by BJ Wane
“I am so fucked,” Kurt grumbled, pushing away from the fence. Refusing to give up for the day, he moved slowly toward the mustang, keeping the rope at his side. If there was a way to get through to the animal, he would find it, just as he would come up with something to breach the walls of one stubborn submissive.
With a toss of his head, the stallion trotted along the fence as Kurt neared, obviously still disinclined to allow him to loop the rope around his neck. Determined to give it one more try, Kurt lifted the rope, braced his feet apart, twirled the lasso above his head and waited until the wild horse stomped close enough to let the noose fly. He didn’t know who was startled more by his success, him or the horse. Gripping the rope with both gloved hands, he tightened his stance and arms against the mustang’s surprised, angry reaction of rearing up.
Several cowhands, including Roy, quietly took up guard along the fence as the two of them danced around the enclosure in a battle of wills. Dust flared up as Kurt struggled to stay clear of flailing hooves while maintaining his hold against the strong jerks of the stallion’s head. He might be three hundred pounds underweight but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still a force to be reckoned with given his size.
By the time he managed to calm the mustang enough to stop his agitated rearing, Kurt’s arms ached and his heavy breathing matched the horse’s labored huffs. “That’s a boy,” he crooned, approaching the quivering equine with slow steps. “There, all done. See, no harm done.” With a cautious hand, Kurt slipped the rope off and stepped back as he took off with a loud neigh.
“You’re fucking crazy, you do know that, don’t you?”
Kurt pivoted at the sound of Caden’s amused voice, a grin wreathing his dust-smudged face as he spotted his friend and Connor leaning on the rail next to Roy. “I’ve been told that a lot since bringing that son-of-a-bitch home. What brings you two out here?” Jumping the fence, he joined them on the other side.
“I didn’t get a chance to tell you they were stopping by to pick a Thoroughbred for a gift,” Roy said. “I decided to wait to see if you survived that stunt before wasting my breath.”
“Ha, ha. Thanks for having my back, even if you doubted my persuasive skills.” He cocked his head as he eyed the brothers. “A gift? It must be for Sydney since I know Tamara wouldn’t trade her Arabian for anything else, but don’t you have a few to pick from?”
“You’re right, she wouldn’t. We did have one, but by the time Caden talked Sydney into trying a new mount, we’d already accepted a good offer on her. Your inventory has more to pick from right now.” Connor looked at the mustang and shook his head, his jaw tightening with a flash of anger swirling in his blue eyes. “Do you know who’s responsible?”
“No, which is why I’m not in jail for assault, or worse,” Kurt replied.
“Sydney talked me into buying a pathetic excuse for horseflesh last year and babied that animal back to health. Gotta admit it was worth the time and effort she put into the animal.” Caden jerked a thumb toward the mustang. “If you’re half as successful with him, you’ll have a good horse.”
“I think so too,” Kurt agreed. “Come on, I have a few mares between eighteen months and two I think would be a good fit for your wife.”
The perfect opportunity to work on getting Leslie to open up fell into Kurt’s lap as he led Caden and Connor to the stables housing the Thoroughbreds for sale. Opening the door, the scent of fresh hay and horses greeted them, as did the soft whinnies from some of the equines sticking their long, sleek necks over the half gates to their stalls. He stopped at the few he thought Sydney would love, the ones with spirit but easy to control.
“Belle here is my favorite.” Kurt stopped at the stall of a dark chestnut mare with a white star blazoned on her forehead. She butted his arm looking for a treat, which Caden provided by opening his hand with a sugar cube.
“She’s a beauty.” Caden stroked a hand down her neck, eying her size with a frown. “Taller than I was looking for though. With Syd being pregnant, she’ll need to be more careful when riding.”
Connor snorted. “Good luck with that.”
“How about if I hold her until after the baby comes and give her to you as a baby gift,” Kurt offered, not surprised by the caution Caden exhibited with Sydney. The redhead was an enticing trouble magnet whose soft spot for animals amused him and drove her husband nuts when she extended it toward the ranch animals.
