At Long Last; Book 4 of the Long Ranch Series

by Michel Prince

  “Well, that’s an interesting turn of events,” Jason said breaking the moment. “Now your place is a crime scene, so anyone happen to grab their wallets when they left? Nope, didn’t think so. Good thing I know you’ve got the money somewhere to pay me back. You guys okay with off the rack suits?”

  “They can shower and change at my place if you want to go pick them up suits and shoes.”

  “Shoes especially,” his dad grumbled. “These boots are biting at my ankle something fierce.”

  “Alright, I guess I’ll shop and you take them home. Food and showers,” Jason ordered. “Write down your sizes and I’ll pick the stuff up and meet you at Ashleigh’s. Give me your address.”

  After all the plans had been figured out, Ashleigh drove them to her place.

  Miles was the first to hit the shower while Ashleigh started making breakfast. The warm water didn’t calm him, he’d been holding his hands close to him so others wouldn’t see his hands shaking. The soap in Ashleigh’s shower was sweet and feminine. Reminding him of her skin. He needed to feel her against him. There wasn’t a part of him that he didn’t want to be buried inside of her. He needed the calm and peace her body brought to him. Although, he had been worried about his loved ones this morning, all he could do was thank God Ashleigh hadn’t been on the ranch. If he’d spent the night at Monty’s home with her, they would have been completely defenseless. The closest thing he had to a weapon in the house was a cast iron skillet Harper had on the stove.

  If they had to employ their ranch hands to cover the enormous stretches around the perimeter, they would. Never again, was a man going to step on his land like this. Turning off the spray, he reached for a towel to dry off and wrap around his waist.

  “Shower’s free,” he said as he tapped his father on the shoulder.

  “Not used to cooking for this big of a crowd I bet?” his uncle asked Ashleigh as he loaded up his plate and sat down at the table. “Sorry we’re such heathens this morning.”

  “I forgot I had napkins and you just put one on your lap. The last thing I’d call you is a heathen.” Ashleigh’s eyes caught Miles’ gaze and then dropped to his towel wrapped tight around his waist. “Jason hasn’t gotten here yet.”

  “Does that mean I don’t get any bacon?” he questioned with a bit of a smile. She held the plate up to him and he took a piece.

  “Miles, you want me to tell your mama, you’re taking from a plate with your bare hands?”

  “No sir,” Miles replied then sat like he was a five-year-old and loaded up his own plate. He watched as Ashleigh finished cooking the last of her pancake batter. Could this really be his future? He’d thought he lost her, but she was there when he came through the door. The moment he entered the courtroom she was who he saw and every part of him knew no matter what happened, he would be all right.

  They ate as his father showered. Not a word spoken between them as Ashleigh cleaned up the dishes from cooking and kept turning to catch him watching her.

  “You could just ask to be excused,” his uncle said as he reached for another two pancakes. “If your daddy is anything like he used to be, you have a good ten, maybe twenty minutes before he comes out of that shower. “It’s never been the length of the love making that made it special. Time is what matters. Five minutes or five hours, you don’t forget those moments.”

  Ashleigh’s face blushed bright red, but Miles took the cue. Getting up, he wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her to the bedroom. Fevered kisses scorched their lips. With a quick flick of her fingers, the towel he’d been wearing slipped to the floor and they fell to the bed.

  His hands found their way under her skirt and soon inched her panties down. Would it be wrong to have them in his pocket for the trial? Good luck and all, he thought as he tucked them away under a pillow and returning to her lips. “I wish we had more time,” he groaned against her neck while trailing hot kisses.

  “We will,” she promised as she turned his head toward her. “Can you give me this moment, so I can remember it forever?”

  Miles would give this woman anything she asked for and more. “Tell me if I’m slipping,” he teased and found her mouth again. This time, his hand slid up her leg and hitched it to his hips. Although they were lying on their sides facing each other, he’d been able to find an angle and he slipped inside her warm heat. They both froze and stared at each other.

