by Alison Tyler
‘I can’t tell you. You’ll have to figure it out on your own.’
‘Oh, I like a challenge –’ His hands returned to trace the seams of my jeans, but I pushed him away.
‘I know you’re good in bed. Be good out of bed, and then maybe we’ll talk.’
Cody’s rich voice filled the room once again. Each time he spoke, a shiver went through me, but Alden didn’t seem to notice anything odd in my response. ‘We’ve got a bit of Pink Floyd coming up next,’ the rancher murmured. ‘So don’t go anywhere.’
‘Can’t we take a little trip?’
‘Where?’ I asked, thinking he meant Heart’s Desire again.
‘Down the hall, to the bedroom?’
I shook my head. Even though my body responded to the request, remembering immediately what our last bedroom tryst had been like. So he was good in bed. Well, lots of people are good in bed.
‘All right, then right here. Forget the bed. Let’s do it on the sofa.’
I didn’t say a word. He had his hands under my T-shirt now, and his fingertips brushed over my nipples. I closed my eyes and sighed, and he seemed to understand what I wanted. He pinched my nipples between his thumbs and forefingers and I groaned, telling myself the whole time to make him stop, but not wanting him to stop at all. Wasn’t that my world in a nutshell? I never seemed to be able to do the right thing.
‘Come on, Charlie.’ His hands were all over me now. ‘Let’s take this to your room. We don’t have to go all the way.’
‘What is this?’ I murmured. ‘High school?’
‘You know you want to.’
‘Definitely high school.’
‘You’re going to give me blue balls.’ His expression was pained.
‘Stop it, Alden. You’re making me feel like a teenager again.’
‘I can see you as a teenager, your pretty red hair in braids, your big green eyes rimmed in some cheap turquoise Wet and Wild pencil. I’ll bet you wore those satiny little striped Dolphin shorts and the OP tops that drove all the boys insane.’
I stayed quiet, not letting him know that he was right. The itsy-bitsy short-shorts had ultimately been banned by our principal because none of the boys seemed able to get any work done while the girls were wearing them. Of course, that had been the point. Teenage girls love their first taste of power.
‘Do you still have all that gear? Packed away in some little box? I’d die to see you do some cheer for me.’
‘I was no cheerleader, Alden.’
‘Then let me play at being your first.’
I gave him a look.
‘You were a little prick tease, weren’t you? You drove the boys crazy, but you wouldn’t go all the way. You were saving it for the one you loved.’
‘You’re the one who’s been playing the tease. You’ve been trying to have it both ways. From me and from Sheila. It won’t happen like that again. I’m telling you that now. I won’t allow myself to be put in such an awkward position.’ I tried to push myself away from him, but Alden easily swung me back on to his lap.
‘What about a less awkward position?’ As he spoke, he started to undo my jeans. This time, I let him. He had my pants and my panties off in a second, and then he stood and undressed himself while I pulled my shirt over my head. ‘What about a position like this?’ he asked, sliding back down on the sofa and pulling me on top of him into a sultry sixty-nine. Although I knew full well what he wanted from me, I waited for a second, feeling his warm breath flutter against my pussy, and at that all of my resolutions to keep calm dissolved. His tongue flicked out and touched my clit and a hunger slammed through me. I gripped on to his cock with one hand and brought my lips to the head.
So maybe this wasn’t the way to show him how upset I’d been. Well, sue me. I couldn’t deny the connection I felt with him, or the desire I had to be with him. Or the fact that at this particular moment in time I wanted nothing more than for him to make me come like a powerhouse, the way he had before our most recent night at The Saloon.
Alden used his tongue in the most intricately sexy manner. He tricked it up and down, giving me perfect contact, and then began to make lazy designs, caressing the sensitive area around my clit without actually touching that hot little button. I squirmed my hips, working to manoeuvre myself into a better position, but Alden held on to me firmly, keeping me precisely where he wanted me with his hands tight on my ass. I could feel the juices of my arousal gathering, and Alden pressed his mouth to me, getting his tongue deep in my fur.
