ever said that.

  He kept watching her fingers as she kept touching the table. She had pretty fingernails. Cut short and no fancy nail polish. He liked that she wasn’t into all that makeup and beautifying stuff.

  “Rafe and Dan said that you guys hired people to build the ranch house and that they culled the wood for the walls from the forest?”

  When she noticed he’d been watching her hand, she stopped stroking the table and knotted her hands in front of her. She was still a bit nervous. He didn’t blame her. It was her first day on the job.

  “Yep, they were flown in with their chainsaws and axes and they built the house from the trees from the nearby forest. They put the house together the way we’d designed it. Then the electrician and plumber came in and they did their magic. The hydro people and phone people strung their lines and we were in business. Right now, with the electricity out, we have generators as a backup, but we’re planning on getting solar panels for the roofs in a year or two.”

  “Impressive.”

  An uneasy silence enveloped the air and he took a sip of his coffee. The steaming liquid tasted bitter and strong, just the way he liked it.

  “Um, I really want to assure you that what happened last night won’t happen again,” she said quietly.

  Damn, was she talking about her being drunk? Or that wicked kiss they’d shared? To his shock, his cheeks warmed as he remembered the sweet way her mouth had opened beneath his aggression. Man, he hadn’t blushed since he’d been a teenager.

  “I’m sure things will be fine,” he replied and quickly took another sip of the scalding liquid.

  Thankfully, she moved away and headed back to the living room.

  “So how do you like your Christmas decorations? Rafe and Dan said your sister Jenna sent them. I think she has exquisite taste.”

  Apparently she wasn’t looking for an answer, because she�
��d already returned to the sofa and began to investigate her boxes.

  Her boxes.

  She acted like a kid at Christmas. Her eyes were wide with wonder as she lifted a delicate glass angel from one of the boxes.

  “This is one of my favorites,” she said. She held it up for him to see and the little angel twirled on a gold string. He had to admit the ornament did look quite nice.

  “We need a tree,” she blurted and gazed at him with complete expectation.

  He dared not say no.

  “The minute the storm breaks and we catch up on all the chores and checking on the animals that need doing, we’ll all go out and cut down a tree.”

  She smiled at him and her dimples popped gain. His gut somersaulted.

  “Did I hear someone mention a Christmas tree?” Dan chuckled as he almost flew down the stairs. Stairs, which Brady noted, also had some of those twinkling white lights dangling from the railing.

  He had to admit the lights did look festive, even though they were probably a bit of a drain on their power.

  “Brady said we can go look for a tree when the storm is over. Oh!” She suddenly placed a hand over her mouth as a shocked expression whipped across her face.

  “I’m sorry. Should I call you Mr…? I don’t even know your last name.”

  “Brady is fine.” Dan but in. “We’re very informal here.”

  JJ nodded and wrapped the glass angel into red tissue paper and delicately settled it back into one of the boxes.

  Rafe hurried down the stairs. “Smells good! When do we eat? I’m starving,” he shouted, rubbing his hands together with supreme expectation.

  “You’re always hungry,” Dan chided as he and Rafe took their seats at the table.

  Brady grinned to himself. Rafe’s damp hair was slicked back off his forehead and he was wearing one of his better polo shirts.

  As a matter of fact, now that he noticed it, Dan looked spiffy and cleaner than usual in a white buttondown shirt. It kind of made Brady feel as if he weren’t dressed properly for dinner in his old work shirt and tattered jeans. He’d have to make sure that he looked presentable too, now that they had a beautiful woman in the house.