The Climax Montana Complete Collection

by Reece Butler

  “That I don’t know. She’s a big city girl, but I don’t think she liked living there.”

  “You bringing her home when you finish that job?”

  “I want to, Dad, but it depends if she trusts us enough. I’d need to know her real name. I don’t want to bring trouble home.”

  “If she’s your woman, trouble doesn’t matter. You bring her here so we can help her stay safe.”

  He grunted, unable to openly agree.

  “Would you put yourself between Jane and a bullet?”

  “Yes,” he answered without hesitation. “So would Riley.”

  “Then she’s your woman. Bring her home, son.”

  He blinked furiously, blaming it on the sun in his eyes.

  “We’ve only agreed to stay together until we’re done here.”

  “If you wait too long, sometimes life’s decisions are made for you. Florrie was born six months after Donnie and I married your mother. Aggie says she wants this cruise, but the best present you boys could give her would be one of those grandbabies she’s hankering after.”

  “Don’t push it, Dad. That Mediterranean cruise will have to do.”

  Travis closed his phone on his dad’s hearty laugh. The chill of early morning had passed with the sun’s rising. Fishermen pumping for ghost shrimp began to line the beach.

  Jane would be up by now, making coffee and breakfast. And if he took too long getting home, Riley would steal Jane’s first kiss of the day. Kiss being a euphemism for what he wanted to do with her day and night.

  While a hot breakfast was a good start to a working man’s day, he never felt this way on the ranch. It was Jane’s accompanying kisses, and the way she filled out those snug T-shirts, that made life worth living.

  You might be right, Dad. She could be the one. But what the heck am I going to do if she won’t trust us with the truth?

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Travis held back a smile as he watched Jane bend over to put cans of beans in the lower cupboard. He’d finished painting the trim upstairs, one of the final touches to get the condo ready to occupy. They’d move their things up in the morning, then finish the first floor. Thanks to Jane, they were way ahead of schedule. She was always there to hold the end of a board, or do time-consuming detail work. She had an excellent eye and a steady hand. When she was bent over working, both he and Riley tended to hit the wrong nail, but neither complained.

  Jane stood up, saw where his eyes were aimed and made a feminine noise expressing her disgust.

  “I think it’s time Jane got herself some new clothes,” he said to Riley. “When I drove by the other day I saw there’d be a half-price sale at the Salvation Army Thrift Store today. The paint has to dry another few hours. Want to see Corpus Christi?” he asked Jane.

  “You mean, go into the city?” She bit her lip, but her eyes shone.

  “You don’t look anything like you did when we first met,” said Travis to soothe her worry. “No one would recognize you.”

  “And if they did,” added Riley, “they’d never think a rich bitch would step foot in a thrift store.” She glared at his choice of words. “Just sayin’,” he added, holding up his hands.

  “I could use some blouses, and a couple of skirts.” She took a sudden interest in the ingredients on the salsa can. “I’ve got twenty dollars saved up.”

  They’d insisted on paying her something, and she insisted on giving most of it back for room and board. When they refused, she stuck it in the swear jar for their mom’s vacation.

  “Would I be allowed to pick out my own clothes?” she asked hesitantly.

  He and Riley shared a look. Their sisters loved to shop. It was torture taking them to the city because they had to wait around for hours. It would be totally different with Jane, especially if they could check out her outfits.

  “I’ve been saving my beer money,” said Riley. He pulled a roll of ones out of his pocket. “I’m buying you a garter belt and stockings.” He paused. “You’ll wear them under your skirt and who knows what’ll happen?”

  She crossed her arms to hide her swelling breasts, but neither of them was fooled. Her pout made her lips even more kissable. Were her pussy lips as swollen? He’d better change into loose shorts or he’d be cut in half when he sat behind the wheel.

  “Time for you to take a ride, Jane,” he said.

  She turned away. “I’ll just put the groceries—”

  “Now.”

