Drawn to a Cowboy (Brother Duet #1)

by Fifi Flowers

  “What are you laughing about?” I heard Sage ask as he walked up behind me painting in an area of the stable that I used to store my supplies and finished works of art. I also had a table in there that I often used to do touch ups or finish some work that needed to dry flat.

  “Nothing in particular. Are you ready for a few days off? A bit of relaxation? Maybe some sleeping in?” I rattled off things that I couldn’t imagine him doing. There was always something to do on a ranch.

  “Actually there are many activities planned for next week. Sleeping in is possible for some people. I promise there will be no outings before dawn.” He smiled looking at me and the art I was working on, “I love your horse paintings.” Then he looked at me once more before moving away to the door of my area. I followed him with my eyes and watched as he closed it tight.

  “Thanks. You mean that you won’t be sleeping in?” I asked with a smirk.

  “I like to give my guys the option. Though most of us are so used to waking up with the chickens, we struggle to keep our eyes closed when the sun peaks on the horizon.” His last words were practically in my ear as he put his hand around my ponytail. I stilled my hand, anticipating a move that could ruin my piece of art.

  “What if you have someone next to you—in say a warm and cozy bed—was in need of a little extra attention? Could you possibly make an exception? Force yourself to submit to passion?” It took every ounce of strength not to giggle at my questions.

  Tilting my head back, his lips were on my neck, “I planned to make sure that everyone has a good time. Some more than others, starting now.”

  I completely forgot about my inquiries and my paintings as he stripped me bare, except for my red boots. “Is this harmful?” he asked, still standing behind me, pointing to an array of mixed watercolor paints in shallow bowls resting on a table in front of us.

  “Paint?” I asked with a little whimper and he nodded with what I imagined as a naughty grin as I felt his mouth form against my neck. “Possibly, if you ingest too much,” I managed to answer as he turned my back to the worktable.

  “Skin?” he asked as his hand skimmed my skin before he reached forward and dipped the bristles of one of my flat, wide brushes into a dish of red paint.

  “Perfectly harmless, non-toxic.” But intoxicating I thought as he stroked the wet, feathery paintbrush over one of my semi-perked nipples. All at once they both hardened to little pebbles and I moaned as he painted the other one to match. Then down the brush moved to circle my belly button.

  I looked up to see him admiring the masterpiece he had created. Then to my surprise he crushed his mouth to mine while reaching behind me to deposit the brush into what sounded like my jar of water. Breaking our kiss, his hand was holding yet another paintbrush. This one was wider and minus paint, only filled with water.

  As he followed the same pattern over my torso, my breathing grew rapid. The feel of the red paint washing down the front of me, along with the sight of a fully dressed cowboy applying it, was incredibly erotic. “Not quite the same red,” he said as he tossed the paintbrush on the table and swirled his index finger in my wet vibrant curls. Extending his long fingers beyond, he rounded my throbbing lower lips before adding a second digit to curl up inside of me to that magical spot that had me begging for more.

  “Fuck! That feels incredible. I want you. I want to feel you. More,” I panted.

  “More? What exactly do you mean by more?” He was teasing me.

  “I want you inside of me. Your beautiful cock inside of me… that more.” I wasn’t sure my words were fully coherent between each of my moans.

  But they must’ve been clear enough, as more is exactly what I got as he stepped away from me long enough to undo his belt and denims. Released from his pants, his hard, thick length stood at attention. Part of me wanted to take him into my mouth while my extremely wet pussy longed to hug him tightly. Sage had his own plan and put it in motion, lifting me up onto a high stool so he was the perfect level to penetrate me. Moving in and out of me with such dynamic precision he thoroughly satisfied both of us.

  Climaxing hard around his incredible cock, I thought, if that was his preview of the week ahead, I was going to love every minute of the sexual rodeo he had planned for me. Rope me up, tie me down, saddle me up, give me all you got, Cowboy—I was ready to ride his raging bull!

