Blind Date with the President

by Swale, Lizzie

  “We have to leave very early tomorrow,” Ryker said. “We really should turn in.”

  “You’ll never get all those bags down to the cabin,” Katy said. “Why don’t you leave the stuff you want to sell. I’ll post it online and show it off around town and next time Ryker comes up with meat and hides I’ll hand over what I’ve made for you.”

  “Would you? Oh, that would be amazing. I’m selling most of it, actually, I’m not going to need pretty dresses anymore.”

  “I hope you kept a few for those hot, lazy, summer evenings,” Katy said.

  “I hadn’t thought of that.”

  “So much for turning in early,” Ryker muttered. “I’ll bring the bags in from the truck.”

  I had planned on taking jeans, sweats, and shirts that I could work in, but Katy made me pack my leggings too.

  “They make excellent long underwear,” she explained. “The winters aren’t too long here but they get cold.” She also took a look at the sweaters I had and shook her head. “I’ve got some that were going to the thrift shop, I’ll throw them in your bag. You need something with better insulation.”

  She also added two long skirts and two summer dresses to the keep pile.

  “Ryker’s not going to be happy that the keep pile got bigger,” I said. “We have to carry all of this and the food too.”

  “Jeremy can follow you down on the quad if needs be. Trust me, you need those dresses. It gets muggy, especially down by the river. You’ll be thankful for a breeze on your legs. Come fall Ryker will take you into town for winter gear, can’t get any now so there’s no use.”

  “Thank-you so much. I thought I was ready for this.”

  “You’ll do fine, we’re here if you need anything.”

  I went outside but Ryker wasn’t waiting on the deck or anywhere in the yard that I could see. I didn’t want to disturb the easy peace of the evening by shouting for him so I went out to the trailer. He was there, already tucked into the bed, his back to me.

  “Hey,” I said softly, “Are you asleep?”

  There was no answer so I stripped off my clothes and crawled into bed with him, turning off the lamp as I went. I wrapped an arm over him and nuzzled the back of his neck. There was still no sign that he was awake so I kissed his shoulder.

  My hand drifted over his chest and down over his stomach, tracing the lines of his muscles and enjoying the feel of him under my hand. He was breathing deep and even and wasn’t moving but as my hand drift low over his stomach again I brushed the head of his rigid cock.

  I smiled and kissed his shoulder and ran my hand down his leg. “It’s too bad you’re asleep,” I said softly. “I guess I’ll just take the edge off by myself.”

  I pulled my hand away from him and tucked it between my legs, pressing up against his back so he would feel every movement of my hand. I rubbed my fingers against the soft folds of skin between my legs. When he didn’t react I added an over-the-top moan.

  He rolled over so suddenly that he almost dumped us both on the floor of the trailer. I squealed as he grabbed me and pulled me on top of him.

  “You little brat!” He grabbed my ass with both hands and pressed me against his erection.

  I laughed. “Why were you pretending to be asleep anyways?”

  “I wasn’t sure when you’d be back so I went to bed.”

  “Well, I’m back, and you seem to be in a good mood.”

  “Do I now?”

  “Well, you feel like you’re in a good mood anyways. Or did you want me to let you sleep?”

  He ground against me, his erection pressing into my stomach, and he growled like bear. I laughed.

  “Okay, okay, no sleeping.”

  There was a dark glint in his eyes that made me shiver when he said, “Oh, you’ll want to sleep when I’m done with you.”

  “When you’re done with me? Maybe I’ll put you to sleep instead.”

  I slid down his body, trailing kisses as I went. I nibbled at his hips making him moan. He grabbed a handful of my hair and I froze but he didn’t try to move me or direct me, he just tightened his fist and then relaxed it again, his hand resting lightly on my head.

  I ran my tongue up the length of his cock and then I swirled it around the head a few times. I continued licking him, little licks, slow and teasing, until his hand fisted again and he groaned. “Brat,” he muttered between gasping breaths.

