"Oh I would never take my rights as a husband before we were properly wed," Amos Evans replied.
Relief flooded through Blaise, such that he had to reach out and touch the wall to steady himself. He caught Mack giving him a funny look.
"Where can I get a horse to ride to town?"
The sound of Annabelle's sing-song voice calling out from the entrance to the barn caused Blaise's breath to stop in his chest. He turned around slowly, noting that Rem was doing the same thing, trying not to draw undue attention, or look like he was staring. But as soon as he laid eyes on her, he couldn't take them off. Her curvy figure was outlined by the rising sun and all he wanted to do was walk over to her sweep her into his arms. What Amos had just said about her disrespect made it sound like she needed at least a sound spanking and the thought made him rise slightly.
"Good morning to you too!" Amos called out, turning to face his woman.
"Good morning," she answered, already sounding petulant at the lack of response. "Can I get a horse, please?"
Amos turned to the four men. "Do you see? Do you see what I mean?"
The men looked to each other with raised eyes and knowing looks.
"Annabelle come over here so you can be properly introduced, please," Amos said, waving at her to step forward. A tisk followed by a sigh resounded through the barn as Annabelle began to stomp, somewhat angrily, towards the group. "Annabelle," Amos said in a low voice as she came up to them and put a defiant fist on her hip. "These are some of my cowboys. This is Mack, Tex, Rem and Blaise."
Blaise watched as her gaze fluttered about the barn, landing anywhere but on their eyes. He longed to reach out and make her pay attention to him the way he wanted.
"Pleased to meet you, I suppose."
"Annabelle!" Amos said angrily, his face reddening at her rudeness in front of his men.
Blaise felt his hand twitching. How he longed to take her over his knee and give her a proper spanking on her bare rear. He could tell that rudeness only came from fear. This was no mean or angry creature. She was simply scared.
"Alright. Do you think I could have that horse?" she asked again, looking at her husband.
"Annabelle, if you think I'm going to let you ride a horse around alone you've lost your mind. This is the frontier and there are countless dangers beyond the fences of this ranch. Now promise me that you will never..."
"Fine," she said, stopping him in mid-sentence. "I'll get one myself." Turning on a heel, she stormed off towards the barn door and into the yard beyond.
"Annabelle! Annabelle!" Amos called out, his face becoming even redder as he began to run after her. The men watched him as he, too, left the barn then turned and looked at each other. Blaise stood still, fighting the impulse to tear out of the barn and after the young woman. The thought of taming her made his every muscle tighten and he felt himself rising in his jeans again.
"Say Blaise," Mack asked, putting his coffee cup down.
Blaise fell out of his trance. "What's that?"
"Well, I couldn't help but notice the way you were looking at Annabelle."
A rush of nerves shot down Blaise's spine and tightened his stomach into a knot. He obviously hadn't done a very good job of disguising what he'd felt. "What do you mean?" he asked, looking out around the barn door, trying to play the question off.
"I'm pretty sure you know exactly what I mean," Mack replied, his voice calm and even but insistent.
"Blaise." Blaise turned to see Rem looking at him. He knew that look. Even if he'd wanted to try to keep dodging questions, for Rem, the gig was up.
***
Rem sighed and ran a hand across the stubble covering his jaw. They were all looking at him now. For a few moments he'd had the same impulse Blaise had, to try to play the questions off, pretend like Mack had thought he'd seen something he hadn't. But as soon as he saw the look in Mack's eye, he knew there was no use. They'd known each other for too long, been through too much together to try and lie about such an obvious thing.
"Look fellas," Rem said, turning to Mack and Tex who were both looking at him now with their arms folded across their chests. "It's nothing. I mean, it's something, but it's nothing we're going to do anything about."
"Well, what is it?" Mack asked.
Rem turned to look at Blaise who sighed and started talking.
"Alright. Well, here it is. From the moment I laid eyes on her I haven't been able to stop thinking about her. We both haven't. I've never felt this way about a woman before and part of me wants to just take her in my arms, say Amos Evans be damned and ride on out of here."