‘So tell me about your first,’ he said, his breath once again tickling me until I nearly creamed. That most subtle sensation was desperately sexy. It took everything I had to pull away from his cock and give him a verbal response. ‘You want to know my past seductions?’ My voice was low, gravelly.
‘I want to know everything about you,’ he said, but I responded by sucking on him again, and making his breathing go ragged. I knew how to stop him from pressing me for stories of my ancient history. I just had to keep him on the edge, using my expertly skilled mouth and lips and tongue.
‘It was on a sofa like this, wasn’t it?’ he continued, proving me wrong. He had an amazing ability to focus. That was clear. Maybe it had something to do with being a firefighter, having to hone your powers of concentration. Well, I could play dirty if I had to. I licked up and down his shaft, then brought my mouth around to the top of his cock and sucked him as deeply as I could. Johnny always said I was a born cocksucker, and he meant that as a compliment. Now, I used all of my X-rated skills on Alden, trying to show him exactly how focused I could be. Two could play the game he was trying to stage. When I paused for a breath, I used my hand to jack his spit-slicked cock, and he sighed again but refused to let go of his new favourite topic.
‘Some old couch in your boyfriend’s basement rec-room?’ he guessed. ‘Am I close, Charlie?’
I wouldn’t say.
‘Or maybe out in the woods at a church picnic?’
I kept my mouth busy working, and he responded by licking and tickling my clit with the very point of his tongue, bringing me so much pleasure that I started to moan as I sucked him. I couldn’t help myself. I got louder and louder with each corkscrew coil he made with his tongue, and I could tell that he liked the way the vibrations felt around his cock when he grew even harder still. When I was dripping wet and his penis was well lubricated from my mouth, he spun me around. ‘You ride me,’ he demanded. ‘You get on top.’
I did as he said, gripping into his shoulders and gazing down at him. His brown eyes were glazing over with pleasure and as I pushed my way up and down on his rod, I found myself enjoying the feeling of being in control. Alden let me work him at my own speed, and I slid myself up and squeezed him fiercely, then slowly slid back down. He sighed and wrapped his large hands around my waist, giving me a bit of extra support. He wasn’t asking me any questions now, but suddenly I found myself getting into the game.
‘It was on a pool table,’ I finally said, and he arched his body and lifted me clear in the air with his next thrust, bucking me as if I were a cowgirl astride a raging bronco. I could tell that he was imagining the picture I painted for him.
‘And it was in a rec room.’ His eyes glowed and he bucked me again, and I tossed my head and held on to his muscular shoulders, my nails digging savagely into his skin. ‘And I loved every fucking second of it.’
Afterwards, I stood up slowly, my whole body feeling lit from within. The pleasure remained with me, and I felt as if a warmth was emanating from my centre, all the way to my fingertips. Slowly I searched the room for my clothes, but I only slipped my panties and camisole back on. I didn’t have the energy to get fully dressed. I sat back on the sofa and wrapped the soft blue throw blanket around my shoulders, watching as Alden pulled himself together. He took his time, too, dressing slowly, a smile on his face.
‘Tonight I’ll take you out to dinner,’ he said, as if we were still in the middle of that former conversation, as if our sex
session had never even interrupted our discussion.
‘Where?’ I shot back. ‘The Weedwhack Diner? Where everyone can look at us and gossip behind their menus? Oh, look, there’s that homewrecker Charlie.’
‘The Daisy Diner,’ he said, correcting me with a fierce look because I’d dared to besmirch the one beloved restaurant in town.
‘Whatever.’
He shook his head. ‘I’m talking about a proper dinner. Barbeque at Rancho Ricardo.’
Now, I couldn’t help but smile. Proper and BBQ together in one sentence.
‘All right,’ I said. ‘We’ll give it a try.’
Chapter Fourteen
Geneva crossed paths with Alden when he left.
