by Reece Butler
“Ah, boyo, you’re all heart.” Donny slapped him on the back. Simon jerked forward from the blow. “I’ll be back about ten with the kids.” Donny’s eyes went to Simon’s lap. He snickered at the obvious lump bulging out the sweatpants. “Better be finished by nine thirty in case we’re early.”
“Don’t be early.”
Donny stopped with his hand on the doorknob. “Marci and I had a chat in the barn.”
Donny could be too damn honest sometimes, telling things that Simon wished kept quiet. “What did you tell her?” He groaned at the wicked smile spreading across his cousin’s face. Donny straightened up and adjusted his hat.
“Just the truth. But I’d say the lady’s eager for more of whatever you gave her this morning.” He opened the door and stepped through. At the last moment he turned and looked over his shoulder. He waggled his eyebrows. “You be good, now.” He looked at the cast. “Or at least as good as you can with that stiff leg.”
Simon tried to get up to chase after Donny and demand to know what he’d told Marci. He’d barely gathered his crutches when he heard the roar of a V-8 diesel as Donny drove home to his wife, fellow husband, and children. Then the only sound was his own breathing and the loud tick of that black-and-white cat clock. It kept lousy time, but he’d never bothered to get a new one. It never seemed to matter before.
“For God’s sake, you’re forty years old,” he muttered. “Shouldn’t be holding on to old things that have no use.”
Did that include the memories of rejection? Should he tar Marci with the same brush as their ex-fiancé, and their mother? How could he trust Marci when almost everything he knew about her were assumptions. Maybe she didn’t like city living. Maybe she’d always had a secret hankering to live on a ranch with a couple of cowboys.
“Yeah, right. And maybe I’ll be able to ride tomorrow.”
He liked things to stay the same. Life hadn’t changed much since his parents died. Familiarity was comforting, just like this cabin. His ancestors had built it by hand. Each generation had added to it as circumstances had changed. His father added a huge sunroom to the back so their mother could look up at the mountains while she tended her plants. When she was alive, they had fresh tomatoes most of the year, and herbs all year round. But there was never enough time for the extras that a woman provided to turn a house into a home.
Just looking around, taking the time for once, he saw things that made him cringe. The thick layer of dust on top of the fridge was one. Who cared about it when he never put anything there? Same thing for the curtains over the sink. He’d used them too often to dry his hands when he didn’t see a dish towel nearby.
Everywhere were signs of neglect. Had he given up on everything except keeping the ranch going because he figured he wouldn’t have sons to pass it down to? The way the market was, if they didn’t have a good year, they could go under anyway. That would mean letting the rich Texan MacDougals take over. Why should he keep things up, only to lose it all to a bunch of strangers?
The Montana MacDougals had kept an eye on their Southern cousins over the years. He didn’t know if the ones in Texas even knew they existed. Perhaps they had nothing to worry about.
He didn’t believe the family stories about gold nuggets hidden around the valley. Not anymore. He and Lance had done their fair share of searching over the years. They’d never found more than a few speckles of gold. It was enough to make a ten-year-old happy but not near enough to save a ranch. From what he could tell, all the gold had gone south to Texas in 1863 so Finan MacDougal could establish his Bar MD ranch.
Even if he and Lance did produce a son, could they get the ranch back into the black or would they lose it all anyway? He’d been working too hard for too long with his head in the sand, plodding one foot in front of the other to see the total size of the mess.
Breaking his leg had brought his life to a crashing halt. Everything he’d taken for granted was on the line. No more could he coast through life with one day no different from the rest. He was going to beat this problem. And that started with taking control of himself. Now that he’d been thinking of other things his cock had finally calmed down enough that he could pee. Just realizing it turned it into an urgent matter. The bathroom was twice as far as the front porch. Marci was in the barn. If she looked out, she’d see him.
“Too damn bad,” he said as he struggled to his feet. “She’s been married so she’s seen a man taking a leak before.” He took careful steps toward the door. “Two more days and I’ll get this damn thing off. Another couple of weeks and I’ll be good as new.”