“That’s too generous. I’ll split the cost with you and we’ll both give Belle to her.”
Connor smirked at his brother. “In the meantime, good luck dissuading her from coming home with the worst the auction house has to offer tomorrow.”
Seeing the frustrated resignation on Caden’s face gave Kurt an idea. “How about if Leslie and I come along? If they’re busy chatting, maybe Sydney won’t pay as much attention to the auction ring.”
“That might help,” Caden returned as he entered the stall to get a closer look at the mare. Running a hand down her withers, he looked over his shoulder with a small grin. “You and Leslie outside of the club?”
Kurt shrugged, ignoring Connor’s amused look. “We’re giving it a try. She thinks it’s just for sex.”
“It’s not?” Connor asked, surprised. “I never pictured her interested in anything beyond a few scenes at the club.”
“I don’t think she is, and I’m still trying to decide if I am.” He looked at Caden. “Anyway, I could use Sydney’s help, if you think she’d be willing.”
Resting his hand on Belle’s flank, Caden tipped his hat back and drawled, “Willing to help encourage a relationship between a friend and a Dom? You’d be hard-pressed to stop her.”
“Excellent. We can seal both deals over lunch. Babs made friend chicken.”
Leslie’s phone beeped with a text message, a welcome distraction from Alan, who insisted on joining her for lunch in the teachers’ lounge. Her pulse jumped at seeing Kurt’s name, not a good reaction for someone who needed to keep an emotional distance. “Excuse me, I should answer this.”
Turning away from Alan’s frown, she read Kurt’s message, her interest piqued despite wondering why he wanted her to go out with him on what sounded like a double date. Once she’d agreed to an affair, she assumed that meant getting together at her place for a night once in a while, a few hours that might or might not include having dinner together. She never imagined he would want to go out as a couple with others, or take her to a ranching auction. With agriculture listed among Montana’s top industries, she’d lived in the state long enough to learn how popular auctions for livestock were, she just never thought of attending one for fun.
Curious about his motives, she texted back a simple Why? His honest, straightforward answer rattled her.
Because going out together is what couples who are having an affair do.
Unable to resist, she typed back, I thought this was about sex.
You thought wrong. I’ll be at your place by 4:00. We’ll go to dinner after the auction.
He clicked off and she looked up to see Alan’s curious stare. “Everything okay?” he asked.
“Yes, sorry about that. A friend wanting to meet up tomorrow after school.”
Reaching for her bottled water, her hand jerked when he wanted to know, “The same friend I saw you with in the parking lot the other day?”
Leslie refused to lie, and maybe telling Alan she was seeing someone would keep him from asking her out again. “Yes. We met about two months ago.” She kept the circumstances of her and Kurt’s initial introduction and the weeks since to herself.
“That’s good.” He smiled but hinted for more. “He looked familiar.”
The door to the lounge opened and two more faculty members entered carrying their lunches. Ignoring Alan’s last statement, Leslie gathered up her trash and stood to greet them. “Here, Mike. You can have my seat. I’m finished and need to get back to my classroom. Alan, thanks for joining me. Catch you later.”
Regardless of
her misgivings about entering into this affair and worrying about the potential heartache of getting too close to anyone, Leslie returned home the next day looking forward to the evening out. And when she opened her door to Kurt and a warm fuzzy surrounded her chest to go along with the now familiar surge of heated blood flow through her veins, she was able to stave off the instant panic for now.
“Hi. I’m glad I guessed right and stuck with jeans.” Dressed in his usual denim and cowboy boots, today he wore a dove gray, button down western shirt with the long sleeves rolled back to just below his elbows, enough to draw the eyes to the corded muscles of his forearms.
Those midnight eyes shone with an appreciative light as he looked her over. “You look as good in jeans as you did dressed as Cleopatra, sweetheart. Ready?”
Leslie was powerless to resist his extended hand or the warmth in his gaze. “Why aren’t you cold?” she asked with envy, shivering against the much cooler evening breeze as they walked to his truck.