  Her hand, reaching for a box of tissues, stopped. He walked up behind her, not touching but making sure she knew he was a bare inch away. She trembled. The pulse in her neck throbbed. He gently nipped it. She moaned. He kissed it better, and stepped back. He was playing with fire, and they had shopping to do. They’d have her try on her outfits and model them when they got home. Then they’d spend a few hours enjoying what was underneath.

  “There’s something else we need to buy,” said Riley.

  “We out of condoms again?” asked Travis.

  “Jane doesn’t have a teddy bear to hug when she’s alone.”

  She gasped and turned to face him. He reached out and she grabbed his shirt with both hands and clung. Every now and then they hit one of her triggers and she had a mini-meltdown. He could kill the man who’d done his damndest to destroy anything Jane might care about, even a stuffed toy. He held her until the storm passed. Her hair smelled like peaches. She must have changed her shampoo.

  “Riley’s right,” he whispered. “You need a great big stuffed bear.”

  “Every time I think you and Riley are sex-crazed fools, you go and do something that makes me think you care,” she murmured. Her breath warmed the front of his shirt.

  “Of course we care,” he replied. “I should have thought of getting you a stuffie right away. My sisters always had them, but I didn’t notice you didn’t. And you didn’t ask.”

  “Jane doesn’t ask for anything,” said Riley. He nudged Travis, who released Jane to him. She turned, and leaned her forehead on his brother’s chest. “Not in words. Right, Duchess? But I can read you loud and clear.” He used a finger on her chin to tilt her head and meet her eyes. “I know what you want, don’t I?”

  She gave a half shrug, mute.

  “And right now, you want to do some girly shopping.” Riley turned Jane around to face the kitchen’s exit. He slapped her bottom, making her squeak. “So let’s get this show on the road.”

  * * * *

  Travis mentally kicked himself in the ass once more as he drove home along South Padre Island Drive. How had he missed something so important, yet his usually oblivious older brother had picked up on it? Jane’s storm of happy tears had faded, but she still sniffed now and then. She clutched that stuffed kitten as if it was the only thing keeping her alive.

  “You shouldn’t have spent so much on me,” she said again.

  Travis sighed at the phrase he’d heard too often in the last twenty minutes. “Jane, it’s just a—”

  “Kitty is not just a stuffed toy!”

  She swatted his thigh in annoyance. He and Riley shared a quick glance. She no longer behaved as if she was lucky to be allowed enough of their air to breathe. She was standing up for herself now. No matter what happened, they’d helped her understand she had worth, just by being alive.

  “You have no idea what this means to me,” she continued quietly. “If I ever had something soft to hug, I was too small to remember. As long as I have Kitty, I won’t be alone.”

  “Jane,” he said gently, “I didn’t mean that Kitty isn’t important to you. Spending my beer money on something that matters so much to you, makes me feel good.”

  Doing anything for Jane that made her happy, made him feel good. It didn’t take much, and that was sad. He’d grinned even wider than she had when she’d come rushing out of the store with her bag of new clothes. Then she stopped and did a full twirl. The skirt of her new knee-length summer dress swirled around her. The hem came up, just enough to tantalize but not to rev
eal. The dress was stretchy, covered in bright flowers, and showed her new curves. Luckily he was standing behind the door of the truck. Riley walked behind her in that stiff way that made it obvious he was just as hard.

  She’d opened the bags and showed him her purchases. Some things, such as the lingerie, still had tags on them proving they hadn’t been worn. But the sexy dresses, flowing skirts, and snug tops had been worn by others. Jane didn’t care. She was so happy to be allowed to choose whatever she wanted, bright colors that had been denied by her father, that she’d bubbled.

  Then he took her to a store full of stuffed toys. He thought she’d take forever to choose one, but when she saw that white kitten, she let out a cry and ran right to it. Even if she’d refused, they’d have had to buy it. She’d clutched that dang cat to her breast and covered it in tears. His shirtfront got soaked as well when she hugged him. It had been worth every penny.