He made it to the door. It took some maneuvering but he got out. Instead of one or two ravens, there were at least eight lining the ridge of the barn. One of them must’ve spotted Marci and told the others. How she reacted to the thought of guardian ravens would tell him a lot.
He wrapped his left arm around the post. Stretching the fabric of his sweatpants let him haul his cock out the top. He sighed in relief as he watered the ground. There were always flowers around the house when he was a kid, but that was another thing that took a woman. He was just finishing when Marci sauntered out of the barn. That explained where his dogs were, the traitors.
Bailey nudged her hand, looking for treats, and she laughed, opening her mouth wide. The sound rang through the yard, emphasizing the silence that had preceded it. The ravens watched her with interest. He suddenly realized a certain advantage of an openmouthed laugh. It proved she could open wide for other activities as well.
He had a sudden fantasy of Marci dressed as a nurse. He closed his eyes, figuring he had time to enjoy it before she came near.
Marci the nurse wore a very short, very tight white dress, a white garter with matching stockings, white heels, and nothing else but a smile. She found him lying on his bed in pain and said she’d make him feel all better. She eagerly pulled back the sheet to find his hard cock. The one in his hand grew to match. Then she brought her mouth close and whispered—
“You want help with that, Mr. MacDougal?”
“God, yes!” he groaned to his fantasy nurse.
“Then we’d better get you back to bed before you fall over. I’ll get the door, but you need both hands on your crutches.”
The nearby sound of her voice brought him crashing down to earth. He opened his eyes. Marci, looking very amused, held the door open. She pulled her lips to the side as if fighting off a laugh. Was she laughing at his cock? She was certainly staring at it. That wasn’t all she was doing. With her sweatshirt gone again those amazing nipples were tight berries straining against her thin T-shirt.
He was horny. She was horny. “Back to bed?” he croaked.
She skimmed her free hand over her breast. He groaned, wanting his mouth and hands there. “Should I start without you?” She tilted her head and lowered her eyes.
“Hell, no!”
Somehow he managed to get through the door and all the way to the housekeeper’s suite without even thinking about it. All he had to do was follow that swaying, enticing backside. He stopped at the side of the bed, panting from both exertion and anticipation. She hauled his shirt over his head then took his elastic waistband and bent over. In one swoop he was naked to the toes. She pulled back the sheets and motioned for him to sit. She lifted his right leg for him, helping while he got straight on the firm mattress. If his leg hurt, he didn’t notice.
“Ah, Marci?” He cleared his throat. “What’ve you got in mind?”
She quickly stripped to nothing but skin. His mouth went dry. He didn’t know what had brought this wild woman into his life, but he was not going to jump off this horse when the eight-second buzzer went off. Hell no! He was going to ride it until it was plumb tuckered out. She jammed her fists on the curve of her hips and licked her lips.
“I’m gonna ride me a cowboy. You ready for the ride of your life?”
“Hell, yeah!”
Chapter Thirteen
Marci hid her uncertainty as she looked a
t Simon’s cock. She wanted the mind-blowing orgasm she was sure Simon could provide, but it had been many months since she and Ted had sex. It was one of the ways he punished her. After she realized her wedding-night disappointment wasn’t going to improve, she never let on that she liked him staying away from her room. By then she disliked everything to do with him. But Nikki was living in the basement apartment, though she spent most of her time at the hospital as an intern. She could not have said anything to Ted that would have forced Nikki out. He had no idea Marci purposely did things to irritate him so he’d stay away from her bed.
While she’d barely seen Ted’s cock in the dark, she was dang sure Simon was a lot thicker. And longer. And oh, boy, did she want him pounding deep inside her in a way Ted never could, or would.
Simon had given her a rocking good orgasm with his mouth last night and this morning. He would have given her another equally good one if Donny hadn’t driven up. Donny had all but told her to go for it, to take whatever she wanted and let Simon enjoy himself as well. The heat rising to her face wasn’t all embarrassment. A lot of it was sheer sexual need.