  I went slowly, taking the head of his cock in my mouth, and sliding down. He squirmed and groaned and panted. I stopped halfway down the length of his cock and moved back up. I played around the head some more, licking the precum off the tip.

  “Emily, please, god, you’re being a tease.”

  “I don’t want to rush,” I said sweetly, running a tight hand down and up his cock. “Your cock is so big and yummy I want to take my time and enjoy it.”

  “Emily …”

  I took him in my mouth again and sucked hard before inching down the length of him again. This time I went as deep as I could and held him there. I sucked and moaned and he grabbed my hair with both hands this time.

  “Wow, oh wow, oh Emily, yes.”

  I started bobbing up and down on his cock, working my tongue along the underside as I went. He kept making happy desperate noises and his hands stayed fisted in my hair but never once did he try to push me further.

  I guess the Joel’s words from the video were burned into his mind too.

  “Emily, you have to stop. I’m going to come if you don’t stop.”

  I sat up. “That’s not such a bad thing you know.”

  “Another time, I’m not done with you.”

  He rolled me over and I said, “You’re not going to try to eat me out here, are you? The bed’s too short!”

  “Fine, another time then. But I am going to taste you, Emily.”

  “I look forward to it, now fuck me already, would you?”

  He slid his cock into me but didn’t start thrusting. Instead he bent over me and started sucking on my breast. My back arched and my hips pressed against him, taking him even deeper.

  He started moving in me, and he kissed his way up my neck. His lips found mine and I wrapped my arms and legs around him. We were moving together now, my fingers digging into his shoulders and my ankles locked around his waist.

  He kissed my jaw and my ear and my cheek but mostly he kissed my lips. I took gasping breaths between kisses as the pleasure and desire built in me. He climaxed first, leveraging himself up and slamming his cock deep into me as he exploded.

  I kept moving my hips, thrusting up against him until my climax stole over me leaving me gasping for air. He kissed me, leaving me even more breathless.

  “So who took care of whom?” he said.

  “I don’t care, I’m going to sleep.”

  He chuckled as we rearranged ourselves and snuggled down under the covers.

  I woke alone again and rolled out of bed. I dressed and went out to find Ryker having breakfast on the deck with Jeremy.

  “That smells really good.”

  “Head inside and help yourself,” Jeremy said.

  When I came back out with a full plate Ryker was alone. “Where’s Jeremy?”

  “Chores. The ranch doesn’t run itself.”

  “Chores. I’m going to start hating that word.” We ate our breakfast in comfortable silence after that.

  I was still chasing the last forkfuls of scrambled eggs when Ryker said, “Are you all ready?” He set his plate aside and drained his coffee.

  “I think so, unless Katy things of something else I need to pack.”

  “I wasn’t talking about the clothes, Emily, or food or gear. Are you ready to do this? To walk away from the city, your family, your whole life?”

  “Ryker, I’ve had a hundred chances to back out of this and I’m still here. It’s not like we’re completely cut off. I like Jeremy and Katy, and I like the idea of leaving the hassle of the city behind. I love you, Ryker, I want to be a part of your life, I w
ant to share this adventure with you. And I want you to buy me a horse.”

  He laughed. “We might have to do some work on the camp before we add another horse.”

  “You’d best get on that then.”

  “And what will you be doing?”

  “Laundry, cooking, dishes, chopping wood, feeding chickens, collecting eggs, brushing King …”

  “Okay, I get it, I get it. You’re going to do fine.”

  “Yes, I think I’ll be more than fine now.” I reached out and took his hand. “I really do love you, Ryker, and it’s going to be hard as we adjust to each other being around all the time, but this is the choice I want to make. I’m coming out there and you’re not chasing me away, no matter how grumpy you get about it.”

  “You know, gruff and grumpy kept everyone else away,” he said.

  “I like it,” I said. “If you’re grumpy with me I’ll probably just jump you for sex.”