  Jane had been raised surrounded by so much wealth, but little control over the simplest thing. She was told what to wear, how to behave, who she could speak to, even what to think. No matter how lavish, she’d lived in a prison. Now she’d escaped, but the effects lingered.

  Jane was unique. She had a beauty that shone through no matter what she was wearing. Her dazzling smile almost brought him to his knees. While her chatter about the goings-on of the old folks in the complex interrupted his work, he listened rather than tuning her out, as he usually did his sisters. Jane had never been exposed to the daily lives of regular people. She was fascinated by what they said about their pets, their children and grandchildren, and the simple things that he’d grown up with. If she liked to listen to old people tell stories, she’d fit in well in Climax.

  That’s it!

  Jane was worried about what sort of work she could do to earn her way. She was open and friendly, able to work hard, and enjoyed oldsters. The old Tanner’s Ford Hotel had been moved closer to Climax. Part of it was turned into a senior’s home. Jane could get a job there, no problem. One smile of hers and even the grumpiest old man would soon be chuckling.

  She wanted to disappear into the crowd, but it was impossible. Even dressed in loose sweats, with no makeup, she stood out. It was partly the way she carried herself, with the unconscious demeanor of a queen. He didn’t have the heart to tell her to slouch and scowl. Her new dress would make her stand out like a peacock in a field of chickens.

  Luckily her father and fiancé would never think to look for her in a small town like Port Aransas, or even in Corpus. As far as he was concerned, she was safe with them. There might be other reasons why she was in danger, but she wasn’t telling them about it. Yet. That would have to change. He needed to know the whole story before they brought her to Climax. She didn’t have to live with them, but they’d make sure she was safe. But could he stand seeing her, wanting her, and not having her?

  “I want a fashion show when we get home,” said Riley.

  “Jane didn’t show you what she bought?”

  Riley glowered at Jane. “Miss Modesty wouldn’t step out from behind the curtain so I could check her out.”

  “I told you, everyone would have seen.”

  “There was just me and the guy working the counter, which was right in front of the change room,” replied Riley in an aggrieved tone. “He said he didn’t have a problem with a pretty lady wanting to show her new clothes to her man.”

  Jane glowered back. “I was not going to show a stranger what doesn’t belong to him.”

  “But you’re going to show us, right?” demanded Travis.

  He shifted in his seat. He was getting used to the pain of a hard cock whenever he was near Jane. Maybe if they had sex more often it would fade. Like, every couple of hours.

  “Hear that, Trav? Jane just agreed she belongs to us.”

  They shared a look. Jane sputtered, then muttered something cute that she likely called cursing.

  “Damn right,” added Riley. He reached over her head for Travis to meet his high five.

  “Belongs to…” She glared from Travis to Riley. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it!”

  He settled back in his seat. Jane was thinking along the right track.

  “I want to see you in those new clothes, Jane.” Travis took his eyes off the road for a second to meet her eyes and show he was serious. “And then I want to see you take them off.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Jane knew she had a sappy smile but didn’t care. Somehow, Travis had found her a Kitty like the one her mother had given her. She’d forgotten about it until she saw it in that store. She’d loved that small white kitten so much that one side of it was bald where she rubbed it under her chin. It reminded her that, even though her mother was dead, she’d loved her.

  During the day she had to hide Kitty so it wouldn’t be found and thrown out. One day she’d slept in. She’d had to rush to get ready. She was already in the car on the way to school when she remembered. All day she’d been terrified of her father finding out.

  He never said a thing. He didn’t have to. She found Kitty’s head on the garbage can, the stuffing gone. She’d cried every night for weeks. She’d be almost over it, then she’d come down to supper and find a piece of white rabbit fur on her plate. Her weight dropped drastically. That was when she started calling him Beastly Bertie in her head.

  And now Kitty was back. Silly, perhaps, but she felt that a part of her had been returned, helping her become whole.

  “Oh, we need to stop at the IGA first for hair dye,” she said.

  “Why now?” demanded Riley. “I want to see you in that green corset, with your pussy lips all swollen and eager.”