Grasping her waist, Kurt lifted her onto the passenger seat. “I’m warm-blooded, more so when you look at me like that. Keep it up and you’ll find out how fast I can strip those tight jeans off you.”
“Threats like that only make me want to try harder to get you to act on them, and I’m not the one who planned a night out,” she reminded him. He’d refrained from fucking her the last two times they were together. She wasn’t naïve enough to believe he hadn’t been with other subs during the five weeks between the first and second time they’d met, but she couldn’t understand why he was holding back now, or why it bothered her so much.
Kurt waited until he slid behind the wheel, started the truck and looked at her askance as he backed out before answering, “Is this aversion to socializing something I need to address? If so, tell me now so I can add it to your other issues we need to work on.”
Huffing in annoyance, she snapped, “I don’t have issues. Just because I’m not a social butterfly doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with me.”
“Oh, make no mistake, you have issues. But we’ll deal with those in good time. Try and enjoy yourself. Auctions can be fun, even if you’re not bidding.”
They were crowded, loud and smelly. Okay, and fun, Leslie admitted thirty minutes later. Seated on a hard bleacher between Sydney and Kurt, with Caden on Sydney’s other side, she looked down into the pen in front of the auctioneer’s booth and smiled at the pair of miniature horses up for bid.
“Oh, wow, they are so cute.” She sighed and leaned forward, her heart breaking for their poor condition.
“The dogs would love to romp with them. They’re the perfect size…”
Caden interrupted Sydney with an emphatic shake of his head. “No. Absolutely not. My working dogs don’t need playmates, and we don’t need two more rescues.”
“I guess you’ll have to get them, Leslie. Do you have any pets?” Sydney turned inquisitive green eyes on her.
“No, not since I was a kid and we took in a stray mutt. Cute little thing.” She remembered naming the small dog Mitzi and how she used to curl up in bed with her.
Sydney elbowed her with a sly grin. “I’m sure Kurt can find room to board the ponies at his ranch. From what I hear, that place is huge.”
“No,” she shot back before Kurt could say anything. “I can’t afford them and know nothing about horses.” And the last thing she needed was to become indebted to him for caring for her pets, even if those two little ponies were adorable and in sad need of attention.
“I could teach you, and I have plenty of room. Let me know if you change your mind,” he said around the piece of straw he was chewing on.
Why she found that sexy, Leslie had no idea. Maybe the ache for his full possession occupying her mind was responsible for finding everything he did sexy, and arousing.
Bidding signs started going up and like with each new showing, Leslie and Sydney tuned out the auctioneer’s rapid-fire chanting, choosing to talk between them instead. As soon as the miniature horses were sold and led out, Sydney sighed in disappointment.
“If you loved me, you would have bought them for me.”
“I do love you and no, I wouldn’t. You’ve amassed enough extra mouths for us to feed,” Caden returned dryly before gazing over at Leslie. “You have to forgive her. She was an only child and used to getting her way.”
He winked, the light in his eyes teasing. Before she could reply, Sydney defended herself. “Being an only child had its benefits, but it would have been nice to have a sibling to hang out with. How about you, Les? Any sisters or brothers?”
“One sister.” Leslie paused, wincing at her mistake and the stab of pain that always pierced her heart whenever she thought of Roslyn. Her limited conversations with people at the club had never included personal chit chat and the question caught her off guard enough she answered honestly instead of relating the details of the fictional past given to her in the program. “We’re not close and haven’t spoken in years.” God, it hurt to say that. Tears pricked her eyes and she started to rise, to excuse herself and find a restroom, but Kurt grabbed her hand and squeezed. That simple touch, the hard pressure of his larger grip, calmed her enough to get herself under control.
Sydney distracted her further by saying, “You’ll have to come out to the ranch soon. I’ll get Tamara to join us for a ride, maybe a picnic while it’s still decent weather.”