Rem watched the two men's backs stiffen. Blaise put his hands up to calm them down.
"Hell, I ain't gonna do anything like that," Blaise said, turning his gaze towards the floor.
"But you thought about it?" Tex asked quietly. Blaise waited before answering.
"Hell yeah I've thought about it. It's about the only damn think I can think about."
"Me too," Rem added.
A silence descended around them. Rem thought of trying to explain further, to reassure Tex and Mack. But it seemed that everything that could be said about it had been said and eventually the four of them put their coffee cups down and got back to work. The clatter of a pitchfork made them all look up. Blaise, who'd dropped it, walked towards them.
"Hell, I ain't gonna just sit around doing nothing. You had a damn mob outside your house last night! Mr. Evans ain't ever gonna be happy with a girl like that if he's not ready to be firm with her!"
"What are you saying?" Tex asked.
"I'm saying," Blaise went on, his excitement gaining steam, "we all know there's land to claim further west. We all know they'll give it to us if we can just get ourselves out there. I'm tired of having to hide in the shadows and pretend we don't want to live the way we do so a bunch of ignorant prospectors don't get too upset by it. I say we pick up and move out there. What've we got to lose?"
Tex and Mack looked at each other uneasily.
"Blaise..." Rem said, taking a step towards Blaise to try and calm him down.
"No, hold on a second. I know exactly what you're gonna say. You're gonna tell me all the reasons it's a bad idea and all the reasons I should change my mind. Well you know what? I'm tired of always listening to reason. I'm tired of always doing the easy thing, staying on the trail. I'm asking you fellas, what in hell do we have to lose?" Blaise's voice had gotten louder as he spoke and he almost shouted the last few words. Mack and Tex put up their hands trying to calm him down.
"Alright Blaise, hold on a second," Tex said, speaking quietly but standing his ground. "You might have nothing to lose but think about us. This is the only steady work we can get, here with Mr. Evans. He's been real good to us so far and there's no reason to think that's going to change anytime soon. Daisy-Lou just arrived yesterday and we mean to marry her, Mack and I do. We've got a house here. Alright, maybe it's no palace, but it's something. You're asking us to just forget about all that, get on our horses and go?"
"You don't have to forget anything," Blaise said, unwilling to back down from the challenge he'd proposed. "Daisy-Lou'll come with us. You can sell the house and we'll start our own ranch out there. The way we've always talked about."
"How much money you and Rem have saved up?" Mack asked quietly.
Blaise fell silent, his lips tight, unwilling to answer. Mack let Blaise think on it before asking his next question. "You still renting that house from Mr. Evans?" Blaise looked away, unwilling to face the reality Mack was quietly pointing out. "Look," Mack went on, "I know we've talked about this after a couple of whiskys. What it would be like to get the hell out of her and start off on our own. I want to make a place where we don't have to be worried about our women just as much as you do Blaise, but now's just not the time. We just spent a bundle getting Daisy-Lou out here. We're going to spend another bundle giving her a proper wedding because that's what she deserves. So I'm asking you, how much do you and Rem have to make thi
s happen? Because the way it stands, Tex and I could barely afford a wagon much less supplies or money for cattle. So? What can you put on the table?"
The question hung in the air. Rem looked at Blaise and felt a pang of sympathy for his friend.
"Mack, you know Blaise isn't..."
"Now hold on a second," Mack interrupted, holding up a hand. "Blaise can speak for himself, can't he?"
Rem opened his mouth to answer but decided to let it go. The whole situation wasn't going anywhere but south and there seemed little he could do to help it.
"Alright," Blaise said after a long pause. "forget you then."
"Blaise," Rem started, but the big man had already reached the barn door. He threw a hand up in the air in a wave, then disappeared around the barn. Rem looked at Mack.
"Hey, I'm sorry but someone had to point it out to him. You know what he's like. He'd have us all halfway up the mountains by now if someone didn't check his daydreaming."
"Yeah. You're right," Rem replied. He still felt sorry for Blaise. "I'll be right back. Hopefully he hasn't wandered too far."