  “Don’t stop,” she commanded. “I need to feel you.”

  Unsheathed and fully inside her, there was only one barrier between them. Her shirt which he quickly discarded along with her bra. Ample bosoms had him transfixed for a moment until he returned to her lips and their mouths fused. Gentle thrusts at first had him seeing stars as she sucked and pulled on his tongue. Then it was the warmth that wouldn’t let go of him as they both held on for dear life. In that moment, they were both bare and full of hope. In a few hours, their lives may change but this brief span of time would be seared into their minds forever.

  His thrusts were short and fast. Ashleigh had locked her arms and legs around him to the point he could not break free. Her orgasm built. The walls of her core tightened and flexed before a spasm sent shivers along the channel sending her backwards with an arch as she called his name as if it’d been the answer to her prayers. Lord knows she was his.

  * * * *

  The shower had turned on and Ashleigh realized they’d missed it turning off. They were spooning in her bed and his leg was draped over her hips. Behind her, a hardness slowly softened as Miles kissed the crown of her head and squeezed her tight.

  How could she feel so complete in such a small place? If they could float away and just be like this for the rest of their lives, she would want for nothing. He had completed her in a way she didn’t know she needed. Although she wanted a boyfriend in the grand scheme of things, she had never felt incomplete because she didn’t have one. Now she feared she might never feel whole again, without Miles Long.

  “You smell like me,” she teased before giving his arm a little nip.

  “I’m comfortable being a man with cherry blossom skin.”

  “It’s different.” She smiled. “Lets me see the softer side of you.”

  “After this weekend, I’m surprised there’s a side of me you haven’t seen.”

  “Very true.” She let out a light sigh knowing they only had a few more minutes before a myriad of things would make them pull apart. She locked her arm around him and hugged him tighter. She needed to feel his skin against hers. Know the warmth, so she could bring it back in her dreams. His uncle was right. Five hours or five minutes, it’s about the connection in that time that would bring it back. She wouldn’t need to hunt down his cologne now, to remember him if he gets put away.

  “Wait, I was wrong,” he said as he unhooked his arm and stretched for her nightstand. “What is this? My sweet little Ashleigh has a naughty secret.”

  “Give it here,” she said as she tried to snatch away her Jenna Jacob book, only to have him roll off the bed and head to the corner of her room.

  She chased after him, but somehow her tiny room had him jumping over things and slipping from her grasp. “I’m wily, little lady,” he said turning on an accent she missed before. “I bet I can learn a lot about you in this book.”

  Standing there butt naked with his cock flopped down his leg, she wondered if maybe he should read the book to learn a few tricks.

  “I knew you liked them tie ‘em up books.” He let out a laugh and let his finger trace down the spine of the book like he was gently exploring her body.

  Her core clenched as the two most sensual beings she’d ever known touched. Sure, one was a book but both had brought her to orgasm more than once.

  “You know either you got this second hand or you’ve read it a time or two,” he noted.”

  This time, she lunged for him and found success as she got the book. Safe in her hands, she smoothed the cover before returning it to her top dresser drawer.

 
; “What else you got in there Ash?” he asked as he peeked over her shoulder and tried to pull on the handle.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know?” she retorted keeping her knee pressed hard against the drawer as their bare skin was flush against the other. “How ‘bout this cowboy, you get set free and well, maybe this drawer moves a bit closer to you.”

  Miles grinned and pulled her into his arms.

  It seemed stupid, since they’d just met, but all the research she had to do for the case made it feel as if she had known him for years. He was her future and whether she wanted to admit it or not, no one else would ever do. Miles Long had become her everything.

  A knock on her door made them both jump. The fantasy of staying tucked away had to stay just that.

  Rewrapping his towel around his waist, he went out to the living room to get his new clothes.

  Ashleigh dug around the room to find her own clothes and get redressed. Tossing her bedspread on the floor, she hunted for her panties, but came up empty. Retrieving a fresh pair from her drawer, she scanned the room one more time, but no they were lost in the sheets.