“Thanks, but I don’t ride.” Not to mention that would be getting too close to people she refused to grow attached to or, God forbid, end up putting at risk if Edwin Glascott ever succeeded in unearthing her whereabouts. She didn’t need Detective Reynold’s telling her the death of one of his beloved sons in prison had bolstered his determination to come after her. Regardless of his ability to hide his involvement, she would never forget or underestimate the hatred he’d spewed toward her in the courtroom.
“Really? You’ve been here longer than me, haven’t you?”
Leslie shrugged and turned her eyes on the cattle being ushered into the bidding pen. “Over three years, but I’m with second graders all day, not horses.”
Sighing, Sydney shook her head. “Oh, girlfriend, we have got to get you out more.”
She let that comment slide; there was no use arguing when she couldn’t give a reason for the argument. They went to dinner at a small Italian restaurant and while she enjoyed the evening out, and the food, the reminders of everything missing in her life kept her edgy, especially when talk turned toward Sydney’s pregnancy.
“I was hoping to make a trip back home before winter,” Sydney said after they’d given their orders to the waitress and she had passed on alcohol. “I’m due in March and after another long winter, I’ll be ready to take up drinking again.” She turned to Caden. “Will you have time to make a trip to St. Louis for Thanksgiving, if the weather holds?”
He reached over and squeezed her hand, an indulgent look softening his face. “I’ll make time,” he replied before turning a probing gaze on Leslie. “Do you get the chance to visit home much, Leslie?”
Once again, the unexpected personal question jolted Leslie. Since she’d kept to herself so much since relocating to Billings, she lacked practice in getting comfortable with her fake past and her mind still automatically conjured up her life in Reno. As she struggled to get her thoughts in order, suspicion began to form a tight knot in her belly. That made one too many pokes into her private life for her comfort.
“No, I don’t. There’s nothing there for me anymore.” Pushing back from the table, she stood as she fought against the mistrust entering her head. “Excuse me, I need to find the restroom.” She spun around and wound her way through the tables toward the lit-up bathroom sign before they said anything. She placed the blame for the subterfuge solely on Kurt, admitting it didn’t surprise and irritate her. From their first encounter he’d shown too much interest in her beyond the sex for her peace of mind, and she was well aware there were Doms who insisted on seeing to sub’s emotional needs a
s well as their physical. That’s why she’d stayed clear of them after just one scene or two.
Master Kurt left her no choice but to back off from this relationship, but before she did, she craved one more night with him, yearned to wrap her arms around his larger, harder body one more time and experience the mind-numbing pleasure of his thick cock pummeling her depths again. Just a few more hours to relish the contentment of being taken over completely before she turned away the only man she couldn’t forget.
Kurt stood as she returned to the table, his eyes sharpening as she sat down. “Problem, sweetheart?”
Schooling her features, she forced a confident smile as she saw their food arriving. “No, I’m fine.”
He nodded and the conversation remained on neutral topics as they ate, but Leslie still thought it best to end this after tonight. Sitting next to him in the truck, her body hummed in anticipation of submitting to him one more time. But just like the two times they’d gotten together this week, he pulled her in for a kiss that fired her up on all cylinders and then walked away without giving her what she wanted most. Himself. He left her aching after a long, thorough, panty-dampening lip-lock and a promise to call the next day.
Standing inside her open door with her damp thong clinging to her skin, pining for his touch, she glared at his swaggering retreat, refusing to call him back and beg. He paused after opening the truck door and looked back at her with a taunting grin that made her grit her teeth in frustration. “I’ll call you. Behave, Leslie.”
“Maybe I won’t answer,” she muttered as he settled behind the wheel, her disappointment a palpable throb deep inside her. She didn’t see his satisfied grin as he drove away.
Kurt drove back to the ranch happy with the progress he’d made tonight with Sydney’s help. His girl liked animals but had only owned one pet. She wasn’t an only child, as he assumed, and he didn’t believe her when she said she and her sister weren’t close. The reason for that evasion remained to be solved. After living in Montana for several years, she still hadn’t sat a horse. That could be rectified easy enough if he could get her out to the ranch.