Tex and Mack exchanged a glance, then went back to work as Rem walked out of the barn in search of Blaise.
Chapter 3
Their hard bodies surround me, pressing into me from both sides. Trapped between them, I can feel their hands running down my body. They slide down my back, coming to a rest beneath my rear, holding the flesh there. They're at my thighs now, holding me open. I look down with wide eyes at the solid hardness of his manhood. It's so close to me, so close to my soft flesh. My body curves, bending towards it, my face pained with desire. Just an inch closer. I can feel the heat from it on my dripping sex. If I can just move closer...
"Annabelle!" The sharp crack of Amos Evans voice shattered the daydream she'd been having. What had she been thinking? Why couldn't she stop thinking about anything but the two men? Seeing them in the barn again this morning had only served to strengthen her desire for them to notice her. And now, here she was, standing by the stalls, her mind filled with these depravities. The ache in her core felt as if it were pulsing through her whole body and she flushed with red embarrassment at the realization that a wetness had come from her onto her underthings. "Annabelle!" Hearing her name again, she turned around to face the man that was soon to be her husband.
"Yes?" she asked, as if she had no idea why he'd come running after her or why he might be upset.
"Annabelle, what do you think you're doing?" Amos asked, pointing at the horse she'd prepared to saddle.
"What does it look like? I'm going for a ride," she answered, matter-of-factly.
"Annabelle, I've told you you'll do no such thing!"
Annabelle smiled. "Amos," she began, throwing the saddle pad onto the mare that had pricked her ears up at the excitement. "If you think I'll be spending my days sitting on this ranch and waiting for you to come home, I'm afraid I have to tell you you're mistaken." She watched him bluster at what she'd said, more than a little amused by the reaction she could get from the man. Picking up the heavy saddle, she turned towards him and added, "it'll just be a quick ride. I just want to go down to the town and see what's there."
"Annabelle," Amos said, his red face more comical than menacing, "I've told you why you're not to do that. Now if you don't stop saddling that horse I'll..."
Annabelle snapped her head towards him, levelling her gaze at him. "Or what?" she asked, cocking her head to one side. "Just because I'm to be your wife doesn't give you the right to boss me, telling me what I can and can't do."
"Annabelle, I'm only trying to keep you safe," Amos pleaded as he watched his young fiancee wrestle the saddle up onto the horse.
"I've been keeping myself safe just fine for the last nineteen years of my life without your help. I'm sure another day won't make a difference!" Annabelle replied, cinching up the buckles beneath the mare.
"Annabelle," Amos said firmly again, stepping over and grabbing her hand. Annabelle looked at him in shock and wrestled herself free.
"You let go of me Amos Evans! You've no right to handle me that way!"
Amos stepped back, his face twisted in consternation at his inability to handle the young woman that was supposed to be his bride. Before he could say anything else, Annabelle unhitched the horse, stepped into the stirrup and swung her leg up, mounting the animal. With a nudge of her heels, the mare reared sending Amos cowering for cover in a stall, then bolted out through the barn door.
Annabelle screamed, clinging to the animals neck as it raced down the dusty road and towards the town.
***
Blaise saw the mass of flesh bolt past him just as he was about to round the corner of the barn. When he heard the scream, he realized there was a person attached to the animal and from the sounds of it, that person appeared to be Annabelle.
An instinct he'd never felt before gripped his body. Breaking into a run, he tore through the open barn doors to where Amos Evans was collecting himself up off the ground of one of the stalls. "What in the hell happened?!?" Blaise roared, forgetting himself in front of his employer, unable to think of anything but the girls safety.
"She...she...she just up and took off," Amos stammered. "B-b-but I don't know how well she knows to ride a horse!" Amos looked at Blaise, the fear of what might happen showing in his eyes.
Blaise didn't wait another second. Turning around he barrelled out of the barn the way he'd come and up the hill to where the others were and where they'd hitched their horses. The three other men met him half way up the hill.
"Blaise, what's going on?" Tex asked, winded from running to see what was going on.