  “Great, that’s just wonderful. Well, I guess I’d better just accept it, I have no way to get rid of you.”

  “None at all, but would you want to?”

  “No. You’re a part of my life now, I’d miss you if you weren’t there to keep me warm at night.”

  “Keep you warm!”

  “And do my chores.”

  I stood and pulled my hand away but before I could yell at him or storm off he was on his feet and pulling me into a rough kiss.

  “Foolish woman, I love you.”

  “Good,” I said, hating how grumpy my voice was. “Because I love you too.”

  “If you’re done breakfast we should go home.”

  Now I smiled. “That sounds perfect.”

  The Ranch Hand

  Chapter 1

  “Miss? Something I can help you with?”

  Skye Malone had nearly worn a hole in the rough pine floor with the toe of her boot, trying hard not to hear the whispers or feel the smirks at the back of her neck as she sat between two coarse men. The one to her left reeked of sweat and tobacco; the man to the right licked his lips lasciviously. Like either one was anything close to what she would ever want, and she squared her shoulders as she stepped in front of a broad-shouldered boy with wavy blonde hair.

  “My name is---”

  “Hate to break it to you, darling,” he said, cutting her off. “But we got all the wait staff that we need. Now maybe if you come back before the spring fling, we’ll see what we can do.”

  “No,” Skye said as she waved her hands in the air and firmly shook her head. “I’m here about… about the field work. Heard a rumor around town that y'all are looking for some help.”

  The men behind her laughed wildly, but Skye kept her eyes fixed forward as the boy’s blue eyes softened, and he just touched his fingers to her arm.

  “Miss, you don’t need to worry yourself about that,” he said. “I mean, it’s kind of sweet that you think that you can.”

  “I don’t think,” Skye said. “I know for a straight up fact.”

  The boy’s shirt looked like it cost more than what she made in a month, if that. But therein laid the point. She could spend the rest of her life on the outskirts of the Powell compound, waiting tables or selling things that she had no hope of paying for. But if she could get her hands dirty out in the field that meant the hope of stashing something away and a real chance to get out from under. Trailer trash she wasn’t, but she did live in a metal box among crying children and meth heads that were forever high. Was it wrong that she wanted more?

  “I can handle the task at hand,” she said. “I grew up on land like this. Plowing and tilling. Bet I know more than you what it means to go home with a days’ worth of sweat on my skin.”

  “Careful, Powell,” the big guy cautioned. “Sort of sounds like a come on.”

  He slapped the other man’s thigh, and the boy… Powell stepped forward as he smacked his hands together and lifted his head towards the door.

  “Find your own way out,” he said. “And no thank you for your time.”

  As soon as the pair rose to their full, shared height, Skye shuddered for all of a second when Powell pulled her closer to his side. He smelled of freshly laundered linens and fine aftershave. And with the other men gone, she had to hope that he knew what she was doing.

  “Mr. Powell, I---”

  “Let’s ditch the formalities,” he said. “It’s Aaron. And I bet you’d like it at the big house.”

  “I’ll try not to gawk,” Skye said. “But I guess a tour never hurt anyone.”

  He offered his arm like a gentleman, and she followed his stride as they moved from the barn and stepped across his family’s spread. The land seemed to stretch out for miles upon miles, and she swallowed some at the thought that this was so much more than her father’s small patch. Thinking that she could handle it and seeing the deed through were two very different things, and her legs just started to buckle underneath her when Aaron winded his other arm around her waist, his nose barely brushing against her blonde hair as he flashed her a quick smile.

  “I got you,” he said. “It’s all good.”

  She felt stronger standing close to him, walking near his side. The men who were supposed to have already taken their leave pointed their fingers from behind a fence lining the barn. Despite the glares of the boys from the bench, it was another lanky kid and his companion whose face failed to register a single emotion that made her blood run cold. Was this really the right call? Just the idea of having to be alone with them, out in the open…

  “Enough. Back to work.”