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Sage

  Every summer I always blocked out five weekdays, as the previous owner had done, for the ranch staff to have a mini-vacation. He wanted his workers to be able to enjoy the amenities on the property, or to go off to do their own things around the area. And their families were welcomed to join them for those few days, if they had them. We also liked to plan a few day trips for anyone that wanted to go along.

  The kitchen during that week was limited. All meals were family style dining, no short orders. Everyone ate the same breakfast and dinner. For lunches, if anyone was at the ranch during the two of the days that we had offsite activities arranged, they could make themselves sandwiches. That rarely happened as most everyone participated.

  One of the activities that had almost everyone going along was river rafting down the Animas. Heading down from the lake area, caravanning with cowboys, other staff, and some of their family members in tow, we were faced with a storm. “Wow! Is that snow… in the summer? It’s not really very cold. How can it snow?” Jade rambled on looking out the window as snowflakes floated down from a dark, cloudy sky.

  “Yep, it happens from time to time up here, but it won’t stick.”

  “Are you sure we should be rafting in this weather? If I remember correctly, the last time we were caught in a storm you weren’t a very knowledgeable weather man. I see the sky lighting up here and there. I’m not interested in being electrocuted. I’m already a bit scared about the rafting through evil water.”

  I reached over and touched her thigh. “It’s fine. Really. I wouldn’t take you… make you do something that I thought would put you in danger. We’re going on a raft with a buddy of mine from college. Gabe’s very experienced. He’s a college professor during the year and comes up every year to work the rapids. You’re safe.”

  It was true, I would never want anything to harm her in any way, but the day on the water proved to be more than I had anticipated and more than she had signed up for. The rain storm, complete with thunder and lightning, raised the intensity levels of the rapids. The water was moving wilder than normal. The stages that we were going down were no longer simple rapids. The calm water that I had promised no longer existed, but I assured her as we moved through the rushing waters that I would make sure that she was safe. I never left her side.

  I saw the panicked look in her eyes as we saw people in life jackets floating by without their watercrafts. We grabbed a couple and pulled them into our boat. I was sure that she wished we had stayed back at the ranch. I knew being in front of a fire with her sounded better than our wild ride, but I was thrilled to be on the river, I loved it. The rush! The adrenaline! I’d been on much more intense rapids on purpose. But Jade had told me from the beginning that she wasn’t interested in shooting down a torrential waterway. She had insisted that I go off and have fun with my staff while a good, smutty romance novel kept her company. Refusing to leave her behind, the guys and I talked her into coming along.

  Fortunately for one teen boy kayaker, we had Hoss, an ex-football player turned cowboy, on board our raft. Going over a drop our raft overtook a young boy and trapped him beneath. Leaning over the side, his face was underwater looking straight up at us. We couldn’t move our vessel. I thought we were all going to watch that kid take his last breath when our muscle-bound Hoss reached into the water and grabbed the boy by his floatation device. It looked unreal the way he yanked him clear out of the water and sent the kid floating down the river. With enough water backing up behind us, we were able to maneuver off of his kayak.

  Other rafters that saw what was going on, rescued the boy fr
om the water. He wasn’t the only one being rescued that day. The trip that was supposed to be a nice float down the calm part of the river turned out to be filled with one mission after another until we cut our day short. Out of the water, a school bus and trucks with flatbed trailers were waiting for us. Back at the rafting company office area, we hopped into our vehicles and headed with the whole crew to a local brewery restaurant for grub and drinks. Everyone was safe and happy to be off the river, though a bit wet. We all had a variety of stories to tell about our excursion. What an adrenaline rush! Thankfully, by the end of our meal everyone was laughing, even my cowgirl.

