The Case of the Great Land Grab (Agent Thorn Book 1)

by Brandy Golden

  Crossing the floor quickly, she opened the door and saw her new friend standing there, her face flushed with excitement.

  “I thought you might want to know that Thorn's back,” she said quickly. “I just saw him and Boxcar go into the sheriff's office.”

  Clary's stomach gave a sickening lurch as she anticipated the showdown to come. “Oh, Fanny,” she replied breathlessly, “if only I could make him listen to me, the stubborn man! He can be so unreasonable when he's set his mind to something! If I could just make him understand how well I can take care of myself, maybe he would give up this notion of marrying me so fast!”

  Fanny chuckled. “I say marry him while you can. You might not get another chance.”

  Clary shook her head. “No, Fanny, I don't want him that way. He's not ready and neither am I. I don't want to ruin our life by forcing his hand. It would just sour things.”

  “Well, whatever you say, honey, I guess you two have to work it out,” replied Fanny with a yawn. “It's time for my nap before lunch, so I'll be seeing you later.” She embraced Clary in a gentle hug and added in amusement, “You could always tie him up and make him listen.”

  Clary sighed ruefully and shook her head as she let her friend out. Turning around, she squared her shoulders and braced herself for the coming confrontation, because she knew it was only a matter of time before Thorn was knocking on her door. If he even bothered to knock at all!

  * * *

  Boxcar and Thorn tugged their mounts into the livery stable, urging them into the two open stalls that Henry had motioned them to. After rubbing them down and putting their feedbags on, the two men met in the middle of the stall rows and Thorn stretched his tired muscles.

  “You going to see Clary?” asked Boxcar, his eyes twinkling at the pained look on his friend’s face.

  Thorn found himself excited at the prospect of seeing Clary, even if the idea of marriage was daunting. He had tried to get used to the idea of himself in the role of a husband, but it was a difficult task. Still, being married to his sweet little Clary wouldn't be all bad...he could bed her to his heart’s content!

  The idea of children made him extremely uncomfortable, though. Although he planned to have them someday, they made a man in his position impossibly vulnerable! And there were plenty of scoundrels out there who wouldn't hesitate to use a woman or child to their advantage. No, if Clary were pregnant, he decided they would head back to Pennsylvania. It was a lot safer for Clary and the baby to be there taking charge of his father's thoroughbreds than it would be here!

  “Hold it right there! Get those hands up where I can see them!”

  The voice was low and deadly and Thorn and Boxcar froze in their tracks. Slowly they raised their hands in the air above their heads.

  “Now turn around,” came the next command and they slowly twirled around to face their captor. The man who commanded their compliance was not a very big man at all and Thorn's eyes squinted as he tried to place him in the dim light of the stable. Brown Stetson, a baggy plaid shirt, heavy denim that looked faded and worn. The hat was drawn down almost to the man's nose and all they could see was a small mouth, almost like a boy’s!

  “Drop the guns, one at a time and kick them away from you. You first,” the lad indicated to Thorn.

  Reluctantly, Thorn did as he was requested, still studying the slim figure wondering what his purpose was. If he'd wanted to kill them, he would have, so all they had to do was bide their time until they could figure out what was going on. His gaze slid warningly at Boxcar as he copied Thorn's movements and Boxcar barely nodded his assent. They would wait and see what this fellow wanted before making a move.

  “Now tie him up,” commanded the man, throwing a rope to Boxcar and indicating Thorn with his pistol. “Tie him to the post on the stall...make sure he can't get loose anytime soon!”

  “Are we going somewhere?” asked Boxcar mildly as he caught the rope and motioned Thorn to the post.

  “Just do it!”

  Obligingly, Boxcar did as instructed, making sure the bonds were nice and tight before he turned back to the waiting figure. “There...now what?”

  “Now you can leave, big brother,” replied the figure, amazingly taking on Clary's voice. She reached up and took off the brown hat, allowing her lustrous hair to fall around her slender shoulders and down her back, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “Thorn and I have some talking to do.”

  “Clary!” Thorn's voice thundered through the stable and Clary winced slightly. She had known he wouldn't be happy, but Fanny's idea had taken root and she had acted on the spur of the moment, ambushing the men in the stables.

  Boxcar laughed. “I hope you know what you're doing, little sister. But I'll leave him to you.” Still chuckling, he walked out of the stable and assured Henry that all was well inside. For the moment. He couldn't guarantee the state of Clary's backside once she let Thorn go.

  Thorn's voice was low and deadly and Clary shivered in spite of herself. “You had better let me go right now, little girl. Every minute I'm tied up here is that much worse for your ass!”