But did Simon have any condoms? Ted always used one, so she’d never had sex without it. He insisted it kept her germs off. She was happy to go along with that. Once she realized he was shooting blanks he was no use to her. Now was not the time to try sex without a condom. It was the most fertile part of her cycle and, even though she wanted a child, it must be with someone who understood she would be the only parent. Simon was too desperate for a child to chance it. She had no intention of sharing her life with a man again because she’d discovered the woman shared, and the man took. But she shouldn’t put someone like Simon, or Donny, in the same category as Ted. Maybe not even the same species.
If she ever found someone who wanted her just as she was, warts and all, who wanted an equal partner yet would also cherish her as a woman, she just might consider marriage. But not now. This time was for hot sex with a wild cowboy.
“I don’t suppose you have any condoms?”
“Yes, ma’am. Top drawer.”
He eagerly pointed to the far side of the bed. She scrambled over, purposefully giving him a view of her bottom before she stood on the floor. He groaned, which made her even wetter. The drawer complained, wood scraping against wood, as she hauled it open. There were a bunch of square packets, so she reached in and pulled one out. When she turned around, he’d already shoved the sheet as far down as he could. She pulled it off the bed, completing the job. It took her a moment to figure out she needed to use her teeth to rip the packet open. She carefully removed the latex ring and tossed the garbage aside.
She knelt on the bed and crawled over to him. Biting her lip in concentration, she figured out which side would make it right side out, and slid the latex over his huge cock. Too late, she thought of licking him clean first. She loved his taste, which completely surprised her. He looked at her with such longing and eagerness that any hesitation fled. She wanted that cock deep inside. She’d be on top and could move however she wanted. Or not. She raised herself and put one knee on the far side of his hips. His cock rubbed against her clit and pussy lips when she slid back and forth.
“That feels so good,” he said with a moan.
“Oh, yeah,” she agreed. “But this should feel even better.”
She took him in her fist and, rising up, guided the tip of him into her. Just the tip, since he was so big. Ever so slowly, savoring as each wonderful inch stretched her, she sank down on him. He hissed each time she pulsed up and down. He grabbed the sheets with his fists, perhaps to stop himself from grabbing her.
Good. She wanted to be in control of this, every step of the way. Finally, her bottom touched his thighs. She looked down. Their curls mingled, her black with his red. He throbbed inside her. She clenched in return, making him groan even louder.
“God, you are amazing,” he said.
She lightly fingered her clit with one finger and stroked her breast with the other hand. But though his eyes widened and he panted even faster, he didn’t take the hint. She leaned forward and set her palms on his chest. She dropped down just enough so her nipples trailed over the light fuzz of his chest hair.
“Don’t you want to play with these?” she asked. She gave a bit of a shimmy, making her breasts jiggle enticingly.
He didn’t answer, just went for them with both hands. He played with them, stroking and squeezing. It felt good, but wasn’t enough. She arched, dropping her pelvis so her bottom went high. It changed the angle and drove her clit into his pubic bone.
“Mmm, feels nice,” she murmured as she moved forward and back, her clit against him. He rested his hands on her waist but didn’t put any pressure on her to move to suit him. When she sat up, he went after her breasts again. He teased and pinched, fondled and tugged as she moved up and down, faster and faster.
That thick, long cock hit deep inside her, but it wasn’t enough. She made a high-pitched sound of need. He reached between them and found her clit.
“Oh, yes,” she moaned.
He wiggled it back and forth, faster and faster. She slammed back against him, taking his cock all the way.
“You’re so tight and hot and wet, baby, I’m not gonna last,” he said between gasps.
He pinched her nipple, hard, and her orgasm hit. Waves of release rolled over her, one after another. She was just slowing when he took her hips in his hands and lifted her. She used her thigh muscles to help him lift her up and slam down, faster and faster. He hit something which set off another explosion. He roared and bucked into her. She rode him as her orgasm went on and on.