  Later at the ranch, I grabbed a few necessities for the honeymoon cottage from the lodge, then went to get Jade from the stable. “Pack up more things. I’ve already gathered some food and wood. It looks like another storm cell is moving in, we need to move fast.” I loved that she didn’t question me for a minute. She just jumped from her bed, bundled up clothes from a chest of drawers, toiletries, and moved out the door. “Let’s go, Cowboy,” she called over her shoulder, racing down the corridor ahead of me. I was on her pretty little tail within seconds, following her into the cab of my truck, and hot-footing it to our cabin.

  Inside, she tossed our stuff in the bedroom while I unloaded wood next to the fireplace and placed some inside with kindling. Once the fire was roaring, Jade joined me minus her clothing. “Remember the cabin rules, clothing not acceptable.”

  “I don’t believe I saw that in any of the brochures,” I said kicking and pulling off my boots and the rest of the items covering my body.

  “This is the hump shack. At least that’s what I’ve heard. It’s much easier to make that a reality if that rule is stipulated and implemented, don’t you think?”

  Close to me, I pulled her down onto a few blankets I had spread out by the fireplace and we curled up together. Our timing was perfect, as the storm hit just as we were settled. We could hear the rain pelting the roof. “Still love thunder and lightning?” I asked her as we watched bright orange, red and blue flames dancing together over and around the fire logs, wrapped up in each other’s arms.

  “Yes. However, I could live without them while going down roaring rapids. I will admit some parts were very fun, but I prefer to weather the storms like this, buck naked with you.” Fuck yeah! We spent the rest of the night enjoying each other’s company partaking in immensely pleasurable activities in front of the fire, later in bed, and then in the shower the following morning before our next group adventure.

  Another water activity we planned included renting pontoon boats from a dock on the other side of Vallecito Lake, opposite the ranch. The day was beautiful. The storm had cleared to bright blue, sunny skies. Hiring a few vessels, we all had allotted times throughout the day to take a cruise. I brought along fishing poles and bait for each boat.

  Waiting to board our pontoon in the late afternoon, I heard Jade speaking French with a small group of people at the marina. Since I didn’t understand a word of it, I could only imagine what they were conversing about. The way her arms were flying about animated, I had a feeling that she was playing American ambassador, or tour guide. I liked her combined charade motions and semi-dance moves. I couldn’t wait to hear what she was communicating about with them. I was sure there would be a humorous story included—with her there usually was when she spoke about her time in Paris.

  When she joined me again, I razzed her a bit. I couldn’t help myself, I loved to hear her tell stories. Like I said, she had several. “I’m picturing you in a little French maid’s outfit, fishnet stockings, no panties, and a feather duster.” She smacked at my arm and I laughed. “I’m sorry, but your accent is sexy as fuck. You need to bring it into the sack. I can’t believe I haven’t asked you before. New request!”

  “You’re terrible, I was trying to be helpful.” She acted like I offended her, but I knew better. “And sorry to disappoint you, I never learned words that would stir things up between the sheets.”

  “Not fluent in dirty talk?”

  “Only in tourist lingo. I told you I studied French in a classroom along with my art classes. You would think after two years in Paris that I learned more slang, but only a few phrases, not bed worthy though.” She laughed and continued to tell me off as only she could, playfully. “I learned enough to get by daily, but I was impressive directing tourists. Didn’t you notice my hand gestures?” Another snorted laugh, she poked me, “And don’t give me a hard time. I just told them to come by the ranch over the weekend to go horseback riding.”

  “Soliciting me out?” I wiggled my eyebrows at her.

  “Yep, they liked the cowboy hat. Called you a real cowboy. They’d like to ride you. I said that part is only for me.” She laughed louder than ever, attracting the French visitors’ attention, and I just waved at them. “Look at them, they love you already.” They were waving their arms wildly which surprised me, I had always heard the French were so reserved. Maybe Jade was right that they were fascinated by cowboys.

  “Thank you, concierge Jade, my deepest apologies. And by the way, I don’t know a lick of that language so you could say whatever you want to me in French using that sexy as hell, sensuous tone of yours, and you will rock my fucking world.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind when we cozy up later. I’m very good at regurgitating the information I had been given on many of my own excursions around the city. I probably could’ve had a job as a tour guide instead of working in a vintage clothing shop, but it’s not easy to work when you’re a foreigner.”