  “Thorn, please,” pleaded Clary earnestly. “I want you to listen to me for once. I've always let you have your own way because I adored you and I didn't want to make you angry with me. But I'm not a little girl anymore, I'm a woman and I want to be able to tell you things without you throwing me over your lap and spanking me!”

  Thorn looked slightly hurt. “When have I ever forced my way on you?” he asked. “You were always sweet and obedient, I never had to spank you before...except once. Okay, now twice,” he added impatiently. “Besides, what makes you think I won't listen to you now?”

  “Because you ignore me when I tell you I don't want to go back east,” she replied impatiently. Impulsively she moved forward and threw her arms around Thorn's waist. “Oh Thorn, I can't go back east now, its too late. I have all my equipment ordered for my shop, I own my own building and I've moved into my living quarters now. I'm all set up!”

  Thorn’s expression went thunderous. “Clary, you could be pregnant right now. The only thing we are going to do is get married and if you are with child, then we'll be heading back east to my Pa's ranch and building a house there.”

  Clary stepped back, her chin lifted mulishly. “I'm not marrying you, Thorn. Not right now...not like this.”

  “Why not? I thought you wanted to get married. Isn't that why you followed me out here?” Thorn's tone was slightly derisive, yet held a hint of uncertainty.

  “Actually, no,” she replied honestly. “Being near you was only one of my reasons. I wanted to get out from under my father's thumb, to live a little, experience life. I wanted to see if I could make it on my own. I can actually take pretty good care of myself, whether you believe me or not. I'm a crack shot, Thorn, and I can handle myself fairly well in a tussle. And I'm not afraid of every little thing like a simpering lady.”

  Thorn looked assessingly at her. She had managed to capture him and Boxcar, much to his chagrin. The thought that he could have killed her though, had things gone down differently, made him sick inside. He always shot to kill.

  “You don't realize how much danger you put yourself in, Clarisse Worthington,” he scolded harshly. “Boxcar and I either one would have shot you if given the chance. You'll be getting spanked for that for sure. Don't you ever again draw down on a man you don't intend to kill.” He felt the last of his ropes slip away from his arms and Thorn reached for Clary, clearly surprising her.

  “Oh,” she squealed as he grabbed both her arms in a firm grip and hauled her towards the piles of sweet smelling hay in the corner. “How...how did you get lose so fast?”

  “Did you really think Boxcar would truss me up like a Thanksgiving turkey? And you made the mistake of not checking the ropes yourself. You wouldn't be the first desperado to bite the dust by being careless.” His fingers were working on the buttons of her pants and he quickly shoved them down her thighs, then sat down and pulled her over his bro
ad lap.

  Clary screeched when his hard hand landed on her thinly veiled buttocks with a blistering slap. “No, Thorn...no!”

  “Yes, Thorn, yes,” he mimicked as he plied her smooth cheeks with painful slaps that echoed loudly in the stables. The horses whinnied nervously as Clary kicked and protested angrily. Her plan hadn't gone as expected and now she was getting her bottom spanked mercilessly. She cried out in frustration, the tears spurting from her eyes as she begged Thorn to listen to her!

  But Thorn was too busy scolding to listen to excuses. “I'm not having any baby of mine born out of wedlock,” he insisted firmly, punctuating his words as he spoke.

  Finally Clary blurted out her dark secret, unable to stand the blistering spanks that were turning her cheeks into molten lava. “I can't have children, damn you!” She collapsed in a fit of weeping over Thorn's lap as his hand went still. Suddenly she found herself pulled upright and sat on Thorn's knee as he looked incredulously into her red and weeping face.

  “What did you say?” he asked hoarsely, unable to believe his ears.

  “I've been trying to tell you, you big brute,” replied Clary as she sobbed brokenly, “but you wouldn't listen to me! I had a riding accident a couple of years ago and the doctor said I'd never be able to have children. I made him promise not to tell anyone. It was my shame to bear...alone.”

  Thorn felt like the world's biggest heel as he groaned and folded Clary's small frame into his own large one. “I'm so sorry, honey, I've only been thinking of myself and how much I'd worry about you being out here. You're right, I haven't listened to you all.”

  Clary planted her small hands into the middle of his chest and pushed back to look up at him, her face stained with tears, but determined. “Thorn, I can't marry you...I can't give you children. We've never gotten far enough along to talk about children, but I wanted to be able to tell you this in person. And because I can't have children, I wanted to apply myself in some other way in the world besides having a family. I just don't know how that effects you.”

