THE HOPE BROTHERS: The Bad Boys of Sugar Hill

by Honey Palomino

  “Nope, I have an apartment in the city. I was having dinner with my folks.”

  I bit my lip as an awkward silence fell over the room. I picked up a set of reins and began pulling them through my fingers nervously, the smooth leather sliding along my skin.

  “I really appreciate you putting in a good word for me with Jimmy, Lily. You don’t really know me. You didn’t have to do that.”

  “I know I didn’t have to. I’m glad it worked out. Daddy’s always looking for a way to give back, you know? He worked his ass off to get where he is. Likes to think he’s just passing on the goodness, you know?”

  “I hear ya. Well, it’s a big help for me right now. Just doing a bit of transitioning.”

  “Why’d you leave Sugar Hill, Lee?” I asked, my stomach fluttering every time I looked into those eyes of his. But as soon as the words left my lips, his gaze fell away from mine.

  “It was just time for me to go, I guess. I never really felt like I belonged there, you know?”

  “Yeah, you always were the black sheep, weren’t you?”

  “I suppose so,” he replied.

  “Still, I’m sure your family was sad to see you go, weren’t they?”

  “I’m not so sure about that,” he scoffed, shaking his head.

  “You still out raising hell, Lee?” I asked teasingly.

  He looked back at me in surprise and I winked at him. A smile spread across his face and he laughed.

  “I suppose so, Lily. I suppose so…”

  “Some things never change,” I quipped.

  “What about you?” he asked, his crystal blue eyes growing serious.

  “What about me?”

  “You know I thought about it and I do remember you. You were quiet. A good girl,” he said slowly. “Not much of a hell raiser.”

  “No, I wasn’t. Have I changed?” I asked. “Maybe a little. I guess I have, I mean it’s been years…”

  “Yes, it has. What have you been doing since high school, Lily?”

  “I’m in school to be a vet, that by itself keeps me incredibly busy. I help out around here with the books. I compete every year in the barrel racing circuit, hang with my horses, that kind of thing.”

  “Sounds like a nice, busy life,” he said, staring deep into my eyes. My stomach fluttered again and I felt my nipples harden under his gaze. The thing about Lee is that he’s a man. When he turns that smoldering gaze on you, it’s like you can’t help but notice the sex oozing out of it. He looked at every girl like that, I’d seen it a million times.

  It just happened to be turned on me this time and I was certainly experiencing the full effect. It had come on quick and hard and all of a sudden, my breath was ragged and shallow. I swallowed hard, willing my racing heartbeat to slow down as I tried to remain the vision of calm on the outside.

  “Yeah, it is,” I nodded.

  I didn’t want Lee to know how he effected me. In fact, if it didn’t feel so fuckin’ addictive, I would have resisted it, I would have turned away, but there was something in those eyes that drew me in, made me want to run right into those strong arms and never look back.

  Maybe it was just the break-up making me crazy. I wasn’t normally so out of control of my feelings. But I wasn’t always faced with the likes of Lee Haggard, either.

  “Well,” I blurted out, standing up quickly, “I guess I’ll leave you to your dinner. I’ll see you around, Lee.”

  His eyes squinted, silently questioning me. For a brief second, I thought I saw a flash of disappointment, but that couldn’t be. Lee was only being nice to me because I was the boss’s daughter. I needed to remember that a man like Lee didn’t get involved with a girl like me. We were from two different worlds, no matter how much I wanted to rip his Wranglers off and see what all of Sugar Hill had whispered about for years.

  As if to agree, he tore his eyes from mine and stood up with a curt nod.

  “Thank you, Lily. Please tell your folks how much I appreciate it.”

  “Will do, Lee,” I said, turning away before my feet began running in his direction of their own volition. “Have a good night.”

  “You too, Lily,” he whispered to my back.

  It took all my strength to keep walking. Even more so, it took all my strength not to turn and look over my shoulder as I did so.

  I knew he was watching me walk away. The heat of his gaze followed me, bringing a blush to my cheeks and a swing to my hips that wasn’t there before.