  Carrying on with her more serious reply, I asked more about her Paris trip. “You were a working student? I thought Americans had to pull lots of strings to work abroad. Being young must have been even harder.” That was the first I heard of her working, her stories before had only included painting stuff and some weird stuff she ate.

  “I only went two years ago. I thought I told you that,” she looked at me strangely and shrugged. “Anyway, I was an older student. I went after my regular college studies. I was looking for more… I was like Jinxie, in need of finding myself. I told you about staying in New York before going to Paris and about Phoebe.”

  “Pastry girl?”

  “Yes, her. When she was out and about in Paris while I was in painting classes, she found out about a position that was more of an exchange for room and partial board. It was a perfect deal. I was sure she was looking into it more for herself, but she had things to organize before she could jump into Paris living. First thing, apply for culinary school. Thank God we didn’t live together with her going to cooking school, I would’ve weighed a million pounds or been deathly ill stuffed to the gills.”

  “I see you eat plenty and you’re thin as can be.” I loved her amazing body. It had all the right curves and I cherished each one as often as I could.

  “Nonsense, I’ve been gaining lately. I’m going to have to start hitting that treadmill in the barn. Though I prefer walking in nature. That would’ve been the only thing that saved me in Paris, all the walking.”

  “Are you going to finish your story? And don’t worry about your workout, I’ll be happy to run you through a circuit!”

  “Yes, I bet you will.” She shook her head and launched back in, “What was I saying… oh yeah, before she left me, she helped me get out of my temporary housing with her outstanding knowledge of the French language and bureaucracy. And thanks to her, I lived over an incredible bookshop in Pigalle that had fabulous pastry every morning and a great cheese and wine happy hour, as we call it here.” She stopped and turned to me. She looked like a light bulb just popped on. “Hey, you might incorporate something like that at the lodge in the late afternoons. Look at me… back to food talk.”

  “Funny you should say that, Spencer plans to add that when he comes back in a couple weeks. Enough business. I only want to hear your crazy stories. You tell me yours and I will tell you mine.” She stuck out her hand to shake on it, then I led her down the dock to the boat that I r
eserved for us alone. Wayne and Sal, along with a few of their family members, had just finished their spin around the lake and informed us that the fish were not biting. Saying our goodbyes, we hopped aboard.

  Settled into seats across from each other we moved through the water. Touring the lake, I pointed out other resorts, the San Juan mountain range, and different nature features along with the manmade dam of the lake. I told her some of the history that I had learned from Hank, like the land once belonged to the Southern Ute Indian tribe, and the lake’s name meant little valley. All of a sudden, I was the one that sounded like a tour guide.

  Stopping near the south end of the lake, we got ready to drop a couple lines. “Ready to fish for our dinner?” I asked her with a grin.

  “Sure.” She lifted a bag I had prepared for fishing, “Hot dogs and cheese to pre-flavor our catch. What kind of fish will they be—not that I would know one variety from the next. When I read menus and they say this is halibut, I don’t question it, it could be cod or sea bass or whatever when it arrives cooked on a plate. However, I am pretty good at deciphering it when it’s raw. Cut it open, slice it up into bite size pieces and plate it with some wasabi, soy and fresh ginger, then I can tell you what type of fish it is simply by its natural color.”

  I laughed, “Are you done, Miss Sushi girl?”

  She shook her head, smiling at me. “Funny,” she said sarcastically with her hands on her hips before I began to tell her about our local fish.

  “The lake is stocked with pike and trout mainly, one other one too, but I can’t remember the name. Anyway, we’re really only catching—hopefully—and releasing. And don’t laugh at our bait, that combo seems to attract them. Hank used to say, ‘why buy bait when you can serve them cheese dogs.’ Oh, how I miss him.”