  “Well, look at you three,” she said as she stepped into her living room. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you guys were upstanding citizens.”

  “Then we’ll fool them all,” Henry quipped. “I’m damn sure my son’s absence when I came out of the shower was far from upstanding.”

  Clevon punched his brother’s shoulder. “Quit acting like Loretta is the only woman you ever laid with.” He then stared directly into Ashleigh’s eyes. “Or that she means less to him than Loretta does to you.”

  “Let’s head back over to the courthouse.” Jason ignored the present conversation and they headed for the door.

  “Go ahead without me,” Miles said. “I’ll be right there.”

  Ashleigh’s stomach tightened when the door clicked closed and he brought her to the couch. “This is making me nervous.”

  “Ash, I know today won’t determine my fate. We could have months of going back and forth before anything is decided.” His thumbs stroked the top of her hands and she tightened her grip on his fingers. “Thank you for just now, but I’m a man before I’m anything and we crossed a line in there that could have lifelong repercussions.”

  “I know.” She swallowed hard because a part of her wanted them. They could be remanded and locked away for the trial. He could be taken from her by a bullet from some damn thug who then would across the border to Mexico to be hidden by a multibillion dollar company, all because of greed. The chances of her getting pregnant from one encounter were low, but so was Miles shooting a man directly between his eyebrows.

  “We both chose to continue.” His voice lowered and his eyes locked on their joined hands. “I hope we both chose what happens next, if something were to grow.”

  “Hormones are a bad thing sometimes,” she said as she tried to find moisture in her mouth. “They kinda make you think lots of crazy things.”

  His long black eyelashes fluttered before his eyes turned up to hers. “Yeah, they do. We don’t get the passes the younger kids do.”

  “Being the oldest sucks sometimes,” she replied as her heart sped up.

  “Hope our first doesn’t think that way.” He gave her a half hearted smile before she leapt into his lap and let her hold her for one moment. “Hey, we don’t know anything about what might or might not happen with that yet. Hormones or not, I know I love you.”

  “I love you more,” she said as she took his face in her hands. The future was unknown, but one thing was certain, she would be Ashleigh Long someday and her cowboy would wear a white hat at their wedding.

  Epilogue

  Ashleigh Long sat on the porch of her ranch style home with a cup of coffee warming her fingers on a cool November morning. It was the ten-year anniversary of all charges being dropped by the state against every member of the Long family. The initial case had lasted a whole week thanks to Hamilton’s brilliance. Mix that with the Ashleigh’s panties that had somehow been Miles’ lucky charm, the case concluded quickly. Hamilton did have a case, one that garnered him a conviction for negligent use of a deadly weapon. All three were given house arrest for five months. Hard labor by her standards, since they spent the whole time setting up the solar field that now powered almost three hundred thousand houses.

  The sun was just beginning to light up the horizon and her oversized sweater dropped on her shoulders.

  A swoosh sounded behind her and Miles came out with a fussing bundle in his arms. “I’m not cutting it this morning mama,” he said passing her their newest child, Atticus to her. Barely a month old, he’d been welcomed like all the grandkids in his generation. Warmly and without reservation, despite his early arrival and weak heart. He would be a challenge for the family with surgeries on the horizon, but unlike her parents who saw the imperfect child that would complicate their lives, Miles and Ashleigh treasured every minute with him. Their other two children were born healthy and the obstacles for them came from their own want to be more grown than they were.

  “Hey fussy butt,” she said as she kissed his forehead and started to rock in the chair. “Beautiful morning.”

  “Best spot on the ranch.”

  All of the wives said that because there wasn’t a bad place really. The beauty of the land was all around them and although Miles chose to build closer to his MeMaw than his parents, they had a good road now that circled the property.

  “Are Gatsby and Silas up yet?” she asked.

  “I heard stirring.”

  She wrapped Atticus tighter in his blanket and continued to rock. “What are all these babies going to do when they get big?”