  By the time I made it back to the kitchen, I felt like I’d run a marathon. Heart pounding, hands shaking, knees knocking, and my head spinning from imagining what it might feel like if Lee laid those huge hands on my skin.

  I ran into the bathroom and locked the door, my hand slipping into my jeans as I indulged in every single delicious fantasy.

  Maybe I wasn’t Lee’s type, maybe we were complete opposites, but for a brief, harmless few moments in my head, we were perfect for each other.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  LEE

  After Lily left, I closed the door of the tack room, locked myself in the bathroom and pulled my painfully throbbing cock out and tossed one off. The way she’d been mindlessly pulling those reins through her fingers, sliding her fingers up and down the leather, over and over had made my cock swelling in my jeans. But then she’d look at me like I was the best thing since sliced bread and I was a goner.

  She was cute as a fuckin’ button - those strawberry blonde curls bouncing around her little cherub face, the enticing swell of the top of her breasts escaping from the top of her t-shirt. And those plump little lips that she kept biting, as if she was trying her damnedest not to let some forbidden words escape her perfect little mouth.

  Fuck. I was hard as a rock, and I had never been more thankful for a moment of privacy. I leaned up against the door, visions of her walking away from me, her ass swaying like a damned siren’s song in my mind playing over and over until I found the sweet relief I was aching for.

  Damn it! I thought, as I cleaned up. She makes me feel young again. What the fuck was that about? It was so out of the blue and unexpected, because I was used to feeling the same old thing around the ladies. Once I was done, I wasn’t one to stick around after.

  But something about Lily made me want to get to know her. Sure, I was jacking off like a stallion around a bunch of mares in heat just thinking about her, but it was more than that.

  Usually when I set my sights on a woman, it was over as soon as it had started. But here I was, with a spent cock in my hand and I was still thinking about her.

  I was wishing like hell she hadn’t left so quickly, because I wasn’t anywhere near finished with her.

  I tried to remind myself, and my cock, that she was the boss’s daughter, and I shouldn’t entertain the thought of getting involved with her, but that fact kept conveniently fading away as I spent the next few hours finishing off my bottle of whiskey all alone, thoughts of her sweet face, sexy drawl and perfect hips the perfect distractions as I drowned my sorrows.

  At least they were until my stupid fucking phone rang, jarring me from my thoughts. It was my brother Beau. I shouldn’t have answered - I was pretty wasted by then - but that’s probably why I did.

  The fucking booze always made the worst decisions for me.

  “What’s up?” I answered.

  “It’s about fucking time you answered your phone, Lee!” Beau’s angry voice ripped into my eardrum.

  “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. What do you want?” I asked.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you? Are you really this heartless? Dad tells us he’s dying and you just fucking run off?”

  “That’s not why I left,” I slurred. Fuck Beau, I thought. Fuck my family, I thought. What did they expect me to do?

  “What are you talking about?” Beau asked.

  “Ask your parents!” I spat, instantly wishing I could pull the words back in my stupid mouth.

  “My parents? They’re our parents, you asshole!”
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  “Yeah, sure, whatever. Look, Beau,” I tried to sound reasonable. Whatever that was. “I just needed some space. I got a job in Houston and I’m going to stay here for a while.”

  “Houston?” he asked. “Doing what?”

  “I’m working at Jimmy Morgan’s practice barn. He needed some extra help during the rodeo.”

  “Jimmy Morgan’s a good man, Lee.”

  “Yeah, I know that. Why do you feel the need to tell me that?”

  “Forget it,” he muttered. “Just don’t fuck it up this time.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence, little brother,” I said, my voice laced with sarcasm.

  “That’s not what I meant,” he replied, “just forget it. I’m glad for you Lee, but you need to come home as much as you can. Dad’s really sick.”

  “Right,” I said, the pain slicing through my heart. “How’s Ma?”

  “She’s not good, Lee. I don’t know what happened between the three of you, but you’d better put it aside and man the fuck up. She’s really going to need us now. They both are.”