‘It’s my turn,’ she said, and I watched Alden’s eyes narrow. I could tell that he had an instant mental picture of what my turn with Geneva could look like: the same sort of sixty-nine that he and I had so recently shared, twisted together on a couch, woman to woman. Geneva’s a dream – with her willowy body and long, copper-brown hair, she looks far more like a fashion model than a firefighter. If the two of us ever got together, we’d be all long limbs and cascading tresses, our fingertips working against one another, our breasts pressed together as we lost ourselves in a passion-filled kiss. I knew precisely what Alden was picturing, and guessed that the image was probably giving him a fresh hard-on. What man wouldn’t be turned on by two stunning pussycats licking each other in long, languid strokes. It was easy for me to see why the ladies who liked ladies were always talking about her.
‘You watch out,’ Alden called over his shoulder. ‘Genie can be very persuasive.’
I waited on the porch, offering nothing in response to Alden’s comment.
‘You free to talk?’ Geneva asked, after we’d watched Alden’s truck drive away.
‘Sure,’ I said, opening the screen door. ‘You want some tea?’
Geneva checked her watch. ‘It’s after four. You have anything more serious?’
‘Whiskey.’
‘I said “serious”, not “dangerous”.’
‘You’ll have to take what you can get,’ I told her. ‘I’m fresh out of all other libations.’ I headed to the kitchen. Geneva followed behind me, watching as I got out the bottle of Glenlivet and two glasses. ‘You know, you could really do a lot in this place,’ she said.
‘I’m waiting to see if I’m going to stay,’ I told her.
‘You’re not sure about us all yet?’
‘It’s still pretty new to me.’
‘Rumour has it that you’re fitting right in.’
‘What do you mean, “rumour has it”?’
‘When you’re fodder for the gossip mill so quickly, it means that we’ve accepted you. Look at it as a sign of love.’
‘Is that right? I thought all the buzz I was hearing was a fair warning that I was going to be ridden out of town on a rail. Complete with the standard coat of tar and feathers.’
‘You’d look good in feathers.’ She grinned. ‘A little pink marabou, maybe, but I’d leave off the tar.’
‘You know what I mean.’
‘We can freeze out the strangers we want nothing to do with,’ she explained, reminding me of what Alden had said about the Sweethearts. ‘The fact that you’ve affected so many of the locals means that, if you want to, you could be here to stay. Years from now, people will still refer to you as that hot redhead from LA, but they’ll mean it with the utmost affection.’
I hadn’t thought of the gossip in that way. ‘If the cabin goes up for sale and I choose to buy it,’ I told her, ‘then I’ll fix it up.’ Making that statement sounded more real than anything I’d recently been considering. Would I actually be willing to stay in Raysville? I didn’t know.
I handed over her shot. She took it with her to the living room, and I trailed after her, bringing the bottle with me. ‘Until then, I’m just fine with the bare-bones decor.’
‘Speaking of bare.’ She grinned. ‘I’m here to talk about NUDE. I want your help, as I explained the other night. And I want you to be part of our group.’
‘Why are you so interested in me?’ Her eyes gleamed, and I took a sip of the alcohol to build my confidence. ‘You know I’m not going to change my preferences. I’m a solid player for my team.’
‘I know,’ she said. ‘But you’re smart, and you’re beautiful, and you can help us with the design schemes. We’re missing someone with your skills.’ She pulled open her black leather satchel and pulled out a slim leather-bound portfolio. ‘This is what we’ve done so far. We’re starting to get recognition. I think we could really make something of it.’
I paged through the black-and-white photographs of naked women. In each picture, the women’s bodies spelled out a political message. The background for every photo was one of breathtaking beauty: a nearby beach, an empty field surrounded by trees, a fog-shrouded hill.
‘You have a talented photographer.’
She nodded. ‘And we want to put together cards, posters, a book, maybe. T-shirts. Everything. We’re already set up as a non-profit organisation. Now, we could actually raise some money to make a difference. Money that could help local programmes, or help us back the sort of politicians who might forward our chosen causes.’
I looked at the pictures again, and I remembered that first day in town, when the men at the Cowpie were crowded around the weekly paper, trying to figure out which naked body belonged to which girl they knew. Would I be able to handle that sort of scrutiny? I knew that Alden would most definitely get a charge out of my baring all. But what would Cody think? And, more importantly, why did I care?