  Skye saw a man with long arms and even longer legs whistling for his crew to get back to brass tacks. Even from the distance, she could sense the warmth in his eyes and the green that nearly rivaled the grass under his feet. He pulled off his hat and revealed a mane of dark hair that curled just below his ears. His gaze caught hers, and Skye’s heart started to flip in her chest when he turned away and headed back to the barn.

  “That like your foreman or something,” she asked. “Looks like he knows how to get things done.”

  “Just Ben,” Aaron sad. “Never know what he’s up to. But I guess he gets the job done.”

  “Wouldn’t want to get your hands dirty, right?” she asked.

  “Hey,” he cautioned. “I’m on your side. Remember?”

  A large white house with a wraparound porch started to peek into view, and Skye held her breath at the prospect of entering when Aaron pushed her behind a pine tree and started to press his fingers into her hips.

  “And it could be nice,” he said. “I…”

  His lips started to move closer to hers, and despite her better judgment, Skye was on the verge of accepting his kiss when he pulled back and slowly shook his head.

  “But I would hate to mess up your big chance,” he said. “And I never even caught your name.”

  “I’m… I’m Skye,” she said.

  “That a real moniker?” he teased.

  “I don’t lie.”

  Aaron pursed his lips, and he looked her up and down as he patted her shoulders and pointed towards the way ahead.

  “Sure thing, Skye,” he said. “Can’t say that it’ll go down with my dad. But maybe if I back you up…”

  Skye furrowed her brow and reached for his hand.

  “Some grip!” he said.

  “Bet you’d like to see what else I could do with it.”

  Aaron laughed lightly, and they stepped towards the porch, the man’s eyes straight ahead when he finally looked back at her from over his shoulder.

  “You got me convinced,” he said. “Time to see what my dad thinks.”

  Chapter 2

  As soon as they walked through the front door, Skye needed a few seconds to catch her breath. Ranch or not, the ceilings stretched high over her head, and the colors swirling overhead were like Montana’s idea of the Sistine Chapel; instead of angels and the heavenly history of man’s struggle to know God, she saw red peaks pushing into blue. It was almost as if the roo
f was non-existent and the Big Sky Country was falling all around them despite the security of walls littered with family portraits. She saw Aaron resting under the arm of an imposing looking figure who seemed as if he could thread a needle with one move of his teeth. And then there were the other blonde boys, one so much taller than Aaron and the other just coming up to his knee. Skye paused in her path and started to touch the glass when his fingers were at her arm,

  “And these must be your brothers,” she said.

  “Good eye,” Aaron said. “Oliver’s the middle child.”

  “I wouldn’t think that to look at him.”

  “You would change your tune if you met him,” Aaron said. “Kind of a jerk. But it’s part of the stigma, right.”

  Skye shrugged her shoulders as she turned her attention towards the smaller boy.

  “And this is…?”

  “That’s Jesse,” Aaron says. “Always eager to please. Kid never goes against any one of us. Loyalty is paramount in these parts.”

  Latching onto the word, Skye took hold of his hands as she smiled into his eyes.

  “I’m loyal,” she said. “When I think it’s worth my time.”

  “Sounds like something of a catch in that,” Aaron said. “You always so sure what’s worth your time?”

  “Right now, it kind of looks like you are, Aaron.”

  He blushed at her compliment, and Skye knew that she had ways at her disposal to make him want her more. But this was hardly the time or the place, and she just curled her fingers under his collar as she released a heavy sigh.

  “So do I get to meet the boss man or not?” she asked.

  “Word of advice,” Aaron said. “Call him Mr. Powell if you hope to stand a chance.”

  She nodded her head as he led her into a dark office with the sunlight just poking through the windows. Sitting behind a desk was a stout man with a gray crew cut, and he barely looked up from his ledgers to acknowledge his son; Skye might as well have been invisible.