"It's Annabelle. The horse she was on bolted," Blaise said, not stopping his run up the hill. As soon as he reached the horses, he unhitched his own and mounted it. Not waiting for the other men, he dug his heels into the animals belly and with a loud "Ha!" sent them racing down the hill.
***
"Shit," Tex swore.
Rem didn't turn to watch Blaise bolt past them. His mind was focused on getting to his own horse as fast as possible. He heard the men coming up the hill behind him but didn't stop to wait for either of them, as Blaise hadn't. His heart was thundering in his chest and the only thing he could think about was whether Annabelle was still safe. In that moment, he would have given anything to make sure she was.
The horses hooves pounded beneath him as he rode hard to catch up to Blaise and hopefully Annabelle. Every few seconds brought a fresh wave of worry that twisted his stomach into a knot. Had she managed to hold on? Was she lying by the road somewhere, having been thrown off? If she was, had she rolled from the horse or been trampled by its hooves? The panicked thoughts only made him dig his heels in to animals stomach harder until he saw the steeple of the church come into view. Soon, the roof of the train station and the saloon came into view. Rem roared past the white church and rounded the corner towards the train station where a crowd had gathered. Slowing the horse, his vision focused and he made out the shape of Blaise standing apart from the others. As he neared the group, anxiety gripped him again, this time at the scene that was unfolding.
Annabelle was surrounded by a group of men. Rem knew who most of them were. Many had been at the train station the day before and he suspected a few of them had been in the group that showed up at Tex and Mack's door last night. There was fear in Annabelle's eyes as the men surrounded her, keeping Blaise from reaching her.
"Alright fellas," Rem heard Blaise say as he rode up and got off his horse. "We've got no quarrel with you. We just want to make sure the young lady was safe."
"She looks like she's just fine to me," one of the men said, eyeing Annabelle up and down unabashedly.
"She'll be safer in the saloon!" a voice rose up from the back of the crowd. The men surrounding Annabelle erupted in laughter causing her to cower between them. Rem saw Blaise's fists clench and put a hand on his shoulder, stopping his friend from charging at the group. Tex and Mack couldn't be far behind and they
'd have better odds with the other two men there. He reached down to his side, searching for the familiar feel of his holster at his belt, but finding it missing. He cursed himself when he remembered leaving it on the table, not thinking he'd need it just mucking stalls at Amos Evans place.
"Come on boys, the fun's over," Rem said, still having to pull at Blaise to keep him from starting to swing.
"Maybe for you it is. I think for her it's just getting started," the man at the head of the group spoke again.
The sound of Tex and Mack rounding the church and riding up to join them caused everyone to look in their direction. Rem looked at Annabelle. She looked terrified, like she might burst into tears at any moment. He fought the urge to barge into the circle of men himself and haul her out of there. That wouldn't do anyone any good. Rem took a deep breath and spoke again.
"Okay," he said as he heard Tex and Mack dismount. "Seriously now fellas, nobody wants any trouble." Tex and Mack came up and stood shoulder to shoulder with him and Blaise and it made him feel better. Though there was a few more of them around Annabelle, they were scrawny and looked like one solid fist to the jaw might knock them out.
"Why don't you perverts just go have a nice day," the man at the head of the group said. "We'll take good care of this pretty little thing. Where'd you get a nice little thing like this anyways?"
"She's mine."
Everyone turned at the two words spoken quietly and calmly. There, to the side of the train station, was Amos Evans atop his horse a shotgun levelled at the crowd. Relief swept through Rem at the sight and the thought that at least one person had thought enough to bring a gun.
"Amos," the man who'd been speaking said. He looked back and forth between the men and Amos, looking somewhat puzzled. "I didn't realize..."
"That she was mine?" Amos said through his beard. The man waited for a moment before answering.
"No. I didn't realize that at all." He shot a look at Rem and the others. "You've got some dirty perverts chasing after your woman then, Amos."
Annabelle: An Erotic Western Spanking Menage (Doms of Destiny Trail Book 1) Page 3