On a sudden whim, I decided to ask Geneva about the mysterious rancher. She was one of the few people in town who didn’t seem as if she’d already judged me. Maybe she’d be honest if I probed into a little background history. Besides, everyone in this town apparently was addicted to gossip. I wouldn’t be doing anything out of the ordinary by talking about someone we both knew.
Geneva looked at me for a moment, and then said, ‘There’s different theories about Cody Lassiter.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘About why he doesn’t engage any more. Because he doesn’t. You see him bantering with the bartenders, or taking a pretty girl for a spin around the dance floor, but he never gets truly involved.’
I thought about that for a moment.
‘As far as I understand it,’ Geneva continued, ‘he’s not over his last girlfriend.’
‘But I heard he plays the field.’
‘Played the field. There isn’t really enough field to play out here, I guess. Once you make the complete circuit, you have to start all over again at the beginning. That’s the trouble. That’s why you were such an instant hit. Gorgeous and sexy and ready to jump right in the ring without the slightest hesitation. The men in town couldn’t have asked for anything more. Except maybe for Mia.’
And now I remembered the other gossip. The news that Mia had kissed Alhambra. Could I ask about that? I didn’t know Geneva very well, but we were discussing a personal matter here – going nude for a political cause. I tried to think of a clever way to broach the topic, and then I just went for it.
‘You know, I heard that the new blonde girl was already playing the field –’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Noah, and then Alhambra …’
Now, Geneva smiled. ‘Alhambra’s a bit of a flirt. If she gets a little to drink in her, she’ll kiss just about anything.’ That seemed to indicate that Mia had been making out with the spiky blonde.
‘So you’re not upset?’
‘We’ve got an understanding,’ Geneva explained. ‘She can do what she wants at The Saloon, but she always comes home with me.’
When Alden picked me up for dinner, my mind was still on the next NUDE project. The first activity after I joined was to be a big one. Geneva had been serious about her ‘No More Bush’ campaign. That meant I’d have to go completely bare, something I’d
never done. Aside from an old-fashioned barber shop with the spinning blue-and-red pole, there were no salons in town, either. Although I made myself smile by imagining asking the ancient barber for a Brazilian, I realised that I would have to go over the hill or do the job myself.
‘What’d Geneva really want?’ Alden asked, as if reading my mind.
I hesitated. Not sure whether to spill the news.
‘I can guess,’ he said, and I let him, knowing that he’d think the worst and deciding that he deserved a few moments of worry.
As we drove along the winding road, we passed several crosses. I was growing more accustomed to seeing these roadside memorials, places where accidents had occurred, some sporting piles of stuffed animals, others balloons or dried flowers. Alden didn’t seem to notice this particular site, but my eyes focused on it, as if the white crosses glowed in the darkness. I wondered what the highway in Los Angeles would look like if people got it into their heads to decorate the scene of every traffic accident. There probably wouldn’t be a stretch of road that didn’t sport some sort of memorial. But out here it felt different. In such a small community, the people who lost their lives were known by everyone. There were no strangers.
‘Come on,’ Alden said. ‘You can tell me.’
‘It was about NUDE.’
‘I thought as much,’ he said, nodding. ‘But specifically why did she make a trip to your place? She could have phoned you.’
I considered the query. Had she been snooping around? Trying to find out if I was connected to Mia? Or was that paranoid of me?
‘I don’t know,’ I told him honestly. ‘Maybe she thought she’d be more persuasive in person.’
We kept on going, past the reservoir glinting with moonlight, past the place where fishermen stood early in the morning. Finally, Alden pulled his truck up in front of a low, Spanish-style building. The town we were in now was smaller than Raysville, about the size of Dogtown. In the evening light I could see a church, a post office, three ranch-style houses and this one restaurant. Alden got out of the truck and headed towards the BBQ joint. I didn’t say anything about opening the door myself, but I thought that Cody would have been at my side, holding it open, offering a hand to help me down. Why was I so intent upon comparing the two men?