  “I don’t know, even with dad getting a hundred head of cattle, I don’t see them being ranchers, well Gatsby maybe, but Silas…” Miles shook his head at their three year old who rarely had a book out of reach.

  Ashleigh enjoyed the moment, but as with everything on the ranch, she needed to do something. Even though she, Harper and Sierra ride shared to the office in El Paso, it seemed as if the ranch was always the priority. The settlement they received from Federated a few years ago could keep them all comfortable for decades. But it had never been about the money. Instead, it helped pay back the loan and helped the community grow. Tender Root had hit a new population hike up to thirty five hundred souls. The Longs helped with that too.

  “Well, we better get them up. You know your mother treats this day as more sacred than Thanksgiving.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Miles leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss before heading back inside.

  “This is going to be your first big party,” Ashleigh cooed at her newborn. “You thought coming home was crazy. Nope, you better get used to never being alone.”

  Two hours later, the family pulled up in front of Walter’s house. All the kids were home, even Walt Jr. came back from college. It was the one day of the year when a Long child could skip school. Ashleigh was greeted with hugs, kisses and hellos.

  Then Loretta spotted her and pushed them all aside. “Where is my grandson?” She beamed.

  “I’m right here,” Gatsby said as he gave her a big hug. “Or did you mean the crier?”

  “Don’t talk about your daddy that way Gatsby,” Loretta teased.

  Gatsby laughed then went skipping off to find his cousins. At seven years old, he’d been not only born in wedlock, but perfectly planned. Silas on the other hand, well Ashleigh might have started a fight with Miles just so he would finish it one too many times. He really didn’t like conflict and it took very little for him use his favorite method of silencing her.

  “Give me my new grandbaby.”

  Ashleigh passed Atticus off to her. Loretta had become the mother Ashleigh and Harper needed. Once Harper and Monty moved to their home, Ashleigh and Sierra took their rooms. For a while, Ashleigh was just like Harper, not wanting to leave the home to start fresh, but eventually she too moved out with Miles. Sierra still lived at Henry
and Loretta’s as if she were their fourth child. No longer did Ashleigh have to carry the worry about her sister on her own. Instead, she had support and was allowed to take time off.

  “I said knock it off!” MeMaw howled as she smacked Uncle Clevon on the hand. “I swear to all who will listen, if you don’t quit treating me like some piece of China around here, I’m gonna show you what this walker can double as.”

  The grandkids all rushed the woman who was over ninety with a propensity to forget that and act fourteen at times. She’d been caught wandering a few times, but the one time Ashleigh found her it wasn’t from being lost, it was to remember her husband. “This land is special Ashleigh, don’t you ever forget that. Each rock and turn holds a memory of the Longs. You’re a part of that now. It’s a lengthy walk, but worth every step if one day you want to see it all. Take the kids and camp. Find a spot and make love to that grandson of mine. Heck, make me a few more Longs, but do it under the stars or with the wind in your hair.”

  Ashleigh found a spot between Miles and Silas at the table. Across from her, Sierra was chattering away with Maggie, Harper and Monty’s oldest of two girls. The table was filled with family. What had been a family of three brothers, one that was lost, had turned into a family of five boys and a girl. Now it took three tables lined up end to end to get the Long family all together. Even JT and Betsy came back with their four kids on this day. This was family. Big, loud, and becoming a mess and when Sunny and Mel’s middle son, Matthew dropped his plate on the floor. they didn’t scold him. They laughed, teased and made him clean it up.

  Turning her head to her husband, they quickly caught a glimpse of his mother cradling Atticus and Ashleigh let out a little sigh. “I love you Miles,” she said as she nuzzled against his neck. At long last, she had found her peace with a man who never thought he would know what it was to be loved fully and deeply. They had written their own story. It would never be a best seller or be taught in an English class, but one day, maybe Miles would write it down. He would get it published, sell a handful of copies and someone would pick it up at a garage sale for twenty-five cents. They would escape from the world and discover that love comes in every hue, but it never colors inside the lines.