Finally, he slowed. She collapsed, her sweat-soaked breasts rubbing against his chest as they both fought to breathe. Her head buzzed. She was so dizzy she had to lie flat. She slid to his right side, careful of his cast. She collapsed, head on his chest, her right leg still over his, as they slowly came down to earth. She couldn’t think of a thing to say. Thanking him didn’t seem right, but what did?
He lifted his head and kissed her hair. “If it took breaking my leg to get you into my bed, it was worth it.” He kissed her again, forehead this time. “Damn, woman, you are amazing! I could do with another of those anytime you like.”
The reminder was exactly what she needed. She pushed herself up and looked him in the eye. His were glazed, and likely so were her own.
“I’m glad you liked it, but I didn’t do it for you. And thank you. I thought surviving that fire was something. Don’t let it go to your head, but you just made my future a heck of a lot brighter. I’m going to use you every chance I can get, buster.”
He laughed, deep and open and almost boyish except for the knowingly wicked look.
“Honey, I don’t care why you want hot sex from me, but I’ll be glad to give you more whenever you want. Dang, woman, that was fine!”
“I admit that was the best sex I’ve ever had.” She cleared her throat and tried to act tough. “Keep it up and I’ll stay on for a while.”
Marci pulled up the sheet and then snuggled down beside him. His arm came around her as if it belonged. Warm, heavy, it pulled her close. She could almost feel his heartbeat in counterpoint to hers. This was what she’d been missing all her life. Sexual completion and contentment. She was right where she wanted to be. She closed her eyes and relaxed.
Sometime later she woke, feeling safe, warm, and cozy. She stretched and wiggled to get more comfortable.
“Unless you want to go another round, I’d suggest you stay still.”
Her eyes shot open. She checked the clock.
“Oh, my God, it’s nine thirty!” Her brain went from sleepy to overdrive in zero point two seconds. “The kids will be here in half an hour!”
“Or less. Donny suggested they might be eager to come over.”
She rolled off the bed and to her feet. She tripped on something and kicked it out of the way. Simon tucked his hands behind his head and smiled as if life was perfect. His eyes flickere
d down her body. Ignoring the heat he created, she ran into the en suite. She stuck a facecloth between the door and the frame so it wouldn’t shut on her.
“I’ve got a few more ideas you might like,” he called after her. “There’s a lot more condoms in that drawer.”
She drowned out his voice with the shower. “I can’t believe I fell asleep like that,” she said, checking the temperature with her hand. “Just zonked out, curled up against him like that.”
Her fingers traced over her body as she washed. She soaped up, taking her time to wash away all evidence of what she’d done with Simon, before and after morning chores. Her body tingled, as if awakening for the first time. It was true. She was thirty and had just realized how wonderful it was to have a man create an orgasm for her.
She ran her fingers through her hair, separating the long strands. Her hair was the only thing she’d denied Ted. He said married women shouldn’t have hair past their shoulders. But since she always kept it up in an elegant chignon, one the senior partners had complimented him about, he hadn’t cut it off while she slept. She was sure he would have otherwise. He believed she was a creation of his, and he, therefore, had the right to determine everything about her.
She hadn’t noticed him impose his will on her. He did it so slowly, by increments, that she was unaware of how much he’d ground her down until too late. She’d become so accustomed to Ted’s demands that she hadn’t realized what she’d allowed him to do to her. She’d become his pet robot, there for no other purpose than to serve him.
“Well, I’m nobody’s robot now, or their pet!”
She rinsed her hair, a process that took some time due to the amount of it. Aggie had short hair, as did Nikki. Marci had never met another woman who’d had hair as long. She’d trimmed it, of course, but only to keep it healthy. She’d been blessed with her father’s Spanish hair, thick and black. She had his eyes and, thanks to her darker skin, she never burned in the sun. Genetics were all he’d given her.