  Nothing like a good dose of family guilt to fall asleep to, I thought, as I tossed and turned on the lumpy bed after we hung up. It was dark, the barn eerily quiet as I lay there alone with my thoughts, alone with my guilt, alone with all the bullshit life had dealt me.

  Even thoughts of Lily couldn’t lift the brick that had settled in my gut.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  LILY

  My boots echoed on the dusty barn floor. It was early and the morning dew still hung in the air. Everything was so fresh and clean. I loved being the first one to greet the herd, my heart swelling at their excitement to see me. Sure, maybe they just knew my arrival meant breakfast wasn’t far behind, but I liked to think they liked me a little too.

  I took the time to greet each horse individually, rubbing their muscular necks and furry muzzles, giving each of them a small carrot or apple. I loved feeling their mouths work against my palm as they devoured the treat.

  Their warm, musty scent had grown into a type of aromatherapy for me. A sense of complete peace fell over me, just like it always did during these first sacred moments of my day.

  My horse was the last on the first row, and I swelled with pride as I walked up to Charlie. Charlie’s black head bobbed up and down when he saw me and by the time I made my way into his stall, he was pulling me into his body with his chin, hugging me against him. He did it every morning and I hadn’t even trained him to do it. He was my boy. I’d give my life up for this horse.

  Daddy gave him to me for my sixteenth birthday and we’d bonded right away. Standing at sixteen hands, he was a lot to handle. He was quick, strong and agile. But most importantly, he was smart as a whip. When it came to barrel racing, he was my ace in the hole, my blue ribbon winner. He’d taken to the barrels so well, my job was small. I just had to sit there and hold on for the ride, letting him fly around the barrels at breakneck speed. He loved it, and because of that, so did I.

  I’d fallen in love with horses way before Charlie came along, but he was the one that made me decide to be a vet. He’d changed the course of my life and given it meaning. He was my best friend, even more than Vivian. I owed everything to that horse.

  I gave him an extra carrot and set about doing some chores. Daddy had lots of help and they didn’t really need me doing anything, but it was rodeo week and with all the extra work involved, I didn’t mind helping out at all.

  I grabbed a pitchfork and wheelbarrow and headed towards the first row of stalls. I stopped in my tracks when I saw Lee standing in a stall on the right. Red, one of our biggest and strongest Quarterhorses was leaning up against him, his neck receiving what was clearly a blissful massage from Lee’s strong hands. Lee’s head was bent as he quietly whispered to the huge horse, his hands working expertly over Red’s tight muscles.

  Red was well-trained but he didn’t normally take to just anyone rubbing on him. And the way he was leaning into Lee told me that he approved of Lee in a big way. If Red didn’t want you to touch him, you wouldn’t be touching him.

  I was about to turn around, but Lee looked up, catching me watching him.

  “Lily,” he called.

  “Oh, hey,” I replied, last night’s nerves quickly returning. “I didn’t want to interrupt.”

  “You can interrupt,” he said, tipping his ever present Stetson at me. “I noticed Red looked a little sore yesterday, thought maybe he could use a little help.”

  “That’s very observant of you. And very nice,” I smiled, walking over to them. Red lifted his head in greeting and I reached over and scratched his ears. “Hey, Red.”

  “How was your night?” I asked.

  “Great, great. It was nice to get a good night’s sleep. It’s so peaceful and quiet here at night.”

  “Sure is. And in the morning, too. I always try to arrive before anyone else gets here to say good morning to the horses, have a little alone time with them.”

  He nodded at me, that slow half-assed grin spreading across his face, knocking the breath out of me again.

  “Don’t let me get in the way of your morning therapy,” he said, locking Red’s door behind him as he exited his stall. He stood in front of me, staring down at me curiously.

  “You sure you’re okay, Lily? You seemed a little sad or something yesterday.”

  “Me?” I said, my voice cracking. I cleared my throat, all attempts at being cool fading away.

  “Yeah, you,” he whispered, tilting his head.