  She almost asked how he knew she was aroused, but stopped in time. She was learning how and when to ask questions. The ones that could get her naked in no time flat had to wait until she was ready for the consequences. Even though they were driving down Highway 361 in broad daylight, Riley was likely to flip up her skirt and check for himself.

  And didn’t that make her even wetter!

  “Thanks to you, I now have some nice clothes,” she said, keeping on topic. “My hair’s grown at least half an inch. You’ve seen the stripe where I part my hair. I don’t feel pretty looking like that. It should be the last time, as this box will match my hair.” She rubbed Kitty against her bare neck. The silky fur felt so good. “Please?” she added quietly.

  “Fine,” said Riley, and gave an exaggerated, long-suffering sigh. “Drop me at the end of the drive. I’ll take Buster for a run while you two shop. But when you get home, you’d better be ready to give me a peep show.”

  “I want more than a show,” added Travis. “I want you riding me while wearing some of those bits of nothing.”

  Riley grabbed her for a kiss when Travis parked on the wide edge of the highway in front of the condo complex. Her lips, upper and lower, were wet and swollen by the time Travis, grumbling, put the truck in gear and continued into town. Riley had taken her bags of clothes with him, saying he’d lay them out in the order he wanted her to parade in them.

  “When I pick you up,” said Travis with a growl, “you are going to get Kissed, with a capital ‘K.’ You hear me, woman?”

  He gave her That Look. Her pussy automatically spasmed. She squirmed on the bench seat. He noticed and settled back with an arrogant, self-satisfied expression.

  She felt so alive with these men. She didn’t have to weigh each word before speaking, or think of all the potential repercussions for every action, or inaction. She blinked back the tears that threatened at the thought of Riley realizing how much a silly stuffed animal would matter to her. She was almost twenty-five years old, and she was tearing up over a fuzzy toy cat!

  But Kitty was more than that, and these men realized it. Yes, it was comforting to rub the fur against her skin. What really made her heart thud was that they’d gone out of their way, just for her. She wanted to reward them. Given a choice of her cooking something special or taking them to bed, she knew
which they’d choose.

  It was her turn to do the seducing.

  When they got home, she would give them a strip tease that would knock their socks off. Socks, and a few more important items of clothing. From the looks she’d seen in their eyes lately, they wouldn’t care whether she was any good at it.

  She looked out the side window to hide her smile. Three pink spoonbills searched a flooded ditch, sifting through the water for drowned worms or whatever it was they ate. This place was magical is so many ways. The stoplight was green so they flew past the black and yellow striped lighthouse. She put Kitty down and picked up her purse.

  “I’ll get gas while you’re shopping,” said Travis. “You need any cash?”

  “No, I’ve still got my twenty dollars. Riley insisted on paying.”

  Ever the gentleman, instead of dropping her off on the sidewalk in front of the candy store and continuing on to the gas station, Travis pulled into the parking lot. He let her out after giving her another look that had her heart fluttering, and pulled back out onto South Alister Street.

  Jane was too eager to dawdle, so she hurried past the wine display to the aisle with the boxes of hair color. Since Travis would be a few minutes getting gas, she decided to get the other items on her mental grocery list. She put the bread, milk, and avocadoes in front of the cashier, returning the older woman’s smile. She glanced out the front window to see if Travis was back while the cashier rang up the total.

  She knew what she wanted to do as soon as she got home. She’d strip them, tie them down so they couldn’t touch her, and then drive them crazy. She’d show them she wasn’t shy anymore. She’d rub her naked body against them, make them wild with lust, and then she’d release them, and run. They’d roar after her, grab her, and—

  “Is that her?”

  Jane blanched at the high-pitched, too-loud whisper behind her. She knew that comment all too well, though it had been months since she’d heard it. Perhaps there was a celebrity in town? She glanced at the tabloid display as if mildly curious. Her sister’s smiling face looked back, wearing Jane’s real name, all in full color.