  She gazed earnestly up at him, spilling her heart finally as she laid out her tentative plans for the future. “I don't want you to make any hasty decisions or to feel sorry for me,” she went on. “I want us to explore each other and have time to get to know each other all over again and if you decide you can't marry me, I'll understand. Any man wants children, I know that.”

  Her voice broke on that last sentence, but she shored herself up, determined to let him know it all. She had had two years to get used to the idea, Thorn was just learning about it. She stared at the darkness of the stable wall, not wanting him to see her heart in her eyes and feel sorry for her. She didn't want any false promises.

  Thorn took her chin gently in his large hand and turned her to face him. “Clary, I can't deny that this has been a shock and a surprise,” he said softly. “But I want you to know that I've always thought of children as something down the road a piece. There is one thing I do know, and that is that is that I love you. I've always loved you and will always love you, no matter if you can't have a baby. There are plenty of unloved orphans in the world if and when we decide we're ready to have a family. We'll wait and let the good Lord provide when the time comes.”

  Clary was hesitant, wanting desperately to believe him. “Are you sure of that, Thorn?”

  “I know so,” he replied firmly. He bent down and tenderly kissed her wet lips, a sweet kiss of promise. He lifted his head and went on. “And if you want to stay out here and run your business, then I want you to stay here where I can keep an eye on you.”

  “Do we have to get married?” Clary asked breathlessly.

  “Don't sound so eager,” he replied dryly. “There's worse things than marrying me, isn't there?”

  “I just don't want to tie either of us down right now and I don't think you do either,” she said honestly. “I'd like to experience some life on my own away from my father for a change.”

  Thorn frowned slightly. “Just how much experience are you looking to get? Because you belong to me...remember that. You go getting interested in any other men and I'll have to shoot 'em.”

  Clary laughed delightedly. “Of course I love you, Thorn, and only you.”

  “In that case,” Thorn drawled, taking a paper from his vest pocket. “I think I'll take this job after all.”

  “What job is that?”

  “Working with Boxcar of behalf of the government in the Arizona territory,” he replied with a grin. He handed her the paper.

  Clary read the paper, an idea suddenly blossoming in her mind. “And I could help you both,” she said, excitement making her eyes glow. “I could help you on cases. The women always know everything that goes on in town and I'll have my hat and dress shop open. I can listen to their gossip and ask discreet questions and maybe pick up some information!”

  “Now, Clary,” warned Thorn as she hopped off his lap enthusiastically, warming up to her idea.

  “I'm serious, Thorn! We could even open our own detective agency...Thorn and company...or Worthington, Worthington and Thorn...or...oh!”

  Thorn cut her off as he pulled her pants up and then bent down and hoisted her over his shoulder.

  “Put me down,” she squealed. “Where are we going, Thorn?”

  “I'm taking you home. I can tell keeping an eye on you is going to be a full time job. And there'll be no detective agency! I don't want you anywhere near anything so dangerous!”

  Clary protested all the way to her home and she was out of breath when he finally set her on her feet in the middle of her bedroom and began removing her clothes.

  “Stop it, Thorn, we have to get things settled, get a few things straight...”

  She was cut off as Thorn's mouth caught hers in a kiss born of hungry need and she finally melted against his solid frame in surrender as he quickly divested both of them of the encumbrances of their clothing.

  “The only thing we have to settle is that I love you and you're going to obey me,” murmured Thorn softly against her pale throat as he followed her down onto the deliciously plumped softness of the feather bed. Even as he thrust into her willing body with masterful strokes that elicited gasps of delight, Clary still defied him.

  “We'll see about that,” she panted, her desire rising with reckless abandon as she lifted her hips to meet him head on. They danced on in the lover's dance until they were both lost to the passion that was bigger than either of them.

  Finally Thorn lay replete, nestled to the side of the woman he loved. He didn't know where their adventures would take them, but one thing he was sure of. It wouldn't be easy...not with this unexpectedly fiery woman that made up the other half of him. Still...he knew without a doubt, that in the long run, it would be worth it!

  The End

  Look for The Case of the Haunted Stagecoach, Book 2 of Agent Thorn series, coming soon!

  Brandy Golden

  I love nothing better than a good romance story! If the heroine gets spanked, that's just the icing on the cake! I have lived in the Midwest all my life and have a great family which includes five wonderful children and a patient husband. I hope to continue to write. I love it tremendously, and I hope you enjoy reading my stories as much as I love creating them for you.

  Visit her Amazon Author page.

  Don’t miss these exciting titles by Brandy Golden and Blushing Books!

  Dusty’s Ghost Town

  The Case of the Great Land Grab, Agent Thorn Book 1

  The Case of the Haunted Stagecoach, Agent Thorn Book 2 – Coming soon!

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