  “I’m good, yeah,” I shrugged. “I just broke up with my boyfriend, maybe that’s what you’re picking up.” Now, why the hell did I tell him that? He didn’t need to know that. And I certainly wasn’t sad over it. “Not that I’m sad about it,” I blurted out, a little too emphatically.

  He scoffed a little and then cocked his head to the side.

  “I can’t imagine you would be. I’m sure no man in his right mind would break up with you, so what happened? What did the jerk do?”

  The prick’s face flashed in my mind, his whispered betrayal echoing in my ears. I wasn’t about to answer Lee’s question honestly. Why, he was practically a stranger.

  “He called me by another woman’s name,” the words shot out of my mouth before I could stop them. “In bed.”

  I clamped my hand over my mouth and looked at him in shock.

  “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have told you that…” I muttered, turning away in embarrassment, my cheeks flushing hotly.

  “Hey,” he grabbed my arm, pulling me back to him. “That’s okay. I asked. Your boyfriend sounds like a real shit.”

  “Ex…” I whispered, even more heat rising to my cheeks. Why in the world had I confessed that to him? What the hell was wrong with me?

  “Ex. Right. Good riddance to that asshole!” he winked.

  “Yeah…” I said, my gaze falling to a piece of hay on the ground.

  “Lily,” he whispered, lifting my chin to meet his. I wanted to deny what I saw there but I couldn’t. It was the same thing I felt, reflected back at me.

  Desire? Yearning? Curiosity? All of the above?

  “Lily, you have no reason to be embarrassed. Don’t let him have that power over you.” He peered into my eyes like he was staring into my soul. It was painful, because I didn’t want anyone to see what was there. It was uncomfortable and awkward and made me want to disappear right into the barn floor.

  And yet, I was completely under its spell.

  “You know that, right?” he whispered, his drawl gentle, caressing, his fingers hot on my chin.

  “Um, yeah, I guess,” I said, then nodding more vigorously, trying to pull myself together. His fingers fell away and I struggled to keep my eyes up. “I mean, of course. He’s a jerk.”

  “Yeah, that’s the spirit,” he said. “Listen, if you want to get back at him by calling him my name, you go for it.”

  “I - um - oh, well -,” the heat that had risen to my cheeks earlier caught
fire, along with the rest of my body as the thought of calling out Lee’s name during sex made me quiver in a rush of pleasure, which was promptly followed up by another surge of embarrassment.

  “Goddammit, I’m sorry,” he muttered, shaking his head. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “No, it’s okay,” I replied, trying desperately to regain the composure that I was sure was hiding somewhere. “It was funny.”

  “Was it?” he asked.

  “Yeah, it was,” I smiled. “It’s fine.”

  “Well, if you don’t want to get back at him that way and you need a good, strong cowboy to kick his ass for hurting you, I’m your man.” He tipped that hat at me again and I wanted to rip it off of him and jump into his arms.

  I’m your man, I’m your man, I’m your man…

  His words began looping in my head and I never wanted them to stop.

  “Thanks,” I said, as my feet, having way more sense than the rest of me, began walking away from him. “I should get going…” I muttered.

  I wandered away, leaving him standing there alone in the barn, my head full of him, my hips doing that wiggling thing again and his voice singing in my head like a stuck song.

  I’m your man, I’m your man, I’m your man….

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  LEE

  Holy shit. The way Lily walked away made me want to run right back into that bathroom and lock the door until all thoughts of her had disappeared, but I knew it was useless.

  I’d woken up hard as a rock and it hadn’t gone away, no matter the few minutes I’d tried to get rid of it this morning. Once I saw Lily again, I knew I was in trouble.

  For fuck’s sake, watching her walk towards me was like heaven, but watching her walk away reminded me that I had the devil inside of me. More than anything, I wanted to grip onto those hips and hold on for the ride.

  I went about my business after she left - feeding, watering, letting the herd out, throwing hay out for them in the pasture that they would nibble on all day - but the entire time my mind was on Lily.

  I didn’t dare let my thoughts wander to my family, because I just couldn’t bear it. So, I happily let visions of her pretty little face, her rosy lips and her curvy hips dance around in my head while I worked.